– The Street Profits defeated Riddick Moss & Tino Sabbatelli
The crowd was pretty into the Street Profits here. They were a good opening act, going into the crowd after an getting a kid celebrating her birthday to do their dance. Angelo Dawkins didn’t do much, but Montez Ford seems to be a good worker.
– Lars Sullivan defeated Oney Lorcan
People were super into Lorcan and didn’t really know Sullivan. By the end, they were impressed with Sullivan and his power. There was one point in the match where Lorcan went for a dive outside, but Sullivan caught him and threw him into the ring post. Sullivan won with a slam variation.
– Kairi Sane & Dakota Kai defeated Peyton Royce & Billie Kay
Sane was treated like a star. She hit her elbow drop for the win, which was cool to see live.
– Andrade “Cien” Almas defeated Roderick Strong
The crowd was really into this and the near falls it had. It was an excellent match, with Almas winning with his finisher.
– The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly) and SAnitY (Eric Young, Alexander Wolfe & Killian Dain) went to a no contest
Undisputed Era got a huge pop, especially for Adam Cole. He came across as a mega star and got multiple “Adam Cole Bay-Bay!” chants. SAnitY also had the crowd behind them at times.
– Johnny Gargano defeated Raul Mendoza
Gargano got a huge pop and won with the Gargano Escape. People had no clue who Mendoza was, but he won them over with some impressive offense.
– Sonya Deville defeated Liv Morgan
There wasn’t much to this, though Deville has upside as a wrestler.
– NXT Champion Drew McIntyre defeated Hideo Itami to retain his title
McIntyre retained with the Claymore. The match was really good and went about 16-17 minutes. Itami hit the GTS at one point, but McIntyre ended up on the outside.
Cole, Fish, and O’Reilly came down to lay waste to McIntyre, which brought out Gargano, Lorcan, and the Street Profits. Undisputed Era got the better of them until SAnitY came down and helped the faces clean house, with McIntyre hitting the Claymore on Cole. The crowd was hot for this.
As Ring of Honor returns to pay-per-view at Sam’s Town in Las Vegas tonight, Minoru Suzuki also returns stateside for his first match in the United States in over 25 years.
We’re looking for your thoughts on the show, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]
Suzuki will challenge Cody Rhodes for the ROH World Championship in the main event of Death Before Dishonor XV, which was set up in storyline when he answered an open challenge from Cody. The match will be Cody’s first opportunity to defend the title on PPV since winning it at Best in the World in June.
The Young Bucks have two title defenses set for tonight. They’ll renew their rivalry with Motor City Machine Guns as Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin get a shot at the tag titles, and they’ll also team with Hangman Page in a six-man tag title defense against the winners of a match between Bully Ray & The Briscoes and The Kingdom.
Elsewhere on the card, Kenny King gets a shot at KUSHIDA’s TV title, Silas Young faces Jay Lethal in a last man standing match, Jay White squares off with Punishment Martinez in a street fight, and Marty Scurll takes on Chuck Taylor.
Our live coverage starts at 9 p.m. Eastern time.
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BULLY RAY & BRISCOES VS. MATT TAVEN & VINNY MARSEGLIA & TK O’RYAN
Bully & The Briscoes won with a Doomsday Device on O’Ryan. Jay Briscoe was mad at Bully after the match and they did some dissension teaes during the match, so that may play into something later. Good match with a series of dive spots midway through including Bully, who looks close to 350, doing a plancha off the top rope to the floor on everyone. Taven knocked Jay into Bully which saw Bully fall to the floor. Fast paced all action match, TK O’Ryan broke his leg doing a dive in this building earlier in the year and they teased him doing the same dive, but he woudn’t do it.
They announced Kenny Omega would be working four Global War events.
They are pushing the Where’s Hangman storyline like he’s not there for the six man titles. They announced it would be a 2-on-3 handicap ma tch if Hangman doesn’t show up.
CHUCK TAYLOR VS. MARTY SCURLL
This turned into a hot match. Scurll own via submission with the chicken wing when Taylor was distracted by ref Todd Sinclair. Taylor worked really hard, not everything was smooth but he was doing dives, including a bodyblock from the floor like Ultimo Guerrero does over the barricade. Then he went from outside the barricade with a dive inside. Lots of big spots here including Taylor taking Scurll off the top rope with a Bruno backbreaker and then gave him a dominator into a spike like a piledriver.
JAY WHITE VS. PUNISHMENT MARTINEZ IN A LAS VEGAS STREET FIGHT
Great job by White and Martinez showed a ton of potential here. The crowd didn’t get into them right away but by the end were really into White. Lots of shots with chairs and garbage can lids. Martinez kicked out of the Kiwi crusher. Martinez did a great running dive over the top. White set up four chairs with two chairs on top of them but it was Martinez who gave White a last ride power bomb onto the chairs. White kicked out. The crowd go way behind White chanting his name. But Martinez then brought in thumbtacks and choke slammed White on the thumbtacks for the pin. It was clearly trying to push Martinez into a higher spot. Crowd was chanting for White after the match.
YOUNG BUCKS & HANGMAN PAGE VS. BRISCOES & BULLY RAY FOR SIX MAN TITLES
They teased Page wasn’t there but Page showed up with his hands tied together and mouth tied with duct tape. Page then, still tied up, did a moonsault off the top rope to the floor. Match was short but fast paced. It was really just an angle to do the turn. Bully was taking out both Bucks. Bully told Mark to get the table after doing the wazzup spot. Jay threw the tabel at Bully’s head and Page pinned him to win the match. Mark looked surprised that Jay turned on Bully, but Jay told him that they were a great tag team and they didn’t need Bully. They pushed it as Bully’s first loss in ROH. It was very much Jay that turned heel even though in the build you’d think it was going to be Bully.
KUSHIDA VS. KENNY KING FOR TV TITLE
King won the TV title with the royal flush after blocking a huracanrana and putting Kushida on his shoulders. The idea was that King was going for the tite in front of his home town and and his daughter who celebrated with him after the match. This was a super match, just a great one man show by Kushida, who was on a different level than everyone else so far. Kushida kept working for hoverboard lock spots including one off the ropes. Kushida did a flip plancha over the post. They also showed Kushida’s mom in the front row.
JAY LETHAL VS. SILAS YOUNG LAST MAN STANDING
Young won a crazy match. The finish saw both guys at the top of a ladder on the floor and the ladder tipped over and both went through a table on the floor. Young barely got up and Lethal didn’t, so Young won. Young had zip tied Lethal’s wrist to the ladder but in the bump, Lethal wasn’t tied to the ladder and I think he was supposed to stay tied up. Young’s Long brutal match. Both men whipped each other with belts. Young used the Lethal injection but broke up ref Todd Sinclair’s count. Lethal did two Lethal injections. Beer City Bruiser interfered early int he match and went for a splash off the top rope when Lethal was on a table but Lethal moved and Bruiser went through the table and was helped out. Lethal also bled badly when Lethal had Young in the figure four, but Young kicked him and they bonked heads with Todd Sinclair and Lethal was opened up badfly. Excellent match.
YOUNG BUCKS VS. CHRIS SABIN & ALEX SHELLEY FOR THE ROH TAG TITLES
Sabin & Shelley won the titles in a great match with a double-team falcon arrow on Matt after Sabin jumped off Nick’s back and did a German superplex on Matt as he was on the top rope for a moonsualt. This had by far the most crowd reaction on the show. It was nonstop moves, which the crowd really got into the first time the Bucks used the double sharpshooter spot. All kinds of big moves until Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian interfered and attacked the Machine Guns. Then they also attacked the Bucks. This led to a double indy taker on the floor with the Bucks and Machine Guns working together to spike both on the floor when Daniels & Kazarian had teased a Best Meltzer ever on the floor. Then they went back to wrestling each other but went right to the finish.
CODY VS. MINORU SUZUKI FOR ROH TITLE
Suzuki looked good here, Cody told him to kiss the ring and Suzuki bit his fingers and put him in the Fujiawra armbar. Most of the match was Suzuki doing his usual combination of striesk adn his usual submissions. Suzuki went for the Gotch piledriver but Cody got out of it. Cody did a diaster kick but Suzuki went back to the choke. The finish saw Cody hit the crossorads out of nowhere and get the pin. I think the one thing here is that people were smart enough to know the title wasn’t changing hands so while they reacted to Suzuki, people really didn’t react to the winning and losing aspect and the finish came when people weren’t expecting it and came off flat. Suzuki sold the move big and Cody put the ring in his mouth like he was kissing it. Suzuki left and threw a punch at one of the ring boys.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 117: Saint Preux vs. Okami, emanating from the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
The event is headlined by a five-round bout in the light heavyweight division that was put together with just a week’s notice as Ovince Saint Preux takes on Yushin Okami, who returns to the UFC for the first time in four years.
Saint Preux was originally scheduled to fight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, but Rua was forced out due to a knee injury, and Okami stepped in on a week’s notice to make his UFC return. He fights at light heavyweight for the first time in his career, as he has most recently fought as a welterweight, going 5-2 since his UFC release.
The co-main event is a pivotal fight in the women’s strawweight division as former title challengers Claudia Gadelha and Jessica Andrade do battle. Also on the main card is the UFC debut of former K-1 kickboxing star Gokhan Saki, who takes on Henrique da Silva.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
Abe immediately lands a heavy leg kick. They traded punches early and both men are looking to finish it quickly. Lim landed a right hand but Abe countered with a left hook. They landed left hooks at the same time. Abe is landing harder punches. Lim then landed a hard right hand. Abe is working on the inside leg kicks and then lands an overhand right. Abe lands another hard right hand. They are swinging for the fences. Abe rocked Lim with a left hook. They both landed left hands and Abe stumbled to the mat for a moment. Good opening round. 10-9 Abe.
They were trading and Lim poked Abe in the eye bad and we had a break. Abe was able to recover and continue. They started trading again and Lim landed a big right hand that rocked Abe and started to slow him down. Lim landed another right hand. Abe tried landing a combo but Lim landed a right hand as he was coming in. Lim landed another big right hand. Abe landed a hard right hand that rocked Lim bad at the end. Another good round. 10-9 Lim, 19-19.
Lim landed a hard right hand at the opening of the round. Abe has slowed down and Lim has been coming on strong, especially since the eye poke he did on Abe. They traded leg kicks. Lim landed a nice combo. Abe with a leg kick but Lim counters with a right hand. Lim stuns Abe with a left hook. All striking in this fight, not one grappling exchange. Lim is showing the better conditioning and he is landing. Abe all of a sudden knocked Lim down with a right hand and landed some punches on the ground with just over ten seconds left. Abe got a late takedown. Lim’s nose was busted open. Abe likely stole the fight in the last thirty seconds. 10-9 Abe, 29-28 Abe.
