It’s Wrestling Observer Live Saturday with Jim Valley.
It finally happened, Santos Escobar turned on Rey Mysterio. Can you still get heat if everyone turns on Rey Mysterio? Not to be outdone, Asuka then turned on Bianca Belair and Charlotte and joined Damage CTRL. What does this mean for Survivor Series?
We also have Shingo Takagi channeling Stan Hansen at New Japan Lonestar Shootout, Rampage, Collision, and thoughts on being live at AEW Dynamite and Ring of Honor in Portland including Mark Briscoe, The Gunns and more. It’s another packed show, check it out!
WWE has announced two new additions to the lineup for Monday’s episode of Raw.
On Saturday morning, Raw general manager Adam Pearce revealed that Xia Li vs. Indi Hartwell and Tommaso Ciampa vs. Ludwig Kaiser are both set for this Monday (November 13). The episode is taking place from Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
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BREAKING: Iâve just finalized two big attractions for #WWERaw this Monday.
Li is currently feuding with Becky Lynch. On Raw last Monday, Li attacked Lynch before a Women’s World Championship number one contender’s battle royal. Lynch wasn’t able to compete following the attack. Pearce wouldn’t allow Li to participate in the battle royal after what she did to Lynch.
Li then showed up on Tuesday’s NXT and confronted NXT Women’s Champion Lyra Valkyria. Li said she plans to take the NXT Women’s title from Valkyria.
Ciampa & Johnny Gargano defeated Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci on the October 30 episode of Raw. Interference by Kaiser then caused Ciampa & Gargano to lose a match against The Creed Brothers last Monday.
The updated card for Monday’s Raw is listed below:
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Finn Balor & Damian Priest defend against Cody Rhodes & Jey Uso
Betrayals were the theme of WWE’s post-Crown Jewel edition of SmackDown.
Asuka and Santos Escobar both turned heel on last night’s show. Asuka aligned herself with Damage CTRL, turning against Bianca Belair & Charlotte Flair during a six-woman tag team match. Escobar betrayed Rey Mysterio following dissension within The LWO.
At least for the moment, Damage CTRL remained on the same page last night with Kairi Sane now part of their ranks. Sane said she respects Bayley as the leader of Damage CTRL and forgives Bayley for the attack that sent Sane out of WWE in 2020. Sane, IYO SKY & Bayley then teamed up against Belair, Charlotte & Asuka in last night’s main event.
The match ended in a no contest when Asuka turned against her partners. Asuka pulled her hand away when Belair was reaching for a tag. She then spit mist into Belair’s face. Asuka reunited with Sane before SKY and Bayley also joined in with them. They beat down Charlotte and then did the same to Shotzi when she tried to make the save.
Asuka, Sane, SKY, Bayley & Dakota Kai stood united to close last night’s show. While not yet officially announced, it looks like Asuka, Sane, SKY & Bayley will be teaming up in WarGames at Survivor Series against a team that will include Belair, Charlotte & Shotzi.
Escobar’s turn happened after Carlito blamed him for Mysterio losing the United States title to Logan Paul at Crown Jewel. After that, Escobar refused to save Carlito from being laid out by Bobby Lashley and The Street Profits.
That led to an argument between Mysterio and Escobar. Escobar then attacked Mysterio from behind.
“I love you. You were my hero. You made me do this,” Escobar said to Mysterio. “It was supposed to be me and you. All the way. Me and you. For life. You did this.”
When asked why he attacked Mysterio, Escobar said that Mysterio had it coming.
Asuka ended SmackDown by aligning herself with Damage CTRL.
Fridayâs show saw Asuka refuse to tag in towards the end of a match pitting her, Bianca Belair, and Charlotte Flair against Kairi Sane, Bayley, and IYO SKY. Asuka misted Belair and began attacking her and Charlotte Flair, with the rest of Damage CTRL joining in. Shotzi came out for the save but was also taken out. The show ended with the four, as well as Dakota Kai, raising each otherâs hands.
Earlier in the show, Bayley addressed Kairi Sane with SKY, who came to the ring with Kai and Sane. Kai explained to Bayley that she and SKY brought in Sane to ease the workload for Bayley. Sane said that she forgave Bayley for attacking her back in 2020, taking her out of WWE in storyline. The three, along with Kai, ended up hugging.
At Crown Jewel last Saturday, SKY was wrestling Biana Belair when Sane interfered on her behalf, eventually allowing SKY to retain the WWE Women’s title. Bayley seemed surprised that Sane and IYO had joined forces.
A loaded-up edition of WWE NXT takes place tonight.
With the show going head-to-head against AEW Dynamite Title Tuesday, WWE has announced a stacked card for tonight’s NXT. It includes appearances by John Cena, Paul Heyman, Cody Rhodes, and Asuka. It’s also been teased that The Undertaker will be showing up tonight.
Cena and Heyman will be in opposite corners for a match between Carmelo Hayes and Bron Breakker. Cena will be in Hayes’ corner, while Breakker will have Heyman by his side.
Rhodes is set to make a “special announcement” when he appears tonight.
Asuka will be in action on the show, taking on Roxanne Perez. It’s Asuka’s first NXT match in four years.
Butch, Ridge Holland & Tyler Bate vs. Gallus in a Pub Rules match has also been announced.
The first 30 minutes of tonight’s show is airing commercial-free. Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
Opening the show is the entrance of Cody Rhodes. Wearing a suit and tie, Rhodes enters the soundstage at the Performance Center in Orlando. The live studio audience sings along to his theme song.
Rhodes began his monologue by addressing the audience, doing his line where he asks what we want to talk about. He goes on to say he never thought he would be in a NXT ring, but here he is.
Cody moves on to his announcement, or rather announcements — plural. Rhodes talks about tournaments in NXT, which leads to him referring to the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. The studio audience chants “DUSTY” at Cody, just before Cody announces the Dusty Classic is coming back.
Rhodes has one other announcement. Shawn Michaels made Rhodes the guest general manager. Vic Joseph on commentary says Rhodes now has “the pencil,” which is an insider term for being the booker.
Out comes NXT Champion Ilja Dragunov to join Cody in the ring. Dragunov apologizes for interrupting Rhodes, but Dragunov wanted to welcome Rhodes to NXT. Dragunov puts over Rhodes, and Dragunov basically says he wants to be like Rhodes.
Interrupting them is WWE Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley and NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio. Dom cuts a promo putting himself over while he is heavily booed by the studio audience. Dom insults Dragunov, and Mysterio says he is “the one true” champion. Mysterio then insults Cody. Bad idea to insult the booker.
Dragunov responds by saying his father worked in prison, so he knows how to “turn a barking dog into a sweet little puppy.” Rhodes whispers something in Dragunov’s ear, just before Dom challenges Dragunov to a NXT title match tonight.
Rhodes says what he is hearing is Dom does not want to put his own title on the line. That comment led to Ripley interjecting to say Dom has carried WWE on his back for the past year. Dragunov cut off Ripley, and Dragunov accepts the challenge to a NXT Championship match. Rhodes make it official, and the match is set for later on.
But Rhodes is not done yet, as he also has one last impromptu announcement. Rhodes adds LA Knight as the guest referee tonight in the NXT title match, to counteract Judgment Day.
