Tag: Apollo Crews

Apollo Crews shares statement after WWE departure: ‘This is my time’

Posted on by Ian Carey

Apollo Crews has released a statement regarding his departure from WWE.

Crews was one of several names revealed Friday as part of WWE’s post-WrestleMania 42 roster cuts. He had been with the company for 11 years.

On Sunday, Crews posted to Instagram:

“Thank you, @wwe, for eleven incredible years. Wow. Eleven years. What an incredible journey. I feel blessed to have had a career in WWE that lasted that long. Thanks to everyone who sent me messages or texts. Even if I didn’t reply, just know I’m grateful.

Throughout my career, I was fortunate to suffer only one serious injury that sidelined me for a significant amount of time. I’ve been lucky to experience many amazing moments during my time with WWE. It’s been a fun ride, and I appreciate everyone who supported me along the way.
To everyone I shared the ring with… thank you.

All things come to an end. This is my time.“

Several wrestlers responded to Crews’ post as well, including Natalya and Nikki Cross.

Natalya wrote to Crews, “I’m very excited to see what’s next for you, knowing the person you are and that you have the most amazing attitude of anyone I know. I’m very proud to call you a true friend.”

Cross responded to Crews, “dude, you are the best! I will miss our chats about school and life. You always brought such positive vibes ✨
Can’t wait to see what’s next on your journey. Love to you and your family. 👊🏻”

Prior to signing with WWE in late 2014, Crews wrestled as Uhaa Nation for promotions such as Dragon Gate and EVOLVE.

His final WWE match was the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on Friday’s SmackDown. Crews is a former one-time Intercontinental Champion and one-time United States Champion with the promotion.

His post is below.

Injured WWE star makes in-ring return during AAA tapings

Posted on by Bryan Rose

An injured WWE star has made his return to the ring.

During an untelevised portion of the AAA tapings on Saturday, Apollo Crews made his return to in-ring action after answering an open challenge from Lince Dorado. Crews emerged victorious, scoring his first win since his injury ten months ago.

Crews suffered a torn pectoral muscle while wrestling Johnny Gargano on the January 24 episode of SmackDown. Crews was hurt after taking a backcracker, and while he favored his shoulder for the rest of the match, was able to get the win after a roll-up. 

“A few weeks ago on SmackDown, I tore my pec—an unfortunate situation,” he wrote at the time. “Sometimes, you do everything right, but there are just some things beyond your control. I’m looking forward to the road ahead, attacking it with a positive and unstoppable mindset.”

Since being drafted to SmackDown as part of the 2024 WWE Draft, Crews had mostly been working Main Event tapings prior to his injury. He also formed a brief tag team with Baron Corbin prior to his release in November of last year.

Injured WWE wrestler back training in ring

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Injured WWE star Apollo Crews looks to be doing well in his recovery as he progresses toward an in-ring return.

On his Instagram stories, Crews shared a video of him in the ring this week at Natalya & Tyson Kidd’s Dungeon training facility. He was training alongside indie wrestler Eli Knight in the clip.

Crews was forced out of action at the start of 2025 when he suffered a torn pec while facing Johnny Gargano on the January 24 episode of WWE SmackDown. The injury happened while Crews was taking a backcracker, but he continued despite favoring his shoulder and got the win with a roll-up.

The 37-year-old Crews underwent surgery in early February to repair the injury. In May, he shared an update saying that he was feeling good and crushing the rehab process. There was never much physical pain from the torn pec, but Crews said it took a bit for him to get right mentally after the injury happened.

He has documented his recovery on Instagram through clips working out in the gym as his strength improves.

Crews has been with WWE for a decade now, having made his debut for the company in 2015. He is a former Intercontinental Champion and United States Champion.

