Main Event was cut down to one match this week and was bookended between Raw and SmackDown rehash. The sole match saw the ever-impressive Bianca Belair pin Billie Kay to remain undefeated since joining the main roster.
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Bianca Belair defeated Billie Kay (w/ Peyton Royce) (6:29)
Bianca Belair, who is now 5-0 on Main Event and 8-0 overall, had new silver ring gear this week. Although it is never referenced on commentary, she continues to sport the moniker EST that she used in NXT, representing the last three letters of the adjectives she uses to describe herself with: greatest, fastest, toughest, and best.
This would have been a good pre-Raw match to get a live crowd in the mood. They did lots of comedy spots early on and Royce and Kay are good heels who know how to wind up an audience.
Kay has quite a few nice tricks up her sleeve and did a really good job working over Belair’s left arm, which became the story for this short match. Belair not only sold it well during the onslaught, but she continued to do so after. It’s wrinkles like this that will see her go far.
They teased that Kay would win when Royce distracted Belair on the apron and Kay rolled her up for a near fall. This was enough for Belair though, who once again showed her impressive strength, getting Kay up on to her shoulders for the KOD to win the match.
Final Thoughts —
If the WWE taping schedule becomes increasingly difficult, Main Event may quickly fall by the wayside, but Bianca Belair is fast becoming one to watch. Raw TV time beckons as she continues her main roster undefeated streak.
Both matches were very strong again this week as Main Event carried on being an extremely watchable wrestling show. Liv Morgan and Shane Thorne held their own against very experienced hands in Natalya and Shelton Benjamin. Morgan got her first win since April and Benjamin made his experience count in the main event.
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Liv Morgan defeated Natalya (5:34)
Liv Morgan was last on Main Event back in April when she defeated Santana Garrett and has been very impressive. With respect to Garrett, here against Natalya, she was taking on a vastly more experienced opponent and the match was even better.
What Morgan does so well, in addition to her in-ring smoothness, is her facial expressions and ability to react in a natural looking way to the situations she faces in the ring. She also has some comic timing and a fantastic look. Like Bianca Belair, Morgan has to be one to watch for the imminent future.
Natalya, composed as ever, started by getting the crowd going before they went at a really fast pace for the entirety of this match. They did a spot where Morgan mimicked Natalya in everything she did, like a child annoying an older sibling, and Natalya did an remarkable surfboard spot.
In the end, the traded inside cradles back and forth, after Natalya had failed to lock in the Sharpshooter. Morgan rolled Natalya through and just managed to hold on for the three count in a finish that could have gone either way. Natalya played up the loss after the bell looking angry and bereft.
This was a good opener to continue the streak of excellent in-ring work that we’ve seen on this show over the last few months. Natalya is always outstanding, but Morgan vs. Belair would be a very intriguing Main Event matchup for the coming weeks.
Shelton Benjamin defeated Shane Thorne (8:02)
Shelton Benjamin has been a joy to watch over the last six months on Main Event, rarely missing a week. Although clearly wasted on a show that is difficult to watch for the casual WWE viewer, he’s given new talent the chance to work with him on a taped TV show, no doubt providing invaluable experience for them.
Shane Thorne is by no means new to this, but he is fairly new to the WWE audience and is one of those who will be benefiting from the experience that Benjamin brings with him. Thorne worked with Ricochet last week, putting on a solid, traditional babyface vs. heel contest.
Here, Thorne, with kinesiology tape on his left shoulder, played an old-school, smug, cowardly heel. He looked for the ropes to break holds at every turn and took cheap shots to gain an advantage wherever he could. He plays this role beautifully.
They paced the match well, speeding up into quick bursts of quick chain wrestling and some explosive moves, like when Thorne did a rolling cannonball to the corner to send Benjamin outside.
But enough was enough for Benjamin, who got the shine with three scoop slams and a running knee to Thorne who was on the top rope. Benjamin then hit him with Paydirt for the win.
