Coverage
Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (7/29/24)
Time to lay down the law!
He is a Visionary, he is a Revolutionary, he is the Special Guest Referee!
Before SummerSlam sees the grudge match of McIntyre VS Punk, Seth Rollins is going to give his official referee instructions tonight on Raw! Will they respect his authority?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- The Creed Brothers w/ Chad Gable VS Otis & Akira Tozawa w/ Maxxine Dupri; The Creed Brothers win.
- Sheamus VS Bronson Reed; Bronson wins.
- Carlito VS Jey Uso; Jey wins.
- Xavier Woods VS Karrion Kross w/ The Final Testament; Kross wins.
- Dominik Mysterio VS Sami Zayn; Sami wins, by disqualification.
- Six Woman Tag: Lyra Valkyria, Kayden Carter & Katana Chance VS Sonya Deville, Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark; Sonya, Shayna & Zoey win.
- Finn Balor VS GUNTHER; Gunther wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
Seth Rollins is here!
St. Paul, Minnesota fires up as The Visionary struts his way out in a very unique referee uniform. Are those puffy shoulders? Well, either way, Rollins goes to the ring while fans sing “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” Rollins tells St. Paul, “Welcome to Monday… Night… Rollins!” St. Paul cheers, and Rollins says he is our host for this evening’s events. Oh, St. Paul, HAHAHAHA! “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” Rollins says he is a Visionary, he is a Revolutionary, and he is Seth FREAKIN’ Rollins! The fans cheer, and Rollins says SummerSlam is just FIVE days away. Five days from the highly anticipated contest of Drew McIntyre VS CM Punk.
“And we are here tonight to lay out some rules and regulations for that contest. So without further ado, St. Paul, let’s bring out these two morons. How ’bout it? HAHAHAHA!” First is the Second City Saint, the Best in the World, CM Punk! Punk goes to stage left and high-fives the front row. Punk then goes to stage right and gets up on the road cases so he can see the fans over there. Punk blows a kiss, hops down, and finally tells us, “It’s CLOBBERIN’ time!” Punk goes down the ramp, high-fiving fans as he goes, and even high-fives the front row all along ringside. Then he steps into the ring with referee Rollins.
And now the Scottish Terminator makes his entrance! The fans boo as McIntyre takes his time walking down the ramp and into the ring. Punk keeps his eyes on McIntyre while they both get mics. St. Paul chants for “C M PUNK! C M PUNK!” Rollins says alright, alright, alright. There is a lot of tension here, and we’re talking rules and regulations, but we gotta get something out of the way first. This comes directly from Adam Pearce, and he says these two are NOT to even lay a finger on one another or the match for SummerSlam is off. One step further, if they touch Rollins at all, the match for SummerSlam is off.
Punk goes out of the ring to sit at commentary but Rollins tells him hey! McIntyre says he has self-control, Punk doesn’t need to be a coward. Punk isn’t scared of McIntyre or Rollins. Punk is worried about what he’ll do himself, so he’ll just be calm, cool and collected over here. Rollins say she knows Punk likes calling the shots, acting like he’s in charge, getting his way, but that is not how this is going to work, and it is not how SummerSlam will work. Rollins didn’t have to be the ref, but he volunteered since these two idiots scared off every other official back there. But hey, Rollins can go back there, take off the ref shirt, hand it to Pearce, and the whole thing’s off!
The fans boo, they want to see the match. Rollins tells Punk that he does want to see these two fight! The fans cheer that! Rollins knows McIntyre wants it, and he knows St. Paul wants it! So if Punk wants this fight, he better get his ass back in Rollins’ ring. Oh there he is, the boot-licking office boy! Punk is sure Rollins loves that he can lord this over him so enjoy it while he can. McIntyre says Rollins shouldn’t listen to Punk. Just listen to McIntyre. They don’t always like each other, but their relationship is a professional rivalry. Sometimes McIntyre’s an arse, sometimes it’s Rollins. But they just want what is best for the future of the WWE.
But Punk is not what is best! Rollins said it himself, Punk is a cancer! “Corporate Man Punk” is poisoning the minds of NXT after all the hard work of the true workhorses. And Punk is gonna screw it all up. Remember that on Saturday, Punk is the real enemy. Rollins says McIntyre is an idiot, has said a lot wrong in his life, but if there’s one thing he’s right about, is that if anyone hates Punk as much as McIntyre, it is Rollins. The thing McIntyre is overlooking is that if there’s anyone that hates McIntyre as much as Punk, it’s also Rollins. So if these two wouldn’t mind shutting up, he will get to the rules for what will be a violent masterpiece at SummerSlam!
The fans cheer, and Rollins says there is only one rule for this match. There is only one regulation! McIntyre and Punk will listen to EVERYTHING Rollins has to say! He calls the shots, he is the boss, he is the law. He counts to three when he wants. They tap out when he says they tapped out. If there’s a ring count to be done, who knows? There might not be a count, there might be a 10 count, there might be a 20 count, there might be a MILLION count! Disqualifications? Eh. Referee’s discretion. The bottom line is, if either of them get out of line, they’ve got a problem with Rollins or his rules, he’s not someone they can push around.
No, Rollins is a spiteful little bastard, and he will put their heads in the dirt! Punk says this is a hat on a hat. The way Rollins dresses, he probably likes that. Hopefully, Rollins officiates better than he dresses. Punk doesn’t believe a word of this, he thinks Rollins will be biased. If he does call it down the line, fine. If Rollins screws Punk, fine, Punk will deal with that Saturday. But one think Punk doesn’t want Rollins to do, hating each of them equally, then don’t help Punk. Punk has never needed Rollins’ help, doesn’t want it, and will never listen to Rollins.
McIntyre says Punk is worried about the wrong guy right now. Worry more about the 6’5″, 280 pound man he’s screwed over and over again! The fans cheer that! McIntyre says he hates Punk, can’t stand him, he’s like a Charles Manson type who has poisoned even the fans! They chant Punk’s name at McIntyre even at the supermarket! McIntyre has spent 7 MONTHS saying what he’s had to say. McIntyre just wanted to rough Punk up a bit at the Royal Rumble, and ended up injuring him. That was for seven months without even trying. Punk screwed McIntyre at WrestleMania, then in Scotland.
So what’s happening on Saturday? Right now, McIntyre is chill. The real enemy is the bell. When it sounds, McIntyre will violently assault Punk. McIntyre will blacken both eyes, break his jaw, and McIntyre says Rollins will have to find compassion in his soul because McIntyre isn’t stopping until Punk’s heart does. In Cleveland, that’s a stadium. McIntyre will make so much money doing something he’d do for free. Punk smirks while the fans still cheer him on. Punk says for 10 YEARS, he was absent from WWE, and the fans chanted his name. They sing Rollins’ song, they chant Punk’s name, McIntyre is the third wheel here!
The one positive from “Punk Derangement Syndrome” is that they are in his orbit. They breathe the air that Punk produces. Hopefully, McIntyre enjoyed the last 7 months. Because hurting Punk was the best thing to happen to McIntyre, but it was also the worst thing to happen to him. For all McIntyre’s accomplishments, for how big and tall he is, for how mean and strong he is, he’s STUPID, and he dumbs himself out of positions! Punk may be an enemy, but not his worst. McIntyre is his own worst enemy! And he’ll just dumb himself out of this again. Punk isn’t as big, as tall, or as fast, but he has MORE HEART!
You know what else Punk has? Punk also has the people! What does McIntyre got? McIntyre shows off the bracelet. The very one he stole from Punk. And Punk storms right up to McIntyre, but he can’t touch him. McIntyre tells Punk he has no idea what’s coming on Saturday. But could that be the same for McIntyre?
Someone trashed the Judgment Day clubhouse!
JD McDonagh says this is worse than R-Truth and jelly rolls. Carlito says they broke the PS5! Dominik asks who did this, but Rhea says duh! Read the literal writing on the wall! Liv Morgan is pissed! But hey, they can rebuild all this. But Liv can’t undo the damage Rhea’s gonna do, especially after this. Carlito asks if they are getting a new PS5. Dom says not the time. Dom and Carlito leave and Rhea asks why Carlito’s still coming around. JD says Carlito does leave a certain smell, and Rhea tells him she will end him if he jokes around. But will there be no laughing when Mami finally gets her hands on Liv?
Raw returns and…
Judgment Day is still cleaning up the mess. Dom found one black rose not all smashed. Damian Priest walks in and figures it was Liv who did this. Priest then tells Finn that while they talked before, Priest still feels he should be out there when Finn faces Gunther. Finn says no, Priest needs to focus on SummerSlam. Gunther didn’t just insult Priest last week, he insulted everyone in The Judgment Day. While they fix up the clubhouse, Finn will take care of Gunther, alone. They can also take care of Sami & Jey, right? Priest says they already took care of Sami & Jey. They’re going backwards, dealing with issues they don’t need to.
Rhea says she’s been saying the same. Well, okay, then let the others handle it. JD will handle it right now! Priest says fine, go ahead. Dom says it should be Carlito and Sami. Carlito says way ahead of you. He’ll go talk with Adam Pearce. Caribbean Cool heads out, but will he be able to take down the Intercontinental Champion?
The Creed Brothers w/ Chad Gable VS Otis & Akira Tozawa w/ Maxxine Dupri!
Julius & Brutus rather surprisingly replaced the tree trunk and the Stamina Monster in “Master Gable’s” Alpha Academy, but now they’ll have it out in the ring! Will Gable’s new students make an example out of the old? Or will Otis & Tozawa prove they no longer need Gable’s drama?
We return to the ring as Gable leads The Creeds to the ring for their entrance. The teams sort out and Otis starts against Julius. The bell rings and Julius runs up to ROCK Otis! Julius fires off, puts Otis in the corner, but Otis fights back! Julius CLUBS Otis, Brutus tags in, and the brothers mug Otis. The fans rally for Otis but Brutus tags Julius back in. They double whip but Otis breaks the double clothesline to CLOBBER both Creeds! Brutus tumbles out, Otis tags Tozawa. Tozawa climbs, Otis ROCKET LAUNCHES him at Julius! Cover, TWO! Maxxine cheers Tozawa, but Julius suplexes Tozawa while sitting down!
Julius tags Brutus, and Julius GUT WRENCH SLAMS Brutus onto Tozawa! Cover, TWO! Brutus drags Tozawa, suplexes, but Tozawa kicks free! Tozawa SOBATS, spins, slides under, then SCREW KICKS! The fans fire up, Tozawa runs in, but Brutus puts him outside! Tozawa GAMANGIRIS, goes up and MISSILE DROPKICKS! Brutus tumbles out. Tozawa builds speed to DIVE! Direct hit and down goes Brutus! Tozawa hurries to put Brutus back in! Tozawa climbs, but Julius drags Brutus out! Tozawa drops down, but Brutus gets in to LARIAT! The fans boo, Gable fist bumps The Creeds, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Brutus hoist Tozawa up. Tozawa fights the fireman’s carry, but Brutus keeps him from the corner Brutus whips, but Tozawa SATELLITE DDTS! The fans are thunderous as Otis rises up! Hot tags to Julius and Otis! #FreeOtis rallies on Julius with LARIAT after LARIAT! Then he rolls past Julius to BLINDSIDE LARIAT! Otis ELBOWS Julius in a corner, then POSTS him! Otis says “SUCK IT!” then he revs up the- NO, Gable gets on the apron! Otis swipes at Gable, Julius runs up, but Otis catches him! POWERSLAM, and off comes the shirt! Free souvenir for a fan, and then the CATERPILLAR ELBOW hits!
Otis isn’t done, he goes up the corner! But Brutus CLUBS him first! Brutus climbs, the fans boo, but Otis TOSSES Brutus away! Gable gets up but Otis DECKS him! The Creeds mug Otis and go up top together! The fans boo but they hit a DOUBLE BACK SUPLEX! Cover, The Creeds win!
Winners: The Creed Brothers, by pinfall
Gable’s new number one guys come through for him, but now they sit Otis up! Gable gets in Otis’ face and says GABLE is the only reason Otis was ever anything! Tozawa gets in, Brutus DECKS him! Gable has an ANKLE LOCK on Otis! Maxxine JUMPS on Gable! Gable shrugs Maxxine off, and says Maxxine should’ve also listened. But then Maxxine SLAPS Gable! The fans fire up and Maxxine stands her ground! Gable storms up on her, but then the lights start turning off! Maxxine gets the boys outta there, because the fireflies are out! The piano starts playing and Gable’s group is on the defensive!
The fog rolls in, the light shines, and here come the Wyatt Sick6! Ramblin’ Rabbit, Mercy the Buzzard, Huskus the Pig Boy, they all storm down to ringside. They get up on the apron, they stare Gable & The Creeds down, and the fans fire up again! Masks off, and reveal! It’s Erick Rowan, Dexter Lumis & Joe Gacy! Gable turns around, NIKKI CROSSBODY! Down goes Gable, and then Gacy & Lumis DOUBLE CHOKE SLAM the Creeds! Lumis runs, gets a boost from Gacy, POP-UP BOMB SENTON COMBO! The fans are losing their minds as now Rowan has a go! DOUBLE CROSSBODY from the Wyatt OG!
And then, as Gable stumbles his way up the ramp, trying to run away, “There you are~!” Uncle Howdy, or rather Bo Dallas, stands in his way! Gable runs away through the backside of the stage, and Bo laughs into the night. They’re here, who have they to fear?
Carlito returns to the clubhouse.
So did he get the match? Yes, it is official. When is Carlito’s match with Sami then? What? No, the match is Dom VS Sami. What?! No, Carlito was supposed to handle Sami! Oh, Carlito thought Dom… Oops. Rhea says fine, Dom can handle Sami. And now that Carlito is free, he can take Jey, right? Carlito says he’d have to oil up but- Rhea says this is Carlito’s mess, time to clean it up. Carlito sighs and says he’ll go back to Pearce. Rhea says good. And Carlito has to handle Jey alone. Carlito sighs again then leaves. Is Carlito ever gonna catch a break?
Sheamus VS Bronson Reed!
The Celtic Warrior already had a run-in with the Colossal Aussie, but clearly the fighting is far from over! Will Sheamus be able to deliver another banger against Big Bad Bronson? Or will this be when he’s washed away by a Tsunami?
