Coverage

Mitchell’s ROH Results & Report! (8/24/19)

Alex Shelley makes his return to the ring!

Published

5 years ago

August 30, 2019

Steven Mitchell

ROH Wrestling Television, Episode 414

Alex Shelley decided NOT to retire, and wants a shot at THE ROH World Championship! Will he be able to defeat Matt Taven in his first match back?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

From Mass Hysteria – Six Man Tag: The Kingdom VS Alex Shelley, Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham; Shelley, Lethal & Gresham win.
From Summer Supercard – WOH World Championship: Kelly Klein VS Tasha Steelz; Klein wins and retains the WOH World Championship.
From Summer Supercard – ROH World Television Championship: Shane Taylor VS Tracy Williams; Taylor wins and retains the ROH World Television Championship.
From Summer Supercard – ROH World Tag Team Championship Ladder War: The Briscoes VS The Guerrillas of Destiny; The Briscoes win and retain the ROH World Tag Team Championships.
From Summer Supercard – ROH World Championship: Matt Taven VS Alex Shelley; Taven wins and retains the ROH World Championship.

PLAY BY PLAY

Alex Shelley called his shot!

While Jay Lethal fought his way to climb back up, and while Matt Taven declared this was HIS era, the Motor City Machine Gun came out to throw out a challenge. Shelley did not use the word “retirement” last time he spoke. And after 17 years, his professional wrestling punch card was ready to be cashed in, for a world title shot! Shelley would wait after Manhattan Mayhem to take his shot, so that he can prove to Lethal, Taven, the world and himself that he is a talent on loan from God.

ROH throws it to Ian Riccaboni and Quinn McKay.

Another huge main event coming to us from Summer Supercard, after Shelley watched very closely at Manhattan Mayhem. Matt Taven successfully retained again despite Kenny King being added to the match, and a Six Man Tag at Mass Hysteria would be Shelley’s actual return to the ring. We now cut to that match’s highlights.

Six Man Tag: The Kingdom VS Alex Shelley, Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham!

Matt Taven would have his henchmen by his side as he would square off with his Summer Supercard opponent, as well as the Franchise Player and Octopus. Watch the whole match on Honor Club.

ROH cuts to Shelley on the top rope, aimed at Vinnie Marseglia and TK O’Ryan. Shelley leaps for a big crossbody! And then he spits water in Taven’s eyes! Taven falls, Shelley catches Vinnie and TK, and Lethal helps out with an enziguri to kickstart the DDT Complete Shot combo! Fans fire up with Shelly while The Kingdom regroups.

ROH cuts to later, as Shelley, Gresham and Lethal are on the outside. The Horror King fires up and builds speed to DIVE! Vinnie wipes them out, then Taven FLIES to take them out, too! Taven is in awe of his own abilities.

ROH cuts to Vinnie giving Lethal a tilt-o-whirl Russian Leg Sweep! Taven gives Lethal Just the Tip of the Knee! Vinnie covers but Shelley breaks it! Taven fires off on Shelley, but Shelley denies the Climax. Taven denies Sliced Bread, but Shelley fires a forearm. Taven spins to forearm back, but Shelley enziguris! Taven SUPERKICKS and both men fall out of the ring.

ROH cuts again, as TK runs at Shelly, only to get a SUPERKICK! LETHAL INJECTION! Lethal DIVES onto Taven and Shelley hits TK with a DDT, right into a crossface! TK endures the Border City Stretch, and taps out! Shelley and team win!

Winners: Shelley, Lethal & Gresham, Shelley by submission

Shelley smirks at Taven as the two stare down. Will we see a Summer Supercard usurping of the throne? Or will Taven still keep his reign going?

Backstage interview with Alex Shelley.

Quinn met Shelley in Lowell to talk about the intense ending to the Six Man Tag. An incredible win, but how is Shelley feeling going into the title match in Toronto for Summer Supercard? To be clear, this isn’t just the biggest match in his ROH career, this very well could be THE match of his entire career! Shelley can’t focus on the past but only the present and future. And right now, Shelley sees a “really really good” champion in Taven, but Taven does not embody the ROH Shelley helped make back over 15 years ago. And quite frankly, Shelley has nothing to lose. And that makes him dangerous. Will that mean Taven’s reign is in danger?

ROH reviews the Allure’s animosity towards Tasha Steelz.

In a Fatal 4 Way contender’s match, the up-and-comer outsmarted the veteran Angelina Love to get a title shot, #Ocurrr? And then she got the better of Love in Mass Hysteria, #Ocurrr? Steelz felt so good winning, but not for long as Velvet Sky hairspray’d her in the face, and Love gave her the Botox Injection boot! Kelly Klein respects Steelz doesn’t back down from a fight, and ran off the Allure for. But their Summer Supercard match was still to come. Would the Boricua Badass beat the Pretty Badass to be THE badass WOH World Champion?

ROH throws it back to Ian and Quinn.

Team IQ talk WOH as Steelz is just one of many big names in the division. Sumie Sakai is back, Maria Manic has been lurking, and even the Allure is running strong. But Steelz has a force of will and earned Kelly’s respect. The entire match is on Honor Club, but here are some highlights from that very Summer Supercard showdown!

WOH World Championship: Kelly Klein VS Tasha Steelz!

The Gatekeeper is ready to test the young and hungry La Reina de la Cultura to see if she is worthy of this title. Will Steelz past the test? Or will she come up short as the Summer comes to a close?

ROH cuts to Steelz building speed. Steelz DIVES and just clips Klein down! Cut again, and Klein reverses Steelz into a DDT! Cut again, and Klein throws Steelz with the Fall Away Slam! Another cut, and Steelz denies Klein a suplex. Klein clubs away and gets the lift but Steelz slips out, OCURRR~! The cutter hits but Klein ends up under the bottom rope! Steelz crawls and drags Klein back, but Klein holds on. Steelz keeps trying but the ref backs her off. One last cut, and Klein runs corner to corner, only to dodge Steelz’s boot. Klein fireman’s carries, K-POWER! Cover, Klein wins!

Winner: Kelly Klein, by pinfall; still WOH World Champion

A pretty badass match between two brands of badass, but it was the Pretty Badass herself who comes out on top. But Klein shows Steelz respect by still raising her hand. But no respect is shown by Angelina Love as she blindsides both from behind! The Allure’s contender doesn’t care about honor or respect, as she gives Steelz a Botox Injection! And one for Klein! Love lifts the world title up as she stands over Klein in the ring. But will she be standing at all after Klein gets her hands on her?

Backstage interview with Angelina Love.

Quinn gets a word with the smug contender about the statement made in Toronto. “It’s what I do.” But before Love can say more, Klein comes back for revenge! They brawl until security pulls them apart! Will the war between Klein and Allure only escalate as ROH moves into the Fall?

LifeBlood speaks.

“Yo, Marty. I should’ve seen it coming.” Mark Haskins and The Villain go way back from their days in the UK. Haskins has seen Scurll at his lowest of lows and highest of highs, so Haskins should’ve known better. Scurll and his Villain Enterprises did damage to LifeBlood by recruiting Flip Gordon and make him a Trojan horse. Haskins should’ve known better. He should’ve known Scurll would be at his most villainous, but that only pushes LifeBlood to be their most relentless.

Tracy Williams speaks up and says that Villain Enterprises ran away last time. They ran because of that beating in the Philly Street Fight. And if LifeBlood can win a Street Fight, they’ll damn well beat Villain Enterprises in a straight up match. So bring the fight and give LifeBlood a title shot. Bandido wants to know if Villain Enterprises is ready. LifeBlood will be the future of ROH! At Honor For All, we see which side finally wins faction warfare!

ROH throws it back to IQ.