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Final Thoughts —
Main Event has become a very watchable product over the last few months. Seeing the likes of Liv Morgan and Shane Thorne prove that they’ve got what it takes is fun to witness, but it’s about time Shelton Benjamin got the respect he deserves as an in-ring performer. Maybe the shakeup in creative will mean that happens, but I’m not holding my breath.
For those keeping count, this was the 401st episode of Main Event and just as almost no one is able to watch it, it’s finally getting into its stride.
Two very strong matches were on display, with Ricochet getting a fine win over Shane Thorne in the opener and Cedric Alexander gaining a surprise victory over Shelton Benjamin in an excellent main event.
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Ricochet defeated Shane Thorne (6:03)
This felt longer than it was, but in a good way. They got so much in the time that they had and Ricochet made every effort to help Thorne look a real threat. By the end, they’d tried just about everything each of them had to gain the win.
Thorne garners some pretty decent heat as a heel and against as good a babyface as Ricochet, it makes sense. And it’s times like these that really cement just how underused and seemingly undervalued Ricochet has become of late.
This was a rematch from two weeks ago. And although that match was actually really very good and this was shorter, this time out was probably the better of the two, probably for the finishing sequence alone.
Ricochet went for his standing Shooting Star Press, but Thorne got his knees up and rolled Ricochet up for a near fall. Ricochet then showed some fight and nailed Thorne with an impressive reverse rana before hitting the Kick Back for the win.
This was a good, smooth wrestling match between a great babyface and an increasingly convincing heel.
Cedric Alexander defeated Shelton Benjamin (7:29)
It doesn’t seem to matter who they give Shelton Benjamin to work with on Main Event, he will adapt to their style and produce an excellent match. Hardly surprising when you consider he’s been doing this for 20 years and that this week his opponent was Cedric Alexander.
This was as good a Main Event match as you’ll see. Not because they tried to do anything special, but because the pace was perfect and technically it was superb. Benjamin is in that space in his career now where there is no wasted movement in his work and Alexander is seriously talented.
Shelton played the bully; Alexander was the plucky babyface. If they stuck Benjamin with Paul Heyman and let him use his powerful move set, you could easily strap a rocket to this guy and make him a main eventer within weeks. He’s that good and that underused.
They gave Alexander the win here. Benjamin went for Paydirt and Alexander reversed it for a near fall, so Benjamin went for a powerbomb but Alexander flipped over onto his feet and hit the Neuralyzer Kick for another near fall.
In the end, it took a Lumbar Check and a Michinoku Driver from Alexander to defeated Benjamin and I just hope we get this again next week.
Final Thoughts —
Two really good matches again from Main Event. The shorter match format is suiting almost everyone at the minute. MVP is great as color commentator and with Performance Center talent in the crowd, the whole presentation is better than it has been in such a long time.
Main Event returned with members of the Performance Center to make up the crowd, which made for a much better show. Bianca Belair and Ruby Riott had a fine opener as Belair remains undefeated since being called up to the main roster. Shelton Benjamin and Akira Tozawa worked beautifully together and had an excellent six-minute match in the main event.
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Bianca Belair defeated Ruby Riott (5:45)
This was a rematch for Belair and Riott, who faced off two weeks ago on Main Event. Belair is now 4-0 since joining the Raw roster and ought to be given some TV time as there is simply no doubt that she is ready. She dominated Riott here and has a varied moveset that makes her an exciting prospect.
At the finish, Riott grabbed a near fall and went up to the top rope, but Belair caught her and hit a modified Glam Slam on to the top turnbuckle. After news that emerged this weekend, that move may no longer be allowed.
Belair then hit the KOD for the win. This was good, but not quite as good as their last outing a couple of weeks back on Main Event. Belair is such a huge talent and should be rubbing shoulders with the top talent on Raw or SmackDown.
