Coverage
Mitchell’s NJPW AXS TV Report: Dominion 2018, Part 1 & 2!
AXS TV speeds up their NJPW coverage by giving us two hours of Dominion! In Part 1, it will be both the NEVER Openweight and IWGP Jr. Heavyweight titles on the line! Then in Part 2, it’ll be the IWGP Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships. Will Los Ingobernables de Japon win or lose those precious titles?
This review of Dominion 2018 will be as broadcast by AXS TV.
Therefore, all images are courtesy of AXS TV.
Gifs courtesy of http://frentique.tumblr.com
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Part 1 – NEVER Openweight Championship Triple Threat: Hirooki Goto VS Michael Elgin VS Taichi w/ Miho Abe; Elgin wins and becomes the new NEVER Openweight Champion.
- Part 1 – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay VS Hiromu Takahashi; Hiromu wins and becomes the new IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion.
- Part 2 – IWGP Tag Team Championships: EVIL & SANADA VS The Young Bucks; The Young Bucks win and become the new IWGP Tag Team Champions.
- Part 2 – IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Tetsuya Naito VS Chris Jericho; Jericho wins and becomes the new IWGP Intercontinental Champion.
PLAY BY PLAY
NJPW and AXS TV review what has led to Part 1!
The Best of the Super Juniors 25 had a 5.5 Star finale with The Ticking Time Bomb defeating the new Bone Soldier, Taiji Ishimori. Hiromu has faced Will Ospreay in the past, but the Aerial Assassin has had an amazing 2018 as he’s defeated Marty Scurll, Kushida and Hiromu both all at once and individually. They go one more time, will Ospreay retain? Or will Hiromu explode and shock the world?
Meanwhile, Chaos’ Fierce Warrior, Hirooki Goto, has retained his NEVER Openweight title time and time again, but in 1v1 matches. Now he has two challengers in the Unbreakable Mike Elgin then the Sliest Wrestler in the World, Taichi. A rare triple threat for the title, will Goto overcome this new challenge? Or will he be dethroned to crown a new NEVER king?
NEVER Openweight Championship Triple Threat: Hirooki Goto VS Michael Elgin VS Taichi w/ Miho Abe!
The ego of Taichi sparked the anger of the Fierce Warrior, and so without hesitation, Goto decided he would face both men to prove his dominance. Has Goto gotten himself over his head? Or will he rise to the challenge he put on himself?
Taichi, ever the dramatic one, waits to take his cape and mask off until the other two men already removed their extra gear. The bell rings and we begin. Fans are already loud for the champion as he approaches his challengers. But then Goto and Elgin realize Taichi is the real problem maker here, so they go after him. Taichi gets to ropes for safety, so they back off. Elgin and Goto both dare Taichi to come back. Taichi does, and the three circle. But again, Taichi finds himself against them both so he leaves the ring. There are no count outs so he doesn’t have to worry about losing this way. Goto and Elgin tie up, and that’s when Taichi rushes back in! He rolls Goto, but Elgin breaks that cover.
Elgin whips Taichi, but Taichi slides out. Taichi relaxes while Goto and Elgin brawl with big forearms and elbows. Elgin and Goto go back and forth while Taichi paces about. Goto gets a headlock but Elgin powers out. They collide with shoulders, and neither man backs down. Elgin shouts for Goto to bring it, so Goto runs. They collide again with no change, so Taichi rushes in again. But he runs into kicks from both men, and then a double whip. He holds ropes to bail out again, having a laugh at the other two. Taichi brings Miho Abe over, and she serves as a perky distraction for a moment. Elgin shakes it off to waistlock Goto, but Goto standing switches. He elbows out while the referee has Miho climb down. Elgin runs, but Goto follows, only for Elgin to enziguri! Fans applaud for that athleticism.
Elgin suplexes but Goto slips out to a waistlock. Elgin standing switches but Taichi returns. Taichi runs in but Goto evades so the boot goes into Elgin. Elgin goes out while Goto kicks Taichi. Goto runs but into Elgin’s shoulder. Elgin slingshots over but Taichi kicks him. Goto grabs Elgin, but Elgin boots Taichi away to then standing switch and shove Goto at Taichi. Goto collides with Taichi and Taichi staggers to ropes. Elgin lifts Goto but Goto fights out to standing switch and shoves Elgin at Taichi. Taichi kicks Elgin, then Goto clubs Elgin. Then they both roundhouse Elgin down! Taichi smirks, wanting to make this the partnership now. Goto says no with a slap, a kick, and a snap suplex onto Elgin! Then another snap suplex, and Goto goes back to Elgin.
Goto tries but can’t suplex Elgin up and over, but Elgin lifts and gordbusters Goto onto Taichi! But Goto makes that a cover, so Elgin has to break it up. Elgin drags Goto up while Taichi rolls away. Elgin chops Goto, then gives a big forearm. He whips Goto corner to corner, but misses his corner attack. Goto goes after Taichi but Taichi dodges to hit Elgin with a corner clothesline. Goto runs back in, Taichi dodges again, so Goto hits Elgin. Taichi runs into a kick, but reverses the whip. Elgin puts Goto on the apron, then side steps Taichi to send Taichi into Goto! Goto goes down, Elgin German Suplexes Taichi! Elgin holds on while fans applaud and Miho grows concerned.
Elgin brings Taichi up, but Taichi grabs ropes. But Elgin ignores the ropebreak to bring Taichi backward into a double chicken wing. Taichi resists and stomps Elgin’s foot, then ducks Elgin’s lariat. Taichi enziguris Elgin! Elgin is dazed and down to his knees. Taichi brings Elgin back up, but Elgin drops down to resist the lift. Goto returns and drags Taichi out of the ring. Taichi rakes the eyes, but he and Goto still brawl. Elgin sees his opening, and FLIES!
Big Mike bowls both Goto and Taichi over, but we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns as Elgin walks over to Taichi. Miho begs he not, but Elgin doesn’t care. He puts Taichi in the ring and the fans rally. Elgin aims at Taichi and runs in corner to corner for a big clothesline. He goes again, but runs into a boot. Goto returns and hits a saido suplex on Elgin. Goto runs but misses Taichi. Taichi kicks in return, then runs for a big lariat. Cover, TWO! Off comes the pants! Taichi aims at Goto, but Goto catches the kick into a fireman’s carry and Ushigoroshi! Cover, TWO! Fans rally and Goto keeps his focus. Goto drags Taichi up, and hoists him onto the top rope. Goto climbs up to join Taichi, but Elgin comes in and clubs Goto. Elgin yanks Goto down, then climbs up after Taichi. Goto clubs Elgin and SUPER back suplexes Elgin down!
Goto goes back to Taichi, clubs away then brings Taichi up. Taichi resists, but he rakes the face, too. Goto headbutts back, but Elgin returns! Elgin climbs up, sunset flips in, Tower of Doom!! Taichi hits with a lot of momentum off that superplex, and he writhes all the way to the opposite end. Elgin stands and fires up as he has his pick of the two. He goes for Taichi, brings him up, and throws him out of the ring. Elgin targets Goto, but Goto meets him for clotheslines. They collide but stay standing! They try again, but another solid collision. One more time, but Goto swats Elgin’s arm away. Goto runs, but Elgin swats his arm away. Elgin throws forearms from both sides, then spins, but Goto fireman’s carry.
Elgin dodges to try the full nelson, but Goto breaks free. In that case, Elgin shovels Goto onto his shoulders! Electric Chair with Bridge! TWO!! Elgin can’t believe it, but he won’t lose his focus. Elgin drags Goto back up, but Goto resists the driver or bomb Elgin wants. Goto back drops Elgin, then runs in at the corner. Goto blocks one boot but not the other. Elgin boots, then SUPERKICKS, then enziguri, but Goto ducks that one. Goto runs, but his clothesline only staggers Elgin. Elgin fires up but Goto headbutts him. Goto lifts Elgin, spin to another Ushigoroshi! He keeps going, GTR Forward! Cover, TWO!! Elgin survives, but Goto is not deterred.
Taichi’s back, and he’s back to using Miho as a tool. She’s in the ring, but the ref spots her. Goto grabs Elgin for the dragon sleeper, but Taichi has grabbed his mic stand! Taichi smashes Goto in the head, then Elgin! Miho exits and Taichi gets away with it. Taichi laughs at his own brilliance while fans rally for Goto and Elgin. Taichi fires up and aims at Goto. Goto staggers, into a SUPERKICK! Cover, TWO!! And Taichi is shocked! But he still grins as he targets Goto again. Goto sits up, for the buzzsaw! Then, the chicken wing cradle, but Elgin returns to deadlift Taichi up for a Buckle Bomb! Elgin keeps going on Taichi, and sees Goto in another corner. Elgin bombs Taichi onto Goto! Then gives Taichi a sit-out powerbomb!
Cover, Elgin WINS!!
Winner: Michael Elgin, by pinfall; NEW NEVER Openweight Champion
Big Mike gets a big win on two big names! Elgin becomes the 18th champion ever, and the titles first Canadian! And fittingly, Taichi is the one to lose, as he goaded both Goto and Elgin into this match. Elgin and Goto stand face to face, knowing this isn’t truly settled until they face 1v1. Where and when will these two get their desired showdown to prove who is truly worthy of that title?
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay VS Hiromu Takahashi!
The Ticking Time Bomb won the 25th Best of the Super Juniors tournament to earn this newest chance at the Aerial Assassin’s title. But between the broken win on his trophy and his track record against the Aerial Assassin, does he have a chance at truly becoming the Best of the Junior Heavyweight Division? Or will Ospreay’s stellar roll through 2018 blow up in shocking fashion?
The belt is shown and the fans rally behind Hiromu. The bell rings and we begin. Ospreay runs and boots Hiromu, and they ignite into a forearm brawl back and forth! Ospreay backs Hiromu down, sweeps the legs, but runs into an overhead throw! He hits the buckle hard, then goes to the apron. Hiromu runs, but Ospreay holds on against the flying sunset powerbomb. Ospreay hops down to bring Hiromu over to the ramp. He suplexes, but Hiromu slips out to a waistlock. Hiromu tries to German Suplex Ospreay off, but Ospreay slips down and out. Ospreay trips Hiromu and Hiromu hits the ramp. Ospreay then gets up, gets a running start, and FLIES!!
The Aerial Assassin was like a missile as he hits Hiromu down! Hiromu is lucky it was just a graze or that could’ve been even worse. The referee checks on both men, but both men are okay to continue. Ospreay takes some time to pull up the floor mats! The 20 count reaches 10 as Ospreay brings Hiromu over for double underhooks. Hiromu resists, and Ospreay realizes the count is climbing, so he ditches this dangerous idea to put Hiromu back in the ring. Ospreay brings Hiromu up but Hiromu chops away. Ospreay kicks back then puts Hiromu in a corner for a running European Uppercut. He sweeps the legs again, and this time hits his corner to corner dropkick! Cover, TWO, but Ospreay keeps his cool.
Fans still chant for Hiromu but Ospreay points out he’s the champion here. Ospreay brings Hiromu up for a EuroUpper, then another. Hiromu falls, but Ospreay wraps his arm in a hammerlock while going for the other arm. Hiromu endures being bent back into the armlock recliner! It’s a cover, ONE, but Ospreay is still confidently calm. Hiromu gets out of the ring, clutching his shoulder now. The 20 count returns, but Ospreay pursues. Ospreay clubs the bad shoulder, then whips Hiromu into railing. Ospreay stalks Hiromu, and drags him back up. He pulls Hiromu into a post!
Ospreay puts Hiromu into the ring, then drags him back up. Ospreay goes after the arm with the shoulder breaker. Hiromu rests against ropes but Ospreay is on him again. Ospreay pulls the arm through the ropes to wrench it, then kicks Hiromu in the back. The champion is in control while we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns, and Ospreay brings Hiromu back up for a snapmare. Ospreay puts Hiromu in a seated abdominal stretch and also pulls back on the arm. Fans rally for Hiromu, and Hiromu stands up to fight back. Ospreay gives Hiromu a forearm, then whips, but Hiromu dodges to headscissor Ospreay! Hiromu stands while Ospreay goes to a corner. Hiromu runs in, clothesline and roll to the basement dropkick. Ospreay rolls out, but Hiromu is on the apron for the flying John Woo dropkick! Hiromu hits Ospreay down, and Ospreay’s shoulder tape has come completely off. They go back into the ring, and Hiromu climbs up top. Hiromu hits the flying senton! Cover, TWO!