Daily Update: WWE NXT notes, Apollo Crews, MLW War Chamber

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Daily Update

Latest Headlines

Latest Audio

Latest Free YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter Back Issue

Wednesday Update

WWE

  • WWE uploaded the full Joe Hendry concert segment from NXT last night, which ended with Hendry standing tall after Trick Williams tried to ambush him.
  • Williams also performed a rap aimed at Hendry ahead of their TNA World Championship match at NXT Battleground this Sunday.
  • Stephanie Vaquer and Jordynne Grace were spotlighted in profile pieces last night building up their NXT Women’s Championship match for Battleground.
  • There was an angle on NXT where Oba Femi was laid out by WWE LFG winner Jasper Troy. Myles Borne, who is challenging Femi for the NXT Championship on Sunday, stopped the attack by running off Troy.
  • WWE ID wrestler Sean Legacy cut a promo after defeating Ashante Adonis and Je’Von Evans in a triple threat match on NXT:
    • Eight long years, eight long years in the making. A couple months ago, I became one of the first-ever WWE ID prospects. I am killing it on the indies, I am killing it in Evolve. And two weeks ago, I came up short in the battle royal, but I was final five. But that doesn’t matter. What does matter is today, right now in the triple threat. Je’Von Evans, future NXT Champion. That boy is bouncy. And Ashante, somebody that has been here for a while, somebody that’s kicking the door down and getting his opportunity. But guess what? Guess who got the job done? I did. And now it is my turn to start my legacy. Everybody will remember the name Sean Legacy. I started as a nobody and, man, I just now became a somebody. And that is that Sean Legacy will always be super.
  • Bully Ray interviewed WWE LFG runner-up Zena Sterling on Busted Open Radio After Dark.
  • Apollo Crews noted that he’s doing well in his recovery after undergoing surgery for a torn pec this February:
    • Been crushin the rehab. Feeling good. I never really had any physical pain, but it took a while to get my mental game right after the injury happened. I’m over that hump now. Just waking up taking it day by day and putting in the work.
  • Cultaholic reports that WWE is in talks to sign Shaheen, a wrestler from the United Arab Emirates whose experience includes training at the NJPW LA Dojo.
  • On Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Lyra Valkyria said she didn’t find out she was winning the Women’s Intercontinental title until the day of the tournament final:
    • I never was a part of that conversation. I just find out on Mondays what I’m doing. I found out the day of. I was never a part of the decision or the conversation. I just showed up to work.
  • Valkyria said being told she would become champion was an amazing feeling, but it didn’t fully set in until the next day:
    • Amazing. I couldn’t believe it. I really couldn’t believe it. But things don’t hit me when I think they’re going to. I always say that it never hits me in the moment. It hit me when I was driving home and taking my bags out of the car on the Tuesday. The title is just sitting in my bag, the zip opens, and I’m like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s the Intercontinental Championship. I won that. I brought that home.’ That’s when it hits me.
  • Entertainment Tonight briefly covered the injury Zoey Stark suffered on Raw.
  • WWE’s Spanish-language X/Twitter account posted a Q&A with Lucha Libre AAA star Psycho Clown.
  • Ivy Nile joined Sheamus on this week’s episode of Celtic Warrior Workouts.

Other Wrestling

  • Mercedes Mone told Undisputed that she’s getting to live her dream through her work in AEW and internationally:
    • I wanted to explore Japanese women’s wrestling and UK women’s wrestling for so long. I’m not dreaming about it anymore – I’m doing it.
    • Before, there were so many times when I was getting four-minute matches – or we’d get to the building and something would change. You’d spend weeks planning for it all to change at the last minute. Now, it’s not changing. I get to go out and do it. It’s mine to claim, it’s mine to carry, it’s mine to do. I get to go out and live my dream.
  • Action Wrestling announced that Tom Lawlor will not be able to compete at Dean~! 2 in Glendale, Arizona this Saturday. Instead, Lawlor will accompany Josh Woods for Woods’ match against JD Drake.
  • The Beast Mortos vs. Slim J has been added to the Dean~! 2 card, along with Gringo Loco & Arez vs. Tank & Jaden Newman.
  • The Lightweights Podcast interviewed Harley Cameron.
  • AEW wished Kota Ibushi a happy 43rd birthday.
  • MLW will air its War Chamber 2025 special on YouTube and beIN Sports at 10 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, June 7. The matches for the show have already been taped. It will feature:
    • War Chamber match: Alex Kane, Mr. Thomas, Matthew Justice & Paul London vs. Rogue Horsemen (Bobby Fish, Brock Anderson, CW Anderson & Brett Ryan Gosselin)
    • MLW Women’s Featherweight Champion Shoko Nakajima defends against Delmi Exo
    • Satoshi Kojima & Okumura vs. Dark Panther & Blue Panther Jr.
    • Lightning match: Myron Reed vs. Ariel Dominguez
    • Appearances by Matt Riddle & Tom Lawlor, Donovan Dijak, Místico, Contra Unit, and more

Apollo Crews suffered torn pec on recent WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Apollo Crews will be on the shelf for a while after suffering an injury on a recent episode of WWE SmackDown.