Shelton Benjamin defeated Akira Tozawa (6:06)
Jim Ross noted on Grilling JR with Conrad Thompson this week that Shelton Benjamin was the “finest pure athlete” that he ever signed when he was head of talent relations. For sure, watching him on Main Event over the last few months has been a pleasure.
Benjamin and Tozawa worked so well together here. Tozawa is fantastic at selling and, with Benjamin in tow, knows exactly when to speed up or slow down to build the tension. They went back and forth and produced such a wonderfully paced match here.
In the last minutes, Benjamin locked on the Angle Lock and it looked every bit that Tozawa would tap. Instead, he rolled through and snatched a near fall before super kicking Benjamin. He climbed up top, selling his ankle so that Benjamin had time to get to his feet.
Benjamin climbed up and launched Tozawa off the top rope with a belly-to-belly suplex and then finished him with his old finisher, the Paydirt.
Final Thoughts —
A good show, but there’s an argument that all four of these performers should be being used more. Admittedly, Belair probably has plenty of time to get to where she needs to be. Benjamin, however, is being cruelly underused at this stage in his career – he has so much more to give.
Main Event continues to feel a little more fresh, with more up-and-coming talent getting a chance to perform each week.
Jinder Mahal got another easy win, this time against the ever-impressive Akira Tozawa, and Ricochet eventually got the victory against Shane Thorne in a slightly bloated match at the end of the show.
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Jinder Mahal defeated Akira Tozawa (5:53)
Much like last week on Main Event, Mahal got a chance to clock up some more minutes in the ring as he continues to make his comeback from a knee injury that saw him out of action for over six months.
Tozawa was his opponent on Raw when Mahal returned in April and once again played an excellent foil for Mahal’s stiff and rigid moveset here. Tozawa is so highly skilled, but like a lot of talent, the company doesn’t know what to do with him.
At the finish, Tozawa hit a hurricanrana, followed by a shining wizard and went up top for a missile dropkick. He got a near fall, but Mahal then posted Tozawa to soften him for the Khallas.
This went quick at the end after a slow start and Mahal is now 3-0 since returning to in-ring action. Mahal finds himself without a creative direction at present but will no doubt be looking to get some screen time on Raw soon to see if he can find himself back in contention for a title.
As he makes only his second appearance on Main Event, it’s worth noting how long and hard Thorne has worked to get to this point in his career. Turning 35 this year, Thorne has been doing this now for over 10 years, from Australia to Japan before finally joining NXT in 2016.
Thorne is tall, lean, and technically very accomplished. He tied Ricochet up in knots at times here and knew when to feed his fast-paced offense and when to slow it down for some heat.
Thorne and Vink debuted in March on Raw. But they were separated here in what really ought to have been a tag match — neither Alexander nor Vink were involved at all and it would probably have been more fun if they had.
At the finish, Thorne went up to the second turnbuckle and Ricochet grabbed the leg and launched him off the ropes with a hurricanrana. Ricochet nailed Thorne in the back of the head before using the Kick Back to get the win.
Final Thoughts —
Nothing much wrong with either match this week, but Ricochet and Thorne probably went a little too long. It feels like Main Event is being used to give time to returning talent who need to brush off the ring rust or that they have nothing for right now or to give up-and-comers a chance to notch up some TV minutes. Either way, it’s a much more interesting show than it has been in a long, long time.
Jinder Mahal beat up Main Event debutante Denzel Dejournette for just over six minutes in a fairly dull opener. Bianca Belair and Ruby Riott then had a very good match at the end of the show, with Belair taking her Main Event record to 2-0 with the win.
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Jinder Mahal defeated Denzel Dejournette (6:21)
Dejournette has been awarded a few TV opportunities lately, with appearances on both Raw and SmackDown. He comes with an impressive amateur background and good write-ups since joining the Performance Center in 2018.