Official Result- Daichi Abe def. Hyun Gyu Lim by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
> Shinsho Anzai (9-2, 1-1 UFC) vs. Luke Jumeau (12-3, 1-0 UFC) Welterweights
They traded punches early on. Anzai missed a big telegraphed takedown on Jumeau. They clinched and Anzai landed a couple of knees before they broke. Jumeau landed a leg kick but Anzai countered with a hard right hand. They clinch and Jumeau lands a hard right hand. They clinch again and Anzai begins to land some knees. Anzai starts landing some more and he is landing with more power and volume. Jumeau lands a front kick to the face late. Anzai rocked Jumeau with a hard right hand late as well. Close round, 10-9 Anzai.
Anzai got a quick but brief takedown at the start of the second. They got back up and Jumeau defended another takedown attempt. Anzai is letting his hands fly. They clinch and Anzai lands some punches. Anzai got a takedown and started working from the guard. Anzai was landing punches and elbows as Jumeau was unable to get up from the bottom. Anzai stood up and Jumeau scrambled to his feet. Jumeau looking more tired. Jumeau landed a late uppercut. 10-9 Anzai, 20-18 Anzai.
Jumeau lands some leg kicks as he stuffs a takedown from Anzai. Anzai just looking for takedowns in this round as Jumeau is landing punches. Anzai charges forward and lands a series of punches. Anzai looking tired now. Anzai goes for a takedown but eats a knee from Jumeau. Jumeau starts landing more punches as the round heads towards the end. Jumeau with a series of knees, punches and uppercuts at the end. He won the round, but might not be enough. 10-9 Jumeau, 29-28 Anzai.
Official Result- Shinsho Anzai def. Luke Jumeau by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Kondo is a Japanese wrestling star. They were feeling each other out early. Jeon landed a right hand but Kondo countered with a harder right hand. They started striking at close range. Jeon had to run away when she had her back against the fence. Jeon with a leg kick but Kondo counters with a right hand. Jeon landed a head kick. Kondo landed some right hands in close range. They traded in close range. Kondo started landing with more volume and was having to chase Jeon down. Kondo landed an overhand right. Jeon with a front kick to the body. 10-9 Kondo.
They started landing early. This has been mostly striking so far. Jeon missing on her punches and Kondo is not. Kondo with a body kick. Kondo landed a big right hand that rocked Jeon. Jeon was trying to land elbows. Kondo landed another big punch and a knee. Kondo has Jeon in trouble and Jeon is trying to circle away. Kondo landing more punches and now teet kicks to the body followed by punches. Jeon starts to land punches in close range. Jeon is bleeding from her nose. Kondo lands some punches and grabs the clinch and lands a knee. Jeon is bringing the fight but Kondo is in control. 10-9 Kondo, 20-18 Kondo.
Both ladies looking fresh. They are trading and Jeon is starting to find a spot for her punches. Jeon misses a head kick. Jeon lands a nice right hand and Kondo starts to pressure with some punches. Kondo with more pressure as she is landing more now. A spinning back fist is missed by Kondo. Kondo poked Jeon in the eye and we got a brief break. They came back firing punches and Kondo was landing more and had Jeon in trouble as Jeon was backing up. Kondo with a spin kick to the body of Jeon. They swung for the fences in the last ten seconds. 10-9 Kondo, 30-27 Kondo.
Official Result- Syuri Kondo def. Chan-Mi Jeon by split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27)
> Keita Nakamura (32-8-2 1 NC, 3-5 UFC) vs. Alex Morono (13-3 1 NC, 2-0 1 NC UFC) Welterweights
Morono tried sprinting out with a right hand but Nakamura ducked under it. Morono landed a left hook but Nakamura landed a right hook. They are being patient and pacing themselves. Morono landed a hard right hand. They both landed hard punches. Nakamura hurt Morono with a kick to the body and Morono was backtracking. Morono is cut over his eye. They slow the pace back down. Nakamura with another body kick. Morono landed a hard right hand at the end. 10-9 Nakamura.
Both being patient and Nakamura lands a high kick. Nakamura attempts a Superman punch but couldn’t get it off but lands a left hand. Nakamura lands another left hand. They trade leg kicks. Nakamura is circling away from Morono’s attacks. Morono landed a jab. Morono lands a right hand. Morono is landing more with the hands while Nakamura is landing more with the kicks. Nakamura with a body kick. Morono with a late flurry. 10-9 Morono, 19-19.
They were trading and Nakamura grabbed the body and got a takedown. Morono had the neck but let go and Nakamura was in side control. They got back to their feet. Both men missing their punches. Nakamura feinted low and landed a high kick. Morono landed a right hand and Nakamura is cut open. Nakamura scored another takedown. Morono had the head but let go and they scrambled to their feet. Nakamura with a body kick. Nakamura with a straight left hand. He lands another. They both land punches. Nakamura controlling the Octagon more. They trade late head kicks. 10-9 Nakamura, 29-28 Nakamura.
Official Result- Keita Nakamura def. Alex Morono by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
They were trading early and Sasaki was landing kicks and knees to the body. Sasaki has a size advantage. Sasaki with aknee to the body. Sasaki is keeping his hands low and Formiga is landing punches. Formiga with a right hand. Sasaki with a body kick but Formiga counters with a punch combo. Formiga goes for a takedown and gets it. Formiga goes for side control but Sasaki recovers guard. Formiga is able to take the back of Sasaki and is working for the choke. Formiga landing punches from the back and has a choke locked in. Sasaki is hand-fighting but the choke is in deep. Sasaki taps! Formiga gets the first finish of the night and gets it by submission.
Official Result- Jussier Formiga def. Ulka Sasaki by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:30 of Round 1
> Teruto Ishihara (9-4-2, 2-2-1 UFC) vs. Rolando Dy (8-5-1 1 NC, 0-1 UFC) Featherweights
They trade kicks to start off the fight. Ishihara with a leg kick and then drops Dy with a left hand. Ishihara swarms on Dy and is looking for the finish. Ishihara with some punches on the ground. Ishihara with more big left hands from the guard. Big elbow from Ishihara. Ishihara working for a guillotine now. They get up but Ishihara takes Dy back down. Ishihara with more ground-and-pound with some big elbows. Ishihara with more punches from the top. Ishihara with lots of punches from the top and Dy has no answer from the bottom. Ishihara goes back into the guard. No finish, but a huge round for Ishihara. 10-8 Ishihara.
Ishihara with a body kick and then gets knee’d in the cup. Ishihara lands a left hand but eats a head kick from Dy. Ishihara looking for a takedown but Dy defends. Ishihara with a leg kick but Dy counters with a combo. Dy landing his punches as he counters leg kicks. Ishihara with a Superman punch. Ishihara lands another straight left hand. They trade punches. They trade kicks. They trade left hands and Dy then lays in a combo on Ishihara. Neither man doing much with striking defense. Ishihara with some leg kicks. Dy lands a left hook. Dy with some body kicks late. Close round. 10-9 Dy, 19-18 Ishihara.
Dy landed a big knee that knocked Ishihara to his knees and Ishihara grabbed Dy and pressed him against the fence looking for a takedown. They broke against the fence. Dy landed a big knee to the groin of Ishihara and we have a long timeout for Ishihara to recover. Back to action and Dy is bringing the fight. Ishihara lands a head kick that stuns Dy. They clinch and Dy lands an elbow before they break. Dy lands a head kick that rocks Ishihara. They trade punches and Dy lands a big kick to the cup of Ishihara and Ishihara goes down hard in a lot of pain. Dy got a point taken away, which was the right call. Dy tried to argue it was the first time when it was the third time. Back to action and Ishihara gets a quick takedown. They got up. Ishihara went for a takedown but Dy grabbed the fence. They traded at the end. 10-8 Ishihara with the point deduction, 29-26 Ishihara.
Official Result- Teruto Ishihara def. Rolando Dy by unanimous decision (28-27, 28-27, 29-27)
> Gokhan Saki (0-1, 0-0 UFC) vs. Henrique da Silva (12-3, 2-3 UFC) Light Heavyweights
Saki is an exciting K1 kickboxer. Saki with a right hand and then a head kick that rocks da Silva. Saki lands a big left hand. Saki with a head kick and then drops da Silva with a straight left hand. da Silva now goes for a takedown as he gets to his feet. Saki escapes. Saki with big left hands to the head and body. Saki with a combo. Saki landing lots of punches. Saki then rocks da Silva and is teeing off on him. Saki close to finishing it. Saki with big punches. Saki with more big punches and da Silva grabs the clinch but it is broken. da Silva changes levels and goes for a takedown but Saki scores his own takedown. da Silva up and lands some knees on Saki. Saki with a big combo now. da Silva lands a head kick. da Silva now with some knees and he is attacking. They are trading and Saki lands a huge left hook that knocks da Silva out. Holy cow. That is one of Saki’s signature punches and it gets him the win in his UFC debut. This was an exciting fight.
Official Result- Gokhan Saki def. Henrique da Silva by knockout (punch) at 4:45 of Round 1
> Takanori Gomi (35-13 1 NC, 4-8 UFC) vs. Dong Hyun “Maestro” Kim (14-8-3, 1-2 UFC) Lightweights
Gomi is in desperate need of a win. Kim working with some leg kicks to start off. Kim attacking the body with kicks now. Gomi looking for a huge left hand. Kim dropped Gomi with a straight right hand and is landing on the ground and the referee steps in. Kim with the big finish in the first round and Gomi has to be finished after this.
Official Result- Dong Hyun “Maestro” Kim def. Takanori Gomi by TKO (punches) at 1:30 of Round 1
Gadelha lands an early combination. Gadelha lands a big right hand. She lands some more straight right hands. Andrade showing good head movement. They are throwing bombs. Andrade has been unable to really connect with punches. Gadelha lands a series of punches and Andrade is bleeding very badly right now. Andrade’s cut is decent on the Muta scale. Andrade picked Gadelha up and slammed her down very hard and is on top landing punches. Andrade landing punches from the top. Andrade had a strong finish to the round but I have it for Gadelha. 10-9 Gadelha.
Gadelha is also bleeding and she lands a right hand to start the second and then scores a brief takedown. They scramble around on the mat and get back to their feet against the fence. Gadelha went for a takedown but Andrade sprawled and ended up on top. Andrade with body punches on the ground. They get to their feet. Gadelha with a head kick and then they trade punches. Big exchanges and we have blood everywhere. Andrade with a big combination. Andrade is teeing off right now. She lands a lot of punches. Gadelha tries a takedown to slow her down. Gadelha lands a big right hand. She is tired. Andrade with more big combos of punches to the head and body. Gadelha grabs the neck and jumps up for a guillotine but the round ends. 10-9 Andrade, 19-19.
They are trading and clinch and Andrade picks Gadelha up and slams her down. Andrade in side control and she is landing punches to the body. Andrade with more punches from the top and Gadelha is just trying to hang on as she is tired. Andrade with more punches from the top and Gadelha can do nothing. Andrade passes into side control. Gadelha trying to scramble out but Andrade sprawls and is still landing. Andrade with more body strikes. Gadelha gets to her feet but Andrade has the back and is landing. Gadelha has the neck but lets go. Andrade with big punches. Completely dominant round from Andrade and she gets a big slam at the end. 10-8 Andrade, 29-27 Andrade.