In an Instagram post today, Crews revealed that he is in Birmingham, Alabama to undergo surgery for a torn pec. The injury happened when Crews faced Johnny Gargano on the January 24 episode of SmackDown. After a spot where Crews got hurt while taking a backcracker, he favored his shoulder for the rest of the match but got the win by rolling up Gargano.

Crews is keeping a positive mindset despite the injury, saying it’s one of those things that is just beyond his control.

“Heading into surgery today,” Crews wrote. “A few weeks ago on SmackDown, I tore my pec—an unfortunate situation. Sometimes, you do everything right, but there are just some things beyond your control. I’m looking forward to the road ahead, attacking it with a positive and unstoppable mindset.”

Crews did not say how much time he expects to miss, but a torn pec could potentially mean several months out of action.

Ivar advances in WWE Speed number one contender’s tournament

Posted on by Ian Carey
The number one contender’s tournament for the WWE Speed Championship kicked off on Wednesday.

Ivar defeated Apollo Crews in the opening round. With the win, he advances to the semifinals and will face the winner of next week’s Tyler Bate vs. Berto (Humberto Carrillo) match to determine the first challenger for inaugural champion Ricochet.

Ivar needed only two minutes of the three-minute time limit, defeating Crews with a moonsault from the top rope.

Ivar also defeated Crews on two other occasions this year, both on episodes of Main Event.

The winner of the number one contenders’ tournament will challenge Ricochet for the WWE Speed Championship. Ricochet became Speed champion by defeating Dragon Lee, JD McDonagh, and Johnny Gargano in a tournament to determine the first title holder.

Speed is part of a two-year deal WWE has with X. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the plan is to produce new content 52 weeks a year to air on the social media platform.

WWE Main Event results: The Creed Brothers vs. Gallus

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio before Monday’s episode of Raw.

The last episode of the show before next week’s draft was run-of-the-mill, but the Creed brothers always seem to find a way to dazzle.

Ivar defeated Apollo Crews (4:50)

They worked hard here and got going in the last few minutes, but it was a turnaround in fortunes for Ivar who had lost to weaker opponents the last two weeks.

Ivar continues to work well as a solo performer while his partner recovers from injury, but Crews feels entirely rudderless at the moment. Despite his ability, with the latest round of cuts to the roster, you do wonder whether some of these guys will stay on much longer.

Early on, Crews showed his incredible strength when he went to scoop slam Ivar and held him for a good few seconds while pretending that his back was giving out. Ivar crashed down on top of him and took control.

After a period where Ivar just slowly beat Crews down, they went on to hit some nice high spots. Crews rolled out of the way of a top rope splash and hit a top rope cross-body for a near fall.

Ivar looked like he had it won with a sit-out powerbomb, but somehow Crews kicked out. They finished by fighting on the top turnbuckle until Ivar hoisted Crews up and came off the second rope with a falling powerslam.

The Creed Brothers defeated Mark Coffey & Wolfgang (w/ Joe Coffey) (7:12)

This was a rematch from the bout these two teams had a few weeks back, but unfortunately, this wasn’t quite as strong as that outing. That said, you can’t help but enjoy Julius Creed, who is just incredibly talented and wildly entertaining.

It’s been nearly two months since we were treated to the Creeds on Main Event and the last time that any of these men appeared here was back on the March 4 edition of the show when they faced off against each other.

They hit all their marks as they did in the previous match, with an early showing of the Creeds’ ability to do everything in stereo: we were treated to stereo hip tosses, kip-ups, and moonsaults before the break. It went sour, though, when Wolfgang blind tagged in and sent Brutus to the outside as we headed to commercial.

After the ads, Gallus had the advantage, and the match was now built around getting Julius the hot tag. He came in to a roar of appreciation and suplexed Coffey and Wolfgang before hitting Northern Lights suplexes to boot. He ended with a standing shooting star press but the pin was broken up by Coffey.