The future certainly looks bright for Dejournette, who in the past two months has worked TVs with Seth Rollins, Sheamus, and Bobby Lashley, while Keith Lee has spoken about how excited he has been about Dejournette’s development.
As you’d expect, Mahal dictated things here and the match under his lead got a little repetitive and slow. MVP put him over on commentary saying, “we know that Mahal could have finished this some time ago, but what he’s doing is punishing Dejournette.”
Dejournette got some hope with a belly-to-back suplex and a Stinger splash to the corner, but Mahal quickly finished things after that. Mahal pinned him with the Khallas.
Dejournette looks good and hopefully will get some opportunities to be something other than cannon fodder over the coming months.
Bianca Belair defeated Ruby Riott (7:33)
Once again, you can’t help but be impressed by Bianca Belair. She and Ruby Riott packed a ton into this match, telling a story and going back and forth with very little let up.
The only issue with Belair is that she’s so accomplished and graceful that some of her moves look too nice and so it’s hard to suspend your disbelieve that they might actually hurt. A case in point is her standing moonsault that she hit on Riott here. It is so perfect and safe that Riott won’t have felt a thing.
They brawled outside the ring, but the story was Riott trying to tip the odds in her favor by working over Belair’s left arm. Belair sold it well and Riott was creative in her methods.
By the end, Riott’s nose was bloodied and was teetering on the edge. She went up to the top rope but was punched off it. Belair hooked her on her shoulders for the KOD and, with the win, remains undefeated on Main Event.
Final Thoughts —
A decent show again this week, but Jinder Mahal was an unwelcome addition. It would be far better for the likes of Denzel Dejournette to get a opportunities to show off what they can do, rather than how much they can sell.
Belair and Riott’s match was very good as Belair continues to show what she’s made of.
The Big Takeaway: Ricochet returned to Main Event, defeating Eric Young in a very fine opening match. Humberto Carrillo then made his show debut with a win over Shelton Benjamin.
Both matches were strong and with the Raw and SmackDown quick recaps, the show was a perfectly fun way to spend 45 minutes.
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Ricochet defeated Eric Young (5:28)
This was really strong. Two talented, currently underused performers doing a really good job of warming up the pre-Raw crowd was a pleasure to watch.
Eric Young flipped around for Ricochet extremely well. He tried to work a 205 Live style to fit in with Ricochet and was generally up to the task, and even more impressive given that these two have only worked together once before on TV and that was over a year ago.
Ricochet teased the flip dive to the outside twice before finally hitting it on the third attempt. Ricochet went for his finisher twice, too, but was knocked off the top rope by Young each time.
Eventually, Ricochet was just too quick for Young, who ran out of steam and ability to thwart his plans. Ricochet hit the 630 for the win and the crowd was into it. This was good, solid babyface vs. heel fare.
Humberto Carrillo defeated Shelton Benjamin (5:17)
The impressive Humberto Carrillo made his Main Event debut here after what has been an excellent first run on the main roster. The 25-year-old’s work with Andrade has been outstanding at times and often a contender for the best match on the show. Their Elimination Chamber match is a case in point.
Benjamin has been a regular on Main Event over the last month and has looked somewhat rejuvenated. His matches have been very good and his new cross armbar submission hold has been inescapable until now.
Benjamin went for the move within the first 30 seconds of the match and they did it so well that it looked like total chance that Carrillo was close enough to the ropes to get his legs over them to break the hold. Carrillo worked 100 mph before eating a big boot to the outside; Benjamin stood smoldering and we went to a break.
It was actually pretty impressive what they managed to fit in to such a short match. Benjamin really helped to put Carrillo over. They did a cool spot outside where Carrillo flipped over him into a handstand on the apron and then fell back onto Benjamin and planted him in a DDT.
Carrillo tried to finish things off, but Benjamin rolled out of the way when he came off the top rope. Carrillo landed on his feet, but Benjamin wasted no time in locking in his new submission move. This time, Carrillo managed to stand up to reverse the hold into a cover. Benjamin released the hold and kicked out at two.