Kelly Kincaid is backstage as a roving reporter. She reports those in the NXT women’s locker room have all gathered around the monitor to watch the next match.
Shotzi Blackheart joins Booker T and Vic Joseph at the announce desk for guest commentary on the next bout. Blackheart announces she is set to return as the host for Halloween Havoc, and Scarlett is also joining Blackheart as a co-host.
Asuka defeated Roxanne Perez
Asuke pinned Perez in a good TV match. Perez got to shine at times. She was going for a cradle when Asuka trapped her in the Asuka Lock. Perez rises to her feet, and she escapes the submission hold. However, Perez is hit with some kicks. Asuks measure for one final kick, and that drops Perez. Asuka then covered Perez for a pinfall.
In a show of respect, Asuka bows to Perez before leaving the ring. Perez is then jumped by Kiana James in a sneak attack from behind. Blackheart leaves the announce desk to make the save. Blackheart sends James packing, and Blackheart checks on Perez.
Butch, Tyler Bate & Ridge Holland defeated Gallus (Mark Coffey, Wolfgang & Joe Coffey) in a “Pub Rules” six-man tag team match
Bate pinned Joe Coffey, after Coffey took a Shield powerbomb through a table. Wild brawling throughout with plenty of weapons. The babyface team wrestled in their usual ring gear, while Gallus dressed in jeans and t-shirts like this was a bunkhouse match. Gallus also taped their fists.
This was basically what used to be called a “hardcore match,” where weapons are littered around the ring for no good reason other than to be used in combat.
For the “pub” part, there was a table set up on whiskey barrels like a bar. Gallus all three lift Butch and put him through the table, just before the show cuts to its first commercial break.
They fight through a split-screen break, and the show returns to full screen with a standoff. That led into a slugfest. The babyface trio all do the Sheamus forearm spot to Gallus. Less weapons are used when the show returns from the break.
Wolfgang goes for a flip dive over the ropes, and he hits his back hard on the apron. The babyface trio did a triple submission spot. Moments later, Butch accidentally hit Bate with a kick. Wolgang then powerslams Butch, and Mark Coffey piles on top of Wolfgang as they both cover Butch. In flew Bate with a swanton to break up the pin.
Another table is set up in the ring by the babyfaces, but the heels would seemingly be the first to put someone through it. Joe Coffey puts Butch on the table, and Coffey leaves the ring to retrieve a mug of beer. Coffey gets back into the ring with the beer, and he is standing over Butch when Bate makes a save. Bate takes the mug away from Coffey, and Bate hits Coffey with the mug. Glass shatters, and Butch snaps one of Coffey’s fingers. The babyface trio then do the Shield powerbomb, as they put Coffey through a table. Bate then covers Coffey for a three count.
A video package hypes Becky Lynch defending her NXT Women’s Championship against Lyra Valkyria at Halloween Havoc.
McKenzie Mitchell is interviewing Valkyria backstage when they are interrupted by Tegan Nox. God forbid anyone finish an interview or monologue on NXT. Nox wants another title shot at Valkyria, and Nox says Valkyria’s title shot can wait. Valkyria cuts a promo on Nox, basically punking her out.
Jone Cena enters the soundstage like the superstar he is, and it is very surreal to see Cena on an episode of NXT. Of course, his promo is interrupted by someone, but Cena gets a monologue before Bron Breakker interrupts.
Cena puts over being in NXT, and he puts over NXT, along with putting over the NXT crowd. The studio audience thanks him with a chant, and someone in the crowd also did a dueling chant of “Cena sucks” when the rest of the audience chanted “thank you Cena!”
Cena begins talking about being in Carmelo Hayes’ corner later tonight, and out comes Breakker to interrupt the monologue. The studio audience chant at Breakker, telling him he sucks. Breakker is apparently delusional, as he says the crowd is there to see him, not Cena.
Breakker is cutting a promo on Cena, as the studio audience chants “bulls**t” at Breakker. That is bleeped out on USA Network.
Cena takes the high road, wishing Breakker luck in his match tonight. Cena extends his arm for a handshake. Breakker looks down at Cena’s hand, and Breakker looks back up just before attacking Cena.
Breakker is drops Cena with punches, and Breakker measures for a spear. Cena avoids the spear, and he lifts Breakker in a fireman’s carry. Breakker escapes and hightails it out of the ring.
NXT Tag Team Champions Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo meet up with Cody Rhodes in a backstage skit. The Family pitches an idea to Cody for a 10-team battle royal. The final two teams remaining in the battle royal would then have a tag match. The overall winners would go on to face The Family at Halloween Havoc in a tag title match. Rhodes likes the idea, and he books the battle royal for next week. Rhodes also gives it a name — the “Bada Bing Bada Boom Battle Royal.”
Baron Corbin, in a backstage interview, cuts a promo about the NXT title match later tonight. Thankfully, the theme song for LA Knight interrupts Corbin, and he stops talking. LA Knight then enters the soundstage.
NXT Champion Ilja Dragunov defeated NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio (with Rhea Ripley) to retain the NXT Championship, with LA Knight as guest referee
Dragunov pinned Mysterio to retain the NXT title. Knight pretty much called it down the middle, until he got involved by thwarting interference by Judgment Day. Baron Corbin and Dijak would also get involved in a post-match angle.
When Dom got in trouble, Ripley jumps on the apron to distract Knight. That allowed Dom to cut off Dragunov with a thumb in the eye. Dragunov is down selling as the show cuts to a commercial break.
Dragunov makes a comeback when the show returns from the split-screen break. Meanwhile, the studio audience chants “YEAH” in reference to Knight. Dragunov takes a hard chop from Dom, and that awakens a beast. Dragunov chops down Dom.
Dragunov dodges a 619, but takes the move on a second attempt by Dom for a near fall. Dragunov fires up again, leading to a superplex. Dom rolled out to apron as Dragunov teased doing one of his finishers. Dom gives Dragunov a DDT on the apron, but Dragunov fights back yet again. Dragunov powerbombs Dom, and Dragunov follows up with the H-Bomb finisher.
Dragunov is going to deliver his other finisher when Finn Balor and Damian Priest run in. Instead of calling for a DQ, LA Knight fights off Judgment Day. Ripley goes to hit Dragunov with a belt shot, but Dragunov ducks. Trick Williams runs down to grab Ripley off the apron. Meanwhile, Dragunov levels Dom with Torpedo Moskau. Dragunov then scores the deciding pinfall.
Corbin comes out to confront Dragunov. Before Corbin can get in the ring, Dijak jumps Dragunov and hits the champ with a sneak attack. Dijak leaves Dragunov lying in the ring, and Dijak then confronts Corbin. Dijak apparently believes his is the next challenger because he attacked first. Not sure that is how that works, but whatever.
John Cena is in the locker room talking with Carmelo Hayes. In walks Trick Williams, and he introduces himself to Cena. Hayes tries to apologize to Williams, and they do some comedy with Cena. Willaims does not look happy as Hayes leaves. Cena asks Williams if he is good, and Williams asks Cena when he knew it what his time. Cena then takes Williams under his wing to talk.
Paul Heyman is seen talking with Ava.
