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Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (10/23/23)

Indi Wrestling hits the Big Time!

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Will Indi be truly impressive?

Yeah, Logan Paul is back on Raw, but Indi Hartwell gets her shot at the title she never lost! Will she be the NEW NXT Women’s Champion?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • The New Day VS The Alpha Academy; The New Day wins.
  • NXT Women’s Championship: Becky Lynch VS Indi Hartwell; Becky wins and retains the title.
  • Johnny Gargano VS Giovanni Vinci w/ Ludwig Kaiser; Gargano wins.
  • Chelsea Green & Piper Niven VS Natalya & Nikki Cross; Chelsea & Piper win.
  • Drew McIntyre VS Sami Zayn; McIntyre wins.
  • Bronson Reed VS Akira Tozawa w/ Maxxine Dupri; Bronson wins.
  • Damian Priest VS Jey Uso; Priest wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

The Judgment Day is here!

Dallas boos as Finn Balor & Damian Priest are once again Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions and making their way to the ring. Of course, it was after using every trick in the book and a surprise assist from Jimmy Uso, but they don’t care, so long as they’re back on top. Finn & Priest get the mics as fans boo, and Finn welcomes us to Monday Night Raw. Finn says he’s feeling good tonight. So good, even, that he’s gonna do something special. Can he? Can he? Priest says okay. Finn does his best bass voice to say, “All Rise for the Judgment Day! And all rise for the NEW and TWO-TIME Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions of the world!”

Priest says not bad. But before everyone starts assuming, “Where’s the rest of Judgment Day?” Rhea & Dom are handling business because they have a hell of a night planned. But these two still wanted to come out here to celebrate dripping with gold and running Monday- WAIT! Here comes Cody Rhodes! Dallas sings with the American Nightmare’s theme, “WHOA~ OH~!” Cody gets his pyro, high-fives the front row, and doesn’t seem to mind that he’s alone against Finn & Priest. Cody steps into the ring with a mic in hand, fans chanting his name. Cody then asks how that feels, to be interrupted.

If Cody could, he does have some choice words for the “leader” of the Judgment Day. He can see that Rhea isn’t out here. Yeah, yeah, he knows what they’re gonna say: there is no leader, but that can’t just be little Dom Dom. Cody would say that Rhea is Finn’s & Priest’s Mami, too. Cody wants them to hear him out! She pulls the strings, calls the shots, and cuts the deals, including one with The Bloodline. If Cody may, he’d like to speak specifically to Priest now. Cody believes last week, Priest went and gave Cody the low blow. Cody will make it clear. If Priest thought that was the final shot, Priest is wrong. Fans cheer that!

Priest says it’s convenient Cody glossed over being sent through the table. Finn says that musta hurt. Priest is glad Cody found him first, because Priest would’ve just found him. And good to mention The Bloodline. There’s talk about this “story,” but what is it? There are people in the story that sent Jimmy here, and how’d that work out? There are people in the story standing here right now. Right now, the story has got to be that Cody fails. Cody loosens his tie and says they can put that theory to the test! Priest laughs, like Cody doesn’t know Priest has Jey later tonight. But Priest likes this idea.

There is a big event coming up, so maybe… It’ll be Cody VS Priest 1v1 at Crown Jewel. Cody accepts! Fans fire up for that, and Cody asks what do they do now. They’re all here, so why not give the fans a preview of Crown Jewel right now?! Fans fire up for that, too! Priest says he likes that idea, but then wait! Here comes Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley! Cody’s surrounded, but here comes JEY! Jey CLOBBERS Dom! Cody DECKS Finn, fires off on Priest, and Jey brawls with Finn! Cody clotheslines Priest outta the ring to SMACK him off the desk! And again! And then Cody clears the desk! Fans fire up as Cody wants real payback!

But JD McDonagh CHOP BLOJCKS Cody! Cody DECKS JD but Priest RAMS Cody into steps! JD adds on, throws knees, but Priest has him stand aside to throw hands. JD brings out chairs! Fans fire up for Cody but JD puts a chair around Cody’s leg! JD fires hands, Priest aims with the other chair! CON-CHAIR-TO against the steps!!! Adam Pearce, producers and referees rush out here but the damage is done! Cody writhes as he clutches his shin, will he even be able to make it to Crown Jewel now?

 

Jey, Cody and Pearce make it backstage.

Pearce wants Cody to get checked but Jey says he’s got Cody. They’ll slide if they have to. If this is how bad his leg is, is there any chance his match with Priest still happens? Or can Jey even the playing field before the end of the night?

 

The New Day VS The Alpha Academy!

After last week, it was clear both these teams want their shot at the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships, but there can only be ONE #1 contender! Will Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods get back to the pinnacle? Or will Chad Gable & Otis SHOOOOOSH the doubters?

The teams sort out and Gable starts with Woods. They circle, tie up, go around and feel out a grapple, but Gable waistlocks to put Woods on ropes. Gable gets a leg, trips Woods, then rear mounts but Woods slips free. Gable wrenches. Woods goes for a leg, but Gable holds him off to waistlock and SLAM! Maxxine scores points and new student, Akira Tozawa, takes notes. Gable whips Woods to a corner, runs up but Woods BOOTS him! Woods hits the HONOR ROLL! Fans fire up, Woods covers, TWO! Woods gets Gable to tag Kofi, PENALTY KICK! SLIDING LARIAT! IMPLODER SPLASH! FIST DROP! STANDING SPLASH! Cover, TWO!

Gable survives the speed combo but Kofi drags Gable up. Kofi whips, Gable reverses and runs in to MONKEY FLIP, but Kofi lands on his feet! Kofi wags his finger, but Gable waistlocks! Woods saves Kofi from the O’Conner, Kofi CROSSBODIES, but Gable catches him to an ANKLE LOCK! Kofi rolls and sends Gable away, but Gable keeps moving, Kofi hurdles, and Gable catches Kofi again! Back suplex but Kofi lands out! Gable ducks Trouble in Paradise to CROSSBODY them both up and out! Woods rushes in but Gable waistlocks, only for Woods to fight free. Woods swings, misses, and Otis CLBOBERS him!

Fans fire up as Otis then BACK DROPS Kofi! The Alpha Academy is all fired up, and Raw goes to break.

