Coverage
Mitchell’s NXT TakeOver: WarGames Results & Report! (12/6/20)
Prepare for war!
TakeOver goes back inside the sinister steel!
NXT is going to see 2020 off with a bang! Pat McAfee and his boys challenge the Undisputed Era, in a WARGAMES match! Who will be on top of the brand after tonight?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Women’s WarGames: Team Shotzi VS Team Candice; Team Candice wins.
- Tommaso Ciampa VS Timothy Thatcher; Ciampa wins.
- Strap Match: Dexter Lumis VS Cameron Grimes; Lumis wins.
- NXT North American Championship Triple Threat: Leon Ruff VS Damian Priest VS Johnny Gargano; Gargano wins and becomes the new NXT North American Champion.
- Men’s WarGames: The Kings of NXT VS The Undisputed Era; The Undisputed Era wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
It’s the TakeOver Kickoff Show!
Join Wade Barrett, Sam Roberts and ESPN’s Ariel Helwani as they analyze, discuss and predict all the action for WarGames 2020!
McKenzie Mitchell reports on the WarGames teams.
She says that she managed to get comments from both men’s teams as they arrived. She certainly heard from Pat McAfee, who is so confident that he guaranteed his team would win. As for the Undisputed Era, they were all rather reserved as they went to ringside to survey the Capitol Wrestling Center’s take on the double-ring, double-cage structure. Perhaps they are already strategizing. Adam Cole said McAfee is a great talker, but the time for talk is over as it is time for war.
And on the Women’s WarGames end, McKenzie managed to get a word from William Regal, and he confirms that TakeOver starts WITH the Women’s WarGames match! A battle that started brewing at Halloween Havoc finally comes to blows tonight! Will Team Poison Pixie or Team Wild Child take ultimate revenge and take over the women’s division?
NXT shares Triple H’s comments on the North American Championship Triple Threat.
HHH knows that while Johnny Gargano and Damian Priest are “used to that big dance, used to that big game, used to that moment,” this is Leon Ruff’s first. How bad does that affect him? How nervous is he? How emotional is he? If Ruff can’t breathe, can’t catch his breath, and pressures himself into trying to beat both opponents, “he’s doomed.” Will Ruff listen to The Game and change tactics?
NXT throws it to The Bump’s Matt Camp and Ryan Pappolla.
They give us some quick analysis of the TakeOver card. Strap Match, Grimes VS Lumis, no running away from this one! Grimes can’t go to the moon strapped to Lumis, it’s Lumis’ to win. Then Thatcher VS Ciampa in a battle with fists, kicks and brains! Ryan says Thatcher is a bad man, but Ciampa’s song is “NO ONE WILL SURVIVE,” this is Ciampa’s win. Matt thinks that if Thatcher choked Ciampa out once he can do it again, they’re split. North American Championship Triple Threat, Ruff is on cloud nine but he’s got the biggest test of his life here in Gargano and Priest at the same time. Ryan may sound crazy, but in this season of miracles, Ruff can find a way! Matt says the Ghost Face(s) will help Gargano get this, it’s another split.
Then there’s TWO WarGames matches again. For the women, Team Shotzi VS Team Candice, a match only possible in NXT. Ryan agrees because both teams are stacked! It’s an even call, so you gotta go with X-factors, and for Shotzi Blackheart, Ryan says that’s Io Shirai. Matt says Candice’s team has the real X-factor, in Raquel Gonzalez. He says team Candice wins, another split. And of course, the men’s match, Undisputed Era VS McAfee and crew. Ryan says UE needs to keep it cool and not focus too hard on McAfee, and they’ll win. Matt says Team McAfee has Pete Dunne on their team, that’s why they win.
McKenzie interviews Cameron Grimes.
What is his strategy for facing Dexter Lumis in the Strap Match? Wait, what is he looking at? He’s looking at that stupid video Lumis made! Grimes ain’t scared of anybody! Grimes ain’t ever ran from anybody! “To tell you the truth, Dexter Lumis, you’re the one that’s scared! You ain’t said nothing and I’ve said everything I could ever say!” But after tonight, when Lumis is strapped to “the man,” Cameron Grimes, Lumis will be screaming! And he’ll be screaming that Grimes is GOING TOOOOO THEEEEE MOOOOON!
The sirens sound, and it is time… for WARGAMES!!
The double cage is lowering already, because it begins! “The match that the Undisputed Era made famous in NXT,” teams are going to drag each other into hell! Armies of four open fire inside the steel, who will win, and who will even survive?
Women’s WarGames: Team Shotzi VS Team Candice!
Though the Wild Child and her team has the advantage, being the first to add a fighter to the match at every interval, it’s all about how this match ends! The Poison Pixie started this war all because Shotzi kept things fair and square at Halloween Havoc. Will Candice’s team pay the price for her short fuse?
Speaking of, Team Candice makes their entrance first. They sort out, and #CobraKai wants to start this! Dakota goes to the double-ring while the others enter their shark cage. Then Team Shotzi makes their entrance, and Shotzi rides in on TCB MK II!! Bigger and badder than ever, it can fit all four rockstars on it! And it even shoots a (Nerf) missile at the cage as a warning shot! As such, the one to join Dakota in the cage is Ember Moon! Will Ember’s Law kick in and kick Team Kick’s captain to the curb?
The cages are locked and the five minute countdown begins! Dakota is in the second ring and Ember hurries over, but Dakota attacks with kicks and clubbing forearms! Ember tackles Dakota down and gives back those clubbing hands! Dakota hits back, wraps on a sleeper, but Ember pries at the hold. Dakota hops on as a backpack but Ember rolls for a senton! Fans fire up as Ember is free, but Dakota jumps the sweep. Ember ducks the kick then blocks a kick, but Dakota blocks, too! Dakota lifts but Ember headscissors Dakota to a corner! Ember runs in to KNEE Dakota, then goes side to side, but Dakota follows and BOOTS!
Dakota goes corner to corner but Ember follows to handspring ELBOW! Ember snapmares Dakota, and dropkicks her down! Then the leg sweep hits and Ember STOMPS Dakota down! And drops a senton! There’s still three minutes to go and Dakota crawls for the first ring. Ember grabs a leg, Dakota kicks her away and then SCORPION KICKS her down! Dakota rains down angry fists then digs Ember’s face into steel! Fans rally as Dakota talks some trash. Dakota grinds boots into Ember’s head, then stomps her down. Dakota drags Ember up, puts her on ropes and clubs her. Dakota runs but Ember dodges! Ember springs up to headscissor Dakota back to a corner!
Dakota comes back but swings into a wrench and Ember DECKS Dakota! Fans rally as we hit a two minute warning. Ember suplexes Dakota into the steel! Dakota scrapes down the side and then Ember runs, to TACKLE Dakota into the wall! Fans fire up for Ember as she drags Dakota out from the ropes. Ember then climbs, but Dakota KICKS her first! Dakota drags Ember out along the top rope, for a DRAPING- NO! Ember catches the GTK and rolls Ember for a SUPERKICK! Dakota flounders and crawls to the gap, and Ember runs in, only for Ember to BOOT her! Dakota gives Kowata kicks to Ember as she’s trapped, then BOOTS her back down!
Dakota climbs a corner, reels Ember in, SUPER KAI-ROPRACTOR! The clock is finally at 15 seconds and Dakota digs her knee into Ember’s back while pushing Ember’s face into the mat! The countdown hits zero and SHOTZI heads out! But before getting in, Shotzi brings some friends out from under the ring! It’s a toolbox, and a crowbar! Shotzi used those to build her tank back up and is going to use them to tear Dakota down! Dakota hurries to intercept but Shotzi gets her first with a shotgun dropkick! Dakota ends up in a corner, Shotzi splashes! Shotzi snapmares, runs and SLING DOGS! Then a BIG knee, and a ROLLING ELBOW!
Dakota wobbles into the QUESTION MARK KICK! Dakota ends up on ropes, Shotzi runs to CANNOBALL in! Shotzi drags Dakota up, shouts for Ember, but Dakota hits back! Dakota whips but Shotzi reverses to put Dakota in the gap. Shotzi ROUNDHOUSES then runs to WRECK Dakota with a dropkick! Shotzi joins Dakota in the gap, runs in and boots, but Dakota dodges! Dakota bumps Shotzi off steel, Ember comes over but Dakota BOUNCES her off the cage! Dakota focuses on Ember with a stomp and hammering hands! Shotzi enters the second ring to enziguri Dakota down! Shotzi clubs Dakota, and then digs her into the steel in return for Ember!
Shotzi brings Ember up for a suplex into buckles! Dakota is in a drop zone, Shotzi climbs, but Dakota gets up to enziguri! Dakota climbs to join Shotzi now, clubs her on the back but Ember clubs Dakota! Ember Electric Chair lifts Dakota, Shotzi joins in, SHOTGUN DOOMSDAY! Fans are fired up and the countdown hits zero again! Team Candice sends in RAQUEL GONZALEZ! Big Mami Cool has Shotzi and Ember right on her, but she shoves them away. Shotzi and Ember flank Raquel, throws some kicks and just keep out of range! They hammer Raquel down but she explodes out!
Raquel waits for someone to get up, and she CLOBBERS Ember! And BOOTS Shotzi! And elbows Ember! Raquel scoops Ember and swings her for a POWERSLAM! Shotzi kicks back then uses the ropes for a springboard into the huricanrana, but Raquel BOMBS Shotzi into steel! Dakota regroups with Raquel now and Raquel fireman’s carries Dakota to weaponize her! Dakota’s feet SMACK Ember, then SMACK Shotzi! Raquel sets Dakota down to stomp away on Shotzi! Raquel goes after Ember and TOSSES her! Dakota puts Shotzi in the second ring, Raquel clubs Ember that way. Raquel goes after Shotzi and whips her hard into a corner! Dakota BOOT WASHES Shotzi!
Raquel drags Ember up, scoops her, and Dakota runs, BOOT O’ DOOM! Dakota and Raquel grind their boots into Shotzi and Ember, respectively, then trade as Raquel throws forearms on Shotzi. Raquel whips Shotzi back in, Dakota goes to the gap and Raquel follows. Dakota climbs up and Raquel helps her steady herself, for a HUGE LEAPING LARIAT! Dakota wipes out Shotzi and Ember, and Raquel checks on Dakota. The countdown is zero, here comes RHEA RIPLEY! Raquel wants this showdown most of all! Nightmare and Desperado face off again, but Dakota returns! Rhea ROCKS Dakota, fights Raquel’s waistlock and BOOTS Dakota!
Rhea elbows free, Ember and Shotzi anchor Raquel and Rhea BOOTS Raquel down! Dakota hops onto Rhea but Rhea throws her off! Rhea cravats and knees away on Dakota, but Dakota kicks Rhea’s leg. Rhea reels Dakota in to clobber her over and over again! Ripcord and dropkick! Rhea whips Dakota corner to corner, reels her back in and HOOK KICKS! Then atomic FACEBUSTER! Raquel blocks Ember’s whip but Ember goes up and leaps to CODE BREAKER! Shotzi takes Raquel around for a springboard SUNSET BOMB! Rhea borrows Shotzi’s toolbox, opens it up and brings out… a short handle sledgehammer!
HHH would be proud as Rhea HAMMERS Dakota in the stomach! And then HAMMER her on the back! Ember and Shotzi keep Raquel in the second ring as Rhea takes off her belt. Rhea uses her belt to trap Dakota while Shotzi and Ember whip Raquel to a corner! Rhea fires off point blank shoulders into Dakota, and then SLINGS her into steel! Raquel comes back to CLOBBER Shotzi and Ember, and again the female titans stare down! Fans fire up as they talk some trash from opposite sides of the gap. They both get IN the gap and fire off hands! Raquel blocks a boot, scoops Rhea but Rhea fights up to TACKLE Raquel back to the first ring!
The countdown reaches zero as the two scrap on the mat, and Toni Storm joins in! Toni decides to bring in reinforcements, KENDO STICKS! Toni GERMAN SUPLEXES Rhea, then strips a crossbar? She removes a buckle pad while Raquel drags Rhea up. Toni and Raquel mug Rhea with kendo stick SMACKS! Shotzi and Ember get in but Toni ROCKS Shotzi! Toni strips another buckle but has to fight Ember and Shotzi off! Toni BOOTS Ember, drags Rhea up and whips her into a BARE BUCKLE! Rhea writhes while Raquel stomps Shotzi. Toni drags Ember up to whip Ember, but Ember blocks! Toni reels Ember in for a snap suplex!
Toni stomps Ember down, Raquel stomps Shotzi in a corner, and Dakota is watching Rhea in the second ring. Toni stands on Ember, and Raquel uses the crowbar on Shotzi’s side! Toni SMACKS Ember with a kendo stick! Raquel SMACKS Shotzi with a kendo stick! Rhea whips Dakota but Dakota reverses and Rhea hits steel! Toni chokes Ember with a kendo stick then intercepts Shotzi up top! Rhea intercepts Dakota up top on the other side, and then Raquel and Ember join in respectively! On one end, Shotzi has Toni AND Raquel while Ember and Rhea have Dakota caught! Team Shotzi coordinates, and in stereo, Shotzi hits DOUBLE SLICED BREAD while Ember and Rhea hit an ELECTRIC CHAIR BULLDOG!!
And the countdown hits zero again! The CWC is thunderous as IO SHIRAI is finally in! The Evil Genius has an idea of her own, and she brings in a LADDER!! Shirai gets that ladder in the ring, but isn’t done yet! Raquel closes the door on her?! Shirai smacks at Raquel’s fingers with a kendo stick of her own! Raquel BOOTS the door into Shirai and she goes flying! Raquel clears some space but Shotzi SMACKS her with a kendo stick! Raquel CLOBBERS Shotzi back, but Shirai brings in a second ladder!! Raquel stops that and RAMS Shirai off the steps! Raquel again slams the door shut and tells refs to shut up! Toni grabs at Ember as Ember grabs at Raquel.
Raquel stomps Ember, Toni adds stomps, and Raquel keeps the door shut. Raquel then grabs a kendo stick to SMACK Shotzi! But this allows Shirai to finally get in! And with a chair, no less! Ember CLUBS Toni, Toni SLAMS Ember on the gap’s steel! Raquel notices Shirai’s work and throws the chairs aside. Shirai is ready with her own, tosses it at Raquel and DROPKICKS it into her! Raquel still boots Shirai out?! And slams the door shut! Toni uses one of her own belts to lock the door!! Raquel drags Shotzi up but Shirai just climbs the cage itself! Shotzi is used to KNOCK Shirai down!
The final countdown hits and Captain Candice finally joins in! But the flaw in their perfect plan is that Shirai is now in Candice’s way! But Candice’s insurance policy, Indi Hartwell, attacks from behind! Indi throws Shirai into barriers! Candice then brings in more props, such as a trash can and it’s lid! Indi tosses chairs in for the team, too! Candice’s team brawls with Shotzi’s but it’s clear who has the edge. Candice closes the door, and Indi has a CHAIN to lock it up! Indi keeps the key in a special place so that the ref’s can’t do anything about this. Candice grins as she and her team SMACK away with kendo sticks! Candice BREAKS the stick on Shotzi’s back!
Raquel is after Rhea while Toni and Dakota keep on Ember. Shotzi hits back but that’s 4v1 and she gets SMACKED from all sides! Raquel stomps Rhea, Candice gives Shotzi a WICKED STEP SISTER! Cover, but the ref says this WarGames is NOT complete because Shirai isn’t in the ring! This is the OTHER flaw in their perfect plan! And Team Shotzi saves their captain! But that’s a 4v2 brawl! Wait, Shirai is up top, with the trash can?! Shirai makes the can her armor, for a FULL METAL CROSSBODY!! Down goes EVERYONE! And WarGames finally begins!! Also, Shirai is the only one excited about that landing. Shirai is also the first to get up.
Shirai grabs the hammer and HAMMERS Raquel! And HAMMERS Toni! And HAMMERS Candice! And then HAMMERS Dakota! Shirai runs, dodges Raquel, and gets help from Rhea to tilt-o-whirl TORNADO DDT Raquel! SHINKANSEN for Dakota! 619 for Toni! FLAPJACK for Candice! Team Candice ends up in one corner! Shotzi runs in to splash sandwich them, then SAIDO Candice! Rhea runs in to SPLASH and then TOSS Toni into steel! Ember runs in to back body press and then SIDE EFFECT Dakota! And then with a chair wedged against Raquel, Shirai gets a boost from Ember and Rhea to DROPKICK the chair into Raquel!
The team holds Raquel down for the OVER THE MOONSAULT! Cover, but ALL of Team Candice breaks it! Team Shotzi clubs Team Candice back down, and then Rhea stomps Dakota. Rhea drags Dakota up but Dakota whips her into the steel! Dakota hits Shirai and throws her into steel, too! Toni and Ember are in the first ring and Ember has a wrench. Toni begs for forgiveness since she betrayed Ember, but Candice gets in to tilt-o-whirl takedown! And then the GargaNO Escape! Shotzi trips Toni to put her into CATTLE MUTILATION! Dueling submissions, but Candice lets Ember go to CLUB Shotzi!