Arriving to the building in a white SUV is Jade Cargill. She exits the vehicle, and she is greeted by Shawn Michaels, and they enter the building.
Baron Corbin confronts Cody Rhodes, and Corbin wants Rhodes to book a Corbin against Dragunov in a title match at Halloween Havoc. Rhodes instead books a number one contender’s triple threat match for next week with Corbin against Dijak and the winner of Hayes-Breakker later on.
Lola Vice (with Elektra Lopez) defeated Dani Palmer in a first round match in the NXT Women’s Breakout Tournament
Vice pinned Palmer to advance in the tournament. Palmer had countered a triangle to have Vice in a pinning combination. Vice kicked out and then booted Palmer with a kick. A three count followed, and Vice is moving on in the tournament.
Thea Hail rejoins the class at Chase U, but Hail is joined by Jacy Jayne. Hail and Jayne interrupt the lecture by talking among themselves. Andre Chase flips out on the students and Jayne. She in turn announces that Chase and Duke Hudson will be part of the 10-team battle royal. This skit seemed like a way to get all of these people on an already loaded show.
Paul Heyman is hyping up Bron Breakker with a pep talk that only Heyman can do. As a pumped up Breakker leaves, Heyman commands his cellphone to call Roman Reigns.
Lexis King (Briam Pillman Jr.) is the focus of another vignette. King is watching old wrestling clips, which includes a bunch of Brian Pillman highlights. King heels on his father, and King talks about being unable to escape the business that inflicted so much pain on him. He will now inflict pain on it. King also says he is nobody’s “junior,” and King says he will take the name of the man that actually raised him. Thus the name change to Lexis King.
Carmelo Hayes (with John Cena) defeated Bron Breakker (with Paul Heyman)
Hayes pinned Breakker, after Cena thwarted interference from a run-in by Solo Sikoa. Undertaker returns as his “American Badass” character, complete with motorcycle, in a post-match angle.
Heyman does the ring introduction for Breakker as only Heyamn can. Hayman dubs him “Bad Ass” Bron Breakker. That would play into to the closing angle after the match.
Hayes was a house of fire at the start. Breakker was reeling as the show cuts to a commercial break. Back-and-forth after the break as they trade near falls.
They go for a high spot off the top rope, maybe a Frakensteiner, but they botch it. They try to sell it like a modified facebuster. More near falls after other high spots.
The fight spilled outside the ring, and Breakker picks up the a section of the ring steps. Cena takes the steps from Breakker, and Cena boots him in the gut. Solo Sikos runs in, and Cena smacks him with the section of steps. Cena and Sikoa brawl their way up the ramp to the backstage area.
Hayes gives Breakker a codebreaker on the floor, and Hayes goes to follow up by climbing the turnbuckles. Hayes leaps off with Nothing But Net, and Hayes covers Breakker for a pinfall.
Breakker gets his heat back after the match by spearing Hayes. Breakker stands over Hayes and proclaims their is only one “bad ass” in NXT (which plays off the Heyman intro from earlier). When Breakker utters those words, a gong sounds and the lights flicker. A motorcycle is heard cranking up, and “American Badass” by Kid Rock plays inside the soundstage.
Undertaker rides out on a chopper. The “American Badass” is back on his motorcycle. Undertaker gets face-to-face with Breakker in the ring. Breakker calls him an “old timer,” before also telling ‘Taker there is only one bad ass here. The studio audience chants at Breakker, cautioning Breakker that he “f’ed up” with that.
Undertaker gets on a house microphone to tell Breakker he will be a special talent one day … but that “ain’t today.” With that, ‘Taker dropped Breakker with a right hand. Breakker then takes a chokeslam, and Undertaker stands over a prone Breakker. The studio audience chants “holy s**t,” and then they explode into an Undertaker chant.
‘Taker gives Breakker a piece of advice. There is a always a bigger, badder bad ass waiting around the corner. Breakker just met the baddest of them all. Undertaker stands tall as the show goes off the air. What year is it?
Not sure I have ever seen any promotion hot shot a territory like WWE did with NXT tonight. It made for a fun show, but the legends and the main roster stars mostly overshadowed the NXT roster.
NXT next week will feature appearances from some of WWEâs biggest main roster stars.
Bron Breakker will face Carmelo Hayes next week. On Tuesday’s show, Hayes revealed that he had gotten a phone call from John Cena during Tuesdayâs show and announced that Cena would be cornering him for the match next week. The show ended with Paul Heyman appearing, not happy that Hayes has been getting advice from Cena. He declared that he would be in Breakkerâs corner next week.
It was also confirmed on Tuesdayâs show that Cody Rhodes will be making an appearance, with announcers saying he will have a “major announcement”.
Asuka will face Roxanne Perez thanks to a call from Kiana James, who pulled Perez out of the ring on Tuesdayâs show, costing her a three-way match that could have earned Perez a future title match. James later revealed in a backstage interview that she cost Perez the match because she did not want Perez to win any more championships. She then announced that if Perez could defeat Asuka next week, Perez would get a match against her.
Next weekâs NXT is set to go head-to-head with AEW Dynamite, which will be moved to Tuesday due to MLB coverage.
Here is everything announced for next weekâs NXT:
Carmelo Hayes (with John Cena) vs. Bron Breakker (with Paul Heyman)
Asuka will get her WWE Women’s Championship rematch when she goes one-on-one with IYO SKY on tonight’s SmackDown from Glendale, Arizona.
The match was made after Asuka interfered in a tag team bout that featured SKY & Bayley losing to Charlotte Flair and Shotzi on the September 8 edition of SmackDown. Asuka cost the Damage CTRL team the win when she appeared at ringside.
Also set for tonight, John Cena will make an appearance after he was a guest on The Grayson Waller Effect last week. Cena didn’t get a word in during the interview and instead was involved in a confrontation that featured AJ Styles, Jimmy Uso, and Solo Sikoa.
In addition to that, The Street Profits are scheduled to take on the LWO’s Rey Mysterio & Santos Escobar. The Street Profits beat LWO’s Cruz Del Toro & Joaquin Wilde last week before attacking them after the match.
Our live coverage starts at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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– Kevin Patrick welcomed viewers into the show. John Cena’s music hit and off, we went.
The John Cena segment
Before saying anything, Cena played to the crowd, who went bonkers for him. Cena welcomed everyone to “another sold out Friday night SmackDown.” Cena said he’s been able to do a lot of things since he’s been back. He said he’s been a host, a referee, a backstage correspondent. The crowd gave him the “What?” treatment and Cena gave it back in his own way. Cena said since he’s been back, the shows have been sold out, but they haven’t been like this night. Cena said it’s a special night because he doesn’t want to be a ref, host or backstage correspondent. Instead, Cena said he came back to WWE to compete, and because of that, tonight is the night he wants to have a match.
Cena said he’s both excited and angry – angry at the Bloodline. Cena said he wants to fight both Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso himself, but instead, he found a partner. That partner, he said, was phenomenal. Cue AJ Styles’s music and entrance. Styles looked like he was wearing a wig at first, which was both weird and funny, but it only took him a few head shakes to remedy that. Styles took the mic from Cena and the crowd chanted Styles’s name. Styles asked Cena if Cena was sure that he wanted Styles and Cena to team up. Style said, “Bloodline, if you want some, come get some.”
