Josh Nason’s Punch-Out nears the halfway mark in my annual 12-part pro wrestling year in review series with a stop in May featuring returning guest Andrew Thompson of Post Wrestling.
Andrew & I go deep (two hours and 30 minutes~!) into happenings like:
AEW Double or Nothing which saw the use of flamethrowers, an unfortunate landing off a barbed wire cage jump by Adam Copeland, the return of MJF and the in-ring debut of Mercedes Mone
Two international WWE PLEs
Some moving and shaking with big WWE contracts
Lots of early AEW TV rights headlines and rumors, and WWE TV developments
Marigold’s debut show
The surprise NXT debut of Ethan Page…and lots more in WWE, AEW, NJPW, TNA and the wrestling world.
WWE has put out a video addressing the controversial way its King of the Ring tournament ended.
On Saturday, Gunther was crowned King of the Ring by defeating Randy Orton in the tournament finals. The match appeared to go as intended — except for a botched finish where Orton accidentally had his shoulder up while being pinned.
Orton was selling storyline knee and back injuries throughout his match against Gunther. He hit an RKO near the end of the match but couldn’t get leverage on the cover due to his hurt knee. Gunther then trapped Orton in a crucifix pin. The referee counted to three, but Orton’s shoulder was clearly up.
After the show, WWE uploaded an interview with Paul “Triple H” Levesque addressing the way Gunther vs. Orton ended. Levesque said the referee’s decision is final and Gunther is King of the Ring, but he’s sure Gunther will want to face Orton again in the future to prove that he’s the better man.
“Coming back here and seeing it back, I saw exactly what you saw. I saw what everybody saw. I saw what everybody is talking about. Didn’t really even seem controversial to me, just seemed like Randy Orton’s shoulder wasn’t down,” Levesque said. “But I’m going to say this: the referee’s decision is final. Gunther is your King of the Ring.
“That being said, especially after what I saw tonight, I certainly want to see that again. I think Randy Orton deserves to have another shot at that. And I think, if I know anything about Gunther, he will want to have another shot at that to take the controversy out — to take the asterisk off of the page where it says King of the Ring for him. I think he will want to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is better than Randy Orton.”
Levesque didn’t say when that potential Gunther vs. Orton match would be taking place. He noted that it will be “a moment or two” until Orton is ready to step back into the ring with Gunther.
“Having seen Randy back here, he’s pretty banged up,” Levesque said. “Both his knee and his back. I think it’s going to be a moment or two before he is ready to step back into the ring with Gunther. But when he is, let’s go.”
By winning King of the Ring, Gunther receives a World Heavyweight Championship shot at SummerSlam. He will challenge either Damian Priest or Drew McIntyre for the title. Priest is defending against McIntyre at Clash at the Castle in Scotland next month.
Queen of the Ring winner Nia Jax is also getting a SummerSlam title shot, challenging for the WWE Women’s Championship. Levesque appeared at King & Queen of the Ring and presented both Gunther and Jax with their crowns.
Gunther became WWE royalty with a victory over Randy Orton on Saturday.
At WWE King & Queen of the Ring in Saudi Arabia, Gunther defeated Orton in the King of the Ring tournament finals. It was Gunther and Orton’s first time ever facing each other one-on-one. Gunther kicked out of an RKO and then used a crucifix pin to beat Orton.
Orton accidentally had his shoulder up while being pinned by Gunther. After the show, WWE put out a video with Paul “Triple H” Levesque addressing the controversial finish. Levesque said the referee’s decision is final and Gunther is King of the Ring. But Levesque is sure Gunther will want to face Orton again in the future to prove he’s the better man.
Orton was selling storyline knee and back injuries throughout the match. That played into the finish with Orton not being able to plant his injured leg on the mat and get leverage after hitting the RKO. There was also a moment earlier in the bout where Orton gave Gunther an RKO but was too hurt to immediately go for the pin.
As the King of the Ring winner, Gunther receives a World Heavyweight Championship shot at SummerSlam this August. Damian Priest is the current champion but has a title defense against Drew McIntyre at Clash at the Castle next month.
Levesque presented Gunther with the King of the Ring crown after he defeated Orton. Gunther then cut a promo vowing to become World Heavyweight Champion.