The end was poor because Gallus were obviously slowing everything down and waiting for things to happen and the smoothness was taken out of what had been a really strong match thus far.

Wolfgang was clotheslined over the top and Brutus was sent out with him, but Julius nailed Joe off the apron when he tried to interfere, and then he and Brutus set up and executed the Brutus Bomb for the win.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Giovanni Vinci

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina before Monday’s episode of Raw.

A good episode this week, made better by some funny bits on commentary and a decent match at the top of the show.

Zoey Stark defeated Natalya (4:40)

They gave the win to Stark in this one which didn’t have too much going for it. She and Natalya worked well together and the crowd was into a little by the end, too.

The early going was very much back and forth. You could tell that Howard and James were looking for things to say, with James discussing how you pronounce ‘cravat’ at one point.

And there were more than enough cravats in this one, unfortunately, which is not what the crowd wants to see when Natalya is in the ring.

The crowd got behind her when she hit a snapmare and basement dropkick onto Stark, as she looked like she was tipping the balance in her favor.

As she was looking for the Sharpshooter, Stark kicked Natalya off her and then pulled her down, using the tights, into a roll-up to snatch the win.

After the match, they shook hands and Natalya hugged her, raising her arms with Stark in celebration.

Giovanni Vinci defeated Apollo Crews (5:58)

A debut win on Main Event for Giovanni Vinci here was fun to watch. There was a smoothness to how these two worked together, which is impressive given their size.

Giovanni Vinci looked a million bucks as he came out here to debut. They played up his role in Imperium, but he can certainly work so it would be good to see him in more singles action like this.

Crews had a little streak of wins in recent months on this show but has lost his momentum. The suggestion was that a win here might give him a shot at Gunther, but realistically he’s a long way from that right now in storyline.

Vinci used a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker on Crews as we went to the ads, but afterward Crews managed to grab some separation as he hit a delayed German suplex on Vinci as they both went down.

Crews then went through his moveset, hitting a stinger splash, gorilla press slam, followed by a standing moonsault.

Vinci countered with a fireman’s carry roll into the corner and a second rope moonsault, but Crews kicked out at two and it was clear at this point that Vinci was bleeding from the nose.

When he comically slapped away the offer of a tissue from the ref, he went to the finish, hitting Crews with a brain buster and celebrating with a cheeky smile.

It would be good to see these two go at it again next week, because they were pretty great together.

WWE Main Event results: Ivar vs. Apollo Crews

Posted on by James Cox

This past week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the SAP Center in San Jose, California, before Monday’s Raw — a solid, fun show with some good wrestling and some interesting results.

Ivy Nile defeated Xia Li (6:16)

It was good to see Nile get the win as she is being booked well and the submission finish made sense.

Nile made her Main Event debut here after having worked some other main roster shows over the last few years. She has an MMA background and a low center of gravity, but is clearly really strong and some of her work has a really neat and tidy look about it.

Li took a lot of the going here, using stomps, kicks and strikes. Nile sold well throughout until she got a chance to mount a comeback.

Nile used a couple of suplexes before the pair traded kicks in the middle of the wrong. Nile used one too many, getting caught and pushed into a sloppy-looking Li crossface.

Nile worked her way out easily and then used a spinning kick to knock Li to the mat. She then locked in an unusual finisher: a standing dragon sleeper. Li didn’t spend anytime fighting it off and immediately tapped.

Logically, if it was that easy to get the win, Nile had a ton of opportunities to put this one to bed, but they made her look dangerous as she continues to improve.

Ivar (w/ Valhalla) defeated Apollo Crews (7:19)

There were some impressive spots between two big, strong dudes. Crews hasn’t lost much on this show of late, so it was intriguing to see them give Ivar the honors. This was good stuff that the live crowd really appreciated. Interestingly, too, this was Ivar’s first ever solo win on Main Event.

After Ivar beat Crews up and slowly wore him down, Crews caught him running the ropes with a diving clothesline to finally get him off his feet. Crews did a kip-up to signal to the crowd that this was his chance and they roared in appreciation.

Crews came off the top rope with a high cross but, still selling his ribs, he couldn’t fully hook the leg to enforce the pin. Ivar kicked out at two, but Crews used two consecutive standing moonsaults only to then miss the frog splash when Ivar rolled out of the way.