Jimmy Uso’s music hit. Jimmy and Sikoa walked to the ring and hopped onto the apron. Jimmy jawed a little bit, smiled and hopped off the apron. Sikoa followed suit. Jimmy and Sikoa walked back up the entrance way to end the segment – and I remained baffled as to why WWE wouldn’t officially announce a match like that ahead of time, if that match is ultimately going to happen.
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– Backstage, Adam Pearce was shown talking to Cena and Styles. Pearce said he was going to talk to Paul Heyman to see if they could make the tag match for later.
The LWO (Rey Mysterio Jr. & Santos Escobar) defeated The Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) [10:47]
The story here was that Dawkins hesitated to capitalize on Lashley’s interference and that caused some strife between the Profits and Lashley. It’d be a shame if WWE pulled the plug on those three before it even really has a chance to get going. The crowds are still cheering the Profits, so perhaps the creative minds are calling an audible on the Profits being heels because of their popularity … but damn, man. At least let it breathe. Anyway, the match was fine and the outcome was mildly surprising. I half-expected to see the LWO lose due to miscommunication between Escobar and Mysterio as a means to set up their U.S. title match next week, but so it goes. The four guys worked hard and it was refreshing to see Escobar get somewhat of a spotlight. Ford especially had a good outing reminding everyone that at least he can work an interesting heel style. But the post-match stuff may indicate that he won’t be doing that for long.
Dawkins and Escobar started the match and locked up. After going back and forth, Escobar landed a dropkick to take control. Mysterio tagged in and Dawkins gained control quickly. Ford tagged in and hit a dropkick for a two-count. After running the ropes, Mysterio landed a splash from the second rope. With Ford on the outside, Mysterio went for a slide splash, but Dawkins moved Ford and Mysterio landed on nobody. Escobar tried to came to help, but Dawkins slammed Escobar and the show went to a commercial break.
Back from break, Ford hit a strong clothesline on Mysterio for a two-count. With Mysterio in the Profits’ corner, Rey fought his way out, but came up short on a hot tag. Eventually, Mysterio ran Ford into the second turnbuckle and then got the hot tag to Escobar, who came in and and landed a pair of flying forearms. Escobar went to the top and hit a cross-body block for a two-count. There was a clunky moment that resulted in Ford kicking Escobar and hitting a running frog splash. Ford went to the top, but Escobar cut him off and landed a Frankensteiner from the top rope. That got Escobar a two-count.
Escobar hit a double-knees on Ford and lifted Ford, but Ford fought out and landed a knee to Escobar’s head. Dawkins tagged in and slammed Escobar, and that was good enough for a two-count. Escobar hit a knee on Dawkins and tagged in Mysterio, who immediately landed a tornado DDT. Mysterio set up for a 619, but Dawkins countered with a Sky High powerbomb. Dawkins body-dropped Mysterio over the top rope and Mysterio landed on Ford. Bobby Lashley then chokeslammed Mysterio as the referee was distracted. Dawkins lifed Mysterio for a powerbomb, but Mysterio rolled Dawkins up for the pin. After the match, Lashley left ringside without the Profits.
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– A video aried on The Rock’s return last week. Michael Cole was yelling about “Smeeeellllllling what The Rock is cooking,” but he was interrupted by an angry Austin Theory, who threw a fit and had somewhat of an awkward exchange with the commentary team off mic. The show then went to a commercial break.
– Backstage, Adam Pearce was shown scolding Austin Theory. The Brawling Brutes showed up and Ridge Holland said Theory was embarrassed by The Rock. Grayson Waller showed up and Butch chimed in, challenging Theory and Waller. Pearce made the match for later on the spot.
– The Street Profits were shown backstage. Bobby Lashley yelled at Dawkins and said he wants all his stuff back – the watches, suits, etc. Lashley said he’s going to find someone back in catering if the Profits can’t get it done, and, well, the Profits didn’t get it done. A video on Asuka vs. IYO SKY then aired.
– Backstage, Adam Pearce found Paul Heyman. Pearce tried to talk to Heyman, but Heyman was talking on his phone and we went back to the ring.
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IYO SKY defeated Asuka [19:30]
Wow, these women worked their asses off. It wasn’t always pretty, but good on WWE for giving these wrestlers three segments and 20 minutes and good on SKY and Asuka for delivering quite a fight. I feared a screwy finish, and we kind of/sort of got that, but to be fair that came after almost 20 minutes of really good wrestling. There were times I thought both women genuinely had their bells rung, and there were moments that I was certain they were three seconds away from the end of the match, but Asuka and SKY clearly work so well together, I’d love to see this with no BS from the outside, and hell … take it to a half-hour. Some of those strikes were gnarly and by the time it was all said and done, it felt like both ladies left every tiny inch of everything they had in the ring. It’s not often SmackDown produces a match that it feels like everyone should see, but I’ll vote for this one, even with the commercial breaks. Great stuff.
Before the bell rang, Charlotte Flair’s music hit and Charlotte walked to ringside. The two locked up to begin and they traded a series of moves until Asuka worked a side head-lock. SKY returned the favor. SKY ran the ropes and cartwheeled her way past Asuka. Asuka hit some kicks, and ultimately landed a pair of arm-drags. Asuka went to the second rope and SKY followed her to land an arm-drag from the second rope. Asuka went to the outside and SKY went for a moonsault, but Asuka moved. Asuka then hit a high kick to SKY’s head and the show went to commercial break.
Back from break, the two women were on the top rope and SKY stretched Asuka’s arm over the top rope. SKY then hit a pair of springboard shotgun dropkicks. SKY hit a double stomp and a double knees for a two-count. SKY went to the top, but Asuka cut her off and slammed her on the top turnbuckle. SKY came right back and slapped the hell out of Asuka. Asuka came right back and hit some Kowada Kicks. Asuka then landed a super-plex, which led to a good near-fall.
SKY fired up, but ultimately ran into a knee, which got Asuka a two-count. SKY came back with a throat chop, which was good enough for another two-count. SKY hit a German Suplex, but Asuka countered into a modified Kimura. SKY fought her way out of it and landed a kick to Asuka’s head. Asuka kicked SKY and went to the top to hit her own missile dropkick. Asuka followed that up with a hip attack and a series of back-fists and kicks. Asuka landed a sliding kick for another good near-fall.
Asuka sunk in an arm-bar and eventually got up to climb the ropes. Asuka was on the second rope, but SKY cut her off and landed a dropkick, which took Asuka to the outside. With Asuka on the apron, SKY went for something, but Asuka held on … until she didn’t. Asuka then kicked the ring post after SKY moved. SKY then hit a moonsault onto Asuka, who was still outside the ring. The show went to another commercial break.
Back from that commercial break, SKY was working a rear chin-lock inside the ring. SKY hit another German Suplex for another good near-fall. SKY went for a cross-face, but Asuka went for the bottom rope. Before long, Asuka rolled into an Asuka Lock. SKY countered with a pin attempt, which broke up the submission attempt. Asuka came back and kicked SKY in the head, which got Asuka a two-count. Asuka went to the second rope and hit a missile dropkick, which was good enough for another good near-fall. The two traded elbows while on their knees. Asuka rolled into an arm-bar, which turned into another Asuka Lock, but SKY fought out of it. Asuka came right back and went for the Asuka Lock again, but SKY fought out. Asuka went for another Asuka Lock. SKY was fading, but Bayley put SKY’s leg on the rope for a break. Charlotte walked over to get rid of Bayley, but SKY took advantage and hit a wild knee. SKY followed that up with a moonsault for the win.