Carrillo then put Benjamin in position with a spin kick and came off the top rope with a moonsault for the win.
Final Thoughts —
Two good Main Events in two weeks. Yes, it’s a shame that performers of this quality end up working on a show like this that has such little reach these days, but if you don’t have much time to watch WWE content it’s worth seeking it out as a one-stop shop to catch up on the past week of storylines.
The Big Takeaway: Shelton Benjamin submitted No Way Jose in under five minutes in the opener. WWE then put the 24/7 title on the line at the end of the show, with Riddick Moss getting the better of Cedric Alexander in a good match.
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Shelton Benjamin defeated No Way Jose (4:35)
On Lilian Garcia’s podcast recently, Shelton Benjamin revealed that — despite his mixed feelings about his current position on the WWE main roster — he had signed a new multi-year deal with the company.
His Royal Rumble spot with Brock Lesnar apart, Benjamin has been a regular on Main Event through January and February and had been on a losing streak, after three defeats on the trot. No Way Jose, by contrast, is little more than an enhancement talent at this stage.
Jose actually got in much more by way of offense than you would think, but the story of the match was Benjamin trying to work over Jose’s left arm.
They did a spot where Benjamin was sent outside and he chokeslammed one of Jose’s conga line members, then powerbombed another on top of Jose as he went to their aid.
Eventually, though, Jose got caught by a cross armbar and tapped out. It was certainly made a more interesting match because of the pursuit of the submission by Benjamin, but this was otherwise nothing special.
24/7 Champion Riddick Moss defeated Cedric Alexander to retain his title (6:17)
Riddick Moss made his Main Event debut a few weeks ago and from there went on to claim the 24/7 title, after turning on Mojo Rawley on Raw. A former college football player, the link with Rawley was always likely, with the name Moss reportedly a tribute to former NFL wide receiver Randy Moss.
Moss’ NXT run was marred by a torn Achilles tendon and he was generally on a losing tag team stretch with Dorian Mak in the last sixth months or so. He’s been the 24/7 Champion since February 10 and looked good here against Alexander.
Alexander was the star here, though, carrying the pace of the match and showing off his varied move set. They generally split this one 50-50, with a ton of near falls coming near the end.
There was a nice spot where Alexander did a tope to the outside, through the bottom rope, but it was all over when Moss caught Alexander with his side slam, Rock Bottom type of finisher.
Moss looks the part, but doesn’t sell that well yet. It will be interesting to see how they use him and how he develops.
The Big Takeaway: Four men, who through no fault of their own will struggle to get anywhere near WWE’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view, had two decent matches. Cedric Alexander saw off Eric Young in a back-and-forth opener and Shelton Benjamin did likewise against Akira Tozawa at the end of the show.
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Cedric Alexander defeated Eric Young (5:29)
Well, if either of these men was to enter the Royal Rumble this weekend, it would be their first Rumble outing, but as things stand that may be unlikely.
Apart from the odd Raw appearance Young’s last six months has almost entirely been here on Main Event. Similarly, Alexander has found himself at the back of a shuffled deck, last notching up a win back in November that was also against Young.
After a good back-and-forth match, they traded near falls in the last few moments. Eventually,Young got Alexander up into a fireman’s carry position, but he fought out and hit the Neuralyzer kick on Young for the win.
Shelton Benjamin defeated Akira Tozawa (6:53)
If Shelton Benjamin were to be given a Royal Rumble entrance next week, it would take him to 10 career Rumble appearances.
Tozawa has been used as enhancement talent on Raw of late, losing to the likes of Drew McIntyre, Aleister Black, and AJ Styles. He also lost to Santa Claus on the Christmas edition of Raw, so maybe 2020 will bring better things.
In a similar vein to the opener, they went back and forth here. At the finish, Benjamin pulled Tozawa off the top turnbuckle with an arm drag and then connected with a step-up enzuigiri, followed by Paydirt for the win.