Impressively, Crews tried to hoist Ivar onto his shoulders and nearly got there, but didn’t quite have the strength.

Plucky ’til the end, when Ivar went up to the top for his finisher, Crews tried to pull him down, but got posted and planted in position for Ivar to finish him off with the top rope moonsault.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Bronson Reed

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Enterprise Center in St Louis, Missouri before Monday’s episode of Raw.

A good-to-fair episode this week with a fun tag bout to open and a battle of two giants to top off the show.

Tegan Nox & Natalya defeated Chelsea Green & Piper Niven (5:32)

This was an entertaining enough tag match to open the show and the crowd thought so too, but the ending felt a little confusing.

Niven and Green cut the ring in half, bullying Natalya in the corner. She gave as good as she got, but quick tags thwarted her attempts to tag in Nox.

Eventually, Nox got the hot tag and ran wild, knocking Niven off the apron and nailing Green with running European uppercuts, a cannon ball and a top rope cross body for two.

Natalya and Nox teamed up on Green, but Niven broke up the pin. Natalya then locked in the sharpshooter on Green but Niven grabbed her hand. When the referee broke the hold, Niven entered the ring and Natalya tried to put her in the submission hold too.

The finish was a bit messy here, but essentially Niven was sent packing and after a few moments, Green finally tapped to the sharpshooter.

It looked like they were expecting another distraction from Niven, but it didn’t happen so they just went home.

Bronson Reed defeated Apollo Crews (6:35)

This was a good hard-hitting match that gave Bronson Reed his third consecutive Main Event win of 2024.

The early going saw Crews take the advantage, leading to a standing moonsault off the apron to the outside. This meant that they took an early break for the ads.

After the commercials, Reed defaulted to some chin locks before using the ropes to nail Reed with a flapjack. He then got greedy and went for a senton but Crews rolled out of the way and they both stayed down.

Crews was up first and used two running clotheslines, an enzuigiri and a top rope high cross to finally get Reed off his feet. After battling, Crews then finally managed to hoist Reed up onto his shoulders, but Reed fought his way out.

Reed then seized the opportunity and knocked Crews down to leave him prone to receive the Tsunami.

The win for Reed made sense as the way they are booking him now makes him look like an absolute giant.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Julius Creed

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Simmons Bank Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas before Monday’s episode of Raw.

The match at the top of show was hands down one of the best matches on Main Event in a while. Julius Creed and Apollo Crews could do this every week and live crowds would certainly be happy.

Dante Chen defeated Tavion Heights (5:50)

This was a straightforward and basic match and both looked fine in only their second appearance on Main Event.

They did some chain wrestling in the early going and then Chen started to attack and work over Heights’ left arm. The slower pace didn’t do much to rouse the crowd at this point and so they traded a few pinfalls.

Heights made a comeback, using the turnbuckles and then a belly-to-belly and a what I guess you would say was a sling blade. It was quite reminiscent of Finn Balor. He then used a running powerslam for a near fall which got the crowd more invested.

Chen seemed to be summoning energy with his hands – looking a little like Asuka – before using a double chop/clothesline to get the win.

It’s a pretty weak-looking finisher and didn’t really play into the work he’d done on Heights’ arm. I’m also not sure about the facepaint, but that could just be me.

Julius Creed (w/ Brutus Creed) defeated Apollo Crews (6:13)

This was a strong match to top the show. Crews’ winning streak since retuning from his injury came to an end, so good for Julius Creed who looks really impressive. Worth catching this one if you can.

The first couple of minutes were quite explosive. For big men, neither really moves or carries themselves like one. 

After sending Crews to the apron, Creed hit him with a beautiful moonsault and we went to the break.

After the ads, Crews had Creed in a side headlock and Brutus was beating the mat from the outside to encourage his brother. Creed not only worked his way out, but did so by hoisting Crews into a suplex from his knees, standing up as he hit the move. That’s really not something you see every day.

The finish was excellent. They did a superplex, which the crowd absolutely loved, and after getting to their feet, Creed picked Crews up from a roll up pin into a power bomb. When Crews then slid out of it, Creed sat down and hooked his legs to get the win.