Raw returns and Otis VADER- NO, Kofi avoids the splash! Fans fire up as Kofi and Otis crawl, and Otis grabs at Kofi’s legs. Kofi kicks away, hot tags to Gable and Woods! Woods rallies on Gable, LEG LARIAT and whip! Gable reverses, Woods ducks ‘n’ dodges ‘n’ slides, to ROLLING ELOBW! Gable goes to a corner, Woods runs in, but into a waistlock! Woods fights, throws elbows, but Gable throat chops! Gable whips, Woods tilt-o-whirls and RUSSIAN LEG SWEEPS! Fans fire up as Woods then drops a SENTON! Woods keeps moving, Gable deflects the knee to roll Woods up! TWO, and Woods fireman’s carries!

Woods hits a POP-UP POWERSLAM! Cover, TWO! Gable survives whatever you wanna call that, but Woods keeps his cool. Woods goes to a corner, fans rally up, “NEW! DAY ROCKS!” Woods runs in, HONOR- NO, Gable gets under to GERMAN SUPLEX! Gable holds on, to GERMAN SUPLEX again! And then GERMAN SUPLEX AGAIN! Bridging cover, TWO!! Woods escapes after the hattrick, but Gable calls to Otis. Gable tags Otis, and Otis hoists Woods up in an Electric Chair! Gable stands, BULLDOG DOOMSDAY!! Cover, KOFI BREAKS IT! Kofi ROUNDHOUSES Gable, Otis SPLASHES Kofi! Otis tears the shirt and fans fire up!

Otis pumps and hits the CATERPILLAR ELBOW! Kofi sputters away but Woods SUPERKICKS! Otis stays up!? Woods kicks again, Otis blocks to spin and HEADBUTT! Otis runs in but POSTS himself as Woods dodges! Gable sneaks the tag and Otis is down! Woods decides to pump up, and he BACKWARDS WORMS, into an ANKLE LOCK! Gable has Woods caught, drags him from ropes, but Woods rolls! Cover, TWO!! Otis tags back in, Gable runs up but Woods dumps him! Otis scoops Woods! But Woods slips free, SUPERKICKS, and Kofi tags in! Woods KICKS, Kofi springboards and AX HANDLES!

Otis stays up so the New Day DOUBLE SUPERKICK! Otis drops to a knee, Kofi tags Woods back in, TROUBLE IN PARADISE! Woods goes up while Kofi FLIES to take out Gable! Woods hits the LIMIT BREAKER!! Cover, New Day wins!!

Winner: The New Day, by pinfall

Kofi & Woods got a heck of a fight out of the Academy, but this is why they’re TWELVE TIME W, W, E, World, Tag, Team, CHAMPIONS~! Will they go for lucky number 13 soon enough?

 

Backstage interview with Becky Lynch.

Jackie Redmond is with the NXT Women’s Champion and says she is the definition of a fighting champion. Not only does she defend this title tomorrow night on NXT Halloween Havoc, but she defends the title here tonight against Indi Hartwell. Why did she put herself in a position to have back to back matches? The Man says that she has come around to Dallas, and when she comes around here, she comes looking for a fight. And Indi never did lose this title, and never got a fair rematch. That is what the title is about! This is about those who want to show how impressive they are, who want to test their mettle against The Man, and she will defend her title every night of the week.

Which brings her to Halloween Havoc. Lyra will be here to find holes in Becky’s game, but Indi wanted this. So then welcome to the Big Time. Becky heads out, but Xia Li is spotted in the background. Will Becky have to watch her back even if she makes it through tonight?

 

The Viking Raiders speak.

Sarah Logan says the gods smile upon a great warrior. A warrior that feasts on pain and makes the chaos serve him. When the warrior has proven his worth, he becomes a god among men. With the wisdom of Oden and the power of Thor, he will lead them into the future! All will fear him! All will tremble at the feat of the one true warrior, Ivar the War Beard!

 

Seth Rollins is backstage.

The World Heavyweight Champion is all smiles, until he crosses paths with the Women’s World Champion. He doesn’t see her crew anywhere so he knows he isn’t getting jumped, but if she’s looking for her boy, Drew McIntyre, sorry, Rollins has style and a title so she’s in the wrong place. Rhea tells him that this won’t take long. She knows that Judgment Day and Rollins have history. But it was all built on respect from their end. They did everything they could to take the title off Rollins and he still held on. But now he’s got McIntyre, and to be honest… Rhea is concerned. At the pace Rollins has been running, he might need insurance. He might need the Judgment Day.

Rollins chuckles and says Rhea has lost faith in her boy. She doesn’t think Priest can successfully cash in his contract on the title, huh? That’s why Rhea is making deals with Bloodline, flirting with McIntyre, and now talking to the world champ. Rollins gets it, the Judgment Day wants everything, but he’ll ask her… What would Rollins want with Rhea? Rhea says he needs her, because right now he is a world champion. But he could be the world champion. And Judgment Day has made their deals, but alliances can change. If Rollins joined them, Priest could always cash in on someone else, and then they’d all hold gold.

But… without the Judgment Day, Rhea doesn’t know how Rollins will accomplish having a title reign like Roman Reigns. Over 1000 days is a long time, and with the way Rollins’ back is so fragile and broken, the Judgment Day could have his back. They could make people acknowledge Rollins. Rollins takes off his sunglasses to make this clear. There is one thing he doesn’t want, and it is to be anything like Roman Reigns. Rhea smirks, and says that wasn’t a no. Just think about it. Mami heads out, but will the answer still be a “no,” no matter how long she waits?

 

Candice LeRae helps Indi Hartwell prepare.

Tonight is the night Indi gets the title back! What do you think her chances are? Natalya walks in to wish Indi luck, she’ll be amazing. How is Natty doing? Is she still looking for a replacement with Tegan Nox hurt? She did get hurt last week on NXT but she’ll be back soon. Natty is weighing options, but this isn’t her night, this is Indi’s night! The biggest match of her career going toe to toe with Becky, and get back the title she never lost! Exactly! Just remember what brought you to the dance. Natty is here all night for them. The Queen of Harts head out, will Indi truly be impressive?

NXT Women’s Championship: Becky Lynch VS Indi Hartwell!

Raw returns as Indi makes her entrance. The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and we see what it takes to be Big Time!