Ian and Quinn are excited to see Honor For All settle things once and for all between LifeBlood and Villain Enterprises, but also the second Defy or Deny match for Matt Taven’s reign! Of course, that is if Taven made it through Shelley in Toronto. And before even all of that, Saturday Night at Center Stage, Marty Scurll and Bandido face off in a first-time-ever singles match. Which man gains major momentum for their side going into Honor For All?

Of course, there was still question if Tracy Williams would be able to compete at Summer Supercard for the ROH World Television Championship. Not because the Notorious Hitman, Shane Taylor, did anything. It was Scurll’s Mercenary, Flip Gordon, who attacked! The insidious Intern could not keep Hot Sauce from fighting, and ROH now shares highlights from that title match!

ROH World Television Championship: Shane Taylor VS Tracy Williams!

Things were heated already between Hitman and Hot Sauce when Williams earned this shot in a Proving Grounds match. Will he be the man to take down the baddest champ in ROH?

But of course, before Taylor ever appears, Flip Gordon runs out to SMACK Williams with a kendo stick! Toronto was fired up for the furious Flip as he keeps on Williams and the bad shoulder. Security rushes out to keep Flip away but Williams says it takes more than that to send him home. If Flip thought that his bad arm was going to be why Williams misses the match, Flip’s dumber than Williams thought. You could rip Williams’ arm off and he’d still fight. Taylor’s TV title will still be his, “so get your big ass out here!” Taylor would oblige, and despite doctors’ advice, Williams fights! Watch the full match on Honor Club, ROH TV gives us the highlights.

First, Taylor drops a leg on Williams’ bad arm on the apron! Cut to Williams going up top to drop a FROG SPLASH! Cover, TWO! Williams roars as he keeps moving. Cut to Taylor trying a frog splash, only to FLOP! Williams gets Taylor in a CROSSFACE! Taylor endures, reaches, but powers his way around to use his legs for a ropebreak! Williams let Taylor go but he was still fired up. Another cut, and Taylor drags Williams up out of a corner to scoop. Greetings from the 216! Cover, Taylor wins!

Winner: Shane Taylor, by pinfall; still ROH World Television Champion

“You see this?! I’m going to be the baddest ROH Television Champion of all time!” Taylor aims for the insane record of defenses, but he might just be the man to do it! Who will be the other 30+ contenders to step to Notorious Taylor?

Shane Taylor would speak backstage after the match.

“It’s only fitting, after I defend MY ROH World Television Championship for the third time, in DEVASTATING fashion,” the first words someone says AREN’T “Congratulations! What a title defense!” No, it’s “Why did you have to do that to poor Tracy Williams?” Get it straight: Taylor promised Williams on social media to do what he had to in order to keep the title. Williams is a “grown ass man” who made his choice to fight tonight, and then got whooped like everyone else. But ROH still wants to disrespect Taylor by not advertising him, yet they’ll let EVERY OTHER COMPANY walk all over them! Maybe Taylor has to do something like that! Maybe Taylor needs to start his OWN company! Is the Hitman going to strike out on his own?

ROH returns to Ian and Quinn.

The Summer Supercard world title match will be shown in its entirety tonight, but they were also hoping to show the incredible Ladder War for the ROH World Tag Team Championships between The Briscoes and the Guerrillas of Destiny. Unfortunately, they cannot. It was too violent between two of the most intense teams in the world today, so go to Honor Club to see it all. This was truly the culmination of a feud that started in Madison Square Garden when the G1 Supercard had four teams fight for both the ROH World and IWGP Heavyweight Tag titles. GoD would win to become the first dual tag champions between ROH and NJPW, and it would only escalate from there as the pair of brothers would go back and forth. The Briscoes took the titles back in Manhattan, and Summer Supercard would be the match to settle the score. Parental discretion is HEAVILY advised for the full version, but ROH TV will share what it can.

ROH World Tag Team Championship Ladder War: The Briscoes VS The Guerrillas of Destiny!

Only the eighth Ladder War in ROH history, and perhaps the most brutal one ever between Jay and Mark Briscoe and Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa. Both pairs of brothers were ready for war the moment they came out, because #DemBoyz had chairs already in hand! Loa and Tama would get their own chairs, and the war was on! The bell would ring as chairs swing and clash in and out of the ring! Older brothers Jay and Tama would battle at the same time as Mark and Loa!

Cut to when a table was waiting outside the ring! Mark drags Loa over, but Loa denies the suplex. Jay powers Tama to a corner and chokes him as Loa reverses the suplex to slam Mark on the ground! Jay throws haymakers and stomps but Tama whips Jay into a chair in the other corner! Jay flops out of the ring while Loa sends Mark into a ladder!

Cut again, and now Jay and Tama stand in the ring together. Jay wears a crimson mask of his own blood that ROH TV pixelates. He and Tama grab a chair each, and we come full circle as Tama is ready to “do this s*it!” They start swinging and CLASH! Jay holds on but Tama gets around for a BIG German Suplex! Only for Jay to come back with a LARIAT! Toronto was on fire as both men are down!

Cut to Mark with the ladder set up! The Sussex County Chicken climbs, but Tama uses a ladder as a ramp into the ring! He leaps for a SUPER GUN STUN that takes Mark off the ladder!! Toronto is thunderous as all four men are down!

Cut again, and Tama is up top on the ladder. Jay joins him, and the two fight over the belts while throwing hands! Jay headbutts Tama back then down to the ground! Jay reaches up, grabs those belts, and unhooks them! The Briscoes win!!

Winners: The Briscoes; still ROH World Tag Team Champions

The Ladder War was won by #DemBoyz! Is this the last the Briscoes will have to worry about the Guerrillas of Destiny fighting for ROH’s tag titles?

Summer Supercard will continue to spill onto ROH TV!

Before LifeBlood goes for ROH Six Man Tag gold, we will see how they did against Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham! Or rather, we will see if Lethal can help Gresham see the light before he is lost to the dark side.

The 2019 Top Prospect Tournament comes to ROH TV!

ROH will show us highlights of the heated opening match of Dante Caballero and Joe Keys. Two former tag team partners look to show how well they know each other, and to prove who was the stronger partner all along. Who moves on to the second round of this returning tradition?

ROH World Championship: Matt Taven VS Alex Shelley!

The Kingdom’s king took his throne at G1 Supercard, and would survive contender after contender. Not Flip Gordon, not PCO, not Mark Haskins, not even Jeff Cobb, Jay Lethal or Kenny King could take the title, but none of those men were as experienced as Alex Shelley. Will experience prove to be the edge against Grand Slam Taven?

The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and the entirety of this match will be played after the break!

ROH returns and the Code of Honor is upheld. The bell rings and fans cheer for Shelley. Taven is just annoyed, but he circles with Shelley. They tie up and Shelley gets the arm. Shelley wrenches but Taven wrenches back. Shelley drops down and spins around to drop toehold Taven to a facelock. Taven slips out to his own, but Shelley slips out to get a headlock. Taven headscissors and squeezes tight, but Shelley slips around to pop out. Shelley sits up, to blow SNOT on Taven! Taven SLAPS Shelley back! Shelley backs off and the two stand off. Fans duel and cheer while both men slowly circle again. Taven still wipes some of Shelley’s snot off before he and Shelley tie up again. Shelley headlocks then hammerlocks then whips Taven to a snapmare. Shelley steps over to get the headlock then spin Taven to an arm-drag. He keeps going, pulling Taven into a ghost pin! TWO, and Taven is growing frustrated.