Candice has the trash can lid and she aims at Shotzi. Candice swings, Shotzi dodges and Shotzi has a chair! Candice runs away and wants help! She gets a kendo stick, but steel beats bamboo! Then bamboo SMACKS Candice! And SMACKS Toni! And SMACKS Candice! Dakota CHAIR SHOTS Shotzi, but Shirai FULL METAL MISSILE DROPKICKS Dakota! Shirai clears some space to run corner to corner at Dakota, but Dakota sends her into buckles! Dakota goes side to side to BOOT Shirai into steel! Toni puts Shirai back inside the trash can but for a very different reason! Dakota goes up, FULL METAL DOUBLE STOMPS!
But the can is shut tight, Dakota struggles to drag Dakota out of the can! Cover, but Ember breaks it! Ember CROWBARS Toni!! And then whips Toni into steel! Dakota CHAIR SHOTS Ember! And again! Dakota sits the chair up, then gets another. Ember KICKS Dakota first, then CHAIR SHOTS Dakota! Ember sits the chairs together, dribbles Dakota off each of them, then sets her up against the backs of the chairs. Ember goes up to the top rope, aims, and ECLIPSES Dakota ONTO THE CHAIRS!! Fans are thunderous as Ember covers, but Toni uses the TRASH CAN to break it! Toni whips Ember into the bare buckle from earlier! Then underhooks, STORM ZERO ONTO THE CAN! Cover, Shirai breaks it!
Rhea joins in, and she stomps Toni. Rhea hooks Toni up in PRISM TRAP! Shirai DROPKICKS Toni out of it! Cover, TWO!?! Toni survives but the ladders come into play now! Shirai and Rhea put one ladder through the gap but Candice suplexes Shirai for a BRAIN BUSTER! Rhea runs at Candice but gets a trash can, and then FULL METAL SUPERKICK! Candice spots Shotzi getting a ladder and so she hurries over! Candice stops Shotzi from standing the ladder up, then shoves the ladder into her! Shotzi slumps down, Candice stands the ladder for herself and then gathers chairs. Shotzi goes after Candice with forearms!
Shotzi headbutts Candice and Candice falls on her own chair pile. Shotzi climbs but Candice hurries up after her! They brawl on the ladder, Candice falls back onto the chairs! Shotzi climbs all the way up, SUPER SENTON, ONTO CANDICE AND CHAIRS! But Candice used a chair on her stomach to deal as much damage as she could back to Shotzi! Their teams kick at each other in the other ring, and Rhea hoists Dakota up to FLAPJACK her! Shirai goes up again, for another OVER THE MOONSAULT! Cover, Rhea plays defense, but Toni barrels Rhea over to break the pin! Rhea CLUBS Toni, Electric Chair lifts and HOTSHOTS her!
Shirai goes up again, but Raquel back drops Rhea into the steel! Shirai is knocked off balance, Raquel bounces her off steel! Raquel goes up, Shirai fights her off and hops up, but Raquel holds off the huricanrana! Raquel brings Shirai back up, DESPERADO BOMB THROUGH THE LADDER!!! Cover in the gap, TEAM CANDICE WINS!!
Winners: Team Candice, by pinfall
They didn’t have the advantage, but they had Indi the #Impressive insurance policy, and the ace in Raquel Gonzalez! Speaking of Indi, she joins Candice and the team to celebrate! They wrecked the NXT Women’s Champion to win, but does that mean one of Candice’s team is up next to challenge for that title?
NXT hears from Finn Balor!
“To everyone watching tonight; everyone on the Network, everyone following online, and everyone in the locker room, enjoy your WarGames tonight. Enjoy the craziness, enjoy the big risks, enjoy the spectacle. But when those sirens stop, and the cage raises, we get back to what matters most. The time for team sports is over. This Wednesday, all eyes go back on the Prince.” What does Balor have planned for NXT after the smoke clears?
Tommaso Ciampa VS Timothy Thatcher!
For the Psycho Killer, true toughness isn’t about your bark but your bite. And right now, he wants to sink his teeth into the Professor of Pain. Will Thatcher learn a thing or two from the former NXT Champion tonight?
The bell rings and the two tie up. They go around in the elbow and collar, then Ciampa headlocks to hit a takeover. Thatcher rolls to get back to his feet and pries out of the headlock. Thatcher has the arm but Ciampa gets up before a wristlock can be put on. The two separate and fans continue to rally. Ciampa and Thatcher tie up again, they clinch, Ciampa facelocks but Thatcher waistlocks. Thatcher drags Ciampa to the mat, Ciampa headlocks in return, but Thatcher digs a forearm into Ciampa’s face. Thatcher wants the arm again, but Ciampa clasps hands. Thatcher KNEES Ciampa in the side, then mounts for a hammering palm strike!
Thatcher still wants the arm but they end up in ropes! The ref calls for the break, the two separate, but Ciampa comes back to CHOP and CHOP! Thatcher gets a leg, trips Ciampa up and cranks on the foot! Ciampa grabs at Thatcher’s face but the ref reprimands. Ciampa clubs Thatcher, chinbars and pries him off the foot. Thatcher endures but Ciampa CLUBS him. Thatcher slips out the back to give back clubbing forearms. Thatcher goes for a chinlock but Ciampa fights that off. Thatcher gets a cover, ONE, but Thatcher is after the arm again. Ciampa resists but Thatcher KICKS him! Ciampa snapmares and digs his knee in! Then clubs away on Thatcher’s chest!
Ciampa stomps Thatcher, blocks the kick and drops a knee on the foot! Ciampa SLAPS Thatcher, drops a knee on the leg, then SMASHES the knee into the mat! And again! Ciampa stands on the foot to then STOMP it! Thatcher kicks back, throws forearms but Ciampa kicks low. Ciampa throws Thatcher out hard, then follows, only for Thatcher to get in the ring. Ciampa gets in but Thatcher EuroUppers Ciampa off his feet! The ref checks on Ciampa after that shot, because Ciampa’s neck is still a concern. Thatcher paces impatiently but Ciampa still gets to his feet. Ciampa wants to continue so Thatcher ROCKS him with forearms and EuroUppers!
Thatcher drags Ciampa up for a half hatch suplex! Cover, TWO! Thatcher has the chinlock and he grinds Ciampa down. Fans rally for Ciampa and Ciampa fights his way over and gets the ropebreak. Thatcher lets off and KNEES Ciampa in the back! And KNEES him again! Ciampa ends up on the apron, Thatcher drags him out and SLAMS him onto the edge! Ciampa slumps down and Thatcher smirks as he stalks Ciampa. Thatcher puts Ciampa back in, back on the apron, and CLUBS Ciampa in the chest with the elbow! Thatcher gets in, covers, TWO! Ciampa sits up but Thatcher is on him with another chinbar. Ciampa endures, fights up and BITES Thatcher’s hand!
Thatcher clinches and BELLY2BELLY SUPLEXES Ciampa down! Cover, but Thatcher’s in the ropes. Thatcher nods, he respects rules. Thatcher jams his knee into Ciampa’s back then drops an elbow! Cover, TWO! Ciampa CHOPS back but Thatcher brings him up for forearms. Ciampa throws forearms back, but Thatcher EuroUppers him off his feet! The ref shows more concern for the neck but Ciampa says he’s fine. Thatcher drags Ciampa up by his ears and then has a standing chinlock. Fans rally as Ciampa endures. Ciampa fights up, and jawbreakers free! Thatcher staggers, Ciampa rises but Thatcher clinches again. Ciampa shoves him away to CHOP and BOOT and CHOP!
Thatcher grabs Ciampa by his jaw to SLAP him down! Thatcher underhooks Ciampa and drags him up, but Ciampa manages to shove Thatcher up and DROP onto him! Both men are down now that Thatcher is gasping for air. Fans rally up for Ciampa as he and Thatcher slowly rise. Ciampa grabs Thatcher’s wrist but Thatcher throws a forearm! Ciampa forearms back, and the two brawl! The wrist control is still on and the forearms keep flying. Thatcher whips Ciampa away, Ciampa comes back, they collide head to head! Both men sit up and shake out the stars, but Thatcher shoves Ciampa. Ciampa boots back then rallies with clotheslines!
Ciampa clotheslines again and again and again, then LEAPING LARIATS! Fans fire up with Ciampa and he runs corner to corner to clothesline Thatcher again! Ciampa hoists Thatcher up top, climbs to join him, then goes way up, for a SUPERPLEX!! Both men are down but Ciampa crawls to the cover, TWO! Thatcher survives but he’s clutching his stomach again. Ciampa stands first and kicks Thatcher while he’s down! Ciampa drags Thatcher up, underhooks him now, but Thatcher fights free to THROAT CHOP! The ref reprimands but Thatcher facelocks! Ciampa resists the grovit but Thatcher clamps on tight! Ciampa fades fast!
The ref checks on Ciampa, but Ciampa gets a second wind and tackles Thatcher out of the ring! Both men hit the floor and fans fire up! A ring count starts and Thatcher sits up at 4. Thatcher drags himself up and in at 7. Ciampa flounders at 8 but is in at 9! Thatcher and Ciampa glare at each other as they stand up. Ciampa avoids the throat chop to GIVE the throat chop! KNEE TRIGGER! Ciampa runs to KNEE Thatcher down! And he puts on a BULLY CHOKE!! Thatcher endures but he’s fading! Thatcher has a bloody ear but he fights up! Ciampa keeps Thatcher from ropes and drags him back down! Ciampa hammers away on that bad ear!
Thatcher fights up, and gets into the ropes! The ref counts, Ciampa lets go but Thatcher GERMAN SUPLEXES! Thatcher grits his teeth and CLUBS Ciampa down! Now Thatcher has a wild-eyed grin, ear blood all over his own arm as he CLUBS Ciampa down! Fans still rally for Ciampa as Thatcher drags Ciampa up for a SNAP GERMAN! Ciampa sits up in a daze but flops over. Thatcher has another sinister grin as he stalks Ciampa. They both go to the apron but the ref tells them to get back in. Thatcher drags Ciampa up, “Bye, Ciampa!” But Ciampa holds ropes and fires off elbows! Ciampa is free but Thatcher DECKS him with a right!
Thatcher takes his time going back in, and Ciampa kicks him in the ropes! Ciampa drags Thatcher out but Thatcher HOTSHOTS first! Ciampa flails and sputters, Thatcher gets back in and he throws a HARD EuroUpper! Thatcher snarls as Ciampa gets back up, another EuroUpper floors Ciampa! Fans still rally behind Ciampa but Thatcher drags Ciampa back up. Thatcher throws another uppercut but Ciampa catches them! BACKLSIDE, ROPEBREAK! But Ciampa has Thatcher in the ropes and CHOPS him! And CHOPS him! And CHOPS him! CHOP, CHOP, CHOP! The ref counts, Ciampa stops and then BOOTS Thatcher! Ciampa has the GROVIT! To WILLOW’S BELL! Cover, Ciampa wins!
Winner: Tommaso Ciampa, by pinfall
Just as Ciampa said, the truly tough prove it, and Ciampa proved who was the tougher man here! Did Ciampa also prove he is deserving of something even bigger, better and tougher in NXT?
Strap Match: Dexter Lumis VS Cameron Grimes!
The Tortured Artist has become rather fixated on the Carolina Caveman, but to be fair, Grimes is rather… unique. Grimes claims he has never been afraid of anyone, has never ran away or tried to hide from anyone, but the video evidence is in their Halloween Havoc Haunted House of Terror match. With the leather keeping these two bound together, will Grimes prove he can face his fears and defeat them? Or will his body bear the marks of Lumis’ sadistic masterpiece?
Grimes brings a strap to the ring but the ref says the approved strap is in this bag. Grimes says it’s his strap or no strap. Lumis accepts the terms so the ref takes the other end of the strap. Grimes goes to a corner and “accidentally” yanks the strap away from the ref. The ref reprimands, Grimes “apologizes,” then Grimes CLOBBERS Lumis! The ref reprimands but Grimes stomps away on Lumis in the corner! Fans boo and Lumis bails out as Grimes gets fired up! Grimes goes out and CLOBBERS Lumis again! And then throws Lumis into boards! And kicks him! And posts him! And whips him into more boards!
Lumis tries to get in the ring but Grimes uses the strap to drag Lumis back out. And then Grimes body checks Lumis, leather first! Grimes smothers Lumis with the strap! Grimes KICKS Lumis again and puts him on the apron, to smother Lumis again! The ref reprimands and fans boo but Grimes gets in to stalk Lumis. Grimes KNEES Lumis down, stomps him, then grins as he takes a length of the strap, to LASH! Lumis dodges and ROCKS Grimes with the uppercut! They brawl back and forth, Lumis gets the edge and he whips Grimes, to THESZ PRESS! Lumis rains down rights but this match still isn’t officially on record! Lumis takes his end of the strap, puts it on, and the bell finally rings!
Lumis reels Grimes in as Grimes tries to run away, and there’s no more slack! Lumis blocks a boot, throws Grimes to a corner, and Grimes bounces off buckles to stumble into a leather LARIAT! Lumis LASHES but Grimes narrowly avoids it! Lumis follows Grimes, but Grimes SUPER FOREARMS! Grimes wraps Lumis’ face with the strap! Then KICKS Lumis, and whips him. Lumis reverses, Grimes goes up the fencing, but Lumis drags him back down! Grimes leaps into an UPPERCUT! Lumis reels Grimes back in, stomps him down, and follows him around the ring. Lumis brings Grimes to the announce desk for some punches, then throws him into boards!
Grimes hits hard and slumps down, but Lumis drags him back up. Lumis reels Grimes in to whip him into even more boards! Lumis drags Grimes up, and throws clubbing crossface forearms. Lumis drags Grimes up, uses the strap again to bring Grimes around, but Grimes RAMS Lumis into barriers! Grimes back suplexes Lumis up and over! Lumis hits hard and Grimes grins as he catches his breath. But there’s a tug at the strap, and Lumis rises! Grimes is scared of those eyes and he ROUNDHOUSES Lumis! Grimes pulls on the strap and Lumis flies back up and over the barriers! Lumis is down at ringside and Grimes brings him back up.
Grimes throws forearms, and keeps the slack short as he brings Lumis around. Grimes throws more forearms, Lumis staggers around and Grimes BOOTS him down! Fans rally and Grimes looms over Lumis. Grimes smears the leather in Lumis’ face, then whips him into the timekeeper’s area! Grimes again goes after Lumis’ eyes with the strap! Grimes throws things around, and uses the ref’s strap to SMACK Lumis on the back! Grimes grins as he empties the bag, and puts the bag over Lumis’ face as a blindfold! Grimes mugs Lumis, then LASHES him! And LASHES him again! Lumis flounders into fists and then Grimes puts Lumis back in.
Grimes uses the spare strap to choke Lumis, then winds up to LASH Lumis again! And again! Lumis flounders around blindly as Grimes soaks up the heat. Grimes drags Lumis up, but Lumis hits a SPINEBUSTER! Lumis takes the bag off his head and fans fire up! Lumis stalks Grimes to a corner, goes out to the apron, and wraps the strap around the post! Grimes is caught but he manages to JAB Lumis! Grimes uses the strap to YANK Lumis into the post! Fans rally up as Lumis staggers, and Grimes goes out to the apron. Grimes reels Lumis in for a PENALTY KICK! Lumis staggers back and leans against another post.
Grimes pulls on the strap to reel Lumis back in, for another PENALTY KICK! Grimes goes for another, but Lumis catches the kick! Grimes scrapes Lumis off but Lumis pulls Grimes off the apron to send him flying! Fans fire up for Lumis as he again LASHES Grimes! Grimes hurries into the ring but Lumis follows. Lumis LASHES Grimes again! Grimes flounders and spasms about but Lumis just LASHES him yet again! And again! And again! And again! Lumis corner clotheslines but Grimes slips out of the bulldog to CORNER GERMAN! Lumis flops down and Grimes goes out to the apron. Grimes puts a chair in the ring, and he aims at Lumis to SMACK him on the back! And SMACK him again!
Grimes soaks up the heat from the fans and gives his chair a kiss, before another SMACK to Lumis! Grimes sits the chair up, takes a seat and catches is breath while Lumis flounders around. Grimes reels Lumis in with the strap, but Lumis catches Grimes for a FALL AWAY SLAM! And a kip up! Fans fire up and Lumis snarls as he brawls with Grimes! Haymaker for haymaker, body shot and more! Lumis has the edge, but Grimes throws Lumis up and over! Lumis ROCKS Grimes with a right, climbs up top, but Grimes YANKS Lumis down! Payback for earlier! And then COLLISON COURSE! Cover, TWO!! Lumis survives and Grimes is beside himself!
Grimes sits his chair back up, has Lumis rest on the chair, and he gives back those LASHES! Lumis sits up in the chair, Grimes points to the moon, but the Cave-In is caught! Grimes arm-drags out of Silence and throws elbows. Lumis catches Grimes again but Grimes elbows free. Grimes spins Lumis, scoops him, but Lumis slips out and uses the strap to trip Grimes up! Grimes hits the chair on the way down! The strap wraps the legs, and then SILENCE! Grimes flails, fades, but the strap wraps around his head! Grimes taps, Lumis wins!