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– The Bloodline were seen backstage and Adam Pearce appeared. Pearce brought a contract for the tag-team match and Heyman said that’s fine as long as the match won’t be tonight. Jimmy Uso said they’ll be in the ring to sign the contract while Heyman and Sikoa looked nonplussed. Heyman told Jimmy that decisions like that need approval from the Tribal Chief first. Jimmy told Heyman to let him know what the Tribal Chief says. Sikoa told Heyman not to worry about it because after tonight, there won’t be anyone left to fight them at Fastlane.
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– A video on Pretty Deadly aired and it was everything you thought it would be.
Austin Theory & Grayson Waller defeated The Brawling Brutes (Butch & Ridge Holland) [10:50]
And here, I thought this was going to be the famed “let me up” match that WWE loves to slot. At nearly 11 minutes, color me wrong (again). Michael Cole probably went a tiny bit overboard when he said it was a great match, but it’s fair to say that this was a surprisingly good match. The Brutes need some wins, though. For as good as they look in the ring and for as much as WWE half-protects them, they rarely come out on the winning side with these things. Still, Waller keeps adjusting nicely to the main roster and pairing him with Theory was a smart move. Who’s to say if they are in for a true run as a tag-team, but if they are, WWE could do worse.
Waller beat up Butch to begin the match. Butch came back and did the fingers spot on Waller and Butch tagged in Holland. Holland swung Waller around and lifted Waller for a suplex, which he completed. Butch tagged in and hit a shotgun dropkick on Waller. Butch ran the ropes and Theory held up the ropes, which meant Butch went spilling to the outside. Butch and Waller fought on the outside. Butch and Holland did 10 Beats on Waller and Theory before Butch rolled back into the ring and the Brutes played to the crowd. The show then went to a commercial break.
When the show returned, Theory had control and was pounding on Butch. Waller and Theory clotheslined Butch repeatedly. Waller went for his version of 10 Beats, but Butch countered with his fingers spot again and got the hot tag to Holland, who fired up and landed a series of slams on Waller. Theory tagged in and Waller chop-blocked Holland. Theory hit an elbow, but Butch broke up a pin attempt and things broke down. Waller rolled into the ring, but Holland cut him off with a spear. Holland then power-slammed Theory for a two-count.
Butch landed a moonsault on Waller, who was on the outside. Meanwhile, Holland lifted Theory, but Theory rolled out of it. Holland followed that up wiht an Alabama Slam for a two-count. Holland worked a Boston Crab, but Waller broke it up with a rolling Stunner. Theory followed that up with A-Town Down for the win. After the match, Michael Cole said, while sounding surprised, said, “That was a great match.”
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– Next week, Charlotte Flair will face Bayley, Escobar vs. Mysterio for the U.S. Title will happen and Bobby Lashley will be the next guest on The Grayson Waller Effect.
The contract signing segment
Adam Pearce introduced John Cena as “The Greatest Of All Time.” Cena ran to the ring and signed the contract instantly. AJ Styles’s music hit, but a camera backstage picked up Jimmy Uso beating up AJ Styles. Cena ran to the back. Solo Sikoa jumped off a bunch of travel cases onto Styles and the backstage crew went nuts. Sikoa and Jimmy left the scene while Styles was unconscious. Cena finally got to the back and yelled for help as the show went to a commercial break.
The show returned and Styles was being stretchered out of the building. Paul Heyman walked slowly to the ring by himself without any entrance music. Karl Anderson was with Styles as they loaded him into the ambulance and Anderson said to Cena that he told Styles not to get involved in the Bloodline stuff. The ambulance drove off. Sikoa and Uso then also walked to the ring without any entrance music. Sikoa threw all the chairs and the contract signing table out of the ring. The crowd booed accordingly.
Heyman tried to talk, but the crowd’s boos were quite loud. Heyman hit his “My name is Paul Heyman” line. Heyman said he had in his hands a contract signed by John Cena without any tag-team partner for Fastlane. As Heyman was going on, Jimmy grabbed the microphone from Heyman. Jimmy said, “Look what happens when you mess with The Bloodline!” Jimmy said if Cena was smart, he would have jumped in the ambulance with Styles and gone far away from The Bloodline. Jimmy said Cena is going to end up in an ambulance anyway. Cena ran to the ring and shoulder-blocked JImmy. Cena slammed Jimmy and lifted Sikoa for an AA, but Jimmy super-kicked Cena.
Sikoa set up for the Samoan Spike and landed said Samoan Spike. Jimmy and Sikoa put the boots to Cena. Jimmy went to the second rope and applauded Sikoa. Jimmy went to the top and and hit the Uso Splash on Cena. Jimmy grabbed the contract from Heyman and signed it. Jimmy gave it to Sikoa and Sikoa signed it. Jimmy slammed the contract on Cena’s chest and went to the top again. Jimmy hit another Uso Splash. Jimmy and Sikoa gave the point to the sky and stood over Cena. From there, the show just kind of ended, which was odd because it felt like they were stretching things out for a surprise, but no surprise was to be had. Until next week …
Asuka will get her WWE Womenâs Championship rematch in two weeks.
It was announced on Fridayâs SmackDown that Asuka will get her rematch in two weeks, on the September 22 edition of SmackDown. Champion IYO Sky and Bayley were wrestling Shotzi and Charlotte Flair in the opening match of Friday’s show when Asuka distracted Dakota Kai, grabbing IYOâs title that Kai had been holding at ringside. This caused SKY to also become distracted, eventually allowing Charlotte to send IYO off the apron as Shotzi pinned Bayley.
Later, in a backstage promo, SKY issued the challenge to Asuka. In another backstage promo, Asuka said she wanted a rematch she never got, and told SKY that she was not ready for her.
Asuka lost the WWE Womenâs Championship at SummerSlam, with Bianca Belair rolling her up while Charlotte had Belair in the figure eight. However, Damage CTRL came out and cleared the ring, allowing SKY to cash in her Money in the Bank briefcase and pin Belair to become the new WWE Womenâs Champion.
I get Fumi Saito’s thoughts on this year’s NJPW G1 Climax like the 32-man format, Naito as the winner, SANADA, Kiyomiya’s performance and who he thought stood out.
So much of what we hear and read is from an English-speaking perspective so Fumi offers a perspective different than you’re going to get anywhere else.
From there, he also explains what he thinks Asuka’s recent social media posts about Stardom and the Japanese wrestling scene mean. What’s a work and what’s a shoot?
Plus, we talk the historic Manami Toyota vs. Toshiyo Yamada hair match, Yamada’s career and an update on her today, Koichi Yoshizawa and more.
Asuka aired several grievances regarding the Japanese wrestling media on Sunday.
In a series of social media posts, the former WWE Women’s Champion took aim at her critics and also stated that World Wonder Ring Stardom was formed in 2010 to destroy her personally.