Shelley dares Taven to keep going, and circles with him again. They tie up, Shelley wrenches to double arm-drag and then rolls him around to another ghost pin! TWO and Taven goes to ropes. Shelley lets Taven take his time to come back, showing off by doing jumping jacks. Taven and Shelley circle again and tie up. Shelley gets Taven down, turns him over, and floats to yet another ghost pin! TWO and Shelley does push-ups as Taven backs off to ropes. Taven talks back to fans before he and Shelley tie up again. Shelley calls for a test of strength, but Taven rakes the eyes! Taven steps over to headlock, but Shelley turns the Climax into a Fujiwara armbar! Taven gets out fast and headlocks again, but again Shelley makes it into an armbar! Shelley wants his Border City Stretch but Taven gets a ropebreak first! Shelley lets Taven go and Taven bails out. Taven walks around the ring but Shelley gives chase.

Taven cartwheels over Shelley as he slides in, but Shelley side-steps Taven. Taven springboards for an arm-drag into his own float over to a cover, TWO, into the ghost pin! TWO, and Shelley pokes Taven back! Shelley styles and profiles while we go to break.

ROH returns and Shelley flexes as he has Taven reeling. Shelley grabs Taven, uses the post to get up, but Taven denies Sliced Bread by slamming Shelley through the timekeeper’s table!! Toronto is thunderous for that one! Taven leaves Shelley behind for the ring count to climb. Shelley drags himself over to the ring, using a microphone as a cane! The ring count passes 10 of 20, then reaches 15. But Shelley stands at 16, only to flop over! The count keeps going, and Shelley is in at 19.9! Taven is furious and stomps Shelley down! Taven drags Shelley up to CHOP over and over! Shelley flops down and Taven hears the fans. Taven soaks up the heat before running in at Shelley. Shelley elbows back, then runs, but his crossbody is caught to a swinging backbreaker! Cover, TWO!! Shelley survives but scrambles to ropes. Taven is on him and choking him against the bottom rope. The ref counts and Taven lets up.

Shelley still crawls as fans rally up. Taven says that won’t help Shelley. Taven drags Shelley up, snap suplex! Float over cover, TWO! Taven keeps on Shelley with a Bow ‘n’ Arrow stretch! Shelley endures, fans rally up, but Taven makes the stretch even deeper! But Shelley pops out to a cover, TWO! Taven ducks a fist to whip Shelley to a corner. Shelley walks into a backbreaker, then Taven flips him around for underhooks. Butterfly backbreaker! Cover, TWO!! Shelley still lives and Taven is frustrated. Taven looms over Shelley and dares him to stand. Shelley moves but Taven stomps him down. Taven grabs the legs, and turns Shelley over for a Boston Crab! Fans duel as Shelley crawls and gets the ropebreak! But Taven drags him away! Shelley spins Taven off but Taven cartwheels through it.

Shelley counter CHOPS and CHOPS, then whips to give Taven an atomic drop! Taven ducks the clothesline to hit the Russian Leg Sweep to Moonlight Drive! Cover, TWO!! Shelley’s 17 years are proving to pay off! Taven keeps his cool as he drags Shelley to ropes. Taven wants to end this by any means necessary! But Shelley denies the suicidal suplex to enziguri back! Shelley slingshots to DDT Taven to the floor!! Toronto loves that one as Shelley leaves Taven down and out. The ring count climbs up and Shelley watches Taven closely. Taven crawls and pushes a chair over. Shelley goes after Taven, to get water to the face! Taven throws big forearms, but gets a Complete Shot to the railing! Shelley cravats Taven, standing Sliced Bread onto the railing!! Shelley almost breaks Taven and Toronto is thunderous!

Shelley climbs back up but gets a BIG enziguri! Taven manages to walk, and run back, to FLY! Taven bowls Shelley into chairs! Taven tosses Shelley back to ringside then back in the ring. Taven climbs up top, leaps, FROG SPLASH gets knees! Cover, TWO!! Shelley waistlocks, spins Taven around, SIDEWINDER! Cover, TWO!?! Shelley can’t believe it! But he won’t give up, either. Shelley tunes up the band like the Heartbreak Kid. Taven rises, Shelley runs out, SUPERKICK! But Taven flips Shelley off and says “F You!” Shelley just returns the favor as he tunes up again. Taven stands, SUPERKICK again! Then, SLICED BREAD!! Cover, TWO!?! BORDER CITY STRETCH! Taven’s toughness only gets him more damage, but he pops to a cover, TWO! JUST THE TIP!

The knee hits, but Taven isn’t done. But Shelley counters Climax again, to a quarter stack! TWO, CLIMAX OUTTTA NOWHERE! Cover, TWO to ghost pin! TWO, JUST THE TIP AGAIN! Headlock, CLIMAX! Cover, Taven wins!

Winner: Matt Taven, by pinfall; still ROH World Champion

Somehow, some way, The Kingdom’s king survives to keep his throne. But with another Defy or Deny on the way, will Taven be able to maintain this astounding streak? Or is something going to give sooner rather than later?

My Thoughts:

I’m starting to worry about ROH. This is the fourth episode we got recaps and highlights of PPV events available on Honor Club instead of material that’s actually new. There’s a rule of threes, and that includes wrestling. This week should’ve at least been that Top Prospect Tournament they reminded us about late in the show. Seeing first round highlights for that would’ve been nice. Instead, we’re getting stuff from Summer Supercard, which leads me to believe that ROH did NOT get the money out of that event they were hoping for. Seeing all the highlights through tonight’s episode, that stadium was so bare it makes WWE’s lowering numbers look good. I applaud the fans that did go for being 100% into everything, but I suppose that’s what happens when ROH punches above its weight class scheduling this for the same weekend as WWE’s SummerSlam Toronto weekend…

Also, it doesn’t help that Summercard apparently kept much of the status quo. What was shared of the WOH World, ROH World Television, and ROH World Tag Team championship matches shows each match was pretty good, but Summercard ends up being a filler PPV in a desperate attempt to stay afloat. I do appreciate everything Shane Taylor said in his post-match promo. He takes shots at WWE and AEW with what he was saying, and ROH really does need to think of him as the face of the company, or at least up there with how they’re booking Taven.

For that matter, they’re booking Taven almost too well. I applaud that Taven is being forced to do this on his own because of the Kingdom’s ringside ban. But while that match of Taven VS Shelley was great, Taven winning again was more or less disappointing. The air went out of the crowd when he won, but they would’ve EXPLODED if Shelley won. Taven’s second Defy or Deny, a major milestone for an ROH World Champion, is probably still going to go his way, as I still expect things to head for Taven VS Rush, as I said last time.

My Score: 8.1/10

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

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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (4/26/24)

It’s Draft Day!

Published

22 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Steven Mitchell

And with the first overall pick of the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown selects…

The WWE Draft returns for 2024, the first four rounds being right here on Friday Night SmackDown! With champions protected, who ends up where to challenge them?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee w/ Zelina Vega & Carlito VS Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo; Rey & Dragon win.
Bron Breakker VS Cedric Alexander; Bron wins.
WWE Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Match: Naomi VS Tiffany Stratton; No Contest.
Cody Rhodes VS Carmelo Hayes; Cody wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Backstage interview with Paul Heyman.

Kayla Braxton is with the Wise Man and says that here on night one of the Draft, there are already rumors circulating, including those about The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. Heyman will clarify these are not rumors regarding The Tribal Chief, Roman… Reigns. These are facts! Ladies and gentlemen, Your Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns, has voluntarily withdrawn from eligibility for this year’s Draft. That is not a negative but a positive. Who built SmackDown since the Pandemic? Roman Reigns. Who is the biggest star in the entire industry? Roman Reigns. Why would Roman Reigns hog the number one draft pick spotlight when he won’t be returning in the immediate future?