Benjamin doesn’t pick up too many wins these days and seems a little rudderless since he stopped tagging with Chad Gable. He’s a guy they could be doing a lot more with, but the same is true for many of the talent who work Main Event each week.
The Big Takeaway: Chelsea Green made her Main Event debut, pinning Sarah Logan in a solid opener. Mojo Rawley saw off No Way Jose at the end of the show to round off a pretty meager first Main Event of 2020.
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Chelsea Green defeated Sarah Logan (5:20)
Chelsea Green came out as the heel here to make her Main Event debut. Having made her first appearance on Raw only a few weeks ago, 2020 could be a big year for Green.
Green has worked for most of the major US promotions despite only turning 29 this year. Like Logan, Green came up from NXT where she had mixed success, but they worked well together here.
Logan has certainly improved over the last year, but will still likely find it hard to find a role on the main roster right now. Objectively, it looks more conceivable for Green.
Green used a top rope missile dropkick and wasn’t afraid to trash talk Logan or posture to a crowd that was largely quite indifferent. She finished Logan off with an Unprettier to pick up her first main roster win.
Mojo Rawley defeated No Way Jose (6:36)
After having made a rare Raw appearance in a Christmas street fight against Kevin Owens in December, it was back to Main Event for Mojo Rawley.
Rawley came out and cut a pre-match promo. He buried the crowd, saying that they weren’t smart enough to understand what he meant and said that he was going to embarrass Jose, who he called a “clown.”
They did plenty of back and forth. And for a match that has been on Main Event countless times, they did a few new things. Jose’s top rope crossbody looked really good — even though Rawley needlessly kicked out at one. At one point, he also hit Rawley with a backstabber.
But even with numerous quick camera cuts, the finish looked poor. Rawley had whipped Jose into the corner and then completely missed him with a running forearm. Jose sold it well enough, but overall this was quite sloppy in spots.
The Big Takeaway: This was just a show, made only slightly more interesting by Mickie James on commentary and Ricochet’s Main Event debut.
Eric Young picked up his first singles win in six months, getting a victory over No Way Jose. Ricochet made his first-ever appearance on the show in a fun but short win over Cedric Alexander.
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Eric Young defeated No Way Jose (4:28)
It has to be said that Eric Young is looking every bit of his 39 years these days. He had new pink ring gear this week that was just as luminous as The Hart Foundation’s back in the 80s.
Mickie James came out with some interesting lines on commentary. On No Way Jose she said, “it’s like he doesn’t take it seriously, and when you don’t take it seriously I take it as a bit of a slap in the face.” Ouch.
And while Young was on the second turnbuckle locking in a dragon sleeper, James noted that Young had once played cowbell in a band that she was in, where he wore chaps and a thong. A 2010 TNA reference there for those keeping count.
Overall, this was a little better than the usual No Way Jose matches. They did a spot where he was knocked off the apron and the conga line caught him, then Young came off the top rope with a crossbody to take them all out.
The finish was quite sloppy. Young had Jose in a wheelbarrow and launched him into a kind of Angle Slam, but he didn’t really get it right and it looked patently obvious on camera. Regardless, Jose didn’t kick out and so Young got his first solo win since July.
Ricochet defeated Cedric Alexander (3:40)
Well, I could almost hear the exasperation and expletives when I wrote the title for this recap: Ricochet appearing on Main Event will not be well received, I’m sure.
This was possibly made worse by the fact that his entrance wasn’t shown and he was already in the ring as Cedric Alexander made his way down. It was surely down to time constraints, but it did make him look a little like a 1990s WWF Superstars jobber.
He and Alexander shook hands on the bell and then exchanged holds and mirrored each other again and again. Everything one did, the other did in return and then we went to a commercial.
They went straight into finishing moves and near falls after the break. Alexander kicked out of a running Shooting Star Press and Ricochet kicked out of a Michinoku Driver. Ricochet ducked under Alexander’s charge and then hit the Recoil for the win.
