Coverage
Mitchell’s WWE NXT Results & Report! (11/7/23)
Countdown to Deadline!
And we’re on the clock!
NXT prepares for Deadline, and that means Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifiers! And to kill two birds with one stone, Tiffany Stratton and Fallon Henley settle their score while fighting for a spot in that match!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- NXT Heritage Cup Championship: Noam Dar w/ Meta Four VS Akira Tozawa w/ The Alpha Academy; Dar wins and retains the cup.
- Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifier: Tiffany Stratton VS Fallon Henley; Tiffany wins and advances to NXT Deadline.
- Bron Breakker VS Von Wagner w/ Robert Stone; Bron wins.
- Lola Vice & Elektra Lopez VS Roxanne Perez & Kelani Jordan; Roxie & Kelani win.
- Otis w/ The Alpha Academy VS Drew Gulak w/ Charlie Dempsey, Myles Borne & Damon Kemp; Otis wins.
- Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifier: DIJAK VS Tyler Bate; Dijak wins and advances to NXT Deadline.
PLAY BY PLAY
NXT Heritage Cup Championship: Noam Dar w/ Meta Four VS Akira Tozawa w/ The Alpha Academy!
The Scottish Supernova ignored the Stamina Monster’s attempt at a challenge before, so Tozawa STOLE the cup out from under his nose! Dar and his crew went through the spookiest haunted house in NXT history, got the cup back, but had to give Tozawa this match in return. Will Tozawa say “ARIGATO~” by taking the cup fair and square this time? Or will the man who has linked himself to this championship still hold onto it?
The introductions are made, the cup is raised, and we see who raises a glass in celebration after tonight!
The bell rings on round one and the two circle. They feel things out, tie up, and Dar waistlocks to drag Tozawa down. Tozawa moves around, fights up and wrenches to a wristlock. Tozawa wrenches, Dar clinches and rolls to have a foot. Dar turns Tozawa over, facelocks, wrenches and ELBOW BREAKERS! Fans rally and duel as Tozawa rolls and trips Dar. Tozawa has a toehold but Dar pulls at the headband. The ref reprimands, Dar throws elbows, and he moves around, but Tozawa holds on to the foot! Dar rolls Tozawa to a cover, TWO! Dar puts Tozawa in a corner, the ref counts, and Tozawa avoids the cheap shot!
Fans fire up as Tozawa fires off fast hands! Dar goes to ropes, Tozawa whips but Dar reverses. Tozawa sunset flips, Dar stays up but Tozawa avoids the stomp and the kick to roll up! TWO, and Dar headlocks. We’re under 90 seconds but Tozawa powers out. Things speed up, Dar avoids the hurdle to sweep the leg! Fans boo and chant “YOU STILL SUCK!” Dar stomps Tozawa at the minute mark, then drags him up, but Tozawa suplexes first! Fans fire up while Tozawa stands, and he does his best Otis hip thrust! Tozawa runs in but Dar puts him on the apron. Tozawa GAMANGIRIS, then hurries up the corner!
We’re at 30 seconds as Tozawa reaches the top. But Meta Four distracts him! Tozawa hops down, and he looks at the cp. Dar goes out to grab Tozawa, but Tozawa hits a BIG back suplex! Ten seconds, Tozawa puts Dar in but goes up, and Dar gets him first! SUPERLEX at the bell!
Dar: 0; Tozawa: 0
Fans fire up while the teams argue, but then they go to help Dar and Tozawa refresh. The two stand back up and we start round two! Dar and Tozawa circle, Dar gives KICK and KICK but Tozawa blocks to trip him and fire off hands! Dar goes for an arm, Tozawa rolls to go for legs. Dar grapevines but Tozawa sits on it for a cover, TWO! Dar avoids the Penalty Kick, and rolls Tozawa up, with tights!! Dar scores!!
Dar: 1; Tozawa: 0
Tozawa protests the tight pulling, and then Dar DECKS him with a sucker punch!! As if fans weren’t booing before, Dar gets away with two cheats at once! The ref has to do all he can to keep Alpha Academy from attacking Meta Four, and NXT goes picture in picture!
Dar celebrates like he’s already won, but Gable and Maxxine help Tozawa get back into this. Tozawa stands up and he’s ready, here’s round three! But then Dar bails out of the ring! The ref reprimands and Tozawa is annoyed by these stall tactics. Seconds are ticking away but Tozawa goes out. The Meta Four is a wall in front of Dar, but then the Alpha Academy steps up. Otis is a wall unto himself! Lash talks trash on Otis, but Tozawa slips through to fire off on Dar! Tozawa puts Dar in, runs up and SHINING WIZARDS! Cover, TWO! Dar survives but Tozawa drags him back up to bump off buckles, and CHOP him in the corner!
Tozawa CHOPS again, whips corner to corner but Dar reverses. Dar runs in but into BOOTS! Tozawa goes up, but Dar sweeps the legs! Tozawa falls tot he mat, Dar taunts the Academy then covers, TWO! Dar is annoyed but we’re under 90 seconds already. Dar stomps Tozawa, drags him around and stomps an arm. Then he stomps the other arm! Dar flexes, taunts the fans, we’re at one minute and Dar drags Tozawa up. Dar KICKS, and KICKS, and KICKS! Tozawa falls, Dar covers, TWO! Dar is annoyed, Meta Four complains about the count, but then Dar digs his forearms in. Dar throws elbows, then clamps on a chinlock.
Tozawa fights up, fights around, but Dar wrangles him back down. Tozawa fights as we reach 15 seconds, runs, but into an UPPERCUT! Ten seconds, Dar runs into a BOOT! And a SUPERKICK! Dar fires off fists, Tozawa SOBATS, spins, slides under, and NXT returns to single picture as the round ends!
Dar: 1; Tozawa: 0
Dar still wants a sleeper! TRIANGLE HOLD! AND ELBOWS! The ref shouts, the fans boo, and the crews have to separate these two again. Dar gets away with even more than before, but the ref says he is on thin ice. A disqualification ends this automatically, but Dar seems fine with pushing the boundaries. The two men refresh, or as best as Tozawa can after all that nonsense. Round four begins and Dar rushes in! FLYING ELBOW! Fans boo but Dar reels Tozawa in for a NORTHERN LIGHTS! Dar aims from a corner, Tozawa rises, SLIDING LARIAT! Cover, TWO! Tozawa survives as Dar couldn’t gear up for his finishing kick.
Dar taunts the Alphas, goes back to Tozawa, and fans boo. Dar clamps on an ANKLE LOCK to taunt Gable directly! But Tozawa moves around, rolls and he throws Dar out of the ring! Tozawa builds speed, to DIVE! Direct hit but Tozawa doesn’t’ stop there! He DIVES and gets Oro! Main Man Mensah goes down, Tozawa brings Dar up, but Dar POSTS him! Dar aims, but Tozawa ducks! That kick hits POST! Dar hobbles into the ring, Tozawa runs in and dodges to victory roll and ANKLE LOCK! Just like coach taught him!! Dar flails, endures, we’re at 90 seconds! Fans want Dar to do it, and Dar TAPS! Tozawa scores!!
Dar: 1; Tozawa: 1
Fans are thunderous for Tozawa and we are already deep into the rounds! Next fall wins and everyone knows it! The refresh is over, time for round five! Dar staggers up, Tozawa BOOTS him in the corner! Tozawa runs to BOOT again! SAIDO!! Cover, TWO!! Dar survives and Meta Four is freaking out! Tozawa drags Dar up, fans are thunderous but Dar wrenches! Tozawa avoids a kick, Dar blocks a kick and BACK ELBOWS! Cover, TWO! Dar shakes out the bad leg but he puts pinkies up. Dar goes to a corner at the two minute mark, and he aims at Tozawa. Dar runs in, but Tozawa RANAS first! Cover, TWO!!
Dar escapes, both men get up, and Tozawa gest around to GERMAN SUPELX! Bridging cover, TWO! Dar is still in this but Tozawa keeps cool. But Dar snatches a leg! CHAMPAGNE SUPERNOVA KNEEBAR! But Tozawa pushes back, pulls Dar off the leg, GERMAN SUPLEX! Tozawa says “ARIGATO!” and SPIN KICKS! Tozawa puts Dar in a drop zone, heads up top, and we’re at the minute mark! But Oro runs up! Tozawa BOOTS him! Jakara hurries to help Oro, but also stays in the Alpha Academy’s way! TOKYO TOWER SENTON, but Lash drags Dar out to safety!! Tozawa crashes down, fans boo, and Dar hurries back in! NOVA ROLLA!!! Cover, Dar wins!
Winner: Noam Dar, by pinfall (still NXT Heritage Cup Champion)
With just 39 seconds left in the fifth, Supernova 11 and his entire crew retain the cup. Fans boo, and then Oro gets in Tozawa’as face. Maxxine gets in Oro’s face, and SLAPS him! Gable GERMAN SUPLEXES Oro! And Meta Four can only watch as Otis SPLASHES Oro down! Dar may leave with the cup now, but will he be able to survive much longer with his crew taking the hits for him?
NXT hears from Mick Foley!
“Hello, NXT! It’s the Hardcore Legend here, WWE Hall of Famer, Mick Foley, and I’m so excited because HBK, Shawn Michaels, has granted me the honor of selecting the qualifying matches this week for the Iron Survivor Challenge. Let’s start with the women. Now I’ve been watching the NXT Women’s Division for a long time, and it’s extremely strong. There are two of the top women I want to specifically talk about, Fallon Henley and Tiffany Stratton. Now their match last week never took place due to Tiffany’s attack, so I say we absolutely see that match this week, and we up the stakes just a wee bit, with the winner punching their ticket to Deadline.
“As far as the men, aw man. Two guys I have been watching a long time, long before any of you knew their names. Dijak, we thought this guy was a future champion. But in order to get to Deadline, Dijak will have to get past the guy I’ve known and followed since he was a teenager, The Big Strong Boi, Tyler Bate! It is going to be a great match-up of different styles, I can’t wait to see these matches. Until then, have a nice day.” Foley has given us an incredible card for the night, who will be the first ones into this year’s wild ride that is the Iron Survivor Challenge?
The NXT Women’s locker room talks about the Breakout tournament.
Karmen Petrovic and Arianna Grace commend Kelani Jordan on making it to the finals, but then in walk Elektra Lopez and the tournament’s winner, Lola Vice. Lola is pretty sure she made that tournament look super easy. Lopez says she makes everything look super easy, she’s been the best since day one. But everyone should be happy that they’ll be remembered in the footnotes of Lola’s success. Right, Kelani? Kelani says, “Whatever helps you sleep at night.” But Lola should really split that contract with Elektra, because without her, Lola wouldn’t have won. Arianna defuses the situation by saying they cannot change the past.
But Elektra tells everyone that what “we” do with the contract is none of Kelani’s business. Don’t be jealous that you lost, Kelani. Uh, what is there to be jealous of? Arianna says, “We only lose when we quit.” Lola says Kelani IS jealous. But in walks Roxanne Perez with a sarcastic slow clap. “Wow, NXT Breakout winner. Congrats. Doesn’t look like it’s gone to your head at all. Let me explain something to you, Lola. It’s one thing to win that, but it doesn’t automatically mean that you become champion. If I were you, I wouldn’t make enemies out of the entire locker room.” Lola tells Roxie off in Spanish but Roxie claps back.
Lola & Lopez leave and Kelani thanks Roxie for having her back. They also head out, and Arianna tries another platitude, but Karmen tells her to shut up already. Arianna scoffs at Karmen, but is the locker room just a powder keg waiting for the right spark?
Lyra Valkyria is here!
The fans fire up for the NEW NXT Women’s Champion, and The Morrigan is back after her week of media, including back home in Ireland! Lyra gets a mic to say, “Well, I never dreamed it could happen the way that it did, but… Lyra Valkyria is your NXT Women’s Champion!” Fans cheer and chant “You Deserve It!” Lyra says whoever it was that said you should never meet your heroes, they clearly never met Becky Lynch. Becky is a true legend. Fans cheer that, and Lyra says she didn’t just meet her hero, she BEAT her! She defeated an icon! And now the finest prize iN NXT is around Lyra’s waist.
At Halloween Havoc, Lyra brought it. Becky sure as hell did, too, but something Lyra will remember forever is that the fans made this place feel like magic. “And we showed the world what a main event women’s title match is all about!” Fans cheer that, too. Lyra says we’ve all seen her story, and every bit of it is true. But she knows she’s not the only woman that dreams of holding this title. And that the locker room is packed full of hungry competitors who want to take it from her! And she knows that- Wait, who is coming down the stands? Xia Li!? Security wants to stop her, she’s a Raw superstar still in trouble for knocking Becky Lynch out!
But Lyra says it’s okay? Let her through? The fans boo but Xia steps over the barriers and to the ring. Xia gets a mic, and Lyra asks if she can help her. Xia chuckles, and she tells Lyra, “Did you see what I did to ‘your hero,’ Becky Lynch, last night?” Yeah, we all saw that attack. All because Becky told Xia that if she wanted a title match, she should go and win one. Xia laughs that off, and tells Lyra, “Now, I plan to take yours!” Security gets in there to cool this off, but then Xia HEEL KICKS one in the face!! Fans boo while that guy tries to remember where he is, and Lyra says if Xia wants it, then come get it!
Fans fire up as the Morrigan looks ready to fight the menacing Exterminator! But will Lyra come to regret it when the Deadline approaches?
Tyler Bate speaks.
“I’m aware I come across chilled. Zen, if you will. But do not mistake my way of being for a lack of drive and intensity, because I am always pinpoint laser focused. Now Mick Foley, he put me in this match because he sees what I see. The Iron Survivor Challenge is exactly something the Big Strong Boi can sink his teeth into. In fact, it’s something I need, because I am tired of living on the resumé of the past. It’s time to write my future. Now yes, Dijak is massive. He hits like a heavyweight and moves like a cruiserweight. But this David has slain many a Goliath in the past, and tonight will be no different when I take Mr. Hard Justice himself for an Airplane Spin on my way to NXT Deadline. Namaste, boys and girls.”
Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen give Fallon Henley a pep talk.
It’s go time! Is she ready? Hell yeah! Because the games are over! She is getting in that Iron Survivor Challenge. Briggs says it’s about time one of them gets an opportunity again. Jensen asks if they’re needed out there, but Fallon says nope, she is locked in. Okay, then keep eyes on the back of your head, we all know Tiffany plays dirty. Fallon knows. But “Tiffy Time” is over! It’s Fallon Time now! Fist bumps for luck and Fallon heads out. Will the Cowgirl take the Wrestling Barbie for a rodeo ride she won’t get up from? Or will Tiffany again make herself the Center of the Universe?
The Alpha Academy regroups backstage.
Coach Gable reminds Tozawa that they knew this wasn’t gonna be easy. Shinsuke Nakamura last night, Noam Dar here tonight, that’s a tall order for anyone. Just listen to coach, okay? They’ll apply the Gable Method and unlock that full Tozawa potential. But coach! He wants it NOW! Maxxine says they know that, but don’t worry. Because next week, the Academy returns to NXT to be guests on the Supernova Sessions. Oh, really? Well, okay, A THANK- “What happened to you, Gable?” Drew Gulak and his crew walk over, and Gulak says Gable is a brilliant wrestler, a former NXT Tag Team Champion, and he chooses to be associated with this group?