Winner: Dexter Lumis, by submission
And Lumis shuts up Grimes’ big mouth! But if Silence is golden, will Lumis be golden soon enough?
A clock is ticking.
A vulture perches. It watches NXT. The apocalypse is not cancelled. “Tick. Tock.” Can it be?! Will we see Karrion Kross return before the clock strikes midnight on 2020?!
NXT North American Championship Triple Threat: Leon Ruff VS Damian Priest VS Johnny Gargano!
In the unlikeliest twist in 2020, an arrogant Johnny Gargano thought he could break his curse by cheating the system. The Archer of Infamy made sure to even things out against the rig wheel of challengers, and in the end, the underdog became the unlikeliest of champions! But now, to prove he isn’t a joke, he’s taking on the most serious challenge he’s ever faced! Will the Cinderella story continue to live happily ever after? Or will one of the former champions reclaim the throne and wake Ruff up from his dream come true?
The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and Ruff’s first-ever TakeOver match, with the highest stakes possible, begins!
Ruff is wary of his challengers, but Gargano waistlocks him first! Gargano shoves Ruff at Priest, Priest shoves Ruff aside and Gargano SUPERKICKS Priest down! Gargano rolls Ruff up, TWO! Gargano cradles, ONE! Gargano scoops and slams Ruff to cover, TWO! Ruff survives this opening salvo but Gargano CHOPS him to the corner! Priest is up on the apron but Gargano dropkicks him out! Gargano corner clotheslines Ruff, but then Ruff slips out to forearm back! Ruff goes up and around and under and dropkicks Gargano back! Ruff knuckle locks, CHOPS and goes around the ropes to springboard RANA! Ruff dropkicks Gargano down and fans fire up!
Ruff stomps Gargano in a corner but Priest returns. Priest again pushes Ruff aside to fire off big hands on Gargano! Ruff squeezes in to throw hands on Gargano. Priest tells Ruff to stay out of his way and throws him out! Gargano boots Priest but Priest shoves him. Gargano dodges dodges Priest, Ruff missile dropkicks them both! Only Gargano goes down, so Ruff is ready to throw hands with Priest. Priest tells Ruff to go home, but Ruff throws a kick! And then body shots! Priest shoves Ruff, Ruff slides under and CHOPS! Priest doesn’t even flinch! Priest choke grips and lifts Ruff, then grabs Gargano! But Ruff kicks free and Gargano throws hands!
Gargano wants Ruff to help him and Ruff does, and they hammer Priest down. DOUBLE ENZIGURI! Gargano and Ruff DOUBLE CLOTHESLINE Priest out! Gargano runs and DIVES! Direct hit and Priest hits barriers! Gargano tells Ruff to go, and Ruff runs, but Gargano is tricking him! Gargano shoves Priest away to slingshot SPEAR Ruff down! Cover, TWO!! Ruff survives the betrayal and Gargano seethes. Gargano tells Ruff he’s a joke, and then tells his fans that they’re jokes! But Gargano says the joke is over. But Priest drags Gargano out and ROCKS him with a right! Priest SMACKS Gargano off boards, then stalks him around the way. Priest drags Gargano up to ROCK him again!
Ruff LEAPS from the ramp! But Priest catches him, BOOTS Gargano, and then puts Ruff down. Priest says this is his last warning, but Ruff says he’s not a joke! Ruff SLAPS Priest, Priest ROCKS Ruff! Priest’s rage boils up and he drags Ruff into the crucifix lift, for a RAZOR’S EDGE, into the barriers! And the barriers fall over like dominos!! Priest realizes just how hard he tossed Ruff and feels awful for it, and the ref checks on Ruff’s condition. Other refs come out to check, and Priest asks how he’s doing. The refs tell Priest to just stay back and give Ruff some room. Priest apologizes, but now this championship match continues without the champion!
Gargano CLOBBERS Priest from behind! Gargano clubs Priest, Priest knees low but Gargano RAMS Priest into the ramp! Gargano tries to use the ramp, needs to go again, and he TORNADO DDT’S Priest to the floor! Priest gets up and Gargano says “I told you! He can’t hang!” Gargano leaves Ruff in the past and puts Priest on the ramp. Gargano aims from the ring, but Priest blocks One Final Beat! Priest puts Gargano through the ropes but Gargano escapes the Reckoning, only for Priest to ROCK Gargano with a right! Priest then steps up and leaps, but Gargano dodges, only to run into a windmill kick! Cover, TWO!
Priest drags Gargano up, but Gargano slips under, only for his chop to be blocked! Gargano avoids the bell clap to hit a STANDING SLICED BREAD! Cover, TWO! Priest flounders to a corner, Gargano runs in, but Priest boots him away! Priest boots again but Gargano dodges, the BELL CLAP hits! Gargano ducks a roundhouse to throw forearms, then he fakes Priest out to mule kick the leg and BUZZSAW! Gargano runs into a LEAPING ROUNDHOUSE! And then staggers into a LARIAT! Both men are down, Priest rolls to the ramp and the fans fire up. Priest rises, but Ruff returns?! Ruff uses Priest as a step for a FLYING LARIAT on Gargano!
Ruff dropkicks Priest away, tackles Gargano and rains down furious fists! Gargano gets away, Ruff builds speed and goes up, to FLY out onto both opponents! Fans are thunderous for Ruff as he puts Gargano in! Ruff stalks Gargano, reels him in, and headlocks, but Gargano denies the buckle bulldog! Ruff just goes up and leaps for a CORKSCREW CUTTER!! Cover, TWO!! Gargano survives and Ruff shakes his head. Ruff figures the first-ever Triple Crown winner in NXT would survive that. Ruff climbs up the corner but Gargano throws haymakers first! Gargano dumps Ruff down off the top and grimaces as he drags Ruff up. Gargano DECKS Ruff with a left!
Gargano drags Ruff up and whips, but Ruff rebounds to LARIAT! Cover, TWO! Priest is floundering back up into the ring as Ruff climbs the corner again. Ruff sees Priest, and Priest says no more chances. Priest gets under Ruff’s leap, Ruff ducks and dodges but Priest BOOTS him down! Gargano swings into Priest’s clutches! Priest adds Ruff on, DOUBLE COMPLETE SHOT! Priest grits his teeth as he sees Gargano and Ruff go to opposite corners. Priest stomps around, and leaps to elbow Ruff! Then runs to elbow Gargano! Back to Ruff! Then Priest suplex TOSSES Ruff at Gargano with the Broken Arrow!
Priest gets Gargano up, but Gargano slips out to POST Priest! Gargano gets Ruff up and scoops him, to LAWN DART Ruff into Priest! Priest ends up in the double-ring gap and Ruff flounders. Gargano goes after Priest in the gap with haymakers. Gargano tries Priest up in the ropes of the second ring! Gargano waves by to Priest, then goes back to Ruff. Gargano scoops Ruff but Ruff slips out to O’Conner roll but Gargano bucks him off! Ruff CRUCIFIX DRIVERS! Cover, TWO!! Gargano escapes and fans are thunderous! Ruff goes to a corner, Priest works to free himself, but Ruff aims at Gargano for the FROG SPLASH but it flops!
Gargano gets Ruff in the GargaNO Escape, right in front of Priest! Priest shouts at Ruff not to quit, and then Priest frees himself! Priest helps Ruff get to ropes and then KICKS Gargano away! Gargano runs back in but into another ROUNDHOUSE! Priest climbs up and leaps for the FLYING WINDMILL! Priest sees Gargano bail out and Ruff stay in. Ruff avoids the back elbow and LARIATS, but Priest stays up! Ruff tries again, but Priest is too big! Priest whips Ruff, Ruff goes for the rebound but Gargano SUPERKICKS Ruff down! Again Priest feels remorse for what happened to Ruff, but Gargano enziguris!
Priest denies One Final Beat to the SOUTH OF HEAVEN CHOKE SLAM! But wait, it’s GHOST FACE again!! The ref tells him to stay away, but there are TWO OTHER Ghost Faces?! They’re attacking Priest on behalf of Gargano! Priest fights them off with elbows and BOOTS and a kick! Priest throws two out then CLOBBERS the third! The Ghost Faces regroup and retreat, but there are more on the outside side?! Priest BOOTS one down and then FLIES out onto them all! And then he goes back in to FLY out onto the others! All six Ghost Faces are down, but Gargano DIVES! Priest caches him for an APRON CHOKE SLAM! For Ruff’s FROG SPLASH!! Cover, Priest breaks it just in time!!
Priest finally catches his breath and he stands over Ruff. Priest drags Ruff up by his ear but Ruff fires off furious fists from all sides! Priest shoves, Ruff kicks! Ruff runs but Priest CYCLONE KICKS! Priest runs at Gargano, Gargano tilt-o-whirls but the takedown is blocked to- NO! No Reckoning, SUPERKICK! ROUNDHOUSE from Priest! CYCLONE KICK for Gargano! Priest sees he’s got an opening, and he roars as he drags Gargano back up! But another Ghost Face uses a PIPE on Priest!! Lucky number seven saves Gargano! But then Ruff rolls Gargano up! Gargano slips out to SUPERKICK! Gargano goes to the apron, aims and ONE FINAL BEAT for Ruff!! Cover, Gargano wins!!
Winner: Johnny Gargano, by pinfall (NEW NXT North American Champion)
History is made again for Johnny TakeOver, as he is a three-time North American Champion! But he had a seemingly endless supply of Ghost Face aces in the hole. Will Gargano finally break his curse and hold onto this title a little longer this time? And wait! Lucky Ghost Face number seven turns out to be AUSTIN! It was Austin all along! Does this mean it’ll be #TheJohnnyGarganoWay #AllDay?
2020’s been a real bummer.
But NXT has something very special planned for 2021. The first Wednesday of the New Year, will be New Year’s EVIL! What will the black ‘n’ gold have in store as we wipe the slate clean?
Men’s WarGames: The Kings of NXT VS The Undisputed Era!
Pat McAfee and his pack of mercenaries have done whatever they’ve wanted since TakeOver: 31, but that could all change now that Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong are back! And though the UE has been in each and every single Men’s WarGames match since it debuted in NXT, they’re only 1-2! Will the UE break even as they break McAfee, Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch down to the last piece?
First, the Undisputed Era make their entrance. For the first time, they do not have the advantage, but Kyle doesn’t let that bother him as he steps up first. Then McAfee’s team enters, and the Bruiserweight says he’s up first. McAfee is totally okay with that, especially when you consider Dunne is the only man on his team with WarGames experience, and was part of a team that beat the Undisputed Era. Kyle’s also happy to see Dunne, because Kyle wants revenge for both the betrayal and the advantage match screwjob! Dunne steps inside and the five-minute countdown begins!
Kyle and Dunne stare down and slowly circle. They approach and feel things out, Kyle tries testing kicks. Dunne stays clear, knuckle locks with Kyle, and then have a test of strength as they go shoulder to shoulder. They go around, Dunne gets a leg but Kyle counters to get a leg. Dunne gets around, facelocks, Kyle slips out but Dunne hooks the leg again. Kyle gets away and the two stand off. Fans fire up as the two circle again. They tie up. Kyle slips around but Dunne puts him on the ropes. Dunne dumps Kyle down then goes to ground ‘n’ pound, but Kyle has his leg guard. Kyle goes for a triangle but Dunne slips out! Dunne kicks but Kyle blocks, only for Dunn to spin through the dragon screw!
Dunne wants fingers but Kyle avoids the snap! Kyle rolls out of the omoplata to get the arm! Dunne avoids the armbar but Kyle avoids a stomp to the arm, and then Dunne backs off before the kick comes in! Dunne goes to the gap and baits Kyle into a triangle hold of his own! Kyle ends up in the gap, but he goes to the second ring. Dunne lets him go but Kyle gets Dunne’s arm for a takedown! Kyle wants a kimura but Dunne fights up. Kyle wrenches, waistlocks and GERMANS, but Dunne lands on his feet to BUZZSAW! McAfee is happy to see that! Dunne then hammerlocks Kyle’s arm and grabs the other to torture the fingers!
Dunne bends the wrist, twists the elbow and pulls on the shoulder, to then STOMP! Kyle gets up, puts Dunne in a corner but Dunne turns things around to CHOP! Kyle turns things back around to fire off body shots! Dunne has the fingers again and puts them throw fencing! Dunne uses steel for leverage as he bends the joints! Kyle body shots but Dunne lets off to whip. Kyle reverses, Dunne goes up and over, Dunne picks a leg and rolls Kyle to STOMP the hands! BUZZSAW! But Kyle counters the bomb to a GUILLOTINE! Dunne fades already! Kyle KNEES Dunne down! Dunne sits up, Kyle drags him back up but Dunne X-PLEXES, to the ARMBAR!
Kyle flails and moves around to get a leg! HEEL HOOK! Dunne endures now but the first countdown is ending! Dunne heel hooks Kyle back and they end up in a corner. The clock hits zero and Oney wants in! McAfee is again fine with that, and the #STARDESTROYER rushes Kyle! They brawl with forearms and CHOPS and CHOPS and CHOPS! Kyle blocks a chop to knee, kick and palm strikes! Dunne CLOBBERS Kyle! Oney and Dunne have Kyle in a corner, Oney back elbows in again and again! Kyle kicks but Oney ducks to HALF ‘N’ HALF! Dunne PENALTY KICKS an arm out! Dunne and Oney just loom over Kyle as they still have two minutes to go!
Dunne has the arms and the legs, for a Surfboard! And Oney CHOPS Kyle, then basement DDT’s him down! Kyle rolls back to the gap but Oney goes over, only for Kyle to DRAGON SCREW a leg! Dunne gives chase, Kyle gets him for a DRAGON SCREW! Kyle has them both stuck in ropes as he climbs up, and Kyle stomps Dunne away, to then GUILLOTINE KNEE DROP Oney! But Dunne missile dropkicks the leg out! Kyle clutches his knee and he still has to wait for reinforcements. Dunne drags Kyle around, wrenches an arm while Oney gets a leg, it’s an armlock Half Crab fusion! Kyle endures because there’s nothing else he can do! But the time is almost up!
The clock hits zero again and for the UE, it’s BOBBY FISH! Dunne and Oney hurry to intercept but Fish hits them first! Fish spins Dunne around to fire off strikes! Dunne ducks a roundhouse but not the mule kick! Fish knees Oney then EXPLODERS Dunne into Oney! Fish shouts for Kyle and he goes after Oney! Fish whips Oney for a SPINEBUSTER! Fans fire up but Dunne kicks Fish from below! Fish staggers over, but he throws Dunne into the gap! Kyle BOOTS Dunne down, and now reDRagon has Oney! Oney throws uppercuts, runs, but into a pop-up ROUNDHOUSE! Kyle brings Oney up, he and Fish combo for a DRAPING BUTTERFLY DDT, and then a BOOSTED Wheelbarrow German!
Dunne goes after Kyle and gets a HOVERBOARD KIMURA! Fish sleeper holds Dunne and drags him off! Kyle mule kicks Dunne, then reDRagon DOUBLE BUZZSAW! Fans fire up and reDRagon stomps Oney down. Fish drags Dunne up and throws knees in the corner while Kyle digs boots into Oney. Oney kicks Kyle away but Fish goes over to bring Oney up. Fish has a leg for a DRAGON SCREW! Oney clutches his leg, Kyle regroups with Fish but Dunne throws hands! Fish ROCKS Dunne, Kyle and Oney grapple with leg locks. Dunne knees Fish and has the wristlock! Kyle wants to get Oney for an armbar, and Dunne uses the cage to torture fingers!
The countdown returns as Fish clubs Dunne away! Burch gets in for McAfee’s team, and he goes under the ring! Burch brings in something in a bag and then DECKS Fish! And ROCKS Kyle! And spins Kyle for a EuroUpper! Burch opens that mystery bag, and he has a CRICKET BAT! Burch swings on Kyle but Kyle dodges! Burch runs to corner clothesline, enzigujri and then GERMAN! Kyle flounders to the gap and Dunne grabs the cricket bad the dig into Fish’s fingers! Burch brings out another cricket bat and he JAMS it into Kyle’s ribs! Kyle flops to the gap, Dunne keeps hitting Fish’s arm with his bat, and we’re at a two minute warning.
Oney helps Dunne go after Fish, and Burch talks trash on Kyle. Kyle picks a leg for a HEEL HOOK! Burch is tapping, if only this match was complete! Dunne goes after Kyle with a FLYING STOP to Kyle’s arm!! Kyle clutches what could be a broken elbow! And then Burch SMACKS Kyle with the back! That’s for six, aka a cricket home run. Oney and Burch give a “cheers” with the bats, then Oney hands his to Dunne. Dunne wedges the bat into Kyle’s leg for a cricket calf killer! Burch taunts Kyle then helps Oney with Fish. Dunne stomps Kyle’s leg as Burch and Oney club Fish. The countdown reaches 10 seconds as Fish tries to fight back in a 3v1 situation!