The strength on display here was, at times, next level impressive. Creed is a serious talent.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Javier Bernal

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the MVP Arena in Albany, New York before Monday’s episode of Raw.

Two simple matches this week, but again Main Event delivered fresh talent to make it a more interesting show.

Gigi Dolin defeated Elektra Lopez (4:58)

This was a very straightforward affair from two pretty new faces. They worked hard and Dolin got the win in her debut.

While this was Dolin’s Main Event debut, it was Lopez’s second appearance and second loss. She worked the show back in March in a losing effort against the now-former WWE employee, Dana Brooke.

There was some nice banter between Saxton and Barrett on commentary, referring back to their FCW days, which brought some color to this one. It felt as though they piped in a ‘let’s go Gigi’ chant, but it could have been legitimate.

Both had their moments, with Dolin’s coming from a basement dropkick where they slowed down the hang time she got before she landed it. Lopez was more the slow, methodical heel, but certainly had the look of a main roster talent here.

In the end, they exchanged near falls, but Dolin was plucky enough to hit Lopez with a kick to the head so that she could use her Gigi Driver for the win. It looked a little sloppy but it’s a creative-looking finisher.

Apollo Crews defeated Javier Bernal (7:41)

This was a good match in the end, after a slow start. The crowd liked the near falls at the end, but it was another week and another win for Crews who continues his dominant run against NXT talent on Main Event.

Like Gigi Dolin, Bernal made his debut here, but it wasn’t his first taste of main roster action. He appeared on Raw back in May in a tag team squash at the hands of Sanga and Veer. Singles action allowed Bernal a way better platform to show what he could do.

Bernal has an interesting look. On the one hand, his jacket is kind of reminiscent of Shawn Michaels in the early 90s, after he went solo. But he also has the mannerisms of Edge as well. This isn’t to say he works like either of those two gentlemen, but the influence is clear to see.

Crews looked none too impressed with Bernal, but once they started to work together there was a slickness in what they did. After an early back and forth, Bernal knocked Crews off the apron and we went to an early commercial break.

After the ads, Bernal was in control and locked in a head scissors. A better rest hold than usual chin lock, but still a pet peeve for these short matches.

The highlight of the match was when Crews looked like he was going home, having hit the standing moonsault he went up top, rolled through and got nailed by an elbow. Bernal went for a cross body and got caught, so reversed it into a tornado DDT. The crowd thought it could have been the finish, but Crews kicked out.

Crews then got the win with a head kick and a top rope splash to keep his streak going.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Riley Osborne

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee before Monday’s episode of Raw.

Another week and another set of NXT stars appeared on Main Event and it produced some entertaining matches for a very expectant pre-Raw crowd.

Duke Hudson defeated Charlie Dempsey (6:37)

This was a fun opener with a solid debut performance from Hudson against an always-entertaining Charlie Dempsey.

While this was Dempsey’s third all-time Main Event appearance, NXT’s Duke Hudson made his first appearance on the show in over a year and did so with a nice win to boot.

Dempsey is probably an acquired taste, but he’s certainly mine. His methodical style and attention to detail are fun to watch especially when he is paired with the right opponent. His Main Event record dropped to 0-3 here with the loss, but in all three matches, has come out looking good.

Dempsey does double underhook suplexes beautifully, but you also have to admire how he can do the intricate work as well as the flashy stuff. He did a neat kip-up in the early going.

It was very much a 50-50 match all the way through. They worked at quite a pace too, never really slowing down, apart from a front-face lock part-way through and the near falls at the end.

In the end, Dempsey sent Hudson to the outside but he used a springboard off the apron into the ring so that he landed behind Dempsey. From here, he used a German suplex to get the win.

Apollo Crews defeated Riley Osborne (6:16)

This was decent, with Crews continuing his winning streak on Main Event. Osborne was able to show flashes of what he can do.

As Crews continued to come back from the injury that took him out of action over the summer, they fed him some cannon fodder in the form of debuting Riley Osborne here. That’s not to say that this was a squash, but it did allow Osborne to flip around all over to make Crews look like a strong force.

The comparisons between Osborne and Evan Bourne during his run in WWE will probably be made if he gets more main roster appearances and that’s certainly no bad thing. He worked hard here and took some pretty nasty bumps for Crews.