Fans still rally for Hiromu, and he looms over Ospreay. Hiromu brings Ospreay up for a fireman’s carry, but Ospreay slips out. Ospreay waistlocks but Hiromu hits back with back elbows. Hiromu whips but Ospreay reverses. They both run, but Ospreay runs into a pop-up sit-out powerbomb! High stack cover, TWO! Hiromu was so close, but he won’t lose focus yet. Hiromu stands and stalks Ospreay to a corner. He chops Ospreay, then chops again, but Ospreay fires up. Hiromu digs his fingers into Ospreay’s face! He breaks up at 4, then whips Ospreay corner to corner. Ospreay enziguris back, then hits with an elevated 619! Ospreay goes to a corner and springboards in for a flying clothesline!
Direct hit, but Ospreay doesn’t cover yet. He stands up, making sure his neck and shoulders are good. He aims at Hiromu, but Hiromu avoids the spin kick. Hiromu runs at Ospreay, but Ospreay catches him into a dragon sleeper! Ospreay lifts Hiromu but Hiromu slips out. Hiromu shoves Ospreay but Ospreay stops himself, only to run into a boot. Hiromu grabs Ospreay in the hanging triangle! The referee counts but Ospreay breaks out to kick Hiromu down. Ospreay runs, and FLIES with the Sasuke Special! Direct hit! Ospreay stands up and brings Hiromu over. They go back into the ring, and Ospreay brings Hiromu up. Dragon sleeper, inverted suplex to side slam! Cover, TWO!
Fans rally for Hiromu but Ospreay vows to finish this. Ospreay runs, springboards, but into a German Suplex! Fans rally for Hiromu again while both men are down. Ospreay sits up first, but Hiromu rolls towards ropes. Hiromu and Ospreay sit up on their knees, and Hiromu gives a forearm first. Ospreay hits back, but so does Hiromu. They glare at each other as they hit again and again. They stand up as they fight, but start to stagger. Hiromu shouts for Ospreay to get up, so Ospreay hits back. The forearm brawl continues, and Hiromu gives shots from both sides. Ospreay gives one big shot and Hiromu is rocked. But Hiromu SUPERKICKS, then runs, only for Ospreay to hit his flip kick.
Ospreay enziguris but Hiromu ducks under to then waistlock. Ospreay standing but Hiromu breaks free, then Hiromu ducks the hook kick to get the German Suplex! But Ospreay stands to flip kick again, and hit that enziguri, to Reverse-Rana! But then Hiromu stands and wants his own, only for Ospreay to slip out and give Hiromu another Reverse-Rana! Ospreay keeps going, bringing Hiromu up in the double underhook. He lifts, but Hiromu sunset flip powerbombs first!
The fans are all fired up, even though neither man stands. Both men stir, and Ospreay gets to ropes. Hiromu follows and joins him on the apron. They both stand up, and Hiromu grins as he gives Ospreay a forearm. Ospreay hits back, but so does Hiromu. Ospreay gives another shot, but Hiromu gives many more in return. Hiromu lifts Ospreay but Osprey slips back into the ring to hook kick Hiromu! Ospreay climbs up and brings Hiromu over, to deadlift SUPERPLEX! But he rolls through, to hang Hiromu up on the top rope. Ospreay climbs again, and aims at Hiromu, for a Burning Star Press! But he isn’t done there, he goes back up again. Ospreay aims, Red Arrow! Cover, TWO!! Ospreay is shocked he hasn’t won while we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns as Ospreay stands back up. Ospreay brings Hiromu up, double underhooks, but Hiromu fights out. Hiromu ends up on the top rope and kicks Ospreay away. Hiromu then turns and leaps for a Destroyer piledriver! Ospreay stands up but is out on his feet, so Hiromu drags Ospreay down into the triangle hold! Hiromu pulls on Ospreay, squeezes Ospreay, but Ospreay fights up and deadlifts Hiromu into a bomb! But Hiromu holds on! Fans are thunderous as the two fight, Hiromu squeezing and Ospreay fading. Ospreay gets another lift, and makes it a package driver!
Hiromu only sits up from being out cold. Ospreay sits up while the referee checks on Hiromu. The fans are thunderous, but the Robinson Special hits! Ospreay wants it, so he runs and springboards, but Hiromu shoves him to the apron. HIromu runs, and leaps over to sunset powerbomb Ospreay near the open patch of ground! Ospreay surely regrets moving some of those aside. Hiromu puts him in the ring, then brings him up, fireman’s carry to Time Bomb! Cover, TWO!? Ospreay survives?! Hiromu can’t believe it, but fans are still thunderous for him.
Hiromu stands and has Ospreay up again, but Ospreay pops out of the swing to roundhouse Hiromu! Then, hook kick! Hiromu fires up and swings, but Ospreay deflects and counters with a heel kick! Hiromu is out again, but Ospreay won’t leave it at this. Ospreay drags Hiromu up, double underhooks, but Hiromu arm-drags into a triangle! Ospreay endures as Hiromu squeezes. Another deadlift, but Hiromu reverses into the D Driver!!
Hiromu crawls away, but he’s not done. Fireman’s carry, Death Valley into the corner! Fans are at a fever pitch as Hiromu brings Ospreay up, for another Ticking Time Bomb!!
Cover, Hiromu WINS!
Winner: Hiromu Takahashi, by pinfall; NEW IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion
He’s done it! Hiromu has prove himself THE Best of the Super Juniors by dethroning the Aerial Assassin! This is only his second reign with this title, but it means so much more to have won it after all the hard fought matches. Now he brings back both the BoSJ trophy and the Jr. Heavyweight Championship belt home to Los Ingobernables. How long will Hiromu be able to say he is the best of the best of the Jr. Heavyweight Division?
Backstage interviews.
Will Ospreay pats himself on the back over putting up a good fight, but he isn’t done just yet. He’ll walk out with his head held high. Don’t count Ospreay out of NJPW just yet.
Hiromu Takahashi says it was a long battle, but he got the upper hand. He rests with his trophy and belt and says it’s no mistake. His is now the strongest Jr. heavyweight in the world. He’s the face of the division. No, of ALL of NJPW! Will Hiromu’s stock continue to rise? Or will Ospreay be back to blow him up in return?
NJPW and AXS TV review what has led to Part 2!
Los Ingobernables de Japon is under attack from all sides, and their championship belts are the primary targets. Chris Jericho made his return to NJPW in shockingly violent fashion when he suddenly attacked Tetsuya Naito from the crowd! Y2J would bash Naito open with the ring bell, and make the newly minted IWGP Intercontinental Champion bleed. Ever Tranquilo, Naito brushed it off and dared Jericho to face him in the ring for said title. Both men are charismatic but dangerous, who will come out the true alpha with a title in their hands?
Meanwhile, The Young Bucks have done all there is to do as a tag team, at least within the Junior Heavyweight Division. Motivated by their desire to match The Golden Lovers, Kota Ibushi & Kenny Omega, Matt & Nick Jackson put on weight to qualify as Heavyweights and now go for new gold! However, LIJ’s King of Darkness and Cold Skull have fought hard against bigger men and won. This is a first-time encounter for NJPW, will the Superkick Party add yet another set of tag titles to the collection? Or is the party over now that they’re in new waters?
IWGP Tag Team Championships: EVIL & SANADA VS The Young Bucks!
The long-standing staples of the Bullet Club have had tag titles from ROH, PWG and NJPW’s Junior Heavyweight Division at one time or another, and sometimes even all at the same time. They are even two-thirds of the current NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Championship trio. But now they want to prove they can do it bigger and better than before! Will they check off the heavyweight tag titles for the first time? Or will LIJ’s menacing duo show the Matt & Nick what it truly means to be heavyweight wrestlers?
Tiger Hatori is the referee, and he raises the belts to signify this is officially for the titles. He checks each them, then has them go to their corners. Nick and Sanada start for their teams. Fans are behind Sanada as he circles with Nick, but there are plenty of fans chanting “The! Elite! The the Elite!” for the Bucks. Nick and Sanada tie up, and Sanada gets the headlock. Nick powers out but Sanada runs him over. Things speed up and Sanada jumps over and over Nick until Nick holds ropes to stop himself. Nick runs and throws Sanada with tilt-o-whirl headscissors! Sanada gets up but Nick chops him to then “lucha libre~” arm drag Sanada. Nick dropkicks Sanada, then fires up as Sanada backs off.
Tag to EVIL and Matt, but Nick stays in to drop toehold Evil for Matt’s slingshot leg drop. The Bucks see Sanada come in, and double hip toss him for double dropkicks. Fans applaud for the Bucks as Matt goes after Evil. Evil rakes Matt’s eyes, then coordinates with Sanada. They double suplex, but Nick saves his brother for them to double kick. Nick runs and Matt pops him up for the double missile dropkick. Both Sanada and Evil go down and out, but the Bucks take aim. Nick jumps up and FLIES onto them. Nick brings Evil back into the ring for Matt. Matt brings Evil up to whip, but Evil holds onto ropes. Matt tries again but Evil holds on so Matt clubs him. The whip goes through this time, but Evil holds the ropes on the other side.
Matt runs in, but into Evil’s boot. Evil runs out but misses, yet still gets Matt with the sidewalk slam! Nick runs in, but into a drop toehold. Sanada adds a baseball slide and sends Nick out. Sanada exits while Evil goes to Matt. He puts Matt on the outside, then whips Matt into the railings. Matt’s bad back is a target, and Evil keeps on it. Evil puts Matt back in the ring, stands on him for a cover, ONE. Tag to Sanada, and Sanada drags Matt up for a whip. Sanada runs Matt over with a back elbow, then standing moonsault. Cover, TWO. Tag to Evil, and Evil brings Matt back up for a neckbreaker. Cover, TWO, but Evil keeps on Matt with a chinlock while we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns and Evil has Matt in that chinlock. Matt feeds off rallies from the fans and fights his way out. Matt runs but into double chops. Evil leaps for the back senton but Matt gets clear. Matt reaches for Nick but Sanada clobbers him down and throws him out first. Sanada slingshots but misses, and Matt hurries to his corner as fast as he can. Evil intercepts by taking Nick out, but then he runs into a hip toss from Matt. Matt wants to tag but there’s no one there. Nick slowly recovers while Evil runs in at Matt. Matt boots but Evil blocks, only for him to miss the spinning clothesline and get Nick’s kick! Fans rally and Matt crawls back towards his corner.
Hot tag to Nick, who rallies on LIJ with those swift kicks! Nick gives Sanada the shining wizard in the corner, then hits the bulldog-clothesline combo! Fans fire up again, and Nick sees Sanada on the apron. Nick runs to triangle jump dropkick Sanada down, then gets a running start. He aims at Evil, but Evil ducks the Penalty Kick to send that into the post! Evil sweeps the legs out and Nick hits apron before tumbling to the floor. Nick clutches his foot, but Evil is on him and that leg. Evil laces the leg in the railing to kick and jam it. Nick hobbles to the ring but Evil is on him. Evil grabs the leg but Nick shoves him away.
Nick gets up, brings Evil around and in comes Matt. Matt SUPERKICKS, but Evil dodges to send that into Nick! Sanada returns and throws Matt out again. Sanada & Evil target Nick but Nick fights back with forearm sand elbows. Nick runs but into a mule kick, front kick and Evil runs. Nick SUPERKICKS Evil, but it’s with the bad foot! And Evil comes back with a clothesline! Cover, TWO, but Evil calls to end this. Evil brings Nick up with Sanada, but Matt returns. Nick headscissors out of Magic Killer to throw Sanada, and Matt dropkicks Evil down. Matt goes after Sanada and hoists him onto the top rope. The Bucks regroup and climb up to join Sanada. Nick is sluggish with that bad foot, and now Evil returns! Evil makes it a Tower of Doom!
The Bucks are bombed while Sanada is superplexed! All four men are down from soreness and exhaustion, but Evil is first to rise. Evil goes after Nick, but Nick hits back with forearms. Evil kicks Nick, then fisherman, but Nick slips out to retaliate with a tornado roundhouse! Again, the bad leg slows Nick down, but fans rally up. Nick and Evil crawl, hot tags to Matt and Sanada. Sanada and Matt brawl back and forth, but Matt hits a spinning back kick. Matt whips Sanada to a corner but Sanada elbows out, to then quebrada. He wants the inverted DDT or even Skull End, but Matt reverses to Sliced Bread. Not for the impact, but for the Tombstone lift! Nick lines it up, but Evil yanks him down!
Sanada reverses, dragon sleeper! Matt snapmares out then trips Sanada, but Evil returns. Matt trips Evil, and goes for the Sharpshooter! The Cease is on, but Sanada says Desist with his Skull End! But Nick comes in with a flying stomp! Everyone separates, going to different corners. Fans rally up while Matt and Sanada stir. Sanada tags Evil, and Evil runs in at Matt. Matt boots but it’s blocked into the discus clothesline. Evil lifts Matt in a fireman’s carry, sit out Widowmaker! Cover, TWO!! Evil is shocked, but he keeps his focus. He slashes the throat and brings Matt up. Matt reverses the STO into a Tombstone position. Nick tries, but that bad ankle gives out! Evil turns the Tombstone position around, and Sanada flies in to copy the Meltzer Driver! Perhaps call it the Ingobernables Driver?
