Tag: WWE Main Event results

WWE Main Event results: New Catch Republic vs. The Creed Brothers

Posted on by Ian Carey

WWE Main Event this week was taped at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut before Monday’s episode of Raw.

The Miz got his own entrance as he joined Blake Howard on commentary at the start of the show.

Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn defeated Katana Chance & Kayden Carter

A clean win over former tag champs could be the start of Fyre and Dawn moving up the tag team rankings on Raw.

Chance and Carter got the early advantage but that changed after Fyre was able to tag out to Dawn. Fyre and Dawn then isolated Chance and worked her down until she was able to make a hot tag to her partner. Carter then took out both heels and got the crowd into it before Fyre hit her with a superkick and a sit-out powerbomb. Carter got back on offense pretty quickly but then tagged out to Chance. Fyre quickly got the upper hand on Chance, however, and then she and Dawn hit their Gory bomb/flatliner double-team finish for the win.

On commentary, they played up how Fyre & Dawn are off to a good start since being drafted to Raw.

New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne & Tyler Bate) defeated The Creed Brothers (Julius & Brutus Creed)

With one-half of the World Tag Team champions on commentary, this match was played up as a contest between two potential title-challenging teams. Miz mentioned The Creed Brothers have five wins on Main Event and seem poised to make a big impact on Raw. He also suggested Dunne & Bate could be tough challengers for Awesome Truth’s belts in the future.

Dunne went to his small joint manipulation moves pretty quickly on Julius but Julius got back into it after Dunne tagged out. At one point, Julius was in a seated position while grappling with Bate and somehow managed to still pick his opponent up in a vertical suplex position, stand up while still holding Bate up, and then deliver the suplex just before the show went to commercial.

When we came back from the ads, Brutus had Bate in a chinlock. The Creeds then double-teamed Bate for a period. Bate fought back and made a hot tag to Dunne, who then took out both Creed brothers. Dunne hit a tornado DDT from the second rope for a near fall. Bate then came in and performed an airplane spin on Brutus.

Brutus then took Bate out with a running knee and that left Dunne alone in the ring with both Creeds. They hit a double powerbomb but the brothers couldn’t quite figure out who was legal and the time they wasted allowed Bate to get back in the ring and make the save. I don’t think that was part of any story, though, I think they just legitimately couldn’t figure out who was legal. Dunne then hit his finger-snapping move on Julius and then he and Bate hit a double Tyler Driver for the win.

WWE Main Event results: Jinder Mahal vs. Akira Tozawa

Posted on by Josh Nason

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped before last Monday’s Raw in Brooklyn, New York, featuring the usual pair of bouts.

Blake Howard and Brian “Road Dogg” James were on the call with less than great results. Howard didn’t do anything to enhance the action and James was not good, often interrupting Howard.

It’s the case of a good talker being expected to also be good on commentary. However, as Liam Neeson knows, it takes a man/woman with a unique set of skills to do both.

Chelsea Green defeated Natalya

This was a rematch from several weeks ago when Green picked up a win on this very show, and their fourth-ever singles match. Green had an interesting week overall after claiming she was kicked out of a Brooklyn hotel due to staff thinking she was an escort.

The two brawled all the way up the entranceway at one point with Natalya battering Green’s head into any inanimate object that existed. After she regained the advantage, Green used a referee distraction to surprise Natalya with a a Zig-Zag and nearfall.

Natalya rallied with some clotheslines and went for the Sharpshooter, only to get countered. A nearfall exchange followed and Green eventually got the rollup pin with a handful of tights.

This is Green’s third straight singles win and her fifth straight on Main Event.

Jinder Mahal (w/ Veer) defeated Akira Tozawa (w/ Otis)

It’s wild that Mahal was part of this whole kickoff for The Rock returning and main eventing night one of WrestleMania 40 — something to remember for your wrestling trivia nights. This was his first match anywhere in nearly two months.

These two have wrestled twice before: both in 2020, once on Raw and once on Main Event. Mahal is 2-0 in those matches as you might imagine.

As you might expect, the size difference between these two was played up early with Mahal dominating with exciting rest holds and such.