This was also a little untidy in places, but despite the short time that they were given, it was better than the usual Main Event fodder.
The Big Takeaway: After submitting Sarah Logan on last week’s show, Natalya pinned her here after a good contest. Mojo Rawley picked up an unlikely win against Cedric Alexander, pinning him in under three minutes.
Byron Saxton and Mickie James were the commentary team this week, with no explanation as to where James has been for the last month or why Vic Joseph was not there.
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Natalya defeated Sarah Logan (5:02)
Just like last week, they worked really closely together through this one. There was a ton of mat work between them as they exchanged holds early on and midway through, but Logan played the heel well here and they put on another good match.
They did a spot where Logan was on the apron and hit Natalya with a high knee as she charged at her, but Logan sold it like she was hurt. She went up to the ramp to walk it off. Natalya gave chase, but it was a ruse.
The back and forth was really intricate at times here and it really could have gone either way. Natalya tried to lock in the Sharpshooter that had seen off Logan last week, but she kicked her off. In the end, it was a small package that got Natalya the win.
More of this each week would be welcomed. Logan is clearly learning a lot from working with Natalya, so there has been significant improvement with her in-ring work. She now needs to form a more rounded character.
Mojo Rawley defeated Cedric Alexander (2:36)
Rawley was in rare form here. He was surly and walked around looking like he didn’t want to be there. On the bell he no-sold chops and shouted at Alexander. He continually spread his arms wide and shouted at the fans.
In the time that this went, Rawley caught Alexander in most of his high spots and, despite it going through a commercial break, it was all over very quickly.
Alexander got in some brief offense, trying to roll Rawley up several times and taking him out with an enzuigiri.
When Alexander tried to come off the top rope with a springboard, Rawley caught him on his shoulders and nailed him with the Alabama slam for the win.
This wasn’t a squash, but it might as well have been. You have to wonder where they’re going with Rawley. Some weeks he can lose to No Way Jose, and then here he defeats someone as talented as Cedric Alexander.
The Big Takeaway: Sarah Logan has new ring gear and face paint, but it didn’t help her as she submitted to Natalya’s Sharpshooter. No Way Jose grabbed a rare win against Eric Young, with Young now winless in singles action since July.
Vic Joseph and Byron Saxton were on announcing duties again this week and still no mention of Mickie James or Dio Maddin.
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Natalya defeated Sarah Logan (5:13)
Natalya is a perfect example of a wrestler who just works wherever she is needed. Two weeks ago, she was on Raw facing off against Asuka, while last Sunday she was in the Survivor Series five-on-five-on-five women’s triple threat elimination tag match.
Here she was up against Sarah Logan, a member of the women’s roster who — apart from that appearance at Survivor Series — has become a regular on Main Event with little going on right now.
The pair worked perfectly well together in this one, with Natalya allowing Logan plenty of offense and leading her through five minutes of good back and forth.
The finish was fairly pedestrian. Logan attempted a double knee strike in the corner, but Natalya had it scouted and rolled Logan up for a near fall. Natalya sent Logan into the post and — as she sold it — Natalya locked in the Sharpshooter for the win.
No Way Jose defeated Eric Young (6:36)
Another week, another defeat for former SAnitY member Eric Young. And against of all people, perennial Main Event jobber No Way Jose.
You have to go back as far as July to find Young in a singles match where he came out on top and — despite sporadic tag team team victories — he finds himself right at the bottom of a stacked roster with no real direction.
No Way Jose matches are never much to shout about and Young looked streets ahead of Jose in terms of in-ring quality. When he gets going, he moves around with such speed and dominance.
The finish came after a commercial break. Young came off the top turnbuckle for a dive, but Jose dodged it and Young landed on his feet. Jose then hit the pop-up punch for the win.