Cover, but Nick breaks it! Sanada tosses Nick out, and Evil says it’s time to finish it their way. He lifts Matt up and Sanada helps for the Magic Killer! Cover, but Nick returns to break the cover again! Sanada again throws Nick out, then slingshots over to plancha Nick down! Both men crash and burn, and Evil drags Matt up. Matt slips out of the STO to backslide, TWO! Even Evil thought that was three. Evil walks into a jawbreaker, but Sanada tags in. Sanada runs and gets the dragon sleeper! He wrenches Matt back, then feeds him to Evil’s mule kick. Sanada adds the knee lift, then Evil runs but into Matt’s clothesline!
Sanada dropkicks Matt down then dropkicks Nick off the apron. He goes back to Matt as fans fire up. Sanada puts on the dragon sleeper, but Matt flails and reaches, so Sanada swings Matt around and around! He puts Matt down, climbs up top, MOONSAULT! Sanada lands on his feet when Matt evades, Matt SPEARS Sanada! Evil clobbers Matt, then blocks the superkick. Evil smacks the bad ankle, then stalks Nick. Matt saves Nick from the STO, and they both SUPERKICK Evil!
Sanada runs in, dodges superkicks, tumbles to the outside and springboards! The Bucks SUPERKICK him out of the sky! But that’s not all, Matt and Nick coordinate. Matt brings Sanada up in fireman’s carry, Nick climbs up, rolling senton, 450 splash and moonsault, More Bang for Your Buck! Cover, The Young Bucks win!!
Winners: The Young Bucks, Matt Jackson pinning; NEW IWGP Tag Team Champions
Success! The greatest tag team in the world gets even greater with this victory! Even with Matt’s bad back and now Nick’s bad ankle, they found a way to win. With heart enough for any heavyweight, will the Young Bucks dominate just like they did in the Jr. Heavyweight Division?
IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Tetsuya Naito VS Chris Jericho!
After his defeat at the hands of Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 12, Chris Jericho vowed to never return to NJPW. However, he did not keep this vow, for at New Year’s Dash, he would ambush Tetsuya Naito! Naito didn’t understand why. In fact, Naito claimed to not know a thing about Jericho aside from being in an old Best of the Super Juniors tournament. Of course, Jericho didn’t win that tournament. That disrespectful ignorance is why Jericho is so angry with Naito, and Jericho claims to know how Naito truly feels behind that facade. It’s Tranquilo VS Crazy, what will win the day and the title?
But Jericho isn’t going to wait for the bell, circles around and attacks Naito from behind! Jericho drags Naito up and takes the cape off. They start brawling, but Jericho gets the edge as he backs Naito down into railings and even the crowd! The ring announcer warns fans to get back as Jericho attacks Naito with the railing itself! Jericho smacks Naito but Naito hits back. Jericho pulls Naito’s suit jacket over his head to then wail away with uppercuts, like a scrum on the ice in hockey. Then Jericho snap suplexes Naito to the bare concrete! Jericho even uses a camera tripod as a weapon.
Red Shoes reprimands Jericho, but Jericho just shoves him down! Jericho confiscates the timekeeper’s table and brings it over. He sets it up against railing, then goes back to Naito. They brawl more, but Jericho gets the edge, to then powerbomb Naito through the table!!
Fans are shocked at the brutality, but Jericho is far from done with Naito. He eggs Naito to get up out of that wreckage. Jericho even takes over a camera to get a good shot of Naito while he flips him off. He gives the camera back and kicks Naito amid the wreckage, even using the wreckage against Naito. Jericho doesn’t let up, but Naito doesn’t give up. They brawl a bit more, but Jericho gets the edge again. Jericho brings Naito around behind commentary and over to the other timekeeper’s table, to DDT him right down on the wood! The table doesn’t give, so that impact is solid. Red Shoes wants Jericho to stop, but Jericho makes sure he autographs the program notes before continuing.
Jericho drags Naito back up and back to ringside. This match is apparently starting now that Jericho puts Naito in the ring. Jericho shouts at Red Shoes to make it official, so Red Shoes has no choice but to signal for the bell. Fans rally for Naito as Jericho covers, ONE. Jericho rains right hands down on Naito, then taunts the fans and Naito. Jericho helps Naito finish undressing while also giving him more right hands. Fans rally for Naito, but Jericho just flips them all off. Jericho toys with Naito, slapping him around. Naito hits back with haymakers, but Jericho knees back, tigerbomb backbreaker! Then, LIONSAULT! Cover, TWO!
Jericho keeps his cool while fans rally for Naito. Jericho stands on Naito to grind his heel into the champion’s neck. Then Jericho chokes Naito against the ropes. Jericho stops at 4, but then grinds his boots into Naito more. He backs off at 4 to embrace the heat. Jericho drags Naito up, then chops him through the dress shirt and vest. He pushes Naito around, calling him a “piece of sh*t”. Naito hits back with haymakers, but Jericho rakes the eyes. Jericho whips Naito corner to corner hard, and Naito rolls with back pain. Jericho drags Naito up for another corner to corner whip and another hard impact. Naito writhes more while we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns, and Jericho looms over Naito. He drags Naito up by his hair, but Naito hits back with haymakers and elbows. Jericho trips Naito and turns him over, for the Walls of Jericho! Naito gets the ropes, but Jericho holds on until 3. Jericho walks around while fans rally for Naito. He stomps and grinds his boot into Naito, but then tells Red Shoes to “shut your mouth” about the rules. Naito spits on Jericho! He’s defiant as ever, but that only angers Jericho more. Jericho runs but into Naito’s tackle and fists! Naito tackles Jericho again for even more fists. Naito runs in a third time but Jericho back drops him, only for that to turn into a neckbreaker across Naito’s knee. He keeps going and dropkicks Jericho in the back!
Naito takes off the vest and runs to boot Jericho in the corner, sweep the legs, and swing in for another dropkick. They both go to the apron now, for an apron neckbreaker! Jericho clutches his neck, but Naito keeps going with a draping neckbreaker to the floor! Naito, bloody in one eye, takes off the shirt and the pants, he’s finally ready for this match. He even uses the pants to choke Jericho! Jericho got away with a lot, so Naito sees it as fair play. Naito brings Jericho up and whips him into railing. Naito drags Jericho back up to ram him into railings again. As he backs off for space, Naito looks at the table wreckage from before. And he gets a wicked idea.
Naito brings the table piece over and SMACKS Jericho with it! That piece breaks even more, but Naito decides to use the bigger piece to SMACK Jericho again! Naito brings Jericho up and they fight behind commentary again. Naito brings Jericho back to that timekeeper’s table, for a piledriver!
That table stays solid again, so things are even between Naito and Jericho. Naito drags Jericho up and back to ringside. They go back in, and Naito climbs up. Naito aims, and jumps for a missile dropkick to Jericho’s back. Naito’s spirit is restored as he poses in the ring. The fans rally for Naito as he runs in, but Jericho boots him away. Jericho climbs up but Naito fires off haymaker after haymaker. Naito climbs up to throw more punches, then SUPER Steiner, but Jericho blocks! Jericho hops down, driving Naito’s head into the mat, then goes into Walls of Jericho! Naito endures as Jericho sits down and bends him back. Jericho shouts at Naito, but Naito doesn’t quit.
Fans rally again, and Naito powers up to reach for ropes. Jericho drags Naito away from ropes, Naito curls and fights back with right hands. Jericho slaps Naito out, then catapults Naito into a corner. But Naito uses that to climb up! Naito kicks Jericho away, then turns around for a flying huricanrana! Naito uses the ropes to help in a tornado DDT! Cover, TWO! Fans rally while Naito sits up. Naito staggers, that bleeding eye bothering him. He drags Jericho up, and hammerlocks one arm, but Jericho fights out with the other. Jericho swings but Naito waistlocks and lifts, only for Jericho to victory roll through it. Jericho goes from that to the legs, and he tries to turn Naito over for Walls! Naito ends up back in the signature Crab variation, but won’t give up.
Naito reaches, fades, but gets a second wind. Fans rally and Naito brings himself around. Naito slowly but surely gets closer to the ropes, and gets the ropebreak! Jericho insists Naito tapped out, but Red Shoes insists Naito didn’t. Jericho runs in but is flapjack’d for a hotshot. Naito then German Suplexes Jericho! No bridge, but Naito comes back in for the tilt-o-whirl. Jericho counters into a cover, TWO! Enziguri from Naito! Then Naito tries again, but has to club away to keep Jericho in place. Jericho chops, Naito SLAPS. Naito runs in, DESTINO! But Naito can’t make the cover, and Jericho crawls towards ropes. Cover, ROPEBREAK. Naito is too sore to be frustrated, he just sits up again.
Now Naito bleeds from the other cheek, but it’s nothing compared to what Jericho did to him. He and Jericho slap each other back and forth. Jericho hits Naito more, but Naito dares him to keep going. Jericho does, but then Naito just slaps him down. Naito chokes Jericho in the ropes, and spits on him again. He whips Jericho, but Jericho reverses. Naito leaps, but into a Code Breaker!
Jericho covers, TWO! Both men are so tired and sore already, but this match must continue. Fans rally up for Naito again, but it’s Jericho who sits up first. Jericho hits Naito, and Naito hits Jericho. They go back and forth with haymakers and forearms. They stand up but keep hitting. Naito hits three haymakers, then runs, but into a back elbow. Jericho runs, LIONSAULT, but onto knees! Enziguri, then hammerlock for GLORIA! But Naito’s not done there! He drags Jericho up, wrenches and tilt-o-whirls, but Jericho slips out of Destino, and in one swift motion he pushes Red Shoes and low blows Naito with a mule kick! Jericho gives another Code Breaker! Cover, Jericho WINS!!
Winner: Chris Jericho, by pinfall; NEW IWGP Intercontinental Champion
The Best in the World at What He Does is an IWGP Intercontinental Champion for the first time in his career! Though, according to Jericho, he’s a 10-time Intercontinental Champion because he’s counting his nine WWE Intercontinental Championship reigns. But whether one, nine or ten, whether by hook or by crook, Y2J conquers the leader of LIJ! We go to break while things are sorted out.
NJPW on AXS returns…
Jericho has his hand raised, and the announcement is made. He stands up and drops elbows and fists on Naito! Jericho isn’t a very classy winner, because the second he gets the belt in his hands, he uses it to attack Naito! Red Shoes reprimands Jericho, but Jericho ignores him as he celebrates. Jericho then takes off his leather belt from his pants, and makes it into strap to whip Naito with over and over. This is insult to injury, but also some injury on top. Evil rushes out to fight Jericho off his LIJ leader! Jericho hits Evil with that leather fist but Evil clobbers Jericho down with a clothesline! Evil grabs the leather belt to whip at Jericho, but Jericho gets away with his championship belt.
Jericho confiscates a commentary headset to shout “You see that, Naito? And who the Hell are you?” Jericho is talking about Evil there, and promises that if Evil butts in again, he’ll see what happens, too. Y2J takes his belt away with Evil looking on. Jericho reigns now, but will Evil bring his “tenth” reign to an early end?
Backstage interviews.
Evil helps Naito to the back, but sets him down a moment. Evil speaks for them. “Hey, Jericho. You messed up this time, you son of a bitch.” Is that Evil’s way of saying he wants to fight Jericho for the title next?
Jericho himself kicks his way into his press conference. He knocks the chair and the beer away so that the reporters can focus on the blood on Jericho’s hands. “This is the blood of Naito and the blood of Chris Jericho. Because two men just beat the sh*t out of each other” in one of Jericho’s toughest matches ever. Naito is an excellent wrestler, Jericho will admit that. But Jericho says that this win means he’s here to stay! Jericho is champion, and he takes that seriously. Naito didn’t like the title, so it works out since Jericho wants to keep it, “from now until the moment I lose it.” He vows to eat, sleep, go to the bathroom, all with this title nearby. No one believed Jericho could do it, but he did. This is the Reign of Jericho, Drink It in, Man. And choke on it.