Dunne twist a foot, Fish falls, but here comes RODERICK STRONG! But Oney BLASTS him with a EuroUpper right away! Burch and Oney fire off on Strong, then whip him, but he DOUBLE LARIATS them both down! Strong fires off on Burch, then on Oney, then he whips Oney for a dropkick! Dunne hurries over but Strong gets him for a half nelson BACKBREAKER! And then Burch swings on Strong, but gets a knee and a BIG back suplex! Strong fires up and fans fire up with him, but Oney puts Strong in the gap. Strong BOOTS Dunne, forearms Oney and enziguris Burch! Strong runs side to side in the gap, giving everyone forearms as he goes! And then again the other way! And again to KNEE Dunne!
Strong TOSSES Dunne into the second ring! Strong goes after Oney, but Oney throws him into steels! Kyle goes after Dunne but Dunne grabs Kyle’s nose! Dunne and Oney throw Kyle and Strong into the steel! Burch and Fish brawl, Dunne is after Fish in the gap and throws him at the steel! McAfee’s team dig boots into Fish and Strong, then they club and EuroUpper Kyle! Oney and Burch double whip and double elbow Kyle, then they mug Fish and Strong! Oney CHOPS Strong, Dunne STOMPS Fish’s arm on steel! Burch stomps Kyle but Kyle hooks the leg to a heel hook! The countdown is back, and finally Captain McAfee enters!
McAfee has an idea, and he brings out a TABLE from under the ring! The table even has Fish’s name on it! McAfee gives that table to his team and they know what to do with it. McAfee brings out another table, and this one has Kyle’s name on it. Clearly he made sure these were here for reDRagon. Those tables are put in the gaps, then McAfee just tosses chair after chair in, before bringing out a table for Strong! McAfee’s team continues to mug the UE as the furniture is moved in. McAfee brings out one more table, and yes, this is for Cole, baybay. With his team firmly in control, McAfee finally joins in.
Burch and Oney set up a table for McAfee in a corner, and then Dunne RAMS Strong into buckles. Dunne brings Fish towards the table labeled for him while Oney and Burch have Strong. Dunne gives Kyle an elbow breaker to keep him down, then Burch and Oney mug Strong. They put Strong on his table, and then McAfee climbs up, to MOONSAULT Strong through the table! McAfee’s team all high-five over that one! Fans boo and the final countdown finally arrives! And that means this match finally has ADAM COLE BAYBAY!! Cole hurries over, but he had something planned, too! Cole brings out a fire extinguisher, and hoses off McAfee’s team!
Cole then grabs a chair, gets inside and he JAMS Oney! SMACKS Burch! SMACKS Oney! THROWS the chair at Dunne but Dunne dodges! So Cole BACKSTABBERS! And PELES Oney! And fireman’s carries to USHIGOROSHI Burch! Fans fire up with Cole as he stares at McAfee in the second ring. McAfee dares Cole to bring it on, so Cole storms over, only for Dunne to stand in his way. “Screw you!” Dunne and Cole brawl, Cole rocks Dunne but Dunne DECKS Cole! Dunne gives Cole some Danielson Stomps! And then pump handles for a BITTER- DDT!! Cole counters and then runs, but McAfee catches him! Dunne enziguris Cole down!
McAfee brags about his big brain and Dunne grabs Cole’s fingers. Kyle SMACKS Dunne from behind! Payback for weeks ago! Kyle says if McAfee wants to be a wrestler, he’s in WarGames, time to put that money where his mouth is! Kyle dares McAfee to take a free shot, and McAfee gets in. Cole SMACKS McAfee! And then rains down right hands! Dunne clobbers Cole and it’s a huge brawl! Fish throws Oney, Dunne throws Cole, Bruch rams Strong and McAfee fires off with Kyle! Fish stomps Oney, Strong hammers Burch, Cole has Dunne down and Kyle throws knees on McAfee! Kyle KICKS McAfee but Dunne has Cole’s hands in the table leg! Dunne STOMPS the leg to crush Cole’s hand!
Dunne goes after Fish and kicks him down! Dunne gives Fish a suplex but Fish slips out to sleeper! Strong fires off on Burch but Oney BLOCKBUSTERS Fish! Kyle staggers over and AX ‘n’ DOUBLE SMASH with Strong on Dunne! Cover, but Oney breaks it! Oney whips Strong into the gap hard! Burch and Oney drag Kyle up, LONDON BRIDGE!! Cover, Fish breaks it! Oney RAMS Fish into steel, Cole BOOTS Oney and then BOOTS Burch! McAfee chop blocks Cole!! Fans boo as Dunne and McAfee stomp Cole together. Oney and Burch regroup, McAfee lets out a “WOO~!” and steps through for a FIGURE FOUR!
McAfee’s team plays defense as Cole endures the leg lock! Fish, Strong and O’Reilly fight fist to fist, but Cole turns things around! McAfee endures the pressure now, Dunne is in an Ankle Lock! Fish has Oney in a sleeper, Strong has Burch’s leg! Dunne breaks free to KICK Cole! The hold is undone but the damage was done. Burch and Oney go back after the UE to throw down fists. Oney brings a table up as Burch DECKS Fish. The table is put in the second ring, but Strong HOTSHOTS Dunne! Burch and Oney set up the table marked for Cole, but Strong ROCKS McAfee! Fish joins in, they brawl with Oney and Burch!
McAfee is in the gap as Oney CHOPS! Fish BOOTS, Strong and Oney DOUBLE CLOTHESLINE! Burch ROCKS Fish but Fish ROUNDHOUSES Burch! Those four are all down in the second ring, leaving Dunne, McAfee, Cole and Kyle in the first ring. Cole superkicks but Dunne blocks to throw Cole down! ARMBAR, but Cole makes it a cover, TWO! Dunne enziguris, then goes to suplex, but he gets a LAST SHOT BRAINBUSTER! Cover, TWO!! Dunne survives but Cole finally throws his shirt away. Cole brings up one of the other tables, and stands it up. This is the Kyle table, and then he brings Dunne over to a corner. Cole drags Dunne up top, but Dunne pulls on fingers!
Strong and Fish save Cole but Burch goes after them. Kyle goes after Burch and throws hands. Burch ends up on the Cole table, and Fish and Strong have Dunne up! They DOUBLE BOMB Dunne onto Burch, but the table doesn’t give! Strong climbs up, and he FROG SPLASHES through them both!! Fans are thunderous as the Cole table is used up! Cole adjusts but McAfee springs up! Cole resists, and shoves McAfee down, he crashes through the Kyle table!! Cole hops down, wreckage is cleared, and Cole regroups with the UE. They bring Burch up to throw him into Dunne and steel! Cole wants to end this, and Oney is thrown into Burch and Dunne!
Kyle runs in and back body blocks Dunne into steel! Fish runs in and body blocks Dunne into steel! Strong KNEES Dunne, Cole SUPERKICKS Dunne, and Dunne is done! Now they start on Oney! Kyle, Fish, Strong and Cole hit him in turn! Then Burch gets the same! McAfee’s mercenaries are down and fans are fired up! McAfee somehow stands back up, and sees he’s all alone. McAfee asks they spare him, his back is hurting from the table. But the four UE go after McAfee, and drags him off the steel! They won’t let him forfeit by escaping! And they mug him 4v1!!
Cole throws McAfee into steel! Then Kyle throws McAfee into steel! Fish and Strong throw McAfee together! “Ain’t so tough now, are you, Pat?!” They dare him to talk trash now! They put McAfee in the gap and slap him around. They take his shirt off and then Cole lines it up. But Dunne, Burch and Oney make the save! They throw hands, Dunne stomps away on Strong, then Oney and Burch do the same to reDRagon. McAfee gets up and his guys help him around. Oney and Burch have Fish in an Electric Chair but Kyle makes the save! Strong has Dunne in a corner, Burch throws Fish away and goes after Kyle! Kyle is in the Electric Chair, EUROUPPER DOOMSDAY!!
Fish CLOBBERS Burch! Dunne and Cole fight on the top rope! Dunne wobbles and Cole hits a SUPER LEAPING NECKBREAKER! Strong has McAfee, for a SUPERPLEX!! ALL EIGHT MEN ARE DOWN!! The fans are thunderous as everyone crawls around. The teams regroup, stand together, and stare down the other side. It’s a brawl like the one from when it was UE VS Dunne-Ricochet-War-Raiders! But wait, where’s McAfee? He’s up on the VERY TOP of the cage!! And he SWANTON BOMBS #ForTheBrand!!! All eight men are down again!!
Dunne and Kyle crawl to the second ring and glare at each other as they slowly rise. The first two in are still standing, and now they’re throwing forearms back and forth! Fans rally up and Kyle ROCKS Dunne! Dunne ROCKS Kyle back, and then they pick up the pace! There’s no slowing down! Kyle ROCKS Dunne again and Dunne flops down! Kyle drags Dunne up by his hair but Dunne gets the fingers! Kyle wrenches to ELBOW BREAKER! And AX to- DUNNE’S SMASH! Dunne blocks the yo-yo lariat to get the fingers! SNAP!! Then pump handle, to BITTER END!! Cover, TWO?!?! Dunne can’t believe Kyle survives!!
Kyle sits up in a daze but Dunne drags him around. Dunne brings Kyle to the gap, and though the table says “Fish,” Dunne wants to use it on Kyle! But Kyle slips out of the bomb to suplex Dunne for a FULL METAL BRAIN BUSTER!! Cover, TWO!??! Dunne survives and now Kyle is shocked! Kyle gets up and sees the chair. Kyle sits that chair up, drags Dunne over to it, and puts him through it! Kyle goes to a corner, Dunne barely moves, but McAfee CHAIR SHOTS Kyle down! Kyle falls through the ropes, McAfee aims at Cole. Cole dares him, McAfee swings but misses! Cole fires off with fury, and has the chair for his own! But McAfee LOW BLOWS! It’s not illegal in WarGames!!
McAfee mocks Cole but he misses the punt, Cole BOOTS McAfee down! Cole goes to a corner and wants to take us back to TakeOver: 31! But Burch yanks Cole down! Cole SUPERKICKS Burch! Fish SPEARS Burch through the FISH table!! McAfee SUPERKICKS Cole!! And then he hops up, PANAMA SUN- SUPERKICK! Cole goes back to the corner, and hits the TRUE PANAMA SUNRISE!! Cover, TWO!?!?! McAfee survives a move that put him away before! Cole says that’s fine, he’ll gladly put McAfee away with something more! Cole brings the knee pad down, says BANG, but Oney takes the LAST SHOT WIZARD for McAfee!
Dunne KICKS Cole, brings the chair over, and hits a BITTER END to the chair back!! Cole sputters and gasps, Dunne covers but Strong STOMPS it apart! END OF HEARTACHE! Oney swings his chair but Strong dodges, Fish helps out for a FULL METAL STRONG ANNIHILATION! Kyle walks the tightrope to FLYING KNEE DROP onto Oney’s head! Cover, the Undisputed Era wins!!
Winners: The Undisputed Era, by pinfall
And the war is over! Cole, Fish, O’Reilly and Strong may be 2-2 in the overall record, but this win means so much more than numbers can speak to! Have they finally shut McAfee up? Is NXT now, then and forever Undisputed?
My Thoughts:
This was a really great TakeOver! The kickoff show had good promos and sports show talk from the special guests, sorry I missed Helwani’s. Bookending the night with WarGames matches made sense, and the women starting was fine. In retrospect, it perhaps gave away that Shotzi’s team was going to lose, so I feel like it would’ve worked just fine as the main event. But given the Undisputed Era, as Faces, won theirs, this is also fine. NXT wasn’t going to have both Face teams win, but I would’ve still done it that way. Though then maybe Shotzi and her team look way too strong.
Indi getting involved does help with the power balance, she’s a good reason as to why Team Candice won. I do like the strategy of trying to keep out the other team’s fourth for as long as possible. Shirai with the trash can dive was a great way around it, too. And with Shirai essentially Face, it makes sense that Heels win so that Heels move up to challenge her. I have a feeling this will end up pitting Raquel and Dakota in opposition to Candice and Toni, with Indi of course being Candice’s back-up. And I bet the build is quick enough so that someone can challenge Shirai for “New Year’s Evil.” The Evil Genius needs to be on a show with the word “Evil” in it, it’s only logical.
Ciampa VS Thatcher was a very good match, and the (more than likely accidental) bloody ear definitely adds to the concept of it being about toughness. Ciampa wins to build up his momentum, and with Balor calling everyone in the men’s division out, I have a feeling Ciampa is a frontrunner for facing him for the title. Lumis VS Grimes was a really good strap match, and Lumis wins again, meaning he has to be poised for a title shot. And given how Gargano won that great Triple Threat to be champion again, Gargano VS Lumis is an excellent next feud for both. Gargano is about as mouthy as Grimes so that makes for a good foil to Lumis being eerily silent.
Priest had good character work in that Triple Threat given he doesn’t dislike Ruff but still has to beat him up. And of course Ruff became an even bigger star with how he kept up with two big names. And while having seven Ghost Faces in one segment was a bit much, I love that Austin Theory turned out to be THE Ghost Face, as I’d hoped. Austin and Indi are now the “kids” in the #TJGW sitcom parody that they’ve created, and that will make for a great overall story as Austin and Indi help Gargano and Candice in trying to keep/gain gold.
And UE winning in the main event was to give us fans a “happy ending,” but that itself surprised me. I suppose that means UE is staying in NXT, no jumping to SmackDown or Raw, which will surely be best for UE overall. But I can’t be sure what they do next then, as they’ve checked everything off the list. I suppose they could at least attempt to take all the titles back, only to fail, but wouldn’t that mean they leave for RawDown at that point? I’m not sure what’s planned, but I’m sure NXT will execute a near perfect plan.
My Score: 9.4/10
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Time to burn it down!
Ahead of entering the Royal Rumble, Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre go one more round in a rematch from WrestleMania 40!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Kofi Kingston w/ Xavier Woods VS Rey Mysterio; Rey wins.
- Bayley VS Nia Jax; Nia wins.
- PENTA VS Pete Dunne; Penta wins.
- Damage CTRL VS Pure Fusion Collective; DMG CTRL wins.
- Seth Rollins VS Drew McIntyre; Rollins wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
Nia Jax ambushes Rhea Ripley!
The Irresistible Force is here on Raw to face Bayley, but she’s getting her payback on Mami for last week! She dribbles Rhea into the steel chain link fencing again and again, even as security and Adam Pearce rush in! They get Nia to stop, but Rhea is pissed! Will Nia regret riling up Rhea Bloody Ripley?
Jey Uso is here!
Dallas fires up and bounces along as it’s time to YEET! Michael Cole does his best to keep up with the beat as Main Event Jey makes his way down the bleachers. Wade Barrett is subbing in for Pat McAfee (the NCAA College Football Championship is also tonight), and Wade says Maggle looks like a “drunk grandpa” doing the YEET. Jey makes it to ringside, he high fives Maggle, then goes to the ring. But the YEET doesn’t slow down, it just keeps going! Jey grabs a mic and tells Dallas, “Main Event Jey Uso is now in your citaaaaaa~!” The fans cheer and join in with a “YEET!” Jey says this weekend, “YEET!” Saturday Night’s Main Event, “YEET!” Jey takes home the big one!
But then before Jey can continue, GUNTHER makes his way out here! Der Ring General, World Heavyweight Championship around his waist, makes his way right to the ring. Gunther grabs himself a mic while the fans boo. Jey paces but Gunther tells him, “Lemme guess, the next thing you were about to say is you were going to win the World Heavyweight title.” Jey confirms, he is gonna beat Gunther, then hang the title up in his room. Gunther says Jey really is “a funny little man.” But let’s not act like we both know it won’t happen. Last week, Jey was right here in front of Gunther, and he said every morning, he looks in the mirror and bets on himself.
The thing is, Gunther believes Jey. Gunther was looking forward to Saturday to square off with Main Event Jey Uso. Until today, when he saw Jey walking in here acting like that conversation last week never happened. Not after seeing Jey act like a complete DORK! Like he’s the company mascot for the fans! At this point, Gunther doesn’t even care. He could jsut as well get challenged by Jimmy Uso. Jey tells Gunther to not say something about his brother. Gunther says it doesn’t matter what Jey says, he never follows up with his actions! The fans are the only ones naive enough to believe everything Jey says. Gunther does not.
Bet on yourself? Until when? Until Roman Reigns whistles for him? Until Sami Zayn needs him? Until Jimmy needs him? Even Cody needed Jey and Jey showed up! All that makes Jey is a useful idiot, and Jey doesn’t even see it! Jey, your words and your actions do not align. Gunther’s always do! So on Saturday, when the bell rings, Gunther exposes Jey for the flash in the pan that has NO business being even this close to the World Heavyweight Championship. The fans boo but Gunther tells Jey to go. The fans “YEET! YEET! YEET!” but Jey says Gunther’s right again. Everything Gunther just said is true again.