Official Result- Jessica Andrade def. Claudia Gadelha by unanimous decision (30-25, 30-26, 30-27)
> Ovince Saint Preux (#6, 20-10, 8-5 UFC) vs. Yushin Okami (34-10, 13-5 UFC) Light Heavyweights
Okami goes straight for a takedown but it is defended. Saint Preux has a neck and is trying to step over into mount. Saint Preux lets go into half-guard. Okami has the neck but Saint Preux is looking for a Von Flue Choke and has it and Okami goes out cold! That is the third time he has won with the Von Flue Choke, so it should be renamed for him now- the Von Preux Choke.
Official Result- Ovince Saint Preux def. Yushin Okami by submission (Von Preux Choke) at 1:50 of Round 1
Previously: Bobby Lashley made his final appearance after picking MMA over pro wrestling. Lashley and American Top Team then beat down Moose. Also, Johnny Impact defeated Low Ki to become the number one contender for the GFW Global Championship.
Tonight: GFW Global Champion Eli Drake defends his title in Mexico. Plus, Ethan Carter III & Eddie Edwards face El Hijo del Fantasma & Pagano.
Show Recap —
– An in memoriam for Bobby “The Brain” Heenan aired.
– Johnny Impact stormed into the Impact Zone searching for Eli Drake. He called out Drake and demanded his title shot right now. Instead, KM came out with a referee and told Impact that Drake is still in Mexico. Impact claimed that he saw Drake’s car and that he’s just scared. This eventually resulted in a match.
Johnny Impact defeated KM
Impact put his Global Championship title shot on the line. He got in a flurry of offense early until KM took over. Impact then made a comeback and used the Thursday Night Delight to score the win.
– In the back, Pagano was talking to an unseen person and went over the plan for later.
Taya Valkyrie defeated Ava Storie
Valkyrie dominated the match and easily beat Storie. After it was over, she took the mic and said that she came here to win the Knockouts Championship. This brought out Rosemary, who wanted a title shot too. They ended up brawling and Sienna, Allie, and Taryn Terrell all joined in. Gail Kim ran out for the save and the faces cleared the ring.
– In Tijuana, OVE found the location of LAX’s hangout spot at the gentleman’s club. They partied with some ladies before LAX showed up and they agreed to a match next week.
– Global Forged episode two aired next. Scott D’amore continued his search for new talent. He watched hours of matches and sit-down interviews. Only three competitors will advance to the finals.
– Joseph Park has been getting Grado a lot of work. He’s been working independent shows and is making great money, with clips of Grado at an event being shown. Colt Cabana made a very brief cameo in the background.
Pagano & El Hijo del Fantasma defeated Ethan Carter III & Eddie Edwards
The faces were in control until EC3 let his temper get the better of him and the heels took over. They isolated EC3 in their corner. He made a brief comeback and almost made a tag, but Fantasma yanked Edwards off the apron.
Edwards finally got the hot tag and ran wild. He had the match won, but the referee was distracted by EC3 and Pagano on the floor. Texano came out and helped the heels win.
After the match, the heels beat down the faces until James Storm came out for the save.
– Backstage, Dutch Mantell was interviewed. He believes Lashley is finished with wrestling. He also said he hopes he’s seen the last of Dan Lambert and ATT.
– In the back, Johnny Impact approached Pagano, Fantasma, and Texano looking for Eli Drake. They told him that Drake is in Mexico. Impact challenged Texano to a match and agreed to put his title shot on the line.
Kongo Kong defeated Mahabali Shera
Kong dominated the early part of the match. Shera made a brief comeback, but Kong cut him off and connected with a cannonball in the corner. Kong hit a splash from the top turnbuckle for the win.
Johnny Impact defeated Texano
Impact was in control of the match until he missed an attempt at the Thursday Night Delight. Texano took over and beat down Impact, but he made a comeback with a moonsault to the floor. Texano briefly regained the advantage until Impact fought back. Impact used a sliding German suplex and Starship Pain for the win.
– Sienna, Taryn Terrell, and Taya Valkyrie barged into Karen Jarrett’s office. She booked a six-woman tag match for next week against Allie, Gail Kim & Rosemary.
GFW Global Champion Eli Drake defeated Mascara de Bronce in Mexico to retain his title
Bronce got in some early offense, then Drake slowed down the pace and gained the advantage. Bronce tried to fight back, but Drake was in firm control. Bronce caught Drake with a hurricanrana for a two count. Bronce charged at him, but Drake caught him in the Gravy Train for the win.
Next Week: Impact presents Victory Road. The lineup features:
GFW Global Champion Eli Drake defending against Johnny Impact
X Division Champion Trevor Lee defending against Petey Williams
Sienna, Taryn Terrell & Taya Valkyrie vs. Gail Kim, Allie & Rosemary
GFW Global Tag Team Champions LAX defending against OVE
The Big News: Drew McIntyre and SAnitY finally got the upper hand on Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, and Kyle O’Reilly, standing tall at the end of the night.
The Medium News: A few minutes before, however, Fish & O’Reilly got their first win, defeating the Moustache Mountain duo of Tyler Bate & Trent Seven
The Little Beaver Sized News: Drew McIntyre will defend his NXT Championship against Roderick Strong on the episode that airs in two weeks.
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Johnny Gargano defeated Tino Sabbatelli
Last week, Gargano beat Sabbatelli’s partner Riddick Moss. Can he make it two in a row as we kick off another week of NXT? In a WWE.com promo last week, Sabbatelli and Moss said Gargano won’t get lucky again if they wrestle.
Sabbatelli started the match by pushing Gargano back into the corner and pie-facing him. Gargano let his foe do it a couple times before rebounding off the ropes with a chop so loud that it’s still being heard in parts of the country.
Sabbatelli got his heat from there. Gargano made a brief comeback but got cut off when he went for a slingshot dive over the top rope. Sabbatelli caught him and dropped him with a powerslam.
The story of the match was that Sabbatelli may have had it won, but he decided to badmouth Gargano. Johnny Wrestling tagged him with a superkick and tapped him out with the Gargano Escape. Moss was at ringside, but he never got involved.
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Mr. Regal was backstage telling a story when Roderick Strong walked in and asked for an opportunity at Drew McIntyre’s NXT Championship. Regal agreed and made the title match for October 4th.
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Sonya Deville cut a promo and said she never wrestled Asuka because Asuka knew that Deville would have broken her undefeated streak. Deville laid claim to the championship.
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Bianca Belair defeated Lacey Evans
Both Belair and Evans are straight out of the Mae Young Classic. This seemed like it could have been a good hard-hitting match, but Evans was content to be a punching bag for the most part.
Belair was laying in palm strikes and forearms until near the end when Evans got tired of it and fired back with a few good shots of her own. However, Belair whipped Evans with her hair (which was more violent than it sounds) and pinned her with a backwards falling powerbomb.
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Six months after debuting, Aleister Black finally had something to say. Black came to the ring wearing a suit for his first promo segment. I don’t know what I expected him to wear, but it takes something from him to just see him wearing a nice suit. He must have heard me because he came to the ring, removed his suit jacket, and rolled up his sleeves.
He started a journey 15 years ago that led him here to NXT. In those 15 years, he traveled the world and experienced a lot. He put all those experiences on his skin in the form of his scars. He did this to not forget, noting the heart tattoo on his throat and the devil tattoo on his back. He said he now knows what he needs to do.
Before he could state whatever that is, Velveteen Dream lived up to his threat from a few weeks ago. Dream said Black has been blinded by the light that is our Velveteen Dream. He got in the ring and asked Black where his scars are.
Dream said he sees a man who is hurt and in pain. However, Black’s biggest problem is fear. Black looks afraid to Dream. He’s afraid to show emotion and afraid of the light. Dream knows Black has a heart, but it’s in the wrong place.
Black, who stared a hole through his head, gave the former Patrick Clark a Black Mass to the hand. Black sat down in the ring, challenging Dream to do something. Dream knelt down and leaned in close to Black before slithering away.
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Dakota Kai said she wants to be NXT Women’s Champion.
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Lars Sullivan defeated No Way Jose
This match is the conclusion to the angle between Jose and Sullivan. A month ago in Brooklyn, Sullivan destroyed Jose as he tried to fiesta before his match. Then Sullivan manhandled three men in a handicap match two weeks ago, which was followed by Jose, the babyface, attacking Sullivan. Unfortunately for Jose, he got his butt kicked one more time. So since Jose can’t just stay away, we have arrived here!
Jose’s strategy for this match was to attack at the bell. That didn’t work. It’s possible he changed his strategy mid-match to tire Sullivan out by allowing the big man to beat him and throw him all over the ring. That didn’t work either. Jose then figured if he punched Sullivan in the face that would get him the advantage. It also didn’t work.
Sullivan finished Jose off with a diving headbutt and a slam.
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Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly defeated Moustache Mountain
Last week, Bate and Seven ran in to check on Wolfgang after Wolfie was laid out by a three-on-one beatdown by Adam Cole, Fish, and Kyle O’Reilly.
Seven had the early advantage on Fish, but when he went for some sort of move, O’Reilly distracted him just long enough for Fish to cut him off. Seven battled back and chopped away at Fish, but Fish thought he would outsmart Seven by ducking, but Seven was on top of his game and dropped Fish with a DDT.
Cole got up on the apron to have a discussion with the referee, while Fish speared Seven right into the metal barricade on the other side of the arena. Bate eventually got the hot tag and ran wild on the three-time ROH Tag Team Champions. Seven got back in the game for a four-way brawl and he finally took Fish out with a suicide dive.
Bate went for the Tyler Driver ’97, but O’Reilly locked on a guillotine. Bate fought and fought and eventually got out of it. He hoisted O’Reilly up for a suplex, but Fish kicked his leg outta his leg. Fish and O’Reilly hit Chasing the Dragon, but Bate got his big toe on the bottom rope to break the pin up.
It was hard to keep track of who was legal, but Cole interfered to drop Bate, and finally Fish and O’Reilly pinned Seven after Total Elimination.
McIntyre decided that now was the best time to hit the ring, and I guess he had a point, as his presence caused Cole, Fish, and O’Reilly to scurry away. Well, they attempted to scurry away. SAnitY appeared behind them and got their revenge for the attacks at TakeOver and a few weeks later on NXT.
McIntyre joined in on the four-on-three beatdown and eventually the heel trio sulked away a lot less cocky than they were a few minutes earlier.
So. that does it for this week. What happens next week? Only one way to find out, so until then, remember to say your vitamins and take your prayers!
Date: September 19, 2017 Location: Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA
The Big Takeaway —
Charlotte Flair returned and won a fatal 4-way match over Tamina, Naomi and Becky Lynch to become number one contender for Natalya’s title. Their match will happen at Hell in a Cell. Also at HIAC will be a tag title match between the New Day and the Usos.
Kevin Owens apologized for his actions from last week, while blaming Shane McMahon and warning him of what was to come. Shane also issued a warning to Owens.