"At SummerSlam, I'm gonna become the World Heavyweight Champion"
Gunther is WWE’s first King of the Ring since Xavier Woods won the tournament in 2021. Gunther’s run in this year’s tournament included wins against Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Jey Uso, and Orton.
Nia Jax is heading to SummerSlam for a shot at the WWE Women’s Championship.
Jax was crowned WWE’s Queen of the Ring by defeating Lyra Valkyria in the tournament finals on Saturday. In addition to the Queen of the Ring crown, Jax receives a WWE Women’s World Championship match at SummerSlam this August. Bayley is the current champion.
The Queen of the Ring tournament saw Jax pick up victories against Naomi, Jade Cargill (by disqualification), Bianca Belair, and Valkyria. Valkyria, a recent NXT call-up, was presented as the underdog in the finals, desperately fighting to put away the more powerful Jax. She went for a sunset flip powerbomb near the end of the match, but Jax blocked it and squashed down on Valkyria with the Annihilator to get the victory.
After the match, Paul “Triple H” Levesque entered the ring and presented Jax with her crown. Levesque also sent out a tweet congratulating her.
Jax is the second wrestler to ever wear the crown. In 2021, Zelina Vega won the inaugural Queen’s Crown tournament. The name of the tournament has since been changed to Queen of the Ring.
SummerSlam is being held in Cleveland on Saturday, August 3. Before that, it looks like Bayley may have a title defense against Piper Niven at Clash at the Castle in Scotland this June.
After botched interference by Dominik Mysterio, Liv Morgan is the new Women’s World Champion.
Morgan won the title on Saturday by defeating Becky Lynch at WWE King & Queen of the Ring. Morgan hit a DDT onto a steel chair, followed that up with Oblivion, and then pinned Lynch to get the win.
On the pre-show, Dominik told Morgan that he flew all the way to Saudi Arabia to make sure she doesn’t win the Women’s World Championship. He got involved in the match, but his interference only helped Morgan. Lynch got distracted when Dominik appeared. He then threw a steel chair in the ring seemingly hoping Lynch would use it as a weapon. But Morgan used it instead, giving Lynch a DDT onto the chair while the referee was focused on Dominik.
In storyline, Morgan has been attempting to woo Dominik so that she can take him away from Rhea Ripley. Dominik’s interference benefitting Morgan was presented as being an accident, not like he was actually trying to help Morgan.
Ripley had to vacate the Women’s World Championship this April due to a shoulder injury. Lynch then won the vacant title in a battle royal on the April 22 episode of Raw.
A feud between Ripley and Morgan was taking place when Ripley suffered her injury. It should resume once Ripley is able to return. Ripley is expected to be out of action for “quite a few months.”
This is the second Women’s Championship reign of Morgan’s career. Her first reign took place in 2022, lasting three months.
The finals are set for the WWE King & Queen of the Ring tournaments.
Randy Orton defeated Tama Tonga in a semifinal bout on Friday to win the SmackDown King of the Ring bracket and advance to Saturday’s tournament finals. Orton will take on Gunther, with the winner receiving a World Heavyweight or Undisputed WWE title match at SummerSlam.
Also on SmackDown, Nia Jax defeated Bianca Belair to win the SmackDown Queen of the Ring bracket and advance to Saturday’s tournament finals. Jax will take on Raw finalist Lyra Valkyria with a Women’s World or WWE Women’s title shot a SummerSlam hanging in the balance.
Saturday’s WWE King & Queen of the Ring PLE streams live on Peacock/WWE Network. The pre-show streams free and begins at 11 a.m. Eastern time on Peacock, WWE Network, and WWE’s social media and YouTube channels. The main card kicks off at 1 p.m. Eastern time.
The lineup:
Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Logan Paul
Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn defends against Chad Gabe & Bronson Reed in a triple threat
Women’s World Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
King of the Ring tournament finals: Randy Orton vs. Gunther
Queen of the Ring tournament finals: Nia Jax vs. Lyra Valkyria
Pre-show: Women’s Tag Team Champions Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill defend against Indi Hartwell & Candice LeRae
A championship match will take place on the pre-show for WWE King & Queen of the Ring.