Jey is the mascot of the WWE. And the fans here are his team. The fans are his squad. They ride with him! “YEET!” Slide with him! “YEET!” And they will be with him when he beats Gunther for the world championship! “YEET!” Jey reminds us he respects Gunther. But Gunther will respect Jey, too. Because only one of them in this ring main-evented a WrestleMania, and it ain’t Gunther. But then Gunther DECKS Jey! Gunther stomps Jey, the fans boo, but then Gunther DECKS Jey again! Gunther stands Jey up, but Jey TACKLES Gunther! Jey rains down fists and teh fans fire up! Gunther gets up, but Jey fires more hands!
Jey has Gunther’s shirt over his head for a hockey scrum! Gunther gets free, but Jey SUPERKICKS him down! The fans all “YEET!” while Der Ring General retreats! Jey has the belt and he dares Gunther to come get it! Jey drops it at the ropes, Gunther storms up to the apron, but Gunther stays back. Gunther leaves Dallas with the belt tonight, but will Jey leave San Antonio with it this Saturday?
The New Day walks the halls.
And then they spot someone. “Finally, somebody who understands!” JBL is here! They all shake hands, and JBL loves seeing them. Kofi Kingston says JBL is not just a champion and a Hall of Famer, but he’ll be on commentary tonight for The New Day’s match with that “hypocrite of a locker room leader,” Rey Mysterio. JBL should let New Day know they are the victims of a disgusting smear campaign! Kofi even sweetens the deal with a whole $2. Kofi says JBL understands being in a tag team but having to cut the deadweight to get ahead. And when he did, what happened? He had the greatest success of his career!
Not as great as The New Day, but please, be an acolyte for ya bois! JBL says yes, he does “get it.” Big E, all the muscles and charisma and personality, everywhere they go, the fans love Big E. Everyone chants for New Day, for Big E. You get rid of him, the fans have to pay attention to Kofi & Woods! Wow, okay. Backhanded compliments? Be that way. The New Day heads out, JBL asks if he can keep the two bucks. Will Kofi & Woods finally see who’s really in the wrong? Or will they continue to have a bad day here on Raw?
Backstage interview with Bayley.
Cathy Kelley is with the “busiest superstar” in WWE right now, as Bayley was on Raw, NXTÂ and SmackDown all last week. And she has an announcement to make, so for those who ahven’t heard, could she share? Yes, cat is out of the bag, Bayley is back on Raw officially via the Transfer Window! She started here after her NXT call-up, so it just feels right. But also, she is declaring for the 2025 Women’s Royal Rumble! And if you remember, she won the 2024 Rumble, so going back to back sounds really good. She could choose Tiffany Stratton, she could choose Rhea Ripley, or- Nia Jax interrupts.
Nia says Bayley can have Rhea, Nia gets Tiffy. Also, Nia is going to win the Women’s Rumble, not Bayley. Oh, yeah, Bayley did see what Nia did to Rhea earlier. If Nia wants to try that, Bayley dares her. Nia says she’ll see Bayley out there. Nia leaves, but will the Irresistible Force rough Bayley up the same way she did Rhea? Or will Bayley continue to be the Role Model, even after changing brands?
Kofi Kingston w/ Xavier Woods VS Rey Mysterio!
Raw returns and JBL is out there with Wade and Maggle already. The New Day makes their entrance, and they hate their song! They have it turn off, they get the tron to stop, and Woods says they already told the idiots in production that they’re no longer using that stuff! It’s ya bois, the NEW~ DAY~, and Dallas is starting to piss Kofi off! They have been doing this for too long and too well to be disrespected like this. They are walking Hall of Famers, unlike this FRAUD, JBL! JBL, give him that money back! Kofi snatches it out of JBL’s lapel pocket. Woods says Rey’s getting the brakes beat off him by the one and only Kofi Kingston~! BECAUSE NEW! DAY- “SUCKS!”
The fans chant “NEW! DAY SUCKS!” and the bell rings. Kofi and Rey circle, feel things out, and Kofi waistlocks to then headlock, waistlock, and he shoves Rey to a corner. The fans boo but Kofi soaks up that heat. JBL says this is the only time he’ll cheer a “deadbeat dad” like Rey. Rey and Kofi tie up, Rey waistlocks but Kofi switches to SLAM Rey down! Kofi slaps Rey around, and the fans boo as Kofi & Woods soak up the heat. Kofi taunts Rey, Rey and Kofi reset, and they tie up. Rey wrenches, hammerlocks, but Kofi wrenches out. Kofi wristlocks, Rey rolls and kips up, then Rey wrenches to headlock.
Kofi powers up and out, drops down then CLOBBERS Rey! The fans boo but Kofi keeps moving. Rey drops down, blows past Kofi, then tilt-o-whirls to RANA! Kofi staggers up, Rey dropkicks the legs out! Kofi is on ropes, Rey dials it up, but Kofi ducks the 619! Rey then PLANCHAS, but Kofi moves! Rey is on the apron, Kofi YANKS him down! The fans tell Kofi off but he drags Rey up and into the ring. Kofi then fires UPPERCUTS on Kofi, CHOKES him in the corner, then stomps a mudhole in! The ref counts, Kofi steps off, and then Kofi whips corner to corner. Rey reverses, runs up, but Kofi SWING KICKS! Rey GAMANGIRIS in return!
Rey RAMS Kofi, slingshots and SUNSET- NO, Kofi holds on, and he CLUBS Rey down! The fans boo but Kofi brings Rey in! Woods says watch this, “Hall of Famer!” Kofi lifts Rey, Rey pops free, but Kofi stomps away on him! Kofi glares at JBL, then he drags Rey up. The fans boo but Kofi SMACKS Rey off the apron. Kofi then reels Rey in, but Rey RANAS Kofi into the steel steps! The fans fire up as Rey rises, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Kofi has Rey down with an armlock. Rey fights to his feet, the fans fire up, and the forearms go back and forth! Kofi ROCKS Rey, Rey ROCKS Kofi, but then Kofi kicks low! Kofi whips, Rey ducks ‘n’ dodges, then Rey leaps to FLYING FOREARM! Both men are down and the fans fire up again. Woods coaches Kofi while Rey goes to the apron. Rey then goes to the corner, but Kofi hurries over that way. Kofi fires body shots, then he climbs up after Rey. Kofi brings Rey up but Rey fires body shots in return! Rey BENDS Kofi’s fingers, then he HEADBUTTS Kofi! Kofi staggers up, Rey hits the SEATED SENTON!
Rey gets moving, but Kofi ducks the springboard crossbody! Kofi sunset flip, but Rey rolls through, basement DROPKICK! Cover, TWO! Kofi goes to a corner, Rey CLUBS him, and the fans rally. The ref gets between them, but Kofi pokes Rey in the eyes! Kofi leaps, CROSSBODY SPLASH to the back! Cover, TWO! The fans rally for Rey as he stays in this. The fans chant “NEW! DAY SUCKS!” Woods argues with a fan, Kofi aims, TROUBLE IN- NO, Rey dodges, then comes back to RANA! Kofi is on ropes, Rey dials it up! But Woods trips Rey! The ref saw that clear as day! Woods argues with the ref, but the ref EJECTS Woods!
The fans fire up while Woods throws a fit! Rey DECKS Woods! But Kofi CLOBBERS Rey! The fans boo, but Kofi hauls Rey up! Rey victory rolls Kofi onto ropes! Rey redials, 619!! And then the springboard, but onto knees! Kofi covers, TWO!! Rey survives, the fans fire up, but Kofi seethes. Kofi hauls Rey up, clinches, S O- NO! Rey makes the SOS a cover, REY WINS!
Winner: Rey Mysterio, by pinfall
But Woods CLBOBERS Rey from behind! The New Day mugs Rey, the fans boo more, but here comes the LWO! Joaquin Wilde & Cruz Del Toro run The New Day off! The fans boo, Cruz & Wilde check Rey, but then the New Day sneak back in! They drag Wilde out to POST him! Cruz hurries but now New Day retreats for real! Insult to injury here, but will Kofi & Woods continue to be blinded by their own arrogance?
Backstage interview with Team American Made.
Cathy Kelley waits as Chad Gable is arguing with his own people, then says okay, sorry, he was inspiring the team. But yeah, he’s the talk of the whole freakin’ wrestling world the past week, but he is man enough to admit he has a problem. And it all started with losing to Penta last week! It was Dragon Lee before that, and Rey Mysterio before that. Gable asks, “What’re we gonna do her?” But he’s figured it out! He found a man who knows a thing or two about lucha libre, and that man is intelligent with a mustache to match. That man is Dominik Mysterio! While Dom helps Gable with his lucha problem, the team has their marching order.
Ivy Nile says there’s a Women’s Intercontinental Championship with her name all over it. Brutus says those tag titles should’ve already had their names on them, HAHA~! Julius mocks how War Raiders cry about “One more injury~ and we’re done forever~!” Like that’s something to be proud of? No more asking, they’re just taking! They’ll take those tag titles from a team near the end of their career and put them on a team that’s entering their prime. Gable says this team that bleeds red, white ‘n’ blue will have waists wrapped in gold, and it will be glorious. Team American Made heads out, but can Dirty Dom really help Gable clean up his act?
Sami Zayn is here!
Dallas sings his song, and the Underdog from the Underground goes right to the ring. He grabs a mic and thanks Dallas for that, that never gets old. But he wont’ beat around the bush, he’ll just get right to business. Sami spoke with Adam Pearce, and Sami is now officially entered into the 2025 Men’s Royal Rumble match! The fans like the sound of that! Sami says Rollins told him he’s already helped a lot of others, so time to help himself. Well, Sami thought about that, and thought about what he wants. When he thought about that, it opened a whole bunch of thoughts. Sami pictured what 14-year-old Sami wanted.
Sami thought about what the millions around the world who dream of becoming pro-wrestlers, and the thousands who actually live the dream and get to do it. And then the even smaller group lucky enough to call themselves WWE Superstars. And then the smallest group of all, the hardest to crack into at all, is the upper echelon, the top tier, and that is where Sami is now! The fans cheer, and Sami firmly believes he is as good as everyone else in that group. That group is all in the Royal Rumble, and the only difference between Sami and the others, aka Roman, McIntyre, Rollins, and so on, is that they all have a world title to their name… and Sami doesn’t.
Sami has said it before, he’ll say it again, he’s had a great life, a great career. He doesn’t need the world title to complete him. The fans have supported Sami throughout the years, and believe it or not, that support means more to him than any world title could ever mean! So no, Sami does not need that world title, but DAMMIT, he WANTS it!! The fans love that! Sami says 14-year-old Sami wants that title, and he’s still with Sami! That kid sets foot in this ring every time Sami does. So Sami doesn’t need it, he wants it, so he will TAKE IT! WAIT, Kevin Owens is here!? The fans boo and Sami is certainly stunned seeing SmackDown’s Prizefighter back on Raw.
Kevin, who is still carrying the “Winged Eagle” title, while wearing a Bret Hart merchandise jacket, makes his way to the ring. Kevin grabs the mic, and while fans boo, he looks to Sami. Sami says he knew it was a matter of time before Kevin showed up. How does Kevin wanna do this? Kevin asks what Sami means. Sami knows Kevin. We all saw what Kevin did to Cody over teaming with Roman, so how’s this going down? Aw, is that why Sami thinks Kevin is here? No, Kevin admits, he was upset at first. But he realizes now that Sami teaming with Roman isn’t the same as Cody teaming with Roman.
Sami and Roman had a lot of history, the same as Sami and Kevin. And Roman did terrible things to Sami that Sami overlooked, just as Kevin did to Sami that Sami has overlooked. Or rather, Sami forgave Kevin for those things. Same as him forgiving Roman! Because that is who Sami is: Sami is a good person. And Rollins is right, Sami does a lot for others, especially his friends. And well, Sami is still Kevin’s best friend. A brother even! Kevin is here to tell his brother that he whole heartedly believes Sami can and will win the Royal Rumble. Kevin knows that the Sami he’s known for 20 YEARS will win the Royal Rumble!
And why? Because Sami deserves it! Sami deserves to go to WrestleMania and fight for the WWE Championship, and Kevin knows Sami will do it! Then Kevin and Sami can accomplish one more thing together. Think of everything they’ve done and seen each other do in this business. They main-evented WrestleMania to become tag team champions. But there’s one more thing they haven’t done: main event WrestleMania for THE WWE Championship. And when Sami wins the Rumble, they can do that, so long as Kevin walks away THE WWE Champion. But Kevin knows both of those things are going to happen.
Kevin knows Sami will win the Rumble because Kevin has his back. He does. And Kevin knows he’ll be THE WWE Champion because just like Sami had Roman’s back, he’s got Kevin’s back. Right? Kevin just knows it. Sami is his best friend, his brother, and if Kevin needs him, Sami will be there. Kevin drops his mic and heads out, but Sami is rather confused. Is Kevin suggesting Sami do what it sounds like? What will Sami do on this Road to WrestleMania?
Backstage interview with Sheamus.
Cathy is with The Fella and brings up his Intercontinental Championship match he has this Saturday against Bron Breakker. Why is this title so important to him? Sheamus says many would look at his career, and say he has the perfect backwards WWE career. He was only six months into his career, and he beat one of the biggest names this business has ever seen in John Cena to become WWE Champion. Ironically, the Intercontinental Champioship is what drew Sheamus to the WWE. That title has become an obsession for the past five years, but guess what? The stars are aligned! Saturday Night’s Main Event, Sheamus will bust Bron aside and fulfill destiny!
Sheamus will win the last championship he has yet to win! And for everyone who is watching, Let’s Go, Irish! A quick shoutout to Notre Dame, but then Sheamus spots Bron Breakker. Bron tells Sheamus that this title is Bron’s. This is as close as Sheamus will ever get to winning it. Because on Saturday, Bron beats him and BREAKS him like an old man! So just do us all a favor and retire. Sheamus shoves Bron, but Bron laughs it off and takes his leave. Will the Celtic Warrior finally have his WWE Bingo in another banger? Or will this title still belong to Bron Breakker?
Bayley VS Nia Jax!
The Role Model and the Irresistible Force were just on SmackDown but they’re bringing their beef over to Raw! Will Bayley make her official transfer back a successful one? Or will Nia be rolling towards the Royal Rumble?
Well, well, well, Roxanne Perez seems to be stalking Bayley. She was in the crowd for SmackDown last Friday, and now she’s here in the crowd tonight. The bell rings, Nia runs up, but Bayley dodges! Nia hits buckles, Bayley fires hands, then runs to ELBOW her! Bayley climbs up to rain down fists! The fans count, Bayley ges to 6 before Nia brings her off the corner! Bayley still fights, but Nia stops the rana! Nia brings Bayley up to a fireman’s carry, but Bayley kicks off ropes! TORNADO DDT! Cover, TWO! Nia sits up but Bayley fires hands! Bayley runs, but into a POP-UP HEADBUTT! Bayley sputters, Nia covers, ONE!!
Bayley scrambles away but Nia stalks her. Nia puts Bayley on the ropes, CHOKES her, but the ref counts. Nia lets off at 4, she soaks up some heat, then she HEADBUTTS Bayley again. Bayley goes to a corner, Nia digs her boot in, but the ref counts. Nia stops at 4, the fans boo some more, and Bayley crawls. Nia drags Bayley up, pushes her down, then runs, only for Bayley to avoid the elbow drop! Bayley fires forearms, then whips. Nia takes a swing but Bayley gets around to hit a back suplex! Cover, TWO! Nia is tougher than that but she’s also dazed. Bayley rises, runs in, but Nia URENAGES Bayley down! Now Nia climbs the corner!
The fans fire up as Bayley SHOVES Nia to the apron! Bayley BOOTS Nia to the floor, then builds speed! Bayley DIVES, down goes Nia! The fans fire up and Bayley gets in Roxie’s face! Roxie takes a swing, but Bayley blocks! Bayley DECKS Roxie! The fans go wild, security stops Roxie from getting at Bayley! Bayley mocks the little idiot, then goes back for Nia while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Nia drags Bayley up. Nia drops a LEG on the arm! Cover, TWO!! Bayley survives and Nia grows frustrated. Nia taunts Bayley, the fans boo Nia, and Bayley sits up. Nia drags Bayley by her hair, then runs, but Bayley avoids the leg drop! Bayley hurries to ELBOW Nia in the back! And then SLIDING LARIAT! Bayley keeps moving, and drops an ELBOW! Cover, TWO! Nia survives the onslaught but the fans rally for Bayley. Both women slowly rise up, and Bayley runs up to KNEE Nia out to the apron! Bayley then drags Nia in through the ropes, but Nia HOTSHOTS the bad arm!
Bayley writhes, Nia taunts the fans, then Nia goes back to the apron. Nia stands on Bayley’s bad arm! But Bayley avoids another leg drop! Nia clutches her lower back while she and Bayley both rise up again. Bayley runs in to SUNSET FLIP BUCKLE BOMB! Nia flops to the floor and the fans fire up! Bayley leaves Nia behind for the count to handle this. Nia is still down at 5 of 10, and at 7! Nia springs up and in at 8! But Bayley goes up, up, and she hits a BANZAI DROP! Cover, TWO! Bayley didn’t quite A-Nia-Late Nia, but she goes up to ELBOW DROP! Cover, TWO! Nia survives again but if only barely!