Yes, this is his group. Well, Gulak leads a roster that exemplifies serious competition. Damon Kemp, disciplined. Myles Borne, tenacious. Charlie Dempsey, pedigree. Dempsey says the Heritage Cup should be off-limits to a group like the Alphas. They’ll stretch you all out and show no quarter! Stretch, huh? Well, Charlie, why don’t you show Otis how to stretch this? Otis shakes those hips and Gulak’s group says that’s disgusting! SHOOOOSH~! Shoosh, please. Gulak can’t stand that! Stand, huh? Well, Gulak, why don’t you stand across the ring from Otis tonight 1v1. Gulak says it’s on! Yeah, on and on and on!
The Alphas head out, Gulak and his group say they’ve got this, but then Gable adds one last, “A THANK YEW~!” Will the Philly Stretcher fail to fold up the tree trunk that is The Dozer?
Referee Adrian Butler finishes meeting with Shawn Michaels.
He thanks HBK for his time, and NXT Media asks him what that was about. Butler says that after much deliberation, HBK has instructed him to use his discretion during tonight’s match of Bron Breakker VS Von Wagner. With the history between those two, Mr. Michaels insists there be a definitive decision. So tonight, Butler promises there will be a winner. Wait, we see Ava Raine stepping into HBK’s office. What is her meeting with the NXT General Manager be about?
Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifier: Tiffany Stratton VS Fallon Henley!
NXT returns and Fallon makes her entrance. The bell rings and fans rally behind Fallon as Tiff talks trash. The two tie up, go around, and go along the ropes. They go along more ropes, the ref counts, and Fallon shoves. Tiff shoves back, gets around and throws Fallon by her hair! But Fallon gets up to SLAP Tiff, then throw her by her hair! Tiff wants a timeout and crawls to ropes, but Fallon YANKS her up to SLAM her down! Fallon runs, slides, trips and then hooks Tiff up in a HALF CRAB! Tiff endures, flails, reaches out, but Fallon drags hers away from ropes! Fans rally up and duel as Tiff endures and crawls again, to the ROPEBREAK!
Fallon lets off, Tiff bails out, but Fallon pursues. Tiff DECKS her! Tiff puts Fallon in the ring, goes up a corner, but Fallon ROCKS her first! Fallon climbs, brings Tiff up, and SUPERPLEXES! Fans fire up and Fallon covers, TWO! Fallon stalks Tiff, drags her from ropes, and steps over to HALF CRAB again! Tiff endures, fights forward again, but Fallon again drags her away! Fallon sits deep on that leg but Tiff still endures! Tiff fights, claws her way forward, and has the ROPEBREAK! Fallon lets go, but then slides out to ROCK her! Fallon says SHE is going to Deadline and fans fire up while NXT goes to break.
NXT returns and the forearms go back and forth! Fans fire up as Fallon ROCKS and CHOPS and repeat! Then Fallon waistlocks and lifts, but Tiff fights free! Tiff swings, Fallon blocks, but then Tiff blocks a shot! Fallon HEADBUTTS Tiff! And gets around to waistlock, and she sits Tiff down for a HOOK KICK! Cover, TWO! Tiff toughs it out but Fallon brings her up. Tiff kicks the leg out! And then she goes for it, but Fallon backslides! TWO, and Tiff ROCKS Fallon! Tiff scoops, and SLAMS Fallon into ropes! Fallon clutches her legs while shouting in pain, and she goes to a corner. Tiff storms up but Fallon CHOPS!
Fallon forces herself up the corner, to CROSSBODY! Tiff rolls through and deadlifts, to TOSS Fallon out of the ring! Tiff shows her mean girl side and fans are losing their minds! Tiff puts Fallon in, drags her to the corner, and has an evil grin as she SLAMS the leg on the post! And then she bends the leg against the post! Fallon pulls hair! And she KICKS Tiff in return! Tiff storms in, but into a roll-up! TWO, and Tiff kicks the bad leg! Tiff runs up, and hits a POP-UP SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! Tiff is furious and she SLAMS the leg on the mat! Tiff turns Fallon over, hooks the leg up, and has a BRIDGING DEATHLOCK!
Fans rally while Fallon endures, and she turns over to KICK Tiff down! Tiff staggers up, storms back over, but Fallon KICKS her away! Fallon stands, ELBOWS Tiff, and goes to a corner. Tiff runs in but into a BOOT! Fallon runs to run Tiff over! And UPPERCUT her down! And SOBAT! HAYMAKER! LARIAT! Fans duel, Tiff goes to a corner and Fallon roars! Fallon runs in to ELBOW Tiff, then she runs to FACEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! Tiff is still in this and Fallon is beside herself. Fallon stands, but Tiff dropkicks the leg out! Tiff drags Fallon up, whips her to a corner, and Fallon goes up, only to get caught!
Tiff ROLLING SENTONS, then goes up, up, and PRETTIEST MOONSAULT- NO, Fallon dodges! And then gets around Tiff to O’Conner Roll, TWO into buckles! Tiff CHOP BLOCKS the leg! Tiff goes up again, PRETTIEST MOONSAULT EVER! Cover, Tiff wins!
Winner: Tiffany Stratton, by pinfall (advances to NXT Deadline)
Seems time isn’t up on Tiffy Time, and she’s heading to the last WWE Premium Live Event of the year! Will Tiffany make sure she’s ringing in the New Year with a golden ticket back to the #TiffyTop?
Backstage interview with Wes Lee.
McKenzie Mitchell is grooving with the Cardiac Kid and welcomes him back to NXT. Wes says it is a celebration! High-five, and McKenzie says that after months away, Wes returned after the NXT North American Championship. What made him come back? What, you really think he could head out of here with his head hung low? He was on a never-ending hamster wheel, he had to go so hard, so fast, he couldn’t stop if he wanted to. So he hopped off track to slow down, and he’s back now. Head’s right, body’s right, and he has a whole list that he wants to take care of. Top of the list: Smack Dominik Mysterio in the mouth and take back the NXT North American Championship.
McKenzie says that’s fair, but then in walks Baron Corbin. Corbin says, “Look who decided to finally show up! Guess we’re back on the Wes Side, huh? Internet’s going crazy, people are exc… Nobody actually cares.” Wes asks why Corbin’s so mad. Is he still searching for relevancy? Corbin says what he could do is quit, be gone for three months, come back, and demand a title match with somebody he can’t beat. That’s what Wes does, right? Or just watch what Corbin did to Dragunov. Wes hopes Corbin knows Dragunov’s gonna beat the brakes off him and absolutely destroy him, right? And it’ll make Wes extremely happy to see that, given how Corbin’s been talking.
But what would make Wes happier is if he got to do it himself. Corbin says if Wes did it himself, then he and Dragunov would both have something in common: they’d both fail. Corbin leaves, Wes says he’s adding something to the list. Will Wes get back the gold from Dirty Dom? Will he shut up Mr. No BS along the way? Or will Corbin make sure this is truly the End of Days for Wes in NXT?
Backstage interview with Bron Breakker.
His match with Von Wagner is up next, and after what happened last week, is he at all concerned- Bron stops her there. Concerned? Bron heard the ref was told to use his discretion out there, so the only one who should be concerned is Von. This is gonna be the shortest comeback in WWE history, because Bron desecrates whatever is left of the corpse that is Von Wagner in that ring tonight! Then everyone will know that Von was the fool that thought he could beat Bron Breakker. Bron says he’s #MeanerThanEvil, but will he no longer be as badass as he thinks?
Dijak speaks.
“And here I thought Mick Foley liked Tyler Bate, respected Tyler Bate. Then why the hell did you put Tyler Bate in a qualifying match that he can’t win, Mick? A hardcore legend recognizing my talent is rewarding, but even more motivating. Mick Foley sees what I see: I possess the endurance, the discipline and the grit to thrive in the Iron Survivor Challenge. And the only person standing between me and Deadline is twinkle toes Tyler Bate. Bate, you’ve seen my vicious side before. And that was with nothing on the line. So just imagine what I am willing to do to you tonight to qualify for the Iron Survive Challenge tonight.”
Bron Breakker VS Von Wagner w/ Robert Stone!
NXT returns and Von makes his entrance, Suit Man Stone by his side. Fans fire up already, the bell rings, and Bron RAMS Von into a corner! Bron RAMS into Von more but Von turns it around to fire off haymakers! Von brings Bron around, bumps him off buckles, then ROCKS him! Bron falls out of the ring, Von pursues, but Bron knees low! Bron whips, Von reverses but Bron leaps up to leap at Von, only to get a BOOT for it! Fans fire up with Von and Stone, but Von has to steady himself. Von puts Bron in the ring, goes up the corner, and he rains down fists! Fans count all the way to eight but Bron pushes Von away.
Bron leaps, Von dodges, and Von goes up to FLYING LARIAT! Fans fire up and Von again has to steady himself. Is he overdoing it already? Bron KNEES Von down! Stone coaches Von but Bron throws hands in the corner! The ref counts, Bron lets off to shout “I’M THE MAN!” Bron goes back to Von, drags him up, but Von HEADBUTTS! And ELBOWS! But Bron TACKLES Von! Bron rains down fists, fans boo but Bron taunts Von. Bron waistlocks, then GERMAN SUPLEXES! Von flounders, Bron says he’s just getting warmed up! Bron storms up on Von and clinches, to OVERHEAD SUPLEX!
Bron grins, Stone coaches Von, but Bron tells Stone to shut up. Bron brings the straps down, ‘IT’S OVER!” Bron clamps onto the arms, for the STEINER RECLINER!! Von endures, Stone coaches and the fans rally, and Von fights up! Bron is surprised and concerned, as Von RAMS Bron into buckles! Bron staggers away, but he comes back to ROCK Von! But Von stands up?! Von fires up, and he fires off haymakers of his own! Von whips Bron to ropes to LEAPING LARIAT! Von rallies with more big clotheslines, then he BUTTERFLY SUPLEXES! Fans fire up as Von runs, to SPLASH in the corner! And then BOOT Bron down!
Fans fire up with Von and Stone! Von shakes the ropes, scoops Bron to a fireman’s carry, but Bron slips free. Bron runs, but into Von’s JUMP KNEE! Cover, TWO! Bron bails out but Von pursues. Fans chant “We Want Tables!” and Von obliges as he clears off the desk! Booker and Vic move, Von brings Bron up and around! But Bron slips out of the bomb to RAM Von into steel steps! The very steps Bron used to smash Von before! Stone has a chair?! Stone tells Bron not to dare try it again, but the ref stops Stone from betting any closer. Bron LOW BLOWS Von!! Bron outsmarts Stone there!
Fans boo but then Bron storms up on Stone. Stone goes for the chair but Bron steps on the chair! Bron trophy lifts Stone! But then Von makes the save! Fans fire up, Von checks on Stone, but Bron runs in! Bron SPEARS Von down!! Stone’s cost Von twice now! Bron puts Von in the ring, takes aim again, and SPEARS Von down!!! Cover, Bron wins!
Winner: Bron Breakker, by pinfall
Fans boo but Stone gets in with that chair! SMACK to the back! Suit Man Stone avenges himself if nothing else, but Bron gets back up! Fans tell Stone he messed up now! Bron SWATS the chair away, chases Stone outside of the ring, but Stone says fine! Do what he will to Stone! Bron says he’s gonna put Stone in the hospital now! But wait, VON is back up!! Von turns Bron around, kicks low and gets him up, POWERBOMB through the desk!! Fans fire up again as Von stands tall! Stone says that’s right! Von did it! He finished Bron! Stone offers a handshake, and Von takes it! They hug it out! Fans cheer, will these best buds reach the top together now?
Backstage interview with Carmelo Hayes.
McKenzie is now with #HIM, and brings up how emotions must be running high. A lost last week to Ilja Dragunov for the NXT Championship, and then Trick Williams’ surprise return. Footage replays of the moment, and Melo looking like he was seeing a ghost. Trick stood Melo up after the loss, but Melo asks what about that? He was just shocked Trick returned after such a brutal attack. How does Melo know it was a “brutal” attack? Because Melo was there when they loaded Trick into the ambulance. He knows what McKenzie’s trying to do, so he’s gonna tell her and the entire world right now: Melo did NOT attack Trick.
Another reason for Melo’s reaction was the look in Trick’s eyes when he stood Melo back up. Melo could tell Trick is listening to all the outside voices pointing their fingers at Melo. So Melo knows what Trick wants, and that is answers face to face. That is what Melo will do, because that is what Melo owes Trick. Why does Melo owe Trick that? Melo says because they’re Trick Melo Gang, and they always gonna be here. Melo goes off to prepare for that moment, but who will Trick believe?
The Brawling Brutes speak.
Ridge Holland tells #OutTheMud that they heard the story. Pete Dunne asks, “Are you lot mad? We grew up on the streets! But different pavement.” Ridge says on these streets, danger is around every corner. And Dunne says if you didn’t scrap, you didn’t survive. But at the end of the day, they were the ones standing tall. They were the ones to make ends meet. For Northern Grit, it was a decade spent running through people on the rugby field. For the Bruiserweight, it was him at 12 years old scrappin’ grown men all over the UK in pubs and workingmen’s clubs. And no matter the scrap, the numbers were always fair. There was NO snake behavior!
If you make a racket, you face the consequences. “OTM, we have different principles.” “We don’t run up on people when their backs are turned!” “You’ll see us face to face next week…” “And we’ll look you dead in the eyes, and knock your teeth down your throats.” “Buckle up, fellas. The Brutes are coming.” Will Scrypts, Lucien Price & Bronco Nima wish they hadn’t picked a fight with these blokes after next week?
Lola Vice & Elektra Lopez VS Roxanne Perez & Kelani Jordan!
That verbal confrontation in the locker room is now going to be a physical one in the ring! Will the Women’s Breakout Tournament Winner(s) get the job done together tonight? Or will the original breakout star and the Gym Princess show them what real winners look like?
NXT returns as the Prodigy and Kelani make their entrance. The teams sort out and wait, Arianna Grace makes her way out here? “As Miss NXT, I, Arianna Grace, would love to wish you four lovely ladies the bestest of luck tonight. I look forward to watching you showcase your talents. I love you all.” Arianna gets emotional, and someone brings her a chair to sit in. The others are confused, but then Lopez ROCKS Roxie with a sucker punch! The bell rings, Lopez throws Roxie by her hair, then drags her up. Lopez whips, Roxie reverses and ROCKS Lopez! And again and again! But Lopez throat chops! Lopez scoops to FALL AWAY SLAM!
Lola tags as Lopez storms up on Roxie. Lopez puts Roxie in ropes and THRASHES her around! Lopez lets off and Lola AX KICKS! Cover, TWO! Lola keeps on Roxie with an ARMBAR! Roxie rolls Lola up, TWO! Roxie wrenches, YANKS the arm, and wrenches it again. Roxie wristlocks, then spins her and knuckle locks. Roxie CHOPS, then CHOPS again! Roxie goes up and up the ropes, tags Kelani and FLYING ARM-DRAGS! Kelani then slips in, waistlocks, but Lola bucks the O’Conner. But Kelani comes back to slingshot arm-drag Lola away! And DROPKICKS her down! Fans fire up as Kelani covers, TWO!
Kelani keeps Lola from Lopez, only for Lola to RAM her into the corner! Lopez tags in, she runs up and ELBOWS Kelani in the corner. Then short arm LARIATS! And ELBOW DROPS! Cover, TWO! Lopez tags Lola back in, they put Kelani in the corner, and Lopez digs her boots in while Lola tosses her hair and shouts, “Viva Latinas!” HIP ATTACK! Lopez mocks Kelani’s pain, Lola taunts Roxie and she whips Kelani. But Kelani ducks ‘n’ dodges to CROSSBODY! Cover, ONE, and Roxie tags in! Roxie hits a THESZ PRESS, and rains down fast hands! Roxie ROCKS Lopez, too! Lola body shots and kicks in return!