My Thoughts:
With the G-1 Special 2018 fast approaching, it makes sense for AXS to show two hours of Dominion coverage tonight to catch up a bit. Obviously this isn’t all of it, either, as there’s definitely Okada VS Omega left to show. That’ll be next week, for a two hour special what with that match lasting 70+ minutes. But the four they showed tonight were all astounding, with shocking title changes. I didn’t think Elgin would win against Goto and Taichi, but it happened and it was impressive. Hiromu Takahashi truly deserves to be Jr. Heavyweight Champion, he’s on such a roll both with the Japanese crowd and around the world. Same goes for the Young Bucks winning the Heavyweight Tag titles, because they’re the most popular and talented tag team around.
Jericho VS Naito was crazy good with the entire attack before the match. Jericho has always been great at transforming his personality and style into new, fresh ideas, and this more vicious Heel of his is great. He really had the fans hating him and rooting for Naito, but in the end, Jericho uses all the tricks in the book and wins. On the surface, it looks like LIJ is down in the dumps aside from Hiromu. Evil & Sanada lose their tag titles, and Naito loses his IC title, but Evil is the one to come out and defend Naito from Jericho. Perhaps these losses are for everyone in LIJ to move up. Naito can worry about the world title while Evil goes after Jericho, Hiromu can defend his Jr. Heavyweight title, and perhaps Bushi joins Sanada as a heavyweight. Either that, or they go for the NEVER Openweight titles.
My Score(s): Part 1 – 8.7/10; Part 2 – 8.8/10; Overall – 8.8/10
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London calling to the champion crowns!
SmackDown brings gold to London as LA Knight defends his WWE US Championship and The Street Profits defend their tag team titles! Will the landscape change this close to WrestleMania?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- WWE Tag Team Championships: The Street Profits VS Pretty Deadly; The Profits win and retain the titles.
- Kayden Carter & Katana Chance VS The Secret Her-vice w/ Chelsea Green; The Secret Her-vice wins.
- WWE United States Championship: LA Knight VS Braun Strowman; Braun wins, by disqualification, and Knight retains the title.
- Charlotte Flair VS Mia Yim w/ B-Fab; Charlotte wins.
- Randy Orton VS Drew McIntyre; McIntyre wins.
- Jimmy Uso VS The Miz; Jimmy wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
Cody Rhodes is here!
We follow The American Nightmare as walks to gorilla, then through the curtain, and London sings along with the song, “WHOA~ OH~!” Cody gets his pyro, says hello to fans along the ramp, and then we get the second “WHOA~ OH~!” and pyro. Cody goes to the ring, grabs a mic, then kneels down to kiss the WWE logo on the mat. The fans continue to sing along all the way to the end, “I AM MY KINGDOM!” The fans then cheer, and Cody holds up the belt to fire them up even more! The fans now sing for “CODY! CODY RHODES~!” and he soaks it in. The fans cheer again as Cody smiles, and he finally says, “So, London~! Whaddya wanna talk about?”
The fans chant “Let’s Go, Cena!” “CENA SUCKS!” Cody hears that dueling, and he smiles again. The song of “CODY! CODY RHODES~!” returns, then they cheer. Cody says, “At WrestleMania 41, I will be facing John Cena…” The fans boo, but Cody says, “I will be facing John Cena as he goes to break the record and win 17. But that is WrestleMania 41. In just a few nights, I will be standing face to face with John Cena in this very same city, in this very same arena.” The fans cheer that, but then here comes Randy Orton! Now the fans sing along with Voices as The Viper heads to the ring. Orton also high-fives fans before he joins Cody.
Orton grabs a mic, paces while the fans keep singing on their own, and then the fans cheer. Orton says he’s not really the sentimental type, but for Cody and for London, screw it. The fans chant “R K O! R K O!” and Orton tells Cody, “Look at you. Look at who you are now, the man you are now. Look at where he came from.” The fans cheer and sing “CODY! CODY RHODES~!” and Orton says he remembers a Cody in his early 20s, just breaking into the business. Cody was busting his ass harder than anyone else. He wasn’t exactly happy, and in fact, he was frustrated. But Cody was man enough, smart enough, to know he needed to grow, and that he couldn’t grow in the WWE.
Cody wasn’t exactly treated fairly in the WWE, so Cody left the WWE! That took some big ass balls to do what he did! Cody changed the business singlehandedly, and everyone in the back knows it. And Orton appreciates Cody for it. But then Cody came back, as they all knew one day he would. And the industry has been changed forever since the day Cody came back to the WWE. Cody is a bit teary eyed as Orton says Cody’s still the same guy, he just did what he set out to do, and he grew. Orton teases he would sing along with the fans, but the fans might leave. The fans again sing “CODY! CODY RHODES~!”
Orton asks if they remember when Cody Rhodes faced Seth Rollins in Hell in a Cell. The fans cheer because they do. Orton says that was impressive, and even impossible, as he started with a partially torn pec and then ended with a fully torn pec! His body changed all kinds of shades of purple that Orton’s never seen on a human body. The pain he must have been in. Cody persevered not just for himself. Maybe not even at all for Cody. It was not even for his family legacy; it was for each and every single fan out there! Then Cody went on to WrestleMania, beat Roman Reigns and finished the story!
But there’s always another story, isn’t there? And Cody’s right in the middle of one. Cody is in charge of his legacy, and it is a privilege for Orton to watch Cody take control of it. Ticket sales have been up, there’s more intrigue around the world, and listen to the people! It is 99.9% all because of Cody! The fans cheer that, and of course they sing. Orton says what he’s trying to say is a long-winded version of he respects Cody, loves him, and is very, very proud of him. The fans cheer that! Orton then says, “But… But now it is time for WrestleMania.” They both look to the sign, and Orton says he can guarantee Cody that Orton will kick Kevin Owens so hard in the head…!
Orton can just feel it already! He forgets how many days are left, but he can’t wait to remove Kevin’s head from his shoulders. And Orton knows Cody will enter champion, exit champion, but not before he beats the holy hell outta Cena all up and down the Vegas strip! But after all the smoke clears and the dust settles, just like Orton wants Number 17, there will come a time when Orton will want Number 15. But Orton won’t kick Cody in the balls like a coward. Orton will look Cody in the eye because he respects Cody, is proud of Cody, and sees him as an equal. Orton will look Cody in the eye and tell him that he’s coming for the title.
The fans cheer but wait! Drew McIntyre is here! The fans cheer the Scottish Terminator as he steps out on stage, mic in hand, and has a wry smile on his face as he looks at the ring. Drew waves as the fans now sing, “OH~ Drew McIntyre~!” Drew says, “Isn’t this wonderful? A couple of nepo babies having a love fest in the middle of the ring> It makes me absolutely sick. What’d you just say, Randy? if Cody gets through Cena at WrestleMania, you’re coming for that title? What exactly have you done since that big comeback to justify that title match? Aside be Randy Orton. The only big moment I can remember is you being on the shelf for months and months and months.
“People like to make jokes about it, but more people talk about my five-minute-45-second title reign than your entire comeback so far! So get to the back of the line, sunshine! As for you, Cody, you should’ve listened to me. But you shunned me. You attacked me. Everybody should’ve listened to me about John Cena, but they didn’t. And the next night, he kicked you right in the twig ‘n’ berries, proving me right as usual. And the main event of WrestleMania should be Cody Rhodes VS The UK’s only ever world champion, Drew McIntyre!” Fans do like that idea. But sadly, it’s not, because of that guyliner wearing Temu Undertaker, Damian Priest!
Drew wants to talk about what is happening. And what’s gonna happen! Drew steps up to the ring while fans sing for him again. Drew says it will not be Randy that takes the title from Cody, should he get through Cena; it’ll be McIntyre. The fans cheer, but Orton says they were trying to have a moment. Can Drew just cut the crap already? Drew says okay, sure. He’ll tell the truth, because that’s all he ever does. The truth is, Kevin might have a point! If those Voices are talking to Orton again, then they know Drew very, very well. And he’s thinking, “My God, Randy looks great! Absolutely jacked! On the outside.”
On the inside, that back is hanging by a thread. And if Orton provokes McIntyre, McIntyre will break him. And as for Cody- Cody kicks Drew and UPPERCUTS him! The fans fire up, and Orton R- NO, Drew gets away! The fans boo, but the battlelines are drawn! Even if Cody makes it out of the frying pan that is Las Vegas, it’ll be into the fire that is these contenders waiting in line! Will the American Nightmare be ready for whoever comes for the crown?
WWE Tag Team Championships: The Street Profits VS Pretty Deadly!
Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins are finally golden again, but it’s time to put the titles on the line already! And while they’re ready for the grind, they’re up against the hometown heroes! Will the Profits still be up in the O2? Or will Kit Wilson & Elton Prince say #YESBOY to a new reign of their own?
The introductions are made, the belts are raised, and we see who really wants the smoke!
The teams sort out and Kit starts with Dawkins. They tie up, Dawkins headlocks, but Kit powers up and out. Dawkins runs Kit over, the fans fire up, and Dawkins fires hands on Kit in the corner! The fans rally for Pretty Deadly, Dawkins whips Kit to a corner, but Elton takes that bump! Kit CLOBBERS Dawkins, then tags Elton! Atomic drop into DROPKICK! Ford runs up, but into a DOUBLE HIP TOSS! Dawkins whips, Elton reverses, and then Elton hurdles so Kit can DDT! The fans fire up with Pretty Deadly while the Profits bail out. Pretty Deadly has control while SmackDown goes picture in picture.
Elton is right on Dawkins as he gets in, and UPPERCUTS him to the corner. Elton clinches Dawkins for another UPPERCUT! Tag to Kit, and Elton RAMS into Dawkins so Kit can UPPERCUT! Dawkins flops over, Kit drags him up to wrench the arm. Kit whips, Dawkins reverses, but Kit grabs ropes. Kit ELBOWS Dawkins, DECKS Ford, but Dawkins CLOBBERS Kit! The ref reprimands but Dawkins RAMS Kit into the corner again and again! The ref counts, Dawkins fires fast hands, then he tags in Ford. Ford says, “SUCK IT!” then he KICKS Kit! Ford scuffs Kit, then drags him to a cover, TWO!
Ford keeps Kit down with a facelock, but Kit endures the grind. Kit fights up, fires body shots, but Ford whips him away. Kit sunset flips! Ford rolls through, and PENALTY KICKS! Ford mocks Elton with the Scott Hall fingers, and the ref has to keep Elton back. Ford drags Kit up, tags Dawkins, and the Profits mug Kit. Dawkins CLUBS Kit down, then stalks him. Dawkins stays between Kit and Elton, then whips Kit into the Profits’ corner. CYCLONE- NO, Kit dodges! Ford tags in, he keeps Kit from Elton now, but Kit slips out of the suplex! Kit fakes high to go low, hot tag to Elton! Elton rallies with LARIAT after LARIAT!
Elton kicks and whips Ford to a corner, then UPPERCUTS! Elton whips the other way, UPPERCUTS again, and then does it again! Elton adds to the hattrick with a lift, Ford says a quick prayer before the SUPLEX! Ford flounders, gets to his feet, but Elton dodges to springboard and FLYING UPPERCUT! Cover, TWO! Ford stays in this, but Elton stays on him. SmackDown returns to single picture and fans rally for Pretty Deadly as Elton gives Ford a back suplex. Ford lands out, waistlocks, but Elton switches and shoves Ford. Ford CLOBBERS Elton in return! Ford is also dazed but he covers, ONE!
Kit reaches out, Elton and Ford both crawl, hot tags to Kit and Dawkins! The fans fire up as Dawkins wrenches Kit, underhooks and SILENCER! Dawkins Electric Chair Lifts Kit, Ford climbs, but Kit slips free! Kit shoves Dawkins into Ford! Ford falls to the floor, but Dawkins ENZIGIRIS Kit! Elton tags in, and Kit LARIATS Dawkins! Pretty Deadly combine for DRY MARTI-KNEES! Cover, TWO!! Dawkins survives and the Profits are a bit unsure of what to do next. Dawkins crawls to a corner, Elton runs up, but Dawkins dodges! Elton hits buckles and Dawkins TOSSES Kit, then Dawkins hits a SKY HIGH on Elton!
Dawkins hurries to tag Ford and Ford climbs up! But Kit pushes Elton out of the way! Kit takes FROM THE HEAVESN, and Elton ghost pins Ford! TWO!! Ford escapes, and he ROCKS Elton! Elton UPPERCUTS Ford! Dawkins sneaks a tag, Ford SUPERKICKS! POUNCE SAIDO COMBO!! Cover, KIT BREAKS IT! The fans fire up while all four men are down! The teams go to opposite ends, then they all stand up in the corners. They all roar, all run in, and Kit SPEARS Ford while Elton FLYING UPPERCUTS Dawkins!! London is thunderous, and Kit hurries to tag in! Pretty Deadly gets Dawkins up, for SPILT MILK!! Cover, FORD BREAKS IT!