After getting beat up most of the match, Tozawa made his comeback, nearly getting the win off a missile dropkick. After ripping his shirt Hulk Hogan-style, he went to the top again but missed a senton bomb and got nailed with a big boot. Mahal then got the win after hitting the Khallas (Million Dollar Dream lock into a slam).

It’s Mahal’s second straight win (both on Main Event) while Tozawa has been winless in TV/house show matches since February.

That concludes a heel-friendly edition of Main Event. We’re onto WrestleMania.

WWE Main Event results: Ivar vs. Apollo Crews

Posted on by James Cox

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

Ivy Nile defeated Xia Li (6:16)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

WWE Main Event results: Dante Chen vs. Akira Tozawa

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky before Monday’s episode of Raw.

An average show this week that had its moments, but Akira Tozawa is always entertaining.

Chelsea Green defeated Tegan Nox (5:01)

This was fine. Nox is certainly getting better but some of her ring work needs tightening up.

There was no Piper Niven or Natalya this week after their tag match on the show last week and so it lost something in its impact, but Green is clearly enjoying being a heel these days.

The early going was full of little comedy bits from Green until Nox came off the apron with a cannonball and went up top. Green kicked her off the turnbuckle and then stomped her before slapping on a chin lock.

Nox worked her way out and, after exchanging some quick pin attempts, she came back with clotheslines and a running splash to the corner, before again going up top.

In the end, Green took the opportunity to turn a high cross into an opportunity, rolling through and grabbing a handful of tights to get the win. The finish made sense, playing into Green’s heelish character.

Akira Tozawa (w/ Maxxine Dupri) defeated Dante Chen (6:30)

This was a good match, only to be spoiled a little by some chin locks midway through that felt a little unnecessary for a match designed to hype up the crowd before Raw.

Before the match, Dupri and Tozawa did a little jig together in the ring and Chen looked on and couldn’t help smirking at it.

I always find Tozawa pretty damn entertaining. On and off over the last few years he’s been a Main Event regular and always gives a good performance, more often than not taking the fall to put someone else over.

The latest iteration of Tozawa’s character has seen him Hulk up as he heads to the finish. He tears his shirt – sometimes not managing to do it all the way in half – and then runs wild.

Chen is a big dude, especially when put next to Tozawa, and he took the early going with Tozawa flipping all over for him.

After a series of chin locks from Chen, Tozawa used a headscissors and a suicide dive to the outside to get a near fall.

After a brief comeback, Tozawa finished Chen with his top rope senton back splash and celebrated with Dupri, because he doesn’t notch up too many wins. This was his second of 2024.

WWE Main Event results: Duke Hudson vs. Myles Borne

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon before Monday’s episode of Raw.

All told, a fun show, but nothing was especially dazzling this week.

Bronson Reed defeated Javier Bernal (5:05)

This was all about how long Bernal could avoid the inevitable and it was fun while it lasted.

In a big man versus little man contest like this, you kind of know that it’s only a matter of time before the big man hits his move and wins. The fun of the chase and the potential for an upset is what keeps people watching. And this one was very much in that pattern.

Bernal was on the end of his second Main Event defeat here in his second appearance. He looked plucky enough but the crowd seem to be increasingly behind Reed, who hasn’t lost a TV taping bout since October.

The early going was Bernal ducking and weaving, avoiding the charges from Reed. He eventually got caught in a nerve hold but fought his way out, landing a couple of dropkicks to wobble Reed on his feet.

Reed then caught him off the top rope, nailing him with a DDT before they went to the finish.

The Tsunami is getting over with live crowds and it got Reed the win here, but longer term, its not going to be great on his body.

Duke Hudson defeated Myles Borne (6:06)

This lacked much excitement and dragged in the second half when the dreaded chin lock was brought out, but the ending was decent enough.

Hudson and Borne are still very new to main roster action and it showed a little bit in how safe and formulaic this match was. For Hudson, it was his fourth match on the show and only the second for Borne.

They did mat work in the first few minutes, exchanging headlocks and Hudson pushing his Chase U gimmick to the crowd. Before the break, Hudson missed a charge and Borne used a dropkick.