The bell rings and Indi rushes in! Becky dodges the boot, Indi turns clinch into roll-up, ONIE and Indi LARIATS! Becky bails out and cools off while the fans rally up. Indi eggs Becky on, Becky gets up to KICK Indi! Becky goes up top, MISS- NO, Indi ducks the leap to UPPERCUT! And UPPERCUT! Becky catches one to backslide, TWO! Becky hurries up but into a knee! Indi whips, scoops, but Becky tilt-o-whirls to go for an arm! Indi trips Becky, fireman’s carries, and gives her SNAKE EYES, to a SIDEWALK SLAM! Cover, TWO! Indi keeps on Becky, but Becky shoves her away. Becky follows to CALF KICK!

Indi bails out now while fans rally up. Becky builds speed and she slides, but Indi avoids the dropkick! Indi CLUBS Becky, waistlocks, and SLINGS Becky into barriers! Indi is looking impressive in this opening phase as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Becky drags Indi up to put her in the ropes. Becky CLUBS, UPPERCUTS, and S- NO, Indi blocks the kick to HOTSHOT Becky! And BOOT her down! Indi climbs and PRETTY SAVAGE ELBOW DROPS! Cover, TWO! Lyra Valkyria is in the crowd and she likes what she sees, both that Becky is still in this but that she’s having a hard time. Becky fights the suplex to cradle counter, TWO! Becky runs in, goes for the arm but Indi rolls and swings. Becky dodges but Indi scoops! Becky slips out, REVERSE DDT! Cover, TWO! Candice is watching backstage and is relieved but also still very nervous.

Becky stands and the fans fire up. Becky clinches, Indi fights the slam to full nelson. Becky slips out to waistlock, shove, follow, but Indi BOOTS her down! Cover, TWO! Becky is still in this and Indi is beside herself. Indi drags Becky to a drop zone, goes back up the corner, but Dallas is on Becky’s side. Becky ROCKS Indi, climbs up the corner, but Indi fires forearms! Becky hits back, they brawl and Becky CLUBS Indi. Becky stands Indi up, to SUPERPLEX! To the ARMBAR!! Indi clasps hands, fights up, but Becky tries a TRIANGLE HOLD! Indi stacks, TWO and Becky holds on! But Indi deadlifts to POWERBOMB!

Indi high stacks, TWO!! Becky survives again and Indi is losing her cool! Fans fire up as Becky crawls and Indi storms up. Becky YANKS Indi into ropes! Becky runs, into a SPINEBUSTER! High stack again, TWO!! Becky still has fight but Indi drags her back up. Indi full nelsons, but Becky drops to victory roll! TWO and Indi has it, TWO! Becky and Indi scramble to their feet, Becky avoids a boot to get the arm! DISARM-HER!! Indi is caught, she claws around, but she TAPS! Becky wins!

Winner: Becky Lynch, by submission (still NXT Women’s Champion)

Indi was impressive, but she wasn’t able to stop Becky. Becky shows Indi respect with a handshake, then goes out to stare Lyra down. Halloween Havoc is tomorrow night, will Becky be able to stop The Morrigan from taking her down?

Meanwhile, Candice is bummed backstage. Wait, Xia ATTACKS Candice! Xia tells her that this is a message for Indi, too. Xia clearly wants Becky next, will she be watching Halloween Havoc very, very closely?

 

Pearce talks with security.

Everything looks good to him, but they need to be on their toes. Contract signings can always get a bit crazy, and they all know tonight has been chaotic. But then Nick Aldis walks in? The SmackDown General Manager wants a word, so Pearce excuses the guards and tells Aldis to be quick. Aldis says they got off on the wrong foot on Friday, that was all on Aldis. No need to have anyone escorted out of the building on SmackDown, Aldis again takes full responsibility. Put it up to rookie errors as he figures out how to be a GM. So he just wants to have a healthy competition between both shows, though SmackDown is still number one.

So Aldis is here hat in hand and he hopes Pearce accepts his apology. Pearce knows what it is to be the new guy, and having to set agendas and put your stamp on things. Was that out of line on Friday? Yeah. Be that as it may, water under the bridge. In fact, gesture of good will, Pearce will invite Aldis to see how the flag ship show runs. Aldis appreciates that, they shake hands, and a ref walks in. How many guards to they have? No, wait, no matter what, double it. The ref says okay, and heads out. Five of the best are about to all meet in the ring, will this be the wildest contract signing of all time?

 

Adam Pearce is in the ring.

He welcomes us all to the contract signing to make the Women’s World Championship Fatal 5 Way at Crown Jewel official! Now, we all know the Raw Women’s Division has been filled with chaos, and normally he wouldn’t reward that with a title match, but the only place the WWE settles things is right here in the ring. So he is going to get these signatures as fast as he can before it all goes to hell. So bring out the challengers! Raquel Rodriguez is first, followed by Shayna Baszler, Zoey Stark, and Nia Jax. The signatures are put on the contract without any real problem, until Nia just stands there. She apparently is waiting for Rhea.

Pearce says he knows Rhea has been the root problem so he’ll get her signature backstage, so Nia just needs to sign her part and it’ll be good. Nia says okay, and signs. Fans chant, “We Want Mami!” but Pearce prepares to wrap this up. WAIT! Here comes Rhea! Rhea has a mic of her own to tell Pearce that she’s not sorry she came out here prematurely, she was getting impatient. She has something she needs to get off her chest. The fans chant for her, she says go ahead, she doesn’t care. But she needs to say something, starting with Pearce. Rhea could beat every single woman in this match individually, but this is a conspiracy! This is to set Rhea up to fail!

The more Pearce tires to control her, the more she’ll make his life a living hell. Fans like the sound of that! Rhea says it’s smart making this a Fatal 5. But the only thing that’ll happen is that we’ll have four less women in the division by the end of it! Because none of them are going to take this title from Rhea, whether Pearce likes it or not. At the end of the day, she will prove she is THE most dominant woman in the WWE, and why is that? Because Mami is ALWAYS on top! Nia takes the mic from Pearce to say Rhea is so good. See what she’s doing? She isn’t gonna even get in the ring, because she’s smart.

Rhea wants Nia to squash all the others for Rhea, but then that leaves it as Rhea and Nia. But smart, good stuff. Shayna gets it, too, right? Rhea wants Nia to squash Shayna for Rhea, right? And Zoey is smart, right? She should see that Rhea wants Nia to squash Zoey for her, too! And Raquel… Well, she’s from Texas, so… But Nia will break it down for her. Rhea… wants Nia… to squash- Raquel slaps the mic down to ROCK Nia! Fans fire up as the others go after Nia, too! But then Raquel pushes the others away to go after Nia herself! Security rushes in, Rhea does drop away, just as Nia knew, and just as Pearce knew.