The bell rings and the fans rally for the big meaty men! They RAM and RAM then fire haymakers back and forth! Sheamus gets the edge, whips corner to corner, but Bronson reverses. Bronson runs in, Sheamus dodges and Bronson hits buckles! Sheamus jumps on for a SLEEPER! Bronson RAMS him into buckles, then ROCKS him! And CHOPS him! And CHOPS again! Sheamus dodges the next chop to body shot and UPPERCUT! And UPPERCUT! Sheamus reels Bronson in but Bronson HEADBUTTS! Bronson whips, Sheamus KICKS then runs, to LARIAT Bronson up and out! The fans fire up with The Fella!
Sheamus goes out to then climb up! SUPER FLYING LARIAT takes down Bronson! The Fella is even more fired up, and then he runs up, but Bronson SAMOAN DROPS him onto the desk! Bronson roars, the fans boo, but Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Sheamus fights up while in a chinlock. Sheamus fires body shots then UPPERCUTS! Sheamus runs, but Bronson LARIATS him down! Bronson looms over Sheamus, talks trash on him, then stands him up. Bronson says Sheamus ain’t got it anymore. But Sheamus gets mad! Sheamus blocks Bronson’s lariat to LARIAT, LARIAT, and LARIAT again! Sheamus winds up, short arm LARIAT! Bronson drops to a knee, but now Bronson roars! Fireman’s carry, but Sheamus slips free! Sheamus KNEES Bronson down! Cover, TWO! Bronson stays in this but Sheamus stays on him, with a fireman’s carry!
Bronson fights that off, then shoves Sheamus to a corner. Bronson runs in but into a BOOT! Sheamus skins the cat to the top rope! Sheamus then aims to FLYING- NO, Bronson dodges the lariat to fireman’s carry! DEATH VALLEY DRIVER! Cover, TWO!! Sheamus survives and the fans fire up! Bronson snarls, thinks on what he has to do, and he drags Sheamus to a drop zone. Bronson climbs, the fans rally for Sheamus, and Sheamus rises! Sheamus fires haymakers on Bronson! Sheamus climbs, brings Bronson up, and that feat of strength alone is wild! But now, SUPER WHITE NOISE!! Cover, TWO?!?
The fans cannot believe it! Bronson survives that landing, and both men are down! Bronson rolls away, Sheamus pushes himself up. Sheamus sees Bronson on the apron, and Sheamus storms up on him! Sheamus clamps on for BEATS OF THE BODHRAIN! Sheamus goes all the way to TEN, then goes past that for SIXTEEN before the ref backs him off! Bronson flounders, gets stuck in ropes, but the ref manages to free that leg. Sheamus powers up, but here comes Pete Dunne! SHILLELAGH SHOT?!?! The ref missed it all but the fans saw it! The fans boo but Bronson grins as he goes to the corner!
Bronson climbs, Dunne is hiding, and the TSUNAMI hits!! Cover, Bronson wins!
Winner: Bronson Reed, by pinfall
The Bruiserweight gives Bronson the assist, then just shrugs. Dunne’s starting trouble wherever he’s going, will it all catch up to him soon enough?
Damian Priest speaks.
“There’s been a lot of talk about my past. How I was raised, how I lived on the street. And all this talk is coming from the one guy who has no understand, has no idea of what that’s like. Here’s a guy, Gunther, who grew up with ‘Here you go’s.'” You want the best training? Here you go. A group of people to tell you how great you are? Here you go. But what Gunther doesn’t have is what could never be handed to him: heart. Gunther says Priest is street trash? That translates to him being a Puerto Rican badass, so yes, he is! To Priest, Gunther is just some feat of European ingenuity. AKA, Gunther’s an a-hole!
The WWE ring is about salvation, for people to forget about their past. But this Saturday, it becomes the streets, and Gunther’s ass is gonna get mugged. Priest will rob Gunther of this idea that he can take the world title from Priest. Priest lived to fight for everything he got, and now he’s willing to die for everything he has. Is Gunther? Welcome to Priest’s neighborhood, “General.” El Campeon is ready to bring out The Punisher, will the King of the Ring survive?
Bron Breakker speaks.
“I don’t care to talk down on Sami Zayn. Hell, I don’t even dislike Sami Zayn. He’s at the top of his game, at the top of his profession: stand-up comedy. See, at Money in the Bank, I didn’t take him seriously. I thought I was fighting a stand-up comic, I put my hands behind my back. I didn’t take him seriously, and y’know what? That’s on me. Rookie mistake. But it made me realize the difference between me and Sami Zayn. See, Sami Zayn has already accepted the fact that he’s going to lose at SummerSlam. There’s nowhere for Sami to run any longer, because he’s preparing for a life after WWE. Preparing for a life after Bron Breakker.
“Sami Zayn and Friends? Hahaha… You’ve seen it. They promote it every single week here on Monday Night Raw. And while you, Sami, tell jokes for your preparation, I’ve been in the gym, hungry, training, like a dog. Redefining the words effort, attitude, and toughness. And it’ll be on full display this Saturday at SummerSlam, when the joke is on you, and the Intercontinental Championship will be on me.” Cleveland is all about the Dog Pound, will Bron leave Sami black ‘n’ blue in the home of the Browns?
Carlito VS Jey Uso!
Finn Balor says there’s a mess to be cleaned up, so Caribbean Cool has to do his part. Will he spit in the face of Main Event Jey? Or will Jey just YEET Carlito right back to the clubhouse?
Raw returns and Carlito makes his entrance. The bell rings and Carlito runs up on Jey! Jey dodges to SUPERKICK! Cover, TWO! Carlito is still in this but also in a daze. The fans rally while Jey bails out. Fans “YEET!” with Jey and he builds speed to DIVE! Down goes Carlito, the fans “YEET!” more and Jey drags Carlito up. Jey puts Carlito in the ring, brings him back up, and ROCKS him with a right hand. Jey fires more hands, the fans “YEET!” and Carlito sits down. Jey lets off to “YEET!” Jey storms back up but Carlito POSTS him! Jey flops to the apron, Carlito drags him up and onto ropes, for a DRAPING NECKBREAKER!
Jey flounders, Carlito soaks up the heat, then covers, TWO! Jey is still in this, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Carlito has Jey down with a motorcycle stretch. Jey fights up, stomps Carlito’s foot, then mule kicks! And UPPERCUTS! Jey runs, but into a fireman’s carry! T K O! Cover, TWO! The fans rally up, Jey goes to a corner, and Carlito frowns. Carlito runs in corner to corner, but Jey dodges the splash! Jey ROCKS Carlito again and again, “YEET! YEET! YEET!” Jey pops, locks ‘n’ puts some stank on the HAYMAKER! Carlito staggers, into a kick! Carlito blocks, spins Jey, but the DRAGON WHIP hits! Carlito flops to a corner, Jey throws off the armband, then says “UCE! SO! UCE! SO!” Jey runs in, Carlito puts him on the apron!
Jey GAMANGIRIS Carlito, goes up, and leaps, but Carlito dodges! Jey keeps moving, but Carlito SPINEBUSTERS! Cover, TWO! Carlito rains down fists on Jey, but lets off while the fans boo. Carlito goes to a corner, and he grabs his green apple! The fans are torn as Carlito takes a big bite. Carlito chews it up, but Jey rolls Carlito up! TWO!! Jey dodges Carlito, then SPEARS! The apples go flying, Jey covers, Jey wins!
Winner: Jey Uso, by pinfall
Carlito just makes more of a mess with those chunks of apple everywhere! But will Dom at least do better against Sami? Or will this problem the Judgment Day has only grow bigger and bigger?
Backstage interview with Zelina Vega.
Jackie Redmond is with La Muneca, and notes that Zelina won big over Zoey Stark, despite the bad arm. Jackie has to ask, how is the arm? Zelina feels better now. But she was lucky to have Lyra, Katana & Kayden backing her up. But at the same time, “Team Forehead” had to stack the deck against Zelina. Zelina needed that, though. What was done to Zelina created her, and reminded her of just who the hell she is. Zelina Vega is a threat in this division, and they know it. But then Shayna, Zoey & Sonya walk over. A threat, huh? Well, it took three women to beat Zoey so… Where are they now?
Sonya says let’s se who is a threat. But Zelina fires first! That only gets her mugged, and then Shayna grabs the bad arm! Shayna BOOTS the arm against the wall! Producers and refs hurry over, did Shayna just reinjure Zelina’s arm back to zero percent? Will The Morrigan & KC Squared make Sonya’s squad pay for it?
Raw returns as Zelina is checked by medical.
Lyra, Kayden & Katana are also there, and they promise they’ll get payback. Will Zelina be out of action much longer this time?
Backstage interview with The Miz.
Cathy Kelley is with The Hollywood A-Lister, and he has a very special announcement regarding SummerSlam. The Miz says that’s right! Live from Cleveland, SummerSlam will be hosted by The Miz! That’s right, he is hosting in his house of Cleveland, Ohio! R-Truth walks in and asks what’s up. WWE brought back In Your House? That’s what’s up! No, Miz is just saying Cleveland is “his house,” it’s just a saying. Doesn’t Miz live in LA, though? Yes, but he grew up in Cleveland. Then how is he going to host SummerSlam in his house, in Cleveland? No, he just is hosting SummerSlam. Whachu talkin’ bout, Miz?
Miz is in Cleveland, hosting SummerSlam, simple as that. Okay, then he has to have party favors, hors d’oeuvres, and Truth will bring ice. No, Miz isn’t doing any of that. Then he’s a bad host. Miz isn’t a bad host! Truth says he’s got this, #SayLess. So no hors d’oeuvres? NO! There are not hors d’oeuvres. Who even wants hors d’oeuvres? Truth and Cathy do. Okay fine, Miz will bring hors d’oeuvres. Is Miz going to be in over his head trying to host SummerSlam in his hometown?
Xavier Woods VS Karrion Kross w/ The Final Testament!
The New Day has been through quite a lot, but Woods is still standing! Will he use all that Power of Positivity to hold it down? Or will Doomsday make him #FallAndPray?
But as Kross steps in the ring, he also grabs a mic. Kross says he has something he wants to address. Kross was just notified that Kofi Kingston reinjured his shoulder during the Japan tour, and that’s why he’s not here tonight. Does anyone really believe that? Kross thinks Kofi’s skipping town because one: the whole world isn’t revolving around him anymore, it’s revolving around Woods, and Kofi can’t stand that; and two: no one wants to be in the hellhole of Minnesota. The fans boo but Kross says he’ll give Woods a way out of this beating. Just a couple things. One: Woods needs to join The Final Testament! And two: Tell the kids at home that the Power of Positivity was always a lie.
The fans boo but Kross says one more thing, it is important to Kross. Woods needs to tell Kofi that he should’ve retired after losing the WWE Championship after just six seconds. Woods DECKS Kross! The bell rings and Woods rains down fists! Kross pushes free, Woods runs up to LARIAT Kross up and out! Woods builds speed, and he WRECKS Kross with a dropkick! The fans fire up with Woods as he storms up on Kross, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Kross has Woods down with a SLEEPER! The fans rally, Woods fights up and fires body shots! Woods CLUBS Kross, CLUBs him more, but Kross knees low! Kross whips Woods to a corner, runs in, and LARIATS, ELBOWS and ROLLING ELBOWS! Kross says Woods is dead! Kross brings Woods up for an EXPLODER! Woods flounders, Kross soaks up the heat, and then he covers, TWO! Kross says Woods should’ve just joined him. He says New Day is dead, and Woods is the worst King of the Ring ever! Kross is trying to help Woods, “you piece of trash!” But Woods fires haymakers and CHOPS!
Woods CHOPS, JABS, and repeat! The fans fire up as Woods just keep son firing shots! Woods whips, Kross reverses but Woods ducks ‘n’ dodges to slide and ROLLING ELBOW! The fans fire up, Woods runs in at the corner, forearm SMASH! Woods then brings Kross out, but Kross wrenches and fireman’s carries! Woods slips free, O’Conner Rolls, TWO! Woods ends up in ropes, Akam gets a cheap shot! The fans boo but Kross pump handles for a scoop, only for Woods to slip free! SUPERKICK! Kross staggers, swings, but Woods dodges to DIVE onto Akam! Woods gets payback, then he baits Rezar in! Rezar runs up, but is sent into POST!
Woods hurries back up, he GAMANGIRIS Kross down! Woods goes up, and MACHO- FLOPS! Kross laughs as he avoids the elbow. Then FINAL PRAYER! Cover, Kross wins!
Winner: Karrion Kross, by pinfall
Scarlett celebrates with Kross, and the rest of The Final Testament steps inside. They all stand over Woods, but will they ever convince him to stand with them?
Backstage interview with Sami Zayn.
Jackie is with the Great Liberator, noting that while he’s moments away from facing Dominik Mysterio, he is also just days away from defending the Intercontinental Championship against Bron Breakker. What is his reaction to Bron’s comments from earlier tonight? Sami says it’s funny Bron thinks Sami is going to lose this match just because he’s got a comedy show the night before. But if Sami remembers correctly, he did that in Toronto and he still beat Bron. Bron even said it himself that Bron lost because he took it as a forgone conclusion that he was just gonna destroy Sami and get the title, just like that. Bron underestimated Sami.
And clearly, Bron isn’t doing that anymore. Sami knows Bron will take every chance to jump him from behind. Even last week, when Sami finally gets a moment, shares a moment with his Uce, his dawg, Jey Uso. Reunited in the ring, and yet again, a cheap shot from Bron. So spear after spear, fine. Bron’s young and hungry, that’s fine. But this time around, Sami’s attitude is different, too. This isn’t about teaching the young guy about respect, or teaching him some lesson. This is about kicking his ass at SummerSlam! And as far as Judgment Day goes, Sami will handle business right now. Sami heads out, will he be rolling into his next defense?
Liv Morgan speaks.
“Do you know how it feels to have your heart ripped out? It takes your breath away. It feels like you can barely even breathe. I would’ve done anything for you, Dominik. I put you on a pedestal. I treated you like the man I thought that you were. But you’re not a man.” Liv burns the pictures of them together (mostly just screenshots from Monday Night Raw). Liv says Dom is just Rhea’s little b*tch. She wants to take back every tear that she wasted on Dom, but she can’t. So all she can do now is make his and Rhea’s lives a living hell. At SummerSlam, Liv will complete her revenge tour when she beats Rhea and leaves Dom with whatever’s left of Mami.
