As was advertised in advance, Braun Strowman took on Kalisto in a dumpster match on last night’s episode of Raw. The match ended with Kalisto getting the win, which only led to Strowman delivering another beatdown after it was over.
The episode was also the go-home show for Payback. Alexa Bliss mocked Bayley ahead of their title match on Sunday, Finn Balor battled some familiar faces in a six-man tag, and The Miz looked to find a partner for the main event.
The Big Takeaway: Bray Wyatt made his first live Raw appearance in nearly a year. He jumped Dean Ambrose and Chris Jericho in the main event, giving both of them Sister Abigail. Wyatt was supposed to be the mystery tag team partner of the Miz, but didn’t show up until six minutes in. Wyatt gave Miz Sister Abigail, as well. Reigns was a no-show for the second straight week. Kalisto defeated Braun Strowman in the dumpster match, but it was a classic backdoor win. Strowman destroyed Kalisto afterwards, placing him in the dumpster, then tossing it off the ramp in a spot straight from 1998. Kalisto did a stretcher job, but it wasn’t treated nearly as seriously or as well as it was when the New Age Outlaws did it to Terry Funk and Mick Foley 19 years ago.
Show Recap:
Jericho came out for the Highlight Reel Michael Cole brought up the possibility that this could be Jericho’s final Raw because he be flipped to SmackDown if he defeats Kevin Owens for the U.S. Championship on Sunday. Jericho said this would be the final Highlight Reel on Raw, but regardless of whether its Raw, SmackDown Live or SouthPaw Championship Wrestling, his friends have always been behind him because they’re the Friends of Jericho.
Jericho said he was going to have a sexy beast as his guest on the final Raw Highlight Reel, so the guest would be him. Jericho said Owens calls himself the “Face of America,” but he was really the hemorrhoid of America.
The Miz and Maryse interrupted him. Miz said Raw was no longer Jericho, and it hasn’t been since he arrived with his wife. When the crowd chanted “you suck” at Miz, he said “I can’t possibly suck, I’m not from Kansas City.” Miz said they were the “It” couple. Jericho did his “you better watch…it” line. Miz said the Highlight Reel had been canceled and replaced by MizTV. Miz brought out about a dozen stagehands to change the settings, the rug on the ring canvas, set up chairs and raise up the JerichTron 6000 to instantly turn it into MizTV.
Ambrose showed up and said Jericho had a point, Miz was a stupid idiot. Miz said Jericho never said that, but Jericho said he was thinking it. Ambrose said you can’t take over someone else’s talk show and no one wanted to see MizTV. Then Ambrose brought in his own group of stagehands and brought back the Ambrose Asylum, replacing the MizTV set. Ambrose said he and Jericho have had a checkered past, but Ambrose believed in the healing power of forgiveness. Ambrose recalled Jericho smashing the plant over his head, and Ambrose remembered how he destroyed Jericho’s light-up jacket. Jericho said Ambrose still owed him $15,000. Ambrose handed Jericho a gift, a grey jacket with Christmas lights on it. Ambrose said it was the new Jacket of Jericho, “try it on, man.”
As Jericho was about to put it on, Miz said “no, no, no.” Crowd chanted “yes.” Miz called it a hideous jacket, but Jericho put it on and liked it. Miz said that is a jacket fitting of a slacker Intercontinental champion. Miz said fans should be thankful he’s on the Raw brand to save them from the mediocrity that Ambrose and Jericho brings each week. Miz demanded a gift. Ambrose gave him Dirty Deeds and bolted. Jericho told Maryse “Do you know what happens when you’re married to the Miz? Do you know what happens when your husband is a stupid idiot?” He put Maryse on the list.
Matt Hardy defeated Sheamus (10:00)
Matt Hardy gave Sheamus the Side Effect on the apron. During a commercial, Sheamus tripped Hardy off the second rope and delivered Ten Beats of the Bodhran. Hardy got the Tornado DDT as the fans chanted “delete” as Sheamus’ head was repeatedly smashed into the turnbuckles. Hardy dropped an elbow from the 2nd rope for two, and teased a Twist of Fate, but Sheamus hit a jumping knee to the jaw. Hardy rolled to the floor, but Sheamus hit a rolling senton. Jeff Hardy checked on Matt, but Sheamus knocked him out of the way. Jeff and Cesaro started arguing Matt recovered to give Sheamus the Twist of Fate for the pin.
Cesaro got in the face of Jeff Hardy, but Sheamus told Cesaro to calm down. Sheamus extended his hand for Matt to shake, and Cesaro offered his hand to Jeff. Crowd chanted not to accept it, but each side shook hands. Cole noted that Sheamus was the one playing peacekeeper tonight instead of Cesaro.
Kurt Angle was on the phone with someone saying that Strowman would face Kalisto in a dumpster match. Miz and Maryse met with Angle. They were upset about Ambrose and Jericho interrupting MizTV. Angle said they save their problems in the ring. He ordered Miz to find a tag team partner because the would face Jericho and Ambrose in a tag team match tonight. Maryse started yelling at Angle in French, and he simply said “Yeah? Right back at ya!”
Austin Aries and Jack Gallagher defeated Neville and T.J. Perkins (3:13)
Booker T called Jack Gallagher “Gallager,” like he was going to start throwing watermelons and tell racist jokes between moves. Austin Aries got the hot tag, delivered a tope under the second rope on T.J. Perkins and Neville. Aries put Perkins in the Last Chancery, but Neville made the save. Gallagher delivered a head butt on Neville while neither man was legal. Aries pinned Perkins following a Discus Fivearm.
Strowman did a prematch interview that he considers everyone in the arena nothing more than trash, so when he stuffs Kalisto in this dumpster, it’s just like he’s stuffing each and every one of them in there with them, especially Reigns.