Fans want to “LET THEM FIGHT!” and Raquel TOSSES the guards! Nia TOSSES the guards! Shayna DECKS a guard, then KNEES Raquel! Zoey SUPERKICKS Nia! Shayna ROCKS Zoey, fires off on Nia, but Raquel shoves Shayna to BOOT her! Rhea is loving this! Nia HEABUTTS Zoey down, then Irresistible Force and Big Mami Cool are all alone. Rhea eggs them on, as do the fans, and the brawl is on again! The biggest and baddest are throwing hands, the guards all rush in again, and fans want to “LET THEM FIGHT!” Raquel and Nia explode out! Raquel LARIATS! But Nia SAMOAN DROPS her!

Fans boo but Rhea grins. Nia still squashed everyone, and she stares Rhea down. Rhea is laughing now, but will this be exactly how it goes at Crown Jewel?

 

Ludwig Kaiser talks with Giovanni Vinci.

The Impeccable German needs the Pride of Italy to deliver tonight. Listen, he needs to get the job done and take Gargano OUT! You hear him? Yeah, he remembers. He’s got it. He better. Because Vinci’s performance reflects on Ludwig now! But then Bronson Reed steps in and tells Ludwig that their boss Gunther gave him a hell of a fight. Let Gunther know that when he’s ready for round two, Bronson is ready. Boss? Go tell Gunther yourself, Bronson. Imperium heads out, but then Tozawa walks over. What’s he want? Tozawa wants a match tonight. Well, Bronson is being merciful when he says no.

Tozawa CHOPS Bronson, and says he wants a match tonight! Oh, he does, huh? Then it’s his funeral. Maxxine storms over and says no, wrong guy to challenge! Gable is gonna freak out! Is the Alpha Academy’s newest student going to get flunked out already?

 

Johnny Gargano VS Giovanni Vinci w/ Ludwig Kaiser!

Imperium sidelined Tommaso Ciampa, and then cheated to bring Johnny Wrestling down for the first time on Raw. But now Gargano is only more motivated, will he get revenge on Gunther’s goons? Or will they sweep him out of the way?

Raw returns as Imperium makes their entrance. The bell rings, Gargano leaps and fires off but Vinci RAMS him into a corner! Vinci RAMS into Gargano again and again then he CHOPS! And CHOPS! Vinci brings Gargano around, Gargano fires a forearm but Vinci uppercuts! Gargano fires off with more forearms, but Vinci shoves. Gargano ducks ‘n’ dodges, but into a pop-up BACKBREAKER! Ludwig likes that as Vinci drags Gargano up and whips him, to CLUB him! Gargano drops as Raw goes picture in picture.

Vinci drags Gargano up, scoops him, and then hits another BACKBREAKER! Vinci then deadlifts to hit another BACKBREAKER, then a FALL AWAY SLAM! Raw returns to single picture while Gargano goes to the apron. Vinci storms up, drags Gargano up, and he blocks the gamangiri to BOOT Gargano down! Vinci runs, but Gargano SLINGHSOTS SPEARS! That was more like a car crash than spear! Gargano and Vinci fire off shots, Gargano LARAITS point blank! Vinci blocks a kick, swings but Gargano dodges. But Ludwig is there and Gargano has to stop. Vinci CLOBBERS Gargano from behind!

Fans boo but Vinci reels Gargano in, to get him up for a LAST- NO, Gargano slips free of the bomb and SUPERKICKS! Ludwig is furious and gets on the apron to shout oat Vinci! But then CIAMPA IS HERE! Ciampa YANKS Ludwig down, POSTS him, then TOSSES him over barriers! The Psycho Killer chases Ludwig off! Vinci turns around, into a GAMANGIRI! And the ONE FINAL BEAT!! Cover, Gargano wins!!

Winner: Johnny Gargano, by pinfall

DIY gets revenge together! They hug it out to celebrate, but is this fight with Imperium only escalating?

 

Shinsuke Nakamura speaks.

“A brutal beating from Shinsuke Nakamura is a beautiful thing. I’m so happy to give Ricochet this experience. His efforts were an honorable sacrifice. But now, I want to find an opponent who will inspire the yet-to-be-seen self within me. Release the expression still trapped in my dreams. Who is worthy enough to set me free?” The King of Strong Style has spoken, who will he look to crush next?

 

Logan Paul is here!

Dallas boos The Maverick as he heads to the ring, but he soaks it up. He has a US Championship match set for Crown Jewel, so what business does he have on Raw? We find out, after the break.

Raw returns and Logan has the mic to tell Dallas, “Wow. So much love. Listen, y’all, y’know what I just found out? That fool that I beat in my boxing fight last weekend embarrassed himself so badly that he got dropped by his fight league. Dropped. So that means not only did I make him lose the fight, I made him lose his job. Oof, unemployed, unhappy, unfulfilled. Sucks to be that guy. But Dallas, I guess because he’s a free agent now, I guess I’m being a bit harsh on him because technically, technically, I’m a free agent now, too.

“So all of you little Logan Paul haters back at home watching this, quickly go! Run to your keyboards! Because when I defeat Rey Mysterio at Crown Jewel and become US Champion, I’ma give y’all something to talk about.” Fans boo but Logan says once he IS champion, he might even come to Raw and defend that title.” Wait! Here comes Dominik Mysterio! Dom talks and the fans boo him, but Logan applauds. Dom tries again, fans boo, but Logan tells them to show Dirty Dom respect! Dom joins Logan in the ring, and Dom says from champion to future champion, Dom can’t wait for Logan to beat down his dad.

Fans keep booing and Logan says he appreciates it. Rey is right about them, though. Amazing natural ability, dripping with passion, but Rey has left out what they’ve had to overcome. Dom grew up with a deadbeat dad and still became the champion of an entire continent! Logan was just some kid from Ohio, but he overcame the odds, followed his passion, blazed his own trail, changed the landscape of sports and entertainment, so the only one who needs humbling ins Dom’s dad, Rey. Dom agrees but the fans boo even more. Dom and Logan and Dom tell the fans to shut up, and Dom continues to say that after Crown Jewel, Dom will be the only Mysterio with a title!