Tag to Lopez, she runs and Lola coordinates, HIGH LOW on Roxie! Cover, TWO!! Roxie survives but Lopez rains down elbows! Lopez drags Roxie around, tags in Lola, but the fans rally hard for Roxie. But the devious duo double hip sandwich Roxie! Lola drags Roxie from her corner, sits her up to talk trash and says she’s the breakout star now! Roxie fights up and throws body shots! Roxie then gets around to RUSSIAN LEG SWEEP! Roxie kips up, fans fire up, and Kelani tags in! Kelani rallies on Loa, hits Lopez for good measure, then CLOBBERS Lola! And kips up! Fans fire up as Kelani kicks, hooks, and OVERDRIVER! Cover, Lopez breaks it!
Fans boo but Kelani storms up on Lola. Tag to Roxie but Lola YANKS Kelani into ropes! Roxie keeps Lola from Lopez, brings her back, but Lola spins to KICK Roxie! Tag to Lopez, and Lopez picks Roxie up. Roxie fights free with elbows and sends Lopez into Lola! Then Roxie SHOTGUNS them both! Lopez stays up, but Roxie SOBATS! She hops on for POP ROX! Tag to Kelani and Kelani goes up so that Roxie can DIVE onto Lola! Kelani goes up and up and SPLIT-LEG MOONSAULT! Cover, Kelani & Roxie win!
Winners: Roxanne Perez & Kelani Jordan, by pinfall
Arianna hijacks the announcement from Alicia Taylor, and says that while Roxie & Kelani lucked out tonight, the real winners are all the fans! Because- KARMEN ATTACKS ARIANNA! “Will you shut up already!?” Arianna says she’s so mean! But will The Prodigy & The Princess prove they’re the ones more worthy of a title opportunity than the Breakout Star?
Joe Gacy speaks.
“When it started, it was a whisper. It used to be something I could handle. But as I got older, it got louder. It was like somebody in the back of my ear just constantly yelling at me to the point where I saw nothing but red. And the people around would just look at me and judge me and label me, call me ‘The Weird Guy.’ Some even called me a maniac. But I mean, it’s just me. This is how I was built, this is how I was brought into this world, and then all the people that I surrounded myself with somehow kept the voice so quiet. I barely heard it, but it was still there. And it’s like they were never in a room full of people, and never felt more alone.
“Now, it’s like I’m in my own personal hell, and I don’t even know what to do. But maybe I do. Maybe I do know what to do.” Just what is it that Gacy knows now that he’s all alone?
Ilja Dragunov speaks.
“Last week, I needed to use every gram of energy to dispatch Carmelo Hayes. I could barely put one foot in front of the other, that’s how drained I was from our trilogy. He is a warrior. And all of that felt me in our set of battles. But as I turned the corner, I got dropped by a force last week. Baron Corbin, you saw a little window of opportunity and you took it. But y’know, my eyes are the window to my soul. So take a good look. Because now you are on my radar. We may have met before, but with this title on my shoulder, I’m a different animal. So Baron, if you remember one thing, remember this: The only person who can slay the Dragon is the Dragon himself!”
Corbin watches this message.
Edris Enofe & Malik Blade watch it, too, and so do Hank ‘n’ Tank. That dragon spittin’ fire! Yeah, if they were Corbin, they’d be worried. Corbin chuckles and says that’s why they’ll never be anybody. Corbin may be Mr. NO BS, but is he the one oblivious to what’s coming his way?
Otis w/ The Alpha Academy VS Drew Gulak w/ Charlie Dempsey, Myles Borne & Damon Kemp!
The Meta Four cheated “Cadet” Tozawa and the Philly Stretcher had to pile on. Now The Dozer steps up for his team! Will he run through Gulak and his big mouth? Or will Gulak’s goons help him win like Dar’s did?
NXT returns and Gulak makes his entrance, his crew with him. Hmm, Catchpoint hand sign. The bell rings, Gulak and Otis circle and fans rally behind Otis. Otis and Gulak tie up, Gulak headlocks but Otis powers out. Otis runs Gulak over and shakes those hips! Fans fire up, Gable goes to a corner and Otis taunts him with the hips. The two reset, go again, and Gulak kicks low to headlock. Otis pries free, shimmies and shakes, and he reels Gulak in to short arm LARIAT! Otis brings Gulak up to RAM him with the gut! And again! Fans fire up and Gulak goes to a corner. Otis runs in to RAM Gulak into the corner!
Fans fire up and Otis brings Gulak up. Otis whips corner to corner, runs in but Gulak dodges and Otis POSTS himself! Otis falls to the floor, the Academy is there to coach him, but Gulak lets the ring count climb. Otis rises, he rolls in, but Gulak runs in to UPPERCUT! Gulak then goes out and up the corner, to FLYING LARIAT! Cover, TWO and with authority! Fans fire up as Otis rises, but Gulak wrenches an arm. Gulak drops to TRIANGLE HOLD, but Otis stays up! Gulak shifts, drags him down, and keeps Otis from grabbing the ropes by grabbing both arms! Maxxine coaches Otis and fans rally up as he endures!
Otis fights up, stacks Gulak, TWO! But Otis tries again, TWO as Gulak gets the other arm up. So Otis deadlifts and POWERBOMBS Gulak down! Fans fire up as Otis goes to a corner. Gulak runs in but Otis catches him, BIG back suplex! Gulak flounders away and both men are down. The fans rally, Gable coaches Otis while Gulak’s team coaches him. Otis runs, he busts through the clothesline, and then busts through another! Otis somersaults and stands to POUNCE Gulak! Fans fire up as Otis then WRECKER ELBOWS, and WRECKER ELBOWS, and WRECKER ELBOWS again! Gulak is in a corner and Otis whips him! WRECKER ELBOW in the corner!
DISCUS LARIAT puts Gulak down! And off comes the shirt! The fans are thunderous for the CATERPILLAR ELBOW! Otis drags Gulak up to then POP-UP POWERBOMB!! Cover, Otis wins!
Winner: Otis, by pinfall
The Academy now celebrates as Otis gets the big win! And they all do the Tozawa shuffle! That’s naaaasty! But will things be even wilder next week on the Alpha Academy’s debut on Supernova Sessions?
Kiana James talks with Tiffany Stratton backstage.
Kiana congratulates Tiffany on beating Fallon tonight, and Tiffany thanks her for it. But did Kiana really expect anything else? And now Tiff gets to sit back, relax, and watch as the next four women are determined. And Kiana says one of those spots has her name on it. And they can both agree that they cannot let Roxie win the Iron Survivor Challenge again. This Women’s Division is the hottest in all of WWE thanks to these two. They are carrying this division on their backs! Which is why they can’t let anyone else, new or established, to knock them off their perch. Like Fallon Henley! She doesn’t even deserve to breathe the same air as them.
Or Roxie! Kiana did NOT deserve what Roxie did to her in the Devil’s Playground match. Absolutely! But guess at Deadline, it comes down to the two of them in the end. And Tiffany says we all know who is winning. Kiana says so does she. Kiana heads out, and Tiffany says she actually doesn’t hate Kiana. Are these two mean girls actually bonding over being mean girls? But then who will be the meanest of them all when it comes down to the Deadline?
Wait, Boa is in the background, but we can’t see who it is at this angle. They step forward, and it’s Dante Chen. But with face paint like Boa’s?! These two head off, just what is brewing in the shadows?
NXT checks in with Chase U.
Jacy Jayne paces around while ranting about how she scratched his back but he won’t scratch hers. He thinks he can get away with that? No he will not! But then Tony D’Angelo’s cousins walk in asking for Mr. Chase. Sorry, he’s not here right now. Well, make sure he gets this letter. Who is this from? Oh, he knows exactly who this is from. Okay… Jacy takes a peek, and sees some rather incriminating pictures! But Chase snatches the envelope from her and says, “Seriously, Jacy?!” Jacy says she didn’t do anything. Jacy, opening other people’s mail is illegal! And this is not something she wants to get involved with.
Duke Hudson & Thea Hail walk in and Duke says look at these two, getting along and all. Almost like they’re becoming besties. Thea asks what they were talking about. Jacy says nothing, just how the match went last week. Chase nods and Jacy says good news is, our men’s NXT Tag Team Champions have their first title defense next week. Duke is surprised to hear that but Jacy says it’s the rematch with Tony & Stacks. When was Mr. Chase gonna tell Duke? He was gonna do that right now but it slipped his mind and Jacy beat him to it. Anyway, class dismissed, everyone can go. Yeah, good idea. Time to strategize! That’s why Chase is the professor.
Y-Yeah, that’s why. Thea and Duke head out, and Jacy gives Chase a knowing look. Chase goes to the envelope, and sees the things for himself. Just what kind of dirt does The Don have on The Professor?
Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifier: DIJAK VS Tyler Bate!
Though he is big and strong, Hard Justice isn’t the Big Strong Boi! And while Bate has had all the gold NXT UK had to offer, he still wants THE gold in NXT! Will Bate finally be able to move on from former glory? Or will Dijak feast his eyes on the Deadline?
The bell rings and fans fire up as the two rush in! Bate headlocks, Dijak powers out and Bate RAMS shoulders, but Dijak doesn’t budge! Dijak then DECKS Bate! Fans rally, Dijak grins and he stomps Bate. Dijak stands Bate up in the corner to ROCK him, ELBOW him, and whip him corner to corner. Dijak runs in, blocks boots, but Bate brings Dijak down to KNEE! Bate goes up to FLYING UPPERCUT! Cover, TWO! Dijak catches his breath but Bate headlocks. Fans rally as Bate SMACKS Dijak with a boot! And then again! Dijak crawls, Bate brings him up and around, but Dijak blocks! Dijak fireman’s carries, but Bate fights free!
Bate waistlocks, Dijak switches and whips, but Bate stops himself to ENZIGURI Dijak out of the ring! Bate builds speed and he FLIES! Direct hit and down goes Dijak! Fans fire up as Bate stands and Dijak crawls. Bate runs in, to CROSSBODY, but Dijak catches him this time! Dijak KNEES Bate int he side, then spins to TOSS Bate over the barriers! Fans boo but Dijak grins as NXT goes picture in picture.
Dijak stands, the ref reprimands, but Dijak drags Bate up and over the barriers to dump him down. Dijak drags Bate up, puts him in the ring, and covers, TWO! Dijak pushes Bate down to rain down fists! The ref reprimands, Dijak lets off to cover, TWO! Bate sputters but Dijak stomps him around. Dijak drags Bate up, whips him to ropes, but Bate ducks ‘n’ dodges and UPPERCUTS! Dijak stays up so Bate keeps moving, to UPPERCUT again! And UPPERCUT again! Bate keeps moving, but he blocks a boot, to reel Dijak in and EXPLODER! Both men are down but then Bate kips up! And STANDING SHOOTING STARS! Cover, TWO!
Bate keeps cool and he stalks Dijak to a corner. Dijak goes to the apron, Bate drags Dijak up, and Bate throws hands! Bate climbs up the corner, stands Dijak up and rains down fists. Dijak throws hands in return! Dijak climbs up now, but Bate throws more hands! Bate brings Dijak up to SUPER- NO, Dijak fights to be back on the corner! NXT returns to single picture as Bate tries again, for a STALLING SUPERPLEX!! Fans are thunderous while both men are down! Fans rally, both men sit up, and Bate throws hands. Dijak hits back! Bate fires a flurry, but Dijak ROCKS him with just one! Bate stands to fire more shots!
Dijak fires shots in return, and even more shots! But Bop up, BANG hits! Dijak staggers, Bop up to BANG again! And then Bop up, but Dijak choke grips! HIGH JUSTICE!! Cover, TWO?!? Bate survives and fans rally up. Bate goes to the corner, Dijak runs in to CYCLONE- NO, Bate gets under the boot to fireman’s carry! AIRPLANE SPIN!! Fans fire up as Bate goes around and around and around and around, for TEN! FIFTEEN! TWENTY before the DRIVER! Cover, TWO!! Dijak survives and Bate is beside himself. Fans rally up as Bate and Dijak crawl to ropes. Bate drags himself up while the fans cheer him on.
Dijak wobbles, Bate hobbles, and both men swing, but miss wild from being so dizzy! Dijak and Bate stand up again, Dijak swings wild and almost hits the ref! Bate ROCKS Dijak! Dijak SUPERKICKS Bate! Dijak CYCLONE- NO, Bate dodges, REBOUNDER! Cover, TWO!! Dijak is still in this but Bate drags him up! But Dijak suplexes, TIME TO FLY! Bate ends up in a corner, Dijak storms over and he climbs that corner. Bate is in the drop zone and Dijak reaches the top, but Bate goes up after him! SUPER GERMAN SUPLEX! But Dijak lands on his feet?!? Dijak then CYCLONE BOOTS!! Cover, TWO!!! Bate survives and the fans are thunderous!
“This is Awesome!” while both men are down. Dijak stands, he drags Bate up, and he reels Bate in to the torture rack. FEAST YOUR- NO! Bate lands out! Bate ROCKS Dijak! ROCKS him again! And then reels him in! Underhooks and- NO, Dijak back drops free! Bate lands on his feet to run, and he baits Dijak into the ring. Dijak blocks a boot but Bate again knees him back! Bate goes up to leap, into the torture rack!! FEAST YOUR EYES!! Cover, DIJAK WINS!!
Winner: Dijak, by pinfall (advances to NXT Deadline)
Fans can’t believe it, but the Big Strong Boi falls short! Will Dijak turn the Iron Survivor Challenge into an action movie with him as the big bad boss villain?
Trick Williams pulls into the parking lot!
Trick rolls up in style and he storms into the arena in style, but this isn’t about looking good, this is about looking for the truth! Will Trick get to the bottom of who attacked him? Or does he already know?
More Iron Survivor Challenge qualifiers are on the way!
We saw Mick Foley pick his two match-ups tonight, but there will be even MORE WWE Legends helping make the matches! Jerry “The King” Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield, and the one and only Lita will all be giving their choices in the following weeks! They will be looking over the entire NXT roster, each superstar’s body of work in 2023 as well as their intangible traits to determine who is worthy. And there’s always a chance diamonds in the rough who are hungry for opportunities stands out. Lita is on the clock now, who will she name in her dream match-ups?
Carmelo Hayes is in the ring.
NXT returns and Melo has a mic to cut to the chase. “This thing is bigger than the NXT Championship. This is about my friend, this is about my brother. Trick, come out here, man, let’s talk about it.” And so Trick Williams makes his way out! Fans chant “WHOOP DAT TRICK!” and Booker feels it as Trick also has a mic. Trick takes the sunglasses off to get serious but Melo stops him to say he understands exactly why Trick is upset. Trick got blindsided and the opportunity of a lifetime got taken away from him. Melo understands why Trick is feeling the way he’s feeling. But Trick needs to understand, roadblocks are part of the journey.
Melo wants Trick to look at their own journey. Melo needed someone by his side, who did he call? He called Trick Williams. He put Trick on game, won championship after championship, and shared that glory with Trick, his best friend! Without Trick, there’d be no Melo. So before- But now Trick cuts Melo off! This is exactly why Trick is having such a hard time figuring this whole thing out. Because over the last two years, Trick’s done nothing but put Trick Melo Gang first. Melo’s success has been Trick’s success. Whenever Melo won a championship, Trick was so happy, it was like he won a championship himself.