Rusev defeated Randy Orton in 10 seconds with an assist from Aiden English, the US title match never happened, and there were more terrible talking segments from Jinder Mahal and Dolph Ziggler.
Also, there were no tributes to Bobby Heenan. I’m not sure he was even mentioned.
Show Recap —
They recapped last week’s angle, showing the headbutt twice. Shane McMahon is back to start the show. He didn’t dance to the ring. Corey Graves announced that Vince McMahon suffered three fractured ribs at the hands of Kevin Owens.
Shane called Owens’ attack cowardly. He put over Vince as a tough S.O.B., and even though they don’t always see eye-to-eye, Shane still loves his father. Shane wondered how Owens would feel if he was sitting at home with his kids, as his kids watched their grandfather get beaten down. He mentioned that Owens has yet to show up tonight. Shane promised vengeance, condemned Owens to a life of suffering, and condemned him to hell in a cell.
Randy Orton defeated Aiden English (7:08)
The ring announcer introduced Aiden English just like they do with Elias on Raw. He sang about Orton having led in his head and called him a tool before Orton interrupted. English came out on attack but Orton cut him off with a powerslam and backdrop onto the barricade. Orton was about to backdrop English onto the announce table but English countered and backdropped Orton on the table instead.
After a break, English stole another spot from Orton and had him in a chinlock. Orton made a brief comeback but English caught him with a thumb to the eye and a dropkick. English tried a dive off the middle rope but Orton caught him mid-air with an RKO for the pinfall win.
Rusev interrupted Orton’s celebration afterwards. Rusev threatened to rip the fangs out of the viper’s mouth. Rusev approached the ring and Orton nodded at the referee to go ahead and start a match.
Rusev defeated Randy Orton (0:10)
When the referee called for the bell, English jumped on the apron. Rusev countered an RKO and pushed Orton into English, then Rusev caught Orton on the rebound with a superkick for the pinfall win. They didn’t say exactly how long this went, but I timed the replay and it appeared to go 10 seconds, just like the SummerSlam match. Rusev celebrated like he won the title.
Tom Phillips announced that Kevin Owens would appear live via satellite. They also announced Charlotte would return tonight.
Rusev continued to celebrate backstage when he was approached by Renee Young. She said he seemed elated and he asked her what that meant. Rusev said he could return home a hero and chanted “Rusev number one” and the crowd chanted along. This was amusing.
Jinder Mahal and the Singh brothers came out for a promo. Mahal acknowledged that people were in an uproar over his promo last week, including Shinsuke Nakamura himself. Mahal again posted a picture of Nakamura on the screen and made “jokes” as him and the Singhs cackled. This went on for a while as the crowd only lightly booed. Mahal then did a Japanese accent, which the crowd booed much louder. They chanted for Nakamura.
Mahal made some more racist jokes and some fans chanted, “That’s too far.” He continued in Punjabi, saying he would retain the title at Hell in a Cell (presumably). Nakamura never appeared. This was real bad, even if their intent was to deliberately piss people off.
It’s Hispanic Heritage month so they paid tribute to Jennifer Lopez.
So, Nakamura is here after all. Renee Young interviewed him backstage. Nakamura said Mahal was funny, but he wouldn’t find it funny when Nakamura beats him at Hell in a Cell for the championship. This was such a lame follow-up. This entire segment (including Renee introducing Nakamura) was 27-seconds long.
US Championship Match: AJ Styles vs. Baron Corbin
The match never happened. AJ Styles first came out for a promo and had a message for Kevin Owens, that attacking Vince McMahon was not so smart. Owens attacked the man that brought him to WWE and all the fans to this arena. He was happy to hear Owens had to fight Shane, because Owens wouldn’t walk out of Hell in a Cell.
Styles moved on to Corbin, who he called the “shortcut king.” He brought up Corbin’s failed attempt at cashing in Money in the Bank and his failure to beat John Cena. Styles said Corbin could huff and puff but he would never blow down the house that AJ Styles built.
Corbin came out for the match. As they did introductions, Corbin attacked Styles from behind. As the referee checked on Styles, Tye Dillinger ran down, chop-blocked Corbin and wildly attacked him. Officials pulled Dillinger away as Corbin slipped back in the ring, selling his leg.
Styles attacked Corbin with a forearm, applied the Calf Crusher, and Corbin tapped. The crowd chanted “You tapped out.”
Renee Young approached Corbin backstage. Before she could ask a question, Corbin said he felt violated and the crowd laughed. He yelled about Styles and Dillinger, who he called the “Perfect Zero.” Corbin said he would get even.
Charlotte Flair Returns
Charlotte thanked everyone for their thoughts and prayers. She said Ric Flair was making a comeback. While she was gone, she learned that life is fragile and you have to make the moments count. Charlotte said she would make every moment as big as possible.
Natalya interrupted. She was glad Flair was getting better. She entered the ring for her Celebration of Women and invited Charlotte to stay. She went on for a while about great women, including all the women in the Mae Young Classic, but said there was one woman in particular who stood out. She unveiled a poster of herself.
Charlotte was glad Natalya came out and challenged her to a title match. Becky Lynch interrupted their “Ego Olympics” and called Natalya the craziest there is, was and ever will be. Lynch said she respects Charlotte and her father, but the title is going back on her.
Naomi came out next and told Natalya she doesn’t represent all women, or even the women of SmackDown. Naomi took a shot at Natalya’s cats and was about to ask for a title match but was interrupted by Tamina and Lana.
Natalya thought they were going to defend her, but Lana called her a crazy cat lady and told her to shut up. Lana said it was Tamina’s time, which drew a tepid response. Natalya left the ring and informed them she wasn’t a crazy cat lady, she was their Women’s champion and would be forever.
Daniel Bryan interrupted. He announced Fatal Four Way match tonight and the winner would face Natalya at Hell in a Cell.
Non-Title Match: Tag Team Champions Big E & Kofi Kingston (w/Xavier Woods) defeated The Hype Bros (7:22)
New Day won with Midnight Hour in a perfectly fine TV match. The highlight of the match was Kingston doing a Marshawn Lynch-like dive onto an Uso here in Oakland. The Usos were on commentary and New Day mocked them after the match. Usos will get their title rematch at Hell in a Cell.
Kevin Owens interview via satellite
Owens wore a shirt and tie. He apologized. He didn’t know what got over him and couldn’t believe what he did. He apologized to the fans, management, and to the McMahon family. He also added, with complete sincerity, that Shane had this coming. Shane made him attack his father. Shane made him want to headbutt Vince, punch and kick him and crush his ribs.
In Owens’ mind, he was obliterating Shane, not Vince, because he has nothing but respect for Vince. Owens said what he did to Vince is nothing compared to what he would do to Shane. Owens said people like him don’t go to hell, they go to heaven. I don’t know if this added to the match or not, but Owens was very good here.
Backstage, Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder looked very down about their loss. Rawley said he was tired of losing and they need to do something drastic. Ryder nodded.
Dolph Ziggler came out and called himself the greatest in-ring performer in history. He left and came back out doing Triple H’s entrance (just to the stage area). He asked this allowed him to run NXT. Some fans chanted for CM Punk. Ziggler left again and came back out as Shawn Michaels, adding a comment about losing his smile. The crowd continued to chant for Punk. I guess they want him to do Punk’s entrance.
Ziggler did a DX entrance next and ranted some more as the crowd again for Punk. Ziggler called himself the best ever and said doesn’t care about the fans. This sucked. On a show with a lot of talking, this was a particularly grating segment.
The announcers plugged the Raw PPV here on SmackDown.
Fatal 4-Way Match: Charlotte Flair defeated Tamina (w/Lana), Naomi and Becky Lynch become Number One Contender for the Women’s Championship (9:52)
Lynch’s entrance happened as they came back from commercial and Tamina was already in the ring. Naomi and Charlotte received full entrances. They went back to commercial 40 seconds into the match.
Charlotte hit a moonsault to both Naomi and Tamina for a nearfall. She applied the Figure Four on Naomi but Lynch broke it up with a diving leg drop on Charlotte and Tamina broke up the cover. “This is awesome” chants.
Tamina hit Lynch with a Samoan drop and diving splash but Naomi broke up the cover. Lana pulled Naomi out of the ring so Naomi kicked her in the head. Tamina superkicked Naomi, then Charlotte booted Tamina for the pinfall win. They didn’t get much time but this was enjoyable while it lasted.
Final Thoughts —
There were a couple of bright spots but this was a weak show.
The Big Takeaway: Jason Jordan will challenge the Miz for the Intercontinental Championship at No Mercy. Jordan won a six-pack challenge, pinning Curtis Axel, to earn the title shot. Also, Bayley has been added to the Raw Women’s Championship match after making a surprise return in San Jose. It will be Alexa Bliss defending against Nia Jax, Sasha Banks, Bayley and Emma.
Show Recap:
Angle came out and asked to see the Miz. The Miztourage came out without Maryse. Miz was mad that he wasn’t defending the Intercontinental Championship for the second straight PPV. Angle announced that Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Jason Jordan and Elias would compete in a Fatal Four-Way with the winner getting a shot at the Miz for the Intercontinental Championship. Miz said Angle was rewarding his son again ahead of Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel. Miz said Angle missed 28 years of Jordan life and now he was trying to make it up to him at the expense of the locker room. Miz said you could always count on Angle to be a deadbeat.
That brought out Jordan with fire in his eye and told Miz if he said one more word about Angle he would knock the teeth out of Miz’s mouth. Jordan told Angle to put Axel and Dallas in the Fatal Four-Way so Miz couldn’t make any excuses when he faces Miz for the championship. Angle agreed. Miz asked Jordan if he realized that more people in the match gives Jordan less of a chance of winning and said Jordan was more incompetent than his father. Dallas and Axel went to jump on Jordan, who quickly overpowered both of them. Jordan threw Axel into Dallas and they backed away. Again, Jordan got little reaction though he showed some good intensity.
Jordan was pacing backstage and Angle told him to focus on his opportunity tonight. Jordan said he’s heard people talking about him and when they see what he does against Miz tonight, he’ll shut them up. Angle said people are going to talk about him and Jordan regardless of what happens tonight. Sometimes, it takes more strength not to fight back. Angle gave Jordan a pep talk to win tonight and prepare to face Miz at No Mercy.
Nia Jax defeated Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss in a nontitle match (6:38)
Jax won with a Samoan Drop after Bliss attempted a crossbody off the top rope, but Jax caught her. Bliss largely tried to run away and left the ring three times. She started to leave when Sasha Banks came out. Bliss started to run the other way and ran into Jax like she ran into a brick wall. Bliss bounced off of Jax like she was a rubber ball hitting a cinder block.
Postmatch, Banks jumped on Banks’ back, but Jax threw her off. Out of nowhere, Bayley came out and had a staredown with Jax. Bayley got a good response in her hometown, but it wasn’t overwhelming. Bliss, Bayley and Banks gave Jax a triple team spear as Jax got knocked out of the ring. Banks and Bayley started to celebrate together. Banks raised Bayley’s arm, and Bayley showed her shoulder is fine now. Bliss stepped in between them and tried to be friends with Banks and Bayley, but Banks slapped Bliss’ arm down and Bayley gave her a belly-to-Bayley suplex. Looking at this segment, you would think Bayley was in the Fatal Four-Way at No Mercy instead of Emma.