In their first title defense, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill are facing off against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell. It will be part of the two-hour Countdown to King & Queen of the Ring broadcast that streams live starting at 11 a.m. Eastern time this Saturday. Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Big E, Kayla Braxton, and Wade Barrett will be panelists for the pre-show.
The Women’s Tag Team title match was set up on Friday’s SmackDown. Belair lost to Nia Jax in the Queen of the Ring semifinals on the episode. Backstage after the match, LeRae & Hartwell approached Belair and mocked her. Cargill then stepped in to defend Belair.
Cargill said she was going to speak with Nick Aldis about getting a tag match against LeRae & Hartwell. Later in the show, it was made official.
The Belair vs. Jax match on SmackDown included Belair selling a storyline knee injury. Belair’s hurt knee caused her to lose, giving out when she went to hit the KOD on Jax.
Cargill & Belair won the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles from Asuka & Kairi Sane at Backlash three weeks ago.
A title defense against Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark will be awaiting the team that leaves King & Queen of the Ring with the Women’s Tag Team titles. On Raw this past Monday, Baszler & Stark won a number one contender’s match.
King & Queen of the Ring is being held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The main card begins at 1 p.m. Eastern.
WWE King & Queen of the Ring 2024 (Saturday, May 25) —
Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Logan Paul
Women’s World Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
King of the Ring tournament finals: Gunther vs. Randy Orton
Queen of the Ring tournament finals: Lyra Valkyria vs. Nia Jax
Triple threat match: Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn defends against Chad Gable and Bronson Reed
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell (pre-show)
Saturday’s King & Queen of the Ring (1 PM Eastern on Peacock/WWE Network) should continue WWE’s trend of solid premium live events.
Similar to Backlash and other recent non-WrestleMania PLEs, Saturday’s lineup is a tight five matches that will all be given the time they need. The Paul Levesque era has seen him keeping the shows under three hours as well, helping to keep live crowds hot throughout.
Where Saturday differs from other recent WWE PLEs is in terms of its predictability. Other than Cody Rhodes vs. Logan Paul, these matches could go any of a few different ways. Below are previews and predictions for each match at WWE King & Queen of the Ring.
WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Logan Paul
For the second time in about a year and a half, Paul will headline a WWE show in Saudi Arabia. Considering his level of fame outside of wrestling, it made all the sense in the world to have him go up against Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel 2022 and it makes all the sense in the world for him to challenge Rhodes on Saturday.
Love him or hate him, he is a guy who draws interest when his face is plastered on posters. However, much like in 2022, he is not going to win the title. His role is to create a few viral moments during the match and then lose after having given a valiant effort.
The betting world currently lists Rhodes as a -5000 favorite and it’s hard to disagree with that. There is no logical reason to believe Paul has any chance of walking out of Jeddah with the title. Still, it should be a fun match.
Prediction: Rhodes retains
WWE World Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
When Rhea Ripley fell victim to the Liv Morgan Revenge Tour and had to vacate her title, a lot of people thought the belt would end up on Morgan. It still might. When Ripley returns, the match to make is her vs. Morgan for the belt she never lost.
When a battle royal was made to determine a new champion, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to put the belt on Morgan without having to beat someone like Lynch. But maybe that’s why she didn’t win. Her first title reign was portrayed as a little bit of a fluke as well as most MITB cash-ins are. She would have the title, but without beating a top-tier talent for it, she wouldn’t be a strong champion going into a program with Ripley.
There is a longterm story building that only makes sense if Morgan is the champion. We’ve seen little hints of this. Dominik’s bandana being spotted hanging out of Morgan’s pocket, Finn Balor and Morgan casually getting out of the same car during a backstage shot on Raw are all lining up for Morgan to replace Ripley in Judgment Day. Ripley goes babyface, possibly Priest too, and the rest of the group stays heel.
Morgan won’t beat Lynch clean for the title, and it might not even happen on Saturday, but it’s happening eventually.
The betting odds have Lynch as a small -190 favorite. Betting on wrestling is a fool’s game, but if it wasn’t, I’d put my money on Morgan to win the title here.
Prediction: Morgan is the new champion
WWE Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn defends against Chad Gable and Bronson Reed in a triple threat match
Anytime a triple threat championship match is booked, it’s an opportunity for a sneaky heel to get a cheap title win. I’m just not sure that is what will happen here, though.