The fans are shocked, as is Elton, but Ford saves this for his team! “This is Awesome!” as Ford runs up and Elton TOSSES him out! Now DRY MARTI- NO! Dawkins doesn’t accept the second serving, and he DUMPS Kit out! Kit skins the cat while Dawkins DECKS Elton! Dawkins catches Kit to an Electric Chair! Ford rises, DOOMSDAY BLOCKBUSTER!! Cover, Profits win!
Winners: The Street Profits, by pinfall (still WWE Tag Team Champions)
Pretty Deadly put up a heroic fight, but the hometown heroes could not capture the gold. Dawkins & Ford hold onto the gold, will this be the strongest the Profits have ever been?
Kayden & Katana talk with Zelina Vega.
Carter & Chance know La Muneca got screwed over by The Green Administration. Chelsea thinks she’s untouchable, but someone’s gonna stop them eventually. Well, speaking of, Alba Fyre leads the way in as she & Piper Niven “scope the perimeter.” There’s one small threat. They frisk the “miniscule” threat, but nothing they haven’t dealt with before. Chelsea struts in and says, “The Eagle has landed~!” Zelina says she is so glad the “Bootleg Men in Black” have crashed the party. Now, yeah, they all know she’s small. But clearly this small “threat” is a big threat to Chelsea’s title reign. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have taken all three of them to beat her.
KC Squared agree with that. How about tonight, we see what happens when the odds are even? Chelsea says that’s fine, because Agents P & A are ready. The Secret Her-vice has been given their next mission, but will they be able to crash the party? Or will the party crash them?
Kayden Carter & Katana Chance VS The Secret Her-vice!
SmackDown returns and The Green Administration makes their entrance. The teams sort out, Alba starts against Katana, and the two tie up. Alba KNEES low, CLUBS Katana down, then fireman’s carries. Katana fights free, tags Kayden, and they KICK, double whip, and then trip Alba up for the basement DROPKICK! Katana adds a slingshot SENTON, Kayden covers, TWO! Kayden tags Katana, they double whip Alba to a corner, then Kayden runs in. Alba DUMPS Kayden out, ROCKS Katana, and she tags Piper! Katana arm-drags Alba out, then goes out to run up. Kayden gives her a boost, Katana CROSSBODIES Alba down!
The fans fire up, but Piper goes up and out?! CANNONBALL and down goes KC Squared! Piper salutes Chelsea and SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns, Kayden rallies on Alba while the fans rally up. Kayden fires up, runs in and whips, but Alba reverses. Kayden wheelbarrows, victory rolls, then SUPERKICKS! Kayden fires up again but the fans are torn. Kayden runs in at Alba to BOOT WASH her against the ropes! Chelsea protests, Kayden kicks at her, then Kayden springboards for a LEG DROP! Cover, TWO! Alba survives, Kayden whips, but Alba KICKS back! Tag to Piper, but Kayden jackknife bridges Alba! The ref explains bout the tag, Piper runs up, but Kayden moves! The SENTON hits Alba! Piper panics, Kayden tags Katana!
Katana goes up onto Kayden’s shoulders, VICTORY ROLL LAUNCHER, but Piper catches Katana! Katana fires hands, BOOTS, and then hurries to go up again. Kayden ROCKS Piper, and fireman’s carries?! SAMOAN DROP! Kayden then gives Katana the boost, for the KEG STAND SPLASH!! Cover, ALBA BREAKS IT! Kayden runs up on Alba to BOOT her out! Katana gives Kayden the boost now, SUPER CROSSBODY onto Alba! Kayden hurries to tag back in, and she brings Piper up. Piper swings, Kayden dodges and SUPERKICKS! Katana goes up, Piper staggers over that way, but Chelsea distracts the ref!
The fans are torn as Alba grabs Katana. Katana kicks Alba down, chases Chelsea off, but Piper sends Kayden into her! Piper scoops to PIPER DRIVER!! Cover, Secret Her-vice wins!
Winner: The Secret Her-vice, by pinfall
The Women’s US Champion helps her team, and now they all mug Kayden & Katana! But here comes Zelina! Vega runs down the ramp, CLOBBERS Alba, and then she gets in the ring! Zelina tilt-o-whirl DDTS Piper! And she KNEES Alba off the apron! But Chelsea CLOBBERS Zelina! Chelsea fires up, the UK is oddly with her, and she chicken wings Zeina. But Zelina fights free to fire forearms and body shots! And a BACK ELBOW! Zelina reels Chelsea in, CODE- SUPERKICK from Alba! SENTON from Piper! The Green Administration is just too much for Zelina to fight against alone! But can she, Kayden & Katana find a way to turn things around?
WWE United States Championship: LA Knight VS Braun Strowman!
Did the Mega Star just get this title back from Shinsuke Nakamura? YEAH! Did he help the Monster of All Monsters fight off Solo Sikoa’s rouge bloodline? YEAH! And now, does he have to defend this title against the monster he just helped? YEAH!! But will Knight still reign this close to WrestleMania? Or will Braun #GetTheseHands back on a championship?
The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and it’s time for Knight’s biggest challenge, YEAH!
The bell rings and the fans rally up as the two circle. The two tie up, and Braun SHOVES Knight away. Knight comes back, Braun SHOVES him down again! Knight gets up, gets around, and he headlocks. Braun powers up to back suplex, but Knight lands out! Knight tries but Braun’s too big to suplex! Braun ELBOWS Knight, storms up on him, but Knight fires haymakers! Knight whips, Braun reverses, but Knight KICKS back! Knight runs, but Braun HIP TOSSES! Cover, TWO! Knight stays in this, but Braun brings him up. Braun puts Knight in a corner, CHOPS, then runs, for a SPLASH! Knight sputters along ropes, Braun keeps moving, but Knight DUMPS him out!
The fans fire up as Knight then WRECKS Braun with a dropkick! Knight keeps moving, and he WRECKS Braun again! The fans fire up with Knight, but then Braun BOOTS Knight down! The fans are torn but Braun stands tall as SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns and Braun puts Knight back in the ring. The fans cheer as Knight KICKS Braun! Knight tries again, but Braun’s still too big to back suplex! Braun CLUBS Knight, then runs in at the corner. Knight BOOTS Braun, goes up, and FLYING BULLDOGS! Both men are down and the fans fire up! Knight and Braun rise back up, and Knight dodges a shot to JAB! Then he dodges to JAB! JAB! JAB! “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” But Braun KNEES low! Braun scoops, Knight slips free, and Knight RAMS Braun into buckles! Then the BACK SUPLEX! The fans fire up and Knight rises again! Knight spells it out, “L! A! KNIGHT! YEAH!” ELBOW DROP! Cover, TWO!
Braun has plenty left in the tank but the fans rally for Knight. Knight stands Braun up to kick low, but Braun THROWS Knight away! Knight rises, and Braun LARIATS Knight up and out! The fans fire up as Braun rips the shirt! Braun gets on the track, and he runs in, STROWMAN EXPRESS MEETS JACOB FATU!! The Samoan Werewolf strikes Braun down!
Winner: Braun Strowman, by disqualification; LA Knight retains the title
The fans boo as Jacob now goes after Knight! He just ruined what was becoming a great match, but Jacob fires HEADBUTT after HEADBUTT on Braun! SAMOAN DROP onto the desk!! The desk doesn’t budge, but Braun might’ve been broken in half! The UK fires up for Fatu as he puts Braun in the ring! Jacob fires more HEADBUTTS, then HEADBUTTS away on Braun in the corner! The fans sing “OLE~ OLE OLE OLE, FATU~, FATU~!” Jacob runs corner to corner, but Knight kicks him first! Knight fires haymakers, “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Jacob denies the BFT to POP-UP SAMOAN DROP! And then HIP ATTACK for Braun anyway!
Jacob keeps going, HIP ATTACK for Braun again! Jacob throws off his jacket, glares at Braun, and he runs in for a third HIP ATTACK! Braun flounders into the drop zone, so Jacob goes up, up, BEST MOONSAULT EVER! Direct hit on Braun, but the fans want that “ONE MORE TIME!” Jacob obliges, BEST MOONSAULT EVER! The Samoan Werewolf just tore up #OneBigSOB and LA Knight, will there be no stopping him from taking the United States Championship?
Backstage interview with Jimmy Uso.
Jackie Redmond is with #BigJim, and she says that while she knew WWE was going global this month, she did not know they’d get the slap heard ’round the world! Jimmy says he’d do it again, and he’ll slap Gunther as many times as he needs! Jimmy knows Jey is up in his own head, doubt is creeping on him. But just because Jey’s 0-3 against Gunther doesn’t mean Gunther’s unbeatable! The Ring General CAN be got! Jimmy’s going to Raw this Monday, he will bust Gunther’s ass, Jey will go to Mania and bust Gunther’s ass to become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. And then they leave Las Vegas just like this: YEET!
Jimmy heads out, but then The Miz & Carmelo Hayes walk by. Miz is mocking Jimmy’s words, and he asks excuse me. Miz says it’s just funny that suddenly, Jimmy is a tough guy, even though for most of his career, he’s been “The Other Uso.” Doesn’t Jimmy get it? Jimmy and Jey are career sidekicks while Gunther is a main character. Gunther is the lead, neither Jimmy nor Jey can beat him. And here’s another thing: The Usos are just blips on the trailer that was Roman Reigns’ Bloodline. Melo says Jimmy & Jey are stuck outside the club, they can’t even get in.
Miz says as a former WWE Champion, a former WrestleMania main eventer, Jimmy will never know what it is to carry this industry. And after this year’s WrestleMania, neither will Jey. Oh, and by the way, if Jimmy ever slapped Miz like that, Jimmy would still be on the ground. Jimmy feints the slap and Miz freaks out. Jimmy says it may be him and Gunther on Monday, but he’ll holler at Aldis real quick so it can be Jimmy VS Miz here tonight. Yeah, YEET! Jimmy heads out, Melo says he thought Miz was gonna do something about the slap. Will Miz have to do something about running his mouth before he gets his teeth kicked in?
Solo Sikoa & Tama Tonga find Jacob Fatu backstage.
Solo asks Jacob what the Hell he was doing out there. Jacob goes out there alone without saying a thing to them? Jacob says he ain’t gotta say nothing to nobody! Matter fact, didn’t Solo not tap in with him last week? Tama says, “But Jacob,” only for Jacob to say, “But nothing, Tama!” Solo wants Jacob to lower his tone, but Jacob says okay. Let him be very clear with them. When it comes to Braun Strowman, Jacob WILL be the last man standing. Y’all better get in where you fit in, cuz that US title? Oh, Jacob’s bringing it home to the family. And he will do it with them, or without them! Yadada mean? Fatu heads out, is the Samoan Werewolf no longer following Solo?
Naomi speaks.
“I mean… How did we even get here? I don’t know. One thing that I do know is that I’ve always been the woman to do the right thing. I’ve always been the woman to do the right thing. So Bianca, what makes you think that my attack on Jade was anything different from me doing the right thing? When I sit here and I think about all that I’ve sacrificed, all that I’ve given, and that’s what really breaks my heart. Because through all of that, I’m made to be the bad one in this situation. I just don’t understand, how does Jade come in outta nowhere and take my place with you? I want you to ask yourself this, Bianca. Who inspired you? Hmm?
“Who’s inspired women over the last decade? Who’s always had your back from day one of you being here? Me. Not Jade. Hmm. But you know what? What I’ve learned through all of this: You teach people how to treat you. And I’m done with being treated as a third wheel. I’m done being pushed to the side, I’m done with being too nice, I’m done with being undervalued, underutilized, underappreciated! So moving forward, hmm… Moving forward, here’s my message to you, Jade. If you continue to be in my way, I strongly advise you to proceed with caution.” The Glow shows her dark side, but will the storm be moved?
Nick Aldis meets with Jade Cargill.
Speaking of, the SmackDown General Manager understands things have been rather difficult for her as of late. Jade says she’s been trying to get her hands on Naomi for the past few weeks, now where is she? No one has seen her all day, so as far as anyone knows, Naomi’s not here. Well, when Jade catches Naomi, it’s on sight. Jade leaves, B-Fab & Michin are there. They let her know that what Naomi did to her was straight trash, totally uncalled for behavior. And after Jade gets her hands on Naomi, she’ll handle that business. Jade agrees. Mia says they’ve all got business to handle. Jade’s got Naomi, and Mia’s gonna get Charlotte for messing with her girl, B.
B-Fab says Naomi’s got what’s coming to her: no sympathy, no regrets. Jade, just do what you gotta do. Oh, she will. Jade also wishes Mia luck tonight. Mia & B-Fab head out, will the Head Baddie in Charge make the Queen bow down in London?
The darkness approaches.
“You are as I was. As I am, you will be.” The shadows are starting to take shape, but is SmackDown about to fade to black?