There were tweets from Vince McMahon, Sheamus, Ric Flair, Chris Jericho, Jerry Lawler and Daniel Bryan honoring the memory of Bobby Hennan. It got a nice round of applause from the fans.
Next was a video of the Brock Lesnar-Bruan Strowman match. Lesnar’s early days from 2002 SmackDown aired, along with clips from a much-younger Paul Heyman putting Lesnar over. They showed Strowman powerslamming Lesnar through two tables at SummerSlam and dumping an announcer’s table onto him. Heyman’s interview from last week aired where he compared Strowman’s debut to the early stages of Lesnar’s career.
Sheamus and Cesaro, now known as the Bar, did a prematch promo. Sheamus said the fans love nostalgia and Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose are using each other to fulfill their own selfish needs. Cesaro said everything is fine now, but when the music stops, the nostalgia will fade and the truth will set in. The truth is Rollins and Ambrose can’t stand each other. Sheamus said their friendship is fragile and they will be there to pick up what is rightfully theirs, the Raw Tag Team Championships. Sheamus said he and Cesaro are stronger than brothers, they don’t just set the bar, they are the bar.
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows were supposed to come out, but Rollins and Ambrose showed up instead. Rollins said Sheamus and Cesaro were dressed like Taxi Driver had a baby with the character from Braveheart. Rollins said he and Ambrose were brothers. Ambrose said sometimes brothers fight, but a real brother wouldn’t let Sheamus leave the house dressed like he is. Anderson came out and were mad at Sheamus and Cesaro for walking out on them last week. Anderson said Rollins and Ambrose took advantage of their disadvantage, which didn’t make them good brothers, but it made them nerds. Rollins said Gallows shouldn’t have said that. Ambrose said nobody caled him a nerd and punched Gallows. It broke down into a six way brawl with Rollins throwing Anderson out of the ring. This led to a three-way match.
Another Asuka vignette aired, showing off a variety of masks and faces in the midst of darkness.
The Bar pinned the Good Brothers in a three-way tag team match that also included Raw Tag Team Champions Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins in a nontitle match (18:42)
Ambrose jumped off the apron, but Cesaro caught his legs and gave him a Giant Swing into the dasherboards. Rollins got the hot tag after he kicked Anderson into the Bar’s corner, allowing Cesaro to make the tag. Cesaro attempted a gut wrench superplex, but Rollins blocked it, flipped over in the same spot where he injured his knee against Kane and gave Cesaro a buckle bomb. Sheamus made the save, then the tag. Gallows tagged in. Rollins hit Anderson and Gallows with side kicks, but Gallows caught Rollins leg on a second attempt and Gallows and Anderson hit the Magic Killer. Ambrose flew in to make a great save. Rollins continued to get beaten up by the Bar, including Cesaro knocking him off the apron after Sheamus delivered two beats of the Bodhran. The Bar then gave Rollins a 3-D where Rollins landed nose first on the mat. Rollins’ head was at a scary angle when he fell and he appeared shaken up. Ambrose got another hot tag and gave Anderson a superplex. Ambrose went back to the top rope and caught the elbow on Anderson. Rollins gave Cesaro a monkey flip over the top rope. Rollins and Ambrose gave Anderson a double clothesline, then hit stereo topes on Cesaro and Gallows, then another set of stereo topes on Sheamus and Anderson. Rollins went to the top rope, but Gallows crotched him. Anderson hit Ambrose with an uppercut. Sheamus tagged Ambrose without Ambrose’s knowledge. Ambrose gave Anderson Dirty Deeds, but Sheamus ran in, threw Ambrose out and pinned Sheamus. Solid stuff.
Miz met with Dallas and Axel backstage. Miz said this was Dallas and Axel chance to prove Angle wrong. Miz said he would prove that Jordan doesn’t deserve their spotlight. Dallas said they Miz was forgetting about them. Axel brought up how his father held the Intercontinental Championship and when he wins tonight, he won’t take it easy on Miz at No Mercy. Dallas said he would be honored to wrestle Miz at No Mercy, and also honored to beat him.
Goldust talked with Angle backstage. Goldust wasn’t wearing makeup and wanted another match against Bray Wyatt. Goldust was asking as Goldust, he was asking as the man behind the paint, Dustin Rhodes. Goldust said Angle knew his father Dusty Rhodes and he wanted to show Wyatt that he wasn’t some pawn in Wyatt’s twisted game against Finn Balor. Angle granted the match and Goldust said Wyatt will never forget the name of Dustin Rhodes.
Curt Hawkins was in the ring and said he came to a tough decision. He said Curt Hawkins Star Factory is closed. In its place will be Curt Hawkins History Machine. He said tonight, the fans would bear witness to history when his 114-match winning streak comes to an end. Hawkins said he’s healthy for the first time in a long time. Hawkins said his opponent will go down as the answer to a trivia question: who did Curt Hawkins defeat to end his long losing streak? Apollo Crews came out with Titus O’Neil.
Apollo Crews defeated Curt Hawkins (2:17)
Crews won with the spin-out powerbomb. There’s a graphic keeping track of Hawkins losing streak, now at 115. Booker T mentioned he may have broken Dusty Wolfe’s record. Corey Graves brought up Iron Mike Sharpe. I guess the Mulkeys are too old school wrasslin’.
Cole, seated at his commentator’s podium, moderated a face-to-face interview with Lesnar and Strowman. Cole said some consider this the first time that Lesnar has been an underdog. Heyman said the last time Lesnar was an underdog, it came when he ended the Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak. Heyman said Lesnar would triumph and conquer Strowman. Heyman said there is no one like Strowman, he respects that Strowman is the most capable challenger to come after Lesnar’s Universal Championship. Heyman said no one has stood up after Lesnar delivered a German Suplex.
Strowman said he can not only stand up to suplex city, he can stomp it to the ground. Heyman said Lesnar knows that Strowman will have to beat Strowman within an inch of his life to beat Strowman or else Strowman will become the Universal Champion. Strowman said the ball is on his side of the court, he’s the one pulling the strings, and what’s going to happen this Sunday can’t change. Heyman said he doesn’t understand why Cole is asking questions of the champion, but Strowman is the challenger. Heyman said the questions should be How will a loss (which won’t happen) affect your legacy, Mr Lesnar? Heyman went off until Lesnar stopped him and said “Braun, I want to thank you for backing me in this corner. For challenging me. That’s when I’m at my best. I’ll see you Sunday.” Lesnar started to leave, then sat back down and said “Suplex city, bitch.”
The Women’s Championship match at No Mercy is now at Fatal Five-Way match with Bayley included, along with the previously announced Bliss, Jax, Banks, and Emma. They showed a tweet showing Emma wasn’t happy about the addition of Bayley.
Reigns came out for more choice words to Cena. Reigns said Cena might be the best talker ever, but sometimes he says stupid sh*t. Like when Cena says that Reigns can be the next John Cena. Reigns said he didn’t believe that because he’s not a jacked up guy with a military haircut. Ask Alex Riley about that. Reigns said when he says something, it means something. Reigns said Cena is the biggest hypocrite to ever set foot in the WWE. If people don’t believe him, Cena will tell you himself. They showed footage of Cena running down The Rock from 2012 about how Dwayne Johnson was spending more time in Hollywood instead of going home to WWE. The interview showed Cena will be here and he will always be here and Cena would beat the Rock in Miami, the Rock’s hometown.
Reigns asked the crowd if they should bring Cena out. Reigns said that’s impossible because Cena isn’t here. Reigns said everything Cena said in 2012 was a lie and that’s why the result at No Mercy will be the same as the WrestleMania in 2012, except this time Cena is going to lose to another Samoan. Reigns said he would see Cena Sunday, movie star. Reigns didn’t mention that Cena was at a SmackDown house show in China over the weekend.
Renee Yong interviewed Jeff and Matt Hardy. She asked what happens if the six-pack challenge comes down to them. Matt said they’ve been fighting since the day they came out of the crib. Jeff said the battles he’s had with his brother have made him stronger. Jeff said he’s going to seize the moment. Matt took issue with that. They touched knuckles as Matt wished his brother luck.
Another Asuka vignette, and they appear serious in pushing her.
Bray Wyatt defeated Dustin Rhodes (2:33)
Rhodes gave Wyatt Shattered Dreams, but walked into Sister Abigail for the pin. Earlier, Rhodes jumped off the ring steps and hit a bulldog.
Balor appeared on the TitanTron afterwards and told Wyatt a story about a shy little boy who stayed inside while all the other kids played games outside. The boy grew up to become a man and looked for a way to control his anger. The man created a demon. Now, Balor asked Wyatt a question. If the demon is the creation of the man, which one is more dangerous? At No Mercy, Wyatt would find out.
HHH, Goldberg, Christian, Jim Ross, Mick Foley, Stephanie McMahon and Peter Rosenberg all paid tribute to Hennan. Cole called Hennan and Gorilla Monsoon the greatest commentary team in the history of the WWE. Cole introduced a video of Hennan.
They showed Hennan’s byplay with Mean Gene Okerlund, then with Monsoon. There was a photo of Hennan with Blackjack Lanza. Sadly, they didn’t show the buildup from WrestleMania 3, which may have been the most effective use of a manager drawing money in the history of the industry. Still, a wonderful tribute to a man who was the best at what he did.
Enzo Amore came out and said he would be the new Cruiserweight Champion at Neville. Strowman ran out and decked Amore. Graves sounded like he had just won $1,000,000. Amore landed right on his microphone, which looked liked it sucked. Strowman gave Enzo a beal into the ring, picked him up and choke slammed him, then delivered the running powerslam. Some fans chanted “Thank you, Strowman.” Strowman walked out and Neville came down. Graves called attention to the size differential, which really buried the cruiserweight division. Neville went to the ring and gave Enzo the Red Arrow. Neville grabbed the microphone and screamed “How you doin’?” and cackled.
Charly Caruso came up and tried to interview Amore, who was having ice put on his ribs. Amore said he wasn’t doing well, but he was taking Neville’s cruiserweight championship and when he does, she can ask Neville how he’s doing.
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Neville defeated Gran Metalik via submission in a nontitle match (3:20)
Gran Metalik hit a huracanrana after walking on the second rope. Neville then tore Metalik’s mask and for a moment Metalik’s face was exposed right there for everyone to see. Neville had to pull the mask back on Metalik’s face since they didn’t want to cost Metalik potential merchandise money, even though they really did. Metalik hit a tope con giro and a moonsault. Metalik attempted another moonsault, but Neville got his feet up and got a verbal submission with the Rings of Saturn.