Angle was backstage giving Kalisto a pep talk. Then he asked him if he was sure if he wanted to go through with this. Kalisto cut an inspired promo saying Strowman treated him like garbage, and he was a man. He said lucha means fight, and he had to fight Strowman.
Kalisto defeated Braun Strowman in a dumpster match (5:07)
Kalisto had a torrent of offense early before he tried a somersault move, only to have Strowman catch him in mid-air in a hanging suplex position and tossed him across the ring. Corey Graves said Kalisto would have to start a new career as a Garbage Pail Kid. Strowman put Kalstio over the shoulder and moved him towards the dumpster, but Kalisto stayed on the apron and tried to give Strowman a guillotine choke and drag him over the ropes into the dumpster. Strowman backdropped Kalisto back in the ring. Strowman tried to hurl Kalisto across the ring into the dumpster, but Kalisto hung on. Strowman pressed Kalisto on the apron, but Kalisto fell in the ring. With Strowman standing on the apron, Kalisto drop kicked Strowman on the knees, and Strowman dropped into the dumpster while still standing. It was the textbook definition of a slip on a banana peel finish, and the postmatch only emphasized it.
Strowman, furious over losing, repeatedly choke slammed Kalisto and threw him out of the ring. There was a dual chant for Reigns as Strowman threw Kalisto into the dasherboards with one arm. Strowman picked up Kalisto over his shoulder, dumped him in the dumpster, closed the doors and pushed it up the ramp. He teased the 1998 New Age Outlaws spot with Mick Foley and Terry Funk where he would push it off the ramp. Fit Finley, Chris Hero and Jamie Noble came out to stop him, along with several referees. Strowman wheeled the dumpster towards them, then locked Kalisto inside. Strowman teased leaving, then came back and pushed the dumpster off the ramp. It looked like a two foot fall, but the announcers treated it like the ambulance angle two weeks ago.
Kalisto neck was immobilized as he was placed on a stretcher by an EMS crew. Angle checked on Kalisto as he was carried into the ambulance. No ambulance shenanigans this week.
Next up was a Reigns video package which made him out to be the top babyface in the company. It certainly proved how gifted the company’s video production team is, namely their audio editors.
Wyatt appeared on screen. With images of Orton burning down the Wyatt compound flickering, Waytt asked Orton if he could just let this all go? That he could just forget? Some wounds never truly heal, they linger, they fester, they infec your mind. The same pain awaits Orton in his House of Horrors. Every room Orton enters will be an endless nightmare and the best part is Orton can never leave. The house will be an eternal prison for Orton’s mind and soul. The deepest, darkest depths of heel are awaiting Orton, and with his pain and suffering and agony, Wyatt will be reborn. Wyatt said the House of Horrors await Orton, “Follow the Buzzards.”
Dana Brooke defeated Alicia Fox (1:23)
Emma walked out midway through the match. Dana Brooke got the pin with a fireman’s carry slam. Postmach, Emma hugged Brooke, who refused to put her arms around her. Emma pretended like she was proud of Brooke for winning, but it came off like she was playing mind games.
Joe, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows did an interview with Charly Caruso. They’re facing Seth Rollins, Enzo Amore and Big Cass tonight in a trios. Anderson said Joe has taught them new ways to torture people. Joe said he would destroy Rollins. He said the first time he faced Rollins, he shredded one of his ligaments. Tonight, he’ll take care of the rest.
Anderson, Gallows and Joe attacked Enzo and Cass as they were doing their ring entrance. Anderson and Gallows gave Enzo the Magic Killer before Rollins even showed up. Rollins came out and brawled with Joe, but Anderson and Gallows jumped on Rollins Cass recovered to make the save, but Amore was down and out as officials chekced on him.
Angle came out after a commercial and brought out a replacement for Amore—Finn Balor, who looked at Anderson and Gallows like he was former friends. Graves mentioned Balor looking at ghosts from his past, wisely avoiding the words New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Miz and Maryse were shown talking to Cesaro and Sheamus backstage. He tried to talk one of them into tagging with him tonight, but they both turned him down.
Seth Rollins, Finn Balor and Big Cass defeated Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows and Samoa Joe (5:55)
Balor wore an “Balor Club” armband. The heels worked over Balor for several minutes until Gallows missed a legdrop. Rollins gave Anderson a blockbuster and a slingblade during the hot tag. Cass gave Gallows a big boot off the apron. Rollins got into a staredown with Joe, then threw Anderson into Joe outside the ring and delivered a tope on both of them. Rollins gave Anderson a springboard clothesline, teased a Pedigree, but thought better of it. Instead, he delivered his new finisher to pin Anderson. It’s basically Kazuchika Okada’s Rainmaker, except it ends with a knee to the face instead of a clothesline.
Alexa Bliss came out and said every week Raw superstars talk about who they like, who they don’t like and becoming a champion someday. Then there are certain superstars who talk about how making the WWE was their dream and everything was sunshine and rainbows, making fun of Bayley. Fans chanted “what” and Bliss played off that. She said she would beat Bayley on Sunday and become the next Raw Women’s Champion.
Bayley interrupted her and said Bliss was right, she wasted no time in proving how good she was. Bayley said she knew Bliss was making fun of her. She accused Bliss of talking behind people’s back instead of saying it to their face. But Bayley said she wasn’t just talk, she works her butt off every day to hold onto this championship. Every single female superstar wants to take this championship from her. She will stop at nothing to walk out of her hometown with her title.
Bliss acted like she didn’t know Pay Back was in Bayley’s hometown. Bliss said that means Bayley’s father will be there. Which means she will get to beat Bayley, humiliate her, take her championship in her hometown and do it all in front of her father. Bliss called Bayley a sheltered child and asked if she had ever kissed a boy. Bliss said Bayley’s Cinderella story would end on Sunday and she would take that championship.