Meanwhile, Liv will be standing in the ring, with her arm raised as she hears those three little words: “Women’s World Champion. Watch me.” Hell hath now fury like a woman scorned, is Dom going to regret choosing Rhea’s side?
Dominik Mysterio VS Sami Zayn!
Raw returns and Dom makes his entrance alone. The bell rings and the two step forward. Dom sidesteps the tie-up to soak up heat on the corner. The ref has Sami stay back, Dom hops down, and the two feel things out. Dom kicks low, wrenches to wristlock, but Sami spins and wrenches to WRING Dom out! Sami clamps onto the arm, drags Dom up, but Dom powers Sami to a corner. Dom throws hands, stomps away, but Sami hits back with haymakers! Sami whips, Dom holds ropes then bails out. The fans boo but Dom wants a timeout. There are no timeouts, and Sami chases Dom! They go around the ring, into the ring, then Sami hurdles to TOSS Dom out!
The fans fire up as Sami mule kicks from the apron. Then Sami ARABIAN PRESS SAULTS! Down goes Dom and the fans fire up while Raw goes to break!
Raw returns again and the fans rally, but Dom stomps away on Sami! The fans chant “DOM, YOU SUCK!” but he CLUBS away on Sami. Dom wraps on a chinlock, leans on the hold, but Sami fights up. The fans rally, Sami RAMS Dom into a corner, then RAMS him again and again. Sami is free of the chinock, btu Dom elbows him back. Dom then hops up to TORNADO DDT! Cover, TWO! The fans rally, Sami goes to ropes, but Dom fires hands. Sami shakes his head, Dom throws body shots then another haymaker. Dom whips, Sami goes up and over, then LARIATS! The fans fire up as Sami goes to a corner.
Dom rises up, runs in, but into an ELBOW! Sami goes up, FALLING AX HANDLE! The fans fire up again and Sami waits on Dom. Dom swings, into a BLUE THUNDER- NO, Dom fights that with elbows! Dom suplexes, Uno Amigo! Dom drags Sami up to suplex again, Dos Amigos! The fans boo but Dom brings Sami up again, THREE AMIGOS! Dom then goes to a corner, climbs up, and FROG SPL- NO, Sami moves! Dom rolls through, runs back up, but into a CORNER EXPLODER! Sami goes to the far corner and the fans fire up! But wait, here comes Carlito & JD McDonagh! Sami has them stay back, but DOm rolls Sami uP! TWO!!
Sami escapes but Dom CLUBS him! Dom reels Sami in, but Sami back drops free before any amigos! Carlito gets up, Sami DECKS him! JD gets up, Sami DECKS him, too! Dom DROPKICKS Sami onto ropes! Dom dials it up, but Sami LARIATS first! The call disconnected, and Sami hits the BLUE THUDNER BOMB! Cover, JD & Carlito attack!!
Winner: Sami Zayn, by disqualification
The fans boo but Judgment Day mugs Sami! They stomp away on Sami at the ropes, but here comes Jey! Jey baits Carlito in, DUMPS him out, then he runs to SPEAR JD! The fans fire up, Dom runs up, but Jey TOSSES him! Jey builds speed and he FLIES! Down goes Judgment Day! Sami rises, nods, but then BRON CLOBBERS SAMI! The fans boo but the Big Bad Booty Nephew is doing just as Sami knew he would! Bron builds speed, but Sami BOOTS him first!! Sami and Bron goes to corners, Bron runs up, into a CORNER EXPLODER! Sami storms to the other corner and takes aim! But Bron bails out!
The fans boo but Sami dares Bron to get back in! Bron snarls, storms in, but then Sami BOOTS him back out! Sami stands tall in St. Paul, but will he pull off another underdog victory in Cleveland?
The Wyatt Sick6 share another video.
This week’s “session” has Dexter Lumis in the chair. “A man just looking for mercy. They built their empire next to the sea, and laughed as they watched you drown. But there’s freedom in sinking. Look at what you’ve become! Tell me, brother… Tell me. What should they do when the buzzards start circling? What should they do?” Lumis looks at the camera, and says “RUN!” Will there be no mercy for those Lumis and the Wyatts now target?
Chad Gable & The Creeds talk with Adam Pearce.
Gable says once again, he is doing everyone’s jobs. He figured out the identities of the other members of the Wyatt 6. Joe Gacy, Dexter Lumis, and Erick Rowan. Pearce says he knows that, they’re all still under WWE contract. Oh, okay, so then they can compete? Generally, that’s how that works. What is Gable’s point? His point is that next week, on Raw, he and the Creeds VS “those three freaks” in a Six Man Tag. Pearce hopes they’re sure that’s what they want. It is. Make it happen. Then consider it official. Gable & The Creeds head out, and Pearce says, “Be careful what you wish for.” The Wyatts may be disturbing, but is Gable the one that’s crazy wanting this fight?
Rhea Ripley speaks.
“Liv Morgan. You wanna burn and break things that don’t belong to you. You so badly, so badly wanna be the victim in your little revenge tour fantasy. But that’s all it is: a fantasy. The reality is, that this Saturday at SummerSlam, your little revenge tour, it comes to an end. There’s no more running, there’s no more hiding, there’s no more manipulating. You thought that I was brutal the last time I attacked your shoulder? But that’s what happened after I warned you multiple times to stay out of my business. Now, now you’ve not only taken three months of my career by injuring my shoulder, touché by the way, but you’ve taken my championship.
“You’ve tried to manipulate my family, MY Latino Heat. You so badly want me to be the demon in your little fantasy dream. But at SummerSlam, it’s time that I get MY revenge.” Mami has spoken, will she demolish what is left of Liv’s broken heart?
Six Woman Tag: Lyra Valkyria, Kayden Carter & Katana Chance VS Sonya Deville, Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark!
Lyra’s learning how to let loose thanks to the party girls, but this isn’t about having fun. The Morrigan & KC Squared want to humble the newest bullies on the block. But will they avenge Zelina Vega? Or will Deville and her dangerous new crew ruin everyone’s good time?
Raw returns and Sonya’s squad makes their entrance. The trios sort out, Sonya starts against Lyra, and the two tie up. They go around, Sonya pulls hair but the ref reprimands. Lyra chinbars, but so does Sonya. Lyra powers Sonya into a headlock, but Sonya powers up and out. Lyra slides under to RAM Sonya, then she reels Sonya in, Sonya wrenches out, then ROCKS Lyra! Sonya KNEES Lyra, whips her to the corner, then tags Shayna. They mug Lyra, then Zoey tags in. Shayna wrenches to hold Lyra up, and Zoey MISSILE DROPKICKS! Cover, TWO! Zoey drags Lyra up, scoops but Lyra slips free.
Lyra sends Zoey into buckles, then wrenches to WRING her out! Lyra clamp onto the arm, brings Zoey over, and tags in Katana. Katana tags Kayden, Lyra sends Zoey into the corner, then sends Kayden. Kayden SPLASHES, then she and Lyra set up so Katana can run up, PARTY IN MOTION! Zoey flops out of the ring, Katana helps Kayden go up and out to the apron! Lyra tags in, Kayden dodges Zoey to SUPERKICK! Then Lyra runs to WRECK Zoey with a dropkick! The fans cheer as Lyra, Kayden & Katana are vibing, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Lyra fights out of a chinlock. But Sonya RAMS her into the corner! Sonya fires hands, tags in Shayna, and they mug Lyra. Shayna stomps away, Sonya tags back in. Sonya drags Lyra up to fire body shots again and again, then lets off as the ref counts. Sonya runs up but Lyra BOOTS her! Lyra ELBOWS Shayna, ELBOWS Zoey, then goes up and over Sonya as she returns! Lyra hurries but Sonya grabs her legs! Sonya drags Lyra back, Lyra BOOTS her away, hot tag to Kayden! Kayden runs up dodges Shayna, and DECKS Kayden! ROUNDHOUSE for Sonya, leg trip for Shayna! BUZZSAW!
Kayden CLOBBERS Shayna again and again, and the fans fire up! Kayden brings Shayna up for fast hands but Shayna shoves her back. Kayden runs back up to ROCK Shayna! Kayden whips Shayna, Shayna reverses, but Kayden wheelbarrows. Victory roll, and SUPERKICK! The fans fire up as Kayden storms up on Shayna. Kayden springboard LEG DROPS! Cover, TWO! Kayden runs side to side, but Shayna dodges! Shayna KNEES Kayden down, and she tags in Zoey! Zoey reels Kayden in, ALLEY- RANA! Kayden then baits Shayna and TOSSES her! Zoey SUPERKICKS but Katana tags in! Kayden ELBOWS Zoey while Katana tags Lyra.
Kayden gives Katana a lift, then a TOSS, CODE BREAKER! Lyra is there to gut wrench and POWERBOMB! Cover, Shayna breaks it! Sonya adds a KNEE! Zoey covers, Kayden SUPERKICKS her! Katana jumps in, KC Squared TOSS Shayna & Sonya! They drag Lyra to safety, then Kayden tags in. Kayden drags Zoey up, tags Katana back in. Katana goes up, but Sonya trips Kayden! No After Party yet, and Shayna gets on the apron. Katana BOOTS her away, but then Zoey gets up! Zoey grabs at Katana, but Katana turns toss into victory roll! TWO!! Zoey KNEES Katana, then drags her up! Z 360!! Cover, Deville’s crew wins!
Winners: Sonya Deville, Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark, by pinfall
A dangerous trios indeed, but wait! Damage CTRL is back! The Japan tour has reinvigorated them, and now Iyo Sky, Kairi Sane & Dakota Kai storm the ring! DMG CTRL dodges Deville and her team, to then BOOT, DROPKICK and DECK them all! The fans fire up, and Iyo goes up top! ARIHARA MOONSAULT onto them all!! Iyo then joins Kairi & Dakota in the ring to stand tall. Just who runs Raw? Perhaps these trios will have to fight it out and find out!
Gunther speaks.
Sometime before the show, Der Ring General went to the empty bleachers to say, “Last week, I offered Damian Priest the easy way out for the second time in a row. And his reaction was a reaction of a weak man. A reaction of a man who doesn’t have control over his own emotions. But that’s okay. Damian Priest doesn’t have to pretend anymore, because I exposed him for what he is: an emotional wannabe that abuses this great business as a cure for his childhood trauma.” Gunther says as far as tonight, Finn Balor is someone he used to look up to. Finn used to be one of the greatest pro-wrestlers in the world. And he still is, as he is World Tag Team Champion.
But let’s be honest. They both know Finn was destined for much greater things. But ever since he decided to surround himself with “those Judgment Day weirdos,” Finn became just like them: street trash. It will be Gunther’s pleasure tonight to find out how much of that old Finn Balor is still left. And as for Priest, know this: Gunther will never forgive Priest for abusing this great sport to cover up his pathetic existence. After SummerSlam, Priest and the rest of the world will forever remember the day when Der Ring General “saved this great sport and the World Heavyweight Championship.”
Backstage interview with Damage CTRL.
Cathy catches Iyo, Kairi & Dakota as they return backstage, and brings up that quick brawl out there with “the group that claims to be in control of Raw” while they were away. Iyo gets upset and says in Japanese that DMG CTRL are the ones who run Raw! Kairi adds her own comments in Japanese, and that WWE belongs to DMG CTRL. Dakota says the only reason Sonya and them have been “running the place” is because DMG CTRL was gone. Now that they’re back, it is time to reestablish a certain order of things. In fact, how about this? Dakota calls out Sonya for a match next week! Let’s see how long that little social club lasts after Dakota cuts the head off the snake.
DMG CTRL heads out, is #CobraKai going to leave Deville snakebit when Raw rolls into Baltimore?
Judgment Day regroups in the clubhouse.
Between Carlito and Dom each taking a loss, Rhea says, “What did you expect?” Carlito wants to point out that he was left alone out there but then they helped Dom. Rhea says she said this was gonna happen. JD says they can’t let Jey & Sami walk all over them. Finn says hold on, Rhea is right. They got themselves into this mess together. Let’s wait until after SummerSlam to get out of the mess together. Rhea says yeah, time to focus. And she’ll just put it out there… If Finn does need help with Gunther, they’ve got him. Just say the word.
Finn asks how many times they gotta go over this. At SummerSlam, Rhea is going it alone against Liv, and Priest is going it alone against Gunther. So tonight, he’s gotta step up and go it alone. Unless they don’t think he’s good enough. No, it’s not like that. Their problem is Gunther. They don’t trust that Gunther won’t try something stupid. But as his brother in arms, Priest knows Finn can handle Gunther. Go out there and show him who Finn Balor is. Finn says as Priest’s brother, he’ll soften up Gunther for Priest on Saturday.
They fist bump, JD helps Finn prepare, and the team is confident. But will the Prince be able to put a dent in the King of the Ring? Or will he be made into an example?
Finn Balor VS GUNTHER!
Raw returns and the two circle. They feel things out, tie up, and Gunther hits a headlock takeover. Finn headscissors, Gunther kips free but Finn goes for the headlock. Gunther blocks the takeover, lifts Finn, but Finn hits a flying takeover! Gunther scrambles up, powers up but can’t power out as Finn holds tight. Gunther puts Finn in a corner, the ref counts, and Finn lets go. Gunther swings, misses, and Finn CHOPS! Gunther snarls, so Finn CHOPS! Gunther eggs him on so Finn CHOPS! Gunther CHOPS and Finn falls! Gunther hauls Finn up, but Finn fights the bomb! Finn powers up and back drops! Gunther sunset flips, but Finn rolls through to basement dropkicks!
Finn fires up, the fans are with him, and he runs to KICK Gunther in the side! Finn then stomps at the ropes, the ref counts, and Finn stops at 4. Gunther stands, Finn runs back in but into a BOOT! The fans boo but Gunther paces around while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Gunther looms over Finn. Gunther brings Finn up to scoop and SLAM! Finn grits his teeth while writhing, and Gunther says he’s gong to become champion. But Finn CHOPS, and CHOPS and CHOPS! But Gunther CHOPS Finn down again! Gunther hauls Finn up to hit a BIG back suplex! Cover, TWO! Finn stays in this but Gunther stays on him with a CHOP! Gunther turns Finn over into a BOSTON CRAB! Finn endures, the fans rally, and Finn fights his way over! Finn has the ROPEBREAK! Gunther lets go quickly, and he drags Finn up into a corner. Gunther CLUBS Finn, then puts him up top.