The typical “heel steals victory from babyface” finish isn’t as perfectly set up here as it first appears on paper. Reed giving the Tsunami to Zayn but Gable sneaking in and stealing the victory would be a possible finish If Reed was the babyface in this story, but he’s not. Zayn having Reed beat only for Gable to come in and steal the win is possible, but then why use someone like Reed to take the fall when you could use someone less Godzilla-like?
The idea of Zayn retaining in a similarly sneaky fashion is possible but feels unnecessary. With Zayn being the big fan favorite in Saudi Arabia, I think he’s just going to get a relatively clean win on Saturday. The finish will have to be something where Gable’s character can still claim he was cheated, even if he really wasn’t, and thus deserves a singles match against Zayn for the title, possibly at SummerSlam.
Prediction: Zayn retains
King of the Ring Finals: Gunther vs. either Randy Orton or Tama Tonga
At the time of this writing, Orton and Tonga have yet to meet in the tournament semifinals on SmackDown. There’s a shot that Tonga follows in his father King Haku’s footsteps and becomes a second-generation WWE king, but it feels much more likely that Orton advances to the finals.
Triple H announced the winners of the King & Queen of the Ring receive SummerSlam World title shots against the champion of their respective brands. That last bit is important. Gunther winning the King of the Ring would feel like a lock if it were to lead to him challenging Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam, but based on what Triple H said, it would lead to him facing Damian Priest or whoever has the World title at that point instead. That doesn’t make a lot of sense. The World title scene on Raw feels like it’s a pretty crowded party with Drew McIntyre and CM Punk expected to be in the mix when they return from their respective injuries.
Orton vs. Rhodes at SummerSlam could be good with the story that Rhodes is facing his old mentor. Orton could even turn heel in the lead-up.
Still, I just can’t see a scenario where Gunther loses. Even with the stipulation that the winner faces their brand’s champion at SummerSlam, I still think Gunther will win this tournament. I just don’t know what they do after.
Prediction: Gunther
Queen of the Ring finals: Lyra Valkyria vs. either Bianca Belair or Nia Jax
Triple H’s announcement on Thursday factors into this match in a big way too. The World title picture on Raw seems to be the Lynch and Morgan show until Ripley returns. I don’t see much of an opportunity for them to squeeze in a Valkyria match at SummerSlam. Meanwhile, the WWE Women’s title scene on SmackDown is more open.
The winner of Belair vs. Jax on SmackDown should go on to win this. They have been teasing that Belair doesn’t trust Bayley because of all she had to deal with from Damage CTRL over the last couple of years. Bayley vs. Belair at SummerSlam seems the most likely result of this tournament. I just don’t know what that means for Belair’s team with Jade Cargill.
John LaRocca and I are back with a brand new episode of The Fight Game Podcast.
We kicked off the show with our Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down winners and losers of the week in wrestling followed by our top five topics of the week which included discussions about the following:
I am back with another Sunday edition of Wrestling Observer Live, talking about the latest in wrestling.
I break down this past Friday’s WWE SmackDown and the ongoing King and Queen of the Ring tournaments. I also preview next Saturday’s PLE in Saudi Arabia which shaping up to be a solid show.
The following day, AEW Double or Nothing takes place in Las Vegas. I go through the current card and the build coming out of last night’s edition of Collision.
Plus, I talk about the latest on AEW/WBD media rights negotiations.
Four wrestlers advanced in the King & Queen of the Ring tournaments on Friday’s WWE SmackDown with the SmackDown bracket semifinals set for next week.
Randy Orton defeated Carmelo Hayes on Friday’s SmackDown to advance to next week’s King of the Ring semifinals bout. He will face Tama Tonga in the SmackDown semifinals after Tonga defeated LA Knight on this week’s show to advance.
Bianca Belair defeated Tiffany Stratton on this week’s episode to advance to the Queen of the Ring semifinals where she will take on Nia Jax after Jax defeated Belair’s tag partner Jade Cargill by disqualification on Friday to advance.
The winners of next week’s matches will advance to the tournament finals set for the King & Queen of the Ring PLE on Saturday, May 25.
Raw’s representatives in the tournament finals will be decided on the Monday, May 20 episode where Gunther faces Jey Uso in the King of the Ring tournament, while IYO SKY will take on Lyra Valkyria in the Queen of the Ring tournament.