She wrote:
I don’t flatter anyone. Even in Japan, the media hated me because I don’t flatter the media. In Japan, everyone was flirting with the media except me. I fought the media alone to take care of my fans. That’s why some of the Japanese media still hate me. That’s why I’ve always been a freelancer. And Everyone in Japan knows I am anti-Joshi Pro. Always.
The media could not bring me down when I came to America. They must have really wanted me to fail.
I am used to it because I have been fighting my critics alone since my days in Japan. But now that I am here, I have comrades in arms. Charlotte, Becky, HHH and… I've walked⌠pic.twitter.com/U72Af9nGuh
— The legendary Empress ASUKA / äźčŞŹăŽASUKAçĺ (@WWEAsuka) August 14, 2023
Asuka continued:
The former editor-in-chief of Pro Wrestling Weekly has made this point on several occasions. That is, Stardom is an organization that was created to defeat me. It is an organization that was created to destroy me personally. But they failed to defeat me. I don’t know what happened to them after that because I came to America.
The media could not bring me down when I came to America. They must have really wanted me to fail. I am used to it because I have been fighting my critics alone since my days in Japan. But now that I am here, I have comrades in arms. Charlotte, Becky, HHH and… I’ve walked alone in the wilderness all my life, and here I have an oasis. To the Asuka antis, I say, beat me up on the Internet all you want. I grab everything.
When I became champion, one media outlet asked wrestling fans, “Do you think it is good enough to be champion? “Do you think it deserves to be champion?” Compare me to other people. Do you think my abilities are inferior? Can you believe that? I was always fighting that media all by myself.
Asuka continued to say that her comments about Stardom were in regards to how the organization was before she signed with WWE in 2015.
She continued:
What I just said is in the past. It was before I came to America. Now the organization has changed and there are few players I know. So, I don’t know anything about it, and good luck to everyone who’s trying their best. I’m especially concerned about Syuri and Shirakawa, that’s all.
What I just said is in the past. It was before I came to America. Now the organization has changed and there are few players I know. So, I don't know anything about it, and good luck to everyone who's trying their best. I'm especially concerned about Syuri and Shirakawa, that's⌠pic.twitter.com/Vb5U2b2x41
— The legendary Empress ASUKA / äźčŞŹăŽASUKAçĺ (@WWEAsuka) August 14, 2023
Syrui responded to Asuka, writing “I’m glad you mentioned my name!”
Prior to signing with WWE in 2015, Asuka wrestled as a freelancer in Japan under the name Kana. She wrestled with Pro Wrestling Wave, Yoshihiro Tajiri’s short-lived Smash promotion, JWP Joshi Puroresu, Oz Academy and more.
Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka has been added to the lineup for Friday’s show after both were involved in the WWE Women’s title triple threat at SummerSlam. The finish of the match saw Asuka spray poison mist in Flair’s face moments before being rolled up and pinned by Belair. IYO Sky would cash in her MITB briefcase and win the title shortly after.
“Now, Asuka and Flair square off in a match that SKY is sure to follow closely and will more than likely have championship implications,” reads WWE.com.
Flair and Asuka have had 12 singles matches on WWE programming previously, not including house shows, with their first meeting taking place at WrestleMania 34. Flair holds a 6-5 lead in the head-to-head series with their last match on the June 30 SmackDown in London being ruled a no-contest.
WWE SmackDown on August 11, 2023, will take place from the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Three matches and a segment involving the Bloodline are advertised for the show.
SmackDown lineup:
“What’s Next For The Bloodline?” segment
United States Championship: Austin Theory defends against Santos Escobar
The WWE Women’s Championship will officially be on the line in a triple threat match at SummerSlam.
WWE has confirmed that Asuka will defend her title against Charlotte Flair and Bianca Belair in a triple threat match at the Saturday, August 5 pay-per-view. The PPV is being held at Ford Field in Detroit.
Earlier today, WWE had stated that Asuka’s SummerSlam challenger would be revealed on tonight’s episode of SmackDown.
Asuka has been feuding with both Charlotte and Belair leading into SummerSlam. They’ve each challenged Asuka for the WWE Women’s Championship on SmackDown over the past few weeks, but both title matches ended without definitive finishes.
Asuka won the Raw Women’s Championship from Belair at Night of Champions this May. The title was later renamed to the WWE Women’s Championship.
While not part of the SummerSlam triple threat match, IYO SKY could potentially end up getting involved in the championship mix. SKY holds the women’s Money in the Bank briefcase and has had her sights set on the WWE Women’s Championship in recent weeks.
This is the third match that’s been officially announced for SummerSlam. The updated card for the PPV is listed below:
Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar
World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins defends against Finn Balor
WWE Women’s Champion Asuka defends against Charlotte Flair and Bianca Belair in a triple threat match
After weeks of asking for a match against Asuka for the WWE Women’s Championship, Bianca Belair will get her shot on tonight’s SmackDown from the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The last time Asuka defended her title was against Charlotte Flair on SmackDown two weeks ago. Belair caused that match to end in a no contest.
Tonight will also feature the fallout of last week’s Trial of Roman Reigns. We’ll see if Reigns provides an answer to Jey Uso’s challenge for an Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match.
WWE’s United States Championship Invitational will begin with a fatal four-way match involving AJ Styles, Santos Escobar, Butch, and Grayson Waller. Another four-way match is scheduled to take place on SmackDown next week. The winners of the four-way bouts will advance to face each other for the right to become the next challenger for Austin Theory’s United States title.
Plus, Sheamus & Ridge Holland face Pretty Deadly in tag team action. Our live coverage starts at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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– The show began with Jey Uso walking backstage as Michael Cole voiced over that Jey is on a warpath. We went to the ring, where Bianca Belair’s music hit.
The Bianca Belair/Charlotte segment
The crowd chanted “EST!” before Belair began to talk. Belair said it’s been hard to be patient because she has wanted a rematch with Asuka so badly. Belair mentioned all the hoops she had to go through to get her rematch. Belair said tonight will be her night. Belair said she’s going to show Asuka that patience is a virtue. Belair said she will strut out of there as the new WWE Women’s Champion, but before she could finish her sentence, Charlotte’s music hit.
After Charlotte got in the ring, the crowed graced her with a million “Woooos!” Charlotte said Belair fired Charlotte up and then said Charlotte said she believes Belair will win later tonight and she’s manifesting a win in Flair Country. Charlotte said when Belair wins, she wants to makes sure Belair knows that Charlotte is next in line. The crowd was excited at the thought and Belair said she wouldn’t jinx herself, but Belair said there would be nothing better than Charlotte vs. Belair at SummerSlam for the WWE Women’s Championship. Belair said she’s ready for Asuka before Belair and Charlotte shook hands, solidifying the potential match between Charlotte and Belair next month. Charlotte let out a “Wooooo!” to end the segment.
**********
– The Brawling Brutes were shown backstage. Sheamus hyped up Butch competing in the four-way for a shot at the U.S. Title. Ridge Holland said tonight, Pretty Deadly is going to be eaten alive by he and Sheamus. We went back to the ring, where the Brutes made their entrance.