Gunther SLAPS Finn on the back, but Finn throws elbows! Gunther CHOPS Finn on the back, then climbs up behind him! Gunther brings Finn up for a SUPER- CROSSBODY! Finn turns things around in time and both men are down! The fans fire up while Gunther sputters. Gunther slowly rises, as does Finn. They both stand, and Finn BOOTS Gunther! Finn ducks a chop to CHOP back! Finn fires forearms and body shots, but Gunther scoops! Finn slips free, into the EYE OF THE HURRICANE! Cover, TWO! The fans rally as Finn aims from a corner. Gunther rises, but he dodge the slingblade to have a SLEEPER!
Finn endures, Gunther drags him back up but Finn arm-drags free! Gunther CHOPS! SLEEPER!! Finn flails, fans rally, and Gunn leans on the hold! Finn fades, Gunther spins him around and POWER- SATELLITE DDT! Finn turns things around, runs and LARIATS, but Gunther stays up! Finn keeps moving, Gunther LARIATS back! Cover, TWO! Finn survives but both men are down. The fans rally up more as the two men stir. Finn and Gunther slowly rise, but Gunther stands first. Gunther kicks Finn, Finn CHOPS! Gunther CHOPS! Finn staggers, but he SLAPS! Gunther CHOPS, Finn SLAPS, back and forth!
The shots keep going, Finn CHOPS, Gunther UPPERCUTS! Gunther reels Finn in to POWER- NO, Finn slips free, duck sunder and comes back, SLINGBLADE! Gunther falls and Finn takes aim! The fans fire up as Finn runs in, but into a SLEEPER! REAR NAKED- NO, Finn rolls out of the body scissors to DOUBLE STOMP! Finn trips Gunther, and DOUBLE STOMPS again! Gunther sputters, Finn hurries to DOUBLE STOMP again! Finn aims from a corner, runs in, SHOTGUN! Gunther hits buckles then falls! Finn hurries up the corner while fans fire up! COUP DE- NO, Gunther moves! SLEEPER!! Finn flails but Gunther squeezes tight!
Finn is fading, but he finds a second wind! So Gunther reels him in and lifts, POWERBOMB! High stack, TWO!! Finn survives so it’s back to the SLEEPER!! Finn flails, reaches out, but he’s fading again! Gunther leans on the hold, Finn gets a third wind! The fans rally as Finn rises up, and he pries at Gunther’s arms! Finn ELBOW BREAKERS one, but Gunther just clamps on with the other! Finn is back down, the ref checks him! Finn is OUT, Gunther wins!!
Winner: Gunther, by submission
The King of the Ring got a fight out of The Prince, but then he CLAMPS THE SLEEPER BACK ON!! Gunther wants to humiliate and hurt Finn as a message to Priest! But here comes El Campeon! The fans fire up as Priest runs in, and he fires off hands on Gunther! They brawl, the fans fire up, and Priest DECKS Gunther! Gunther bails out but Priest pursues to fire off more hands! Gunther RAMS Priest into barriers, Priest pushes him back and ROCKS him with haymaker after haymaker! They go around ringside, Priest CHUCKS Gunther over the desk! The fans are thunderous as Priest rains down fists on the desk!
Gunther can only guard as Priest stomps at him! Gunther staggers, Priest LEAPS onto him! Priest stomps away against the barriers, this is that street mugging he promised! He throws Gunther into the Prime hydration station! Gunther and cart tumble, Gunther tries to get away, but Priest HAMMERS him on the barriers! The Punisher is giving Gunther what he deserves already, but will Gunther still get what he wants at SummerSlam?
My Thoughts:
A great Raw as the go-home for SummerSlam here, but with quite a bit more prepared for next week’s aftermath episode. Great tag match of Otis & Tozawa VS The Creeds, with Gable of course cheating to help the now Heel Creeds. At the same time, great appearance by Wyatt Sick6, great team combo from Lumis and Gacy, and I again enjoyed Gable being arrogant, thinking he figured out some secret that the Wyatts gave up willingly. As I figured, a Six Man Tag is happening and it’ll be next week, not at SummerSlam. That is fine, as being a kickoff show match doesn’t seem big enough for the in-ring return of Gacy, Lumis & Rowan.
Good match from Kross with Woods but of course Final Testament had to interfere. I want the blowoff, the match that determines if Woods joins Final Testament or stops them, to be a pure 1v1 match but that probably isn’t happening, given they might want to give Kofi a triumphant return. Though, perhaps such a return ends up exactly why Woods joins Kross, because on some level, it proves Kross is right. I do feel like it’d be the more intriguing story if, after all this time, New Day stopped being a team. Woods doesn’t even have to join Kross, he just has to see he doesn’t need Kofi anymore.
While Sonya’s group hurting Zelina seems a bit unnecessary, we got a very good Six Woman Tag. Good win for Sonya’s group which really needs a name, but also great return for DMG CTRL, with a look that hearkens back to Lucha Underground’s Black Lotus Triad, aka the one-off of Iyo & Kairi teaming with Mayu Iwatani to beat up on Pentagon Jr. Dakota VS Sonya will be good stuff, and really, should be Dakota’s win so DMG CTRL’s return is even stronger. Then we can do other singles matches, some tag matches, and of course the eventual Six Woman Tag. Though I wonder if Lyra & KC Squared get involved for a triple trios thing.
Sheamus VS Bronson was a great rematch, but I was just wondering when Dunne would show up. I didn’t think he’d use a shillelagh, though. Great win for Bronson, he could use this to go after whoever wins the Intercontinental Championship after SummerSlam. As for Dunne, he and Sheamus might end up having a Donnybrook match. It’ll hearken back to when The Brawling Brutes were a thing, it’d help bring out Dunne’s motivations in this feud, and it’d just be a lot of fun seeing them go all out, smashing up a tiny bar or some wood barrels.
As for SummerSlam build, a very good though rather long opening promo segment. Rollins didn’t go as crazy with his ref outfit as I was expecting, but the leather pants, zebra stripe boots and puffy shoulder shirt is still good stuff. And I do like that his rules will be very lax, bordering on No Holds Barred because he just wants to see McIntyre and Punk beat each other to a pulp. Now, it’d be rather cliche if like, Punk upsets Rollins somehow and Rollins screws him out of this, but it would be fitting of the story. Punk warned Rollins, that felt like foreshadowing, and what a great way to transition feuds than for Punk to want after Rollins now.
Judgment Day was of course a great throughline on the night. Liv bashing up the clubhouse, and the PS5, while also having her promo with the trash can fire, was good stuff. Rhea’s response was also good, can’t wait to see how their title match goes down. Very good promos from Priest and Gunther to call each other out, and it is intriguing how Finn seems to be the one insisting on “Stand on your own, handle the business,” even though they in no way had to have Carlito lose to Jey or Dom lose to Sami. I’m still hoping to see that Judgment Day Civil War type break-up, Finn bringing JD & Carlito with him to join Liv, so that the real business they need to handle is, “Who is better Judgment Day?”
Sami and Jey got great momentum off those matches, but we also got a good promo from Sami and Bron. Bron going after Sami but being run off, that go-home math has to mean Sami loses. I’m still a little surprised Sami won at MITB, so I think this is when Bron wins. Bron’s promo does have a point about “life after Bron,” because Sami and Jey could move over to go after the tag titles since this thing with Judgment Day is heating up. And then, if Survivor Series brings back Brand VS Brand, Sami & Jey are champs on Raw but Bloodline’s Tama & Jacob Fatu are champs on SmackDown… It isn’t quite a WarGames of Bloodline Civil War, but it’d be pretty good all the same.
My Score: 8.8/10
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SmackDown’s on the road to Riyadh!
John Cena dared CM Punk to challenge him at Night of Champions, and Miss Money in the Bank, Naomi, wants all champions to Proceed With Caution!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- King of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Randy Orton VS LA Knight VS Aleister Black VS Carmelo Hayes; Orton wins and advances to the next round.
- Queen of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Jade Cargill VS Nia Jax VS Piper Niven VS Mia Yim; Jade wins and advances to the next round.
- Motor City Machine Guns VS Joe Gacy & Dexter Lumis w/ The Wyatt Sick6; Gacy & Lumis win.
- Queen of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Charlotte Flair VS Alexa Bliss VS Candice LeRae VS
Chelsea GreenAlba Fyre; Alexa wins and advances to the next round. - King of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Cody Rhodes VS Damian Priest VS Andrade VS Shinsuke Nakamura; Cody wins and advances to the next round.
PLAY BY PLAY
John Cena is here!
Lexington, Kentucky sings, “JOHN CENA SUCKS~!” as he makes his way out in the University of Kentucky white ‘n’ blue. Cena goes to the ring, and while the fans duel, “Let’s Go, Cena!” “CENA SUCKS!” Cena signals to Mark Nash to give the proper introductions: Please welcome the Greatest of All Time, the Never Seen Seventeen, gracing Lexington with his presence one last time, he is the Last Real Champion, JOHN CENA! The fans boo as Cena holds up the belt. Cena then grabs a mic and says, “Wrestling’s Mount Rushmore… is John Cena, John Cena, John Cena, and John Cena.” The fans boo but Cena says, there have been great wrestlers and great talkers.
But no one in the past, and certainly no one in the present nor the future, is comparable to him. And the very reason Cena will always outmaneuver the fans is not because he never gives up. It is because he is smarter than us. “You Can’t See Me, but you all wanna be me.” And whether watching at home or being mesmerized in this very arena, Cena is always 1000 steps ahead because everyone is worried about here and now, when he had already “won” this title over a year ago. Cena announced his retirement early so that he could have an extra six months to scout his potential opponents.
Cena knew anyone could enter the Rumble, so he did. And he knew that if he lost in the Rumble, he could use his seniority to enter the Elimination Chamber. And he knew that in the Chamber, Rollins and Punk would melt down to give Cena an easy win. Plus, Cody Rhodes was so focused on The Final Boss, Cena just had to seize the moment, shock the world, and become unpredictable. Then all he did was use Cody’s obsession with everyone’s love to guarantee the WrestleMania win. Cena used the fanfare and love of the 25 year rivalry to get a match in Randy Orton’s hometown, all to lull Randy into a false sense of security.
Cena put R-Truth in the Saturday Night’s Main Event so that all the fans would care, and the fans took the bait! While the fans tried to save Truth, Cena made friends with Logan Paul, just to eliminate him as a threat, and all to size up his next opponent in CM Punk. The fans boo but Cena says he used Punk’s rebellious nature and sociopathic self-confidence to back him into a corner. The fans cheer for Punk, but Cena says if Punk wants to take the title, he has to admit that he is a hypocrite! And Cena doesn’t even have to worry about Mr. Money in the Bank, Rollins will never cash in on Cena while he holds this!
Cena knows Rollins wants Cena to leave with the Undisputed title, Rollins becomes your only champion! Cena is the greatest for a reason! The fans boo but Cena says while they’ve been busy using their pathetic brains to come up with fake stories like if Cena “sold his soul,” all Cena has to do is put the math in his favor. He wins before the matches even start! In 25 years, he crunched every number, solved every puzzle and cracked every code. And thank God Cena doesn’t need the fans’ appreciation, because they won’t realize how good he is until three years after he’s gone! This is the greatest moment of their lives, but to Cena, they are just a mathematical equation.
And the math says that there is no one ever worthy enough to earn the right to hold the Undisputed title ever again. But wait, here comes Cody Rhodes! Lexington sings along with Cody’s song, “WHOA~ OH~!” as the American Nightmare makes his way to the ring. Cody gets his pyro, high-fives fans in the front row, then steps up onto the corner for the second “WHOA~ OH~!” and pyro. Cody throws his track jacket to the crowd as a free souvenir, then he grabs himself a mic. The fans cheer as Cody and Cena are face to face again, and then Cody gets the fans to fire up a bit more. Cody takes a moment, then asks Cena to go over what he just said.
Cena claims to be 1000 steps ahead because he’s so smart? No, no, he isn’t just smart! Cena’s a genius! It is unfortunate that everything Cena’s said has come true: Rollins and Punk melted down, Cody was distracted, and they all took their eyes off the prize. The homefield advantage was used against Randy, and the Mount Rushmore being all Cena, sure. But here we are, some sort of 25 year master plan, and there’s this variable that he didn’t account for, and it is simple. Cena laid out his whole story since his return, but why didn’t he include the simple fact that this past Saturday, he was looking up at the lights when Cody pinned him in the middle of this ring?!
The fans cheer, and Cody says he isn’t part of Cena’s plan, Cena is part of Cody’s. So “John Rushmore,” where does that leave the two of them? Well it isn’t just the two of them, because here comes Randy Orton! The fans fire up as The Viper goes right to the ring, gets right in Cena’s face, then pushes past him to grab himself a mic. Randy is back a month after Backlash, and he tells anyone and everyone that had a pulse and was watching Backlash knows Orton had Cena BEAT! Down and out, dead to rights, and about to remove Cena’s head from his shoulders! Until somebody out there decided to come and save John Cena.
Orton realizes now that he has to do whatever it takes. It doesn’t matter what or who it is he has to go through to get his fifteenth. Even being in the King of the Ring Tournament. Cody, Orton loves you like a brother, you know that… But if Orton has to put Cody’s ass down to get to Cena, he won’t hesitate to do it! But wait! Here comes LA Knight! Lexington fires up for The Mega Star as he already has a mic to say, “LEMME TALK TO YA!” “YEAH!” LA Knight says all week long, he’s heard the whole world saying #WeWantLAKnight! “YEAH!” Knight knows what they want, and he knows for damn sure what none of the other guys in the ring want, and that’s Knight walking down there.
So, why don’t we take a walk? Knight understands what this is as he defiantly walks down there. He is looking at the WEW Establishment! “YEAH!” Knight is the sore thumb sticking out here, and that’s how he likes it, YEAH! “YEAH!” But you gotta understand something. Cena, you have this great little master plan, BAH GAWD, it is genius. But Knight knows damn sure that the plans didn’t include Knight, YEAH! So let’s go ahead and throw the plan on it’s head. KOTR is around the corner, which means Knight has a shot at Cody, Orton, and Cena, all on the way to taking what is his! “YEAH!”