The highlight for Borne was the near fall he got from an Orton-esque scoop slam after having missed a dropkick and run into an elbow in the corner.

Hudson worked the whole match in his Chase U bib and did a full hulk up after that two count, stopping short at actually tearing his shirt.

In the end, the finish saw Hudson use a German and then his finisher – the scorpion death drop – to get the win. And, actually, as finishing moves go, its pretty cool.

WWE Main Event results: Johnny Gargano vs. Ivar

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California before Monday’s episode of Raw.

The first Main Event for 2024 kicked off the year with a show debut for Johnny Gargano. It was quite a boon for this show’s limited audience as he put in a strong showing.

Bronson Reed defeated Akira Tozawa w/Maxxine Dupri (4:04)

This was fine, but was essentially a squash with Tozawa getting in more than most would in this kind of bout.

Reed slowed things down early on, locking in a nerve hold, but Tozawa was keen to pump up the energy so he worked his way out quickly.

He used a headscissors to faceplant Reed into the turnbuckle and then planted him into the mat with a DDT.

Reed kicked out at two and so Tozawa stood tall and tore his shirt a la Hulk Hogan. The crowd dug it and he went up top.

Reed caught him and hoisted him onto his shoulders and threw him off with his death drop driver before coming off the top rope with his Tsunami for the win.

Johnny Gargano w/ Tommaso Ciampa defeated Ivar w/ Valhalla (7:10)

This was a well-paced match until they ended it with a roll-up, but it was fun to see someone as talented as Gargano on this show for once.

I had to look back, but this match marked Johnny Gargano’s Main Event debut. Ciampa has worked the show quite a few times under different monikers, but Gargano has, probably quite rightly, never appeared here before.

They went to an early break after about a minute or so of work in which Gargano had hit a suicide dive onto Ivar, only to get greedy and hit it again and get smashed into the apron.

After the ads, Gargano played cheerleader on the outside as Ivar took to the top rope and missed a moonsault which, frankly, looked like it sucked.

Gargano tried to capitalize and, after a kick to the head, got a two-count near fall. Ivar fought back and used a fallaway slam for a near fall of his own.

Ivar then used a leg lariat and a spine buster but Gargano showed grit to kick out and then caught him with a super kick.

With neither getting it done and the near falls totting up, the crowd was into it and the histrionics from Ciampa on the outside helped to build up the tension.

Unfortunately, it all just ended with a missed charge from Ivar and Gargano stole a cheap one with a quick roll-up. 

Hopefully, we get a rematch next week.

WWE Main Event results: Von Wagner vs. Edris Enofe

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio before Monday’s episode of Raw.

It was a tepid episode this week due to some mediocre in-ring work, but the work rate was good. The main positive is that the show doesn’t feel as stagnant as it has in the past because every week we’re provided with fresh faces.

Natalya defeated Elektra Lopez (5:44)

This was fine, but nothing special. Natalya is always excellent in these spots on Main Event.

This was the second appearance in as many weeks for Lopez, who worked against Gigi Dolin on last week’s episode. Natalya returned to the show here for the first time since August, to give her a much-needed win in what has been a lean year for her.

Just as her previous bouts have been on Main Event, this one was a hunt for the Sharpshooter for Natalya. It seems to be the thing that most of her matches are built around these days and, by the end, it was locked in on the fourth attempt.

Lopez was pretty wily here and she foiled most of Nattie’s attempts, but she locked in a long chin lock partway through which slowed things down and was probably the reason why the match ran at over five minutes.

After the third sharpshooter attempt, Lopez used a roll-up for a near fall which could well have been it had they wanted to send this one in a different direction.

After she missed a charge to the corner, Natalya finally got the submission hold locked in and got the victory to end a basic enough opener.

Von Wagner defeated Edris Enofe (5:47)

This was a little bit sloppy and not that entertaining all told, but they both certainly worked hard.

Edris Enofe made his first singles appearance on Main Event here, having only worked the show twice before in tag action with Malik Blade. He looks to be in supreme shape.