Sasha Banks walked out. Bliss said this was part 3,000 of the Sasha-Bayley sideshow. Bliss asked Bayley if Banks puts little love letters when she packs Bayley’s lunch. Banks called Bliss a troll and said Bayley was not only going to show her up, but shut her up on Sunday. Banks challenged Bliss to a match tonight. Bliss said it wasn’t happening and Banks was a little too unhinged. Banks responded by punching her in the face. Cole announced Bliss was facing Banks next.
Sasha Banks defeated Alexa Bliss by countout (2:38)
Banks gave Bliss an arm ringer and tried the Bank Statement. Bliss simply walked backward on the apron and got counted out. Bayley, who was on commentary, tried to throw Bliss back into the ring but Bliss escaped. Bayley was ready to walk into the ring, but Bliss railroaded her from behind. Banks chased Bliss off.
Jericho and Ambrose talked backstage. Ambrose asked to be taken off Jericho’s list. Jericho said no one is taken off the list, it’s written in pen. Jericho said Ambrose still owed him $15,000 for the jacket he tore up. Plus, Ambrose power bombed him into 15,000 thumbtacks in the Asylum match at last year’s Extreme Rules. But Jericho liked the jacket he received tonight from Ambrose, so he said “Dean Ambrose, you just unmade the list!” Jericho crossed his name off. Then Ambrose abrasively delivered a pep talk to Jericho, hitting him hard across the shoulder. After Ambrose left, Jericho gave him a dirty look, then quietly put him back on the list.
Enzo and Cass face Anderson and Gallows in the Pay Back kickoff match. Also, MizTV with Balor.
Heath Slater and Curtis Axel were about to do a sit-down interview with Caruso about their appearance in “The Marine 5.” Miz and Maryse walked in asking them to be his partners for tonight. Slater said he already had a partner, and Rhyno walked in eating crackers. Miz said they would never work in this town again. Axel said “Kansas City?” Maryse started chewing out Axel when Rhyno offered her a cracker. She threw the trey in his face. A stagehand walked in with a note. Miz smiled and said he found his tag partner.
Curt Hawkins was in the ring for another “Heaping Helping of Hawkins.” Again, he discussed how everyone he faces winds up in the main event and wondered who would be the next man he would turn into a star. Apollo Crews walked out.
Apollo Crews defeated Curt Hawkins (2:08)
Crews won with the Spin-Out Power Bomb. This actually had minor dualing chants, but the crowd wasn’t really into it. Titus O’Neal came out and raised Crews’ hand in victory and take a selfie, trying to get him to join the Titus brand. Crews didn’t know what O’Neal was doing.
Cole announced that Kalisto suffered hip and cervical trauma at the hands of Strowman.
They showed quotes of a Reigns’ interview from WWE.com, as opposed to Reigns actually doing an interview, discussing his kayfabe injuries at the hands of Strowman along with the very real loss of his older brother, Rosey. Oddly, Cole didn’t mention Rosey as a former WWE performer and just generically referred to him as Reigns’ brother.
Aries and Angle were backstage. Angle was eating a banana. Aries suggested a twist of the main event on tomorrow’s edition of 205 Live. it was announced later that Gallagher would face Neville tomorrow night. Angle liked the idea.
Then Angle found Miz and Maryse backstage. He asked Miz if he found tag team partner tonight. Miz said even better, his partner found him. Just then, the Drifter walked by. Angle thought he was Miz’s partner. Miz said he didn’t even know him.
Miz said his partner had a flair for the dramatic but was a big star. Miz told everyone to give it up for his tag team partner…and nothing happened. Miz looked blankly at the entrance and called for him again. Again nothing. Miz said the match was going to have to be canceled and starting to leave. Instead, Angle came out and said Miz would have to face Ambrose and Jericho with or without a partner immediately. So it started as a handicap match.
Chris Jericho and Dean Ambrose vs. The Miz ended in a no contest in a handicap match (6:06)
Of course, the 2 babyfaces vs. 1 heel psychology felt weird as a main event. Jericho did heel spots like choking Miz against the ropes. Ambrose looked foolish when Miz suckered him into chasing him around ringside, where he ran into Maryse, leading to Miz giving him a kick to the face. Jericho got a hot tag, where he delivered the Lionsault. He tried a codebreaker, which Miz stopped, but Jericho hit a dropkick. Miz teased the second walkout countout of the hour, but Ambrose brawled with him to the commentator’s table. Ambrose teased a Dirty Deeds on the table, but instead Wyatt’s video appeared. After the flash, Wyatt was on the table and gave Ambrose Sister Abigail into the video board. Jericho ran after Wyatt, but Miz cut him off. Wyatt ordered Miz to take Jericho to the ring.
Miz rolled Jericho into the ring, but Jericho gave him a codebreaker. Wyatt quickly jumped Jericho and gave him Sister Abigail. As Wyatt did his pose, Miz stood alongside him and laughed. Wyatt quickly turned on Miz and gave him Sister Abigail, as well.
WWE has announced a match for this coming Monday’s episode of Raw, and it’s one with an interesting stipulation.
Braun Strowman will take on Kalisto in a dumpster match on the show. The stipulation stems from an angle where Strowman called both Kalisto and Roman Reigns garbage before throwing Kalisto inside of a dumpster last week.
Reigns didn’t appear on Raw last Monday after the beatdown that he received from Strowman the week prior. He isn’t scheduled for the WWE house shows this weekend, which is likely due to the passing of his brother Matt Anoa’i.
The Strowman vs. Kalisto match was set up on Twitter today, with Kalisto initially challenging Strowman. Kurt Angle then tweeted, “It’s about the size of the fight in the dog… U want it @KalistoWWE, U got it. Braun vs Kalisto in a #DumpsterMatch Monday on #Raw! #RawGM”
Monday’s Raw will be the go-home show for Raw’s Payback pay-per-view. Dave Meltzer noted in yesterday’s Daily Update that Reigns is scheduled to be in the building.