So unbreakable as Knight is walking in here, he’s gotta drop a viper, a nightmare, and if he has to drop “a genius balding b*tch John Cena,” he’ll do it to be WWE Champion, with everybody saying, “L! A! KNIGHT! YEAH!!” Cena chuckles and steps out. The fans boo as Cena goes back up the ramp, but then R-TRUTH GETS HIM! Or, well, Ron Killings gets him! And he rains down furious fists on Cena right at the ramp! Security rushes out there, as do producers, and the fans boo. Cena kicks free as it takes everybody to hold Killings back! Will Cena even make it to Night of Champions with the walls closing in?
King of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Randy Orton VS LA Knight VS Aleister Black VS Carmelo Hayes!
SmackDown returns as Melo joins Orton and Knight out here, followed by The Dark Father. The King of the Ring has a new format this year, which one of these four survives to head into the semifinals?
The bell rings and the four watch each other. Melo locks eyes with Knight, but then he goes after Aleister! They brawl with forearms and haymakers, then Melo throat chops! Melo whips, Aleister grabs ropes and BOOTS H1M back! Aleister TOSSES Melo, Knight and Orton tie up and they end up in a corner. Aleister whips but Melo reverses to send Aleister into barriers! Orton fires hands on Knight, then a KNEE! Knight turns thing around, only for Melo to roll him up! TWO, and Orton kicks Melo! Orton UPPERCUTS Melo, Aleister UPPERCUTS Melo, then Knight DECKS him! And LARIATS him up and out!
Aleister goes up, out, and TRIANGLE MOONSAULTS! Down goes Melo and Knight has Orton! Orton denies the BFT, but then Knight denies the RKO! Aleister runs up, Knight ducks the Black Mass! The fans fire up the huge standoff, and SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns again and Melo has Knight in a corner. Melo rains down fists, but Knight stops him quick! Atomic drop and a LARIAT! Knight storms up on Melo to stomp him into a corner, “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Knight then goes to Orton in the other corner and stomps away! “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Knight goes back to Melo, but Melo SUPERKICKS! Aleister is back, Melo ducks ‘n’ dodges, LA MYSTICA! But then Knight runs up, only to be put on the apron. Knight slingshots but into a CUTTER! Melo has Knight in the ropes, FADE AWAY LEG DROP! DROPKICK for Orton, but Aleister ROCKS Melo!
Aleister whips, Melo springboards, FLYING LARIAT! Melo shoots his free throw, then FLIES to take out Aleister! The fans fire up and Melo goes back to the ring, but Knight WRECKS him with a dropkick! “YEAH!” Knight huffs ‘n’ puffs and drags Melo up to SMACK him off the desk! Knight dribbles Melo, “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Orton has Knight for a back suplex, but Knight lands out! Orton blocks Aleister’s boot, spins him around, DESK BACK SUPLEX! Knight then RAMS Orton into the apron! The fans rally, Knight fetches Melo, and Knight puts Melo in the ring. Knight storms up, “This is Awesome!” as Knight hoists Melo up top.
Knight climbs but Melo throws hands! Knight CHOPS, they brawl some more, and Knight fires a flurry! “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Knight steadies himself, brings Melo up, but Melo fights the lift! Melo fires body shots then he shoves Knight down! But Orton runs up to ROCK Melo! Orton gets Melo up but Melo CLWWS the eyes! Aleister STEP-UP KICKS Melo! Melo wobbles, Aleister TOSSES Orton, but Orton drags Aleister out! Orton whips, Aleister reverses and he POSTS Orton! Knight springs up to get Melo! Melo shoves Knight away, aims, FROG SPLASH!! Cover, Aleister breaks it! The fans fire up as this one continues, and SmackDown goes to break!
SmackDown returns once again and Aleister KNEES Melo, then ENZIGIRIS! Knight runs u;, Aleister goe sup and over, then he spins Knight to ELBOW him! Orton stumbles up but Aleister stops the RKO! Orton avoids Black Mass, Aleister grabs Knight but Knight rolls him up! ONE, and Aleister aims, but Knight dodges so the BOOT hits Orton! Knight has Aleister but Aleister denies BFT to KNEE Knight down! Melo headlocks but Aleister handsprings out of the bulldog! Aleister fires off a strike fest and a BOOT! Cover on Melo, TWO! Aleister grows frustrated but he has all three opponents down! The fans fire up as Aleister aims, runs up, but Orton LARIATS!
Orton LARIATS again, then dodges to SNAP POWERSLAM! But Knight runs up, he gets a SNAP POWERSLAM! Melo ROCKS Orton, runs, but into a SNAP POWERSLAM! The fans fire up for Orton as he drags Melo up. Orton puts Melo in the ropes, but then Aleister runs up. Orton kicks Aleister, has him in the ropes, but then Knight adds on! JUMPING NECKBREAKER DOUBLE DRAPING DDT COMBO!! Cover on Orton, TWO!! Orton stays in this for everyone’s sake and Knight is a bit stunned. The fans rally up, “This is Awesome!” Knight watches Melo rise, kick and B- NO, Melo powers out! Knight swings on Orton but Orton ducks!
Orton aims, but Knight denies the RKO, and he sends Orton into Melo’s FIRST 48! Aleister BOOTS Melo! Knight has Aleister, B F T!! Cover, MELO BREAKS IT!! Melo denies Knight that game winner, and now they rise up. Melo vows to end this, but Knight wrenches and kicks, to then whip and POP-UP and POWERSLAM! Knight huffs ‘n’ puffs and goes to the corner. The fans rally as Knight climbs, “L! A! KNIGHT!” BUT BRONSON REED YANKS KNIGHT DOWN! The Colossal Aussie gets revenge for Monday, but speaking of! BRON BREAKKER SPEARS KNIGHT!! They cost Knight at MITB, he cost them in KOTR, so now they get him out of KOTR!
Melo grins and takes aim, NOTHING BUT RKO!! Cover, Orton wins!!
Winner: Randy Orton, by pinfall (advances to the semifinals)
Just when Melo thought he was taking advantage of an opening, he left himself open to The Viper! Will Orton be meeting Cody Rhodes at the end of this tournament? Or will Sami Zayn make sure he isn’t just someone’s stepping stone?
Jacob Fatu walks ‘n’ talks backstage.
“Lexington, Kentucky. The United States Champion is here. Hell, the United States Champion is America’s Most Wanted, and I’m coming live and direct inside The Rupp Arena! YADADADADADADA mean?!” The Samoan Werewolf is all fired up, but what more will he say on how Saturday was the night he broke free from Solo Sikoa? We find out, after the break.
SmackDown returns and…
Fatu heads to the ring! Lexington cheers the Samoan Werewolf, and he grabs the mic to say, “Lexington, Kentucky! Let’s keep it 100! Just because you’re family don’t mean that you can go behind their back and try to snake ’em. Just because we both come from the same bloodline don’t mean that they can take all the credit for your hard work! So Solo says I wouldn’t be nothing if it wasn’t for him. Solo says Jacob Fatu would be nothing if it wasn’t for him!” The fans boo that, and Fatu says this is why he had to remind Solo at MITB what happens when you don’t get in where you fit in! The fans cheer that!
So now, it is Fatu against the world! Cuz Fatu is all gas, no brakes with it! YADADA MEAN~?! But wait, Solo Sikoa is on the tron, sarcastically applauding. Solo says that’s it, Jacob, tell ’em how you feel. Solo leans in close and asks Fatu if he’s done getting it all off his chest. At MITB, Fatu could’ve made the biggest mistake of his life. And Solo can forgive him for that. One year ago, when Solo visited Fatu in Sacramento, Fatu was doing nothing. NOTHING. No one wanted Fatu around until Solo brought him here to the WWE. Solo made Fatu into a WWE Superstar, put money in his pocket, put him in the position for success, and even made him a champion!
This is all because of SOLO, you stupid…! Solo holds back, and he says next week, Solo will be in the ring with open arms, willing to take Fatu back. But there is something Solo needs from Fatu. He needs those four words from him: I Love You, Solo. And just remember… Solo brought Fatu into the WWE, and he can take him out of it. Yadada mean? Solo leaves Fatu to think on this ultimatum, but is it already obvious what Fatu will say to Solo next week?
Nick Aldis meets with The Secret Her-vice.
“Special Slaygent” Piper informs the SmackDown General Manager that Chelsea Green needs to speak with him. But Chelsea isn’t here in the room…? She’s on the phone. And Chelsea apologizes, she had an impossible time finding a flight to get her to Lexington, so can they postpone her Fatal 4 Way until next week? Aldis says no, they’re not postponing anything for little ol’ Chelsea. But if her Secret Her-vice is here… Alba is ready for competition, right? So then Alba will take Chelsea’s place! Perfect! Chelsea says no, she will filibuster and- Oh, sorry, no, Aldis authorized it, he doesn’t care what Chelsea has to say, so Alba has to go get ready now.
Alba grumbles that she has to change from her security suit to her wrestling suit. Chelsea complains and complains, but then Zelina Vega steps in. Zelina takes the phone and hangs up on Chelsea so she can talk with Aldis. She wants Giulia now! Well, she’s not here tonight. Oh, that’s convenient. Aldis says he understands that Zelina wants after Giulia after last week. Zelina says first of all, she’s been snatched unawares much harder by much better. Second, don’t worry about the girl that does the sneak attacks, worry about the girl that gets up after every beating. One sneak attack isn’t gonna scare her, she is THE Women’s US Champion!
So next week, Zelina will confront Giulia, because she doesn’t need to pretend or hide. The smallest girl with the biggest mouth is gonna make Giulia look stupid! Zelina storms off, will the Beautiful Madness learn not to get on La Muneca’s bad side?
Queen of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Jade Cargill VS Nia Jax VS Piper Niven VS Mia Yim!
A storm has come to Lexington, and she wants to make her way to Riyadh! Will the Irresistible Force, the Special Slaygent and even the Head Baddie in Charge be unable to slow her down? Or will someone else grab that spot in the semifinals?
SmackDown returns as Michin makes her entrance, joining Jade and Piper, leaving Nia for last. Nia says she won the crown last year, she’ll just do it again. The bell rings and Piper fires off on Mia while Nia RAMS Jade! The fans boo but Jade elbows Nia and bumps her off buckles! Jade RAMS into Nia but Piper has Mia on the outside. Piper whips Mia into barriers! And then puts her up against the post. Nia and Jade have moved their brawl outside while Piper runs up on Mia. Mia dodges so Piper POSTS herself! Nia whips, Jade reverse, Nia hits steel steps! The fans fire up as Jade and Mia meet in the ring.
Mia and Jade run up, Mia slips around to waistlock, but Jade switches to SLAM Mia down! Mia fights up while Jade holds on, but Jade whips. Jade hurdles, then scoops for a BACKBREAKER! Cover, TWO! Mia stays in this but Jade stays on her. Jade suplexes, holds Mia up, but Mia slips free! Mia goes to a corner, dodges Jade, but Jade keeps moving! Mia ducks ‘n’ dodges ‘n’ redirects to RANA! Mia runs and SHOTGUNS Jade down! The fans rally, Mia covers, TWO! Jade is tougher than that but Mia stomps her. Mia runs but Piper trips her up! Piper drags Mia out and scoops to SLAM her on the floor!
Nia drops an ELBOW on Jade! Piper SENTONS Mia! Nia soaks up the heat, drags Jade up, and Nia bumps Jade off buckles. Nia CHOPS Piper, then shakes her hand. Nia whips corner to corner, Jade bounces off buckles, and Nia signals for that crown. Jade fires forearms but Nia HEADBUTTS her down! Nia fireman’s carries and SAMOAN DROPS! Piper adds a SENTON! Piper and Nia stare down, but they decide to work together on Jade. Nia & Piper mug Jade in a corner, then whip corner to corner. Jade ELBOWS Piper away, dodges Nia, and Nia POSTS herself! Jade runs to PUMP KICK Piper outta the ring!
But Nia drags Jade out of the ring! The mugging continues, but Mia goes up and up to ASAI MOOONSAULT! Direct hit and all four are down! The fans fire up while SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns again and Jade SPLASHES Piper in one corner, then SPLASHES Nia in the other! And repeat! But then Nia follows, only for Jade to dodge! Nia SPLASHES Piper, then Jade ROCKS her! But Piper CLOBBERS Jade! Nia DRIBBLES Jade off the mat, the fans boo, and Nia salutes with Piper. They drag Jade up, whip her to a corner, then Nia runs to SPLASH! Piper adds a SPLASH of her own! Jade sits down, Nia HIP ATTACKS! Piper CANNONBALLS! Cover, but Nia won’t let Piper get it! Piper says okay, okay, she was just kidding around. But Nia shoves Piper! Piper shoves Nia! Mia RANAS Nia, then JAWBREAKERS Piper!
Mia has Piper for a TORNADO BULLDOG! Cover, TWO! Piper stays in this but Mia drags her up. Jade CLUBS Mia, whips her, but Mia RAN- NO, Jade blocks it! SIT OUT POWERBOMB! Cover, TWO!! Mia survives, and Piper SPLASHES Jade! Piper drags Mia up, reels her in, but Mia slips out of the scoop! SLICED BREAD! Mia hurries to cover, but Nia breaks it! Nia SENTONS onto Mia! Cover, TWO! Mia toughs it out and Nia grows frustrated. Nia & Piper go after Jade on the outside but Jade fights them off! SUPERKICK for Piper! HAYMAKER for Nia! Piper HEADBUTTS Jade, Nia ROCKS Jade, and then they two TOSS Jade over the desk!
Wade Barrett gets wiped out by The Storm and Nia just flips them both off! But Mia WRECKS Nia with a dropkick! Piper is up, Mia dodges and tilt-o-whirls to DDT! Cover, Nia breaks it! Mia drags Nia up to fire hands, then she fires hands on Piper! The fans rally, Mia runs, but into double guzels! DOUBLE CHOKE SLAM!! Nia applauds, the fans boo, and Wade is apparently okay, but then Nia DECKS Piper! Nia dumps Piper out, drags Mia to a drop zone, then she goes up! The fans boo the A-NIA-LATOR!! Cover, PIPER BREAKS IT! Piper and Nia go outside, and Piper POSTS Nia! Piper then runs to SPEAR Nia through the barriers!!