The fans rally as Bayley brings Nia up. Nia shoves Bayley away, then scoops her, SHOULDER BUSTER! Cover, TWO! Bayley stays in this and the fans rally up again. Bayley goes to a corner, Nia runs in, and Nia SPLASHES Bayley! Bayley flounders against the ropes, then Nia runs in. Bayley TOSSES Nia to the apron, but Nia ROCKS Bayley! Nia drags Bayley up, and POSTS her! Bayley dangles in the ropes, and Nia snarls. Nia runs to HIP ATTACK Bayley against the post! Bayley flounders back in, the fans boo, and Nia climbs up! But Bayley is up to YANK Nia down! The fans fire up as Bayley runs, and she KNEES Nia down! Cover, TWO!!
Nia survives yet again but the fans continue to rally behind Bayley. Bayley goes up a corner, but now Nia is up! Nia ROCKS Bayley, then climbs up after her. Nia fireman’s carries, but Bayley squirms around! SUPER SUNSET FLIP BOMB!! Cover, TWO?!?! Nia survives that wild fall but Bayley goes right back up! MACHO ELBOW!! Cover, TWO!!! Nia survives again and Bayley is beside herself! Nia and Bayley rise, and the fans fire up again. Bayley reels Nia in, but the bad arm won’t let her clinch! Nia fireman’s carries, but Bayley fights free! Bayley runs, CHOP BLOCKS a leg, then hurries to run again. Nia POP-UP SAMOAN DROPS!!
Nia hurries to SENTON! Then she drags Bayley to a drop zone! Nia goes up, to A-NIA-LATE Bayley! Cover, Nia wins!!
Winner: Nia Jax, by pinfall
A powerful battle between two former champions, but the Irresistible Force crushes Bayley on her return to Raw! But wait! RHEA RIPLEY makes her way out here! Mami wants revenge, and Nia says bring it! They brawl in the ring, the fans fire up, and Rhea HEADBUTTS Nia! Rhea RAMS Nia into the corner again and again, but here comes security! The fans want to “LET THEM FIGHT!” but the two are separated! But then Nia breaks free to SPLASH Rhea and whoever else was in the way! Nia CLUBS away on Rhea, producers and refs rush out here to stop this, but Rhea is up! She LEAPS at Nia for more!
The fans are thunderous as Rhea shoves everyone out of the way to ROUNDHOUSE Nia! Nia falls out of the ring, but rhea isn’t done! Rhea goes to the apron, but Nia trips her up! Nia DRIBBLES Rhea off the announce desk! Nia now clears the desk, and Adam Pearce is shouting that this is enough! Nia puts Rhea on the desk, but security swarms her! Wait, Rhea is back up! CANNONBALL!! Rhea takes Nia and the security guards out! The fans fire up but producers have to drag Rhea away from Nia! Dallas cheers on “MAMI! MAMI!” and she grabs a mic. Rhea gets on the desk to shout, “YOU! ME! SATURDAY NIGHT’S MAIN EVENT!!”
The fans are all fired up, because now things are going to get wild in San Antonio! But will the Queen of the Ring A-Nia-Late Rhea? Or will Nia get eradicated?
Judgment Day meets with American Made.
The others aren’t so sure about this, but Chad Gable says Dom said he could help with Gable’s luchador problem. Does he have some info? C’mon! Help him out! Okay, okay. Dom has someone who can help Gable. Dom hands him a piece of paper, and Gable asks, “This is the guy?” Dom says it sure is. Gable tells Judgment Day and “JD McDouche” that he’s off to master the dark arts of lucha libre. The others ask Dom what this is all about. Dom says it’s a long story but he and Gable go way back. Okay, fine, but how does this help Judgment Day? Next week is the tag title rematch but Finn is still out of action from last week’s Street Fight!
Liv Morgan says listening to Finn hasn’t really helped them win, has it? C’mon, Liv, this is serious. They’re gonna have to forfeit! Dom says maybe he could sub in. Finn shouldn’t care so long as they get the titles back, right? JD says yeah, that’s a good point. They’ll get this. Liv says yeah, Finn should be fine. And Dom is quite the mastermind now, huh? Liv just hopes this plan goes better than the one he had for her match with Rhea. Hey, didn’t she say she was over that? Yes, she did. Can Dom not take a joke? Okay, okay. Dom does have a plan for Liv, though. And even though she’s not mad, he’ll make it up to her, okay? Oh, he will. Now, let’s go.
Liv & Dom head out, Raquel tells Carlito to stop staring. Will Judgment Day (not) keep it together?
Lyra Valkyria speaks.
“Last week, I walked into Raw ready to become a history maker. And that meant spreading my wings and shedding any dead feathers that made me doubt the heights I knew I was capable of reaching. I took fear, I took doubt, and I used them to become something more. And now that I have this, it’s about what comes next. And what comes next is building a legacy as a valiant, fighting Women’s Intercontinental Champion.” The Morrigan is ready for more, just how high will she soar?
WWE celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.
He had a dream, and that dream lives on in us. May we keep that dream alive so that it may come true every day.
Seth Rollins warms up backstage.
Sami checks with him and knows the match with McIntyre is coming up. But Sami just wants Rollins to know that as a friend, he appreciated the talk they had last week. Rollins knows, and he heard Sami out there. Rollins respects Sami’s choice. It’s about time we got that Sami back. And Sami is almost rooting for that Sami. But push comes to shove int he Rumble, Rollins will throw Sami right over the top rope. Sami says, “Not if I throw you out first.” Sami again wishes Rollins luck, then heads out. Rollins finishes his preparations, but Karrion Kross is watching from afar! Could Mr. Doomsday have his next target in mind?
PENTA VS Pete Dunne!
#CeroMiedo made its debut in the WWE just last week, and it was a massive hit! But now he’s up against a man who feels disrespected left, right, front and back! Will the Bruiserweight take out all his frustrations on the new kid in class? Or will Penta continue to blow the roof off the arenas?
The bell rings and the fans already chant, “CERO! MIEDO!” Penta tells Dunne to listen, but Dunne grabs the hand! Penta KICKS Dunne, but Dunne CHOPS! Penta CHOPS, Dunne CHOPS, then the forearms start flying! Dunne headlocks, Penta fires body shots, and Penta powers out. Penta hurdles then mule kicks Dunne, and Dunne sputters away. Penta swaggers, but Dunne CLOBBERS him! The fans boo but Dunne grabs an arm. Dunne hammerlocks that arm, pulls on the other, and he bends the fingers back! Dunne STOMPS Penta’s arm! The fans tell Dunne off while Penta writhes, but Dunne drags Penta up again.
Dunne wrenches and whips, but Penta reverses. Then Penta runs up to GAMANGIRI! Penta whips again, Dunne reverses and he GAMANGIRIS! Penta sputters, Dunne brings him up, and Dunne whips. Penta reverses. Dunne goes up and flips and SUPERKICK from Penta! Penta hits Dunne outta the sky and Dunne bails out of the ring! The fans fire up and Penta says, “CERO! MIEDO!” Penta runs and DIVES into a forearm! Dunne gives back that anti-air, then he reels Penta in. APRON X-PLEX! Penta writhes again while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns, Dunne runs up to SLIDING FOREARM Penta down! The fans boo while Penta sputters, but Dunne runs up to SLIDINGN FOREARM again! Dunne paces, the fans chant, “Butch Sucks!” but Dunne just runs up on Penta. Penta dodges, mule kicks, and he runs to SLING-DOG! Dunne flounders to a corner, Penta runs and headstands on the corner! SWINGING DROPKICK! Dunne sputters more but Penta fireman’s carries. The fans fire up for the SWINGINGN DEATH VALLEY! Cover, TWO! Penta is frustrated, but the fans rally up again. Penta and Dunne rise up, and Penta goes after Dunne. Dunne ENZIGIRIS first!
Dunne STMOPS the hands, then he BUZZSAWS! Penta goes to a corner, Dunne runs up, but Penta SUPERKICKS! Penta runs up, DESTROYER!! Dunne tumbles out of the ring! The fans fire up with Penta and he builds speed again! Penta FLIES and down goes Dunne! The fans are thunderous while both men are out at the ramp! Penta and Dunne stir, the ring count climbs, and Dunne is in at 5 of 10. Penta rises at 6, and he slaps some sense into himself. Penta is back in at 7, DES- NO, Dunne stops the second shot and tucks Penta in! CRUNCHY DRIVER!! Cover, TWO!! Penta survives and the fans fire up!
Penta shakes out the bad arm, but he and Dunne sit up. They go forehead to forehead, then forearm for forearm! Dunne CHOPS, but Penta CHOPS! The fans cheer Penta on and he tells Dunne to listen! “CERO! MIEDO!” But Dunne bends the fingers, SNAPS them, then wraps Penta into a TRIANGLE HOLD! Penta endures, fights up, and he deadlifts Dunne, for a POWER BREAKER!! Dunne writhes, Penta grabs Dunne’s arm and traps it! Penta CLUBS Dunne, then grabs the other arm, SACRIFICE!! Dunne writhes in even more pain, but Penta brings him around. Pump handle, PENTA DRIVER!! Cover, Penta wins!
Winner: Penta, by pinfall
The luchador proved he could do power on top of punishing submissions, and he is 2-0 here on Raw! Will the Penta Era take over the WWE?
Logan Paul speaks.
“Man, it must suck to be a Logan Paul hater. For years, all of you have wanted me to fail. But you know why it’s never happened, and it never will? Because when I do something, I become the best at it. I became the King of the Internet. I was the only man in history to beat Floyd Mayweather. So what makes you think the WWE will be any different? Look around, dummies. This is my life now. And I will eat, sleep and breathe wrestling until I become the greatest superstar to step into that ring. You can quote me on that. You’re looking at the GOAT, ladies and gentlemen.” The Maverick makes his return next week in Atlanta, will he receive a “warm welcome?”
CM Punk is here!
The Voice of the Voiceless, the Second City Saint, the Best in the World, takes a page out of Jey Uso’s playbook by entering through the concourse and then the bleachers! Dallas fires up as he joins Jackie Redmond in the perch for an interview. Jackie says the fans love chanting Punk’s name, and thanks him for coming out here for this in-arena interview. Punk says before any questions, he has a question for us: “Is it great to be alive on a Monday night in Dallas, Texas or what?!” The fans cheer that, and Jackie says of course it is.
But to the question: There are only so many ways to get to the main event of WrestleMania, something Punk wants to do for the first time in his career. The Royal Rumble is certainly one way, but that is a match he’s never won. And it is shaping to become one of the most stacked fields ever. Punk, Roman, John Cena, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, Sami Zayn, and more. So, the question is, what makes this Rumble different for Punk? Punk says, “History.” And he is a maker of history! Just three weeks ago, he main-evented the first Raw live on Netflix, and he beat Rollins, a man favored to win this year’s Rumble.
This business is a fickle one, constantly asking, “What have you down for me lately?” Punk says he makes history! And he’ll do it in two weeks when he walks in, throws 29 other superstars over the top rope. The stakes are much too high, the lights are much too bright, and the pressure is on! And that is when Punk feels alive and when he thrives. No one can beat Punk when he’s at his best and with the people behind him. Jackie brought up Cena, but Punk can’t see Cena throwing him out. Roman Reigns? Roman needed Punk’s help to settle family business at WarGames. And in the Rumble, there are no friends!
Punk has put McIntyre in the dirt, and don’t ask him about Sami. You put HOGAN in the rumble, Punk will throw his old ass out and kill Hulkamania once and for all! February 1st, 60 THOUSAND strong, on the Peacock, live and in living color, Indianapolis, Indiana, Punk will settle scores and cash in debts. He’ll even call in a favor or two if he needs to. On that night, 29 other men are going night-night, and ONE MAN gets his hand raised. One name, three syllables: C, M, PUNK! “CM” might stand for “Confident Man” right about now, but will Punk be unstoppable on this road not just to WrestleMania, but also the road to his dream?
Damage CTRL VS Pure Fusion Collective!
This rivalry went back and forth all over 2024, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down just because it is a New Year. Will Dakota Kai & Iyo Sky finally kick PFC to the curb for what they did to Kairi Sane? Or will Sonya Deville, Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark put them on the shelf right beside the Pirate Princess?
The teams sort out, the bell rings, and Kai starts against Shayna. Shayna opens with a KICK to the leg, but Kai walks that off. Shayna KCIKS again, Kai gets mad, and the two go again. Kai blocks one kick but not the second KCIK! Shayna runs up, fakes Kai out, then trips her up! Shayna scuffs Kai, then soaks up the heat. Shayna runs back in, but Kai goes up and over to roll her up! TWO, and Kai slips past Shayna to DROPKICK her down! The fans fire up for Kai, but Shayna stops the arm-drag! Shayna whips, Kai stops herself and BOOTS Shayna away. Kai runs up, Zoey tags in before the flying mare!
Things speed up, Shayna drops down and Zoey springboards to MISSILE DORPKICK Kai down! Sonya wants everyone to take notes! Zoey clamps onto Kai with a chinlock and she grinds Kai down. The fans rally, Kai fights up, and Kai fires body shots. Zoey CLUBS Kai, CLUBS her again and again, then soaks up heat. Zoey puts Kai in the corner, tags Shayna back in, and then Zoey whips Shayna in for a KNEE! Shayna scoops Kai, BACKBREAKER and LARIAT! Shayna covers, TWO! Kai stays in this, but Sonya says her team’s got this. Kai crawls, but Shayna clamps onto the leg for a toehold.
Kai endures, kicks at Shayna with her free leg, but Shayna still bends the trapped leg! The fans rally, Kai kicks and kicks, but Shayna drops an ELBOW on the leg! Shayna tells Dallas to shut it, then she drags Kai around to bend the leg in another direction! Kai endures, reaches out for Iyo, but Shayna pulls the leg. Kai kicks at Shayna again, then BOOTS her away! Kai and Shayna crawl, hot tag to Zoey! Zoey brings Kai up but Kai ENZIGIRIS! Shayna runs back in, but Kai TOSSES her out! Hot tag to Iyo! The Genius of the Sky fires SHOTEI after SHOTEI on Zoey! Iyo ROCKS Shayna, then runs! PFC avoids the handsprings, but Iyo blocks a kick!
Iyo sends the foot at Zoey, but she ducks! Iyo SHOTEIS Zoey again! Then she dodges Shayna to GERMAN SUPLEX her away! The fans fire up as Iyo whips Zoey. Zoey reverses but Iyo uses that to DIVE onto Shayna! Iyo hurries up, blocks a shot, then ROUDNHOUSES Zoey! The fans fire up as Iyo climbs, and Iyo MISSILE DROPKICKS Zoey! Iyo handsprings up and the fans are thunderous! Iyo aims from the corner, runs in and SHINKANSEN! Iyo drags Zoey to a cover, TWO! Zoey survives but Iyo goes up. Sonya storms up, but Kai YANKS Sonya down! The fans fire up as Iyo climbs, but Shayna LARIATS Kai!
Zoey YANKS Iyo down, SUPERKICKS her, and then reels her in! ATAXIA!! Cover, TWO!! Zoey is furious, but she tags in Shayna. PFC gets Iyo up, ROLLING DEATH VALLEY, then a SLIDING KNEE! Cover, Kai breaks it! The fans fire up but Zoey TOSSES Kai! Zoey then PLANCHAS, but Kai dodges! Kai goes up to the apron to PENALTY KICK Zoey! Shayna BOOTS Kai, then dodges Iyo! KIRAFUDA KLUTCH!! Iyo flails, but she runs to the ropes! HOTSHOT and Shayna falls back! Iyo hurries up top, the fans fire up, OVER THE MOONSAULT! Cover, DMG CTRL wins!
Winners: Damage CTRL, by pinfall
PFC tried to use the numbers, but Iyo & Kai just used their skills! Will DMG CTRL still take control of Raw? Or will Sonya, Shayna & Zoey figure out a winning formula?
Seth Rollins VS Drew McIntyre!
With the Royal Rumble just down the road, it is this WrestleMania 40 rematch that could determine how WrestleMania 41 looks. The Visionary and the Scottish Terminator look to run it back, but who will be in pole position for Indianapolis?
Raw returns and McIntyre makes his entrance. The bell rings, the fans fire up, and the two stare down. The fans sing Rollins’ song, and Rollins says he’s got two good knees now. No Bloodline, no CM Punk, just them! The two circle, tie up, and McIntyre pushes Rollins to the corner. The ref counts but McIntyre talks smack as he lets off. Rollins shoves McIntyre, McIntyre shoves Rollins! They stare down again, Rollins talks a bit more smack, and McIntyre grins. McIntyre CHOPS, and Rollins likes that! Rollins CHOPS, McIntyre CHOPS, repeat! The fans “WOO~” but then McIntyre headlocks. Rollins powers up and out, but McIntyre runs him over!