The Big Takeaway: Mojo Rawley squashed a local in the opener. Cedric Alexander and Eric Young had a fine back and forth at the end of the show, with Alexander taking the spoils in the end.
The announce team has been really changeable for weeks now. This week it was Vic Joseph and Byron Saxton, with no mention of Mickie James. We are to assume that Dio Maddin is still selling the beating he took from Brock Lesnar on Raw two weeks ago.
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Mojo Rawley defeated Boston Bob (3:27)
Well, this was new. They stuck Mojo Rawley out for a squash match against a local jobber. You have to question why, when the roster is so huge, but it was okay while it lasted. And, actually, it lasted a little too long.
“Boston Bob” was already in the ring, and since they were in Boston this week, that was the joke. But he did have his own merch, which is more than Rawley can boast. Saxton noted “I know that guy! He stole the last egg roll in catering!”
Why it took over three minutes for Rawley to win this, I don’t know. He looked disgusted throughout and the crowd quickly lost interest. After lots of posturing and beating Bob down, he finally ended things with an Alabama Slam.
Cedric Alexander defeated Eric Young (8:32)
This was vastly superior and went through a commercial break to build to some false finishes and near falls. Cedric Alexander was the star here and this gave him a much needed win — his first since early October.
It’s interesting that out of all of SAnitY, Eric Young has come off the worst. He has jobbed around as a singles wrestler and in random tag team combinations for weeks on this show. It’s clear that they have nothing for him, but he is also portraying a non-entity of a character right now.
Both men were all beat up and had little left in the tank when we came out of the commercial break. Young nailed Alexander with a DDT and then went up to the top rope to hit a beautiful elbow drop. It looked all over — but Alexander kicked out and at that point you could tell that the crowd were invested.
Young yelled at Alexander and then slid off the apron under Alexander’s legs. Alexander ducked his clothesline attempt and hit the Lumbar Check for the win.
This was a good little match in the end and one of the better matches we’ve had on this show in a while.
The Big Takeaway: Shelton Benjamin defeated No Way Jose to make it two wins in a row after making his Main Event debut last week. Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins also went two for two, seeing off Eric Young and the new tag partner he had this week — Erick Rowan.
With no Byron Saxton or Dio Maddin, the commentary team was Vic Joseph with Mickie James.
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Shelton Benjamin defeated No Way Jose (5:50)
Benjamin made an impressive Main Event debut last week. Despite it being a pity that he has nothing creatively at the moment and so is being used on Main Event, he immediately brought some relevance to the show.
Here against No Way Jose, there was much more of an even feel and he gave a lot of the match to Jose. The first two minutes were all Jose, with Benjamin looking rattled by the approach.
They went back and forth, with Jose hitting Benjamin with a double knee backbreaker before setting up for the knockout punch. Benjamin just about had it scouted before he then popped up and hit Jose with Paydirt for the win.
This was fine, but Benjamin being booked as a merciless wrestler who bullies and torments his opponents — just as he did against Akira Tozawa last week — would be way more interesting.
Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins defeated Erick Rowan & Eric Young (6:08)
Ryder and Hawkins have new ring gear to make them look like a unit. It’s taken long enough, as even when they were Tag Team Champions, they were still coming out to their own individual music and wearing their old gear.
Last week, they saw off Eric Young & Mojo Rawley, but Rowan was infinitely better as a difference-maker here.
Ryder and Hawkins cut the ring in half in the early going, but when Young knocked Ryder off the top rope to the outside, he tagged in Rowan, who absolutely annihilated Ryder with a charge on the floor.
Young and Rowan softened up Ryder. He played babyface in peril until finally giving Hawkins the hot tag. Eventually, Hawkins sent Rowan outside and launched Ryder on top of him so that he could turn around and cover Young with a sunset flip.
This was a good shock finish, with Ryder and Hawkins celebrating up the ramp while Rowan and Young stayed in the ring shaking their heads in disbelief.