The fans go nuts as Piper proves she’s the more destructive powerhouse! Piper then storms over to Mia, she goes up the corner, VADER BOMB! But Jade is up!! Chicken wings on Piper, JADED for Piper!!! Cover, JADE WINS!
Winner: Jade Cargill, by pinfall (advances to the semifinals)
Just as it looked like she was done for, Jade snatches this win away for her own! The Storm is in the semifinals, will she make quick work of The Prodigy, Roxanne Perez?
Naomi watches this backstage.
She’s not exactly pleased that Jade is advancing, but she’s also the one holding the Money in the Bank briefcase. Naomi heads for gorilla, what will she have to say about her huge victory? We find out, after the break.
SmackDown returns and…
Lexington fires up as Naomi heads to the ring! “Yes, I see some o’ y’all looking real surprised! Real shocked! Real stupid! I dunno why, because I told y’all I was done accepting scraps. I took what I deserve, and look at me now. Miss Money in the Bank! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” The fans are torn, but Naomi says what’s really funny is the entire time, when she was trying to beat Nia Jax for the WWE Women’s Championship, y’know who was there with a briefcase to stop it? Y’know who distracted her? Who bashed her in the head?! It was Tiffany Stratton. “Too Nice Naomi” just let it happen. But the Naomi now aini’t lettin’ nothing sliding! She’s here for payback!
And when Naomi CLOCKS Tiffy Time in the head with this briefcase, it’ll feel so good when Naomi becomes the NEW WWE- Well, here comes Tiffany herself! The fans cheer as Tiff goes to the ring, and she grabs a mic to say, “You talk a big game, Naomi. So why don’t you just do it? Just cash in and take my title… right now.” The fans chant “DO IT! DO IT!” Tiffy says see, she’s still the same ol’ Naomi: all talk and no action. That is why Naomi never beat Nia. But please, prove us all wrong! The fans cheer, Naomi snarls, and she says, “Do I look stupid to you?! Do I look like Booboo the Fool? I ain’t gonna cash in on you now. I’ma cash in when you least expect it.”
Fans go, “What?” and Naomi shouts, “B*tch, you heard me!” Naoim says in the meantime, she will enjoy making Tiffy’s life HELL! Naomi says tick-tock, Tiffy, time is almost up! So Naomi strongly advises to #ProceedWithCaution. The fans are torn, but while Naomi holds up the briefcase, Tiffy holds up the belt. When and where will we see- WAIT! NIA is here! Nia and Tiff brawl, the fans fire up, and Nia shoves Tiff. Tiff DROPKICKS Nia’s legs, then DROPKICKS Nia in the face! Naomi runs up, Tiff DECKS her, but Nia CLOBBERS Tiff! Nia may not be going to Riyadh, but she wants to get hers now! A-NIA-LATOR on Tiff!!
Naomi hurries back up, but Nia steps in the way! Nia tells Naomi to back off, so Naomi backs off. Will Nia get payback on the Wrestling Barbie before Naomi can? Or will Tiffy still have time on the clock?
Nick Aldis meets with the SmackDown Tag Division.
He thanks the Street Profits, Motor City Machine Guns, Fraxiom & DIY for coming to discuss the Wyatt situation. Johnny Gargano interrupts, saying this is a big decision. DIY feels this is a huge opportunity… for Fraxiom. Everyone else says they knew DIY would pull that. Fraxiom says they’re not afraid, but Tommaso Ciampa says if nothing else, the Street Profits should step up as the champions. Angelo Dawkins says bet, they’re already ready. Aldis suggests they all let him finish his explanation. Taking all this into account, MCMG are the veterans, so they will set the tone. They get the Wyatts tonight.
The others applaud and Dawkins says yes, set that tone. Will Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin be able to have an impact on the Wyatt Sick6? Or will the Motor City Machine Guns have no effect on what goes bump in the night?
Motor City Machine Guns VS Joe Gacy & Dexter Lumis!
SmackDown returns as the lights go down and the fireflies come out. The chair and the lantern wait on stage as the Wyatts make their entrance. Uncle Howdy sits in the chair, Nikki Cross & Erik Rowan stay close, and Gacy & Lumis rush the ring! The fans cheer as the brawl is on! The bell rings, Gacy has Shelley while Lumis has Sabin! The ref reprimands, Gacy whips Shelley to a corner then CLOBBERS him! Lumis & Gacy whip Sabin, DOUBLE ELBOW, then Lumis drops an AX HANDLE! Gacy drops a SENTON! Cover, ONE!! Gacy drags Sabin up, bumps him off buckles, and tags in Lumis.
Lumis brings Sabin around but Sabin swings. Lumis duck sot hit a BIG back suplex! Lumis kips up and LEG DROPS! Cover, TWO! Sabin is tougher than that, but Lumis drags him up. Gacy tags in, they mug Sabin, and then Gacy whips. Scoop and BACKBREAKER! Gacy goes up the ropes to LIONSAULT! Cover, TWO! Gacy BLASTS Shelley off the apron and he tags Lumis in. They get Sabin up, UPPERCUT and then a kick down low. Lumis wrenches Sabin, tags Gacy back in, and the mugging continues. They double whip, but Sabin breaks the double lariat! Gacy runs up but Sabin DUMPS him out! And then he TOSSES Lumis!
Tag to Shelley and MCMG set up! The fans fire up as the Machine Guns DOUBLE DORPKICK! Then they DOUBLE PLANCHA! Down go Lumis & Gacy and the fans fire up! MCMG stare down with Rowan while SmackDown goes to break.
SmackDown returns again and both Shelley and Gacy are down. The fans rally, Shelley crawls, hot tag to Sabin! Sabin goes up to MSSILE DROPKICK! Gacy flounders, Lumis tags in, but Sabin dodges to CHOP, CHOP, and CHOP! Sabin whips, Lumis reverses but Sabin BULLDOGS! The fans fire up and Lumis staggers up. Sabin runs and GAMANGIRIS! Sabin drags Lumis to a cover, TWO! Howdy is antsy as Sabin tags Shelley. Shlley goes to the apron, Sabin follows, and MCMG DOUBLE SUPERKICK Lumis! Lumis sputters, MCMG drags him inside, and Shelley whips Lumis to the corner. LARIAT, then he tags Sabin!
Shelley clinches but Lumis ELBOWS free! Lumis trips Sabin up, then hurries to tag Gacy! Gacy runs in to handspring, and DOUBLE UPSIDE-DOWN!! Tag back to Lumis and they have Sabin! Whip and POP-UP POWERBOMB onto Sabin! The fans fire up as Lumis covers, TWO!! Sabin survives but Lumis snarls. Lumis watches Sabin stir, drags him up and wrenches to then whip him to the corner. But Sabin DROPKICKS Gacy! Lumis runs in, Sabin BOOTS him away, then Sabin runs up, DDT! Hot tag to Shelley! Lumis staggers up, Shelley whips, BIG atomic drop! Then the DREAM SEQUENCE!
The fans fire up with MCMG and Howdy doesn’t like that. Sabin tags back in, he drags Lumis up while Shelley climbs. Sabin turns Lumis but Gacy trips Shelley! Gacy HEADBUTTS Sabin, he and Lumis aim, HIGH LOW!! Cover off the superkick and leg sweep combo, but they ask Howdy for permission. “YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH~!” Lumis goes up, Gacy CLOBBERS Shelley, and Lumis hits a SUPER LEG DROP!! Cover, The Wyatts win!
Winners: Joe Gacy & Dexter Lumis, by pinfall
The chaos is back and it is on top as Lumis & Gacy break the Machine Guns. Will they tear through the rest of the division until they’re the champions?
John Cena encounters Jimmy Uso backstage.
Cena and #BigJim stare down, and Cena asks if Jimmy has seen R-Truth. No, he hasn’t. Then has he seen Ron Killings? Listen, man… Jimmy ain’t seen either one of ’em. Cena says he knows Jimmy and Truth are close. So let Killings know that Cena’s going back to the ring, and he wants Killings to meet him there. Cena heads out, will Ron get the message? Will Cena get the Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth?
SmackDown returns and…
“JOHN CENA SUCKS~!” as he goes right back to the ring, just as he promised. And he tells everyone to shut up! Cena paces and says, “There is a level of disrespect that I can tolerate. R-Truth, you just crossed the line!” The fans chant, “We Want Truth!” and Cena frowns. Cena says for once, he agrees. There is a time to talk and there is a time to fight, so Truth, get out here so they can fight! BUT WAIT! CM PUNK is here instead! Cena is stunned and maybe even a little scared to see Punk here on SmackDown. Punk goes right to the ring as the fans cheer, and he grabs himself a mic before sitting on the top rope.
The fans cheer Punk on even more and Punk asks, “Is it great to be alive on a Friday night in Lexington, Kentucky or what?” The fans cheer that! And Punk asks Cena if he said something about disrespect. Cena is tired of being disrespected? “John, these people are tired of being disrespected! But now, CM Punk has a microphone, and I think you can trust when I say that we have yet to begin the reach the levels of disrespect that we are capable of.” Punk says for old time’s sake, he’ll give Cena a chance, the benefit of a doubt. Maybe Punk’s empathy is too much, too Obi-Wan talking to Darth Vader, hoping to see Anakin still in there.
So Punk will give Cena a chance in front of this legendary wrestling town. “Stop what you’re doing, let these people celebrate who and what you are, let them put you on a pedestal on your way out. Let them celebrate the sacrifices you have made for them and this business. Give them a happy ending!” Punk steps back and Cena steps up. Cena asks, “Why? Why would I waste my time?” The fans boo, but Cena says the people don’t matter, this place doesn’t matter, basketball doesn’t matter, horse racing doesn’t matter! THIS Undisputed Championship is the only thing that matters! So Cena is to eat crow to the same idiots wearing his shirt but singing Punk’s song? Fat chance!
Punk says okay, okay, let the record show that Punk and Lexington gave Cena an out. But now, let’s do it Cena’s way. Let the disrespect being. Ironically that is the Punk way! When the static hits and Cult of Personality plays through sold-out arenas, everyone knows it is about to get real. And ladies and gentlemen, watching and working at USA Network, it’s about to get real. Here’s the truth Cena wants so badly. The saying goes, “You tell a strong man a lie to offend him.” That’s why it pisses Punk off when Cena calls him the hypocrite. Conversely, you tell a weak man the truth and that offends him.
Fans chant, “We Want Truth!” Punk says the truth here is… Cena can’t beat Punk. When Punk is at his best, Cena never could. And now Cena wants to ruin wrestling? Well, Punk is going to take it upon himself to save it. Bare with Punk, because as always, he has a lot to get off his chest. That other thing about sociopathic confidence? Punk takes that as a compliment. Because it is that confidence that brought Punk to the mountaintop time and time again. Especially when people like Cena say they wanna see it but claim Punk didn’t have it. But Punk is not as confident as Cena, because Punk would never dress like a toddler who looks like he struck out at T-Ball.
The fans laugh, Punk says he wants that stricken from the record, because y’know who that sounds like? That sounds like the PG John Cena. Which is ironic, because right now, y’know who Cena sounds like, saying he’s gonna ruin wrestling, take the strap and go home… That sounds like C M PUNK! And yes, that is ironic. Cena is stealing Punk’s best material. Punk won that title, he left with the title, and Cena is trying to follow in those footsteps. Punk did it! He said he would and he did, and Cena couldn’t stop him. Cena thinks challenging Punk at Night of Champions is going to stop him? “John Boy, just like old times, here’s CM Punk to make your title run interesting.”
Here comes CM Punk to make John Cena’s retirement tour interesting! Watchable! Get the rocket fuel to fuel that private jet! Punk would go to MARS to beat Cena’s ass! Punk will follow Cena to Hell to prove he is better than Cena! But here’s more truth, it isn’t all bad. Cena IS a GOAT, but so is Punk. Punk beat Cena in Chicago, he beat Cena in Boston, and he will beat Cena at Night of Champions. Cena is the “Goat” that Punk will spit-roast and sacrifice to the gods of wrestling! Legends who actually belong on the Mount Rushmore! Terry Funk, Harley Race, Bret Hart, Eddie Guerrero! The AUDACITY of Cena to put himself on that mountain once, let alone all four times. What a joke.
The fans cheer but Cena smirks. Punk says here’s more truth: You can’t see me? No, Punk sees through him, and always has, and that’s the truth. Punk leaves Cena with that, and then KILLINGS STRIKES AGAIN!! And he puts Cena in the STF!! Punk mockingly says, “I’m sorry~! But the Truth hurts!” Cena suffers his own signature submission but security rushes out here! The fans boo as they drag Killings off Cena and Cena scrambles away! Cena hops and hobbles on one good leg, are the bridges he burned going to take them down with him?
Backstage interview with Alexa Bliss.
Byron Saxton is with Lil’ Miss Bliss at gorilla, and notes that she took a tough loss at MITB. What is the mindset going into the future? Alexa says she’s won MITB, cashed in, made history, so she isn’t rattled. Tonight, she reminds everyone of who she is, and will be one step closer to becoming Queen of the Ring. But then in steps Charlotte Flair. And she says, “Sweetie, did you say, ‘Queen?’ There’s only room for one queen in this division. WOO~!” Charlotte makes her entrance first, but both she and Alexa will have to fight their way into the next round. Will it be either of them that moves forward? Or are they overlooking the Poison Pixie and the Firestarter?
Nick Aldis finds R-Truth/Ron Killings backstage.
Aldis asks Truth what the hell he’s doing, he can’t just keep jumping Cena like that! What’s Aldis supposed to do? Truth says he wants a match with Cena next week. Next week? Yeah. Done. Killings says he’s driving now! Will he run Cena right off the road?
Queen of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Charlotte Flair VS Alexa Bliss VS Candice LeRae VS Alba Fyre!
SmackDown returns and Candice makes her entrance to join Charlotte, Alexa, and Alba. The bell rings and the fans rally up. The four watch each other, but Alexa and Charlotte stare down as they step up. Alba and Candice jump on them! Candice is after Alexa, Alba is after Charlotte, and they put the two in corners. Alba RAMS into Charlotte again and again while Candice stomps a mudhole into Alexa. Alba digs her boots in, Candice SPLASHES Alexa, and then Candice fires elbows. Charlotte CHOPS Alba, storms up to RAM Alexa into Candice, then Charlotte POSTS Alexa! Alexa tumbles out and the fans are torn for Charlotte.