Four more wrestlers have moved from SmackDown to Raw as WWE continues to make roster changes.
After Finn Balor defeated Jinder Mahal, Bray Wyatt appeared on the video screen to announce that he was coming to Raw. He also revealed that he’ll be challenging for Randy Orton’s WWE Championship in a House of Horrors match at Raw’s Payback pay-per-view on April 30th, though Orton remains on the SmackDown roster.
Wyatt previously won the WWE title at Elimination Chamber before dropping it to Orton at WrestleMania 33.
Kalisto, Heath Slater, and Rhyno were also added to Raw as part of the “Superstar Shakeup.” WWE had teased that Slater and Rhyno would be joining the show earlier in the day, saying that former Tag Team Champions would be switching brands.
They join Apollo Crews, The Miz, Maryse, Dean Ambrose, and Curt Hawkins as the newest additions to the Raw roster. No one has been announced as joining SmackDown yet, which figures to happen tomorrow as the two-night shakeup continues in Boston, Massachusetts.
The fate of the WWE cruiserweight division will be on the line at Survivor Series.
It was announced at today’s SmackDown tapings in Glasgow, Scotland that Brian Kendrick would defend his WWE Cruiserweight Championship against Kalisto at the upcoming co-branded Survivor Series pay-per-view. If Kalisto captures the title, the cruiserweight division will move to SmackDown.
The updated card for Survivor Series on November 20th in Toronto, Canada is:
Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg
Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler defending against Sami Zayn
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Brian Kendrick vs. Kalisto (SmackDown gets the cruiserweight division if Kalisto wins)
WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins & Braun Strowman vs. WWE World Champion AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt & Baron Corbin in an elimination tag match
Raw Women’s Champion Charlotte, Bayley, Sasha Banks, Nia Jax & Alicia Fox vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch, Nikki Bella, Alexa Bliss, Carmella & Naomi in an elimination tag match
Raw Tag Team Champions The New Day, Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson, Enzo Amore & Big Cass, The Shining Stars and Cesaro & Sheamus vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions Heath Slater & Rhyno, American Alpha, The Hype Bros, The Usos and a team to be announced in an elimination tag match
The Civic Center was between 50-75% full, although a lot of the empty seats didn’t show as available on the Ticketmaster website. Estimated 2000 in attendance.
– Enzo & Cass def. The Dudley Boys (9:50)
Enzo & Cass were over huge, and the entire crowd sang along with the intro promo. During the entrance, Bubba threw a small boy’s sign on the ground that said “It’s my birthday”. Bubba then took another kid’s sign at ringside before the match, but Enzo stole it back & gave the the kid his shirt. Good house show match. Enzo pinned D-Von after the rocket launcher.
– Sasha Banks def. Summer Rae (4:38)
Sasha won when Summer submitted to the Banks Statement. About what you’d expect from these two; not horrible but not good. Sasha was over with the crowd, but took a bump on a spinning wheel kick that showed a lot of light.
– Golden Truth def. Breezeango (8:10)
R-Truth’s entrance made the entire crowd respond loudly. Fandango is from Maine so he got some cheers here & there. They did a comedy spot where Goldust gave everyone atomic drops, including R-Truth. Pretty fun match. The crowd got up for this and reacted surprisingly well given how these guys are positioned on TV. R-Truth beat Tyler Breeze via pinfall with a slingshot sunset flip from the apron.
– Darren Young (w/Bob Backlund) def. WWE I-C Champion The Miz (w/Maryse) by countout (15:20)
The Miz cut a pre-match promo counting the days he’s been IC champion (104) & claimed to be the “greatest technical wrestler of all time”. The crowd totally died for this early but got into it more as it went along. There was actually a short dueling chant between kids evenly split between Miz & Darren Young.
The biggest pop came when the ref threw Maryse out. When Miz tried to walk out with the title, Backlund stopped him.
Not a great match. Young kicked out of the skull crushing finale, and won by countout when Miz ran into the crowd to escape. Lame finish to a bad match that was mostly rest holds.
– Kane & The Big Show def. The Vaudevillians (3:14)
Faces won via pinfall after delivering chokeslams to both Vaudevillains. This was basically a glorified squash match. The crowd popped big for Big Show & Kane’s entrances and signature moves.
Intermission
– WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte (w/Dana Brooke) def. Alicia Fox (6:13)
Average women’s match at best. The crowd wasn’t particularly into it. Charlotte pinned Alicia at 6:13 after Dana distracted Alicia and Charlotte rolled her up. Post match, Dana & Charlotte double teamed Alicia until Sasha ran out for the save which got the biggest pop of the match.
– Baron Corbin def. Titus O’Neil (2:16)
Corbin attacked Titus before the bell. Corbin pinned Titus after rolling him up & putting his feet on the ropes. There wasn’t much to this. Some people did the Titus gator noises.
– US Champion Rusev (w Lana) vs. Kalisto vs. Sami Zayn vs. Cesaro (14:08)
This was easily the best match of the night. Lana’s prematch promo got good heat as she called Augusta a “pathetic village”. Kalisto was the most over guy with the kids with lots of “Lucha” chants. Good reactions for Cesaro & Zayn too.
Rusev wins via submission when Kalisto submitted to the Accolade. All 3 babyfaces hit their finishers on Rusev after the match. They played each of their entrance themes as all three guys danced around the fallen Rusev to send the crowd home happy. Cesaro even did the Alex Wright dance.
Overall this wasn’t a very good show, but the main event saved it.
Let’s go back roughly one year ago where in the seventh week of John Cena’s U.S. Open Challenge, the United States champion threw down the gauntlet and received a response from Neville, who had by that point been up from NXT for as many weeks as Cena’s reign.