Von Wagner controlled the opening minutes, putting pressure on Enofe’s left arm. Enofe then worked his way out and nailed him with a dropkick to send him to the outside. He then ran the ropes and did a beautiful flip dive to the outside as we went to an early commercial break.

Enofe locked in a side headlock after the ads, but Von Wagner fought his way out. Enofe used a pretty horrible-looking fame-asser, where neither wrestler was at fault, before going up top.

Von Wagner had the move scouted and moved out of the way and, after Enofe tried to fight him, hit him with a powerbomb to get his hand raised.

It’s not clear what they plan to do with Von Wagner as Saxton was pushing his free agency throughout the match, but he probably needs a few more of these under his belt before he works the main roster regularly.

WWE Main Event results: Apollo Crews vs. Riley Osborne

Posted on by James Cox

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

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

Duke Hudson defeated Charlie Dempsey (6:37)

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

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

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

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

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

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

Apollo Crews defeated Riley Osborne (6:16)

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

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

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

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

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

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

WWE Main Event results: Nikki Cross vs. Kayden Carter

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the SAP Center in San Jose, California before Monday’s episode of Raw.

These matches were just last week’s shuffled around and since the releases a few weeks ago, the show feels like it has a more limited pool of talent to work with. This was the third straight week that Main Event offered an all-women’s card.

Indi Hartwell defeated Xia Li (5:19)

This was just there really, not much to shout about at all but it told a story of sorts in which Hartwell’s knee wouldn’t hold and yet she still got her hand raised against the odds.

Hartwell has done really well on Main Event since she started getting some main roster action back in February of this year. Only a couple of defeats to Dana Brooke and Nikki Cross, but otherwise lots of wins. She also worked a three-way on NXT this past week and is certainly getting her minutes in.

The crowd liked Hartwell and didn’t like Li much, and they especially didn’t like her when she started to work over Hartwell’s left knee. She used a kind of knee bar, almost a half Boston crab to get Hartwell hobbling in discomfort.

Li telegraphed everything after this far too much so it was relatively easy for Hartwell to get the win. She dodged a charge and hit a cool-looking spinebuster. Then she missed a high knee and ate a facebuster to allow Hartwell to get the win.

Nikki Cross defeated Kayden Carter (6:54)

Cross’ finisher, The Purge, is proving decisive on Main Event these days and it once again got it done here. Carter took most of this one and although better than the opener, wasn’t anything special.

Cross is quite active on her socials and built up this one on X this week, as well as reposting some positive press from others.

As she normally does in these matches, she gave Carter plenty of chances to take control and show off what she can do. Cross is very good in this sort of spot.

Cross hit a Stinger Splash and a Michinoku Driver before she went for and missed a top rope cross-body. Carter seized the opportunity and locked in a submission hold. It didn’t feel like the finish and it wasn’t.

Cross crawled her way to the ropes to break the hold and then quickly managed to counter Carter to hit The Purge for the win.

WWE Main Event results: Nikki Cross vs. Xia Li

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California before Monday’s episode of Raw.

Another all-women’s edition of the show made for nice viewing, but nothing really dazzled. Everyone worked hard but, all told, this was a missable show.

Indi Hartwell defeated Kayden Carter (w/Katana Chance) (6:06)

Neither Hartwell nor Carter did anything wrong here, they just didn’t really use the time they were given and so the match felt like it was just there.

This was just the second singles match these two have had but they’ve certainly been on opposing teams in NXT tag matches several times in recent years.

This was Carter’s second appearance on Main Event and she remains winless. Hartwell has been booked evenly on the show, having traded wins recently with Dana Brooke before she was released.

Chance was on the outside cheerleading but didn’t really add much. Hartwell hit a spinebuster in the last few minutes which looked cool, and they both took time to gather themselves.

Carter then dodged a stomp and swept Hartwell off her feet. She did a neat springboard leg drop but only got a near fall from it.

In the end, Hartwell got the win with a modified full nelson she transitions into a flapjack. Carter and Chance were left to lick their wounds.

Nikki Cross defeated Xia Li (6:26)

This was the better of the two matches, but much like the opener, it dragged a little and would have been better if they had shaved off a couple of minutes.