Charlotte dusts herself off, then THROWS Candice into Alba! Charlotte drags Alba to a cover, ONE!! Cover on Candice, ONE!! Charlotte CHOPS Alba, CHOPS Candice, and repeat! The fans “WOO~” with every CHOP! But then Candice grabs a leg, Alba BOOTS Charlotte down, and they mug Charlotte! Alba smothers Charlotte using her tie! Alba CLUBS Charlotte down, then she and Candice mug her, returning the CHOPS! Alba kicks Charlotte, she and Candice have Charlotte on the ropes, and they CHOP again! They double whip Charlotte, but Charlotte grabs ropes. Charlotte KICKS Candice, ROCKS Alba, then LARIATS Candice!
Alexa is back and she CROSSBODIES onto Charlotte! Cover, ONE! Alexa clinches, but Candice & Alba mug Alexa! Charlotte gets away while Candice bumps Alexa off buckles. Alba stomps Alexa, Charlotte DECKS Candice, and she DECKS Alba! Cover on Alba, TWO! Charlotte scowls as she stands back up. The fans rally while SmackDown goes picture in picture.
Charlotte storms up on Candice, reels her in, but Candice fights the suplex. Alba joins in, they DOUBLE SUPLEX Charlotte! Cover, but Alba stops Candice. A parallel to Piper and Nia, we know how that turned out… But Alba & Candice still mug Charlotte together for now. Charlotte JAWBREAKERS Alba, dodges Candice, but Candice tilt-o-whirls to RANA! And then ENZIGIRI! Cover, TWO! Charlotte is tougher than that and that annoys Candice. Alba BLASTS Alexa off the apron, Charlotte RAMS Candice into a corner, but Alba CLUBS Charlotte down. Candice climbs the corner while Alba stands Charlotte up, but Charlotte ELBOWS free!
Charlotte BOOTS Candice off the corner, but Alba rolls Charlotte to BOOT her down! Cover, WTO! Alba seethes and throws her suit jacket at Charlotte. Alba stomps a mudhole into Charlotte, then stands on her hair! Alba salutes while Candice SMACKS Alexa off the apron. Alba pulls Charlotte’s arms and Candice SMACKS Alexa off the desk! Alba & Candice work together to DOUBLE SUPLEX Charlotte, but Alba has Candice stay back. They drag Charlotte up again, but she ROCKS Alba and ROCKS Candice! Then repeat! Alba kicks low, Candice comes back, and they double whip Charlotte to a corner.
SmackDown returns to single picture as Charlotte goes up and out! She BOOTS Alba, RAMS Candice, then goes up the corner! The fans fire up but Candice SMACKS Charlotte first! And SMACKS her again! Alba climbs up to join them, but Alexa sneaks in underneath! TOWER OF DOOM! The fans fire up and Alexa crawls to cover Charlotte, TWO! Alexa is frustrated but the fans fire up. Alexa and Candice stand, Alexa RUNS her over! She even RUNS Alba over! Alexa SLAPS Candice, DECKS her, then blocks Alba’s kick to DRAGON SCREW! Charlotte runs up, Alexa clinches to S T O! And then INSULT2- NO, Candice makes it a CODE BREAKER SENTON!
Alba has Candice, wrenches and reels her in, GOURD BUSTER! But Alexa hits a BLOCKBUSTER! Candice hits NATURAL SELECTION!! Charlotte drags Alexa around, steps through, FIGURE FOUR! And the push-up into the FIGURE EIGHT! But Candice LIONSAULTS it all apart!! Alba SUPERKICKS Candice! Charlotte is up, Alba spins her around, Gory Especial, GORY BOMB! Cover, ALEXA BREAKS IT! The fans fire up and Alba drags Alexa up. Alexa mule kicks, DDTS, and then hurries for a corner! Lexington cheers on Alexa, TWISTED BLISS!! Cover, CHARLOTTE BREAKS IT! The fans boo but Charlotte TOSSES Alexa!
Alexa is on the apron, Charlotte BOOTS her down! But Candice rolls Charlotte! TWO!! Charlotte escapes, Candice ducks ‘n’ dodges, but Charlotte SPEARS her down! Cover, TWO!! Candice shows that toughness and Charlotte is frustrated. Charlotte has the legs, steps through, but Alba SUPERKICKS Charlotte! Alba roars, turns her, but Charlotte powers out of the Unpretty-Her! BOOT!! FIGURE FOUR!! Then FIGURE EIGHT!!! Alba endures, but Alexa catches Candice!! TWISTED SISTER ABIGAIL!! Cover, ALEXA WINS!!
Winner: Alexa Bliss, by pinfall (advances to the semifinals)
Charlotte lets go of Alba and is in disbelief! But Alexa smiles as she snatches this win right out from under Charlotte’s nose! Charlotte may call herself the queen, but will Alexa be the one to wear the crown?
Cody heads to gorilla.
And he crosses paths with Punk. Cody says they can’t run away from each other forever. Punk says he knows. But good luck tonight. After Night of Champions, we’ll see who’s chasing who. Cody moves on, but will he move on in the tournament? Or will the American Nightmare’s nightmare of losing that Undisputed Championship only get worse?
King of the Ring Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Cody Rhodes VS Damian Priest VS Andrade VS Shinsuke Nakamura!
SmackDown returns as the King of Strong Style makes his entrance, followed by El Idolo, leaving the Archer of Infamy for last. The bell rings and the fans rally. All four men are wary of each other, but Nakamura winds up, only to not say his signature “C’mon” to just bail out. But then Cody DIVES onto him! Priest swings on Andrade, Andrade dodges to WRECK Cody! Priest KICKS, KICKS, and ROLLING ELBOWS Andrade! Priest winds up, Andrade dodges, FLYING FOREARMS! Andrade kips up, the fans fire up, and Andrade rallies the fans with ‘SI! SI! SI!” But Cody stops Cien Knees to take an elbow!
Priest mule kicks Andrade, then suplexes for the BROKEN ARROW! Cover, TWO! Cody JABS, JABS, JABS, then flip, flop- BELL CLAP from Priest! But Cody rebounds to LARIAT Priest up and out! Priest drags Cody out, they brawl, and Cody SMACKS Priest off the apron! Nakamura FLYING KNEES Priest! Nakamura kicks Cody, ROCKS Priest, they all brawl outside, but Andrade goes up! ARIHARA MOONSAULT! Direct hit and everyone is down while the fans fire up, and SmackDown goes picture in picture!
All four men stir and Andrade is first up. Andrade puts Nakamura in the ring, covers, TWO! Andrade whips Nakamura to a corner, runs in, but Nakamura dodges! Andrade’s knee hits buckles and he tumbles out! Nakamura goes after Andrade to put him on the apron, and then runs to KNEE Andrade down! Priest and Cody brawl in the ring, and Priest ROCKS Cody to a corner. Priest whips, Cody reverses to kick and RHODES UPPERCUT! Cody whips, Priest reverses, and Priest runs up, only for Cody to go up and over. Priest feints running up so Cody’s snap powerslam gets nothing! Priest then KICKS Cody down!
Cody sputters but Priest is on him. Priest ROCKS Cody again, Nakamura stomps Andrade, then Nakamura KICKS Priest! Nakamura fires off fists and kicks in the corner, so Andrade rolls Cody! TWO, and Cody powers Andrade to a corner. Cody climbs up to rain down fists, only for Andrade to slip out at nine and YANK Cody down! Nakamura brings Priest around but Priest DECKS him! Priest stomps away on Nakamura, then he goes over to Andrade, Priest stands Andrade up to DECK him! Cody SMACKS Nakamura off the desk! Priest drags Andrade up while Nakamura SMACKS Cody off the desk! Priest ROCKS Andrade, then he has Cody in another corner.
Nakamura fires off on Andrade, Priest digs his boots into Cody, and then Nakamura bumps Andrade off buckles. Cody turns things around on Priest to CHOP, but that just pisses Priest off. Priest DECKS Cody! Cody sputters, Priest puts him in the corner, but Nakamura fires off strikes on Priest! Nakamura has Andrade on the top rope, and SmackDown returns to single picture as Nakamura runs in for a TOP SHELF KNEE! Andrade falls to the floor, but then Priest runs up! Nakamura dodges, runs back in, and he blocks boots to ROUNDHOUSE Priest! Nakamura puts Priest in the ropes to SLIDING GERMAN!
Nakamura hurries back in while fans fire up. Cody swings, misses, but then Cody ducks a roundhouse, only for the WHEEL KICK to hit! The fans fire up as Nakamura gives Cody some BAD VIBRATIONS! Nakamura goes corner to corner and the fans rally. Cody dodges, Nakamura hits buckles, and Cody grabs a leg! Cody trips Nakamura, steps through, FIGURE FOUR! Nakamura endures, fights the main leg, but Andrade is up top! FROG SPLASH onto Cody! Nakamura is free, but then Priest JUMP KICKS Andrade! Priest drags Cody up, ROCKS him, and then runs to ELBOW Andrade! ELBOW for Cody! SHOULDER TACKLE for Andrade!
The fans fire up for Priest and he goes to the outside, to leap off the steel steps and AX HANDLE Nakamura! Priest puts Nakamura back in the ring, drags him up at the ropes, and he knuckle locks so he can climb! The fans cheer as Priest goes Old School, only for Cody to jump up after him! But Priest then grabs Cody in a guzel! Nakamura trips them both up! Nakamura CLOBBERS Priest, Andrade rolls Nakamura, TWO! Andrade swings, but into an ARMBAR TAKEDOWN!! The fans fire up as Cody DIVING SPLASHES! Cody TOSSES Nakamura, covers Andrade, TWO! Cover again, TWO! Cody is frustrated but he goes outside.
The fans fire up as they sense what’s coming! Cody brings out a TABLE! Cody sets “Slim Jim” up at ringside, goes back to the ring for Andrade, and he lines up the shot. But Andrade hooks the ropes to block! Andrade suplexes but Cody blocks! They fight for control, but Priest CLUBS Andrade. Priest and Cody stare down, but they decide to work together! The fans fire up as they hoist Andrade up, but Nakamura makes the save! Only to INVERTED EXPLODER Andrade! DYNAMIC DROPKICK and Cody falls through the table! Cody snaps into a Slim Jim and the fans go nuts! Nakamura goes outside while SmackDown goes picture in picture.
Nakamura fetches Priest, brings him over, but Priest blocks the desk smack to ROCK Nakamura! Priest SMACKS Nakamura off the desk now! And again! Priest brings Nakamura around to DECK him, but then Andrade CLUBS Priest! Andrade SMACKS Priest off the desk, then he and Nakamura actually work together to BOOT Priest onto the desk! But they’re not done as they TOSS Priest over the desk! Wade got outta there this time! Andrade then clears off the desk! Nakamura & Andrade bring Priest around to TOSS him over barriers! Then Nakamura CLOBBERS Andrade! Nakamura applauds his trickery before putting Andrade in the ring. Nakamura covers, TWO!
Nakamura is annoyed and he KICKS Andrade in the side. Andrade sputters but Nakamura paces. Andrade rises to CHOP! Nakamura dusts himself off to KICK Andrade down! Andrade stands but into KNEES and KICKS! Andrade blocks one, but not the ENZIGIRI! Andrade ends up in a corner, Nakamura whips corner to corner, but Andrade reverses. Andrade runs up, Nakamura puts him on the apron, but Andrade ROCKS him! Andrade climbs, but Nakamura ROCKS him! Nakamura climbs now but Andrade fires back! They brawl up top, and Andrade HEADBUTTS Nakamura down! Nakamura GAMANGIRIS in return!
SmackDown returns to single picture again as Nakamura climbs back up. Priest returns to CLUB Nakamura! He has Nakamura in the crucifix, but Nakamura fights free! Priest drags Nakamura down, Nakamura fires a strike fest! Priest clinches to FLATLINER! Andrade MOONSAULT DOUBLES! Cover, TWO!! Nakamura LARIATS! Andrade BOOTS! Nakamura PELES! These three are down, and Cody rises from the wreckage! The fans fire up for Cody as he drags himself into the ring. Cody runs up to LARIAT Andrade! And LARIAT Nakamura! Cody whips Priest, Priest reverses, but Cody goes up and over, and this time, SNAP POWERSLAM!
The fans fire up and Cody blocks Andrade’s kick to then run and BEAUTIFUL DISASTER! Cody catches Nakamura, Nakamura drops down to UP KICK! Snapmare and SLIDING KNEE! Cover, ANDRADE BREAKS IT!! Priest has Andrade, Andrade schoolboys him into buckles! The fans fire up, “SI! SI! SI!” Andrade runs corner to corner, CIEN KNEES for Nakamura! Then Andrade goes again, CIEN- NO, Priest has Andrade by the neck! Andrade breaks free to CHOP, but Priest ROCKS Andrade! Andrade comes back, SHADOW ELBOW! THE MESSAGE!! Cover, NAKAMURA AX KICKS IT APART! Nakamura drags Andrade up, but Andrade ROCKS him first!
Nakamura snarls and ROCKS Andrade back! The fans rally as the forearms go back and forth! Andrade CHOSP! Nakamura KICKS! Nakamura CLUBS Andrade, KNEES him low, but Cody is back! Cody dodges Nakamura, to DOUBLE CODY CUTTER!! Not the cleanest but it didn’t need to be! Priest kicks Cody low, reels him in, Canadian Rack, but Cody slips free! Cody goes up, up, and SUPER CODY CUTTERS!! Priest tumbles out of the ring and Cody roars! He catches Andrade, CROSS RHODES!! And then he drags Andrade up again, only for Nakamura to clamp on a SLEEPER!! Cody flails, claws at the grip, but Nakamura dragon sleepers!
Nakamura vows to end this, but Cody flips that around on him! CROSS RHODES!! Cover, CODY WINS!!
Winner: Cody Rhodes, by pinfall (advances to the semifinals)
Lexington cheers and sings with Cody’s song as he comes out on top! We know Sami Zayn and Randy Orton are one semifinal match, but Raw will determine the other! Sheamus, Rusev, Bronson Reed, or MAIN EVENT JEY USO, who survives to then meet Cody in the next round?