And he heard all the critiques, took all the beatings on the side, and Trick said that whenever Melo shoots, he don’t miss. Melo nods and says it worked. Because he didn’t miss! They were like Shaq & Kobe, Jordan & Pippin! Whenever Melo won, Trick won. That’s exactly Trick’s point! Whenever Melo won. It’s easy to talk like that when you got the ball, when Melo’s taking all the shots. But what about now? Now that Trick has the ball, now that Trick’s taking all the shots, why can’t Melo be there exactly the same way Trick was there for Melo?
Or better yet, here’s the better question, the question the whole world wants to know, and the question that Trick needs to know. “Melo, did you-” “Did I do what, Trick? Did I believe in you? Yes! Before Trick Williams became the hottest star in NXT, before the Whoop Dat chants, all of that, I was there for you, Trick. Look, man, you need to understand that. I knew you were destined for greatness from the beginning. When the NFL didn’t work out, all of that. Look, man, everything that Cena told you, I told you months ago. I knew you were destined for greatness. I knew that you had the potential to be a once in a lifetime performer.
“So does that answer your question, Trick?” Trick tells Melo he just wants to do his own thing, have his moments, have his main events. Melo had his moments, so why can’t he see that Trick deserves that, too? Melo says that’s why he wants Trick by his side! But Trick says he can’t help but think back on this. He had Melo’s back. When Melo needed him, Trick was there. When Melo needed the fancy entrances, Trick poured his heart and soul into them and made them the bets entrances in all of WWE! But where is Melo when Trick needs him? When he got jumped! When he got attacked! Trick didn’t even see what happened, he just knew Melo wasn’t there!
Melo double checks. Trick didn’t see who it was? No, all Trick knows is that he got hit in the head and went down. When he came to, the refs were beside him, and the only voice he heard was Melo’s. Boom, in the ambulance. Only thing Trick could think of were that his chances at the NXT Championship were gone. No, no, hold on. Let’s run that back. Trick for real didn’t see who attacked him? What is Melo’s mind on right now? Is that all he can think about? Trick got attacked, and here Melo is, talking about wanting this, wanting that, Melo chooses this. But look where they at, Trick! EXACTLY! So let’s clear all the ice and address the elephant in the room.
Trick asks Melo, “Did you attack me?” Fans seem convinced, but Melo takes his time. Trick wants the truth? Yes. But wait! Lexis King makes his way out here? “Well, well, well. Ladies and gentlemen, we have quite the paradox here, don’t we? We got the friend who was brutally assaulted. And the first man at the scene of the crime was his best friend. Am I wrong, Melo?” Melo says he knows King is new here and all, but do us a favor and shut up and mind your own business! Fans cheer that. Trick says real talk, this isn’t King’s business, so mind your mouth while grown folks is talking. Fans cheer that, too!
King tells everyone to relax. He is just trying to help get to the bottom of this. And seems to him like everyone knows who did it. Don’t they? Though, it could’ve been someone else. Someone new, someone trying to make an impact. Someone dark and dirty like you’ve never seen! Someone with a mind so twisted, his thoughts so unclean… Now ask yourselves, are you sure that it was Melo that assaulted Trick? Trick said it before, get on out while grown folks is talking. King wants Trick to say it! He wants Trick to say what everyone here is thinking! Trick has been sucking his thumb for weeks, and- Trick takes a swing on King! But King ducks and Trick DECKS Melo!!
King gets away and everyone is stunned! Trick is furious with King, he wants to help Melo up, but Melo slaps Trick’s hand away. Trick still offers, and Melo accepts the second time. Trick Melo Gang still stands together, but Melo still scowls. Is he mad at King? At Trick? At himself? Or D, all of the above?
My Thoughts:
A great NXT to get things going towards Deadline. I like that we’re getting Hall of Famers to “book” the qualifiers, and I’m also okay with not having it in a roundtable discussion format. Less talking to get to the point of great match-ups, which we definitely got tonight. Tiffany VS Fallon was a great match to “make up” for the no contest last time, but I figured Tiffany was going to win that. And great promo from Tiffany and Kiana to plug Kiana as a potential choice. Though I’d love if they made Kiana sweat and have her be one of the last chosen. And Dijak VS Bate was awesome stuff, great main event match, and what a surprise that Dijak won!
Also I love NXT using the same Easter egg “watch the background” stuff during Tiffany and Kiana talking. Boa has now brought Chen into the same spookiness as before, I really hope this means Tian Sha returns soon. Which in some relation, Xia Li being here to go after the NXT Women’s Championship is also a nice surprise. Xia may be feuding with Becky on Raw but she also still wants the title she felt Becky let go on purpose. Great knockout on that big security guard, and Xia VS Lyra is going to be great stuff for Deadline. And at the same time, Xia is that kind of opponent that could do a lot of damage even though she loses, and then Lola Vice tries to MITB that title off Lyra.
Really good group promo from the various female superstars tonight, with everyone getting something to say. Great match of Lola & Lopez VS Roxie & Kelani, and great win for Roxie & Kelani. Also, great bit of Arianna being a somewhat two-faced Heel, trying to hog the spotlight while giving backhanded comments to the others, only for Karmen to call her out on it and go after her for it. Karmen VS Arianna will be really good stuff, and could even be part of the Iron Survivor Challenge qualifiers. And good promo from Joe Gacy here. NXT Stand & Deliver Philly should be Joe Gacy VS his intrusive thoughts in a cinematic match.
Great Heritage Cup match to open the night, but of course Tozawa lost because duh, that dang Meta Four is always gonna get in the way. They’ve all learned well from the Roman Reigns Bloodline strategy books. I don’t know who is gonna take that cup away from Dar, but they might just need to be someone gigantic and with the strength to win by knockout. Hell, make it Von. Von may have lost to Bron in a really good match, but he got the last laugh tonight putting Bron through the table. And while Robert Stone isn’t enough to counter all of Meta Four, maybe, just maybe, the Robert Stone Brand can rebuild. Or also continuity with how Maxxine used to be Sophia and she could help out.
Good promo from the Alpha Academy and Gulak’s Not Catchpoint, and really fun match of Otis VS Gulak. Otis is also a possibility since he’s a big man who could literally squash Dar to get a pinfall, and maybe even make it so Dar is deemed unable to continue because he got squashed that badly. At the same time, that seems kinda mean since Otis would just be another RawDown star winning an NXT prize. Corbin had some good promos with Wes Lee and then the other tag team guys, but Dragunov’s promo was great. Dragunov VS Corbin is going to be great but yeah, Dragunov definitely wins to retain.
And what great use of the whodunnit story tonight. Melo defended his side, but McKenzie was fishing for clues. Was Melo really trying to deflect things onto Cena with the whole “Trick couldn’t see the attacker” line? That seems like a silly move. But Lexis King joining this story is a nice little detail. And that look on Melo’s face after getting hit by Trick, that’s very telling in its own way. I said last week that I’d like for Melo VS Trick to happen separate of the Iron Survivor Challenge, so I guess we’ll have to see what happens these next few weeks.
My Score: 8.8/10
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Everyone is showing raw emotion!
The New Day’s no longer positive, Drew McIntyre’s back for revenge, and Rhea Ripley battles Raquel Rodriguez, all on one Monday Night Raw!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- 8 Man Tag: The Miz & The Final Testament VS The Wyatt Sick6; The Miz & Final Testament win.
- Dakota Kai VS Liv Morgan; Liv wins.
- WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament Opening Round Triple Threat: Lyra Valkyria VS Zelina Vega VS Ivy Nile; Lyra wins and advances to the next round.
- Anything Goes: Rhea Ripley VS Raquel Rodriguez; Rhea wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
The New Day arrives backstage.
Xavier Woods wants high-fives, but no one is accepting. Kofi Kingston says hey to Natalya & The Alpha Academy, but they don’t return it. Their verbal shaming of Big E isn’t sitting well with anyone, will Woods & Kofi figure out who’s really in the wrong here?
Gunther is here!
Wichita, Kansas is a little torn as Der Ring General heads to the ring, dressed rather casually compared to other times, but he seems to have gotten over those multiple Coup de Grace double stomps from last week. Gunther grabs a mic, smiles as the fans both cheer and jeer, and he says, “As everybody has seen, quite obviously Finn Balor has made a grave mistake. And whether he deserves it or not, he now has my undivided attention. And I guarantee you right now, Saturday Night’s Main Event will not end up like Survivor Series for me.” But before he can continue, The Prince makes his way out here!
Finn, accompanied by The Judgment Day, also gets a mixed reaction from Wichita. But Finn tells Gunther that Gunther could’ve just given him the title match like he deserved. But instead, Gunther tried to mess with Finn by giving it to someone who didn’t deserve it, like Dirty Dom. The fans boo more but Finn says let’s be real! Finn is the only reason Gunther is still World Heavyweight Champion! And hearing what he said, Gunther is right about one thing: SNME will be NOTHING like Survivor Series. Because at Survivor Series, Gunther retained the title thanks to Finn. And at SNME, Gunther loses the title because of Finn!
And after eight long YEARS, Finn Balor walks out as the NEW World Heavyweight Champion! The Judgment Day applauds but the fans boo. Gunther tells Finn he’ll set one thing straight: Finn did NOT earn his title match. Finn’s audacity of claiming any responsibility of GUNTHER being champion is what did it. But Gunther gets it, Finn is frustrated. Eight years ago, Finn was the first-ever Universal Champion. And at that point in Gunther’s career, he looked up to Finn. Gunther respected Finn. But over the time, that respect kept fading and fading. Not because Gunther chose to, but because Finn chose to cut corners.
Finn chose to take shortcuts! Finn chose to hang out with a bunch of weirdos in a clubhouse! The fans cheer that but Gunther also adds that Finn chose to play second fiddle to Damian Priest. Finn gets heated, JD McDonagh keeps him back, and Gunther says, “So here we are now. Standing across from each other with no respect left. And I figuratively and literally am looking down on you. Eight years ago, you were the best in the world… for one night. I am the best in the world RIGHT NOW and for THOUSANDS of days to come! And this title proves it!!” The fans do cheer that.
Gunther tells Finn there is one reason he won’t leave Saturday as World Heavyweight Champion: Finn is NOT on Gunther’s level, and he never will be! Finn chuckles, and then The Judgment Day storms up to the ring! Gunther stands his ground, but here comes Damian Priest! Finn and his boys are shocked that The Punisher is storming down the ramp! Priest DOUBLE LARIATS JD & Carlito, KICKS and THROWS Dom aside, then fires hands on Finn! The fans fire up as Priest then THROWS Carlito down, then gives JD SNAKE EYES off railing! Finn goes after Priest now, and he sends Priest at the ring. Priest stops himself and fires hands on Finn
Priest puts Finn in the ring, and Gunther is there to CHOP him down! Priest SUPERKICKS Finn out of the ring! But then Gunther LARIATS Priest! The fans are torn as Gunther rains down fists on Priest, the guy who tried to help him! Gunther says he does not need help, and he TOSSES Priest out! Gunther storms out, clears off the desk, and now the fans are really fired up! Gunther brings Priest over, but Finn SLINGBLADES Gunther down! The Prince ends up saving Priest and he DROPKICKS Gunther into steel steps! But then Finn SMACKS Priest off the desk! Finn puts Priest in, climbs a corner, just to COUP DE GRACE Gunther!!
Judgment Day rushes Priest but he TOSSES Dom, throws JD into Carlito, then gives JD a FLAPJACK! SUPERKICK for Carlito! Dom throws hands, but Pries tis just pissed. Finn CLOBBERS Gunther on the outside, then hurries into the ring to save Dom! FINAL CUT! The Judgment Day mugs Priest now while fans boo. The boys set Priest up and Finn runs in, SHOTGUN! Priest hits buckles and falls! Judgment Day mugs Priest more while Finn goes up! COUP DE GRACE for Priest!! Finn wants more, his boys set Priest back up, COUP DE GRACE!! The fans boo even harder, but Finn wants another! Finn hits a third COUP DE GRACE on Priest!!
Wichita boos but Finn eyes the world title. Finn grins as he picks it up. Will Finn be a DOUBLE CHAMPION after Saturday Night’s Main Event? Or can Der Ring General stand against all of Judgment Day?
Judgment Day regroups backstage.
They’re all very excited after taking Gunther and Priest at the same time, and in steps Adam Pearce. He has to hand it to them. Another Monday, another night Judgment Day is causing chaos. But he is here as a courtesy to Finn. Pearce spoke with Gunther, and that conversation has brought about a change to Saturday Night’s Main Event. Huh? It will be Gunther VS Finn… VS PRIEST!! Finn is furious but then he says fine. Because it’ll make it even more satisfying when Finn beats both Gunther and Priest to become the NEW World Heavyweight Champion! The Judgment Day agrees, but Pearce has something else to say.
Since Finn is so worried about the other champions, here’s an opportunity to lead by example. Next week on Raw, Finn & JD will face the War Raiders again, for the tag titles again, and the best part? The rest of Judgment Day is BANNED FROM RINGSIDE! Pearce leaves, Judgment Day is furious, but the Liv says Finn should relax. He’s got everything under control. Though, she was wondering if Finn’s got any advice for Raquel’s match tonight. They wanna listen to Finn so they’ll win. Finn says yeah, Sis, just give him a couple minutes. Finn heads out, JD follows, and Liv says she feels good about tonight. Will Judgment Day be (not) fine?
8 Man Tag: The Miz & The Final Testament VS The Wyatt Sick6!
The Hollywood A-Lister’s sins came back to haunt him, but he aligned himself with men who are without conscience. But will any of them be conscious after facing Uncle Howdy and the new Wyatt Family? Or will Kross make Bo Dallas #FallAndPray?
The fans fire up for the Wyatts, and Bo talks to the rocking chair to say this is for the family. Then with a “Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah~!” Bo and the Wyatts rush the ring! The fans fire up as the brawl is on and the bell rings! Lumis scares Miz and slithers after him while Gacy has Akam, Rowan has Rezar and Bo of course goes after Kross! The Wyatts manage to LARIAT the AOP up and out of the ring, then Bo CLOBBERS Kross! Bo clinches but Miz drags Kross out to safety! The Final Testament regroups while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Akam has Gacy down. The fans boo, Miz soaks it up, and Rezar tags in. AOP double whip to DOUBLE SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! The fans rally but Rezar DRIBBLES Gacy’s face off the mat! Rezar then drags Gacy up, fires body shots, then talks trash. Rezar whips Gacy but Gacy BLASTS Kross! Gacy BOOTS Rezar, heads for his corner, but Rezar whips! But Gacy handsprings and comes back from THE UPSIDE-DOWN! The fans fire up while both men crawl, hot tags to Miz and Rowan! Big Red, the Ramblin’ Rabbit, rallies on Miz AND Akam! Then LARIAT in the corner for Miz, LARIAT in the corner for Akam!
Rowan runs back at Miz, but Miz BOOTS him! Miz runs but Rowan grabs him and TOSSES him! Miz lands hard out by Akam, and Rowan builds speed!? Rowan WRECKS Akam and Miz with a dropkick! The fans fire up as Rowan puts Miz in, and he BOOTS Akam! The fans fire up and Rowan slides in. Miz KICKS Rowan, but that just pisses Rowan off! Rowan suplexes for the CUTTER! Cover, AOP breaks it! AOP BLAST The Wyatts, then they hoist Rowan up! DOUBLE POWERBOMB!! But Gacy & Lumis get in to fire hands! They dodge, DROPKICK and SUPERKICK in stereo! Then Lumis whips Gacy so he can DIVE onto AOP!