It’s rare that they give the two matches on Main Event a similar amount of time. This one was longer because they shoved a commercial break in part way through, but was otherwise a similar length to the opener.

Cross is a new regular on this show and generally gets her hand raised. They seem to trust her to take the lead against greener talent and you wonder whether she may take on a trainer-type role in her later years.

Li was sporting new red and black ring gear which looks very cool. She also has face paint to match, so her overall presentation is way better. I’m still not convinced by her overall, but Cross gave her loads here to show off what she can do.

Li had Cross draped over the apron at one point and used a leg drop before going outside and banging the dasher boards to try to rally the crowd.

There were times when Li was getting frustrated by not being able to get it done and with her new face paint the way she screamed into the mat gave her a renewed intensity that looked a lot more believable.

Cross took a beating, but it was a tilt-a-whirl DDT and her finisher, a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker I believe she calls The Purge, that earned her the victory.

WWE Main Event results: Tegan Nox vs. Xia Li

Posted on by James Cox

WWE Main Event was taped at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, before Monday’s Raw.

In an all-women’s edition of the show, there was some decent wrestling offered with Tegan Nox vs. Xia Li offering the most engaging action on this week’s show.

Nikki Cross defeated Indi Hartwell (5:28)

This was fine for what it was and it was good to see Hartwell going up against another experienced hand even if it didn’t go her way in the end.

It will be interesting to see how this show changes over the coming weeks, given the releases that have taken place in the company. Regulars over the last few years such as Mustafa Ali, Dana Brooke, Shelton Benjamin, Emma, and Riddick Moss all being gone means the landscape of this show will look very different.

Cross and Hartwell worked well together with Cross leading the action. They did a chinlock spot which is always a frustration in these short matches, especially with a crowd that is eager for the Raw episode that is to come.

After Hartwell got a two count from a spinebuster, Cross regained the advantage and they went to the finish. Cross used a DDT to plant Hartwell and then came off the top rope with a crossbody to get the win.

That isn’t much of a finisher, but it got the job done for Cross, who has only lost once in 11 matches on Main Event this year.

Tegan Nox defeated Xi Li (7:04)

They told a story here with Li working over Nox’s knee. The crowd was certainly behind Nox, who is easy to like.

Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio this past week that it had been the plan for Nox to take on Becky Lynch for the NXT Women’s Title on Raw, but for whatever reason, that plan was changed and Natalya took her place. Instead, Nox found herself back on Main Event this week where she has been a semi-regular since May.

Before the break, they were very much equal with some intricate pinning combinations. Li changed things up when she went after Nox’s left knee and they went to the break with her lying on the outside of the ring in pain.

After the ads, it was very much Li focusing on Nox’s knee, but Nox did a tremendous job of selling the pain. Li used a half-crab, which was built up on commentary. When Nox did eventually get to her feet, she was unsteady and sold it as if she couldn’t bear weight on her left leg.

Nox was just about able to rally and muster a Stinger splash before kicking out of a suplex. She then ducked an enzuigiri from Li, which enabled her to hit the Shining Wizard for the pin and win.

This was a neat little match with a neat little story — made all the better for the reaction that Nox got from the crowd.

WWE Main Event results: Viking Raiders vs. Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin

Posted on by James Cox

This past week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Norfolk Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia, before Monday’s Raw.

There were decent matches on display this week with talent who can work these kinds of curtain-jerker matches with ease. As usual, however, there’s little here to go out of your way to seek out.

Bronson Reed defeated Riddick Moss (5:48)

This one was hard-hitting as you might expect. They did well to tease a Moss victory, but Reed continued his undefeated streak on this show.

Last week, Reed was reasonably comfortable in his win against Akira Tozawa on Main Event, but his matches are too evenly contested to be considered even extended squash matches. This one was broadly the same with Moss posing much more of a likely match for Reed than Tozawa would have.

Moss spent most of the match trying to get Reed off his feet and when he did, Reed cannily rolled to the outside. They did a chase and run outside with Moss getting smashed into the apron and nailed with an elbow drop.