McIntyre looms over Rollins, then brings him up. But Rollins CHOPS, CHOPS, and CHOPS! McIntyre headlocks, Rollins powers up and out, drops down, hurdles over, then redirects McIntyre to SHOULDER TACKLE! McIntyre rebounds to SHOULDER TACKLE Rollins! The fans fire up again while Rollins goes to ropes. McIntyre stomps Rollins, ROCKS him, then stalks him to ropes. McIntyre CHOPS Rollins against the ropes, then whips. Rollins ducks ‘n’ dodges, to then SLINGBLADE! Rollins keeps moving, and he LARAITS McIntyre up and out! The fans fire up as Rollins builds speed, to WRECK McIntyre with a dropkick!
McIntyre is at the desk. Rollins builds sped, and Rollins DIVES! McIntyre hits desk, but Rollins keeps going! Rollins DIVES again, but McIntyre stops that to TOSS Rollins up and over the desk! Rollins is down between the armchairs and McIntyre snarls, but Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and both men slowly rise in the ring. McIntyre looms over Rollins, saying Rollins is still too damn selfish. But Rollins fires hands! McIntyre hits back, they go back and forth! McIntyre kicks low, whips Rollins toa corner, but Rollins BOOTS him away! McIntyre returns, and he pushes through the boot to ELBOW Rollins! McIntyre has Rollins in the Inverted Alabama Lift, ALABAMA- VICTORY ROLL! TWO!! Rollins goes back to the corner, and he BOOTS McIntyre again! The fans fire up while both men are down! Rollins feeds off that energy and rises up. Rollins ROCKS McIntyre, then counter punches him!
Rollins CHOPS and ROCKS McIntyre again and again, then CHOPS, CHOPS, CHOPS! The fans fire up, the ref counts as they’re on ropes, but Rollins roars! Rollins whips, McIntyre reveres, Rollins leaps, but into McIntyre’s arms! McIntyre pops Rollins up, but Rollins slips out of the suplex to then POST McIntyre! McIntyre staggers back, so Rollins POSTS him again! McIntyre sputters, Rollins brings him around and POSTS him a third time! McIntyre is stuck in the corner now, but Rollins SLAMS the arm against the post! Rollins aims as McIntyre staggers away. Springboard, FLYING KNEE! McIntyre says up, Rollins hits a RUNNING KNEE! Cover, TWO!
Rollins takes a breath as the fans rally up. McIntyre is down so Rollins goes to the apron. Springboard SWANTON! Cover, TWO! McIntyre survives but Rollins snarls. Rollins stalks McIntyre, grabs the arm, and he goes to wrangle McIntyre. McIntyre rolls free, fireman’s carries, but Rollins fights free! Rollins goes to a corner again, puts McIntyre on the apron, but McIntyre ROCKS Rollins! McIntyre climbs, but Rollins springs up to join him! SUPER DUPER PLEX! Roll through, but MCINTYRE hits the FALCON ARROW! Cover, TWO!! The fans fire up as both men are down! “This is Awesome!” as McIntyre kips up!
McIntyre still wobbles a bit, but he makes his way to a corner. McIntyre tells Rollins to get up. Rollins rises, McIntyre runs in, but Rollins ducks the Claymore! Now Rollins aims, and he runs up, but McIntyre hits a SPINEBUSTER! Jackknife bridge, TWO! Rollins survives, but McIntyre brings him in! Deadlift and- RANA! Rollins then SUPERKICKS McIntyre, runs, tilt-o-whirls, and FALCON ARROWS! The fans fire up as Rollins manages a cover, TWO!! The pin wasn’t much but neither was that kick-out, both men are running on fumes. The fans sing Rollins’ song, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!”
Rollins runs, CURB- NO, McIntyre avoids the stomp! Underhooks and FUTURE- NO, Rollins fights the DDT to underhook! PED- NO, McIntyre wrenches out to short arm LARIAT! McIntyre rolls away to go to the apron, then he drags himself up the corner. McIntyre reaches the top, Rollins stands, FLYING- NO, Rollins blocks the lariat to try and wrangle McIntyre. McIntyre scoops Rollins, Rollins slips free, and Rollins still wants the arm! McIntyre fights the takedown again so Rollins CLUBS away on the arm! Rollins brings McIntyre down, into a CROSSFACE!! McIntyre endures, reaches out, but Rollins pulls him back!
McIntyre fights, claws his way over, and he manages the ROPEBREAK! Rollins holds until the ref counts 4, and now Rollins tells McIntyre to get up and fight. “You question me? You question my integrity!?” Rollins gets in McIntyre’s face, the ref backs him off, but now McIntyre CLAWS Rollins’ face! Rollins staggers, McIntyre reels him in, underhook and FUTURE SHOCK!! Cover, TWO?!? Rollins survives and now McIntyre is pissed. McIntyre rises, and he tells Rollins that his words and actions don’t line up. Short arm LARIAT! McIntyre drags Rollins up again, short arm LARIAT! The fans rally and McIntyre shakes his head.
McIntyre tells Rollins to get up, and Rollins sputters as he slowly sits up. McIntyre reels Rollins in for a short arm- NO, Rollins slips up and around, and a jackknife bridge! ROLLINS WINS!!
Winner: Seth Rollins, by pinfall
Rollins snatches this one away, and McIntyre CLOBBERS Rollins for it! The fans boo but McIntyre scares the ref off. But Rollins fires hands in return! McIntyre CLAYMORES outta nowhere!! McIntyre is still seething, and he drags Rollins over to the corner. McIntyre pulls Rollins’ hair to put him up against the post! The fans boo, the ref says don’t, but SAMI ZAYN to the rescue! Sami fires hands, then he POSTS McIntyre! Sami makes sure Rollins is alright, and then Sami goes back for Drew. But he gets a GLASGOW KISS HEADBUTT for it! McIntyre stands Sami up to THROW him into barriers!
McIntyre snarls as he looks to Rollins again. McIntyre gets in the ring, and he tells Rollins they should be on the same team, but Rollins is just so selfish! But here comes Sami! McIntyre moves, HELLUVA KICK to Rollins!! The fans can’t believe it and neither can Sami! Sami apologizes to Rollins, but McIntyre grins, this all worked out for the better! Will McIntyre use everyone else against each other to ensure he is the one going to WrestleMania?
My Thoughts:
Another great episode coming in at just two hours and 35 minutes or so. I don’t mind things “ending early” compared to the usual three hour run, but I am curious as to how they’re only using two-and-a-half hours. I suppose they have their plan and just go with it. That way, if things go long, they have breathing room for it. But they really could’ve added like one more thing to this and it would’ve been fine, I think. That said, good go-home stuff for Saturday Night’s Main Event, such as a good promo from Jey and Gunther. Though, they didn’t really add more to what last week had, other than that brawl. Jey stood tall, go-home math would suggest he loses.
Sheamus and Bron had a good promo to put the final touches on their build, but as I said last week, this is a rather interesting one. Sheamus really should win that Intercontinental Championship already, but I don’t know if Saturday Night’s Main Event is a “big enough stage” for such a moment. Great stuff with Bayley, Nia and Rhea tonight, especially that match. It seems the Transfer Window is finally putting some actual transfers in, what with Wyatt Sick6 on SmackDown and now Bayley on Raw. Rhea VS Nia on Saturday Night’s Main Event is going to be an awesome title match, but it feels like Rhea will retain to solidify her as champion past the Royal Rumble.
And speaking of the Rumble, Bayley is certainly a top choice to win. For one, it’d be historic for Bayley to not just win back-to-back, but to also be the first woman to have won two Rumbles at all. Very good promo from Punk to hype himself up for the Rumble, and he did mention a favor… Though, it’d be rather Heel of Punk to use a favor from Heyman to basically rig the Rumble or give him protection during it, but it’d also be great continuity as The Shield was to shield Punk. Sami of course declared for the Rumble, but Kevin showing up was a great surprise. And Kevin clearly implies that if Sami helps Kevin cheat the ladder match, Kevin will help Sami cheat the Rumble. Or rather, if Kevin does help Sami win the Rumble, Sami better help Kevin win the ladder match.
Sami also had a good promo with Rollins backstage, with the real fun part being Kross watching from the background. Kross needs a new feud with the Wyatts going to SmackDown, and moving on to names like Rollins and Sami would be some big stuff for him and The Final Testament. Rollins VS McIntyre was a great main event, and classic move having the quick pin win this so that McIntyre is still strong even in defeat. Sami making the save was also a nice touch, as was the Helluva Kick accidentally hitting Rollins. The Rumble has a lot of feuds crossing over, and Kross can add onto what happened here, we’ll get some really good chaos in that match.
Great promo between New Day and JBL to where even JBL, notorious as one of the meanest, most obnoxious Heels of his time, is on Big E’s side. And we finally got New Day back in the ring, but it’s a little disappointing that it wasn’t a tag match. Dragon Lee hasn’t gotten to do much, and he’s doing even less now. It was still a great match from Kofi VS Rey, with Rey getting his own quick pin win. New Day beating Rey up of course brought out the LWO, and I’m sure we’ll get New Day VS Cruz & Wilde next. We can only hope for Dragon Lee’s sake that he gets to be part of the blowoff for this feud. Actually, better yet would be him in the Intercontinental Championship scene.
Penta might also make a great choice for the Intercontinental Championship scene. Penta had another awesome match, as Pete Dunne is always a great opponent. Maybe Penta gets in on the Rumble so he can check that off his bucket list. He doesn’t need to win, he can just have a great showing, and rivalries can spark from those interactions. Lyra had a very good promo but I was hoping for a little more after her winning the Women’s Intercontinental Championship. DMG CTRL VS PFC was a great tag match, and a great win for DMG CTRL. Dakota and Iyo could each make a case for a match with Lyra, but clearly Ivy will be up first. She would make a solid first defense for Lyra, and then Lyra can have rematches from the tournament with Kai and Iyo.
At the same time, PFC might already be thinking about changing up the team with Zoey taking the loss. Good stuff with Judgment Day. Dom and Liv plotting and scheming while being passive aggressive is a fun phase for them. They’re probably plotting on how Liv can win the Women’s Rumble, but it’ll likely backfire and that’ll push the Liv x Dom break-up. Also, you can bet Finn won’t like Dom taking his spot against the War Raiders, especially if they win. That said, I don’t see them winning, Erik & Ivar should definitely be able to handle Dom & JD. It certainly feels more likely the Creeds can take the tag titles than Judgment Day.
I do wonder who Dom recommended to Gable, though. It’d be cool if WWE brought in some other lucha legends, as WWE seems to be expanding their partnerships. WWE is working more closely with TNA now, and I believe TNA still has a working relationship with AAA, especially after AEW moved over to working with CMLL because of the relationship with NJPW. Also a super crossover like NXTNAAA would be a lot of fun to see for WrestleMania weekend.
My Score: 8.8/10
About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
 MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)Â
THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports PodcastÂ
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)
TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends
Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5
Classic POD is WAR
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
Coverage
Andrew’s TNA Genesis Results & Match Ratings: 1.19.25
Does TNA Believe in Joe Hendry more than Mokuba Nemeth believes in his big brother?
Hot off the heels of the TNA and WWE working relationship announcement, the Kickoff show already has the first sprinkle of NXT talent with Ashante “Thee” Adonis coming out after Ariana Grace tries to take all of the credit for the partnership. Jake something runs over Ashante, but it’s a good quick nod on free YouTube. Oh it also looks like the ring announcer is McKenzie Mitchel again. I did like her first run in TNA in what was that… like 2016-2018 or 19? She’s got personality, she’s cute and a solid announcer, so nice to see her back.
I’m not gonna run down any predictions on who I think will win, because honestly, I just feel like Hendry needs to win today or it’s been an entire waste of momentum. So lets get to the main show!
Ratings:
- X Division Championship: Moose (c) vs Ace Austin: Moose retains via Lights Out – *** 1/4
- The System vs Maniac Marines: Marines win via K.I.A. – ***
- Knockouts Tag Titles: Elegance Clique (Heather & Ash) w/Personal Concierge vs Spitfire (Dani Luna & Jody Threat) (c): Spitfire retain via Pressure Drop – **
- Jordynne Grace vs Tessa Blanchard: Tessa wins via Magnum – ****
- I Quit Match: Josh Alexander vs Mike Santana: Santana wins! – ***
- TNA Tag Team Championships: The Hardyz (c) vs The Rascalz: Hardyz retain via Swanton Bomb – *** 1/2
- Raven’s Clockwork Orange House of Fun Match: TNA Knockouts World Championship: Masha Slamovich (c) vs Rosemary: Masha wins via Avalanche Requiem – ** 3/4
- TNA World Championship: Nic Nemeth (c) vs Joe Hendry: Hendry wins via Standing Ovation – *** 3/4 – TITLE CHANGE!!!!!!!
Results:
X Division Championship: Moose (c) vs Ace Austin
As soon as the bell rings, Ace jumps on him, forces him into the corner and stomps on him. Moose tries to fight out but Ace stays relentless. Ace has a counter for everything Moose is trying to counter in the early goings. Even when Moose catches him during the apron Handstand Dodge, Ace still has a counter for his counter. It’s not until a rake to the eyes from Moose that finally gives him a moment to start dictating the pace. A huge Irish Whip on the outside through the barricade is what Ace feels…twice. Ace tries to fight back from Moose continuing the momentum, Ace eats a Pump Kick, but blocks Moose’s attempt at a Suplex and counters with his own Vertical Suplex on Moose! JDC gets in the proximity of Ace so Ace kicks him, which delays his springboard, so Moose catches him and bounces him off the apron like a super ball.
Moose lets the count go, Ace barely gets in at 9, Moose throws him corner to corner, is slowing things down and being very deliberate. Ace starts powering through the pain, catches a Pump Kick, dodges a Spear into the corner and puts together a few strikes, Double Stomp, Triangle Kick, wants The Fold but Moose puts the brakes on there. Ace tries to spring off the ropes but Moose grabs him and hits Go To Hell for two! Fighting Spirit spot, Ace starts winning the trade, a Headbutt from Moose stops Ace, Moose flips him over the ropes to the apron, tries a few more things, Ace looks for a Springboard, Moose catches him but Ace slips it for a Frankensteiner. Moose powders to the opposite apron and Ace hits his Inside Out Headscissors sending Moose crashing to the floor. Alisha and JDC try to help up Moose, and while the referee is distracted JDC posts Ace. Moose goes for the Around the World Lights Out, but Ace moves and Moose kills JDC! Ace hits The Fold on the floor!
Eddie Edwards and Brian Myers run down the ramp, Ace sees them so he hits the Fosbury Flop to take them out. Ace is rolling, he goes for the Triangle Kick but Moose counters with Lights Out! 1-2- KICK OUT? Moose sets up for another Lights Out, Ace sidesteps it for the Cradle, kickout, Uranage, Cradle counter, Art of Finesse from Ace but Lights Out to the Spine from Moose! Moose sets up another and lands the Lights Out to retain!
Post Match the System looks to beat down on Ace, but Maniac Marines music hits and they go after Myers and Edwards. Guess the match is now!Â
The System vs Maniac Marines
Steve and Eric beat the hell out of the System members while the referee tries to set the match, it still hasn’t started but we get stereo 10 count punches in the corner, big fists causing Myers and Edwards to powder. This is essentially a Tornado Tag right now because the match hasn’t even started. Okay it eventually starts and Maclin hits the Backbreaker on Edwards and Busaiku Knee on Myers. He looks for a SCUD but Lish grabs the foot which is just enough! Maclin tries to charge anyway but gets caught in the Blue Thunder Bomb and now the match slows down and Eddie is in control.
Maclin absorbs some Chops from Eddie in the corner, no sells a little and fires, Eddie tags out Myers tries to slow things down with a Russian Leg Sweep but Maclin continues to try and rally. Eddie’s back in, shortarm Gowan Lariat into a cocky cover for two. Eddie tries to keep moving but Maclin hits the Vertical Suplex. Maclin is too slow to tag out so Eddie tags out and Myers cuts off Maclin. After a few more quick tags from System members, Maclin finally lands a Lariat to get the simultaneous tag and EY comes in hot. EY does the Flair corner flip, knocks Eddie off the apron, Myers eats a Macho Elbow but only two. Eddie knocks Maclin off the apron, Tandem Tiger Driver for two, EY fights back to level Eddie, Tree of Woe Myers Caught in Crosshairs but Lish gets in the ring! Eddie grabs Eric and distracts the ref, Lish clocks Maclin with either knuckles or a full hand of rings, Spear from Myers is only a two!
System Overload attempt, it’s thwarted by EY, Myers gets crotched in like a Reverse Tree of Woe, so Maclin hits the Caught in the Crosshairs on the back, EY with a Plancha to the outside to take Edwards out and K.I.A. from Maclin means Maniac Marines win!
Knockouts Tag Titles: Elegance Clique (Heather & Ash) w/Personal Concierge vs Spitfire (Dani Luna & Jody Threat) (c)
Elegance duo comes out dressed like Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. They do a Go Eagles chant right before the bell rings to a chorus of Boos.