Charlotte Flair VS Mia Yim w/ B-Fab!
The Queen looks down on everyone, so it’s no surprise that everyone else wants to take her down. Charlotte may have checked off B-Fab, but will the HBIC be a much different story? Or will Charlotte only sharpen her edge before facing Tiffany Stratton at WrestleMania?
WAIT! NAOMI ATTACKS B-FAB & MICHIN! Naomi drags Mia up for a FACEBUSTER! Naomi rains down fists, the ref reprimands and the fans boo, but Naomi tells the ref to back off. Naomi then BOOTS B-Fab off the apron! Naomi goes out after B-Fab to THRWO her into barriers! Naomi SLAPS B-Fab, tells her to stay down, but B-Fab gets up. Naomi fires hands, then she SMACKS B-Fab off the desk! Naomi rains down fists, but here comes Jade! Jade hurries down the ramp, she runs around the way, but Naomi runs away! Jade makes sure B-Fab is okay, but refs have to help her to the back. And what of Mia? Will she even be able to compete?
Charlotte makes her entrance, not really caring about what Naomi just did to Mia. But that means she also crosses paths with Jade. The fans like the look of this stare down, but Jade and Charlotte both let the other slide. Charlotte gets her pyro, and it seems she’ll still get her match. Will Mia be little more than an appetizer now?
The bell rings, and Charlotte BOOTS Mia down! Cover, TWO! Mia stays in this and the fans rally up. Charlotte just struts around while SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns, Charlotte has Mia down with a chinlock, but the fans rally up. Mia fights up, fires body shots, and she then blocks a shot to ROCK Charlotte! Mia ROCKS Charlotte again and again, then reels her in for a TORNADO DDT! The fans fire up as Mia hurries to cover, TWO! Mia drags Charlotte up, wrenches, but Charlotte says no to Da Feet! BIG back suplex! Mia stagger sup, Charlotte whips her, but Mia reverses! Charlotte goes up and out, BOOTS her away, then slingshots in and rolls Mia! Mia rolls through and BUZZSAWS! Mia runs corner to corner, but Charlotte avoids the cannonball!
Charlotte YAKUZA KICKS Mia down, then fires herself up! The fans “WOO~!” as Charlotte has Mia in the drop zone,. Charlotte steps on her, goes up the corner, but Mia gets underneath her! SIT-OUT POWERBOMB! Cover, TWO! Charlotte survives and Mia is shocked! Mia nods as the fans rally back up, and she brings Charlotte up. But Charlotte ROCKS Mia! Mia SOBATS, PELES, and then runs to PENALTY KICK! Cover, TWO! Charlotte stays in this, Mia grows frustrated, but the fans continue to rally. Mia uses that energy to stay focused, and she stalks Charlotte to waistlock. But Charlotte ELBOWS her away!
Charlotte CHOPS, and CHOPS, and CHOSP! Charlotte winds up, and she CHOPS again! Mia sputters, but then she dodges the boot! Charlotte is caught, and Mia hits a SAIDO! Charlotte flounders to a corner, the fans rally behind Mia, and Mia runs up, CANNONBALL! Mia hurries to wrench and EAT- NO, Charlotte shoves Mia away! Charlotte gets under, back suplexes, but Mia lands out! EAT DA FEET!! Cover, ROPEBREAK!! Charlotte’s long legs help her survive by a literal foot! Mia is beside herself while Charlotte bails out. Mia storms after Charlotte, runs up, but Charlotte dodges! Mia’s kick hits steel steps!
Mia hobbles away, goes to the apron, but Charlotte CHOP BLOCKS the bad leg out! Charlotte grabs Mia’s leg, drops a KNEE on the knee, but fans chant, “We Want Tiffy!” Charlotte just steps through, FIGURE FOUR, into FIGURE EIGHT!! Mia taps, Charlotte wins!
Winner: Charlotte Flair, by submission
Charlotte got more of a fight out of Mia than expected, but she still won. Will The Queen be more than ready to reign again after WrestleMania?
Backstage interview with Tiffany Stratton.
Jackie Redmond is with the WWE Women’s Champion and says Charlotte certainly looks confident. Let’s be real, Charlotte came at Tiff pretty hard. It got a lot of people talking. Tiff says yes, people talk. And Charlotte sure loves to hear herself talk. Ten years into the business and Charlotte is still so insecure that she can’t let a “rookie” get a word out. But last week, Tiff did learn something: She learned that walking into WrestleMania, she isn’t the one with something to lose. Truth is, if Tiff loses, then she lost to the great Charlotte Flair, as just a 25-year-old rookie with one year into SmackDown.
But if Charlotte loses… Well, then she lost to an “undeserving, delusional, unoriginal, backflip doing, blonde-hair-having, little girl.” Did she get it all? And Tiff can’t wait to hear the look on Charlotte’s face when they hear the words, “And STILL!” Then maybe Charlotte will finally shut up for the sake of literally everyone! They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, and Tiff will make damn sure what stays is Charlotte’s massive ego. Tiff is walking into and out of Mania as the WWE Women’s Champion. Tootles! Tiff heads out, will it still be #TiffyTime after WrestleMania?
Randy Orton VS Drew McIntyre!
The Viper told Cody how proud he was, but also how he wants the next shot after John Cena. The Scottish Terminator took offense to that, and basically said he is taking that shot instead. Will this match be an unofficial #1 contender’s match between these two former world champions?
SmackDown returns and McIntyre makes his entrance. The bell rings and the fans sing, “OH~, Drew McIntyre~!” and chant “R K O! R K O!” Drew and Orton circle, tie up, and they go around in a deadlock. Drew powers Orton to a corner, but Orton headlocks back. Drew powers up and out, then he runs Orton over! Orton hurries to ropes and Drew mockingly asks, “How’s the back feel, Randy?” Orton stands, he and Drew reset, and the fans duel some more. Drew calls for a knuckle lock, Orton accepts, but then Drew kicks low! Drew bumps Orton off buckles, then climbs up, but he panders for too long and Orton YANKS him down!
The fans fire up as Orton climbs now! Orton rains down fists, and the fans count to nine. Orton hops down, brings Drew around, and POSTS him for ten! Drew tumbles out of the ring, Orton goes out after him, and they’re by the desk! But Drew kicks Orton first and SMACKS him off the desk! Drew clears the desk, and he brings Orton up for the DESK- NO, Orton fights free! Orton turns things around, DESK BACK SUPLEX for Drew! The fans fire up while Orton leaves Drew behind, and SmackDown goes picture in picture.
Drew writhes on the floor, but Orton goes out to fetch him! Orton brings Drew around, UPPERCUTS him, then says one more time! DESK BACK SUPLEX! Drew writhes as that desk stays standing! Orton grins, refreshes the ring count, and then he storms up on Drew. Drew pokes Orton in the eye! Drew POSTS Orton now, then brings him around to RUSSIAN LEG SWEEP into barriers! Orton slumps down, and Drew also grits his teeth from that double-edged attack, but Drew fires up as he stands tall. Drew drags Orton up, puts him in the ring, then stalks Orton. Drew looms over Orton, and HIP DROPS him!
Orton sputters, Drew says one more time, and he winds up for the HIP DROP! Drew paces around Orton, says maybe one more time, and he pretends he can’t hear the fans. Drew winds up again, but Orton flips over! Hip drop meets kneecaps! And then Orton pokes Drew in the eyes! The ref reprimands but Orton rises up. Drew sputters and flounders, Orton ROCKS him with a right! Drew ROCKS Orton back! Drew storms up, Orton kicks low, but Drew fires another haymaker! The haymakers go back and forth, Orton gets the edge, but Drew GLASGOW KISS HEADBUTTS! Cover, TWO! Drew clamps onto Orton with an armlock!
SmackDown returns to single picture and the fans rally up. Orton fights up, pries at the chinbar, and then throws right hands! Drew CHOPS Orton in return! The fans “WOO~” and Drew winds up. Drew ROCKS Orton again, eggs him on, then CHOPS again! Drew shoves Orton to a corner, CHOPS again, then dares Orton to fight! Drew whips corner to corner, but Orton comes back to LARIAT! And LARIAT! Drew swings, Orton dodges, SNAP POWERSLAM! The fans fire up as Orton stalks Drew to the apron. Drew HOTSHOTS Orton first! Drew then runs in, but Orton puts him through the ropes!
The fans fire up as Orton has Drew for the DRAPING DDT! The fans fire up for Orton, and Orton hears those voices! Drew rises, but then Orton spots KEVIN OWENS! The Prizefighter is on the ramp, Orton glares at him, but then he turns around into a CLAYMORE!! Cover, DREW WINS!
Winner: Drew McIntyre, by pinfall
Kevin’s mere presence costs Orton, and now Drew has a huge win propelling him down the Road to WrestleMania! As for Orton, Kevin drags him out of the ring, SMACKS him off the desk, and then climbs up to join him! The fans boo but Kevin and his hot pink sneakers have Orton in position, but Orton slips free and TRIPS Kevin up! Kevin hits the desk then the floor! Orton staggers around, the fans rally behind him, and Orton stalks Kevin to the corner of the barriers. Orton lines up the shot! Orton runs in, but Kevin jumps over barriers! Security is there to stop Orton from pursuing, so Kevin runs away into the night!
The fans boo, but The Viper was that close! Will Orton be able to strike Kevin down and completely take him out?
Fire, thunder, smoke…
The force of nature is drawing ever closer. And he’s ready to fly! REY FENIX arrives next Friday Night SmackDown!
Jimmy Uso VS The Miz!
#BigJim gave Gunther a piece of his mind and a mark on his cheek, but it seems not everyone got the message. Will the Hollywood A-lister soon star in the Uso Penitentiary? Or will he prove Jimmy is NOT ready for a world champion level opponent?
The bell rings and the two tie up. Jimmy powers Miz to a corner, Miz turns things around, and the ref counts. Miz takes a swing, Jimmy ducks it to CHOP! And CHOP! Miz shoves Jimmy back, then runs up, but Jimmy TACKLES Miz! Jimmy rains down fists, Miz shoves him away to go to ropes, but Jimmy storms back up. Miz ELBOWS Jimmy away, then runs back up, only for Jimmy to LARIAT him down! The fans fire up while Jimmy storms up on Miz. Jimmy CHOPS Miz, has him in a corner, then whips corner to corner. Miz reverses, Jimmy goes up and over, then UPPERCUTS! Miz staggers back to ropes, but Jimmy is right on him.
Jimmy whips, Miz reverses and kitchen sink knees! Then basement BOOTS! The fans fire up, Miz scowls, and Miz KNEES Jimmy in the back again and again. Miz stalks Jimmy to the ropes now, and he CHOKES Jimmy! The ref counts, Miz runs, and Miz STRADDLE ATTACKS! The fans boo, but Miz runs again. Jimmy ducks the boot, then dodges a lariat! Jimmy runs up to LARIAT Miz up and out! The fans fire up and Jimmy builds speed, but Miz runs away! Jimmy smirks as he goes out the side, and UPPERCUTS Miz over the barriers! Jimmy makes sure Gunther knows he’s coming to get him, but SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns and both men are down. Miz and Jimmy crawl, and Jimmy pounds the mat. The fans rally, Jimmy rises and runs up to LARIAT! And LARIAT! And mule kick! Jimmy then UPPERCUTS Miz, dodges a lariat, then SAMOAN DROPS! The fans fire up, Jimmy goes to the corner, “UCE! OH!” Jimmy runs in, but Miz puts him on the apron! Jimmy UPPERCUTS again! Jimmy climbs, leaps, but Miz gets under! Miz then waistlocks, ripcords, and MOVIE MAKER! Fans boo that blatant parody, but Miz full nelsons! Jimmy drops, victory rolls, TWO! Miz has the cover, TWO! Miz hurries to BASEMENT DDT! Cover, TWO!
The fans rally up as Jimmy survives! Miz stalks Jimmy, the fans rally up more, and Miz fires a KICK! And then another KICK! The fans say “YES! YES! YES!” to the It Kicks, but then Miz winds up. Jimmy ducks the buzzsaw, Miz blocks the superkick, but the DRAGON WHIP connects! Miz rebounds to B-MOVIE KNEE!! Cover, TWO!! The parodies don’t get it done, but Miz still has his original work to fall back on. The fans rally for “UCE! OH! UCE! OH!” Miz runs in, A-LIST LARIAT! Miz shoves Jimmy down, then springboards, but into a SUPERKICK! Jimmy hurries up top, for the USO SPLASH!! Cover, Jimmy wins!