Two additional segments for next Friday’s SmackDown were also teased during this week’s show.
AJ Styles announced his intention to meet with SmackDown GM Nick Aldis on next week’s episode to discuss his in-ring future after losing an Undisputed WWE title match to Cody Rhodes at Backlash, then losing a King of the Ring tournament bout to Orton.
Women’s Champion Bayley also issued a challenge to Chelsea Green to meet her in the ring next week in a backstage segment on Friday.
The lineup for the Friday, May 24 WWE SmackDown:
King of the Ring semifinals: Randy Orton vs. Tama Tonga
Queen of the Ring semifinals: Bianca Belair vs. Nia Jax
WWE has clarified the status of the Cody Rhodes vs. Logan Paul champion vs. champion match set for King & Queen of the Ring.
Rhodes, the Undisputed WWE Champion, and Paul, the United States Champion, signed the contract for their PLE bout on Friday’s WWE SmackDown in an angle where Paul had the contract rewritten so that his US title will not be on the line.
In a contract signing officiated by SmackDown GM Nick Aldis, Paul brought along a lawyer and announced that he had his legal team rewrite the contract so that the US title will not be up for grabs.
The Rhodes vs. Paul bout had been announced as a champion vs. champion match, but it was not clear from the original announcement whether or not both belts would be defended. Rhodes posted on X last Friday about his desire to hold both championships:
King & Queen of the Ring will stream live on Peacock/WWE Network on Saturday, May 25. The main card begins at 1 p.m. Eastern time, with the pre-show set for 12 p.m. Eastern. The current lineup for the show:
WWE King and Queen of the Ring, Saturday, May 25 —
Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Logan Paul
Women’s World Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn defends against Bronson Reed & Chad Gable in a triple threat
King of the Ring tournament finals: Gunther or Jey Uso vs. Randy Orton or Tama Tonga
Queen of the Ring tournament finals: IYO SKY or Lyra Valkyria vs. Bianca Belair or Nia Jax
The semifinals for both the King & Queen of the Ring tournaments in the Raw bracket are set for next week’s WWE Raw episode.
Jey Uso defeated Ilja Dragunov in this week’s Raw main event to advance to the King of the Ring semifinals. Uso will face Gunther, who defeated Kofi Kingston in the other Raw quarterfinals bout on Monday’s episode.
The winner of next Monday’s Uso vs. Gunther bout advances to the finals set for the King & Queen of the Ring PLE set for Saturday, May 25 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
In Raw’s Queen of the Ring bracket, IYO SKY defeated Shayna Baszler on Monday’s show to advance to the semifinals, plus Lyra Valkyria defeated Zoey Stark on Raw to advance to next week’s semifinals contest.
The winner of SKY vs. Valkyria will advance to the Queen of the Ring tournament finals in Jeddah.
Also announced for next week, Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn will take on Chad Gable in a non-title match, stemming from an angle on this week’s Raw where Gable berated Otis after Otis lost to Zayn. Zayn intervened to make the save for Otis, eating an exploder suplex from Zayn, but avoiding Zayn’s Helluva Kick.
The announced lineup for the Monday, May 20 WWE Raw:
King of the Ring semifinals: Gunther vs. Jey Uso
Queen of the Ring semifinals: Lyra Valkyria vs. IYO SKY
I am back with another episode of Wrestling Observer Live on this Mothers’ Day Sunday.
On last Friday’s WWE SmackDown, Solo Sikoa told Paul Heyman that he talked to Roman Reigns and that he’s now in charge. But is it all a big lie? I break down how this could lead to a civil war within The Bloodline and who will side with whom.
I also discuss the impending WWE King and Queen of the Ring tournament and how wrestlers like Ilja Dragunov and Carmelo Hayes are using it to get over on the main roster.
I also talk about Saturday’s AEW Collision and give major props to the main event which featured the AEW debut of “Dynamite Kid” Tommy Billington.
And then, there’s Bryan Danielson and the heavy-handed tease from Nigel McGuinness on commentary that continued speculation that he’ll come out of retirement to face Danielson at this August’s All In at Wembley Stadium.
Plus, I share my thoughts on New Japan Resurgence, wrestling media etiquette, and more!