Lumis goes up, Gacy sets AOP for the CANNONBALL! All four men are down and Miz is freaking out! Rowan crawls, hot tag to Howdy! Bo CLOBBERS Miz, then LARIATS in a corner! Bo reels Miz in, suplexes, and puts Miz on ropes for the MAGIC SCREW! The fans are thunderous and Bo waits on Miz. Miz rises up, scrambles to ropes, and he throws an elbow! Kross tags in, but Bo ROCKS Kross first! Bo LARIATS Kross up and out! The fans fire up for Bo, he builds speed, but Scarlett trips him up! The fans boo as the Femme Fatale gets away with that one. Or does she? NIKKI CRSS creeps out from nowhere, and she creeps Scarlett out!
Nikki waves, Scarlett runs away but into the ring! The ref tells her to get out, which she does, but Nikki is there on the other side! FLYING THESZ PRESS! Bo clinches Kross, but Miz CLOBBERS him! The fans boo but Miz thinks he’s got him> Bo GRABS Miz with the MANDIBLE CLAW!! Miz flails desperately, but PAUL ELLERING is back! POCKET SAND!! Kross scoops Bo for the FINAL PRAYER! Cover, Final Testament wins!
Winners: The Final Testament, by pinfall
That mastermind, Ellering, returns when Kross needed him most! But is this only the first battle in a war with the Wyatts?
Sit-down interview with CM Punk.
Jackie Redmond is with the Second City Saint and thanks him for taking the time. He thanks her for inviting him, he appreciates it. Punk then teases if she’s going to belittle his Chicago Blackhawks, she’s in for a fight. Jackie says no, she’ll be asking something much more important. It is all anyone’s talking about, anyway: the promised favor from Paul Heyman! What is it? Can he hint anything about it? No, this isn’t the right time for that. That’s a personal thing. Punk and Heyman go back many years, the favor is between them.
Jackie accepts that and then asks about Seth Rollins. Last week, Punk let Rollins know that Punk doesn’t think about Rollins at all, but Rollins made it clear that he has his sights set on Punk. Rollins is willing to force the issue, so how will Punk handle it? Punk says it is no secret that he doesn’t shy away from a fight. If you go after him, he’ll start swinging. But when it comes to Rollins’ hatred for Punk, Punk is more confused than anything. Punk doesn’t hate Rollins. To understand, you have to talk about the history between them, which also goes back years.
We’re talking about a 16-year-old Seth Rollins coming to Punk to ask Punk to train him, for free. Now, that’s the key part everyone leaves out. Rollins’ entitlement gets carried over into adult Rollins, who wants to be the best in the world, in everyone’s Top Ten List. But Punk remembers when Rollins was on the top ten list of those to be fired from here. Punk “shielded” Rollins from that. If Punk had to live in his shadow, Punk would hate Punk, too. Rollins is a multiple time world champion, a Mr. Money in the Bank winner, but everything he’s done, Punk did before and did it better.
Now, Punk doesn’t claim to do those things because he wanted a thank you. He did recognize Rollins had all the potential in the world. And in Punk’s absence from the WWE, Rollins did a fantastic job filling to void. But simply put, the starting player is back, Rollins has to go back to the bench. Jackie appreciates the honesty, and thanks Punk for his time. But is Punk really telling the truth that he doesn’t hate Rollins with how he just talked down about him? Will Rollins’ hate for Punk only grow exponentially now?
Dakota Kai VS Liv Morgan!
#CobraKai is already into the second round of the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship tournament, but she could capture a golden ticket off of the Women’s WORLD Champion here in Wichita. Will Damage CTRL be doing damage to Judgment Day for the holidays? Or will Liv simply use Kai to prepare for Iyo Sky?
The bell rings, Liv runs up and the two tie up. Dakota headlocks, but Liv pulls hair to get free! Liv shoves, drops down, but Dakota stops herself. Dakota bypasses Liv, then hurdles. Liv jumps over, comes back, but Dakota arm-drags her around and around! Dakota snapmares Liv to then NECK SNAPPER! Jackknife bridge, TWO!! Liv escapes and scurries away to a corner. Dakota runs up but Liv TOSSES her up and out! Dakota SMACKS off steps before hitting the floor, and Liv grins while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Liv SLAMS Dakota down! Dakota writhes but Liv kicks her around. Wait, Pure Fusion Collective make their way out here? They must be upset on Shayna Baszler’s behalf for how Dakota won that Triple Threat. Anyway, Liv hits a snap suplex, then rolls, that was Una Amiga! Now she hits Dos Amigas! And then Liv gives some Latina Heat for Daddy Dom, but Dakota hits a suplex first! The fans fire up while Liv flounders away. Liv runs back up but Dakota ROCKS her first! And again, and again, and again! Liv shoves Dakota, but Dakota LARIATS! And LARIATS! Then DROPKICKS! The fans fire up with Dakota as she goes after Liv!
Dakota whips Liv corner to corner hard, and Liv sits down! Dakota then runs side to side to BOOT WASH! Liv flounders to the apron but Dakota puts her in ropes, DRAPING STOMP! Cover, TWO! Liv survives and now Dakota notices PFC. They wave mockingly and also mockingly coach her. Dakota fireman’s carries Liv, but Liv slips free to shove! Dakota comes back with a SCORPION KICK! Dakota runs, Zoey is there, so Dakota BOOTS her! And PERNALTY KICKS Shayna! The ref tells PFC to back up, but Liv runs up! Dakota avoids ObLivion, rolls Liv up, TWO! Liv dodges a kick to hit a CODE BREAKER!
Dakota staggers to a corner, Liv runs up, SHINING WIZARD! Liv kicks Dakota out, then goes up, FLYING- POWERBOMB!! The fans fire up but Sonya gets on the apron! Dakota BOOTS her down! Dakota runs Around the World, but Liv dodges the boot! Dakota hobbles, Liv runs up, OBLIVION!! Cover, Liv wins!
Winner: Liv Morgan, by pinfall
The Women’s World Champion snatches her belt and leaves, but PFC goes after Dakota! They really ARE upset over last week’s Triple Threat! They mug Dakota, then drag her up. But wait, here comes DMG CTRL! Iyo Sky RAMS Shayna, Kairi drags Sonya out! URAKEN for Sonya! Zoey & Shayna dodge the handspring, but Iyo comes back to DOUBLE SHOTGUN! Iyo kips up while Wichita fires up, and Kairi joins in! Iyo gives Kairi a hand to go up, up and AWAY! TRIPLE CROSSBODY!! PFC goes down, the fans fire up more, but then Iyo turns around into OBLIVION!! Liv gets the final shot on the Evil Genius, will this be how things go at Saturday Night’s Main Event?
Drew McIntyre speaks.
“Hell in a Cell was the most violent match of my 24-year career. And in the end, I succumbed to massive blood loss. I could’ve been at Raw post Bad Blood, against doctor’s orders. I proved time and time again The Scottish Warrior isn’t just a catchy nickname, it is earned. But I had to go back to Scotland. My family needed me. 2024 should’ve been a career year for Drew McIntyre, but time and time again, I kept getting screwed over at the finish line. While I was home in Scotland, that same thought kept going through my head, burning in my brain. ‘What if I’m wrong? What if everyone else was right? What if people truly can change? What if my gut was wrong?’
“Then I turned on Survivor Series and I saw Roman Reigns standing side by side with CM Punk. Who was by their side? Sami, Jimmy, Jey, with their stupid fingers in the air. After everything they know, Roman just snaps his fingers, they put their tails between their legs, they run right by his side? At least CM Punk took a bribe! They all sold out for absolutely nothing. That’s when it was clear, that’s when I knew I had to come back. That’s when I knew I was gonna take out Sami. That’s when I knew I was gonna take out Jey Uso. Spending time back home, I realized there’s no changing the past, no matter how much I want to.
“But I can change the present. And I will change the future.” The Scottish Terminator has new targets, or perhaps old depending on how you look at it. But will there be no running for Jey and Sami now that McIntyre’s making it his mission to destroy them?
Adam Pearce exits his office, with Cody Rhodes!
The Raw General Manager shakes hands with the Undisputed WWE Champion, and then The New Day walk by. They see the American Nightmare, and Cody says he’s known them both for a very long time. Cody and Woods have even known each other since they were kids. Cody says they should be ashamed of themselves. Woods laughs that off and says good coming from that guy, like he was so good in high school. The New Day continues on, who else will the find disapproves of this new attitude?
Seth Rollins is here!
Wichita sings for The Visionary, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” while he goes to the ring. Rollins grabs a mic and welcomes Wichita to Monday Night Rollins~! And he is your host tonight! He is a Visionary, he is a Revolutionary, he IS Seth FREAKIN’ Rollins! And there’s a lot to talk about tonight. Wichita, give it up for CM Punk, huh? The fans are torn but Rollins tells “Punker,” when you’re done in the ring, Punk can be a politician! That right there earlier tonight, that was a master class in how to spin the truth. Take a little bit of the truth, play the victim, and Punk’s been doing that his entire life!
Rollins says Punk is a fraud, a conman, and Rollins will share the truth between them. Punk was right, Rollins did go to get trained by The Best in the World, no doubt about it. Rollins looked up to Punk, idolized him, and Punk helped Rollins get his foot in the door here in the WWE. Rollins respected Punk, and they were once friends. And if the story ended there, you might wonder, too: Why does Rollins hate Punk? The part of Punk’s story that he left out will tell you why. When Punk walked out the door of WWE eleven years ago, Rollins called and texted as a friend and how he respected what Punk stood for.
What’d Rollins get in return? Nothing! Rollins got ghosted! And not just Rollins, it was everyone who was a friend of Punk’s here in WWE! Because if you didn’t quit your dream job, and your priorities didn’t line up with Team CM Punk, then you were evil. And if the story ended there, okay. But that’s not what happened! Because for the next ten years, all Punk ever tried to do was tear WWE down! That’s all he did! Punk talked crap, took pot shots, and when Punk finally walked back in here, do you know why that was? Because Punk FAILED at everything else, burned every single bridge that would lead him to water, and… the money was right.
The fans are still torn, but plenty of fans still chant “CM PUNK! CM PUNK!” Rollins says yeah, once upon a time, he used to chant for Punk, too. He used to respect Punk, used to want to be just like Punk, follow in his footsteps. But somewhere along the way, Rollins realized Punk was a fraud and that he wanted to be BETTER than Punk! And Rollins was! Everything Punk did, Rollins did it TWICE! And he did the one thing Punk could never do, and that was main event WrestleMania! But wait, here comes Sami Zayn! Rollins tells Sami to stay outta this but the fans cheer Sami on as he goes right down to the ring.
Sami steps in with a mic in hand, and Rollins says if Sami is out here to defend Punk again, then they’re gonna be fighting again. Rollins does not wanna hear it, he has no time for it. Sami says last week, Rollins was angry, Sami was angry, they said some things and had it out in the ring. That’s bound to happen when they’ve known each other for as long as they have. But it was wrong of Sami to assume Rollins dropped Jey. Sami’s known Rollins long enough so he was wrong, and for that, he is sorry. The fans cheer the apology, and Rollins says he is glad Sami brought that up.
Because the thing that’s been eating Rollins up is, as far back as they go, 20 YEARS, and their kids play together, they’re tight! But when Jey went down, Rollins was the first person Sami thought of! And Rollins wants to know why. Well there is a reason! The way Rollins was talking, he was outta his mind! No, go back and watch. Rollins wasn’t talking like Rollins, he wasn’t like the guy Sami’s known those 20 years. Rollins was being someone who points his fingers at everyone else, that blames everyone else, and acts like they’re the only person with moral clarity. He wasn’t being Seth Rollins, he was being Drew McIntyre!
Rollins stares Sami down and says, “I am not Drew McIntyre.” Sami says he knows that, because Rollins is a better person. But this thing with Rollins and Punk, it is bringing out the worst in Rollins. And maybe Sami shouldn’t have gotten involved. Sami saw a guy he’s known forever and a guy he’d just gone to war with, they were fighting, and Sami got involved when he shouldn’t have. That is why he is here. Sami has to tell Rollins that this thing with Punk is worse than Sami thought possible, so Sami will let Rollins deal with it however he wants. Rollins thanks Sami for that, that is all Rollins has wanted.
Okay, so what about them? Are Sami and Rollins good? The fans chant “HUG IT OUT! HUG IT OUT!” Rollins says, “Yeah, Sami, we’re good, man.” Rollins appreciates Sami letting him handle things with Punk, and notes it seems Sami has something with Drew. Rollins heads out, and Sami says yeah, that’s good advice. Sami will handle things with Drew! Sami says this thing with Drew, they won’t run it back like before. Sami won’t listen to Drew coming out here, week after week, talking about everyone else is wrong and he is wrong and is some martyr. Sami’s gonna end this as quickly as it started, so this is how it goes!
Sami has already spoken with Adam Pearce. The fans cheer that! Sami says Saturday Night’s Main Event, Sami VS Drew, and Sami will see Drew in Long Island!! The fans fire up as SNME just gets that much bigger. Sami heads out, but then McIntyre CLOBBERS Sami on the stage!! The fans boo, producers and refs rush out, and they have to drag McIntyre off of Sami. McIntyre grins and says okay, he’s done with Sami, for now. Will McIntyre put Sami out of action like he did to Jey last week? Or can Sami stop the Scottish Terminator before he gets started?
WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament Opening Round Triple Threat: Lyra Valkyria VS Zelina Vega VS Ivy Nile!
Another spot in the semifinals awaits, and we’ll see The Morrigan, La Muneca & The Diamond Pitbull battle it out! Will Lyra fly on to the second round? Will the LWO have the Queen of the Ring representing them? Or will this tournament soon be American Made?
The bell rings and Zelina SHOTGUNS Ivy! Lyra rolls Zelina, TWO! Zelina and Lyra clinch, Lyra whips, but Zelina leaps to FACE SMASH! Then BASEMENT HEEL KCIK! The fans fire up and Zelina dials it up, 619! Lyra flops back but Ivy YANKS Zelina down! Ivy runs up, whips Lyra, then tilt-o-whirl POWERSLAMS! Cover, TWO! Ivy stomps away on Lyra, then stands on her face! The fans boo and the ref reprimands while Raw goes to break
Raw returns and Lyra rallies the fans before she builds speed. Lyra WRECKS Ivy and Zelina with one dropkick! Lyra puts Ivy in, brings her around, and then runs up a corner! TORNADO DDT! Then a roll through to fisherman and BUSTER! Cover, TWO! Ivy stays in this but Lyra stays on Ivy. Lyra fireman’s carries, but Ivy fights around to an ARMBAR TAKEDOWN! Ivy clasps hands and fights around, and she rolls back, but into a DISARM-HER! Ivy references The Man but Lyra rolls Ivy, TWO! Ivy lets go and runs up, but Lyra sunset flips! ONE, and Ivy jackknife bridges! ONE as Lyra rolls and rolls, but Zelina is up top! SWANTON BOMB!!
Zelina covers Ivy, TWO!! A cover on Lyra, TWO!! Zelina is annoyed but she builds speed to SLIDING SUNSET BOMB! A shoutout to Rey Mysterio and Zelina hurries up top. Zelina climbs up and the fans rally for the FLYING METEORA! Cover, Ivy BOOTS it apart! The fans boo but Ivy throws Zelina to a corner. Zelina BOOTS Ivy, goes up, and CROSSBODIES! Ivy catches Zelina for a SWINGING SIDE SLAM! Cover, Lyra breaks it! The fans fire up and all three women are down! The fans rally, Ivy drags Lyra up to waistlock, GERMAN SUPLEX! Ivy holds on, Lyra scrambles around, and Lyra grabs Zelina! Ivy DOUBLE GERMAN SUPLEXES!
