Coverage

Mathew’s NJPW G1 Climax A Block Results & Review: Day 17

The last day for A Block! 4 possible winners…err…3 possible winners and 1 that can make an interesting tied play-in match if needed! Let’s see how interesting the G1 Climax gets today!

Published

4 years ago

October 16, 2020

Mathew Sarpraicone

This is it, everyone, this is the final day of A Block in our G1 Climax. We had ten participants and we are now down to four who could actually make it to the finals tonight with one of them being incredibly tricky. This has been a wild ride for my block but it’s time we bring it to a close and see who makes it to the finals.

Who will be one step closer to winning the G1 Climax?

Let’s find out as we…dive right in.

Star Rating System:

0 Stars: Dave Meltzer
1 Star: Vince Russo
2 Stars: Tony Schiavone
3 Stars: Eric Bischoff
4 Stars: Bruce Prichard
5 Stars: Jim Cornette

G1 Climax A Block Match
Jeff Cobb vs. Yujiro Takahashi

Review: Time for our first match as we have Jeff Cobb taking on Yujiro Takahashi. Yujiro is the only one in the tournament that has failed to get a single win in this tournament so far, and this is his last chance to at least get one win. Cobb is in the middle but he’s been out for a while now and could win to at least come out strong. Will Yujiro finally get points or does he lose all nine of his matches?

Cobb would have an early advantage in the match, causing Yujiro to try and retreat but he got pulled back in for a headlock as it leads to Yujiro biting his arm to make him let go. Yujiro was trying to get some offense in but it leads to Cobb delivering a Dropkick to Yujiro to get him down. Yujiro was out of the ring and Cobb was running after him, Yujiro getting inside as he tries to hit an Elbow Drop onto Cobb when he saw him attempting to get back in the ring but missed. Cobb dragged him to the outside and it looked like he was going for a Brainbuster but Yujiro reversed it into a Reverse DDT. Despite having some of the weaker matches in the tournament, Yujiro was still fun to see in them, trying to do different ways to win a match despite failing all of them. Cobb did much better here than the previous year but definitely needs to figure something out in New Japan to bring him out to that next level.

Cobb hits Yujiro with a back elbow and goes for the standing Moonsault but Yujiro rolled out of the way and runs the ropes, hitting a Dropkick onto Cobb’s head. Yujiro flipped him with a Snapmare, ran the ropes to try and kick him again but Cobb ducked and would deliver a couple of shoulder tackles before tossing him into the corner, catching him after for a Belly-to-Belly Suplex. Cobb hits Yujiro with a Running Back Suplex but Yujiro kicked out at two. Cobb attempts a German but Yujiro fought off, getting hit with a forearm and as Cobb ran towards him, Yujiro catches him with a Flapjack to make him land on the ropes. Cobb pulled Yujiro off the turnbuckle and catches him for the Athletiplex and Yujiro kicked out at two but hits a standing Moonsault for Yujiro to kick out again. Cobb calls for the Tour of the Islands but Yujiro reverses to attempt a Reverse DDT but now Cobb reverses it to attempt a Brainbuster, but we get another reversal from Yujiro as he rolled him up into a Small Package as Cobb kicked out! Yujiro hits Cobb with the Incolle Slam and picks him up again to hit the Miami Shine but Cobb kicked out at two. Yujiro would get Cobb on his knees as he finally hits the Pimp Juice, giving Yujiro his first victory!

Rating: Eric Bischoff

G1 Climax A Block Match
Minoru Suzuki vs. Shingo Takagi

Review: Time for our next match as Minoru Suzuki takes on Shingo Takagi. Both of these men are eliminated but this match is important to Shingo since he wants payback from Suzuki for taking his NEVER Openweight Championship a few months ago. So if he can defeat Suzuki here, he can get a rematch for the title in the future. Will Shingo be able to get revenge or does the king end his G1 strong?