Read into his words, Kayla, that is not what a real Tribal Chief would do. Instead now, the pressure is on Nick Aldis. Because if Roman Reigns isn’t the first draft pick, then who is? The first two picks make history in a brand new era. And Heyman doesn’t know about you, but he is intrigued. No Tribal Chief up for grabs, who gets their opportunity to shine in the spotlight?

SmackDown throws it to the NXT Performance Center.

Jackie Redmond says the emotion down here is palpable! There is excitement, hope, and a little bit of nerves. But for these NXT Superstars, tonight is the culmination of a lifetime of hard work, dedication, a little bit of luck and a whole lot of self-belief. It was just last year that the NEW WWE Tag Team Champion, Grayson Waller, was hoping his name would be called. And it is funny this is NXT, but time to buy a vowel, throw in an E! Who is next? We find out tonight! The draft pool is deep, who rises to the top of the list?

Corey Graves is in the ring.

Corey welcomes Cincinnati and all of us at home to night one of the 2024 WWE Draft. Understandably, the GMs have their hands full, so Corey will be moderating the contract signing for the WWE Championship match that takes place next Saturday for Backlash: France. Without further ado, it’s the #1 contender, The Phenomenal AJ Styles! Styles makes his entrance, taking a seat at the table on camera right. And now, the Undisputed WWE Champion, the American Nightmare, Cody Rhodes! Cincy fires up and sings along, “WHOA~ OH~!” as Cody makes his entrance and gets his pyro before joining everyone in the ring.

Styles looks over the contract, absolutely tuning out the fans going wild for “CODY! CODY!” Styles then gets the mic to say before he signs, he doesn’t know if we realize that we’ve got two Georgia boys about to mix it up for the first time, and for the biggest prize in the game. Styles understands why they boo, but they gotta know that he doesn’t respect LA Knight, LA Knight got under his skin. He accepts that. But that’s why Styles lost at Mania. But what happened? Styles got his composure back and realized that he is Phenomenal. Styles BEAT Knight to earn the right to face Cody Rhodes at Backlash.

Now unlike Knight, Styles does respect Cody. They hadn’t crossed paths yet, but they’ve been down the same roads. They had to prove themselves outside of the WWE. And Styles is willing to believe that the same man who gave him advice a long time ago gave Cody the same advice, on how to stand on their own two feet and be the men they are today. That man was The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes. The fans cheer for “DUSTY! DUSTY!” Styles learned a lot from Dusty. Styles gets a little emotional thinking about Dusty, he was a good man. Dusty taught Styles how to carry himself, and to carry the weight of a championship.

And Styles looks at this WWE Championship here. The weight of this isn’t just the leather and gold. And at Backlash, we see if Cody can carry it. Styles goes back to his table, signs the contract, and then hands it off to Corey. Corey brings that to Cody, and Cody picks up his mic. “So… Cincinnati…! Whadda we wanna talk about? Certainly, we can talk about respect. There is not a locker room on Earth that you’ll find where everyone in it, every single person, they all respect AJ Styles. Last week, I went on to say you are the modern day Excellence of Execution. I respect the roads that you have traveled down to get here, the parallel paths that perhaps you and I have.

“Mutual respect, much respect. But that respect goes by the wayside at Backlash. I can feel it in your words to a degree. You’ve been here before. And it seems you’re implying that I cannot carry the weight of that championship. Well, good thing the man who trained me not far from where I sit now used to tell me all the time, it’s not about winning the title, it’s about keeping it.” The fans cheer that. Cody says boy does he respect Styles’ familiarity with Cody’s last name. But when you put C O D Y in front of it on this paper, that means they’ve never touched before. That means Backlash is a level playing field.

That means no matter how Phenomenal Styles is, this isn’t a dream match for Cody. It’s a must-win! Cody signs while the fans cheer, and it is official! Cody even throws the pen to the crowd as a free souvenir. Cody then offers a handshake, and Styles says y’know what? It was a beautiful thing to see Cody #FInishTheStory and win the title. But it’s a shame that Cody’s title reign will end at Backlash. Styles still shakes Cody’s hand, and then walks away. Cody picks up the belt and holds it high, will he get to hold it high again in Lyon, France?

Triple H is here!

Just as Cody was on his way to the back, The Game makes his way out here! HHH raises Cody’s hand, then invites him over to the podium. HHH welcomes us to the first round of the 2024 WWE Draft. It is a night that changes the landscape of the WWE going into the future, and things are a bit different this year. As the GMs ponder their next steps, they have to understand it is about protecting the roster they have as it is making the roster they want. Meaning that when they use their picks, they have just as much of a chance gaining a superstar as they do losing one they already have.

HHH just felt that since champs are protected and Cody will be staying here on SmackDown, maybe Cody could help read the SmackDown picks and HHH can read the Raw picks. And since SmackDown goes first, Cody reads first. Cody takes the card to say that with the first pick of the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown selects… The E S T, Bianca Belair! The stongEST, fastEST, roughEST, toughEST stays on Friday nights! HHH reads that for the second pick of the 2024 WWE Draft, Raw selects… YEET! JEY USO! Monday nights will still have Main Event Jey Uso! And the fans “YEET!” Cody says for the third pick, SmackDown selects… NXT’s Carmelo Hayes!

The fans fire up as SmackDown manages to snag… HIM! The former NXT Champion makes history again by being the first NXT superstar to be chosen this high in the Draft! HHH says that’s a hell of a pick. But then the fourth and final pick of this first round, Raw selects… SETH! FREAKIN’! ROLLINS! It is still going to be Monday Night Rollins as the Visionary stays on the red brand! Cody and HHH shake hands, and then Melo makes his way out! Melo has the mic to say when they talk about who’s next up, about who’s the hottest out, they don’t call them “the hottest out,” they just call him “Carmelo Hayes.”

The fans chant “WHOOP DAT TRICK!” to remind Melo how he’s leaving NXT. Melo says okay, okay. But then to Cody Rhodes, ever since Cody won the title, he’s been talking about “If you aim for the king, you best not miss.” Well, funny how that works. Because when Melo shoots, Melo don’t miss. And as a first round draft pick, what better way to shoot his shot on SmackDown than to shoot it right at Cody? Melo leaves the mic with Cody but Cody picks it up to say, “Fortune certainly favors the bold, but I dunno. You folks don’t wanna see me in action tonight, do ya?” The fans go wild! Oh, but what if Cody forgot his gear?

Oh that’s right! He didn’t forget his gear! And this title right here, for Cody, means absolutely 100%, Melo’s on! They shake on it, and we’re about to see a huge first-time-ever showdown! But will this bold first move work out for… HIM?

Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee w/ Zelina Vega & Carlito VS Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo!

The LWO is still not convinced Legado Del Fantasma had nothing to do with the beating that took the Boy Wonder out ahead of WrestleMania. Will the King of Lucha help get to the bottom of things? Or will Angel & “Berto” make it as easy as ABC, 1-2-3?

The teams sort out, Dragon runs up on Humberto but Humberto LARIATS him down! Humberto drags Dragon up, tears the shirt away and CHOPS! Humberto whips, Dragon ducks ‘n’ dodges to RANA! Humberto tumbles out, Dragon builds speed and FLIES! Direct hit and down goes Humberto! The fans fire up as Dragon pushes Humberto into the ring, goes up a corner, and then CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Dragon facelocks to drag Humberto up, but Humberto wrenches out to CLUB Dragon down. Humberto waistlocks but Dragon throws elbows. Angel tags in as Humberto shoves Dragon. Dragon ducks but Angel holds ropes open, and Dragon tumbles to the floor!