Still early in his run on the main roster, Neville had been given decent opportunities to showcase some of the in-ring abilities that had made him an attraction during his run in NXT, even earning a visual pin on then-WWE Champion Seth Rollins in a losing effort the week after his debut. But the fact that he had worked the vast majority of his television matches to that point with names like Curtis Axel, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, and Wade Barrett had already solidified him as a guy firmly in the middle of the go-nowhere midcard mix.
On this particular night, in just under 15 minutes, Cena did more to elevate Neville’s stock than the previous six weeks of television combined. The former Pac kicked out of the Attitude Adjustment — though this was far from uncommon for Cena’s opponents during this period — and was given a significant amount of time to shine on offense. He took full advantage with an incredible twisting Asai moonsault to the floor, a Phoenix Splash from the second rope for a near fall, and a perfectly-executed Red Arrow that left the audience with the distinct impression that Neville had the champion cold just before the match was thrown out due to Rusev’s interference. If WWE had any interest in making Neville a top star, this moment would have been the ideal foundation for that project.
Moreover, Cena’s gimmick of issuing an open challenge that would then be accepted by a wrestler who may not have otherwise been given a platform on Monday nights once again resulted in an exciting television match that put the United States title a level above where it had been for most of its post-WCW existence. While previous champion Rusev had done a surprisingly capable job of keeping the belt relevant with an undefeated streak and a back-to-basics foreign heel shtick, he never felt like much more than a midcard act, working with and bowling over guys like Jack Swagger and Mark Henry.
When it became evident that he was being put up against Cena at Wrestlemania, it also became evident that Rusev’s lot was being built up to be toppled by the company’s resident uber-patriot. The clear line of logic behind putting a mid-card belt on Cena, who had spent nearly the entirety of the prior decade as the company’s singular top draw, was to use his star to help elevate a championship once held in high regard back to its former glory.
And at this point, it was working exceedingly well, particularly when comparing the U.S. title’s standing at the time to that of WWE’s other singles titles. On the same show as Neville vs. Cena, Daniel Bryan — who, like Cena with the U.S. Title, had been chosen to reinvigorate the Intercontinental Championship after winning it in a ladder match at Wrestlemania –surrendered the gold as a result of what was ultimately a career-ending injury, sadly having never gotten the chance to do what he had intended with the title.
The main event on this night saw Rollins defend his championship against Randy Orton in a match that also went about 15 minutes and ended unceremoniously in a disqualification. Between Cena’s and Rollins’ matches, however, only one of the two felt like it mattered for something both in context and in a vacuum.
The seeming end-goal for Cena’s run with the U.S. Championship would be something perhaps comparable to having Brock Lesnar end Undertaker’s streak, only on a significantly smaller scale. Like how being the one to beat Lesnar carries a weight that could potentially launch a wrestler to the moon, Cena’s prestige would make the championship a valuable asset that could greatly benefit whoever ultimately won it from him. Defeating Cena and winning the United States Championship would ideally help create a new top star who could maintain the integrity of the title with similarly exciting matches before passing it on to the next burgeoning star and stepping up into the main event scene.
Or, at least, that may have been the concept.
Now consider the United States title in its current state.
Kalisto is entering the fifth month of his reign as U.S. Champion, a fact that is surprising enough in and of itself. More astounding is the fact that heading into Extreme Rules, he is riding a three-show streak of not being featured on the main card of pay-per-views. The sum total of the work put into making the title an important piece of the larger picture appears to have been all for naught.
Since winning the title back from Alberto Del Rio at Royal Rumble, Kalisto has defended against Del Rio in a pretty great 2/3 falls match at Fastlane, against Ryback at Wrestlemania in front of a mostly empty stadium, and once more against Ryback at Payback in a match that was probably most notable for his opponent’s weightlifting belt bearing the words “The Pre-Show Stopper.”
That each title match was relegated to the pre-show is all the more confounding when one considers that there was room made on Payback for a match between Curtis Axel and R-Truth that was barely Raw on Hulu worthy, the main card of Wrestlemania lasted nearly 5 hours, and the segment from Payback with Vince, Shane, and Stephanie was given 30 minutes to basically reach a non-conclusion.
Kalisto is by no means to blame for whatever luster the title has lost during his five months as champion.The impetus for his initial U.S. title win was doubtlessly the buzz generated by his spectacular Salida Del Sol from atop a ladder at last December’s TLC show, and it was buzzworthy enough to have catapulted Kalisto to the level of a Rey Mysterio in terms of popularity and merchandising. Putting the United States Championship on him, in most scenarios, would be an indication that he was destined for bigger things as a singles star, and that WWE had at last realized its dream of a merch-moving, bilingual, Hispanic superhero for whom children would clamor.
As with the payoff of Cena’s U.S. Open Challenge, however, there is a considerable gulf between what could have been and what is.
Del Rio, the man from whom Kalisto won the championship, cannot be blamed either. As the surprise choice to go over Cena in the Open Challenge, ADR returned from a year away from the company at October’s Hell in a Cell and won the title clean in a short, forgettable match. Despite having gotten himself over to an even greater degree in AAA and Lucha Underground as a babyface than he ever was during his run with WWE, and despite getting a strong babyface reaction from the crowd in Los Angeles upon his return, the call was made to pair Del Rio with a Rascal-bound Zeb Coulter and position him as a heel right out of the gate.
Within three weeks of the title change, both Del Rio’s self-made momentum (and, seemingly, his renewed passion) and the sense of importance that Cena had brought to the U.S. title were buried six feet below the surface of a field somewhere in Mex-America. By the time Del Rio lost the title to Kalisto on an episode of Raw in January, he was just another guy and the United States Championship was once again just a mid-card belt.
Given the presumed importance of both elevating the United States Championship andbuilding a top Hispanic superstar, the bungling of Del Rio and Kalisto as well as the championship they both have held in Cena’s stead, is staggering. Somehow, it is nonetheless unsurprising. It is a result indicative of a larger problem with WWE’s booking approach for the past several years: Cena was the lynchpin of the plan to elevate the United States Championship, and once he was pulled away, the interest in keeping the championship relevant went with him and the whole thing fell apart.