Reed went up top but got toppled so that Moss could hit the SOS for a near fall. You could tell they had managed to get buy in from the crowd at this point as they thought that was it.

In the end, it was a missed charge to the corner that allowed Reed to hit his Tsunami for a huge pop and another W — his sixth straight on Main Event since January.

The Viking Raiders (w/ Valhalla) defeated Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin (7:32)

This was a solid tag bout here that was a bit dull in the early going. Benjamin was the star of the show, despite the loss, with the crowd super into his hot tag.

Benjamin and Alexander haven’t been together on Main Event since back in February. They have been working six-man tags at the live shows in August with Austin Theory against AJ Styles, Gallows & Anderson. I have no problem believing that those would have been a ton of fun.

This was a match in four parts: Alexander took the early going, then Erik and Ivar slowed it down and then Benjamin got the hot tag, but Valhalla used the distraction to get the Viking Raiders the win.

Although this one went too long for my liking, it certainly picked up after the commercials as these matches tend to. Benjamin came in full of energy, using a series of splashes before hitting Erik with an Angle Slam. He even used an ankle lock. This is definitely the way to book Benjamin at 48 years old.

In the end, just as Alexander and Benjamin looked in control, Valhalla came up onto the second rope and to speak to Benjamin. He was bundled out of the ring and Alexander was caught with a knee as he came off the top rope with a springboard. This allowed Erik and Ivar to hit Ragnorak for the win.

WWE Main Event results: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Riddick Moss

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina before Monday’s episode of Raw.

We had another good offering this week, with two decent matches. Ciampa vs. Moss was the pick of the bunch, but the show has started to exist more in a vacuum again where nothing really relates to anything else relevant anymore.

Bronson Reed defeated Akira Tozawa (4:50)

A big man vs. plucky babyface match by the numbers here, but Tozawa got more in than you would expect. People clearly like Reed, but the company doesn’t seem to know how to use him.

Bronson Reed is a little bit rudderless on his current run with WWE. He has bounced around this show – where he remains undefeated – and sporadic appearances on Raw. It’s clear the crowd likes him and the pop is always big for his finisher.

Tozawa and Reed put together a good little match. Tozawa gets more in than you would expect in these situations. He’s a lower-roster talent, but they clearly trust him to go with guys who need a little help in the right direction.

After the early going, they went to near falls pretty quickly. Tozawa hit his top rope back elbow for a two count and then a top rope senton for another near fall.

Reed thwarted Tozawa’s attempts and then finished his opponent with the Tsunami to make him 7-0 on Main Event.

We’ll see what they decide to do with him going forward, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all to see him working this show again next week.

Tommaso Ciampa defeated Riddick Moss (9:19)

A good match that went longer than it needed to, as they hit their stride in the last few minutes and got the crowd behind them. Moss is infinitely better under this persona than when he was Madcap Moss.

Ciampa became a little bit of a Main Event regular for a while back there. Last summer, he worked this show with the likes of T-Bar, Reggie, and Apollo Crews and was generally the one getting his hand raised.

He returned a couple of weeks ago in a losing effort against Ricochet, but was up against a renewed Moss here, who seems to be increasingly comfortable with his new gimmick.

Moss trash-talked his way through this one and at one point called out Wade Barrett on commentary, telling him to come out of retirement, because this one was proving too easy for him.

They had a quick sprint before the commercials and then started to build the match to a climax after the adverts.

In the final minutes, Ciampa took his knee pad down as Moss lay prone, but he took too long and Moss caught the charge and nailed him with a Rock Bottom/urinage for a near fall. They both lay there for a while after.

Moss told Ciampa he was done and went for a neckbreaker, but Ciampa turned it into a backslide for two. Ciampa then ate a spinebuster, but as he got up managed to nail Moss with a high knee as he was running the ropes.

The Fairy Tale Ending got Ciampa the win to end a match where both men looked exhausted at the final bell.

WWE Main Event results: Alpha Academy vs. Ali & Alexander

Posted on by James Cox

This week’s WWE Main Event was taped at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida before last Monday’s Raw.