Bridging cover on Lyra, TWO!! Lyra stays in this but Ivy stays on her! Lyra fights #SuplexIvy to switch, but Ivy switches for a BIG back suplex! Cover, TWO! Lyra stays in this, but Zelina hops on! CODE RED for Ivy! Cover, Lyra breaks it again! Lyra hurries to get Ivy up, fireman’s carries, and hits the NIGHTWING DRIVER! Cover, LYRA WINS!
Winner: Lyra Valkyria, by pinfall (advances to the next round)
The Morrigan finds her opening, and now she’s flying back to a “shiny shiny!” But the next match will have Alba Fyre VS Kairi Sane VS Natalya, who wins that Triple Threat to meet Lyra in the semifinals?
Rhea Ripley prepares backstage.
Priest finds her, and he simply tells her, “Eradicate.” They fist bump and Priest heads out. Will Rhea do exactly that when she and Raquel Rodriguez go Anything Goes?
Backstage interview with The New Day.
Cathy Kelley is with Woods & Kofi and brings up last week’s celebration becoming anything but “don’t you dare be sour,” the very phrase they coined ten years ago. What was the intention behind them berating their longtime friend, Big E? Kofi says hold on, she is supposed to be neutral, why is she asking a question like that? Woods says Cathy is cleary biased, so they’re going to go talk to the people they need to, and that’s the fans. Can’t he just answer the question? Woods says no, Cathy, please. Now hand Woods the camera. What? Woods doesn’t care if John Cena’s his best friend, the cameraman is gonna hand it over!
Woods takes the camera from this guy, then he and Kofi head on through the backstage area and towards gorilla. The fans can be heard booing as they do, and The New Day make their entrance without music or fanfare. The fans instead chant “NEW! DAY SUCKS! NEW! DAY SUCKS!” Woods asks, “What’d we do?” Kofi and Woods go into the ring, we get a different camera perspective while they get mics. Kofi says no no no no no, but the fans just boo more. “You mean to tell me… after the ten years of positivity that Woods and I have given you, you mean to tell me you’re this mad, all from one day?”
The fans boo and give thumbs down, but Woods says that New Day came out here… The fans chant “We Want Big E! We Want Big E!” and “NEW! DAY SUCKS! NEW! DAY SUCKS!” Woods says they didn’t even do anything to Big E! The fans boo because yes they did! Kofi says they could’ve hit Big E with a steel chair! They could’ve hit him with a sledgehammer! The fans chant for Big E more, and Woods says, “Y’know what? We were gonna try to come out here and talk…” The fans boo more so New Day just gives up and drops their mics. New Day leaves, acting like they’re somehow NOT in the wrong, but will someone get it through their heads what they did?
Anything Goes: Rhea Ripley VS Raquel Rodriguez!
After weeks of being this close to getting even with Liv Morgan, and yet being so far from revenge because of Big Mami Cool, these two finally have it out 1v1! No disqualifications, no count outs, no holding these two back from what they really wanna do to each other! Who will be the Top Mami after tonight?
Raw returns and Raquel makes her entrance. But Rhea goes after her at the ramp! Rhea fires hands, then she whips Raquel into barriers! The fans fire up as this match is happening in front of them, and Raquel sends Rhea into the railing! And then the barriers! Then she CLUBS away! Rhea hits back, they brawl, and Rhea SMACKS Raquel off a trash can! The fans fire up but Rhea has them move aside. Rhea makes Raquel take a seat so she can CHOP and CHOP and CHOP! Rhea then runs and TOSSES Raquel over the barriers! We’re finally ringside and Rhea CHUCKS a trash can at Raquel! The trash flies everywhere while Rhea storms up on Raquel.
Rhea puts Raquel in the ring, where a lot of items are already waiting! Rhea gathered those during commercial it seems, and Rhea hits a FACE SMASH then LARAIT! Raquel stays up, so Rhea SMACKS her with a kendo stick! Raquel falls, and Rhea SMACKS her again! Raquel grabs the stick, throws Rhea to a corner, but Rhea BOOTS in return! Rhea goes up, up and MISSILE DROPKICKS! Down goes Raquel and the fans fire up! Raquel tumbles out, Rhea builds speed and WRECKS her with a dropkick! The fans fire up with Rhea, and she looks under the ring. Rhea brings out a TABLE! The fans love it!
But then Raquel RAMS Rhea into the post! Raquel scoops Rhea, to FALL AWAY SLAM her onto the desk! Rhea tumbles, Wade Barrett & Joe Tessitore get clear, and Raquel roars while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Rhea DOUBLE BOOTS Raquel! Both women are down and Wichita fires up! Rhea and Raquel rise, Rhea wrenches Raquel to short arm LARIAT! And then ROUNDHOUSE! Rhea grabs a chair, tosses it to Raquel, then DROPKICKS the chair into her! The fans fire up and Rhea runs, but into a KNEE! Raquel hoists Rhea up, ALLEY-OOP into buckles! Cover, TWO! Rhea stays in this but Raquel is furious! Fans want tables but Raquel sets up a chair. Raquel gut wrenches Rhea but Rhea slips free! Rhea gets around, and atomic FACEBUSTERS Raquel off the chair! Then Rhea SMACKS Raquel with another chair! Cover, TWO!
Rhea is seething and she piles chairs together. Rhea hauls Raquel up, pump handles, but here comes Liv! Liv taunts Rhea, Rhea runs up to TOSS Liv into the ring! Liv flounders, almost hitting those chairs on that landing! But Raquel CLOBBERS Rhea! Raquel decides to use that chair pile herself! Scoop and SLAM onto the chairs! Cover, TWO!! Rhea survives but Raquel sits a chair up upside-down! Raquel aims Rhea at the chair legs, but Rhea slips free! Rhea HEADBUTTS Raquel! Then she pump handles, but Liv jumps on for a SLEEPER! Liv thrashes but Rhea THROWS her down! Rhea runs up and tells Liv that she’s gonna pay!
Raquel runs up but Rhea SUPERKICKS her! But Liv gets Rhea into OBLIVION!! But wait, Iyo Sky is here! Payback with a MISSILE DROPKICK! The fans fire up as Iyo kips up! Iyo then builds speed and DIVES! Down goes Liv! But Raquel covers Rhea! TWO!! Rhea survives again but Raquel brings that table up! The fans are torn because they like the table but the want Rhea to rise up! Raquel hoists Rhea up, but Rhea slips free again! Raquel runs up, but is sent into a CORNER CHAIR!! Rhea then hauls Raquel up, pump handles, and RIPTIDE through the table!!! Cover, Rhea wins!!
Winner: Rhea Ripley, by pinfall
That was brutal to be sure, but Rhea grins as she gets one over on Raquel. Rhea spots the world title, but so does Iyo. They both grab it, then stare down with each other. With Iyo facing Liv this Saturday, could the Evil Genius be leaving Long Island the NEW Women’s World Champion, and Rhea’s new target?
My Thoughts:
A great Raw tonight, especially as the go-home to Saturday Night’s Main Event. There were also more hints at this WWE Transfer Window, with Tiffany Stratton in the background as Rollins was on his way to gorilla, and then Cody Rhodes having his moment with Adam Pearce and The New Day. As I said for SmackDown, this is clearly Netflix wanting THE Undisputed WWE Championship on Raw, and we’ll basically get a direct trade of Cody for Gunther. But speaking of The New Day, brilliant stuff out of them. They’re Heels who don’t realize they’re Heels, but everyone else does, and that is definitely something special for this next chapter of The New Day’s careers.
Great 8 Man Tag from Wyatts and Final Testa-Miz, but it got overbooked real quick. Scarlett was a given, as was Nikki Cross, but I did NOT see Ellering showing up and throwing that HUGE amount of sand or powder. I do commend them for this, as cheating was really the only way anyone was gonna beat The Wyatts. I hope the rematch lets them let loose with a No Disqualification stipulation, maybe even something rather Bray Wyatt in style. Though at the same time, we’re almost at Christmas so they could do like, a Nightmare Before Christmas match so that it’ll be themed for the holidays, but also spooky for The Wyatts.
Great promo from McIntyre to help us understand it really was him who attacked Jey Uso, and to quickly establish he and Sami are gonna fight it out. Great promos from CM Punk, Seth Rollins and Sami Zayn, too, and even though the Royal Rumble is first, I feel like we’ve got a great field for Elimination Chamber already. Punk, Rollins and McIntyre all hate each other, but McIntyre also hates those who help Roman Reigns, which will bring Sami into it. And the match itself could be for a top championship, or at least a shot at it, so you can throw in just about anyone, it really depends on how this Transfer Window sorts out.
The World Heavyweight Championship going from 1v1 to a Triple Threat is some wild stuff. Great promo segment from Gunther with Finn & The Judgment Day, and then of course Priest gets involved. I feel like with the Triple Threat, that’s their way of keeping the title on Gunther while keeping everyone strong. Or also letting Judgment Day get involved so they can tilt things in Finn’s favor, but then still let Gunther get away with the title. Finn & JD VS War Raiders next week, probably with Finn NOT World Heavyweight Champion, and NO Judgment Day allowed ringside, that has to be a title change, right?
Great Triple Threat from Lyra, Zelina and Ivy, but it also felt a little secondary with everything else going on tonight. Great win for Lyra, and I feel like it’s either Alba Fyre or Natalya who meets her in the next round. Dakota VS Liv was a good match to give Liv some momentum going towards SNME, but it was also a vehicle for Pure Fusion Collective to get involved. I feel like we’ll be getting a Six Woman Tag of PFC VS DMG CTRL after Saturday, assuming Iyo doesn’t win the title on Saturday. Liv of course got involved with the Anything Goes main event tonight, which cued Iyo to return the favor, and that helped Rhea win.
The main event was still awesome even without the overbooking, but now they’re teasing Rhea VS Iyo. Iyo might win, but maybe Tiffany Stratton shows up with her Money in the Bank briefcase. Tiff could cash in and take that title from Liv and Iyo, setting up some Tiff VS Rhea, but then what happens to Iyo? Again, we’ve got a good field for a Women’s Elimination Chamber right there: Liv VS Rhea VS Iyo VS Tiff VS… I dunno, two women in this Women’s Intercontinental Championship tournament that don’t win. Again, the Transfer Window will have to sort out who is where first, then we’ll go from there.
My Score: 8.8/10
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Will heads for the Tokyo Dome?
Gabe Kidd & Sanada won A Block handedly while Naito & Hiromu came out of B Block’s chaotic finale, but only one team can win World Tag League!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Tiger Mask VS Daiki Nagai; Tiger Mask wins.
- Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls VS Shoma Kato & Katsuya Mursahima; Shane & Mikey win.
- Bishamon VS The Filip Brothers; Bishamon wins.
- Six Man Tag: The United Empire VS Taichi, Taka Michinoku & DOUKI; Taichi, Taka & Douki win.
- Six Man Tag: Los Ingobernables de Japon VS Bullet Club; LIJ wins.
- 10 Man Tag: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Boltin Oleg, Tomoaki Honma & Jado VS The House of Torture; The Houes of Torture wins, by disqualification.
- Six Man Tag: TMDK VS Shota Umino, Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi; TMDK wins.
- 2024 World Tag League Finals: Gabe Kidd & SANADA VS Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi; Naito & Hiromu win.
PLAY BY PLAY
10 Man Tag: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Boltin Oleg, Tomoaki Honma & Jado VS The House of Torture!
The Ace, The Joker & The Rook are joined by a couple knights of NJPW to stand against The King of Darkness and his army of scumbags! With WrestleKingdom on the horizon, which side of this war wins this crucial battle?
But as The House makes their entrance, Team Ace turns the tables by going after them first! The fans cheer as Tanahashi goes right after Evil and The House panics! Yano brawls with Narita, Oleg and Jado take care of Kanemaru and Yujiro, and Tanahashi headlocks Evil. Tanahashi brings Evil to ringside to POST him! Evil falls but Tanahashi drags him back up to wrench and whip into railing! The fans cheer more and Tanahashi CLUBS Evil. Tanahashi whips Evil at more railing, and Evil hits so hard that he tumbles up and over! The rest of the team keeps The House down all around ringside while Tanahashi fetches Evil.
Tanahashi brings Evil into the ring, then follows, and finally the bell rings! The fans cheer as Tanahashi stalks Evil to a corner. Tanahashi stomps Evil, throws forearms, and the ref counts. Tanahashi shoves the ref! The President is getting really rough with his employees, but he stalks Evil. Tanahashi drags Evil up to fire a BODY BLOW! And another! Tanahashi whips, Evil reverses, and then Evil gets in the ref’s face so Dick Togo can trip Tanahashi up! Then the House rushes in and BLASTS Team Ace off the apron! The ref reprimands everyone but Evil CHOKES Tanahashi with the tag rope!
The fans boo but The House beats up on Team Ace, and then Evil throws away the evidence of his crime. Dick passes the mic to Evil, and Evil grabs it so he can shout in Tanahashi’s face about just giving up now and sparing himself the embarrassment at WrestleKingdom! Tanahashi tells Evil he’ll never surrender, and the ref reprimands Evil. Evil stops choking Tanahashi and throws the mic away. Evil tags Narita and the Souled Out Son of Strong Style stomps away on Tanahashi’s legs! Narita then clamps on a KNEEBAR! Evil and Yano shout at each other, but Tanahashi fights his way to the ROPEBREAK!
The ref counts and Narita lets go at 4. Narita stomps Tanahashi more, then he tags Tokyo Pimp. Narita & Yujiro have the legs, and they split the wishbone! Yujiro then drops an elbow on the bad leg! Yujiro taunts Tanahashi, then ROCKS him with a forearm! Tanahashi ends up on ropes, so Yujiro ROCKS him, then CHOPS him! Yujiro stands Tanahashi up, Narita & Sho anchor Tanahashi in place, and Yujiro BOOTS him! The ref reprimands everyone but Yujiro snapmares for a cover! TWO, the fans rally, but Kanemaru tags in. The Heel Master YANKS the leg, then whisp Tanahashi to ropes. Kanemaru dropkicks the leg out!
Kanemaru hurries to step through, FIGURE FOUR! The House BLASTS Team Ace again! The ref reprimands and the fans rally up while Tanahashi endures. Honma clears Evil out, and he runs to FALLING KOKESHI on Kanemaru! The fans cheer as Tanahashi is saved, but Narita goes after Honma! The fans boo as Narita TOSSES Honma, but Kanemaru tags Sho. Sho stomps the leg, then DDTS the foot! The fans rally for Tanahashi but Sho scuffs him around. Tanahashi stands up and he fires forearms! Sho CLAWS Tanahashi’s eyes, but Tanahashi CLAWS Sho’s eyes! The ref reprimands them both, but Tanahashi blocks a kick! DRAGON SCREW!
The fans fire up as Tanahashi crawls over, hot tag to Oleg! The fans fire up as BARS CLOBBERS Sho! Evil gets away before Oleg can get him, and Yujiro attacks from behind! Yujiro & Narita double whip, but Oleg CLOBBERS them both! Kanemaru kicks and whips, but Oleg reverses to scoop Kanemaru! Oleg SMACKS Sho using Kanemaru! Then Oleg SLAMS Kanemaru, and gut wrenches! The fans fire up for the Shake, Shake, Shake! GUT WRENCH PLEX! Oleg kips up and the fans fire up! Oleg then deadlifts Sho for the gut wrench. But Sho bends fingers and wrenches free! Sho runs, SPEARS, but he bounces right off of Oleg!