The fans boo and LWO hurries to check on Dragon! Angel & Humberto just soak up the heat as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and both Dragon and Humberto are down! They crawl, hot tags to Angel and Rey! The fans fire up as Rey ducks ‘n’ dodges and tilt-o-whirl RANAS! Angel ends up in a corner, he puts Rey on the apron, but Rey ROCKS Angel! Rey goes up to SEATED SENTON! Rey keeps moving, wrenches and kicks, then hops on! CODE RED! Cover, Humberto breaks it! The fans boo but Humberto hauls Rey up. Rey fights and RANAS Humberto up and out! But Angelo kicks, scoops, but Rey slips free! Angelo kicks low, reels REy in, and underhooks, but Rey fights those to RANA Angel onto ropes! Rey dials it up to 619!

Tag to Dragon and he takes aim! Angel stands, into the tilt-o-whirl, PROJECT DRAGON!! Cover, LWO wins!

Winners: Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee, by pinfall

Carlito and Zelina hug it out with the team, but then Santos Escobar & Elektra Lopez walk out here. Santos says whoa, whoa, whoa, hold that celebration. Because Santos is many things, but a liar is not one of them. And when Santos said he did NOT attack Dragon that night before Mania, he meant it. Elektra has been working for weeks to track down the security footage from that night. And Rey… Oh, Rey. What you’re about to see, you will find very, very interesting. The footage plays, and it was CARLITO!! Carlito throw Dragon around backstage! No one can believe it, because of how well Carlito fooled even Dragno.

Speaking of, Carlito RAMS Dragon into Rey, then hits a BACKSTABBER! Never has that move’s name been more fitting! Carlito runs away in a panic, and Rey stands back up in a rage! Santos says he told Rey that he was right all along. They were supposed to be family, and yet look how that turned out. How will the LWO recover from this shocking development?

Bron Breakker VS Cedric Alexander!

The Big Bad Booty Nephew has been making a case for himself ever since showing up on SmackDown, and he’s already bringing the straps down! Is he going to break PRIMED Alexander while also breaking match time records? Or will Cedric prove he’s too fly for Bron?

The bell rings and Cedric dodges Bron to CHOP and ROCK! Cedric whips, Bron reverses and Cedric handsprings, into a SPEAR!! Cover, Bron wins!

Winner: Bron Breakker, by pinfall

Well, hard to say if that’s an all-time fast match, but that was a fast match! QR Code stuff going on, but will we all see Bron take the world by storm?

Nick Aldis heads out.

And waiting is Tiffany Stratton. She asks if he saw what she did last week. Wait, of course he did. Because she is the Center of the Universe. She dropped Naomi and Bayley, where is her title match? Aldis tells Tiff to look at his watch. It is NOT set to #TiffyTime. And he was this close to sending her to the back of the line. But then someone convinced him otherwise, good for her. Tonight, she goes 1v1 with Naomi again, and the winner faces Bayley for the title at Backlash. Whose stupid idea was that?! Bayley says DING DONG, it was hers. It is a win-win situation here. If Naomi wins, she gets the match she got cheated out of.

And if Tiff wins, then she’ll find out when she attacks the Role Model. Tiff gasps as she has a #TiffanyEpiphany. Bayley should be ringside for that match so she can see Tiff do what Bayley couldn’t, and that’s beat Naomi. Tootles. Tiff leaves, but will the only thing she gets is to #FeelTheGlow?

Michelle McCool and Torrie Wilson are here!

One is a former WWE Women’s Champion, the other is a WWE Hall of Famer, but they’re both here to present Draft picks! Michelle says with the first pick of the second round, SmackDown selects… The Viper, Randy Orton! SmackDown will still have to watch out for an RKO outta nowhere! Torrie says that with the second pick of the second round, Raw selects… BRON BREAKKER! We just saw Bron make quick work of opponents here on SmackDown, but now he’s gonna be rampaging on Raw!

Michelle says that with the third pick of the second round, SmackDown selects… NIA JAX! The Irresistible Force may have to change targets from the Women’s World to the Undisputed Women’s title, but will she be unstoppable all the same? And with the fourth and final pick of this round, Raw selects… LIV MORGAN! The Revenge Tour will still be part of Monday nights, will we watch Liv rise to the top?

The Bloodline arrives backstage.

Paul Heyman is there to greet them and open the door to the SUV. He apologizes for not being faster about that, but Solo Sikoa asks The Bloodline if they’ve been drafted. Not yet. Then give Solo the details. Okay, well, Roman Reigns withdrew right before the show began, and then Solo keeps adding members, so no one really knows what they’re getting if they draft The Bloodline! Solo sighs, and here comes Tama Tonga. Heyman asks they be patient but Solo wants Heyman to repeat that for him. Heyman gets scared, but then KEVIN OWENS jumps in! Kevin fires off on Tama, security and refs rush in to stop it!

The Prizefighter wants Solo’s “MFT” to bring the fight like he did last week! Security still drags Kevin away, but will he get that fight he wants?

Kayla Braxton is on stage.

SmackDown returns and Kayla welcomes us back to the show. And please welcome out the first overall pick, Bianca Belair! The fans fire up as The EST walks out on stage, and Kayla congratulates her on being the first overall pick. But let’s talk Backlash. Breaking news, Bianca and Jade Cargill are going to challenge for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships, against the Kabuki Warriors. How satisfying would it be to dethrone them on the stage of this magnitude? Bianca says so satisfying. She really hopes Jade gets drafted to SmackDown because given all this history with Damage CTRL, all the partners by her side, Bianca has never been the one to finally end it with them.

For everything they’ve done to her and this division, Bianca feels Jade is the perfect woman to help her end this. Now, DMG CTRL is falling apart piece by piece, and that final piece is the tag titles. So once Bianca & Jade take the gold at Backlash, the Kabuki Warriors won’t even have a reason to come back to SmackDown. But wait, they’re here now! Asuka & Kairi walk out here and Kayla moves aside. The Empress of Tomorrow and the Pirate Princess taunt the EST, but here comes The Storm! Jade makes her way to stand right by Bianca’s side. The four shout and argue, but this will be settled on May 4th!

WHOA! Tama and Kevin are brawling their way out here! The ladies move aside so the gentlemen can brawl all the way down to ringside! Tama hits low, gets in the ring, but Kevin pursues! Kevin TACKLES Tama, but Solo CLOBBERS Kevin! The fans boo as The Bloodline beats Kevin down! The refs hurry out here but clearly Solo’s Bloodline won’t listen! Tama DECKS producers, DECKS guards, HEADBUTTS them, throws hands and even THROWS the guards! Tama and Solo beat Kevin down again, but here comes Randy Orton! The Viper is still on SmackDown and he’s still pals with Kevin, so here he comes!

Orton DECKS Tama, fires hands on Solo, then RK- NO, Solo gets free and gets away! Orton wants to pursue, almost runs Jamie Noble and refs over to do it, but the Bloodline has gotten away! The fans cheer Randy on, and KAevin even hugs him! But then Kevin and Randy try to give chase! Security stops this, when and where will we see #RKKO strike down Solo and Tama?

The Dudley Boyz are here!

The fans fire up as Bubba Ray & D-Von are both here for the next round of picks! Cincy chants for “E C DUB! E C DUB!” Bubba and D-Von look at the cards, it’s hard to read. So out come the glasses! Bubba says with the first pick of the third round of the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown selects… L A KNIGHT! YEAH!! The Mega Star stays on Fridays! D-Von says with the second pick of the third round, Raw selects… RICOCHET! Mondays still has the One and Only, is Ricochet going to bring that WWE Speed Championship home to Raw, too?

Bubba says with the third pick of the third round, SmackDown selects… THE BLOODLINE! That means Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Paul Heyman are staying right here on Friday nights. And D-Von says with the final pick of this round, Raw selects… SHEAMUS! The Celtic Warrior just got back, but he won’t have to worry about going anywhere else but Monday nights.