WWE had a real opportunity to keep the belt relevant post-Cena with a refreshed Del Rio, and it failed by completely ignoring what made him such a hot commodity on the independent circuit, sticking him with a dead-on-arrival gimmick, and then shoving him into the background as part of a stable. It then had the opportunity to make Kalisto into its next money-drawing luchador, and it instead killed his buzz by putting the belt on him, putting it back on Del Rio a day later, putting it back on Kalisto less than two weeks later, and then minimizing his role on TV with do-nothing feuds and a five-month absence from major shows.
With the way things are headed, Rusev may wind up reclaiming the United States title at Extreme Rules (at the very least, he has vowed to eat his opponent’s heart, which should make for a great show). Monday marked one year since Rusev last faced Cena for the same title, and in the 365 days since, he has not only proven his ability to survive through bad storylines, but his capability of thriving in them and remaining entertaining (see: throwing a fish at Lana, his all-too-short-lived gimmick of stealing television monitors). Having Rusev end Kalisto’s lame-duck championship run and go on a tear comparable to his undefeated streak could both allow him to cultivate his character and put him back on the map as a viable threat for the world title.
But there is also the specter of Cena looming large over the United States title chase scene. Having already announced his return for Memorial Day, it is not outside the realm of possibility that he will challenge Rusev for the belt, win it back, and resume the Open Challenge seven months after it ended as if the intervening months had never happened. That would likely be preferable for WWE’s purposes, allowing them to smokescreen their failures with Del Rio and Kalisto by closing the loop and trying it again.
Having Cena swoop back in and reclaim the title may not be the best approach for the championship or those orbiting it now, but it is easy to see from WWE’s perspective how John Cena would restore the belt’s tarnished credibility instantaneously. If they were able to comprehend why it lost so much of the credibility that Cena worked so hard to build in the first place, then perhaps putting so much effort into bolstering the importance of championship belts would not be necessary in the future.
– Air Date: January 14, 2016 (Jan 13 in Canada) – Location: Canjundome in Lafayette, LA
The Big News:
Alberto Del Rio regained the U.S. Championship after defeating Kalisto in a really good match. Also, Dean Ambrose will defend his Intercontinental Championship in a Last Man Standing Match at the Royal Rumble against Kevin Owens.
Show Recap:
The announcers plugged all three “main events” to start the show. Renee Young was standing outside the arena awaiting Dean Ambrose, who showed up in the passenger seat of a pickup truck. Ambrose had a statement for Kevin Owens but wanted to announce it to his face in the ring.
Ambrose came to the ring, asked for a drumroll and was surprised when he actually got one. Ambrose wanted Owens out there before making the announcement, but he didn’t show up. He asked for the drumroll again and said he was challenging Owens to a Last Man Standing match at the Rumble. (There was a funny flub when Ambrose talked into the IC Title on his shoulder instead of the mic and we couldn’t hear what he was saying for a moment.)
Sheamus came out and said Ambrose was acting like a child (he was) but the adults were tired of him. Sheamus said Roman Reigns stole the title from him and now he has to win it back in the Rumble match. He wanted to finish the brawl they didn’t finish on Raw and was pissed about the forehead scar Ambrose gave him. Ambrose was ready for a fight but Kevin Owens interrupted.
Owens accepted the challenge and said Ambrose wouldn’t be able to walk out of the Rumble. Sheamus and Owens attacked him but Neville ran out to make the save and the heels bailed. This was not a good segment and crowd was quiet. They made Ambrose do comedy to announce a Last Man Standing match and it died. Also, there was no explanation for why Ambrose didn’t come out to save Reigns on Raw.
Tables Match: The Dudley Boyz beat Luke Harper & Erick Rowan (w/Braun Strowman)
The lights went out after the Dudleys made their entrance and the Wyatts magically appeared to attack them from behind. I guess the referee thought this was fair so he started the match. The Dudleys set up a table but Harper hit D-Von with a superkick. There was a mixup between Bubba and Harper/Rowan where they just awkwardly stood around until Rowan kicked Bubba and they went to commercial.
Strowman got his team a kendo stick but Bubba grabbed it and used it to knock Rowan out of the ring. Strowman went after him but Bubba moved and Strowman went shoulder-first into the post. Eventually, Bubba and Harper had a struggle on the steps, ending with Bubba pushing Harper through a table on the floor for the surprising Dudleys win.
Afterwards, Strowman knocked down both Dudleys from behind. Strowman tossed D-Von into two different tables positioned in the corners. Then, standing on the announce table, Harper and Rowan gave Bubba a double chokeslam through two tables on the floor. Strowman was directing them a la Bray Wyatt, who was not there. The post-match was a good heat angle for the Wyatts, but I’m not sure why they didn’t just win.
Backstage, Kalisto told Jo-Jo he didn’t have much hope to get to WWE, but guys like Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio gave him hope. All he needed was one opportunity and now he’s U.S. Champion and plans for it to stay that way.
8-Man Tag: Social Outcasts beat Damien Sandow, Goldust, Jack Swagger & Zack Ryder via pinfall
Nobody got an introduction. Bo Dallas won with a Bo-dog on Ryder. As Dallas did the Bo-dog, he accidentally kicked Slater off the ring apron for comedy. The action here was totally fine, but this felt like a waste of time, and in particular, a waste of Goldust and Jack Swagger. Also, this was Sandow’s first match on Raw or Smackdown since May of 2015 when, funny enough, he teamed with Axel to beat Slater and Rose. Welcome back.
They aired a video package from Raw. Jerry Lawler again sided with the McMahons and said Reigns deserved what he got.
Backstage, Alberto Del Rio told Renee he doesn’t care what the fans think and would bring them back to reality when he regains the U.S. Championship.