The fans fire up and Oleg deadlifts Sho again! Shake, Shake, Shake! GUT WRENCH PLEX! And another kip up! The fans fire up with Oleg and he runs to BODY PRESS! Cover, TWO! Oleg drags Sho right up into his arms, then pops him to a fireman’s carry! But Sho CLAWS Oleg’s eyes! Sho slips free, but Oleg kicks Sho! Sho runs to dropkick Oleg’s legs! Sho whips, and TADA! Bare buckles! Oleg suffers The House Special, and Evil DROPKICKS Tanahashi! Sho & Evil double whip Oleg into the bare buckles! Oleg hobbles forward, into a DOUBLE- NO! Oleg fights to DOUBLE SUPLEX them first! The fans fire up and Oleg crawls, and Tanahashi is adamant about getting in!
Oleg isn’t sure about it, but he tags Tanahashi back! Tanahashi fires a strike fest on Evil, and goes an extra round before the SHOTEI! Tanahashi runs to SLINGBLADE! The fans fire up while Tanahashi stalks Evil to a corner. Tanahashi stomps a mudhole into Evil but the ref counts. Tanahashi is not stopping! He SHOVES the ref away! Tanahashi’s rage is getting the better of him as he UPPERCUTS Evil! Tanahashi goes corner to corner, runs back in, but Evil sends him into the ref! And then The House attacks again! Dick stomps away on Tanahashi while Evil recovers! The fans boo and tell Dick to go away!
Narita brings in chairs! Dick stomps Tanahashi more, and the House has all their favorite items! Dick has his Spoiler Choker, Narita with his pushup bar, Sho with the “Torture Tool,” Yujiro with the pimp cane, and Kanemaru with his whiskey bottle. The fans boo as Evil stands on Tanahashi’s face and The House closes in. Evil drags Tanahashi up, and Dick clamps on the SPOILER CHOKER! And then The House CLOBBERS Team Ace with all their weapons! Evil takes aim, but Tanahashi BOOTS him first! Tanahashi THROWS Dick away, but Evil JAMS him up! Tanahashi blocks the chair shot! Tanahashi kicks low, and he SMACKS away on Evil!
The fans fire up as Tanahashi breaks the chair on Evil’s back! Narita runs up, Tanahashi JAMS him first! And then he JAMS Yujiro! And he JAMS Kanemaru! And he JAMS Sho! Then Tanahashi uses the frame to SMACK Evil! The ref is back, he tells Tanahashi to stop, but Tanahashi shoves the ref again! Tanahashi’s rage explodes as he beats Evil down with the chair! Team Ace is DISQUALIFIED!!
Winners: The House of Torture, by disqualification
Tanahashi keeps beating Evil to serve justice, but Young Lions rush in and stop him! Evil writhes, but Tanahashi gets a new chair! Tanahashi SMACKS Evil again and again! His team isn’t even sure what to do, so they let him just BASH away on Evil! Tanahashi tells Evil this is what he gets! One more chair shot! AND THEN ANOTHER! Evil scrambles out of the ring, and Young Lions have to get in Tanahashi’s way to stop the beating! Tanahashi drops the chair to grab the mic, and he shouts, “EVIL, YOU BASTARD! Shut up about my retirement! Oi, oi, you want me to leave so badly? I get it. You want it a year earlier, huh?
“Then in our match on January 4th, I’ll put my career on the line right then!!” The fans are shocked, but Evil says good! And there’s no going back now that he said it! But Tanahashi adds that Evil won’t be able to rely on his goons! It will be a LUMBERJACK MATCH! Now YOU remember that!! Team Ace and The House will wage war once again in the Tokyo Dome! And given Evil only won tonight because Tanahashi lost his cool, will Tanahashi dish out his final justice?
Six Man Tag: TMDK VS Shota Umino, Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi!
Zack Sabre Jr. took the pin when he and Ryohei Oiwa faced Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma in the tournament, so an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match is set for WrestleKingdom! Will the Roughneck burn The Front Man again with the help of Funky Sauce? Or will we see even now that The Mighty Don’t Kneel?
The teams sort out and after Shota stares at the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, and his paper replica to compare, he steps up to the champ. The bell rings and the fans cheer as we get this WK19 preview. Shota and ZSJ stare down, the fans rally up, and it sounds pretty even between “SHOTA! SHOTA!” and “ZAKU! ZAKU!” Shota and ZSJ get their fans even more fired up, and then the two circle. They feel things out, knuckle lock, but then ZSJ rolls to wrench. Shota wrenches back and he WRINGS ZSJ out! ZSJ UPKICKS, and the two reset. The fans cheer and the two circle again. Shota avoids a leg pick but ZSJ avoids an enzigiri!
Shota avoids the Penalty Kick, then spins ZSJ to underhook! ZSJ flips that but Shota fights the scoop! ZSJ avoids the uppercut but Shota blocks the uppercut! Shota wants the backslide but ZSJ spins that around, only for Shota to arm-drag! But ZSJ headscissors! Shota kips free and the fans cheer the standoff! Shota dares ZSJ to take the leg, but ZSJ just pushes the foot away. The two reset and feel things out again. They knuckle lock, go forehead to forehead, but then each man kicks a knuckle lock apart. ZSJ and Shota back off, and ZSJ dares Shota to bring it. Shota steps back up, they go forehead to forehead, and then ZSJ offers a free shot.
Shota says no, the champ should take the free shot. ZSJ decides to tag in Oiwa instead. Shota says fine, and he tags Taguchi. The fans rally as Taguchi and Oiwa circle. They tie up, Oiwa headlocks, but Taguchi pries the hold. Oiwa clamps on tighter but Taguchi fires body shots. Taguchi powers up and out, but Oiwa runs him over! Things speed up, Taguchi hurdles and DROPKICKS Oiwa down! Cover, TWO! Fujita slides in but Zayne intercepts! Zayne kicks the Japanese Young Punk and then throws him out! Funky Sauce double whip Oiwa to then BULLDOG and BASEMENT DROPKICK! The fans cheer and Taguchi stalks Oiwa.
Taguchi HIP DROPS Oiwa again and again, then uses the ropes to go up, out, and slingshot back in, but he hip drops onto Oiwa’s knees! Taguchi hobbles away and Oiwa storms up to whip. Taguchi reverses, runs up, but Oiwa pops him up onto the top rope! Taguchi is stuck right on the Funky Weapon! The ref checks but Oiwa SHAKES the ropes! Taguchi suffer, then he slowly tilts to one side! Oiwa gut wrenches Taguchi off the ropes! Tag to ZSJ and ZSJ UPPERCUTS the butt! Then he UPPERCUTS the butt again! And again! Taguchi falls over and ZSJ tags Fujita. Taguchi backstrokes towards his corner, but Fujita stomps him down!
Fujita drags Taguchi up, CHOPS him, then whips him to a corner. Fujita runs up and CHOPS again! Fujita snapmares Taguchi to PENALTY KICK! Cover, TWO! Taguchi stays in this and the fans rally up. Fujita drags Taguchi up, but Taguchi CHOPS! And CHOPS! And CHOPS! Fujita CHOPS back! Fujita runs, Taguchi jumps, but Fujita CHOPS the hip attack! Taguchi hobbles away while Fujita says he’s too smart for that. Fujita runs, but Taguchi somersaults to HIP ATTACK! Hot tag to Zayne and he fires forearms on Fujita! Zayne whips, hip tosses, then STANDING MARIPOSAS! The fans fire up while Zayne brings Fujita up.
Zayne fires more elbows, then a mule kick! Zayne runs to ROLLING AX KICK! Fujita goes to a corner, Zayne runs in, but Fujita BOOTS him away! Fujita hops up but Zayne comes back to JUMPING DRAGON RANA! The fans fire up and Zayne storms over to Fujita. Zayne scoops and B AJA BLASTS! Cover, TWO! Fujita survives but the fans rally behind Zayne. Zayne brings Fujita up, straitjackets, but Fujita fights free to CHOP! Zayne BOOTS! Fujita kicks but Zayne ducks! Fujita rolls off Zayne’s back and runs to GAMANGIRI! The fans fire up while both men are down! Fujita and Zayne crawl, hot tags to ZSJ and Shota!
The fans fire up as ZSJ BOOTS Shota, and Shota ROCKS ZSJ! Shota eggs ZSJ on so ZSJ UPPERCUTS! Shota UPPERCUTS in return! They UPPERCUT back and forth, harder and harder! The fans rally as they now go faster and faster! ZSJ gets the edge with UPPERCUT after UPPERCUT, but Shota roars! Shota UPPERCUTS again and again, ZSJ roars, but Shota UPPERCUTS him down! Shota hurries to FISHERMAN SUPLEX! Bridging cover, TWO! Not quite perfect but Shota stays fired up! Shota clinches ZSJ but ZSJ fights the lift! ZSJ goes for the arm but Shota waistlocks. ZSJ spins around to FACELOCK GUILLOTINE!
Shota endures and stays on his feet, even as ZSJ has the body scissors! The fans duel as ZSJ thrashes, but Shota powers through to suplex ZSJ up and over! Both men are down and the fans fire up again. Shota rises, then he brings ZSJ up to dragon sleeper. ZSJ spins and PELES the arm! But Shota blocks a roundhouse to PELE! But ZSJ PENALTY KICKS! Both men are down again and the fans rally more! ZSJ and Shota crawl, but ZSJ tags in Oiwa! Oiwa runs in at the corner to DROPKICK! Oiwa has the single leg but Shota fights off the suplex! Oiwa swings but Shota clinches, so now Oiwa fights free!
Shota ROCKS Oiwa, spins, but Oiwa ROCKS Shota! Oiwa runs, into a clinch! EXPLODER! The fans fire up while both men are down! The fans rally, Shota and Oiwa crawl, hot tag to Taguchi! Taguchi calls to Zayne and then BLASTS Fujita! Funky Sauce whips Oiwa to a corner, then Zayne sends Taguchi in. HIP ATTACK! Taguchi goes up, Zayne RANAS Oiwa into the butt! Backslide, roll through, KETSUYE! Cover, TWO! Oiwa survives but Taguchi signals for that. Taguchi and Zayne use the power of Strong Style, and then “ITADAKIMAAAS~!” Oiwa stands, into a DOUBLE HIP ATTACK SANDWICH! Cover, Fujita breaks it!
Zayne ROCKS Fujita, he and Taguchi double whip, but Fujita ducks the lariats to shove Zayne into Taguchi! Zayne blocks a kick but not the DRAGON WHIP! Shota dropkicks Fujita’s legs! ZSJ BOOTS Shota! Shota roars, but ZSJ BOOTS him again! ZSJ whips, Shota reverses and TORNADO DDTS! ZSJ flounders away and the fans fire up with Shota! Shota tells Taguchi to finish it off, and Taguchi runs at Oiwa! And he sliding kicks! Oiwa tumbles, Taguchi grabs the leg to OH MY GAH ANKLE!! Oiwa endures, reaches out, but Taguchi drags him back! Oiwa gets up to LARIAT! Both men are down and the fans fire up!
Oiwa fires up and he brings Taguchi around. Oiwa whips, then clamps on a SLEEPER! But Taguchi slips right out! Taguchi has the headlock, but Oiwa slips out to hit a BIG atomic drop! Taguchi hobbles and Oiwa clamps on the SLEEPER! Taguchi flails but he’s fading already! The fans rally and Oiwa spins Taguchi, for THE GRIP!! Cover, TMDK wins!
Winners: TMDK, by pinfall
The Mullet gets the better of The Funky Weapon, but Shota still dares ZSJ to go for the leg. ZSJ ignores Shota’s bait and just gives him the paper belt. “This is the closest you’ll get to the effin’ title.” ZSJ SLAPS Shota with it! Shota says don’t be rude to the kids! A fan made that for him. Shota dusts off the paper belt, and claims that he’s gonna get the real deal soon enough. ZSJ says yeah, sure. ZSJ will make Shota a real nice toy belt himself so he can keep dreaming. ZSJ mockingly puts something together using his old wrist tape! Shota says wow, thanks. With not even a month left, who will win out when the real belt is on the line?
2024 World Tag League Finals: Gabe Kidd & SANADA VS Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi!
It’s the moment of truth as The Mad Man & Cold Blooded take on The Uncontrollable Charisma & Ticking Timebomb. There is still a lot of uncertainty regarding the tag titles given Henare’s knee injury, but for right now, it’s time to answer one question: Who will be the 2024 World Tag League Champions?
As Naito enters the ring, Gabe stays right at the center, but Naito completely ignores him. Then Naito takes his time with his entrance attire, as always, but Gabe and Sanada both stay calm. Gabe paces but Sanada keeps his eyes closed. Hiromu fires up Kumamoto and Naito finally does away with the pants. The teams finally sort out, and Gabe eggs on “the Junior.” Hiromu grins, then he fist bumps Naito, and yes, it seems Hiromu and the NJPW Strong Openweight Champion will start! The bell rings and both men run in! They DOUBLE LARIAT, but it’s Hiromu who falls! Hiromu gets up to CHOP, but Gabe CHOPS!
The fans fire up as the CHOPS go back and forth already! Hiromu backs down, but for only a moment! Hiromu CHOPS again, so Gabe CHOPS again! The CHOPS go back and forth, but Hiromu backs down again. Gabe eggs him on so Hiromu CHOPS! Gabe CHOPS again! Hiromu clutches his chest but he CHOPS again! Gabe CHOPS again, then braces himself. The CHOPS keep going, then they get forehead to forehead. Gabe winds up to CHOP! Hiromu drops back, and Gabe kicks at him. Gabe eggs Hiromu on so Hiromu CHOPS, CHOPS and CHOPS! Gabe spins to CHOP! Hiromu backs down, but runs up to LARIAT!
Gabe stays up, so he and Hiromu both run, but to take out Naito and Sanada! Then Hiromu runs up to kick Gabe low! Hiromu CLUBS Gabe, CHOPS, and Gabe feels that one. Hiromu whips, Gabe reverses, and Sanada gets a cheap shot in! The fans boo and Red Shoes reprimands, but the War Dogs double whip. Hiromu grabs ropes to stop, and Naito runs in! Naito CLOBBERS Sanada and Hiromu kicks Gabe! LIJ mugs Gabe then double whips, to DOUBLE CHOP! Then they DOUBLE BASEMENT DROPKICK! Gabe flounders away while the fans cheer. Hiromu tags Naito and Naito storms up on Gabe.
Naito CLUBS Gabe again and again, then snapmares for a chinlock. Gabe endures the knee in his back, even as Naito digs it in deeper. Naito then shifts to have a headscissors! Naito pushes up to put on the pressure, but Gabe still endures. Naito lets Gabe go and Hiromu sits in the ropes. Hiromu assures Red Shoes it isn’t what he thinks, but then Naito bumps Gabe off Hiromu’s boots! It WAS what it looked like! The fans cheer but Red Shoes reprimands, and Naito tags in Hiromu. Hiromu CHOPS Gabe to a corner, then CHOPS again! Naito joins in and they double whip Gabe corner to corner. Gabe comes back, Naito drops down and Hiromu CROSBODIES!