Jason Jordan pinned Curtis Axel to win a Sixpack Challenge to earn an Intercontinental Championship match at the Miz at No Mercy in a match that also included Elias, Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel (11:27)
Elias jumped from the canvas to the top rope to attempt a superplex on Jordan, but Dallas and Axel dumped Elias to the floor. This led to a tower of doom spot where Jordan got superplexed by Dallas and Axel, who got thrown down by the Hardys. Jeff followed with Poetry in Motion on Elias, but Matt hit the Side Effect on his brother. Dallas broke up the pin attempt. Jordan gave Dallas and Axel belly-to-belly suplexes, followed by a Northern Lights Suplex, followed by a rolling Northern Lights suplex on Axel. Dallas threw Jordan out of the ring, where Miz was sitting. Miz threw Jordan into the dasherboards, then threw him into the crowd. Elias hit drift away on Matt, but Jeff made the save. Jeff hit Axel with a Twist of Fate and the Swanton, but Miz ran in to make the save. Axel hit the Axehole on Jeff, but Jordan ran back in and pinned Axel with the elevated neckbreaker.
Postmatch, Miz had a staredown with Jordan. Miz gave Jordan sarcastic applause, then tried to cheap shot him. Jordan gave Miz a belly-to-belly suplex. Dallas and Axel jumped Jordan and they laid waste to him. Miz gave Jordan the Skull Crushing Finale. Miz said that after No Mercy, he will still be Intercontinental Champion, Angle will still be a terrible father and Jordan will still be a bastard.
– The SmackDown roster (plus John Cena) concluded their international tour with a stop in China yesterday before flying home for this week’s television. There was only one merch stand with a Cena shirt, a Shinsuke Nakamura shirt, an AJ Styles shirt, an event shirt, and a few accessories/trinkets.
– SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day defeated Dolph Ziggler & Baron Corbin to retain their titles
New Day were really over, getting lots of “New Day Rocks” chants. They dominated early with comedy spots, then Big E got the pin on Ziggler after they hit the Midnight Hour.
– Luke Harper defeated Erick Rowan
Harper got a solid reaction and a few chants. He went for a superplex but lost his footing on the ropes and they both collapsed. They went to the finish right after that, which was Harper winning with the discus lariat.
– A Tian Bing video package was shown. He cut a promo in Mandarin and introduced Boa, a Chinese wrestler who is signed with WWE and trains at the Performance Center.
– Boa defeated Aiden English
English sang and got lots of heat before losing to a roll-up.
– John Cena defeated Rusev
Cena got lots of chants throughout and won with the Attitude Adjustment. He didn’t do a promo in Mandarin.
– Naomi, Charlotte Flair & Becky Lynch (w/ Asuka) defeated SmackDown Women’s Champion Natalya, Tamina, Lana & Carmella (w/ James Ellsworth)
Charlotte said hello in Mandarin and cut a promo introducing Asuka. Everyone did their spots and Asuka chased off Ellsworth after he interfered. For the finish, Charlotte submitted Lana with the Figure Eight.
– United States Champion AJ Styles defeated Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and Shinsuke Nakamura to retain his title
Everyone got huge reactions, with the crowd singing Nakamura’s theme and then Zayn’s theme. The match went about 12 minutes. The fans popped for Nakamura/Zayn and Nakamura/Styles staredowns. Styles retained after hitting the Phenomenal Forearm on Owens and pinning him.
– WWE Champion Jinder Mahal (w/ The Singh Brothers) defeated Randy Orton in a last man standing match to retain his title
The Singh Brothers introduced Mahal, then he cut his regular promo before the match. Orton got a lot of RKO chants. There were spots with the stairs, a cane, and chairs. Orton put Mahal through a table, but the Singhs low blowed Orton and helped Mahal up so that he would win. Orton dished out RKOs after to send the crowd home happy.
The Big Takeaway: Dash Wilder made his singles debut on Main Event in a loss to Rhyno, then the cruiserweights put on a good six-man tag match with a magnificent finish.
**********
Rhyno defeated Dash Wilder (5:45)
Wilder took a lot of the match here despite Rhyno’s size and strength advantage. Unfortunately, Wilder has been completely forgotten about since Scott Dawson got injured and the crowd, who were initially behind Rhyno, quickly didn’t care too much for this match.
Rhyno and Wilder went back and forth until Wilder knocked him off the top rope over to the outside. The blow Rhyno took as he tumbled to the matting slowed him down and let Wilder look like he had a realistic shot.
Wilder tried some quick pin attempts and used a rear chinlock to wear him down, but Rhyno worked his way out and speared Wilder in the corner. Rhyno tried a belly-to-belly suplex but only got a two count.
Rhyno went for the Gore, but Wilder dodged and rolled the posted Rhyno into a schoolboy, using the ropes for leverage. Rhyno kicked out and this time picked up the running Wilder into a spinebuster for the win.
Gran Metalik, Lince Dorado & Mustafa Ali defeated Ariya Daivari, Noam Dar & Tony Nese (5:20)
After endless entrances, Dorado and Daivari started things off together. Ali distracted Daivari and he turned around to eat a slick dropkick from Dorado, but Daivari kicked out at two. Dorado hit him with a second rope springboard moonsault for two and then locked in a rest hold.
Daivari tagged in Dar and Dorado made the tag to Ali. Ali came off the top rope and nailed Dar’s left arm with a double foot stomp and then tagged in Metalik, who did likewise with a double axe handle. Metalik flipped all over around Dar, who did his best to dodge, but he was planted with a bulldog and rolled outside.
Both teams stared each other down as we headed to a break.
Daivari was yelling at Dorado as we returned. He slapped on a rear chinlock to a roar of boos. The crowd clapped Dorado out of the hold and he was able to surprise Daivari with a springboard stunner. They crawled to their corners and tagged in Ali and Dar. Ali overwhelmed Dar and hit him with a roll-through neckbreaker, but Nese and Daivari broke up the pin.
The ring filled, with all six men going at it. The heels were sent packing and Metalik, Dorado, and Ali hit them with triple seated sentons in what was quite the spectacle. Ali rolled Dar back into the ring and hit the 054 for the win. Nese never even got tagged in, but this was a fun match.
The Raw roster concluded its tour of Australia with a show on Saturday. Here are the results:
– Jason Jordan won a battle royal to earn an Intercontinental title shot later in the night
This also included Goldust, R-Truth, Curtis Axel, Bo Dallas, Dean Ambrose, Titus O’Neil, Apollo Crews, Heath Slater, Rhyno, and Elias.
– WWE Cruiserweight Champion Neville defeated Akira Tozawa and Enzo Amore to retain his title
Neville and Tozawa carried most of the match while Amore sold on the floor. People really liked Tozawa.
– The Hardys defeated Cesaro & Sheamus
– Finn Balor defeated Bray Wyatt
– Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss defeated Emma, Sasha Banks, Nia Jax, and Mickie James to retain her title
– Jason Jordan defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz by DQ
Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel interfered to cause the disqualification and allow Miz to keep his title. Dean Ambrose and R-Truth made the save, with Kurt Angle then coming out and making a six-man tag match.
– Jason Jordan, Dean Ambrose & R-Truth defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz, Curtis Axel & Bo Dallas
– Roman Reigns defeated Braun Strowman in a street fight
Reigns speared Strowman through a table to get the win.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 116: Rockhold vs. Branch, emanating from the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The event is headlined by the return to action of former UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold, who steps inside the Octagon for the first time since losing the championship in June 2016. He looks to get back into the win column and work back towards a title shot when he takes on David Branch, winner of eleven straight fights, including his return bout in the UFC in May.
In the co-main event, Mike Perry looks to build on his potential as he looks for another knockout when he takes on Alex Reyes, who steps in on just a few days’ notice after Thiago Alves was forced out due to travel issues stemming from Hurricane Irma. Also on the main card is Kamaru Usman looking to score his tenth straight win as he battles Sergio Moraes.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> Jason Saggo (12-3, 3-2 UFC) vs. Gilbert Burns (12-2, 4-2 UFC) Lightweights
They traded kicks to start off the action. Saggo landed a high kick but ate a body kick from Burns. Burns landed a left hand and followed with a leg kick. Burns is landing punches as he counters leg kicks from Saggo with them. Burns with a straight right hand and then followed with a leg kick and a knee on a clinch break. Burns landed a body kick but Saggo grabbed the leg and forced Burns to his back. Saggo was attacking from a standing position with kicks. Burns got to his feet and landed a right hand. Burns scored a brief takedown but they got up and then Burns dragged the fight back down. Burns with some heavy right hands on top and had the back as the round ended. 10-9 Burns.
Saggo was attacking with kicks to open the round. Burns shot for a takedown but it was defended. Saggo with a body kick. They exchanged kicks. Saggo was landing more kicks at different areas of Burns’ body. Burns just missed a huge right hand. Burns landed a combo and then scored a huge slam takedown and pushed Saggo against the fence. Saggo was able to use the fence to get to his feet and they broke. Burns lands a right hand. Saggo with a body kick. Burns then landed a huge right hand that knocked Saggo out cold with just under ten seconds to go in the round. It was a huge punch and Burns gets the win by knockout!
Official Result- Gilbert Burns def. Jason Saggo by knockout (punch) at 4:55 of Round 2
> Krzysztof Jotko (#10, 19-2, 6-2 UFC) vs. Uriah Hall (#14, 12-8, 5-6 UFC) Middleweights
Hall tried coming out fast but Jotko was able to push him towards the fence. Jotko landed a combo. Hall is keeping his back against the fence but comes forward with a leg kick. Jotko landed some big punches and has Hall in a lot of trouble. Hall went down but got up and Jotko is landing big punches and came close to finishing. Jotko got a takedown and was landing but that takedown may have been a mistake. Jotko gets the back but pulls Hall back down and is landing big punches and gets into the mount. Hall gives up his back and Jotko is landing more punches. Hall gets up but Jotko is on his back. Jotko looked for the choke but didn’t have it in and went back to the mount. Hall was able to scramble out to his feet. Both men are tired and wobbling on their feet. Hall landed a left hand that stunned Jotko. We are going to the second. 10-8 Jotko.
Jotko landed an uppercut. Hall missed a spinning high kick but then kind of landed one. Hall then took his back to the fence, which almost cost him the fight in the first. Hall fights best when he is coming forward but he’s been going backward most of the fight. He is now starting to come forward and lands a right hand. Hall then dropped Jotko with a right hand and then finished him off. What a comeback from Hall, who looked done in the first as he saves his UFC career for now.
Official Result- Uriah Hall def. Krzysztof Jotko by knockout (punches) at 2:25 of Round 2
> Anthony Hamilton (15-7, 3-5 UFC) vs. Daniel Spitz (5-1, 0-1 UFC) Heavyweights
Hamilton went down after Spitz landed a right hand to the temple and Spitz landed a bunch of more punches and the fight was quickly stopped. It happened fast but the fight could have gone longer as it was a questionable stoppage, though Hamitlon stumbled when getting to his feet. This one went less than 30 seconds. A big knockout win by Spitz for his first UFC victory.