Pretty Deadly [Elton Prince & Kit Wilson] defeated the Brawling Brutes [Sheamus & Ridge Holland] [10:27]
You just knew that somehow, some way, Pretty Deadly would get the win here. Still, the Brutes looked strong and outside of a commercial break that allowed Pretty Deadly to take control, Sheamus and Holland got the bulk of the offense. Pretty Deadly is growing on me on the main roster. I enjoyed the bit on NXT for what it was, but it’s beginning to translate well on SmackDown. If nothing else, they are very good pest heels and seeing them get cheap wins only helps that perception. Both teams worked hard here and all told, it was a good opening match – especially at a time when SmackDown lately has been very talk-heavy. In a lot of ways, this was refreshing.
Sheamus and Prince began the match. Prince retreated to the outside. As a result, Sheamus pulled Wilson into the ring and beat him up. Prince returned to the ring and went for a hip-toss, but Sheamus blocked it and hit a clothesline. Holland tagged in and worked Prince over with a headbutt and some punches. Holland lifted Prince, but Prince wiggled out of it and chop-blocked Holland to give his team control. Wilson tagged in and the Pretty Deadly guys double-teamed Holland until Holland lifted and back-dropped both of them.
Sheamus tagged in and Sheamus dumped Wilson over the top. Sheamus worked 10 Bells on Wilson and Holland worked a variation of it on Prince until the show went to a commercial break. When the show returned, Prince was stomping on Sheamus. Wilson tagged in and kept momentum up with some elbows to Sheamus’s chest. Wilson landed a running uppercut and tagged in Prince. Wilson tagged in quickly and kicked Sheamus in the face. Sheamus lifted Wilson on his shoulders and slammed him, but when Sheamus went for the tag, Prince ran around the corner and pulled Holland off the apron.
Wilson utilized Prince’s help and took Sheamus down. Wilson went to the top, but jumped into a knee from Sheamus. As a result, Sheamus finally got the hot tag to Holland, who landed a wild back-body drop on Prince. Holland took out both members of Pretty Deadly and fired up before hitting a German Suplex on Prince, who landed on Wilson. Holland landed a Fisherman’s Buster on Prince for a two-count. Pretty Deadly went to the outside and Sheamus came off the top onto both Pretty Deadly members. Back in the ring, Holland hit a side-slam on Prince for a two-count. Prince took a top turnbuckle padding off and ran Holland into it. Prince then hit a leg drop from the top for the 1-2-3.
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– Grayson Waller was interviewed backstage by Cathy Kelly. Waller recalled how he swam against Edge last week. Waller talked about how The Rock loves him. Waller then said he’s going to face three of the best SmackDown has to offer later and will have his hand raised in victory. Waller closed the interview by saying everything will happen … “if you smell what he’s cooking.”
– A video recapping last week’s Tribal Court segment aired. Footage from Money In The Bank was part of it. Michael Cole announced that Jimmy Uso is injured and will be out for the “foreseeable future.” Cole said today marks the 1,048 day as champion.
– Backstage, Charlotte ran into Adam Pearce and Charlotte told Pearce she’s leaving the arena because she feels good about the match later. Bayley and IYO SKY came into the frame and said Charlotte isn’t the only one who feels good as they pounded on SKY’s MITB briefcase. Charlotte, who was still around, said on second thought, she’s going to stick around.
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Bayley defeated Zelina Vega [2:02]
This was fine for what it was, but nobody thought this was going more than three minutes – which was sad because those two could have had a pretty good match if they were just given a little bit of time. The Shotzi post-match angle was interesting and I can’t say I’m not interested to see where this Shotzi/Bayley program goes. Good for Shotzi for getting some booking love.
Bayley jumpstarted the match and ran Vega to the outside, where she worked over Vega on the commentary table. The two fought on the apron and Vega fought for control, rolling Bayley inside the ring and hitting a Meteora for a two-count. Vega landed a swinging neck-breaker for a two-count. Bayley fought back and grabbed Vega’s flip-fop. Bayley ran into a Codebreaker and Vegan drove Bayley out of the ring with the flip-flop. Instantly, Bayley got back into the ring and hit the Rose Plant for the win.
After the match, a video from Shotzi appeared on the big screen. Shotzi said Bayley probably thinks she has control over Shotzi. Shotzi grabbed a razor and said she’s in control. Shotzi shaved her head and laughed uncontrollably. Shotzi put the hair in her mouth. Bayley looked a little concerned.
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The Jey Uso/Bloodline segment
Jey stood in the ring for a bit before saying anything. Jey said growing up, he and Jimmy were inseparable. The crowd gave him the “What?” treatment, but everyone seemed to be in on it and it felt more fun than patronizing. Jey said if Jimmy is sad, he’s sad and so on and so forth. It ended with Jey saying if Jimmy is hurt, Jey is hurt, too. Jey said he’s going to disrespect Roman Reigns and he’s going to spank Solo Sikoa. Jey said they’re looking at the real head of the table and his name is Main Event Jey Uso. The crowd cheered until they heard Paul Heyman’s voice.
Heyman introduced himself and said Sikoa is the enforcer of the Bloodline as they both walked toward the ring. Heyman said Sikoa was there to enforce peace. Heyman said that next week, Jey and Roman will go face to face and discuss the rules of engagement. Heyman followed that up by saying tonight, they just wanted to have a chat about things. Heyman said Jey is sounding more and more like a tribal chief every single day. Heyman said Sikoa is right in that Jey has no self-awareness. Heyman said Jey doesn’t have the conscience needed to be a right-hand man. Heyman said what happened to Jimmy is all Jey’s fault.
Heyman said Jey was the one who confronted Roman Reigns and Jey was the one who wanted to be the leader. Heyman spoke to Jimmy into the camera and said the only reason Jimmy is in the hospital is because of Jey Uso. Heyman said Jey’s father and mother will never forgive Jey for what he did to Jimmy. Heyman said both he and Reigns will never forgive Jey. Sikoa put his hand otu for the microphone. Heyman put it in Sikoa’s hand. Sikoa said what happened to Jimmy is all on Jey. Sikoa said he’ll never forgive Jey and threw down the mic.
Jey threw an elbow at Sikoa and eventually landed a super-kick on Sikoa, which left Jey alone with Heyman in the ring. The crowd rose up for the altercation. Before Jey could get his hands on Heyman, Sikoa returned to the ring and beat Jey down. Sikoa went for the Samoan Spike, but Jey countered and worked a ground-and-pound on Sikoa before actually hitting a super-kick on Heyman. Jey landed a suicida on Sikoa, who was on the outside. The crowd went nuts. Left in the ring was Jey, Heyman and a chair. Heyman begged Jey not to do anything. Jey picked up the chair, but Sikoa ran in and Jey hit Sikoa with the chair instead of Heyman. Sikoa rolled to the outside and he, along with Heyman, left to go to the back.