Sanada storms in but Hiromu CROSSBODIES! Hiromu goes out and chases down Gabe, CROSSBODY! Hiromu keeps moving, and Naito sets Sanada up for the CROSSBODY! The fans fire up with Hiromu as he goes back to the ring. Gabe storms around in frustration, then pushes his way to No Man’s Land. He eggs Hiromu on, so here he comes! But Sanada was lurking! He attacks first, then sends Hiromu into chairs! Naito and Gabe brawl, and Naito CLUBS Gabe around. Fans are told to move aside, and Naito whips. Gabe reverses and he BOWLS Naito into chairs! Not quite a strike but Gabe just flips off the fans.
Sanada is beating Hiromu down somewhere in the upper deck, and Gabe drags Naito back up. Gabe UPPERCUTS Naito, but Hiromu fights back against Sanada! Sanada CLAWS Hiromu’s face! Hiromu stops the suplex, then suplexes Sanada! Sanada fights that, and he CLAWS Hiromu’s face again! As for Gabe, he BITES Naito’s forehead, then SMACKS him down! At least they’re at ringside. But then Gabe looks under the ring, and he brings out a table! Gabe sets the table up, but Naito fires forearms on Gabe! Gabe SMACKS Naito again! Gabe hauls Naito up to POWERBOMB through the table!!
The fans go wild as Gabe looms over Naito. Gabe slides in and mocks Naito’s pose! The fans are torn but most boo. Red Shoes reprimands Gabe, and it seems Sanada has retuned to ringside, with Hiromu somewhere in the crowd. A ring count starts, but Gabe SPITS at Naito! The count is 7 of 20 and the spotlight shows Hiromu is still so far away! We pass 10, then 12! Hiromu hobbles at 15 and he’s finally in the aisle! Hiromu runs and slides in safe at 19! The fans cheer but Gabe drags Hiromu up. Gabe CHOPS Hiromu in the corner, then CHOPS again! And then JABS! Tag to Sanada and he CLAWS Hiromu’s back while Gabe talks trash on Naito.
The fans rally for Hiromu but Sanada stomps him in a corner. Sanada digs his boot in, but he stops as Red Shoes counts. Sanada drags Hiromu up, TOSSES him out, and Gabe quickly runs Hiromu back to the back of the crowd and up the bleachers! Gabe ROCKS Hiromu with a straight right hand! Then SMACKS him again! Hiromu flops over and Gabe leaves him behind again. The ring count returns while Hiromu sputters. The fans cheer Hiromu on as he’s up, but he’s still so far away at 10! Then 15! Hiromu returns at 18 to slide in at 19.5!! Sanada is on Hiromu, but Hiromu dropkicks the legs out! But Naito isn’t at the corner!
Sanada tags Gabe and he stomps away on Hiromu in the corner! Red Shoes reprimands but Gabe drags Hiromu up. The fans rally for Hiromu, but Gabe whips him hard into the corner! Gabe eggs Hiromu on, saying he’s not “Despy” or Douki. Hiromu rises up to CHOP! Gabe snarls but Hiromu CHOPS again! Hiromu roars and he CHOPS! Gabe finally wobbles, but he keeps Hiromu from Naito! Gabe throws Hiromu down by his hair, then he WRECKS Naito with a dropkick! Gabe mocks the tranquilo and the fans boo. Gabe tags Sanada and the War Dogs bring Hiromu up. The fans rally but the War Dogs double whip, only for Hiromu to DOUBLE CROSSBODY!
Hiromu crawls, reaches out, but Sanada keeps him from Naito! Hiromu breaks free, blocks a kick, and a punch! Sanada CLAWS Hiromu’s eyes! Sanada runs but Hiromu bolts for the corner! Hot tag to Naito! Naito kicks and fires off on Sanada, but Gabe CLUBS him! The War Dogs double whip, but Naito reverses to send Sanada away! Then he sends Gabe into Sanada! Gabe falls, Naito dodges Sanada to arm-drag! And ELBOW! Naito keeps moving, basement DROPKICK! Gabe ROCKS Naito! Gabe whips, Naito reverses and runs up to ELBOW him down! Sanada runs up but is sent into the corner! Naito blocks boots to put Sanada in ropes, DRAPING NECKBREAKER!
Naito hurries to stand Sanada up, turn him, and stall for the NECKBREAKER! The fans fire up as Naito does the pose himself. Cover, TWO! Sanada is tougher than that but Naito drags him up. Naito dragon sleepers for another NECKBREAKER, and then it’s the LEG HOOK NELSON! Sanada endures as Naito puts on the pressure, and Sanada kicks around. Naito puts on more pressure, but Sanada has the ROPEBREAK! But of course Naito claims he needs a little help. Red Shoes counts, Naito lets the hold go, and he brings Sanada to a corner. Naito drags Sanada up, reel shim in, but Sanada stops Esperanza! So Naito BOOTS him!
Naito whips corner to corner but Sanada goes up and out, and even to the floor! Naito slides out but Sanada goes to the apron. Naito hurries back up, but Sanada KICKS ropes to jam Naito up! The fans boo and Red Shoes reprimands but Sanada tags Gabe. Gabe drags Naito up, has him in a corner, and CHOPS! HEADBUTTS! Repeat! Gabe wobbles a bit, but he rolls back and returns to LARIAT! Then SAIDO! Naito gets flung, Gabe hurries to cover, TWO! The fans fire up but Gabe drags Naito right up to suplex and BRAINBUSTER! Cover, TWO!! Naito survives but Gabe seethes. The fans rally for Naito as hard as they can, which annoys Gabe.
Gabe drags Naito up, reels him in, but Naito fights the lift! Gabe CLUBS Naito but still Naito fights! Gabe DOUBLE CHOPS Naito’s back, then powers through! But Naito powers out and throws those heavy back elbows! Gabe SPITS at Naito! Naito SLAPS Gabe! Gabe rebounds, Naito dodges, tilt-o-whirl CRADLE! TWO!! Gabe SMACKS Naito, reels him in, “I’m a MAD MAN, y’know!” But Hiromu SUPERKICKS him first! Sanada DROPKICKS Hiromu! Naito dropkicks Sanada’s legs! But Gabe KNEES Naito down! Hiromu fireman’s carries Gabe! TIMEBOMB 1.5! Sanada runs up, into a wrench and FACLON ARROW!
Sanada flounders out and Hiromu brings Gabe over to Naito! BOOSTED TORNADO DDT! The fans fire up and Naito brings Gabe back up! Wrench and tilt-o-whirl, DESTINO!! Cover, SANADA YANKS RED SHOES OUT!! The fans boo Sanada but he just soaks up the heat. Hiromu goes to the apron and he CROSSBODIES Sanada down! Hiromu helps Red Shoes up, Naito wrenches Gabe again, DESTIN- NO! TOMBSTONE!! Gabe and Naito are down and the fans rally even harder! There is some dueling in here, but the “GABU! GABU!” is still overwhelmed by the “NA-I-TO! NA-I-TO!” Both men stir while Red Shoes returns.
Gabe clutches his neck while rolling away from Naito. Naito changes course and rolls for his corner, hot tags to Sanada and Hiromu! Hiromu dodges Sanada’s boot but Sanada blocks the lariat! Dragon sleeper, but Hiromu spins that around! Sanada fights the suplex so Hiromu dropkicks a leg out! Hiromu KICKS and fireman’s carries, and flips Sanada into the dragon sleeper! Sanada spins that around, but Hiromu fights a suplex! Hiromu suplexes but Sanada slips free to dragon sleeper! SKULL END! Hiromu endures but Sanada drops back into the body scissors! The fans rally and Hiromu fights around!
Sanada squeezes as tight as he can and Hiromu is fading! Red Shoes checks, Hiromu faintly comes back to life, but Sanada goes to his old ways! Sanada goes up and up to ROUNDING BODY PRESS, but onto knees!! Hiromu saves himself and the fans rally up! Hiromu feeds off the energy to fire back up. Hiromu runs to HIROMU- NO, Sanada dodges the lariat, but the HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER still finds him! Fireman’s carry, TIMEBOMB 1.5!! Cover, TWO!! Sanada survives and Hiromu grows frustrated. The fans rally up behind him and Hiromu drags Sanada up. Hiromu fireman’s carries but Sanada slips free.
Sanada waistlocks but Hiromu switches. Sanada grabs at Red Shoes, Red Shoes gets away, and Hiromu avoids the low blow kick! Hiromu SUPERKICKS Sanada, then runs, but Sanada slips around! Sanada shoves Hiromu at Red Shoes and Red Shoes almost ends up falling out of the ring! Sanada whips Hiromu to POP-UP LOW BLOW! And then O’CONNER BRIDGE!! Cover, NAITO YANKS RED SHOES OUT!! Naito returns the favor and grins at Sanada. Gabe storms in with a chair! Naito runs and shoves Hiromu out of harm’s way! Naito then dodges Gabe to POP-UP LOW BLOW!! Another bit of returning the favor!
The fans are thunderous as Gabe writhes and rolls out of the ring. Naito drags Sanada up, Hiromu helps, BOOSTED TORNADO- NO! Sanada slips free, but Naito sends him into a SUPERKICK! ENZIGIRI! HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER!! The fans fire up with Hiromu as he fireman’s carries Sanada, for the OG TIMEBOMB!! Cover, TWO?!?! Sanada survives and shocks everyone! Hiromu roars and the fans are with him! Hiromu clinches in a dragon sleeper, but Gabe BITES Hiromu’s face! Gabe DECKS Naito, then he drags Hiromu up. Hiromu CHOPS, CHOPS , and CHOPS! Gabe just UPPERCUTS!
Gabe scoops and SLAMS Hiromu, then goes up the corner! MAD MAN MOONSAULT! Gabe calls to Sanada to get Hiromu, and Sanada goes up! ROUNDING BODY PRESS!! Cover, TWO!!! Hiromu survives and Sanada is furious!! Red Shoes defends his count and the fans are electric for Hiromu! Gabe reels Hiromu in, PILEDRIVER!! Feed to the DEAD- NO, Naito CLUBS Sanada! Naito dodges Gabe, comes back, DESTINO!!! SHINING WIZARD from Sanada!! Sanada hauls Hiromu up but Hiromu pump-handles! HIROMU-CHAN CRA- NO! SHINING WIZARD!! Sanada roars, fans are torn, but he drags Hiromu up.
Sanada clinches, DEAD- NO, Hiromu slips free, wrenches, pump handle, HIROMU-CHAN CRADLE!!! LIJ WINS!!!!
Winners: Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi, by pinfall (World Tag League 2024 Champions)
Sanada cannot believe it, but Kumamoto absolutely loves it!! The War Dogs tore through A Block, but it was the team that survived the extra Triple Threat match that takes the whole thing! What does this mean for the combination of Gabe and Sanada in the future? Is there a future for them?
As for LIJ, Naito drags himself into the ring, crawls over to Hiromu, and master and student hug it out! Red Shoes brings them the trophies, and LIJ sets them side by side before they stand back up. Naito gets his hat back on while Hiromu rests on the mat again. And after a little water to refresh themselves, Naito gets the mic. “Buenas noches, KUMAMOTOOOO~!” The fans cheer, and Naito says, “The way things work, it should be Hiromu, the main event winner, on the mic right now. But it looks like he took some damage. In that case, I’ll say my part first.” The fans applaud that.
Naito thanks all the fans that came out to the Grand Messe Kumamoto for the WTL Finals. “Gracias, amigos.” The fans cheer that, and Naito adds that he won the main event here back in April of 2018. He sent a message to all the fans here that night. Does anyone remember what he said about “having the courage to take that step?” The fans applaud as it seems they do. Naito says, “Make no mistake, we won the World Tag League thanks to Hiromu.” The fans applaud again, and even chant for “HI-RO-MU! HI-RO-MU!” Naito says that Hiromu’s refusal to give up under any circumstance made Naito feel he had to take that step, too.
“And that step brings me to that singles match we were set to have before the pandemic.” Fans are intrigued hearing that. Naito says how about doing it January 4th in the Tokyo Dome? The fans cheer for Hiromu in support of that idea. Hiromu takes the mic now and asks if it takes Naito that long to take a step. The fans chuckle, and Hiromu stands. Hiromu says thanks to that, they were able to enter WTL and win it all. Hiromu thanks Naito for that, both arigato and gracias. The fans applaud, and Hiromu reviews the idea: January 4th, WrestleKingdom, Naito VS Hiromu. “The answer is, of course…! Let’s do it.”
The fans cheer as the match is now set! Hiromu thanks Naito for letting him know this is how he felt! “It’s important to say what we feel, isn’t it? Everyone, do you have something you want to say as well? It could to a friend, a lover, a parent, a teacher, a senpai, a kouhai! I’m reminded once again how important it is to share what we are feeling. Naito-san, do you mind if I tell you something, too?” The fans are again intrigued. “Naito-san, thank you for teaching me how to be a wrestler!” Hiromu bows and the fans applaud. Hiromu then says January 4th can’t come soon enough! “Everyone, we only live once, so enjoy it to the fullest!”
First, think of the life you wanna live, and then enjoy it to the fullest! And during that time, if pro-wrestling can bring you even a bit of joy, Hiromu will be satisfied! So then, let’s have more… The fans echo back, “Moto!” Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! MOTO fun in life enjoying pro-wrestling together~! The confetti goes off as the WTL winners must take a different route for WrestleKingdom. Will it be teacher or student who proves themselves the better man in the Tokyo Dome?
My Thoughts:
An awesome finale to WTL 2024, even with a lot of the other matches just kind of filler since there weren’t tag titles to be defended here and a lot of WrestleKingdom 19 stuff to be set up. I made sure to do the 10 Man Tag because it of course fed Tanahashi VS Evil, but I certainly didn’t see it happening that way. Tanahashi going wild because of all the frustration he has with Evil was some great stuff, and a Lumberjack match is a great move so that Tanahashi’s allies, aka all of The House of Torture’s enemies, are gonna be ringside with them. But moving up the retirement stipulation is a shock. Was saying 2026 would be when Tanahashi retires just a smokescreen so this would be more shocking? Or is this the smokescreen to put more drama on a match we’re pretty sure Tanahashi still wins?
The Six Man Tag of TMDK VS Shota & Funky Sauce was really good, and a really good win for Oiwa there. This was all still just secondary to building heat on Shota and ZSJ, but it was rather funny for Shota to have that paper (and I think soft foam?) belt and ZSJ mocking him with the wrist tape. If Shota ends up winning, I think NJPW is guilty of making him their “Super Cena,” their “Cena Wins LOL” guy, and that’s a disservice to Shota and especially Zack. Zack needs to make it through a WK with that belt, let Shota fight his way back up through the New Japan Cup or something.
And awesome, incredible main event with the WTL finals. I figured Naito & Hiromu were winning, just because Gabe’s got his NJPW Strong title and the Kenny Omega match for that Tokyo Dome weekend. Not sure what it means for Sanada, but I don’t think he’s leaving War Dogs already (as funny as that would be). And I suppose with Henare’s knee in question, they’re just going to leave the Heavyweight Tag Team Championship match for another time. Naito VS Hiromu, the World Champ VS Junior Heavyweight Champ match we never got four years ago for the anniversary show, is a great move for WK19. There’s no place better than WK for a match like that, and they can’t wait on this match with Naito having said he’s getting closer and closer to retiring.
That said, maybe Hiromu wins to put him over and get him into that next level where he’s going for big titles. Granted, NJPW is literal about the “heavyweight” part of the World Heavyweight Championship, and I don’t know if Hiromu’s going to be able to pull off a 205+ frame. He’s already ~195, he’s already 35, but hey, maybe he can get a short reign in just so he can say he was on top of both weight classes in his career.
My Score: 9/10
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