Official Result- Daniel Spitz def. Anthony Hamilton by TKO (punches) at :24 of Round 1
> Tony Martin (12-3, 4-3 UFC) vs. Olivier Aubin-Mercier (9-2, 5-2 UFC) Lightweights
They were feeling each other out early and both landed leg kicks. Aubin-Mercier landed a left hand. Martin landed a right hand and Aubin-Mercier came back with a left hand and a right hook. They traded punches. Aubin-Mercier went for a takedown but it was stuffed by Martin. They were battling for underhooks against the fence. Aubin-Mercier got a takedown with under a minute to go. Martin was able to scramble out to his feet. They traded punches late. Close round. 10-9 Aubin-Mercier.
Aubin-Mercier lands a leg kick and left hand to start the second. He landed a body kick and went for a takedown but it was stuffed by Martin. Aubin-Mercier got a takedown against the fence. Martin has been planted on the mat but both men are landing short punches on the ground. They get to their feet and Aubin-Mercier takes the back. Aubin-Mercier got a takedown against the fence. Aubin-Mercier is landing from the top and Martin can’t sweep from out under. 10-9 Aubin-Mercier, 20-18 Aubin-Mercier.
Martin lands a combo with a solid right hand to start the third. Aubin-Mercier goes for a takedown but Martin has the neck and had a choke locked in but it was defended by Aubin-Mercier, who popped his head out. Martin has the back and is working for a choke as he lands short punches. Martin is still working for the neck but it is being defended and he is still landing short punches. Martin landing more to end the fight. Martin got the third. Close fight which will come down to how the first round was scored, and that could have gone either way. 10-9 Martin, 29-28 Aubin-Mercier.
Aubin-Mercier got two of the scorecards for a split decision. Not a bad call as it was close.
Official Result- Olivier Aubin-Mercier def. Tony Martin by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
> Justin Ledet (8-0 1 NC, 2-0 UFC) vs. Zu Anyanwu (14-4, 0-0 UFC) Heavyweights
They are feeling each other out in the first minute. Ledet is looking to land the jab while Anyanwu is looking to counter with an overhand right. Ledet with a right hand. Ledet landed a left hook. Ledet with a straight right hand. Anyanwu landed a right hand finally but backed off. They are fighting slow and it is uneventful. Anyanwu with a right hand to the body. 10-9 Ledet.
They are still feeling each other out as Ledet is landing the jab. He is going with the jab followed by a hook. Anyanwu landed a right hand and just missed the uppercut. Anyanwu landed a right hand but Ledet is landing with more volume. The crowd is booing this. Ledet landing the stiff jab. Slow round again. 10-9 Ledet, 20-18 Ledet.
Anyanwu is on the attack looking to land the right hand and he had Ledet running away as he just landed the right. Anyanwu landing some more punches. Ledet keeping him away with the jab but Anyanwu landed a hard right hand. Anyanwu landed another right hand. Ledet with another jab. Anyanwu’s face is a mess with a swollen eye. Anyanwu backs Ledet up with some punches and he lands another right hand. Anyanwu with a late combo. 10-9 Anyanwu, 29-28 Ledet.
Official Result- Justin Ledet def. Zu Anyanwu by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
BREAKING: Mauricio Rua is injured and pulled out of the main event of UFC Fight Night 117 in Saitama, Japan, which takes place on Friday. He was scheduled to face Ovince Saint Preux. In his place, Yushin Okami has signed to return to the UFC and will face Saint Preux.
Moraes was swinging early. Usman then dropped Moraes with a right hand. Moraes got back up and they were trading punches but Usman was landing a lot more volume. Moraes landed a solid right hand. Usman then knocked Moraes out with a big right hand. Moraes actually did a somersault roll and Usman landed one more right hand on the mat. A big knockout win for Usman, who has now won ten straight fights.
Official Result- Kamaru Usman def. Sergio Moraes by knockout (punch) at 2:48 of Round 1
> Gregor Gillespie (9-0, 2-0 UFC) vs. Jason Gonzalez (11-3, 1-1 UFC) Lightweights
Gonzalez came out with two straight head kicks and a left hand and Gillespie clinched. Gonzalez landed a knee in the clinch. Gillespie then landed a left hand that dropped Gonzalez and he swarmed on top and was looking for the finish but went into the guard. They scrambled to the feet and Gillespie was rocking Gonzalez with punches. They are trading heavy punches. This is fun. Gillespie got a big takedown. Gonzalez is bleeding and Gillespie working in the half-guard but transitions to mount. Gillespie with some big punches from the top, They scramble to their feet. Gonzalez with a head kick. Gillespie gets another takedown. They get to their feet. Gillespie lands a big elbow and then landed a big uppercut that rocked Gilespie. Gillespie with another takedown into the mount but he goes to side control. Gillespie lands more from the top. Exciting round. 10-9 Gillespie.
Gonzalez with another head kick. Gillespie starts landing punches to the body and gets a takedown. Gillespie gets into the mount. Gillespie looking to set up an arm-triangle choke. Gillespie with some pressure and he has the choke locked in tight. Gonzalez is defending and he taps out! Gillespie with the submission win in an exciting fight.
Official Result- Gregor Gillespie def. Jason Gonzalez by submission (arm-triangle choke) at 2:11 of Round 2
> Hector Lombard (34-7-1 2 NC, 3-5 1 NC UFC) vs. Anthony Smith (27-12, 3-2 UFC) Middleweights
Smith with a high kick early. Lombard looking to land the left hand and he is chasing Smith to the fence. Lombard with some punches inside close range. Smith goes to his knees looking for a takedown but Lombard is landing punches. Smith back to his feet. Smith just misses a head kick. Lombard with a couple of leg kicks and then a big body kick. Lombard is landing big punches as Smith retreats towards the fence. Lombard with some leg kicks. Lombard with more big leg kicks and he’s landing with his hands. Smith isn’t showing much defense. 10-9 Lombard.
Lombard with more leg kicks. They clinched for a moment and Lombard landed on the break. Lombard with more leg kicks. Smith can’t get any offense going. Lombard grabs the back and is looking for a takedown. Lombard with some knees to the legs of Smith with the back body locked. They break and Smith lands some elbows. Lombard with a left hand. Smith lands a right hand. Smith lands a right hand and Lombard is stunned and slips to the mat. Lombard grabs Smith and drags him down. 10-9 Lombard, 20-18 Lombard.
They trade inside the first minute of the final round. Lombard with a leg kick and Smith lands to the body. Smith with a right hand that stuns Lombard. They trade kicks. Lombard landing the lefts. Smith then lands a big combo and a right hand knocks Lombard down and Smith finishes him off with a couple more punches on the ground. A big comeback win for Smith as he needed that.
Official Result- Anthony Smith def. Hector Lombard by TKO (punches) at 2:33 of Round 3
> Mike Perry (10-1, 3-1 UFC) vs. Alex Reyes (13-2, 0-0 UFC) Welterweights
They were trading early and Reyes was landing some good kicks. Perry was missing his punches and they were running around in the Octagon looking to land. They clinched up and Perry landed a vicious knee right to the jaw that knocked Reyes out cold. Violent finish by Perry as he scores another knockout win. Perry called for a fight against Robbie Lawler in his interview.
Official Result- Mike Perry def. Alex Reyes by knockout (knee) at 1:19 of Round 1
> Luke Rockhold (#3, 15-3, 5-2 UFC) vs. David Branch (#9, 21-3, 3-2 UFC) Middleweights
Branch with a right hand to start and Rockhold lands some body kicks in counters. Branch lands a lot of punches that hurt Rockhold against the fence and Branch gets a takedown but Rockhold right back to his feet. They clinch and Rockhold has Branch against the fence and lands a knee. They break and Rockhold with a leg kick. They clinch again after Branch lands a right hand. Rockhold with a knee to the body as they break. Rockhold with a jumping kick followed by a left hand. They clinch and Rockhold with a knee. Rockhold gets a late takedown despite Branch grabbing the top of the Octagon in an attempt to block. 10-9 Branch.
Rockhold with a body kick. Rockhold lands a left hand. Branch missing his punches. They clinch. Rockhold pushes Branch against the fence and is working for a takedown. Rockhold gets the takedown and has the mount and is landing. He gets the back of Branch and is landing punches. Rockhold working for a finish as he has Branch pinned on the mat and is landing punches. Branch not defending as Rockhold has the back. Rockhold has him flattened out and is landing lots of punches and the referee steps in and stops the fight. Branch actually tapped out due to the punches. Big win for Rockhold is his return as he stamps himself as the possible next title challenger.
Official Result- Luke Rockhold def. David Branch by submission (punches) at 4:05 of Round 2
The SmackDown crew was in Osaka for a show at the Edion Arena today (and some had dinner with members of the NJPW roster while in Japan). The same crew will be joined by John Cena in China on Sunday before flying to Oakland for the Tuesday SmackDown tapings.
– SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day defeated Baron Corbin & Dolph Ziggler to retain their titles
Kofi Kingston, who had been cleared after suffering a minor injury in Hawaii, got the pin on Corbin after New Day hit the Midnight Hour.
– Luke Harper defeated Erick Rowan
Harper won with the discus lariat.
– Aiden English defeated Sami Zayn
English hit a DDT for the finish.
– Randy Orton defeated Rusev in a last man standing match
An RKO through a table got the win for Orton.
– Naomi, Charlotte Flair & Becky Lynch (w/ Asuka) defeated SmackDown Women’s Champion Natalya, Tamina, Lana & Carmella (w/ James Ellsworth)
Naomi hit the Rear View on Lana for the pin. Asuka and Ellsworth were going at it at the finish.
– United States Champion AJ Styles defeated Kevin Owens to retain his title
These two have been working short matches this week, with Styles retaining with the Phenomenal Forearm.
– WWE Champion Jinder Mahal defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to retain his title
Mahal hit the Khallas for the victory after interference from the Singh Brothers, then Nakamura made a comeback to stand tall after the match.
The Raw roster continued its tour of Australia with shows in Melbourne and Sydney over the past two days. Here’s a rundown of the events:
Results from Melbourne —
Submitted by reader Damien Evans
– Kurt Angle came out to a massive pop and did a quick welcome promo.
– Jason Jordan won a battle royal to earn a shot at the Intercontinental title later in the night
The Miztourage worked well together, as did Heath Slater and Rhyno. It was a decent battle royal, with it ending when Jordan double clotheslined Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas over the top rope.
– WWE Cruiserweight Champion Neville defeated Akira Tozawa and Enzo Amore to retain his title
Amore took a bump immediately that put him out of the ring for most of the match, allowing Neville and Tozawa to work most of it. They had a solid match and both got a decent bit of offense in.
Once Amore came back, he teamed with Neville to work over Tozawa and got him down. Neville then threw Amore out of the ring and got the pin on Tozawa.
– The Hardys defeated Cesaro & Sheamus
This was probably the match of the night, with both teams coming out looking good. After some long back and forth, Matt hit a Twist of Fate and Jeff followed with the Swanton to get the win.