U.S. Championship: Alberto Del Rio beat Kalisto via submission
Lawler started by saying there’s no way Del Rio could take Kalisto seriously. Mauro Ranallo mentioned that Del Rio main evented an MMA show he called 12 years ago. Del Rio hit a great-looking armbreaker off the ropes. Kalisto rolled to the outside trying to regroup, but Del Rio went after him, slamming his arm against the steel steps. The crowd started to get behind Kalisto after that.
After a break, Wade Barrett was at ringside. This felt like a video game where your ally just randomly shows up at ringside. Del Rio set up for the double foot stomp but Kalisto countered into a headscissors. He followed with a springboard seated senton but Del Rio sidestepped another springboard move and hit a side kick for a near fall. Kalisto made his comeback and got a couple of near falls.
Barrett distracted Kalisto allowing Del Rio to apply the armbar. Kalisto managed to make it to the ropes after a long struggle. Del Rio fell to the outside and Kalisto went for a dive, but Barrett pulled Del Rio out of the way and Kalisto crashed on to the mats. Del Rio reapplied the armbar back in the ring and Kalisto tapped out immediately.
This match was really good and Kalisto came off as well as he could here in the loss. Slight nitpick is that they moved on from this segment too quickly after Del Rio won. Also, Barrett’s involvement was pretty lame.
They played the Sting Hall of Fame video.
Backstage, Becky Lynch told Renee that Charlotte attacking her really got her down. Renee said Lynch doesn’t stay down, and they showed a replay of Lynch attacking Charlotte on Raw. Lynch said she would stay fired up until she beats Charlotte for the title and challenged her to a match at the Rumble. Lynch said Charlotte could bring the whole Flair clan and she would be ready.
Becky Lynch beat Brie Bella (w/Alicia Fox) via submission
Lynch won relatively quickly with the Disarmer. (I wrote that before the match started.)
Neville & IC Champion Dean Ambrose beat Sheamus & Kevin Owens via DQ
They went to commercial a minute into the match. After the break, they had the heat on Ambrose. Neville tagged in and ran wild but was attacked from behind by Owens and they got the heat on him. Owens called Ranallo “Four eyes” and told him to pay attention because he might learn something.
Owens went for a cannonball but Neville moved and hit a German suplex and made the hot tag to Ambrose. Ambrose ran wild on Sheamus, hitting a tornado DDT and flying elbow drop. Owens broke up the cover so Ambrose knocked him out of the ring. Ambrose went for the rebound clothesline on Sheamus, but Owens kicked him right in the head and Sheamus hit White Noise for a near fall.
Owens tagged in but Ambrose countered a powerbomb and hit a rebound clothesline followed by a suicide dive. Sheamus drove him repeatedly into the ring steps, returning the favour from Raw. Owens hit Ambrose with the light piece of cardboard that covers the announce table and that was a DQ.
The heels cleared the table but Neville took them out with a dive. Ambrose gave Owens Dirty Deeds and Neville finished him off with Red Arrow. The babyfaces posed and Sheamus seethed at them.
Final Thoughts:
This would’ve been every Smackdown show ever if not for the Kalisto vs. Alberto Del Rio title match, which I really liked. Maybe I wouldn’t have put the title back on Del Rio right away, but Kalisto looked strong so I’ll let this one play out.
They really need to stop booking “big” matches that they don’t know how to get out of. Tonight’s main event with Dean Ambrose ended in a DQ, after his match with Sheamus on Raw ended in a double count out. Last week’s Smackdown main event with Ambrose also ended in a double count out, and his tag match that main evented Smackdown the week before that ended in a DQ.
Also, this was their second week on a new network, and the second week with no Roman Reigns (among others). I know he was overseas or whatever, but it’s not like they inform the viewers of this.
– Air Date: November 12, 2015 (Nov 11 in Canada) – Location: Manchester Arena in Manchester, England
The Big News:
Undertaker did not actually appear on Smackdown, but did accept Bray Wyatt’s challenge for a tag team match at Survivor Series. Also, Kalisto beat Ryback clean.
Show Recap:
The show started with a recap of Seth Rollins’ injury and they plugged tonight’s tournament matches.
The Wyatts interrupted and a video recap was shown of the angle with Undertaker and Kane from Raw. They piped in some crowd booing as the Wyatts stood in the ring. Luke Harper said they would sacrifice “dem Uso boys” to honour Bray Wyatt. Erick Rowan said Bray brings sorrow to those who oppose him and they would do the same tonight. Braun Strowman said “Look at my face… and see your annihilation.” Strowman added that he would pile bodies to the sky for Bray.
Bray said Kane and Undertaker may have escaped the pits of hell but they’ll never be the same again. He’s taken pieces of them and now they are apart of him. Bray challenged the Brothers of Destruction to a tag match at Survivor Series against two of his men, and gave them until the end of tonight to accept.
Bray said we would remember Survivor Series as the night Kane and Undertaker were buried forever. Usual lame Wyatt segment. The crowd chanted for Undertaker a few times through the segment. The highlight was the unintentional comedy of Strowman yelling, “Look at my face.”
Braun Strowman (w/Wyatt Family) beat Fandango via submission
Some of the crowd did the Fandango dance and he danced too until he got into the ring, saw the Wyatts and resigned himself to his fate. He started with a dropkick but Strowman tossed him around and won with the head-and-arm choke in less than 2 minutes. Fandango actually tapped instead of merely passing out.
WWE Title Tournament First Round Match: Neville beat King Barrett via pinfall
They showed a clip of Neville from earlier tonight saying Barrett was embarrassed on Raw and he would finish what Wayne Rooney started with a Red Arrow. This was not an inset promo, but rather a clip from what looked like a sit-down interview. This is a much better idea than the usual inset promos.