Logan says that’s right! He can see it now! Logan Paul, WWE United States Champion! Oh man, he cannot wait for that ring announcement. Which reminds him, now that he’s back here on Raw, his favorite ring announcer is here! Samantha Irvin! How you doing? Listen, Sam, would you do him the honor of joining him in the ring. Samantha says no but Dom and Logan both invite her. They’re being serious. It’s been awhile, Logan owes her a heartfelt thank you. She deserves her flowers right here in this ring, and be recognized for everything she does. The fans do cheer that, and Samantha does walk to the ring.

Logan says Samantha is the voice of the WWE, no one does it like her. Dom holds the ropes open for Samantha and she steps inside. Logan thanks her for this, and wants to say that it was hard for her to announce Logan as the winner at SummerSlam when he beat her fiancé, Ricochet. But she kept it professional and did such an incredible job. And since we’re all here, can she do Dallas a favor? Give them a preview of Crown Jewel and announce Logan as the new US Champion! Dom says yeah, she can do it! And new~! Please? Speaking of Ricochet, he SPEARS Logan! Dom goes after Ricochet but Ricochet DECKS him!

Ricochet then DIVES onto Logan! Fans fire up, Dom goes after Ricochet again, but Ricochet dodges to V-TRIGGER! Fans fire up as Ricochet goes up, to SHOOTING- NO, Logan drags Dom to safety! Ricochet lands on his feet, dares them to keep running their mouths, but Logan says better luck next time. Will Rey beat down Logan plenty for Ricochet at Crown Jewel?

 

Chelsea Green & Piper Niven VS Natalya & ???

The Hot Mess & Scottish Viper were going to face the Queen of Harts and Tegan Nox, but that brawl on NXT last Tuesday was partly responsible for Nox not being medically cleared tonight. Did anyone take up Natty on getting at the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions? Or is she gonna have to go it alone?

Raw returns as Natty makes her entrance, and she gives her sunglasses to a young girl in the front row. And her partner? It’s NIKKI CROSS! A former tag team champion in her own right, and a former tag partner of Piper’s, but she doesn’t seem her usual hyper manic self. Natty sighs but maybe Nikki will come to life once the match begins. The teams sort out and Natty starts with Chelsea. Chelsea talks trash, Natty headlocks, but Chelsea powers out. Natty goes up and over in the corner, keeps moving, then rolls over the drop down. Chelsea ducks, whips, but Natty waistlocks to O’Conner! TWO, and Natty has the legs!

Fans fire up as Natty jackknife bridges, TWO! Chelsea has the cover, TWO! Nikki is just staring into space as Chelsea talks trash on her, but Natty cradles! TWO! Natty whips, Chelsea reverses, and then Chelsea runs in but into an ELBOW! Natty goes up, Piper rushes over but Natty gets her first! Chelsea CLUBS Natty then BOOTS her down! Chelsea tags Piper and shouts, “I TOLD YOU!” Piper bumps Natty off buckles, SPLASHES in the corner, then snapmares to slap her around. Piper talks trash, HIP DROPS her down, and mocks Texas rodeo. Piper hauls Natty up in a cobra clutch but Natty fires hands!

Chelsea tags in. Piper ripcords Natty so Chelsea can CLUB her, and then Piper reels Natty in for a short arm LARIAT! Chelsea covers, TWO! Natty reaches out, but Nikki hops off the apron? Fans boo as Nikki just looks around into space as she leaves. Chelsea knocks Natty down and talks trash on Nikki, but Natty GERMAN SUPLEXES Chelsea! Natty bumps Chelsea off buckles, and sits her down! Natty steps on Chelsea, runs up and basement dropkicks! Natty DISCUS LARIATS Piper, then DISCUS LAIRATS Chelsea! Cover, TWO!! Chelsea is still in this, she wrenches and waistlocks but Natty fights it.

Natty switches, Chelsea switches and has the legs, but Natty shoves her away! Piper tags in, Natty trips Chelsea but Piper brings Natty around! But Natty trips Piper! Chelsea has the arms! I M PRETTIER! And then Piper SPLASHES!! Cover, Piper & Chelsea win!

Winners: Chelsea Green & Piper Niven, by pinfall

Nikki wasn’t herself, and she wasn’t even concerned with what just happened. Will Natty ever get things going right again? Or will no one take the titles off Chelsea & Piper?

 

Drew McIntyre finds Jey Uso backstage.

Jey asks what McIntyre even wants. McIntyre wants to say he is sorry about last week. He can’t possibly imagine how it feels for the Bloodline to cost Jey those titles. Jey scoffs at the sarcasm, but McIntyre says this one piece of advice has really been helping him out: just get over it. Oh, and also, if Jey wasn’t here on Raw, this match with Sami wouldn’t be happening. So whatever does happen, it’s on Jey. McIntyre heads out, Jey scoffs again, but will there be blood on Jey’s hands after tonight? Or will it be the other way around after the Great Liberator clashes with the Scottish Warrior?

 

The Miz finds Pearce backstage.

HI, Adam! This is the Most Must-See WWE Superstar, The Miz! Yeah, Pearce knows who you are. Does he?! Because it has been weeks since Miz has had something worthy of his stature on this show. Does he need to remind Pearce that he is the ONLY two-time Grand Slam Champion in WWE history? He’s beaten John Cena in the main event of WrestleMania and made the Intercontinental Championship THE most prestigious and relevant title in all of WWE! That makes him the greatest of all time! Y’know who knows that? Nick Aldis. Aldis understands the- Wait, Rhea walks in, signing her part of the contract.

Rhea tells Pearce it’s done. But she’s keeping the pen. Miz has no idea what’s going on but the cameraman follows Rhea. Dom finds her and she says they’ll deal with “Richie” next week. They gotta get ice on Dom’s gorgeous face. Rhea checks her boy, he’ll be okay. But will the Judgment Day end up with one too many enemies coming after them?

 

Drew McIntyre VS Sami Zayn!

Raw returns as McIntyre makes his entrance. The bell rings and the two circle. They feel things out, tie up, and McIntyre doesn’t budge as Sami tries to push him. McIntyre then pushes Sami to a corner, lets off with a shove, but Sami shoves back. They reset, circle, and tie up again. They’re in a deadlock, fans duel, and McIntyre powers Sami back. Sami turns things around to have McIntyre in the corner, and he lets off with a shove. McIntyre shoves harder, but the two reset again. Sami headlocks, grinds the hold, but McIntyre powers up and out. They RAM shoulders but Sami staggers back. Both men smirk, and Sami tries again.