My Thoughts:
A great SmackDown with a lot of action from doing all the SmackDown Fatal 4 Ways in the King & Queen of the Ring tournaments. And each Fatal 4 Way was great, because Fatal 4 Ways always lend themselves to fast, chaotic action. Great opening promo from Cena with Cody, Orton and Knight to help segue into the first match, but also great stuff with R-Truth going after Cena. Orton winning was a bit of a surprise, and makes for a very interesting match with Sami Zayn. I suppose Sami going hard against Orton and finding a sneakier way to win could go with how Karrion Kross has been working to bring that side out of Sami.
Jade winning her match made sense, as Piper is still just Chelsea’s sidekick and Mia isn’t quite at that QOTR top title level. It also puts her in line with Naomi’s story of being Miss MITB, because Naomi can mess Jade over in a title match just as much as she can Tiffany. Very good promo from Naomi with Tiffany to tease a cash in, but also set up Tiffy VS Nia one more time. Chelsea also had a hilarious video call promo, and good on Aldis to stand up to her by putting Alba in the match instead. Alexa winning was only a little surprising, as she’s on that return push. And it makes for a fresh match-up no matter who from Raw wins the final Fatal 4.
Awesome main event Fatal 4 but I figured Cody would win, as it makes for a unique match-up of Cody VS Jey. Jey being put in was a bit of a surprise, but perhaps the wrestlers we’re waiting to return (Roman Reigns, but maybe even Ilja Dragunov) just aren’t ready yet. And given Bronson & Bron screwed Knight over, Knight will surely show up on Raw again to keep that feud going. Sheamus and Rusev have their own story, so Jey is the default choice. I almost feel like they should’ve flipped the brackets so that it would give us Orton VS Cody and Sami VS Jey in the semifinals, but those combos probably serve for stronger finals matches.
Very good stuff with the tag division, but MCMG VS Gacy & Lumis could’ve been a bit better. Part of the problem that comes with the Wyatts being gone away so long is that there might be some ring rust. Lumis & Gacy were on point, but they needed time to coordinate some things first and that slowed the overall pace down. The Wyatts won, of course, and will likely deal with Fraxiom next, what with DIY volunteering Fraxiom and Profits ahead of them. Then, Cena and Punk had a great promo, with it mostly being Punk tearing into Cena. Surprisingly, no allusions to Punk’s incendiary comments from years ago, but that’s very Punk of Punk.
And Killings going after Cena again was great stuff. Cena VS Killings will be a great match next week, and Cena probably rubs it in that he’s using one of his precious final appearances was used to beat Truth again. Though, to build Killings up, I would think they find a way for him to win that “isn’t definitive,” like a count out victory or some kind of disqualification. I was hoping for an R-Truth celebration at Saturday Night’s Main Event akin to Lex Luger over Yokozuna, but maybe that happens next week.
My Score: 9/10
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Coverage
Andrew’s TNA iMPACT! Results & Match Ratings: 6.12.2025
DO SOMETHING WITH JASON HOTCH AND KC NAVARRO – that is all.
So Against All Odds…was barely passable and that’s only with Xanax. The Knockouts title match was awful, the 4 Man “Home Town Man” was stupid and the only good part was remixing the old Jerry Lynn & AJ Styles “Born in the USA” theme for Home Town Man. Maclin needs to stop having brawls, they’re boring, give him a bump guy. Kaibas and Rascalz was underwhelming. Santino vs Robert Stone was funny, Elias vs Trick was too chalk and lame. IInspiration (IIconics) returning was big news at least. Hendry losing to Kaz was also obvious since Kaz hasn’t won a match in forever.
The show dragged, and as much as I usually like Masha’s wrestling ability…her last 3 title matches have sucked and its not her opponents fault. Killer Kelly returning is sexy though…I mean, good. Yes, good. Saving the best for last, Mustafa Ali vs Jason Hotch was the best match of the show, and really damn good in general. Workrate was great, Tasha and Skyler being conflicted and popping for Hotch when he was doing well was great character work. Hotch looked amazing in the loss, if they don’t capitalize on it, that would be a huge screw up from TNA.
Not really sure what kind of shows we’ll be getting, and I’m not excited.
.@MATTHARDYBRAND and @JEFFHARDYBRAND have a message for FIR$T CLA$$ ahead of TONIGHT's MAIN EVENT!
WATCH on TNA+: https://t.co/F3YYaTmexl pic.twitter.com/mTnNBEFBcb
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) June 13, 2025
Ratings:
- The IInspiration vs Missa Kate & Brittani Brookes: IInspiration wins via Idolizer – ** 1/2
- Jason Hotch w/Jon Skyler vs Leon Slater: Leon wins via Swanton 450 – ** 3/4
- 8-4-1 Knockouts Match: Tessa Blanchard, Xia Brookside, Dani Luna & Rosemary vs Killer Kelly, Indi Hartwell, Jody Threat & Tasha Steelz: Indi wins via Hurts Don’t It – ** 3/4
- Indi Hartwell vs Killer Kelly vs Jody Threat vs Tasha Steelz: Kelly wins via Hurts Don’t It – ***
- Fir$t Cla$$ vs The Hardy Boyz: Hardyz win via DQ – ***
Results:
Santino opens the show informing Santana of a suspension, kicking Robert Stone out and recapping his victory party before introducing the IInspiration for their first match back.Â
The IInspiration vs Missa Kate & Brittani Brookes
A bit of talking and pandering from IInspiration, they’re dominating the jobbers and there’s not much to discuss here. They do the IIconics Pose and actually keep the control. Cassie pulls off some kind of Butterfly Facebuster which looks cool, Jess comes in and the Jobbers cheat a little to take over. Jess tags in Cassie and Scorpion Kick, decent comeback, corner Hip Attacks, Neckbreaker, Jumping Kick to the Head into Fisherman’s Suplex Hold for 2. Idolizer (Magic Killer variant) is hit and IInspiration win, and didn’t look bad. Cassie (Peyton) is still the better wrestler of the two, but neither looked bad.
Jason Hotch w/Jon Skyler vs Leon Slater
I don’t hide the fact I heavily dislike Slater. He has no personality, he’s all flips, no ability to talk…he’s boring. He’s ROH Will Ospreay or Flip Gordon, does flippy crap to pop morons but he’s a worthless character. Since he wants to become the Youngest X Division champion, and they’ve talked about for like the last 7 months…sadly it’s probably going to happen.Â
Chain wrestling start and Hotch already looks like the better wrestler. Hotch is on his SANADA in LIJ arch where he looked great losing to the leader, falls back in line but then he hits a Spinning Overhead Kick for a near fall, so I’m not allowed to finish my thought because Hotch is fun to watch. Leon is such a bad wrestler…he held the rope and looked back to take a forearm shiver, the nerd had to watch it to sell it. Man’s not talent.
Hotch has Leon in an Arm Iso Cravat, Leon tries to fire and then Hotch keeps him down. Leon counters a Slingshot Suplex into his own Final Cut to get space to breathe. Double sell, Leon leap frogs, then rope runs, Lariats and Lethal Injection from Leon for 2. Hotch is so fluid, dodges the corner attack, rope assisted side kick, Outside In Neckbreaker for a near fall! Hotch will probably lose, but he looks like the better wrestler by miles. Heavy Irish Whip counter from Leon, into Blue Thunder Bomb. Leon goes to the top, Hotch cuts off, Leon dodges, hits the Knife Edge Chop and they wrestle on the apron, Front Kick from Hotch sends Leon into the post, Double Stomp onto the apron, Hotch wants a finish but counter, Cradle trades and then Hotch gets caught by a Leg Lariat, Swanton 450, selling from Leon was spotty and bad during this whole match.
Fun moments but the wrong kid died…
.@MeanGiaMiller gets Tessa Blanchard's thoughts ahead of TONIGHT's 8-4-1 Match!
WATCH #TNAiMPACT on TNA+: https://t.co/F3YYaTmexl pic.twitter.com/kurcKH2vtH
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) June 13, 2025
8-4-1 Knockouts Match: Tessa Blanchard, Xia Brookside, Dani Luna & Rosemary vs Killer Kelly, Indi Hartwell, Jody Threat & Tasha Steelz
Dani and Jody start, so at least there’s a measure of story telling, but I still detest Jody. Sloppy counter wrestling start, Jody stops herself from punching Dani and tags in Tasha. Tasha pauses and jaws to her team and gets Back Body Dropped by Dani, Dani tags in Xia and Tasha pokes her eyes immediately and lights up Xia. Xia fights back, Rope Assisted Headscissors, Crossbody and near fall. Xia tags in Rosemary and Rosemary looks at her like death, then Rosemary goes after Xia, but a Codebreaker from Tasha gives space to tag in Kelly. Kelly kisses Rosemary and then they brawl in full mount. I’m not sure if I clicked the orange website or TNA…oh there’s a Lariat…it’s wrestling again.
Jody doofus tags in, the crowd wants Indi, no one wants Jody and Rosemary Upkick, Drop Toe Hold, Tessa tags in, works over Jody, Jody tries to go to the top, Victoria Crawford fka Alicia Fox trips her, Tessa gets the momentum back, a bunch of distraction and Tessa tags in Dani. Then Dani tags out to Rosemary. Whip, Rosemary misses the Spear, Tessa tags herself in and they’re keeping Indi out of the ring. Tessa crashes and burns as Jody dodges and fights back. Rosemary tags in, Indi gets the tag. Bunch combo, Spinebuster, Dani breaks the pin and now signature spam spot.
Indi is the last on to hit her moves, Hurts Don’t It takes out Rosemary after Tessa just walks out.
Indi Hartwell vs Jody Threat vs Killer Kelly vs Tasha Steelz
Commercial happened and we’re back and it’s Indi vs Jody. Jody takes her down with a Shoulder Tackle, Jody hits the Exploder, and Indi finally stalls some of the offense, Indi throws Jody into the ropes and Jody takes it bad. Jody Drop Toe Hold, looking for her Knees into German spot, but Kelly pulls her out, Tasha tries to pick the bones but Kelly comes in and attacks Indi. Tasha and Kelly have a heel agreement to gang up on Indi. Kelly goes for the pin, so hells are arguing, throw forearms, Kelly with the Double Overhooks, Headbutts, Angel’s Wings gets hit from Kelly but Tasha kicks out. Jody Crossbody takes out both heels.
Jody and Indi team up and 10 Count Lariats on the Heels, pop spot for the crowd since Indi is in the driver’s seat, Simultaneous Lariats each other and everybody down. Mickie James Bulldog from Tasha but Jody pushes her off, Indi tries the Cradle for two. Indi misses the Boot, eats a German. Tasha hits the Mickie Bulldog, but Jody kicks out. Indi grabs Tasha, Hurts-nope. Tasha wanted Blackout, Indi says no, Hurts Don’t It, but Kelly takes out Indi and steals the pinfall. Kelly wins.
.@TheEricYoung will see @TheSamiCallihan NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT!
WATCH on TNA+: https://t.co/F3YYaTmMmT pic.twitter.com/NtKjpYIIRa
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) June 13, 2025
Fir$t Cla$$ vs The Hardy Boyz
AJ charges before the bell, Hardyz dodge and Lariat AJ to the floor and work over KC with their usual Arm Bar Extreme Elbow, Delete Arm Breakers and Back Elbow Hardyz combo. AJ tries to get back in and the Hardyz attack, Poetry in Motion, AJ is back to the outside. Commercial break time, I wonder if the heels will be winning coming back…OH no, Jeff is still isolating KC. Pleasantly surprised I suppose.
Arm Wringer, simple offense, Jeff tags in Matt, Stalling Tandem Suplex and Matt covers, only 2. Matt with Short Arm Shoulder Tackles, close quarters forearms and the Rocket Launcher into the middle rope followed by a Leg Drop onto the apron, KC keeps kicking out but he’s getting dog walked. Stomps into Splash, KC needs to tag out, but Jeff stays on him, AJ finally pulls out Jeff, KC flies into Jeff and tags out. Finally AJ gives KC a break and bends Jeff back in a Bow and Arrow Stretch. Jeff tries the comeback, AJ pulls the hair to throw him down, stomps his face and AJ is manhandling Jeff as KC is sucking wind. Little Bro deserves a big break.
Tennessee Whiskey from AJ, connects and “Money, Money, Money”. AJ gets a little distracted trying to one up Matt, Jeff hits two Twists, and tags in Matt, so Delete Face Smashes and AJ is getting rocked. AJ reverses the Irish Whip, but Back Elbow from Matt into a Middle Rope Side Effect. Trick Williams comes out to attack the Hardyz. Hardyz win via DQ, but then Hendry and Elijah come out for the save. System is out…old school TNA donnybrook.
Overall Score: 5.5/10
The ring work was mediocre at best, but nothing miserable. Cassie and Jess look like they never missed a beat, take that for what you will if you loved or hated the IIconics. Trick solidifying his alliance with First Class makes for interesting cross promotion. If Fir$t Cla$$ ends up with the NXT Tags while Trick is the TNA Champ…that’s…a pretty neat visual I ain’t mad at. Yes I’m bias because KC is awesome, but AJ has done good work in TNA, so he deserves some flowers. Tessa keeping Victoria Crawford in the Robert Stone ejection is wonderful. I’ve always loved Alicia Fox and teaming her with Tessa is very interesting for the obvious reasons I don’t need to mention again, just search Twitter, you’ll understand.
Sami looks like a doofus getting sideswiped, Jay-SANADA Hotch is the best thing TNA has right now for home grown talent. Slater is still useless but oooo he can flip…I hate no personality flip-tards. Indi getting screwed sets things up nicely to not push her too quick to the top of the card, but she’s very over. The lack of Lei Ying Lee is annoying since I really don’t think the poor match was her fault. Also, putting her in a throwaway tag match against the Elegance girls next week? TNA really doesn’t know what to do with Lei, do they? She’s been mishandled the entire time since debut.
So even with my nitpicks, there were a lot of building blocks in the show. Hell Tessa insulting Gia is also probably something brewing…but I’m glad we didn’t lose Gia when we lost Ace. Gia is the best backstage interviewer since Lauren Brooke. So very middle of the road show, either things will get slightly better going to Slammiversary, or it’s the calm before the storm. We…shall see.
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