They did a dangerous spot early in the match where Barrett hung Neville’s feet over the top rope and then just slammed him head first into the mat. Neville rolled to the outside selling his head and Barrett followed him out, slammed his head into the announce table and launched him into the barricade.
After a break, Barrett used a pump handle slam and continued working over Neville. Barrett slid Neville to the outside and he crashed into the barricade. Barrett took some time to tell the announcers that he would be the next champion. Neville ran along the top of the barricade (a la Jeff Hardy) and hit a flip dive on Barrett. He used kicks and a standing shooting star press in the ring for a two count.
Barrett hit a back kick for a two count and argued with the referee that it was a three, accusing him of taking a pay off from Neville. Neville came back with a German suplex but Barrett followed with a swinging side slam. Neville countered Wasteland into a DDT and landed Red Arrow for the win. This was good. It went about 14 minutes and Neville took a beating. They announced Neville vs. Kevin Owens for Raw.
Backstage, the Usos told Renee Young that they have a rivalry with the Wyatts and weren’t about to be sacrificed. Jimmy was taken out by Strowman two months ago and they weren’t going to forgive and forget.
WWE Title Tournament First Round Match: Kalisto beat Ryback via pinfall
Kalisto said he respects Ryback but he shouldn’t be underestimated. He then spouted some cliches about being an underdog. This was another sit-down interview, but the material sucked. Ryback did an inset promo. I’m not really sure what Ryback said, because he spoke quietly as his music played in the background and his fireworks went off. He thinks he’ll be champion, probably.
They shook hands to start but Kalisto quickly began kicking away. He hit Salida Del Sol a minute into the match but Ryback kicked out aggressively at two, sending Kalisto to the outside. After a break, Kalisto used more kicks, but Ryback just picked him up and hit a spinebuster followed by two hard powerbombs. This presumably could have been a finish but Kalisto rolled to the outside. Ryback took control until Kalisto dropkicked him to the outside. Kalisto tried an Asai moonsault but Ryback slammed him into the mat (they messed this up).
Kalisto countered a shell shocked into a rollup for a near fall. Ryback hit a meat hook clothesline but Kalisto got his foot on the rope. Ryback tried a backdrop off the top rope, but Kalisto countered into Salida Del Sol for the pinfall win. Ryback kicked out just after the three count.
The match was good, not great, but Kalisto really got over well here and this might’ve been the highlight of the show. The crowd popped and the commentators put this over as a big upset win. Ryback shook Kalisto’s hand afterwards.
WWE Title Tournament First Round Match: Alberto Del Rio (w/Zeb Colter) beat Stardust via pinfall
Alberto Del Rio and Zeb Colter did a promo on the stage. Colter said the United Kingdom was really the Divided Kingdom because all the countries hate each other. He called the people haters, but him and Del Rio have eradicated hate in MexAmerica. Del Rio said the fans of the two “soccer” teams hate each other but they should be united. Colter said they would unite the MexAmerica Title (U.S. Title) with the World Title. This really sucked. The crowd chanted “What” at Colter and Del Rio was greeted by silence.
Stardust did an inset promo calling himself the dark horse in the tournament and would become champion. Del Rio worked him over a while but he came back with a Side Effect and reverse DDT. Del Rio went for an armbar but Stardust countered with a disaster kick for two. Stardust went to the top, so of course Del Rio knocked his legs out and used a tree of woe double foot stomp for the win. This was uninspiring to say the least.
They showed a replay of the Paige/Charlotte/Becky Lynch angle from Raw.
Backstage, Roman Reigns told Renee that his journey to become WWE Champion has been like climbing Mount Everest. The closer he gets to the top, the harder it gets. On Monday, he meets an avalanche in the form of Cesaro, but Cesaro can’t stop him because “Nothing at this point can stop me now.” They replayed a clip of Triple H’s offer, but Reigns said he wasn’t a sell out and would be standing on top of the mountain as the sole survivor of this tournament. Reigns delivered his lines well but it was heavily scripted and it was hard not to notice.
The Usos beat Luke Harper & Erick Rowan (w/Bray Wyatt & Braun Strowman) via DQ
This was the main event. Harper and Rowan attacked the Usos before the match started. The Usos fought back and one Uso took down the two Wyatts with a dive outside the ring. The Usos jumped back in the ring and challenged Harper and Rowan to get in. Rowan jumped in and the match officially started.
Harper and Rowan worked over Jey until he made a hot tag to Jimmy. He hit an enzuigiri and a crossbody for nearfalls. Rowan took out Jey outside the ring as Jimmy used a Samoan drop and running hip attack on Harper. He tried a dive to the outside but was caught by Rowan, and Harper followed with a superkick.
Back in the ring, Harper hit a sitdown powerbomb but Jey broke up the cover with a splash. Jimmy hit Harper with two superkicks, and both Usos hit Rowan with superkicks, sending both bad guys to the outside. Usos took them out with dives, and Bray had seen enough. All four Wyatts attacked the Usos for the DQ.
Bray mocked Taker’s throat slash as Harper and Rowan gave Jey a double chokeslam. Strowman followed by doing his stupid slam on Jimmy and Bray finished him off with Sister Abigail. Bray was about to do it again but the Undertaker’s dong sounded and the lights went out. Undertaker’s voice played over the speakers. He said the Wyatts would be dragged through the gates of hell and they would rest in peace. So I guess he accepts.
Final Thoughts:
This show felt more important than the usual Smackdown thanks to the title tournament. The first two tournament matches were good and it was refreshing to see Kalisto beat Ryback, even if he is just being set up for Del Rio. The rest of the show was lackluster, as it was laid out very much like Raw. The tournament took up most of the time and the show concluded with an angle for the Undertaker. Except, unlike Raw, he didn’t show up, so it felt pretty flat.
It should also be noted that there was no women’s segment on this show outside of the one Raw replay (unless they add something for the Thursday airing in the U.S.). No match or interview. So there’s that.