Winner: Jimmy Uso, by pinfall
Miz may be a movie star, but Big Jim’s the one winning this main event! Jimmy then borrows Joe Tessitore’s headset to call out Gunther! He’s coming after dat ass on Monday! Gunther won’t be the ring general, he will be “Private Gunther,” and he will salute Big Jim! Uh, uh, YEET! Will Jimmy be the one making examples out of the World Heavyweight Champion? Or will everything come crashing down when Gunther gets his turn?
Drew McIntyre returns backstage.
And he says hey to Lewis Capaldi, the Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter, and also a big fan of Drew’s. They’re ready to have a good night in the pub, but Jackie Redmond walks over to congratulate him on the win tonight. She was hoping to get some thoughts on that victory and what happened with Orton and Kevin. Drew says it’s alright, this is what happens. He doesn’t care about anybody else’s business, but no one gets away with screwing him over. And when no one meddles in his business, he wins! Drew called out Priest, where is he? Priest doesn’t have the balls! So time to get mad in the pubs, everyone’s invited!
Drew turns the corner, but PRIEST IS THERE! Priest ROCKS Drew, SMACKS him off the door, then throws him into road cases! Priest ROCKS Drew, SMACKS him off the trunk of a car, and then again! Or since it’s London, “the boot.” The driver complains, but Priest BODY SLAMS that guy through a table! Drew comes back to KNEE Priest low, SMACK him off the trunk, and then off the side! They go to the hood, or bonnet for UK. Drew drags Priest up, but Priest CLAWS Drew’s eyes! Priest then sends Drew SOUTH OF HEAVEN through the windshield! Priest tells security that he’s done for now. Any more jokes, Drew? Didn’t think so! RIP, jackass!
Priest leaves, the producers hurry to help Drew, and Drew’s got glass in his eye! Will that glass help Drew see why he shouldn’t piss off the Punisher?
CM Punk heads to gorilla.
He has a security detail with him, and he passes by Drew writhing in pain. Punk chuckles, then continues on. Will his contract signing with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins be just as brutal? We find out, after the break.
Nick Aldis is in the ring.
The SmackDown General Manager welcomes us back, and says it is his honor and privilege to be here in the O2 in London. Now, we all know why he and this table is here, and why additional security is here tonight. Tonight, we are here to sign a contract for a Triple Threat. Perhaps the biggest Triple Threat in the history of WrestleMania: Seth Rollins VS CM Punk VS Roman Reigns! The fans cheer all those names, and here comes the OTC! London puts the ones up, and Paul Heyman accompanies THE Tribal Chief out on stage. Roman raises his finger to the sky for the pyro, then security follows him to the ring.
SmackDown goes picture in picture as Roman’s entrance continues, and he raises his finger to the sky for the second round of pyro. Roman steps into the ring, SmackDown returns to single picture, and Heyman hands him a mic. The fans sing, “ROMAN! ROMAN REIGNS~!” Roman nods, the fans cheer, and now they chant, “O T C! O T C!” Roman tells London, “ACKNOWLEDGE ME!” The fans cheer again, and again chant, “O T C! O T C!” Roman smiles, but he sees the chairs are not to his liking. Heyman makes sure to put one at the head of the table. Heyman also dusts the chair off while Roman enjoys the singing of, “ROMAN! ROMAN REIGNS~!”
Roman takes a seat and says that was beautiful. The way they sing to their Tribal Chief, it’s just beautiful. The singing continues, and Heyman even joins in! Roman smiles, and he says that is what he’s talking about. That’s the OTC for you, baby! The biggest star on the planet! The OTC came here for two reasons. One: to be acknowledged; check! And two: to sign this contract. Roman does just that, and he says he’s checked both boxes. That means- “BURN IT DOWN!” Seth Rollins interrupts! The fans now sing, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” Rollins struts out in his red wine paisley suit and conducts the O2 Choir all the way into the ring.
The fans cheer while Roman frowns, but Rollins takes the seat to Roman’s left. Rollins offers Heyman a chance to sing to this song, but Heyman frowns. Rollins chuckles, and he says the fans do have beautiful singing voices. He doesn’t know why Roman is in such a hurry to leave, though! This is their building! There’s a lot of history here! 12 years ago, they landed on the roof of this place in a helicopter! They came down those stairs over there, “ready to burn down the old guard!” They put the Undertaker down through the desk, and they were going to remake this company in their image!
Now don’t get him wrong, Rollins knows a lot has happened since then. They fought against each other, with each other, a little bit of love and a whole lot of hate. But Rollins dare says, as the fans continue to sing “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~,” that Rollins and Roman accomplished their mission. The fans start to chant for CM Punk, but Rollins tunes them out. Roman says, “We? We? You keep saying we. Our mission? We died a long time ago. It’s only been ME. You been here, but I done all the work! I’ve made this place what it is today! I took us to the level that we are here today! I made this place better than we found it!
“I’m the one that made us desirable to Netflix! I’m the one that took us into billion-dollar deals! Tell me, what have you done?” Rollins shouts, “I’ll tell you what I’ve done! YOU, YOU, YOU, it’s that mindset that keeps me having to screw you! You understand that? And your biggest mistake is not understanding the danger that’s right in front of us! The danger that’s right in front of you! You let the biggest snake in the world, CM Punk, into the garden! And you could’ve cut his head off at WarGames! But instead, you shook his hand. You could’ve let me finish him inside the cage at The Garden, but you didn’t. And now, I am left to do what I always do: Clean up your mess, again.”
Rollins drops his mic, picks up the pen, and signs his part. And now, here comes CM PUNK! The fans fire up and sing along with Cult of Personality, then join in on saying, “IT’S CLOBBERIN’ TIME~!” Punk goes to the ring, but as he grabs a mic, he goes up a corner, just like he did last Friday. “I have come here to chew bubblegum and sign a contract. And I’m all outta bubblegum.” The fans cheer the Rowdy Roddy Piper reference, and Punk hops down to take his seat on Roman’s right. Punk looks over said contract, but Roman asks if Punk needs a highlighter or something. What’s he doing? Just go to page four, clause five.
Punk does as Roman says, but Roman says Punk needs to hurry, this is precious TV time. Punk reads the segment, Roman tells Heyman to just smarten Punk up. Heyman tells Punk he knows what Punk is looking for. It is in there. They’re closing the show at WrestleMania. The fans go wild hearing that! Heyman tells Punk that he gets to live his dream of dreams. CM Punk will be a WrestleMania main eventer! The fans cheer and while Roman smiles, Rollins is furious. Roman says, “One man’s dream is another man’s favor! CHECK!” Wait, this was the favor? Rollins says no! This is not something to laugh at, and Punk does not get to tear up!
Punk is NOT deserving! He does NOT deserve this! The fans boo but Rollins continues to throw a fit! Main eventing WrestleMania is SACRED, the most important thing in the world to Rollins! More than anything! Except the fact that Punk NEVER gets to main event! This is all Roman’s fault! This is all Heyman’s fault! Rollins THROWS his mic down, paces angrily, but Punk picks up the mic. The fans cheer Punk on again, and Punk stands to thank London, to thank Chicago, to thank Louisville, Kentucky, and to thank ALL the fans. As corny as it sounds, he thanks the WWE Universe who stood by him and chanted his name for TEN LONG YEARS!
Roman says hold on, hold on. Punk shouldn’t be thanking the fans! He should be thanking the Tribal Chief! It is because of Roman that Punk gets this honor! So please, take this moment, close the show with that acknowledgement! Do this the right way. The credits are already rolling as Punk kneels before Roman!? Punk smiles, and he thanks “My Tribal Chief, the holder of the ula fala, the Head of the Table, the… Big Dog? Thank you for allowing a kid from Chicago to be graced by your presence. Thank you, My Tribal Chief, for allowing me to stand in your ring. And thank you so much. Thank you, Roman Reigns, so very much.
“But because of you, I will see you in the main event of WrestleMania.” And again, Rollins is agonizing over this. Punk finishes putting his signature on the contract, and London tells him, “You Deserve It!” Punk thanks Roman again, and then says, “But that’s not the favor that I’m owed.” WHAT?! Roman looks at Heyman and Heyman can’t look him in the eye! If getting this Triple Threat made into the main event isn’t the gift of the Wise Man, then what is?!
My Thoughts:
A good SmackDown, but they pulled off quite the paradox. They made it feel like they were struggling to fill three hours, yet they also filled the show to the point where that contract signing segment was almost bleeding over the three hour mark. Ironically, part of the problem was just how excited the London crowd was for this. The superstars still wanted to enjoy the chants and songs, but that’s time SmackDown doesn’t have to spare. It made the opening promo from Cody, Orton and Drew take longer, and it kinda did the same to the contract signing at the end. Even so, we still got a very good promo, and good stuff to set up Orton VS McIntyre.
Orton VS McIntyre was a great match, but of course Kevin costs Orton. McIntyre gets his win, Kevin and Orton have a bit of a brawl, but of course Kevin ends up on the losing end and runs off. McIntyre’s trash talk also comes back to bite him as Priest gets the better of him in their brawl. Here’s hoping Drew didn’t actually get glass in his eye, but that being the thing in kayfabe can be some good stuff. I can imagine McIntyre with an eyepatch, and he takes it off at the opportune time to get the better of Priest in their match. Also what a fitting choice for Punk to be passing by Drew suffering because of real glass.
Very good title matches tonight, but of course the status quo was kept. Pretty Deadly gets to look great here in London, but the Profits only just got the belts, they’re not going to be transitional champions like that. And Knight VS Braun was really good stuff, but honestly, Jacob Fatu going after them both should’ve been a given. Jacob also had a great promo with Solo & Tama to start adding to that divide between Jacob and Solo. I would hope Solo doesn’t screw Jacob out of the US Championship, but it feels like he will as Solo won’t stand for Jacob defying his authority, even though Solo’s been trying to make Jacob the champion all along.
Very good stuff from Jimmy Uso tonight, from his promo with #MeloDon’tMiz and then a great match with Miz. Their match ended up the de facto main event match, so that’s also great for both guys. Great win for Jimmy, but that’s likely because Jimmy is losing big time to Gunther on Monday. And it might just be me, but it feels like only now is the Jey VS Gunther build really moving, largely in part because Jimmy got involved. Jimmy’s promo after his match is something along the lines of what Jey should be saying. But I suppose as brothers, Jimmy is the one who knows Jey best and knows what Jey needs to be motivated again. And seeing Jimmy get beat up by Gunther will definitely motivate Jey…
Good final vignettes for Rey Fenix and Aleister Black. I’m a little surprised they confirmed Rey Fenix is showing up next week, and that they confirmed who Rey Fenix even is. I believe commentary confirmed Rey Fenix is Penta’s real brother, even namedropped “Lucha Brothers,” but all that is still surprising considering Fenix is going to start on SmackDown. Aleister’s vignette (at least I am fairly confident it’s his) was giving us glimpses of his silhouette, but I think there was usage of AI in the snake imagery. It was fine they did it for El Grande Americano because that is all trolling, but they really should try and do things the old fashioned way of photoshop and stock imagery.
Very good stuff in the Women’s Division tonight, though the WWE Women’s Championship portion was the weaker. Naomi’s got a great Heel persona going, her promo was great, and her going after B-Fab & Michin over them supporting Jade was a great detail. Jade runs Naomi off, helps B-Fab, but there was no helping Michin in being fed to Charlotte. Tiffany had a decent promo, and it does fit how Charlotte kept her from speaking so she finally gets things out here. It didn’t really add that much, though, but they already gave us a great brawl so not sure what more they can give.
KC Squared VS The Secret Her-vice was a very good match, but of course Chelsea made sure her team won. A Six Woman Tag of Zelina & KC Squared VS The Green Administration is certainly coming, to help give us Zelina VS Chelsea for the Women’s US Championship.
My Score: 8.7/10
About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)
TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends
Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5
Classic POD is WAR
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
Coverage
Andrew’s TNA iMPACT! Results & Match Ratings: 3.27.2025
Bad news out of the TNA management side, but this is a taped episode from El Paso! So we won’t see any of the fallout just yet!
Now we all heard the news about the TNA change in hierarchy, and I…have no positive outlook on that. Delirious sucked at booking and creative in the dying days of ROH before it got bought as a B show. Dreamer having even more control is concerning because his ideas the last two years haven’t been much better.
Gail leaving makes more sense to me. Be it firing or a “you can’t quit, you’re fired” kind of situation, the Knockouts division is the worst it’s been in a long time and Gail was close with Scott D’Amore. So I don’t think Gail parting ways is as big of a problem since TNA has slowly been bleeding out with the Scott faithful.
Granted, I think the next few shows were already taped before the firing so things shouldn’t be completely unwatchable for at least a week or two. So let’s see where we’re going.
.@WeAreRosemary sends @XiaBrookside a CHILLING message!