Soon as the bell rang, they would go towards each other, delivering strikes back and forth to one another and it looked like Shingo had the upper hand until he ran towards him, Suzuki having Shingo’s arm over the rope and applies an Armbreaker between the ropes until he was told to let go. Suzuki dragged Shingo outside and started to beat the crap out of him by the guardrail but Shingo tried to fight back with a couple of headbutts to Suzuki, however, Suzuki gave some headbutts back in return and left the dragon stunned. While Suzuki was dominating Shingo in the match, he also made sure to work on his arm in the process since that’s most of Shingo’s arsenal and wants to weaken it as much as he can to minimize any damage Shingo can do to him later in the match. With this match, you know what they’re capable of doing but at the same time, it’s like they’re saving it for them to go all out in their eventual next encounter should that ever happen. Even with that, it’s still just as physical and leaves you with that wanting of more between them since they did deliver in the Openweight Championship match. Even with Shingo’s right arm being worked on, he makes sure to use his left arm, which is just as strong and can leave damage to Suzuki. Suzuki giving Shingo that sinister stare when they keep hitting each other back and forth, this is why he’s known as scary grandpa because he looks menacing and can back it up at the same time.

It looked like Shingo won the battle of forearms but his arm is hurt badly in the process, so Suzuki would take advantage of that by hitting him and attempts to go for the Gotch Style Piledriver early but Shingo tossed him over. Shingo attempts to hit the Sliding Lariat but Suzuki ducked out of the way and quickly got up to apply the Rear-Naked Choke onto Shingo again, setting up for the Gotch Style Piledriver again as Shingo lifted him up on his shoulders to hit a Death Valley Driver. Shingo delivers a couple of elbows to Suzuki’s neck and hits the Sliding Lariat this time but Suzuki kicked out at two. Shingo runs the ropes to attempt the Pumping Bomber but Suzuki catches his arm and applies the Cross Armbreaker onto Shingo! Shingo trying his best to fight out of it even attempted to lift Suzuki up but was dragged back down into the hold. Suzuki eventually lets go of the hold and kicks his bad arm a few times to hurt him more but Shingo lifted him onto his shoulders, only to let go as Suzuki applies the Fujiwara Armbar to Shingo. Suzuki held onto it tightly, applying as much pressure as he could onto his arm but Shingo would get his leg on the rope to break the hold and save himself in the process. Suzuki chokes him out again but Shingo would deliver a Lariat to Suzuki’s chest, wobbling around but not going down as Shingo hits a couple of more, leading to Suzuki slapping his face a few times, topping it off with a headbutt. Shingo delivered some headbutts of his own and ran the ropes, Suzuki following behind him to choke him from behind again. This lead to Shingo lifting him up to attempt The Last of the Dragon but Suzuki jumped off him to apply the choke once more. Shingo broke free of the hold to hit a stiff forearm, sending the king down and Shingo lifts him up for The Last of the Dragon, pinning him for the victory! Shingo has gotten revenge on Suzuki and when they have their rubber match, it’s gonna be magic.

Rating: Eric Bischoff and a half

G1 Climax A Block Match
Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay

Review: Time for one of our first deciding matches as Kazuchika Okada takes on Will Ospreay. The winner if this match will be a little bit closer to potentially win the block but one of them is going to have to be eliminated here. Will has failed to defeat Okada every time they fought in singles action, and he looks to finally get that victory. Who will be one step closer?

Ospreay is wasting no time when it comes to Okada, so he knows to hit him as fast as he can, which is what he does when he delivers a Dropkick to Okada right away when the bell rang, sending him to the outside. Ospreay isn’t done as he does his cartwheel flip over the ropes, sending Okada back into the ring to hit the Pip Pip Cheerio as Okada kicked out at two. Ospreay quickly picks Okada soon as he kicked out and goes for the Stormbreaker early as Okada flipped him over. Okada hits Will with a forearm but Ospreay hits him back before calling for the Oscutter, leading to Okada catching him for the Money Clip! Will quickly got to the ropes once it was applied so he could break the hold but Okada wasn’t done as he goes outside to hit Will with the Orton DDT, sending Will crashing into the floor. Quite an explosive beginning to kick things now and things start to finally cool down here after that sequence. Been loving Will’s attitude during the entire tournament with this arrogant amount of confidence in the ring soon as he joined the heavyweight division officially, and felt like this is what he needed to get to that next level to try and defeat Okada. With Okada and his new direction during this time, I’m not fully sure what the payoff is in the long run but for the time being, has been rather underwhelming. Given how these two have changed during the year, they will mesh together well.