Crews dominated Osborne here, including a really disrespectful-looking move where he launched Osborne up for a delayed suplex, but instead of landing on the mat together, he just threw him off and remained standing. The bump Osborne took looked like it really sucked.

When Osborne did manage to get some offense in, he used a tremendous standing corkscrew splash, which frankly puts Crews’ standing moonsault to shame. He even did a top rope shooting star press that he landed on his feet when Crews got out of the way.

Ultimately, Crews nailed him with a big boot and used his frog splash off the top rope for the win. It seems strange that WWE hasn’t given it a wacky name yet because it’s generally his finisher these days. But this was a fun match and Osborne certainly didn’t look out of place.

WWE Main Event results: Joe Coffey vs. Von Wagner

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan before Monday’s episode of Raw.

A solid episode of the show this week, with even more new faces as the show continues to promote NXT talent, allowing them to perform in front of pre-Raw crowds.

Apollo Crews defeated Myles Borne (5:13)

This was fine. Crews is starting to gain some momentum following his injury earlier this year against a debuting Myles Borne.

Borne made his Main Event debut in what was his first-ever appearance on a main roster WWE show. And for a guy who hasn’t had a ton of matches in his career to date, he did well.

The comparisons to Randy Orton have been with Borne since he joined the company and he did nothing to dispel that, showing an attitude here and also using a quick scoop slam a la Orton at one point.

Crews took the early going, dominating and slowing the pace of the match down. It was only when Borne thumbed his eye that the tide turned.

After some basic offense, Crews fired up with his usual splashes to the corner and the standing moonsault. Borne dodged a second splash and used a neckbreaker (not an RKO) for a near fall.

In the end, Crews hit Borne with an enzuigiri to line him up for a frog splash off the top rope and get his hand raised in back-to-back wins on Main Event.

Joe Coffey defeated Von Wagner (6:59)

This was a slow and steady bout that got going towards the end as Coffey got a surprising victory in his debut.

While Von Wagner has had a few sporadic appearances on Main Event over the last three years, this was Joe Coffey’s first outing on the show and so felt good for him to get a win. Wagner, however, goes to 0-6 with this loss.

Before the break, Wagner was in control and after the commercials, Coffey was working a comeback. He secured a submission and the match slowed right down after quite an explosive start.

Wagner worked his way out and culminated in a double underhook suplex for a two-count. Coffey blocked Wagner’s chokeslam attempt and then they went to the finish.

After Wagner had Coffey on his shoulder looking to finish him, Coffey raked his eyes and used his discuss lariat to get the win.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Tavion Heights

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC before Monday’s episode of Raw.

Despite some fresh faces, the work in the ring never really dazzled and so the show was a bit of a damp squib.

Katana Chance defeated Tatum Paxley (4:48)

This was quite a tepid offering from the pair, that didn’t get going, but Chance is a good babyface with a lot of crowd-pulling potential.

Tatum Paxley is an NXT Level Up performer who has been in and around the show since the summer of last year. While she and Chance have worked together before, they haven’t done a singles match.

They laid out a basic match with Paxley taking advantage early of a slip-up so that she could work over Chance’s left arm.

After a few near falls, Paxley had a slip-up of her own where she walked into Chance’s boot. And that was pretty much it.

Chance hit a Sister Abigail-type flatliner move and got her hand raised to keep her Main Event record at 4-1, for those keeping score.

Apollo Crews defeated Tavion Heights (7:36)

A better bout than the opener, but Crews is still coming back from injury and Heights is still pretty green.

Heights made his Main Event debut here and certainly has a good look. His name, however, is pretty lame. He’s an Olympic wrestler so I would say his real name G’angelo Hancock is a lot cooler, but what do I know?

Crews is certainly a good person to debut against because he’s a guy who doesn’t get involved in too many bad matches and who knows his way around the ring.

As you might expect, there was a lot of mat work in the early going. After some grappling, Heights gave Crews a big boot to send him outside and we went to the break.

After the ads, Heights was getting some serious heat. People were booing him as he locked in a rest hold and stomped and beat down Crews. Heights dodged a charge and used a scoop slam for a near fall.

The finish was very ordinary: Crews used a boot to plant Heights and then he hit a top rope frog splash to get the win.