WATCH #TNAiMPACT on TNA+: https://t.co/LaVxF6l2yc pic.twitter.com/srciTTbel0
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) March 28, 2025
Ratings:
- Gigi Dolin & Tatum Paxley vs Elegance Clique w/Personal Concierge: Ash wins via Rarefied Air – ** 1/4
- Fir$t Cla$$ & Frankie Kazarian vs Laredo Kid, Octagon Jr & Chavo Guerrero Jr: Chavo wins via Gory Bomb into Frog Splash – *** 1/4
- Jacy Jayne vs Masha Slamovich: Masha wins via Russian Death Device – ***
- Eric Young w/two losers vs Ace Austin: Eric wins via Piledriver – ** 1/2
- Seto & Mokuba – I mean – Nic Nemeth w/Ryan Nemeth vs Leon Slater: Nic wins via Danger Zone – *** 1/4
Results:
Gigi Dolin & Tatum Paxley vs Elegance Clique w/Personal Concierge
Ash and Gigi start off, Gigi with a little Rascalz after her first takedown. So both her and Wentz are making it obvious something’s going on between them, and I’m not mad at it. Good for my man Wentz.
Tatum and Gigi get some quick tandem offense in, Ash does manage to scurry off to a tag and Heather gets bent into a Pretzel. Some kind of Inverted Tarantula from Tatum, Gigi tags in, Bronco Buster on Heather followed by Kawada Kicks. Heather sells against the ropes, Gigi goes for a Hesitation Dropkick, but Concierge pulls her away so Gigi crashes and burns. Ref is distracted, Ash gets in some cheap shots and then the Elegant duo starts working over Gigi. A few quick tags, but once Heather comes in, Gigi fights out of the corner, gets the hot tag to Tatum. Tatum stacks up both Elegance members, Corner Stacked Crossbody, Butterfly Suplex and an Elbow Drop with some some flare. Tatum goes to the top rope, Heather pulls Gigi off the apron, Concierge shoves Tatum off the turnbuckle and Ash hits Rarefied Air for the win.
Post match the Elegance Clique wants to make their wish with the cake, they light the candles and Tatum and Gigi recover enough to do what we all expected last week, the cake in the face spot. Some…suggestive licking from both of our Hot Topic Hotties, so…no complaints here.
.@Ashamae_Sebera, @Heathereckless and @IamGeorgeIceman are having a meltdown!
WATCH #TNAiMPACT on TNA+: https://t.co/LaVxF6l2yc pic.twitter.com/FnKwPqm2ff
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) March 28, 2025
Fir$t Cla$$ & Frankie Kazarian vs Laredo Kid, Octagon Jr & Chavo Guerrero Jr
Chavo and Kaz start since he’s King Petty, a quick rope run turns into a Headscissor from Chavo. Kaz recovers, they lock up, Kaz hits the Knee Lift during the lock up to tag out to KC. KC pulls off some athletic dodges, gloats a bit so Chavo waits, measures and nails a gorgeous Dropkick. Laredo comes in on fire, quick high spots that send KC bouncing around like HBK against Hulk. KC powders after sells the Satellite Takedown, AJ checks on him and we go to commercial.
Back from commercial, Octagon is lighting up KC’s chest with overhand chops, he perches, Sunset Headscissor Flip from corner to corner, KC tries to Back Drop him but Octagon does a headstand, kicks KC away and lays him out with a high spot. AJ gets on the apron to stop Octagon from running the ropes, the referee has a stroke or something because he stops paying attention and AJ pulls Octagon out of the ring and chucks him. KC with the Tope con Hilo and tag (tag ropes haven’t mattered since the 80s we all know this). So AJ is getting taunted by the crowd in Spanish, but he’s manhandling Octagon since it looks like a Child fighting their parent. AJ knocks off Chavo and Laredo, Laredo pops up and tries to get involved but he’s caught on the shoulders, Octagon goes for the Crossbody but gets caught and AJ pulls off “World’s Strongest Wasteland” but Chavo breaks up the pinfall. AJ throws Octagon into the corner, Tennessee Whiskey, and tag out to KC. KC hits a few moves, but starts to lose the momentum until he connects with a Super Kick. Simultaneous rope run into the Dueling Crossbodies, so we get the timely tag outs from both sides. Kaz and Laredo come in, Laredo lands like two moves before Kaz hits a Sole Butt, Lariat and eats his lunch. KC and Kaz try to double team Laredo but he fights out and the crowd is chanting for Chavo.
Chavo tags in, and he’s rocking KC, Saito Suplex, Low Bridge to AJ, Reverse the Whip so Chavo goes to the corner and perches, KC feeds, Chavo Backflips to safety, rolls through and lays out KC. Chavo is feeling himself, 3 Amigos start on KC but only 2, Kaz comes in and Chavo switches to Kaz for the Amigos, only 2 again before AJ breaks it up. AJ goes for the disrespect, but Chavo counters and hits the 3 Amigos on the biggest Culero. Aztec Warriors dive to stop AJ and Kaz, KC tries a Dirty Victory Roll but Chavo kicks out. GORY BOMB into FROG SPLASH!
Chavo looked fantastic and he’s the one in the best shape in the ring. I wouldn’t be mad at more Chavito.
Jacy Jayne vs Masha Slamovich
I expect very little from this match.
Collar and Elbow, gator rolling for the first 30 seconds or so, then Jacy goes to some Hair Pull takedowns and does a little taunt before Masha pops back up and hits a Lariat into a Dive. Jacy sells it like she’s really hurt, even the ref tries to hold Masha back a little before Masha gets annoyed and just grabs her, Masha throws her in, looks for a Dive and Jacy sees it and powders. Masha tries to go back to the well for the Dive again but Jacy hits the Uppercut and then an Apron Run PK to drop Masha. Forearms rain down into a Foot Choke as Jacy continues to arrogantly play to the crowd. Another Foot Choke into a Cannonball, and near fall.
Masha gets space with a Sole Butt, tries to snap off Requiem but Jacy fights off, fights through a Sunset Flip another effective PK keeps Masha on her ass. Jacy looks for a kinda half-assed Camel Clutch as Masha is fighting up, but Jacy runs her into the corner, gets distracted mouthing off to the crowd, so Masha recovers, 5 Hole Up Kick sends Jacy into the corner, Yakuza Kick into Capo Kick for two. Requiem attempt again, but Jacy pushes off, a little back and forth, Masha tries a Backslide but Jacy gets away and hits a V-Trigger but only a 2 count. Jacy looks for the Discus Punch but Masha ducks it, they strike back and forth, but some dodges from both leave the exchange more even. Jacy with the Front Kick to the face sends Masha to the outside. Jacy wants another PK, but Masha blocks, Electric Chair Apron Snake Eyes. Masha throws her in, a PK into a near all. Requiem attempt 3, and thwarted from Jacy with a Superkick into a Neckbreaker. Senton misses from Jacy, Buzzsaw Kick, into Spinning Back Kick and Russian Death Device for the win.
Better than I expected, and Tessa attacks as soon as the bell rings. Xia Brookside and Lei Ying Li make the save after Tessa grabs the belt.
Eric Young w/two losers vs Ace Austin
Ace and Eric tie up, World of Sport start but as soon as Ace starts to get away EY punches him in the face. Eric looks at the camera and says “This is what trust looks like”, turns his back on Ace, when Ace looks to attack, the loser duo cut him off. EY takes advantage of the weird situation, but Ace with some Up and Over quick spots, into an Inside Cradle and La Magistral. EY kicks out of the quick flash attempts, but eats a Dropkick, and Ace goes all Speed Kils on him with fast strikes and then a face buster for another near fall. Strike spot very early in the match, Ace gets the best of it, goes for a Tear Drop Suplex but EY sits on it to block, Headlocks to keep him close and then a snap Lariat into beatdown bully tactics. EY takes the referee’s attention and one of the nerds punch Ace in the face.
Eric tries to lean on Ace, but Ace fires, a few strikes, Click Click Boom, the Miz Seated Lariats in the corner, Mochizuki Triangle Kick connects! Only a 2 count, but Ace seems to be in control. Ace puts EY on the ropes, a few strikes to keep him rocked, wants a Superplex, but EY blocks, bites the face and Macho Elbow gets a very close two count. EY tries the Piledriver but Ace turns it into a Jacknife Cradle,Spinning Heel Kick, calls for The Fold, but the losers hop on the apron to distract, Ace attacks them. Ace tries to time out the Triangle Kick again, but Eric dodges, throws Ace head first through the buckles. As Ace stumbles out of the corner, Piledriver, and it’s over.
Oh look it’s the “we’ll hear from Joe Hendry” segment. Again, I’ve loved this gimmick since Day 1, even didn’t hate his What Culture Pro stuff, but there is such a thing as milking a cow too much.
Elijah interrupts the whole “Who’s next” speech. When Elijah comes out he says he’s not the challenger and he believes in Joe. The crowd wants Elijah to turn on Hendry. Elijah pauses for a moment, and starts proving his friendship with stating his favorite color and a little “You Got a Friend in Me”. The crowd is into singing along and waving their cameras like Lighters to a 30 year old song. THANKFULLY Kaz breaks up the hug fest. Now he gets the “Culero” chant.
Kaz pulls out a Bass…what the hell is this Jam Session. Kaz has to warm up so he plays “La Cucaracha” on the bass. Kaz…is a national treasure. Hendry kicks Kaz out of the ring after his Heelish and playfully racially charged song choices. Kaz tries to sow dissension, but Joe and Elijah pinball Kaz between them. Kaz slips a power move and tries to shove Elijah into Joe but Elijah puts the brakes on, a small tense moment. But then Joe and Elijah play “Nah Nah Nah Nah, Hey Hey, Goodbye”…and that goes right into a commercial. Oddly…perfect.
Nic Nemeth w/Ryan Nemeth vs Leon Slater
Nic shoots the half immediately for a flash pinfall but Leon kicks out at one. Nic continues to keep things grounded with his amateur wrestling skills, and then does a little Dolph Ziggler show off. So Nic isn’t really taking this seriously, and Leon starts getting the best of things with an Arm Wringer, into drag, Shoulder Tackle and rope run as Nic tries to Leap Frog and Leon puts on the brakes and just shoves Nic on his ass. Nic gets annoyed, a few strikes, grinds his face along the ropes, but Leon keeps stringing some offense together, Back Handspring Elbow into his Corner con Hilo.
Ahh the classic formula of the commercial gives the heel the advantage, Twisting Suplex from Leon stops Nic’s offense momentum, right hand, Leon lifts Nic up for something, Nic slips it, kicks him in the gut, looks for the FameAsser, but Leon catches him into a Blue Thunder Bomb variation. Slater wants the Swanton 450, but Nic powders. Leon tries to adjust into a Dive, but Nic cuts him off, counter for counter and a FameAsser out of the counters for a two count. Nic starts the big brother tactics, bootwashes and arrogance, Slater fires, punches into a Yakuza Kick. Leon wants another Lethal Injection variant, but Nic catches him into a Rear Naked Choke. Slater tries to turn it into a pin so Nic breaks it. Leon wants a Leg Lariat but misses and gets unceremoniously dropped by Nic. Nic puts Leon up on the buckles, Superplex possibly but Slater counters, tries to collect himself for a move, but Nic falls into the ropes to crotch Leon, and finally hits the Superplex.
Twist of Slate from Leon, Swanton 450 but knees get up. Locomotion Cradles from both but they kick out, Ryan picks the ankle to trip up Leon just a touch and then Danger Zone ends the match.
Ryan starts the post match beatdown, but the Hardy’s music hits and they come down to the ring for the save. Matt challenges the Nemeths for Rebellion because they’re not medically cleared yet.
Overall Score: 6.5/10
Decent story motion, no match was offensive, and there was actually some solid match action for television standards. I don’t have a ton to complain about aside from the Knockouts Division is in a weird spot, and giving Hendry a lot of just talking and hollow payoff segments feels stupid. If we need to hear from him every week, give him a talk segment like Highlight Reel or something. Yes I know First Class just got The Penthouse, but if Hendry is going to talk more than wrestle, give him a talk segment for us to sink our teeth into.
There was the announcement that Xia, Lei Ying and Masha will face Tessa, Jacy and a mystery partner. So you gotta wonder if there’s going to be another NXT mercenary, a surprise return or if it’ll just be Rosemary since she’s got her issues with Xia. Also I just realized that Unbreakable is going to be on a Thursday, seemingly after iMPACT? I’m gonna have to see how they do it, because if there’s an Impact episode and 2-3 hour PLE…I do not want to be awake until 1am. People need to work, and I will be Unwakeable if things go that long.
About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)
TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends
Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5
Classic POD is WAR
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
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