Sami RAMS McIntyre, McIntyre does step back but McIntyre says third time’s the charm. Sami goes again, but fakes McIntyre to CHOP! Then he runs, only to get run over! Fans fire up and McIntyre puts Sami in a corner. McIntyre CHOPS, fans “WOO~” and Sami staggers away. McIntyre brings Sami up to CHOP him again! Fans “WOO~!” and Sami falls against ropes. Fans want that “One More Time!” so McIntyre CHOPS Sami down! Sami bails out, McIntyre drags him up, but Sami drags McIntyre out! Sami ROCKS McIntyre, SMACKS him off the apron, then whips. McIntyre reverses, Sami goes up to MOONSAULT! Direct hit and down goes McIntyre!

Fans fire up but the ring count climbs. Sami puts McIntyre in the ring at 8 of 10, then runs, ducks n’ dodges, but McIntyre catches the crossbody to SUPLEX! McIntyre glares as Sami writhes, and then McIntyre stomps him. McIntyre stalks Sami, stands him up, and CHOPS him again! Sami ROCKS McIntyre, McIntyre CHOPS Sami! Sami LARIATS but McIntyre stays up to CHOP! Sami LARIATS, LARIATS and LARIATS, but McIntyre CHOPS him down! Fans rally while McIntyre stalks Sami to ropes. McIntyre whips, Sami goes up and over, then LARIATS! Down goes McIntyre and fans fire up!

Sami hurries after McIntyre to CHOP! And CHOP! And CHOP! Sami fires off on the ropes, the ref counts and backs Sami down, but Sami whips. McIntyre reverses, Sami holds ropes to then dump McIntyre out! Sami BOOTS McIntyre from the apron and McIntyre goes around the way. Sami PLANCHAS, but McIntyre catches him! McIntyre snarls as he SLINGS Sami over the desk! Fans are all fired up as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns and McIntyre stomps Sami in the face! McIntyre drags Sami up, suplexes, but Sami fights it! McIntyre keeps trying but Sami keeps fighting. McIntyre CHOPS, reels Sami back in, but Sami slips free of the suplex! Sami baits McIntyre to the corner, and McIntyre POSTS himself! Sami reels McIntyre in to SUPLEX! Fans fire up and Sami feeds off that energy! Sami rises, McIntyre stands, and Sami clotheslines McIntyre up and out! Fans fire up and Sami builds speed to FLY! Direct hit right in front of the desk! Fans fire up again as Sami stands, and Sami puts McIntyre in. Sami hurries up the corner, but McIntyre ROCKS him first!

McIntyre CLUBS Sami, ROCKS him again, then climbs up after him. McIntyre fireman’s carries, but Sami fights to SUPER SUNSET BOMB!! Cover, TWO!! McIntyre survives the powerful counter and fans are thunderous! Sami rises, “This is Awesome!” as Sami grits his teeth and brings McIntyre up. Sami waistlocks, but McIntyre fires Blue Thunder with a headlock! Sami CLUBS away on McIntyre, tries again,. but McIntyre slips out to GLASGOW KISS HEADBUTT! Sami falls back, McIntyre aims from a corner! He coughs and sputters, but the countdown begins! “THREE! TWO! ONE!” BOOT from Sami!!

Sami reels McIntyre in to BLUE THUNDER BOMB!! Cover, TWO!! McIntyre survives and everyone is shocked! “This is Awesome!” as Sami brings McIntyre up again. McIntyre CHOPS! But Sami clinches! McIntyre CLUBS away on Sami, fights the exploder, and then OVERHEAD Belly2Belly! McIntyre runs up, clinches and OVERHEAD Belly2Belly suplexes again! Then the NECKBREAKER! Fans fire up again, and McIntyre kips up! Fans are thunderous as McIntyre fires up, and he aims from another corner. But wait, Rhea shows up now!? She waves to McIntyre, he focuses on Sami, but then has to drag Sami up.

Sami cradle counters!! TWO!! McIntyre escapes, but Sami hits the CORNER EXPLODER! Sami aims, but Rhea distracts him now! The ref reprimands, Rhea scurries away, CLAYMORE!! Cover, McIntyre wins!!

Winner: Drew McIntyre, by pinfall

Mami smiles as she makes sure the #1 contender is rolling towards Crown Jewel. Is McIntyre going to accept the Judgment Day’s offer before Rollins does? He blows past her, but she still smiles.

 

Nick Aldis talks with Kayden Carter & Katana Chance.

But Pearce walks over and Aldis excuses himself. Pearce appreciates Aldis coming by to smooth things over, but when he said he could stay to watch the show, Pearce didn’t mean Aldis could chat and recruit his superstars. Aldis says that was a friendly chat, nothing sinister. And y’know what? Pearce has had a tough night, and Aldis sees where this is going. He’ll make it easy on Pearce and just head out. Good idea. They shake hands, Pearce thanks Aldis for coming, and Aldis heads out. Then Nikki walks by, still blankly staring into space. Pearce says he needs a drink. Will that be enough to get over the madness of tonight?

 

Bronson Reed VS Akira Tozawa w/ Maxxine Dupri!

The Colossal Aussie didn’t want to literally crush the Stamina Monster’s hopes, but since Tozawa wasn’t backing down, Reed said challenge accepted. But will Tozawa regret going big? Or will he find away to survive the Tsunami?

Raw returns and Tozawa makes his entrance. He apparently borrowed one of Otis’ Alpha Academy shirts while they’re ordering one in his size. The bell rings and fans rally up. Tozawa steps to Bronson, then CHOPS! “ARIGATO~!” Bronson swings, Tozawa dodges and fires off fast strikes! Bronson grabs Tozawa to TOSS him! Tozawa dodges, fires off more shots, and CHOPS! Tozawa runs, but Bronson CLOBBERS him! Fans fire up and Bronson drops a BIG elbow! Tozawa sputters but he’s somehow still in this. Bronson hoists Tozawa up to CHOP him in the corner! Tozawa staggers away but Bronson keeps after him.

Bronson whips corner to corner and Tozawa hits buckles hard! Tozawa falls, Bronson smirks and drags Tozawa back up. Bronson whips Tozawa to a corner to SPLASH! And then BELLY2BELLY! Bronson storms up on Tozawa, drags him up, and trophy lifts to SLAM him! But Tozawa avoids the senton! Maxxine cheers Tozawa on and he powers up to fire off fast hands! SOBAT! SPIN, SLIDE, SPIN KICK! Tozawa waistlocks, but Bronson is too big even for that! Bronson booty bumps free, but Tozawa runs, to RANA Bronson into ropes! Fans fire up for Tozawa and he goes up the corner! CROSS- NO, Bronson catches him! DEATH VALLEY DRIVER!