Akira Tozawa defeated Reggie (6:12)

This was good with Tozawa getting a rare win in a longer-than-usual opening bout.

Akira Tozawa is a Main Event regular these days, but he’s always excellent value and that was no different here. Reggie is yet to notch up a win on Main Event this year and he didn’t really ever look close here.

They went back and forth but Tozawa took most of the early going. They traded high spots and tried to outdo each other, with Tozawa really looking the more accomplished.

In the end, Tozawa went up top and Reggie tried to suplex him but got thrown to the mat. Tozawa then ended it with a senton to leave Reggie 0-5 in his recent Main Event outings.

This was Tozawa’s first non-24/7 title singles win since January 2021. What that says about Reggie is probably more worrying than what it says about Tozawa.

Alpha Academy defeated Mustafa Ali & Cedric Alexander (7:18)

This was a really good Main Event tag match.

Ali was flanked by Alexander last week, but this week they had matching ring gear. Although they’re both fantastic workers, their gimmick is super-cheesy grins and they’re trying to play up that they’re harmless pranksters. It’s actually fairly excruciating.

This one also marked Alpha Academy’s debut on Main Event. Chad Gable and Otis have both worked the show before, but never in this guise. This foursome could pretty much curtain jerk any live event from now on and people would enjoy it, but they’ll no doubt have higher aspirations than that.

The final few minutes were really fun with a typical WWE tag match format where about 30 things were happening at once in a kind of controlled chaos.

Otis came in to break up a pinfall after Ali had nailed Gable with a second rope tornado DDT. They then did this cool spot where Otis was posted and laying with his chest on the second turnbuckle so Ali and Alexander did a superplex off him with Gable. The crowd popped for this one.

After Gable kicked out, they went to the finish. Alexander took out Otis with a flip to the outside over the top rope and Gable set up Ali for the Alpha Bomb after Otis recovered to help out.

The crowd really got into it for the finish which was very strong.

Final Thoughts —

Two decent matches, but all eyes will be on how all these limited-audience shows change over the coming weeks now that Vince McMahon is gone. There’s a big opportunity to do something completely different with a show like this, but time will tell.

WWE Main Event results: Jason Jordan returns to the show

Posted on by James Cox

The Big Takeaway: Jason Jordan returned to Main Event and took Curt Hawkins’ loss tally to 121, then Cedric Alexander beat Tony Nese in a short back-and-forth bout.

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Jason Jordan defeated Curt Hawkins (4:58)

You have to go back a year ago — almost to the week — to find a Jason Jordan appearance on Main Event. In November 2016, he defeated Viktor in an unmemorable singles match and there was just as little of note here in his bout against Curt Hawkins.

Hawkins’ losing record is now being referred to as the “longest in the modern era” on commentary. Jordan dispensed with him with relative ease, despite giving Hawkins more of the match than his status deserves, using his as-yet-unnamed finisher — a belly-to-back suplex lifted and dropped into an elevated neckbreaker.

The match was full of drop down/leapfrog combinations until Hawkins worked over Jordan’s storyline injured shoulder and took control with rest holds. The turning point was when Hawkins came off the top rope for an elbow drop and Jordan rolled out of the way. It led to a quick finish from Jordan, who had stopped selling his elbow and pinned Hawkins to continue his losing misery.

Cedric Alexander defeated Tony Nese (4:30)

So often on Main Event, the cruiserweights aren’t given nearly long enough and this was no different. It becomes a see-how-much-of-our-stuff-we-can-get-into-five-minutes contest and it does them a disservice when you look at the talent on display.

Despite its brevity, there were several good moments in the match. Alexander had a shine segment where he slid under Nese’s legs, sprung up and rolled underneath him, and came up with an overhead kick. He then did a kip up and drank in the roar of the crowd while mocking Nese by counting his abs. These two are very good together.

The finish really could have gone either way: after Nese had used his pumphandle slam, Alexander barely kicked out, but quickly recovered to nail Nese with a springboard handstand scissors takedown. Alexander used the Lumbar Check and leaped on top of Nese as hastily as he could to ensure that he got the win. This was a good, solid match.