WWE Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Match: Naomi VS Tiffany Stratton!

It’s time to run it back once again! The Glow got robbed by the Spoiled Rich Girl, but supposedly, it’s #TiffyTime. Will Naomi prove there’s no such time on the clock? Or will Bayley be the one feeling the Backlash over giving Tiffany one more chance?

The bell rings and Naomi hits a THESZ PRESS! Naomi rains down fists, Tiffy shoves her away and goes to ropes, but Naomi gets up in Tiff’s face. Naomi whips, Tiff holds ropes to bail out and fans boo. Naomi scowls, runs in and WRECKS Tiff with a dropkick! Naomi then gets Tiff up, SMACKS her off the apron, and then SMACKS her off it again! And again! Naomi puts Tiff in, goes up a corner, but Tiff gets under the jump! Naomi runs back up but Tiff YANKS her into ropes! Tiff runs to HIP ATTACK! Naomi sputters, Tiff scowls and drags Naomi up, to then put through ropes. But Naomi RAMS into Tiff!

Naomi reels Tiff in, for a HEATSEEKER! Tiff flops to the floor, and then Naomi SPLIT LEG DROPS! Naomi says it’s #NaomiTime, but SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Naomi runs, but into a SPINEBUSTER! High stack, TWO! Naomi survives and Tiff is frustrated but the fans rally up. Tiff drags Naomi up, whips her to a corner, but Naomi goes up and sunset flips! TWO! Tiff escapes, knees Naomi low, then whips. Naomi slides under the lariat to then mule kick! Then she headscissor SPIKES Tiff down! Cover, TWO! Tiff survives but barely, and Naomi keeps her cool. Naomi headlocks, but Tiff shoves her into buckles! Tiff runs, but Naomi follows, DOUBLE RUNNING FACEBUSTERS take them both down! The fans fire up as the two rise!

Naomi KICKS, ROCKS and ROCKS Tiff again! Naomi fires shots again and again but Tiff knees low! Tiff reels Naomi in, but Naomi wrenches out to ENZIGIRI! And then BUCKLE BULLDOG! But then NIA JAX attacks Bayley!? Nia SMACKS Bayley off buckles, rains down fists, and this momentarily distracts Naomi. Naomi refocuses, but by now, Tiff’s slipped away! Nia KICKS Bayley in the side, so Naomi goes out to ROCK her! Nia POSTS Naomi and that throws the match out!

No Contest

The fans boo as Nia ruins the fun, then runs Bayley over! Nia smiles as she blows kisses to Cincy. Tiff smiles, she drags Naomi up and puts her in the ring. Then she drags Bayley in! Tiff wants a repeat of last week as she puts them side by side in the drop zone! Tiff then goes up and up for the PRETTIEST MOONSAULT EVER!! Tiff says it’s her time, but the #1 contendership is still in question. Who gets their shot at the Role Model at Backlash?

B-Fab and the Street Profits meet up backstage.

Angelo Dawkins has a “WHO-DEY” sign, but Montez Ford is wondering where Bobby Lashley is right now. B-Fab says calm down, he’ll be here. Byron Saxton walks over and apologizes for interrupting. He doesn’t know what the Draft destination for this group will be until Monday Night Raw, but we do know that The Profits will challenge A-Town Down Under for the WWE Tag Team Championships. YESSIIIIIIR~! B-Fab says it doesn’t matter where they get drafted. The Profits are going to take down A-Town Down Under and take those titles. Then they’ll have their first class tickets right back to SmackDown.

SmackDown? Did someone say SmackDown~? In walk Austin Theory & Grayson Waller, showing off the titles. And Theory says you can’t have SmackDown without the GREATEST undefeated tag team of all time. And sorry, Dawkins, but these are championships, something the Bengals know nothing about! B-Fab keeps Dawkins back, but then in steps Bobby Lashley! The All Mighty scares Theory & Waller right off, and Dawkins says see y’all next Friday! Will there be nothing keeping these Profits down the night before Backlash?

The Final Testament speaks.

Karrion Kross says good evening. What’s going on here? You guessed it! More random acts of violence! Just follow him. Kross & Scarlett lead the way to show The Authors of Pain beating down New Catch Republic! Rezar beats down Pete Dunne while Akam victimizes Tyler Bate! Paul Ellering says they will know about sacrifice! Kross says whether they get drafted to Raw or stay on SmackDown, the violence will continue until they get what they want! So sayeth The Final Testament!!

Teddy Long and JBL are here!

The Hall of Famer General Manager and the Hall of Famer WWE Champion are both here, ready to give us the fourth and final round of picks tonight! Teddy gets right to it! The first pick of the fourth round, SmackDown selects… AJ STYLES! The Phenomenal One is really an obvious choice, because one way or another, the WWE Championship stays with SmackDown! JBL says the second pick of the fourth round, Raw selects… THE ALPHA ACADEMY! Raw keeps Chad Gable, Otis, Maxxine Dupri & Akira Tozawa, A THANK YEW~!

Teddy says with the third pick of this round, SmackDown selects… ANDRADE! A big move as now El Idolo will be part of Friday nights. And with the final pick of this fourth round, Raw selects… NXT’S Kiana James! The Calculator, the former NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion, has the Raw hat to put on, and after a quick hype package, Jackie Redmond is there to interview her. Kiana, congratulations! You are heading to Monday Night Raw! How much does this mean to her? This means the world to her. She is filled with gratitude, but also knows every decision she has made up to this point has been by design to get her here.

Kiana is so proud of her time in NXT, but she’s ready to show Raw why she is the One Percent. Was she surprised? Of course she was! HBK is here to wish her luck and congratulations. Is Kiana going to start the hostile takeover of the Raw Women’s Division?

Backstage interview with Nick Aldis.

Kayla is with the SmackDown GM and says that with night one in the books, how does he feel about SmackDown’s selections? He feels really good about them. SmackDown’s future is bright, he can’t wait for the new recruits to show up and show out for the blue brand. But he also wants to turn attentions to Backlash, because he’s got some new matches to announce! The first PLE in France, this is exciting stuff, Kayla. Aldis says that the WWE Women’s Championship will now be on the line in a Triple Threat! Bayley VS Naomi VS Tiffany Stratton! Will the odds make it that much harder for the Role Model to succeed?

There’s one more match to announce, but Aldis will let the GM GOAT take it from here. Teddy Long steps in, and don’t forget. We’ll talk about this tag team match. The Bloodline VS Kevin Owens & Randy Orton! Holla, players. Solo & Tama will have to face The Viper and the Prizefighter, will #RKKO strike fast and strike hard?

Cody Rhodes VS Carmelo Hayes!

The American Nightmare just put pen to paper for his match with the Phenomenal One, but he isn’t one to shy away from a challenge. The former NXT Champion is shooting his shot, but will this be nothing but net? Or will it be a frustrating airball?

The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up, the fans rally for Cody as he puts Melo in a corner then arm-drags him away. Melo runs up, Cody headlocks, Melo powers out then drops. Melo hurdles, but Cody kicks low to RHODES UPPERCUT! Melo staggers to ropes, the fans fire up, but then melo throat chops and springboard FLYING LARIATS! Melo says that’s why he’s a first round pick! But then Cody CLOBBERS him! Cody asks if Melo’s ready for this, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns once again and Cody has a headlock. Cody hits a takeover, Melo flails and kicks around, but Cody grinds him down. Melo pushes with his forearm, then headscissors, but Cody kips free. Melo CHOPS, the fans “WOO~!” but Cody brushes himself off. Melo pie faces Cody! Cody fires forearms on Melo, then whips, but Melo reverses. Melo ELBOWS Cody, then runs up to KICK him in the side! Melo fires forearms and CHOPS in a corner, then throws body shots. Melo digs his boot in, the ref counts, and Cody goes to another corner. Cody eggs Melo on, Melo storms up, but Cody puts him in the corner to CHOP!