Ospreay would take a page out of Okada’s book by having Okada sit on the top turnbuckle, hitting a Dropkick to make Okada fall to the outside. Will would then run toward the corner to jump over it to flip on top of Okada, landing on his feet in the process. Will hits the Pip Pip Cheerio on the back of Okada’s head but kicked out at two. The two start punching each other until Okada goes for a Dropkick, Will hanging onto the ropes to make him drop as he ran in to hit a Running Shooting Star with Okada having his knees up before Will landed. Okada tossed him into the ropes to go for the Dropkick again but Will catches him in the air for a Sitout Powerbomb as Okada kicked out again. Will kicks his head in and would go for the Stormbreaker but Okada reverses it by landing on his feet, hitting a short-armed Lariat. Okada hits the Dropkick this time and picks him up for the Tombstone and hits it, quickly applying the Money Clip right after. Okada went for the Rolling Lariat but Ospreay catches him with the Spanish Fly as Okada kicked out again! Okada went for the Tombstone again but Will catches him with the Reverserana to get Okada down, and then hits the Oscutter finally but doesn’t go for the cover as he isn’t done with him yet. Will picks him up for the Stormbreaker but Okada applies the Money Clip again. Will was getting up as Okada lets go to Backslide him over to hit the Rolling LAriat but Okada ducks, going for the Stormbreaker but Okada reversed to try and hit the move again. Ospreay ducked to hit the Rolling Lariat but Okada duck and hits the Rolling Lariat to get him down. Okada has the Money Clip applied again but what’s this? Bea Priestley is here to cause a distraction to the referee! Okada lets go of the hold to hit a Spinning Tombstone. Okada applies the Money Clip again while Bea distracts the ref but wait, now Tomoyuki Oka aka Great-O-Kharn is here and has a vice grip on Okada’s face and hits him Chokeslam style! Will is confused but picks him up to hit the Stormbreaker and wins the match, finally defeating Okada! After the match, Ospreay gets back in the ring and hits Okada with the Hidden Blade! Will said fuck you to Okada and how he was held back. It looks like Will is done with CHAOS!

／
⚠️衝撃の展開⚠️
＼

場内騒然…
イギリス遠征中の"グレート-O-カーン"(@O_Kharn)が突如乱入💥
そしてオスプレイがオカダにトドメの一撃⚡️⁉️

📲 #njpwworld で配信中✨#G1CLIMAX30 全戦生配信👉https://t.co/z1DNREy98D #njpw pic.twitter.com/Ouj78oQXxj
— njpwworld (@njpwworld) October 16, 2020

Rating: Eric Bischoff and three quarters

G1 Climax A Block Match
Kota Ibushi vs. Taichi

Review: Time for our semi-main event as Kota Ibushi takes on Taichi. If Ibushi can get a victory here, he’ll be closer to winning while eliminating Will Ospreay in the process. The last time these two fought, Taichi has pinned him on different occasions, and he looks to do it again. Can Ibushi stay in the race or will he be eliminated?

The two would stare each other down in the center of the ring and who knows that they could be thinking during that time. Taichi would deliver a kick to Ibushi but would do the same to Taichi after. The two would then kick each other back and forth until they would eventually break it up, going into their corners. The two go back towards each other and would kick each other’s legs back and forth for the second time and they broke it up again. They would kick each other some more until it turned in the two of them now big booting each other in the face without either of them going down. They ran the ropes each time they did this and it seemed Taichi was the first one to get Ibushi down but Ibushi gets back up to hit the same move to him and they both go down. If you watch NOAH, remember when Katsuhiko Nakajima fought Kenou in the N-1 Victory where it was basically all kicks? This is pretty much the same thing and you know what? I got no complaints from that and the crowd doesn’t seem to care as well. It’s a great example of how you don’t need to do hundreds of moves at 50 miles per hour to make a good match when you could just do simple stuff like this and it’ll sell on its own. It’s basically a good old kick fest and with how well these two kick in their matches, it works and it’s not dull or anything. You can just feel every impact from each kick done to any parts of their body, how they sell it, the emotions during all of this, it’s actually so good.