Bronson SENTONS Tozawa, then goes up top! Fans fire up for the TSUNAMI! Cover, Bronson wins!

Winner: Bronson Reed, by pinfall

It’s commendable that Tozawa wanted to impress Coach Gable, but this wasn’t how to do it. Bronson keeps on building momentum, will Auszilla smash his way to another title opportunity?

 

New Day and Alpha Academy admire the Dallas Cowboys commemorative belt.

Looks real nice, right? Tozawa hobbles in and Gable says he should’ve listened to coach. But Gable says Tozawa has potential to be a great WWE Tag Team Champion. Speaking of, in steps DIY! Gargano says look at the Raw Tag Division. Ciampa says next week, DIY VS Imperium, for the first time in over three years! They’re back, baby! OH YEAH~! Thanks for letting them know. Woods says Tozawa is still a winner in their eyes. HE gets to hold the Cowboys belt. Tozawa does his squat shuffle and everyone likes it. But who out of these three teams steps up to challenge the Judgment Day?

 

Rollins finds McIntyre backstage.

Rollins applauds and congratulates McIntyre’s first win as the newest member of the Judgment Day! Oh, here we go again. Rollins is so paranoid. McIntyre almost got screwed over by Rhea, too. Sami got himself into this mess with Judgment Day without Kevin Owens to back him up. And for one thing, little paranoid pot calling the kettle black, we saw McIntyre say no to Rhea’s offer. Rollins says McIntyre knows how Rollins feels about Judgment Day. He doesn’t need ’em. Not now, not ever. And he especially doesn’t need them to beat McIntyre at Crown Jewel. Well, neither does McIntyre. No Judgment Day? No Judgment Day. May the best man win. He will.

McIntyre heads out, but will the Judgment Day just go after them both in order to have all the gold on Raw?

 

BIG stuff is in store for next week’s Halloween Raw!

Seth Rollins is back in action on the last Raw before Crown Jewel! Will the World Heavyweight Champion be more than ready? Or will the Irish Ace send him to Saudi Arabia in bad shape? Then, after her attack backstage, Xia Li will have to answer for it by taking Candice LeRae 1v1! Will the Poison Pixie get payback on the Eliminator? And after going after him and Logan Paul earlier tonight, Ricochet will get his hands on Dirty Dom! Will the King of Flight get one over on the NXT North American Champion?

 

Damian Priest VS Jey Uso!

The Punisher all but pulverized Cody Rhodes’ ankle earlier tonight, and now Main Event Jey is coming for payback! Will Jey make sure Senor Money in the Bank is nowhere near 100% for Crown Jewel? Or will nothing stop Priest now that the Judgment Day is golden once again?

Raw returns and Priest makes his entrance. The bell rings and fans rally up for “USO! USO!” Jey and Priest circle, tie up, and Priest TOSSES Jey to a corner. Priest swings, Jey dodges and fires off body shots! Priest grabs Jey but Jey UPPERCUTS back! Jey whips, Priest reverses and ELBOWS Jey down! Fans rally as Priest looms over Jey. Priest stands Jey up to then ROCK him with a right! Jey drops to his knees and Priest mocks the bounce. Fans boo, but Priest lines up a shot to KICK Jey! And HEADBUTT! And ROCK Jey again! Priest brings Jey around, whips corner to corner hard, then he runs in, but Jey dodges!

Priest hits post and Jey DROPKICKS him down! Fans fire up as Jey clotheslines Priest up and out, to then DIVE! Direct hit and Priest goes down at the ramp! The fans fire up as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns once more and Priest grinds Jey down with a chinlock. Fans rally as Jey endures and fights back up. Jey gets to his feet, and he throws body shots! Priest KNEES Jey low, whips him to a corner, then runs in to STAGE DIVE ELBOW! Priest reels Jey in to BROKEN ARROW! Cover, TWO! Jey is still in this and Priest is annoyed, but the fans rally up. Priest talks trash on Jey, fans want tables but that’s not the kind of match they’re having. Jey counter punches Priest! Priest ROCKS Jey! Jey ROCKS Priest! Priest ROCKS Jey! Fans rally as Jey throws another shot, but Priest hits back! They pick up speed as they go back and forth!

Jey gets the edge, fans fire up but Priest shoves. Jey counter punches, fires off more haymakers, then pops, locks and bounces to ROCK Priest again! Priest goes to a corner and fans fire up. Jey runs in but is put on the apron. Priest kicks, misses, and gets stuck! Jey GAMANGIRIS Priest away! Jey goes up the corner and he CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Priest is still in this as he shakes out the cobwebs. Jey sees Priest go to ropes, and he takes aim. Jey fireman’s carries but Priest fights free. Priest shoves Jey, to ROLLING ELBOW! Jey rebounds, Priest DISCUS LARIATS! Cover, TWO! Jey is still in this and Priest grows frustrated.

Priest powers up the right hand, Jey stands up, and Priest choke grips! But Jey fights free with elbows! Priest shoves, Jey mule kicks! Jey talks off his shirt, to then UPPERCUT! Priest staggers, swings, Jey dodges to fireman’s carry, SAMOAN DROP! Cover, TWO! Fans rally while both men are down! Priest crawls to the apron, the fans still want tables, but Jey builds speed. Jey DIVES, but Priest catches him! FLATLINER to the desk! Jey falls and Priest grits his teeth. Priest drags Jey up, puts him back in the ring, and fans boo as he refuses to do anything with the table. Jey superkicks but Priest blocks!

Priest spins Jey to BELL CLAP, and ENZIGURI! But Jey ENZIGURIS back! Priest comes back, clinches, FLATLINER again! Cover, TWO! Jey survives and Priest argues with the ref! The ref says the count was fair, so Priest just stands over Jey. Priest drags Jey up, reels him in, and calls his shot. Fans boo but Priest hoists Jey up to the Canadian Rack. But Jey slips free! Jey ducks ‘n’ dodges to SPEAR! Jey hurries up top, to USO SPLASH!! Cover, but Finn is here to distract the ref! Jey would’ve won by now! Jey DECKS Finn, then DIVES! Direct hit and down goes The Prince! Jey returns to the ring, Priest fires off on him!