– Finn Balor defeated Bray Wyatt
They had a match that didn’t work well at all. Both wrestlers are very good, but they didn’t seem to gel together in the ring well. The most memorable thing was Wyatt throwing some crotch chops towards the crowd in response to a “Husky Harris” chant.
Balor did a good babyface promo after the win.
– Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss defeated Emma, Sasha Banks, Mickie James, and Nia Jax to retain her title
James and Emma got a lot of offense in, but Bliss ended up retaining in a fairly messy match.
– Jason Jordan defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz by DQ
Miz spent a few minutes begging off well, but the action was pretty average once it got going. The Miztourage returned to cause the disqualification after they had been sent to the back. They tripled teamed Jordan, then Dean Ambrose and R-Truth ran down for the save.
Angle came back out and made a six-man tag match between them.
– Jason Jordan, Dean Ambrose & R-Truth defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz & The Miztourage
They had a surprisingly good match considering how it was put together. R-Truth actually took a lot of it for his team and looked good, then Ambrose hit the Dirty Deeds on Miz for the pin.
– Roman Reigns defeated Braun Strowman
This had an interesting structure to it. Reigns would try to bring weapons in, but Strowman would put them away as he preferred to beat him barehanded. It was a good back-and-forth match, with Strowman having the upper hand for most of the match until Reigns made a comeback.
Reigns hit a series of Superman punches and speared Strowman through a table in the corner to get the victory.
Results from Sydney —
Submitted by reader Ivan Oetomo
– Jason Jordan won a battle royal to earn a shot at the Intercontinental title later in the night
This also included Dean Ambrose, Apollo Crews, Titus O’Neil, Goldust, R-Truth, Bo Dallas, Curtis Axel, Elias, Rhyno, and Heath Slater. Ambrose got a great reaction from the crowd when he made his entrance.
Jordan, Ambrose, Dallas, and Axel were the final four. The Miztourage threw Jordan to the outside of the ring through the second rope, then they ganged up on Ambrose and eliminated him. But Jordan snuck back into the ring and eliminated both Dallas and Axel simultaneously.
– WWE Cruiserweight Champion Neville defeated Akira Tozawa and Enzo Amore to retain his title
Amore got a good reaction from the crowd and cut a short promo. Neville tossed him out of the ring from the get go — and that’s where he spent most of the match. Neville and Tozawa did most of the work. Amore struggled to get back into the ring, only to be tossed out again by Neville.
Neville and Tozawa did more work until Amore managed to get in and hit Neville with chops and punches. Amore threw Neville out of the ring and focused on Tozawa. He hit some kind of DDT, but Neville was able to get back in, throw Amore out, and steal the pin on Tozawa.
– The Hardys defeated Cesaro & Sheamus
This was nothing out of the ordinary. There was one funny moment when the audience chanted “wear your sunscreen” at Sheamus. For the finish, Jeff hit him with Poetry in Motion and the Swanton. The crowd loved the ending sequence.
– Finn Balor defeated Bray Wyatt
They had an okay match, with it being back and forth and nothing special. Wyatt jumped Balor early before the bell was rung, but Balor came back and hit a dropkick and Coup de Grace for the win.
Balor grabbed the mic and told the crowd that the Irish and the Australians are alike. He pointed at the “Qudos Bank Arena” sign and said: “That sign may say Qudos Bank Arena, but tonight this is the Balor Club.”
– Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss defeated Emma, Sasha Banks, Nia Jax, and Mickie James to retain her title
Bliss spent most of this outside of the ring. She didn’t do much at all. Banks, James, Jax, and Emma took turns working on one another. Emma had a good reaction from the crowd in her home country. Bliss went back into the ring and rolled her up to steal the win, with Emma claiming Bliss held her shorts while she was rolled up.
– Jason Jordan defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz by DQ
The Miztourage accompanied Miz to the ring. The wrestling itself was okay, but Miz really knows how to work a crowd. There was a chant of “where’s Maryse?” after everyone noticed that she wasn’t there, which Miz responded to by saying that she would never step foot into a city like Sydney. That got the biggest heat of the night.
Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel were sent to the back after repeatedly trying to interfere. Jordan got the momentum and hit some suplexes, then Dallas and Axel ran back out to attack him. The ref called for the bell, but the Miztourage kept attacking Jordan until Dean Ambrose and R-Truth ran in for the save. That led to Kurt Angle coming out and making a six-man tag.
– Jason Jordan, Dean Ambrose & R-Truth defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz & The Miztourage
Ambrose got the pin with Dirty Deeds.
– Roman Reigns defeated Braun Strowman in a street fight
There was a 70-30 split in favor of Reigns among the audience. Strowman dominated the first part of the match, including using the steel steps on Reigns for a bit. A turning point was Reigns hitting a Samoan drop on a table. He followed with two or three Superman punches, a spear, and another spear through a table in the corner to get the win.
Previously: GFW Global Champion Eli Drake defeated Matt Sydal to retain his title.
Tonight: Johnny Impact faces Low Ki with the winner getting a shot at the Global title. Also, Bobby Lashley makes his decision regarding his future in MMA and pro wrestling.
Show Recap —
– Earlier today, Bobby Lashley, Dan Lambert, and American Top Team arrived. They roughed up a backstage technician and laughed at him.
Garza Jr. defeated Braxton Sutter (w/ Allie)
Sutter was in control until Garza Jr. made a comeback and did the spot where he rips off his pants and reveals his tights. He blew a kiss at Allie and threw his pants in her direction, which upset Sutter. Sutter got frustrated that he couldn’t put Garza away. Garza then made another comeback and connected with a second rope moonsault for the win.
Sutter blamed Allie for the loss and tried to drag her away, but she wouldn’t let him. Cooler heads prevailed and they walked away together.
Grand Champion Ethan Carter III defeated El Hijo del Fantasma to retain his title
The judges for the match were Dutch Mantell, Scott D’Amore, and Hector Guerrero. Both guys each won a round apiece as we headed into the final round. EC3 caught Fantasma with the One Percenter, but he couldn’t make the pin in time.
They teased that Guerrero would favor Fantasma because of the AAA connection, though EC3 won on a split decision with Guerrero scoring in EC3’s favor.
After the match, Fantasma was angry with Guerrero and got in his face. Fantasma and EC3 argued before Pagano made his GFW debut by attacking EC3.
-In Tijuana, LAX reunited with Homicide and partied at a gentleman’s club. They discussed the upcoming match with OVE.
GFW Global Tag Team Champions LAX defeated OVE and two other teams to retain their titles
This match took place at The Crash in Tijuana, Mexico. It was just highlights, featuring a lot of high flying and insane moves. One of the spots was a hurricanrana from the top turnbuckle to the floor on the other guys. Homicide interfered to help LAX score the win.
,OVE confronted LAX in an empty arena after but were out numbered. As OVE walked away, they decided to pay a visit to the LAX Clubhouse.
Grado defeated William Weeks
This was Grado’s farewell match and he easily defeated Weeks. After it was over, Grado thanked the fans and said goodbye. Joseph Park came out and announced he’s hiring Grado to his sports agency, which means he can stay.
– Bobby Lashley, Dan Lambert, and ATT entered Jim Cornette’s office. Lashley made his decision and he’s going with his team. He said he wants a full release from GFW. Cornette finally agreed, but the only way he can get his release is if ATT leaves and Lashley confronts Moose.
Trevor Lee defeated Sonjay Dutt in a falls count anywhere match to win the X Division Championship
Lee sent Caleb Konley to the back because he wanted to win on his own. They brawled around ringside to start the match with both scoring near falls. Dutt climbed to the top, but Lee cut him off and connected with a huge superplex to gain the advantage. They fought into the crowd and Dutt hit a standing moonsault for a two count.
They brawled backstage, with Konley jumping Dutt to help Lee. Lee dropped Dutt on a guardrail and Konley nailed him. Lee then rolled up Dutt to win the X Division Championship.
– In the back, ATT beat up Richard Justice as they were leaving.
Taya Valkyrie defeated Amber Nova
Valkyrie dominated the match and easily defeated Nova in her debut.
Johnny Impact defeated Low Ki to earn a GFW Global Championship match
Impact had the early advantage until Low Ki used a dragon sleeper in the ropes to take over. Low Ki applied a second dragon sleeper, this time in the tree of woe. Impact made a comeback but missed the Thursday Night Delight. Low Ki missed a Warrior’s Way, then crashed hard in the ropes. Impact hit the Starship Pain to win and earn a Global title shot.
Eli Drake and Chris Adonis then attacked Impact and beat him down. Drake nailed Impact with the Gravy Train.
– Lashley came out to confront Moose in his last appearance in the Impact Zone. He officially announced that he’s going back to MMA and American Top Team. But before he goes, he called out Moose to the ring. A brawl broke out instantly between the two. They brawled around ringside and into the crowd. Moose hit a spear to gain the advantage.
American Top Team ran in and attacked Moose. Security tried to help, but ATT threw them out. The show ended with ATT posing over the fallen body of Moose.
Reports submitted by readers Reid Shimizu and Derek
– SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day defeated Baron Corbin & Dolph Ziggler to retain their titles
This started off with some comedy spots, including Ziggler going into the crowd and grabbing a Money in the Bank briefcase from a fan in the front row. New Day then won with the Midnight Hour. Kingston appeared to suffer a knee injury after slipping off the top rope. He limped around but toughed it out to finish the match.
There was a small segment with University of Hawaii head football coach Nick Rolovich and New Day after as they presented quarterback Hunter Hughes with a full scholarship.
– Luke Harper defeated Erick Rowan
Harper hit a suicide dive to the outside, a superplex, and won with the discus lariat.
– Sami Zayn defeated Aiden English
Zayn won with the exploder suplex and Helluva Kick. He was very popular with the fans.
– Randy Orton defeated Rusev in a last man standing match
Orton got the biggest reaction of the show up to this point. It was a very exciting match and had kendo sticks, the ring steps, and a table used. There were multiple chair shots as well. Orton hit an RKO on Rusev to win after sending him through the table.
– Naomi, Charlotte Flair & Becky Lynch (w/ Asuka) defeated SmackDown Women’s Champion Natalya, Tamina, Lana & Carmella (w/ James Ellsworth)
Charlotte ran down the heels and introduced Asuka as being in their corner. The heels worked on Charlotte for most of the match, then Naomi got the pin on Lana after hitting the Rear View.
– United States Champion AJ Styles defeated Kevin Owens to retain his title
Owens attacked Styles while he was making his entrance for heel heat. There were dueling chants for both in the match, which ended with Styles connecting with the Phenomenal Forearm to retain.
– WWE Champion Jinder Mahal (w/ The Singh Brothers) defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to retain his title
The Singhs introduced Mahal and he tried to do a promo before being interrupted by Nakamura. Nakamura was treated as an unknown in Hawaii last year, but this time he was a crowd favorite. Both wrestlers worked hard and put on a solid main event. Mahal got the pin with the Khallas after the Singhs ran interference.
The Singh Brothers tried to attack Nakamura after, but he fought them off and hit the Kinshasa to send everyone home happy.