After they finally kicked each other until they were on the ground for a while, Taichi switches it up by going for the Dangerous Backdrop but Ibushi rolled with it after he landed and is now up on his feet, looking down at Taichi to yell at him. Taichi stands up staring at Ibushi as they went back to kicking each other again. Taichi hits a spinning back kick and Ibushi would do the same, sending Taichi into the corner and love how it’s whatever type of kick one guy does, the opponent would do the same thing just as hard. Taichi kicks Ibushi in the face when Ibushi ran towards him, but would do the same to Taichi when he tried to run into the corner. Taichi hits Ibushi with a Buzzsaw Kick and Kota does the same thing, the two going down again! The two get up and their legs are hurting but they’re still kicking each other despite the amount of pain they’re in. Taichi rips his pants off as they keep on kicking each other’s legs back and forth until Ibushi gets Taichi down with a stiffer kick to his leg. Ibushi attempts to get him up for the Kamigoye but Taichi hits a sweeping kick to Ibushi to get him down! They’re in so much pain that they’re not holding onto each other’s heads while kicking each other still to keep balance. Taichi got Ibushi down and goes for the Buzzsaw Kick but Ibushi catches his leg to hit a stiff kick to the other leg. Ibushi is screaming and hits a Buzzsaw Kick to Taichi to get him down! Ibushi hits the Kamigoye and gets the pinfall victory! Because of this win, Will Ospreay is also eliminated and we are down to two people who can win! Simple and effective, great match!

Highlights from “#G1CLIMAX30 Night17” (Oct 16th)
Watch full matches on https://t.co/CcdQ1X9P52
（English Commentary）

.@ibushi_kota(6-2) taking on @taichi0319(4-4) is next!

Can Ibushi gain a chance to win A block, as well as valuable revenge over Taichi in Ryogoku?#njpwworld pic.twitter.com/ZupwuEst3g
— njpwworld (@njpwworld) October 16, 2020

Rating: Bruce Prichard and a quarter

G1 Climax A Block Match
Jay White vs. Tomohiro Ishii

Review: It’s now time for our last match of A Block this year as Jay White takes on Tomohiro Ishii. As of right now, Kota Ibushi is in the lead and the only way for that to not happen is for Jay to win here, and he’ll win the block to go to the finals. These two fought in last year’s tournament and Ishii was able to come out the winner. Who is going to A Block? Kota Ibushi or Jay White?

Jay rolled out the ring once the match started and would do this a couple of more times until he decided to slap the pitbull while mocking him like the arrogant prick that he is as Ishii hits him with a forearm, making him go down and roll out the ring for real. Ishii is a mad pitbull now as he followed Jay outside of the ring and gets him back in while Gedo attempts the distracting, giving Jay the opening to kick Ishii into the guardrails. Jay slammed him into the guardrail a few times before tossing him into another one, rolling into the ring while forcing the people to clap. Jay starts to take control of the match but it doesn’t stop him from screwing around as he slaps Ishii on his bald head, which caused Ishii to kick his face but Jay continues to stay on him. The momentum would shift when Ishii catches him for a Powerslam. When it comes to these two, it’s hard to be disappointed since Ishii works well with nearly everybody on the roster and Jay is actually a solid worker while being their best heel on top of it, and they would just work well together with their chemistry in the ring. Ishii slammed him into the corner and would knock Jay down, having him by the apron but Jay used this to slam his neck onto the top rope before getting in to hit the DDT. Looks like Ishii’s taped up leg finally came into play as Jay would hit it before getting him down with a Dragon Screw, applying damage to it once more. Jay continues to hit his leg but Ishii isn’t having any of it, leaving Jay confused when he saw Ishii not selling his hits with an angry look on his face. Ishii hits him into the corner and is all fired up. Ishii ran into the corner but Jay kicks his leg in, getting the pitbull down finally.

Ishii hits a couple of forearms to Jay, causing him to sit down and block his face but Ishii goes for the Sliding Lariat as Jay ducks and hits a Reverse STO on Ishii to get him down. Jay would quickly get behind Ishii to get him with a German Suplex, Ishii folded in half. Jay goes back to taunting Ishii by rubbing his foot on his back, lighting kicking him, provoking him to get up as he hits Ishii with a slap but Ishii hits a forearm to get him down. Ishii ran the ropes to hit a Lariat but Jay ducks to catch him, hitting the Uranagi! Jay attempts the Sleeper Suplex but Ishii pushed him into the corner, leading to Jay to kick his leg out and hits an Underhook Suplex into the corner. Jay attempts to hit the Sleeper Suplex into the corner but Ishii reverses it, hitting a German Suplex into the corner! Ishii gets Jay onto the top turnbuckle and looked like he was going for a Brainbuster off the top but Jay falls to the ring apron to save himself. Ishii attempts to get him back in but Gedo grabbed Jay’s leg to keep him still and once the ref was distracted by Gedo, Jay hits a chop block to Ishii’s leg. Ishii finally gets Jay into the ring and would get him back on the top turnbuckle, hitting the Brainbuster off the second rope. Ishii attempts a Jumping Kick but Jay catches his leg to hit another Dragon Screw. Jay applies a Leglock submission to try and get Ishii to tap out but Ishii gets to the ropes. Jay calls for the Blade Runner but Ishii reverses with a Dragon Screw of his own!