The ref separates Priest from Jey but Finn HOTSHOTS Jey low! Jey staggers into SOUTH OF HEAVEN!! Cover, Priest wins!

Winner: Damian Priest, by pinfall

Finn rains down fists to “celebrate,” and fans boo as Finn goes up the corner. COUP DE GRACE!! Jey sputters while Finn & Priest stand over him. Fans boo more as Priest says time to get some chairs. Finn loves that idea! Finn goes out to get chairs from the timekeeper’s area, as well as under the ring! Priest and Finn set Jey up like- WAIT! CODY is still here!? Cody hobbles as fast as he can in a foot brace, and he fires off on Finn! Cody sends Finn into railing, then gets in the ring! Cody dodges the chair shot, kicks and RHODES UPPERCUTS! CHOP BLOCK to the leg! Priest hobbles, and Cody JAMS him with the chair! Then SMACKS him on the back!

Cody rains down fists, grabs a chair again, and he puts that around Priest’s leg! But Finn drags Priest out of the ring! The American Nightmare almost got even with Priest, even with his bad leg holding him back! Cody is a man who fought in Hell in a Cell with a torn pectoral muscle, will nothing short of losing that leg keep him from fighting at Crown Jewel?


My Thoughts:

A great Raw here, with lots set up for Crown Jewel. Judgment Day is becoming even more integral to the many stories of Raw, with Priest now getting a match on Crown Jewel. Seems Cody & Jey aren’t getting a tag title rematch, but that’s alright, Raw’s building up many teams in the background. Priest going after Cody’s ankle was a good detail, because of course Cody needs adversity on top of the match he’s having. But also, Priest having a match puts into question whether he can cash-in on Rollins VS McIntyre. Kinda wish we got interaction of Priest and McDonagh after they worked together to hurt Cody, but maybe that happens later this week. And great closing where Cody doesn’t even care about his ankle, he just goes after Finn & Priest.

Great match from Sami VS McIntyre, even with Rhea costing Sami. Rhea had good promos all night, but her going to both Rollins and McIntyre is a great way for her to add fuel to the fire while still setting Priest up to get that cash-in. Rhea thinks she can recruit one of those two, but even if neither joins up, they’ll be so beat up that Priest picks the bones, it’s a win-win-win for Mami. And we got awesome stuff out of the Women’s World Championship contract signing. Very clever to have no table since it was gonna get thrown out anyway, and it was a great brawl from the four challengers. Jax stands tall but technically so does Rhea, the go-home might come down to them next week.

Good stuff out of the tag division, with New Day VS Alpha Academy making for a great opening match. Great win for New Day, and it seems like Gable is willing to change up formations where Otis & Tozawa will be the tag team. Though, I may have missed something where Tozawa said he was gonna go for a big time match. Tozawa definitely gets in over his head with Bronson, but Bronson of course wins that match. Ciampa helping Gargano get even with Imperium is great, and they’re going to have a great match next week. Maybe a huge Fatal 4 Way Tag #1 Contender’s match is set up for the Raw after Crown Jewel with all these teams.

The Viking Raiders had a very good vignette to hype Ivar up while he’s solo. Ivar has always been great, whether in tag or singles matches, so this could be a great opportunity for him while Erik is recovering. Great interactions from Pearce and Aldis tonight to add to the brand VS brand nature of Survivor Series returning, as well as Aldis potentially “poaching” Raw superstars who aren’t getting to do much on Raw to bring them to SmackDown. And honestly, Kayden & Katana would be the right choice. SmackDown is lacking women’s division tag teams so this could balance things out.

Speaking of which, was Nikki being spaced out part of “the curse?” I kinda hope so, it’d be a really clever addition to that story beat. Also, Nikki is Scottish, so are Fyre & Dawn, something about Nikki joining them makes sense. Though at the same time, Piper’s Scottish and she isn’t betraying Chelsea. Great match from Indi VS Becky, but of course Becky wins so she can have her match with Lyra tomorrow night. Becky VS Lyra is going to be great, but I can’t be sure what happens with Xia Li being very serious about getting that title match. Xia will have a great match with Candice that will build Xia up towards the title, but now it seems like Lyra is going to be passed over because of that.

Great promo from Nakamura, but I have no idea who he could beat the crap out of to “transform” into this new Nakamura. I almost thought it could be Cody but not now with Cody still feuding with Priest. Maybe Sami? Sami and Nakamura have history, Sami needs something more to do now that Kevin’s on SmackDown, and we could get an awesome match to add what we’ve gotten over the years. And while Ricochet lost to Nakamura, Ricochet still has great stories going, because he got to go after Logan and Dom over Logan bringing up SummerSlam. Still hard to say if Logan beats Rey for the US Championship, but it’d be great if Ricochet could get that belt off Logan in a rematch from SummerSlam. But at the same time, one brand can’t have both midcard titles so let Rey beat Logan and Ricochet just beats Logan for pride.

My Score: 8.8/10


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Coverage

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

It’s Draft Day!

Published

on

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

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

OFFICIAL RESULTS

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

PLAY BY PLAY

Backstage interview with Paul Heyman.

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

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

 

SmackDown throws it to the NXT Performance Center.

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

 

Corey Graves is in the ring.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Triple H is here!

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

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

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

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

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

 

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

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

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

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

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

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

Winners: Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee, by pinfall

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

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

 

Bron Breakker VS Cedric Alexander!

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

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

Winner: Bron Breakker, by pinfall

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

 

Nick Aldis heads out.

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

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

 

Michelle McCool and Torrie Wilson are here!

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

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

 

The Bloodline arrives backstage.

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

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

 

Kayla Braxton is on stage.

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

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

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

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

 

The Dudley Boyz are here!

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

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

 

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

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

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

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

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

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

No Contest

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

 

B-Fab and the Street Profits meet up backstage.

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

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

 

The Final Testament speaks.

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

 

Teddy Long and JBL are here!

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

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

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

 

Backstage interview with Nick Aldis.

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

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

 

Cody Rhodes VS Carmelo Hayes!

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

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

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

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

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

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

Winner: Cody Rhodes, by pinfall

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

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


My Thoughts:

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

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

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

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

My Score: 8.8/10


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

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

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

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

Ratings:

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

Results:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

#1 Contender: Frankie Kazarian vs Josh Alexander

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

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

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

ASH by Elegance vs Xia Brookside

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

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

Sami Callihan vs The Good Hands

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

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

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

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

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

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

 

Overall Score: 6/10

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

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


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