Cody swings, Melo dodges and CHOPS! Cody turns things around to CHOP! The fans rally, Cody whips corner to corner, then he back drops Melo away! Melo staggers up, Cody runs, and he rallies on Melo with forearms! Cody goes up and over in a corner but Melo tilt-o-whirls, LA MYSTICA! Melo springboards, FADE AWAY! Cover, TWO! Cody survives that flying DDT, but we see the NXT roster all fired up watching Melo take it to the champ. Melo sits Cody up, drags him into a facelock, but the fans rally for Cody. Cody fireman’s carries but Melo slips free to dragon sleeper! Melo grins, but Cody cradles! TWO!!

Melo swings, Cody boots, then Cody springboards to BEAUTIFUL DISASTER! Melo flips inside-out, Cody covers, TWO! Melo is still in this and he snarls up at Cody. Melo gives a forearm, Cody gives it back, and the fans rally up. Cody scoops Melo, storms around, and then hits a RUNNING POWERSLAM! Cover, TWO! Melo survives and Cody grows frustrated. Cody pounds the mat, the fans rally up, and then Cody goes to ropes. Cody springboards again, CODY CUTTER! Cover, TWO!! Melo survives yet again, proving why he’s a former NXT Champion, on top of NXT North American Champion! But then Cody drags him up!

Cody back suplexes, Melo lands out of it, then FIRST 48! Doe goes Cody and Melo goes up! Melo is setting up for the game winner! NOTHING BUT- NO, Cody avoids the flying leg drop! Melo rolls through, Cody dodges to SUPERKICK! Cody brings Melo around, but Melo gets free! They both run, both springboard, but completely miss each other, and Cody takes a rough landing! Melo drags Cody up, reels him in, but Cody wrenches out to dragon sleeper! CROSS RHODES!! Cody shakes out the bad arm but still makes the cover, and Cody wins!

Winner: Cody Rhodes, by pinfall

Melo took his shot but it was blocked! Even so, Cody sits Melo up to show him respect and tell him he’s still the future. But did this match end up more of a trap game for Cody after that crash landing? Or will he be alright in time for Backlash and his phenomenal opponent?

Speaking of, Styles sneaks right into the ring! Cody sees him in time and Styles stays back. Cody and Styles stare down, but Styles says it was that close. Styles offers a handshake, and Cody takes it. There’s still respect here, for now. But will nothing stop Styles from turning Cody’s story into a tragedy after all?

My Thoughts:

A great SmackDown to open the WWE Draft but to also set up Backlash. To recap, SmackDown took Bianca, Melo, Orton, Nia, LA Knight, The Bloodline, Styles and Andrade while Raw took Jey, Rollins, Bron, Liv, Ricochet, Sheamus, The Alpha Academy, and Kiana. Many of those choices made sense, as picks won’t be wasted on keeping champions on brands, and just need to be used to keep most stories alive and change up a few others. Kiana is perhaps one of the more surprising moves, but well-deserved. She has been a solid character and solid in-ring performer almost from the start, she’s a solid addition to Raw.

Bron of course demolished his opponent tonight, it’s just a shame it was Cedric and not local enhancement talent. But Bron will also be a good addition to Raw, but maybe he can move past his squash match phase and get right to story. Melo being a first round pick was great stuff, and he had a great promo with Cody to give us tonight’s main event. That double springboard whiff was definitely a timing problem, but at the same time, a Fade Away countered into a Cody Cutter would’ve been way too epic just for TV. Cody with a great win, and we got a really good contract signing segment, but you can bet Cody retains.

Really good tag match from LWO VS Legado but naturally Rey & Dragon won. I knew it was only a matter of time before Carlito was outed, and how he handled being exposed was pretty good. And with Andrade being drafted to SmackDown, you just know that means Andrade joins the LWO. The Final Testament attacking New Catch Republic was a wild moment, I almost thought Ellering was going to use the pliers in his hands to grab at fingers. Maybe we get that next week for SmackDown in France. Good promos from A-Town Down Under and the still technically unnamed faction of Bobby Lashley’s. As great as The Profits are, it feels like Theory & Waller will cheat to retain.

Really good promo with Tiff and Bayley to set up Naomi VS Tiff round 3, but I did not think Nia Jax would disrupt all that. A Triple Threat at Backlash is good stuff, it will protect Bayley if she loses, but can also protect Naomi and Tiff if Bayley uses them against each other to win. Good promo from Bianca that then turned into the shouting match of Bianca & Jade with Kabuki Warriors. Their tag title match is official, and I’m pretty sure Bianca & Jade win. I also liked that this segment ended up having Kevin and Tama brawl right through it. Orton saving Kevin was a great move, RKKO VS Solo & Tama is going to be awesome stuff, I can’t wait to see it.

My Score: 8.8/10

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

Coverage

Andrew’s TNA iMPACT! Results & Match Ratings: 4.25.2024

We just got done with Rebellion, and Under Siege is two weeks away! Gotta see how these dots connect!

Published

2 days ago

April 25, 2024

Andrew Balaz

Rebellion had quite a few returns, Mike Santana, Sami Callihan and Broken Matt Hardy. All three of these guys could easily be main event players, and its nice to mix up and expand what felt like a rather small pool of potential challengers.

Under Siege is only like 2 weeks out, so we’ll see how the dots connect in such a short period of time.

.@AJFrancis410, Rich Swann, and rap legend @BunBTrillOG are IN THE HOUSE Meanwhile, @joehendry announces he will deliver an apology to Fir$t Cla$$ NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT! pic.twitter.com/4GNe2xWfyU

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Ratings:

Mike Santana vs Myron Reed w/Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz: Santana wins via Spin the Block – ** 1/2
#1 Contender: Frankie Kazarian vs Josh Alexander: Josh wins via Grapevine Ankle Lock – ***
ASH by Elegance vs Xia Brookside: Xia wins via School Girl Roll-Up – ** 3/4
Sami Callihan vs The Good Hands: Sami Callihan wins via Cactus Driver ’97 – SQUASH
Eddie Edwards w/Alisha Edwards & Brian Myers vs Nic Nemeth: Eddie wins via Boston Knee Party – *** 1/4

Results:

Did @NicTNemeth say BROKEN? @MATTHARDYBRAND has arrived in the iMPACT Zone! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/HbkUangt6e

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

A weird opening that is just framed to put Nemeth and Hardy together against The System. Feels a little awkward, but who knows how it will play out.

.@JordynneGrace vs @miyu_tjp NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT will now be for the Knockouts World Championship! pic.twitter.com/YnKZjb9yjx

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Mike Santana vs Myron Reed w/Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz

Ahh I didn’t really pay attention to Santana’s theme at Rebellion, but its pretty damn cool. Good stuff.

Rascalz blindside Santana early, but the heel advantage doesn’t last more than a few moves. Santana whips Myron from corner to corner, hits a few Hip Attacks before Myron finally dodges one and starts using his unique offense and agility to his advantage. Matrix dodge, into an Leaping Outside Back in Slingshot Codebreaker. Some more offense and Santana powders to the ramp, Myron jumps over the rope and tries a Flying Cutter, but Santana blocks it, turns things around, gets pushed forward and hits the Rolling Cutter. Santana takes out the Rascalz, heads back into the ring, Myron tries to catch him unawares but eats the Spin the Block off the rope run! Santana wins fairly quickly.

Maclin’s music hits, he tries to employ the help of The Rascalz to attack Santana, but as soon as Maclin positions himself to get in, The Rascalz bail and flip off Maclin. Maclin makes it out of the confrontation relatively unscathed, but at least we know where he’s going for Under Siege probably.