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Santos Escobar defeated AJ Styles, Butch and Grayson Waller [12:35]
It depends on the style you like, and I’ll fully admit that WWE rolls by its own rules, but for a WWE four-way, this was really very good. Waller played his part almost perfectly as the chicken-s!#$ heel who tried as hard as he could to take advantage of whatever advantageous situation presented itself, Styles was very good as The Guy Who Was The Favorite To Win, Butch was Butch and Escobar was forgotten. Naturally, then, Escobar winning was a curious call, but I’m all in if this means we can get the guy going on the main roster. The LWO has worked well enough, but it feels like we’re coming up on the end of the line and if this win means Escobar will have a shot at being a solo player, I’m all for it. I can do without the stupid big screen distraction finish, but outside of that, this was very good.
Austin Theory sat in on commentary. Waller started by punching Butch and rolled to the outside to jaw at Theory. Butch went after Waller. Inside the ring, Escobar worked over Styles with some chops until Styles put Escobar over the top to the outside. Butch and Styles squared off in the ring and traded pin attempts until Waller went for a double pin on them both, but only got a two-count. Styles and Butch fought until Escobar came off the top and took them both out. Waller took Escobar down, but Escobar came back with a boot to the face. Waller came back and ran into a German Suplex from Butch. Everybody exchanged shots on each other until everyone was down and the show went to break.
Back from break, Butch was doing the finger spot on Waller. Waller dumped Butch to the outside in response and Styles hit a sliding forearm on Waller. Styles hit a knee to the back of Waller’s neck and went for a pin but Butch broke it up. Escobar came back into the fold and flipped Butch onto Styles, who pinned Butch for a two-count. Escobar came right back and took down Styles before going to the top rope. Waller cut Escobar off and Butch hit Waller with an enziguri. Styles woke up, too, and all four guys were in a corner. Ultimately, Escobar landed a sunset flip, triple-power-bomb on the other three from the top rope.
Escobar hit knees on everyone else after they got to their feet. Escobar landed a Phantom Driver on Waller for a two-count. Waller rolled to the outside and the three babyfaces stood in the ring, trading strikes. Cole said the crowd was chanting “This is awesome,” but if they were, boy, that didn’t come up well on TV. Eventually, Waller lifted Butch, but Butch worked out of it and kicked the back of Waller. Waller threw Butch to the outside, but was ultimately the recipient of a moonsault from Butch. Escobar followed that up with a splash, but quickly, Styles set Butch up for a Styles Clash inside the ring. On the big screen, Karrion Kross appeared to stop Styles. Styles ran to the back and Waller hit a rolling stunner on Butch, but immediately after that, Escobar came off the top to hit a splash on Waller and pinned him.
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– Back from break, Styles was backstage talking to The OC, saying Kross was right and their feud wasn’t over. The show then cut to the Street Profits, who were standing next to a limo. Wouldn’t you know it: Bobby Lashley stepped out of the limo and embraced the Profits. The Profits got into the limo and Lashley left with them.
– Rey Mysterio cut a remote promo, ostensibly announcing himself as a participant in next week’s four-way for the other half of the U.S. title invitational. Cameron Grimes cut a similar promo and said he was going to the moon. Sheamus popped up and did the same.
– La Knight’s music hit back in the arena and the crowd went bonkers (I mean, come on, WWE. I know you’re hearing this week after week). Knight stopped before talking and the crowd chanted his name. Knight said all of a sudden LA Knight’s everywhere. Knight said he’s the best decision WWE ever made. Knight said the worst decision it made was to make a U.S. title invitational. Knight said he’s coming for that title. Knight said one way or another, they’re going to call him a champ someday. The crowd was all too happy to agree. We’re going to get Mysterio vs. Sheamus vs. Knight vs. Grimes next week as the other half of the US title invitational.
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Asuka defeated Bianca Belair via DQ [9:01]
If you thought we were getting a clean finish here, I have some beachfront property in Iowa that I’d love to sell you. Still, the match was all right for what it was. Belair and Asuka only seem to be getting better together and I’m interested to see if we’re headed more toward a four-way than a three-way at SummerSlam. Bayley and SKY are laying it on thick and we are less than a month away. Time will tell. I’m all for the women being put in the highest profile spots SmackDown has; I’d just love it if the booking was better. Good for Belair and Asuka for working hard; this just could have been so much more.
Bayley was shown with IYO SKY as two people who bought a ticket before the match began. Belair had the upper hand early. SKY and Bayley yelled at the two from the front row. Asuka tripped Belair to gain back control. Belair ultimately struck back and the two were down on the mat. In the meantime, Charlotte presented a ticket for the show, too, and sat at ringside as the show went to its final commercial.
The show returned and Belair had control, hitting a suplex and a standing moonsault for a two-count. With the two on the top, Asuka ultimately hit a shotgun dropkick from the top for a two-count. Asuka ran at Belair and Belair moved, eventually landing a spine-buster for a two-count. Asuka went for the Asuka Lock, but Belair rolled through and got a two-count out of it. Belair was on the apron, but Belair lifted Asuka and hit a KOD on Asuka on the commentary table.
Bayley and SKY and Charlotte hopped the barricade. Charlotte took out Bayley and SKY ran Charlotte into the ring post. Charlotte then speared Belair, which resulted in a DQ win for Asuka. SKY hit Charlotte in the head with her MITB briefcase. Bayley and SKY tried to cash in, but Asuka hit Bayley with the mist to stop all of it, the cash in didn’t happen and Asuka walked up the ramp. The show ended with all the women looking frustrated as Asuka smiled her way away.
I am back with the Sunday edition of Wrestling Observer Live, available for website subscribers below or for YouTube subscribers above.
I give my thoughts on the passing of the Iron Sheik last week, his legacy, and what he meant to professional wrestling.
On Friday’s WWE SmackDown, The Bloodline story took another turn as The Usos and Solo Sikoa all seem to be at odds with each other after Jey Uso lost in his United States title shot opportunity. I talk about where this whole story is headed and a possible scenario that could lead this in a new direction.
The debut of AEW Collision is this coming Saturday and we now have a main event featuring CM Punk and FTR vs. Jay White, Juice Robinson and Samoa Joe. I go over the scenarios and possible matches we could get out of this one match.
Since Collision is only being shown on the TSN+ streaming service, how does this affect ticket sales for the AEW Canadian tour this summer?
Plus, what was the best rookie class in wrestling, UFC double champion Amanda Nunes retires, new titles in WWE, and more.
A new WWE Womenâs Championship was unveiled on SmackDown, which brought the return of Charlotte Flair.
SmackDown on Friday had WWE official Adam Pearce present Raw Womenâs Champion Asuka with a new championship belt, similar to the recent championship Roman Reigns was given on last weekâs SmackDown but with a white strap. Going forward, Asuka will be referred to as the WWE Womenâs Champion.
This brought out Charlotte Flair, who has not been seen on television since WrestleMania 39. She immediately demanded a championship match. Pearce, who had promised Bianca Belair a rematch earlier in the show, told Flair she would need to get in line. Flair dismissed the idea as Asuka accepted. The two got into a brawl, with Flair avoiding the mist and laying out Asuka with a big boot. The match was later made official for the June 30 edition of SmackDown, just one day prior to Money in the Bank.
Later backstage, after Belair confronted Pearce, he told Belair heâd try to make it right.
The Raw Womenâs Championship is the Womenâs Championship introduced in 2016, replacing the Divas Championship. A second title, the SmackDown Womenâs Championship, was established later that year. That title is currently held by Rhea Ripley.