Even though Elegance Clique throws their pompoms and try a cheap shot, Spitfire just plow through them, literally. Quick tags, some assisted moves, Ash gets away from Spitfire, tags in Heather and shoves her forward trying to take them off guard, but they turn around…grab Heather and a long Tandem Stalling Suplex with a Deep Squat for two. Concierge distracts the referee, looks for a low Dive onto Heather but Ash just kicks Dani in the face, and the referee sees nothing. Heather rolls her back in, Kawada Kicks, Forearm Shiver, trip into a Dropkick to the face! Ash hangs Dani off the apron and Heather hits the Double Stomp from the apron to the floor.
Ash starts choking Dani on the ropes, distracts the referee and Heather paintbrushes Dani with pompoms as Ash goes for a series of pinfall attempts. Quick tags, Dani is in their corner, Cartwheel Back Handspring Elbow from Ash into a Seated Dropkick from Heather. Dani has been getting smacked around for the last 4 or 5 minutes. Ash leans on Dani for a while, but Dani gets a head of steam, comes off the ropes and Shotgun Dropkick gives her space. Jody gets a hot tag, she Sack of Shits them both, Vader Hammers in the corner into a Michinoku Driver, which Ash breaks up with a Meteora. Heather and Ash have a nice tandem move for a two count. Jody tries to fight back, but Elegance stops it, blind tag from Dani, Senton takes out both Elegance Clique members and Dani stalks her prey. Snap Suplex two times on Ash, but Heather stops the third and Jody just tosses Heather out of the ring in a rough way. Jody tries her Double Knees German Suplex spot but Ash moves. Dani with the Shinsuke Nakamura Inside Out German, Pressure Drop and Spitfire retains.
Boo…
Jordynne Grace vs Tessa Blanchard
Grace charges Tessa immediately, and the ref needs to pull her off, but Tessa gets thrown around the ring literally, the crowd is chanting “Fuck You Tessa”, Tessa powders, eats a Dive and then a Jackhammer on the outside! Grace puts Tessa on her shoulders up to the ring, but Tessa finally fights off and flips off the crowd, revels in it for a second, tries the Frankensteiner, but Grace holds on, smashes Tessa into the guardrail twice, looks for the Reverse Bomb on the apron, but Tessa gets out, stomps on Jordynne a few times, hooks Jordynne’s face with the crook of her leg and drives Jordynne’s face into the apron. Unique looking and decent.
Tessa has the correct intensity, pushes into two quick pinfall attempts and starts getting deliberate. Drags Jordynne’s face across the rope, throats Grace, kicks her in the face and Slingshot Elbow is another near fall. Tessa with the Front Facelock, Grace tries to fight out but Tessa holds on and drops her with a Scorpion Death Drop for another near fall. Jordynne fights Tessa off with a few elbows, looks for a Superplex, but Tessa fights off, wants the Avalanche Sunset Bomb, but Jordynne stops it, Tessa kicks Grace’s feet, looks for a Rope Hung Death Drop but Jordynne fights it off and smashes Tessa’s face into the turnbuckles but Tessa hits the Rope Hung Backstabber for two. Tessa looks for Magnum, but Jordynne cuts her off, they fight at the top, Avalanche Sack of Shit! They both sell the exhaustion of the match so far.
They trade blows, two Scoop Slams from Jordynne, Lawn Dart into the Top Turnbuckle! Package Powerbomb for two! Dragon Suplex attempt from Grace, Tessa breaks it, Headlock Takeover, quick counter wrestling, Tiger Destroyer from Tessa! Only for a two count, but still nice. Buzzsaw attempt is shrugged off, Tessa comes off the ropes and eats the Spinebuster from Jordynne for two quick pinfall attempts. Tessa with the Body Scissors and pulls herself up and fights back, Jordynne slaps her around, looks for the Suplex but Tessa slips it and Neckbreaker Counter for a two count! The brawl to the apron, Grace eats a forearm and Tessa hits the Tornillo on Jordynne! They posture on the steps, Tessa wants a move but Jordynne counters her and Spicolli Driver from the stairs to the floor from Jordynne!
More back and forth in the corner, just positioning and counters, it’s like watching chess. Jordynne grabs Tessa for an Avalanche Air Raid Crash, but Tessa fights it and turns it into an Avalanche Crucifix Bomb! After trying a grounded submission Tessa locks in the Octopus, tries to wrench the fingers but Jordynne counters, Rope Assisted German Suplex into a Capture Suplex for 2! Kudome Valentine attempt from Grace but Tessa gets out, Backfist from Jordynne, Tessa bounces off and Cutter gives her a two count! Tessa calls for Magnum, Jordynne dodges it, Tessa rolls through, tries boots but Grace grabs Tessa and hits the around the world Reverse Alabama Slam! Tessa keeps trying to remove Buckle Pads but they’re on good, Tessa reverses out of the Kinikku Buster, hits the Buzzsaw into the partially exposed buckle but Grace grabs the rope. Tessa removes another pad, Bulldog into exposed buckle, Magnum, and Tessa is still sexy.
The turnbuckle pads being on too well made the finish a little flat, but it was a damn good match. There’s also a joke in the match with Tessa coming out wearing Red and Gold (Yellow), so the racism allegations are never going away if she keeps making it easy.
I Quit Match: Josh Alexander vs Mike Santana
There’s intensity but its all just technical tactics to take each other to the ground and grab a limb. But since we just came off of a pretty good match, things can’t start too hot. Every time Santana throws Josh to the outside, Josh scurries back to the ring, he’s playing scared. There’s a “He’s a bitch” chant that pops up. Santana cuts off Josh’s charge with a few well placed boots which sends Josh outside, Tope con Hilo levels the bald man. Santana throws Josh into a guardrail, Yakuza Kicks back to back rock Josh a bit. Fans call for tables and Santana slides one out to a huge pop. Santana sets it up, plays to the crowd, tries a Powerbomb onto the table but Josh slips it and Overhead Belly to Belly sends Santana crashing. A fan can be heard saying “That look like it hurt” to which Santana replies ” It did asshole”. Now Josh is dissecting Santana’s legs to soften him up for the Ankle Lock. Josh goes for the corner spot with the Figure Four around the post after bouncing the knee off the post a few times.
Josh tries to continue but Santana slides out and counters Josh and bounces his face off the post. Josh walks it off a bit as Santana stalks him and then a quick Chop Block has Santana writhing in pain. Josh decides to be a heel and do the Three Amigos instead of the Kurt Angle Germans. Disrespectful bald jerk. Santana gets throated, dropped to the apron on his ass, Low Crossbody but Santana flattens out and Josh goes flying! Santana tries a Dive, but Josh catches him and just drops him spine first on the apron. After a small resilient flurry of slaps from Santana Josh goes for the Germans. Santana brushes off on the third, goes for the Rolling Buck Fifty, gets caught in the Torture Rack, Santana fights off Josh’s shoulders, kicks him into the corner, Senton into the seated Josh. Perches him up top, points at the table, tries something but Josh fights him off, Moonsault from Josh misses and a Death Valley Driver gives both a moment to breathe.
Santana Spin the-BLOCK-ED! Josh sweeps the leg, Ankle Lock and Santana refuses to quit twice but slips the boot ala Eddie Guerrero. Josh pauses a moment, Santana charges and Josh dumps him over the top rope through the table! Santana says he doesn’t quit, Josh looks surprised, so he goes looking for more plywood. He also grabs the bottom set of stairs and throws them into the ring. Scoop Slams Santana into the broken table and continues looking for weapons, like a chair and zip ties. Santana crawls into the ring, Josh steps on the worked on leg and smashes it repeatedly with the chair. Josh goes into Full Mount, rains down strikes, exposes the elbow for Elbow Strikes and tries to soften him up for the zip ties. C4 Spike but Santana raises up like the Undertaker and fires into beating the piss out of Josh. Frankensteiner on Josh into the Frog Splash, Spin the Block! Josh doesn’t quit. Santana grabs the zip ties that Josh introduced, ties the hands behind Josh’s back, Spin the Block 2! Josh doesn’t quit. Santana sets up the steps as a ramp, table in front of Josh in the corner and Cannonballs through the table into Josh! Josh still doesn’t quit off the Jackass stunt. Santana finds a sock filled with quarters and starts beating Josh like it’s a slapjack. Josh still doesn’t quit. Santana tells Josh to bite the curb and is about to Curb Stomp him into the steps and Josh gets scared and quits.
TNA Tag Team Championships: The Hardyz (c) vs The Rascalz
Fraxiom comes out to watch the match, so this nicely sets up a potential early angle between NXT and TNA for the crossover.Â
Trey and Matt start, but it’s a slow Headlock basic counters and feint spots. Jeff and Wentz want to play, so this is very Japanese in giving each member a free chance to interact before any cutoffs or tandems. The crowd likes both men, so this is interesting but more Stalemate spots. Jeff manages a Polish Hammer to tag in Matt and go for a quick tandem move and keep Wentz in the Hardy Corner bouncing his face off buckles in Delete fashion. Tag from Jeff for another tandem Rocket Launcher into the bottom rope and Leg Drop from Jeff. Wentz counters the Twist with a Jumping Knee so he manages a tag to Trey and then a few quick striking double team spots. Quick tag to Wentz, Matt comes in to break it up, drops Matt and Wishbone. Quick Tag, MCMG ACS Rush homage. Wentz Dives onto Matt on the outside, Matt catches him into the Side Effect on the floor! Jeff gets the best of Trey after he’s a little distracted. Manhattan Drop from Jeff, into a tag to Matt and then some double team strikes for a near fall. Delete Head Smashes again on Trey.
Vertical Suplex from Matt for another 2. Matt tags out and Hardys look for more Tandem attacks, Plot Twist but Wentz recovers and makes the break! Trey flips out of Jeff’s arms, tags in Wentz, and Wentz cleans house on both Hardys. Corner to corner, tags back in Trey they hit the Saki Kashima assisted Dropkick on each Hardy and then they dump the Hardys at the feet of Fraxiom. FIVE HOLE DIVE FROM RASCALZ! Misses the Hardys and hits Fraxiom! This builds heat for The Rascalz and Fraxiom as Hardys attack the Rascalz while distracted. Poetry in Motion off the stairs from Jeff!
Facebuster from Jeff for two! Wentz hits a Busaiku Knee on Jeff to stop him from hitting Trey, Side Effect drops Wentz, Enzuigiri from Trey drops Matt and all four are down to catch their breath a bit. Original Poetry in Motion on Trey! Twist of Fate from Matt but countered and Matt is thrown into Jeff who’s selling a knee. Superkick into Feed Em to the Lions! Wentz Dives on Matt but Trey can’t quite make a clean pinfall. Jeff eats a Cheeky Nandos and Top Rope Tiger Feint, Twist of Fates for everyone and Jeff re-NO Trey kicks out! Another Twist but eats a Superkick from Wentz, tries the UFO Cutter on Matt but Matt just throws him to the outside. A Twist of Fate from each Hardy Boy, Swanton Bomb and the Hardyz retain!
Thursday’s Live Show will have Fraxiom vs The Rascalz for the NXT Titles!Â
Raven’s Clockwork Orange House of Fun Match: TNA Knockouts World Championship: Masha Slamovich (c) vs Rosemary
Do Rosemary’s shorts have Pokemon Gym Badges on em? Masha goes for the Staple Gun, it almost gets countered immediately, but she gets the first few clicks of the Staple gun, it actually doesn’t backfire, but she lets Rosemary powder and starts grabbing a few weapons. Masha finally decides to attack Rosemary with a cane, but Rosemary turns things around with the green mist. Slamovich gets some of the mist out of her eyes, chases her into the ring and eats a Drop Toehold into a Chair. Rosemary sets up the table, panders to the crowd and Masha launches herself over the top with a Crossbody, into Rosemary and then through the table! Masha finds her old chain she used to make Killer Kelly submissive and starts choking and dragging Rosemary around the ring and then Sabus the chair at Rosemary for emphasis.
Masha tries to hit the front flip Senton onto a seated Rosemary, but Rosemary moves and Masha hits the chair weird. Rosemary beats her with a chair a few times, looks under the ring, gets giddy and finds Janice! Rosemary swings Janice, breaks it, and then uses the two pieces to block the cane Masha had and then pressed the nail portion into Masha’s back! Rosemary is talking to Janice and goes to the back to find tacks that she spills out on the stage. Rosemary wants a Chokeslam into tacks, Masha counters, misses a Lariat and then eats the Spear into the tacks! Barbed Wire board is set up in the ring, Spicolli…nope! Russian Death Device into the Barbed Wire! Masha goes to the top, Footstomp into the barbed wire but only for 2 again! Masha goes to the outside and grabs a ladder.
A trash can lid gets thrown at Rosemary for good measure, Masha ascends the ladder and then Rosemary pushes the ladder and Masha goes crashing through one of two tables set up on the outside. Rough spot, rough looking, but Masha manages to move enough to break the pinfall since its falls count anywhere. Rosemary now goes full Kevin Steen and makes some chair art for a spot, drags Masha into the ring, sets he on the chairs and goes to the top. Masha sits up as Rosemary climbs, counters the momentum and Avalanche Requiem through the chairs! Masha retains.
Cora Jade’s music hits and sets up nicely after Masha was on NXT.Â
The Countdown Panel starts off with their main event picks they hinted towards and it’s necessary because they have to clean up the ring. Mark Henry picks Joe Hendry, and he better be correct. Ryan Nemeth interrupts with the “my brootthhheerrr” stuff, and Santino calls him “Fuck Face Guy”. It’s all good stuff, and I’m still a big fan of the Mokuba gimmick, but now they ban Ryan Nemeth.Â
TNA World Championship: Nic Nemeth (c) vs Joe Hendry
Simple chain wrestling start until Nic has a few words and then snaps off a Dropkick, does his show off Dolph stuff so Hendry runs him over with a Shoulder Block and then a Knee Lift. Hendry tries his Stalling Suplex but Nic slips it into a Rear Naked Choke! Hendry spins Nic around, walks around with the Stalling Suplex before finally dropping Nic. Ryan Nemeth shows up with a ticket, so he’s sitting in the crowd now. Joe gets distracted just enough for Nic to jump up and hit a delayed DDT. After Nic tries to stretch Joe a little, Hendry goes into locomotion Cradles but Nic drops Joe to take a breather. Nic does his single Shot to the Heart Elbow and he’s really embracing the old Dolph Ziggler show off ego. Ziggler looks for a Rude Awakening after more arrogant moments, but Joe tries to fight it off, so Nic just snaps off a Jumping Neckbreaker.
Joe manages to hit a Cutter off the ropes to try and get some energy from the crowd. Strike exchange happens here, Uppercuts from Joe and Fists from Nic. Joe blocks one fist, throws a few of his own together and a Lariat levels Nic. Sack of Shit into the Kip Up! Counters galore from both men before Nic gets caught in the Pop-Up Powerbomb! Attitude Adjustment for just a near fall. You see moments of Nic trying to cheat or find an angle but he hasn’t done anything overtly heelish yet. Joe is rocking him with chops, perches Nic on the top, looks for the Superplex but Nic fights back, Hendry gets pushed off, Crossbody but Hendry rolls through, holds on and gets his Powerbomb countered into a FAMEasser for two! Nic crawls to a corner, looks to climb for something big, Hendry cuts him off, Avalanche Sack of Shit! Kaz walks out with the trophy as both men sell, but JBL comes out of the crowd and Clothesline from Hell on Kaz. JBL punches Ryan in the face as he comes out to say something. Then Tuxedo JBL leaves after doing his job. Standing Ovation from HENDRY! 1-2-NO! Nic kicks out!
The crowd chants “One More Time” and it fires up Hendry, he does the heel turn and goes full Queen Stomp, tries again, but Nic slips it. Superkick into Danger Zone and it’s….HENDRY KICKS OUT! Nic is tuning up the band, Hendry catches Nic, Sack of Shit, Kip Up, big fire, Standing Ovation! JOE HENDRY WINS!
Overall Score: 7/10
Even if the match quality wasn’t bonkers, mostly all the matches did what they needed to do, were fairly good and a good number of NXT talent showed up to make the Live iMPACT! and TNA really feel like something special right now. I’m an unabashed Tessa fan, so I’m giddy she won and Hendry finally getting the title is the latest they could’ve really dragged this out to, but at least it stops him from becoming Tetsuya Nai-Joe.
I’m not gonna be a hypocrite from previous complaints I made with too many champions being babyfaces, because that’s still bad and proves the next few title defenses could prove volatile. However, I of course just enjoy most of the current champions. So while it doesn’t erase the fact it’s bad, it makes it more palatable for me personally. Now if only PCO destroyed the Knockouts Tags instead of a different irrelevant belt.
Also let’s be very clear, anyone that believes the PCO stunt was a legit shoot doesn’t know wrestling. Everything is a work until it isn’t and then it still could be turned into a work. Don’t be gullible and just anticipate something to be worked out of it one way or the other.
Still though, good show with a lot of hype for the Live iMPACT, so Thursday should be fun! See you there!
About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
 MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)Â
THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports PodcastÂ
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)
TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends
Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5
Classic POD is WAR
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
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