Ishii would get Jay up Fisherman style and makes him land on his knee, hurting himself in the process. Ishii would now apply a submission of his own as he goes for the Ankle Lock to try and make Jay tap out but Jay tries his best to crawl away, causing Ishii to drag him in the middle and locks it in tight when he repositioned himself. Jay grabbed the referee to keep him busy as Gedo gets in the ring to break it up but Ishii grabbed him as Gedo dragged the ref between them, Jay pushing Ishii into them to make Red Shoes go down. Gedo kicks Ishii in the leg and goes for another but Ishii grabs his leg, hitting him with a forearm before going for the Vertical Drop but Jay kicked his leg. Gedo pushed Ishii into Jay as he goes for the Blade Runner but Ishii reversed it, pushing him into Gedo and hits a German Suplex right after! Ishii hits a Sliding Lariat to Jay but he kicked out at two. Ishii goes for the Vertical Drop but Jay gets behind him to hit a low blow, and hits a Regalplex but Ishii kicked out at two also. Jay goes to pick Ishii up but Ishii hits a headbutt to Jay to knock him down! Ishii tries to go for the Lariat again but Jay ducked and hits a Half Nelson Suplex before going for the Blade Runner as Ishii reversed it to attempt the Vertical Drop as Jay got behind him, both turning it around back and forth until Ishii gets him up for the Vertical Drop but turned it into a Stunner instead! Gedo comes in the ring to try and help but Ishii hits a Lariat onto Gedo, turning around to hit a Lariat to Jay as well! Ishii is fired up and hits the Vertical Drop Brainbuster onto Jay and he gets the victory over Jay! Because Ishii has defeated Jay, that means Kota Ibushi is the winner of A Block and will advance to the finals this Sunday! There goes my pick to win it all but still a great match.

Rating: Bruce Prichard and a half

Overall: Quite a few surprises we had for this show but it still went well. Did not expect Ibushi to win a block for a third consecutive year and curious to see who will face him now or if he’ll win it again or lead to a different storyline after. Very fun stuff and thank you all for following me as Andrew will be covering the final after his last B Block day, so be sure to keep an eye on that.

Favorite Match: Jay White vs. Tomohiro Ishii

Least Favorite Match: Jeff Cobb vs. Yujiro Takahashi

Score: 8/10

A Block Standings

Kota Ibushi: (7-2) (14 Points) (Winner)
Jay White: (6-3) (12 Points) (Eliminated)
Kazuchika Okada: (6-3) (12 Points) (Eliminated)
Will Ospreay: (6-3) (12 Points) (Eliminated)
Taichi: (4-5) (8 Points) (Eliminated)
Shingo Takagi: (4-5) (8 Points) (Eliminated)
Tomohiro Ishii: (4-5) (8 Points) (Eliminated)
Jeff Cobb: (4-5) (8 Points) (Eliminated)
Minoru Suzuki: (3-6) (6 Points) (Eliminated)
Yujiro Takahashi: (1-8) (2 Points) (Eliminated)

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

Up Next

Mitchell’s WWE 205 Live Results & Report! (10/16/20)

Don't Miss

Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (10/16/20)

AEW Coverage

Mitchell’s AEW Collision Results & Report! (4/27/24)

It’s a slam dunk!

Published

36 mins ago

April 27, 2024

Steven Mitchell

Guns up for all the Jacksonville Gold Members!

Another three hour block of All Elite Wrestling starts with a Collision! But will the Bang Bang Gang still be the best three man unit ever? Or will Top Flight go from the coldest to the goldest trio in the game?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

The Acclaimed VS Grizzled Young Veterans; win.
Toni Storm w/ Mariah May & Luther VS Anna Jay; wins.
Unified AEW & ROH World Trios Championships: Bullet Club Gold VS Top Flight; wins and

PLAY BY PLAY

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

Coverage

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

It’s Draft Day!

Published

1 day 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.