OH FUCK ME WITH RUSTY KNIVES. Because Cardona is hurt Kon is paired with SDL, and she just challenges Jordynne and PCO to a tag match. WHY!? STOP IT. This is hot garbage.

Josh Alexander comes out…I wonder who’s Super Finisher he’s gonna conveniently kick out this time? Brian Myers? Frankie Kazarian? Rich Swann? Because yes, I’m still annoyed that Hammerstone has been in TNA for half a sandwich, he already connects with a Super version of his finish on tacks, and that’s not a finish. Oh Kaz’s music hits. Okay, so time for Josh to kick out of Fade to Black or Flux Capacitor. Kaz talks smack, says he won his match too so he should have a say in who’s number one contender. Josh challenges him, Kaz says not right now, but a referee runs out and says the match is official.

#1 Contender: Frankie Kazarian vs Josh Alexander

Kaz throws his jacket on Josh’s head, and attacks him with some strikes before Josh fights back and throws Kaz out. Commercial break, we see Kaz misses his Apron Guillotine, Josh goes for the Low Crossbody but Kaz dodges and Josh goes flying. Kaz starts throwing some chops and claws at the cauliflowered ears of Josh. Russian Leg Sweep from Kaz for a near fall. Josh swings wildly and Kaz ducks the strike and levels Josh with a Lariat.

Josh blocks a Vertical Suplex attempt, but Frankie pulls off a Fisherman’s Suplex after a few overhead strikes for a near fall. Josh stands up and connects with a straight right, rocks Kaz, Back Body Drop, into a Charging Forearm, Rolling Senton, 2 count! C4 Spike attempt countered into a Back Stabber and then Chicken Wing, but Josh fights it off, rolls through and into an Ankle Lock, Kaz kicks off and into a Head and Arm Cradle for a near fall and then the Guillotine Leg Drop into Slingshot DDT spot from Kaz for another 2 count!

Fade to Black, but its fought off, Big Boot but then Kaz counters the next move with a Power Slam into the Springboard Guillotine Leg Drop, but Josh grabs the Ankle Lock! Locomotion German Suplex time from Josh, Halfhatch Suplex after the Germans, floats over for a 2 count! C4 Spike attempt again, but Kaz fights it off, dumps him over the top rope, slingshots him in and into the Cutter for a near fall for Kaz! After the 2 Kaz grabs a chair and chain, the referee stops the chair of course, so he tries the chain, EY runs down and grabs the chain so Kaz pulls the Eddie Guerrero and the referee admonishes EY, but doesn’t DQ Josh. So as Kaz is busy laughing at EY, Josh picks the ankle, Ankle Lock with the Grapevine, Kaz taps.

Tensions are sky-high between @alexhammerstone and @JakeSomething_! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/LLCUJOCy7H

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

ASH by Elegance vs Xia Brookside

Both are jawing at each other and then throw hands before Xia gets the upper hand with a Headscissors from the Top Turnbuckle, Charging Knees, a Flurry of Kicks, but when the ref forces some space in the corner, ASH is finally able to dodge and work over Xia with her Twisting Body Splash, a few choking moves, a corner Stomp into a Snap Suplex for 2. ASH is in charge elegantly, but the referee keeps forcing space on both of them when they go for corner attacks. Xia manages to take advantage a little, but ASH regains control, kicks Xia up the ramp and then lands her Cartwheel Back Elbow up the ramp. It actually looks pretty cool executed like that.

Headlocks and Hair Pulling to keep Xia down and using energy to kick out. ASH is getting frustrated but Xia is remaining persistent. ASH goes back to the Headlock, but Xia fights up, Jawbreaker, Back Elbow, Kick to the gut and Drop Toe Hold sends ASH face first into the middle buckle. Xia rips off 4 Double Knee Smashes to the back of ASH’s head into her Flying Crossbody for a close 2! Xia pulls her up, but ASH spins out, then Xia slips it, but ASH kicks her in the chest and deposits her to the outside and demands a count from the referee. Iceman puts Jeweled Knuckles/Rings on ASH’s hand, the referee catches her, removes the stuff from her fingers and Xia hits the School Girl Roll-Up for the flash win.

Fraud has thrown the Ballot Box Battle into chaos, but also paved the way for an explosive showdown between @TheTreyMiguel and @The_Ace_Austin NEXT WEEK to determine the #1 Contender for the X Division Championship! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/lYHrtgNrc3

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Sami Callihan vs The Good Hands

So the Good Hand Jobs are about to do their job to Sami. I’m just gonna assume Sami beats the hell out of both and wins with a Cactus Driver ’97. If anything interesting happens I might actually cover it, but come on now.

.@SteveMaclin has a proposition for @FrankieKazarian #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/XY6lMdmSWo

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Kaz makes a Metallica reference with the “Wash Your Back So You Won’t Stab Mine”…and Sweet Amber is the only good song on St. Anger. So…I ain’t mad.

Eddie Edwards w/Alisha Edwards & Brian Myers vs Nic Nemeth

A little early ground wrestling and headlocks for control from both men. Nothing super flashy to start until we get to the rope run and Nemeth goes for the Flying Body Press to drop Eddie. Before Nemeth can follow up, Lish grabs his foot. Nic does have his brother Ryan in the crowd, trying to get chants going and do the old school ‘power up the babyface’ thing, but Eddie has been in control since Lish got involved. Simple offense, chokes, strikes, Snap Suplexes, Knee Drops, simple yet effective. But then Eddie ducks his head too early, Nemeth kicks him in the face, bounces his head off the buckles a few times, Dropkick sends Eddie reeling to the corner, Nemeth starts the 10 Count Punches but Myers hits the apron to distract and Eddie manages to slip the situation and push Nemeth to the floor.

Commercial break happens, Nemeth is trying to fight back with Chops, but a Kitchen Sink from Eddie puts Nemeth on the floor again! Clubbing blow from Eddie, but Eddie then misses the Hip Attack in the corner and Nemeth counters with the Rude Awakening into the 10 Count Rain of Elbows. Fame Ass-er miss, Eddie tries something but Nemeth turns it into that hesitation DDT for 2! Tuning up the band starts to build and Eddie powders to avoid it. Nemeth throws Eddie back in, goes to the top, but Eddie crotches him, rises up and hits the Superplex into Tiger Driver for 2! Eddie starts mocking with Tuning Up the band but Nemeth hits his own Superkick into an Olympic Slam for 2!

Both men just trade strikes Fighting Spirit style, Eddie says “Always Trust the System” and Nemeth shuts him up with a Headbutt. Danger Zone is blocked, Boston Knee Party gets ducked, they level each other with Lariats! Myers and Ryan Nemeth start fighting to distract the referee, Moose hits the ring and hits Nemeth with the belt. Eddie lands Boston Knee Party and The System wins again!

Overall Score: 6/10

A lame opening segment, a squash match, ASH by Elegance getting her first loss, and a weird way of just pulling the number one contender out of mid air makes for an awkward show. Also Kon still be involved in, literally anything, is negative. However, I can say there was a ton of stuff thrown at the wall this episode, so there’s a chance that some things landed better with other people than myself. The ballot segments were amusing, they overused the “I need to talk to you Santino” gimmick a bit much and personally I feel like having Jake versus Hammerstone is booking yourself into a weird corner.

But hey, the main event was fun, Nemeth getting laid out to the point that there could be a story reason to take him out of the Under Siege match. Kaz with the Metallica reference was pop worthy and I guess its a lot of ‘let’s see where it goes’ kind of angle creation. So it wasn’t complete trash, but its definitely a wait and see episode.

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