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Tag: AJ Styles

  • WWE Smackdown results: Dean Ambrose vs. Chris Jericho

    – Air Date: June 9, 2016
    – Location: Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, KS

    – The Big News:

    Chris Jericho beat Dean Ambrose.

    – Show Recap:

    The Club Speaks

    The Club came out to start the show as the announcers plugged Money in the Bank. Both Ranallo and Lawler said it was shaping up to be the greatest MITB ever. That was followed by AJ Styles saying the same thing moments later.

    Styles said people were comparing Money in the Bank to WrestleMania, not just because Gallows and Anderson are fighting for the tag titles, but because of the dream match between himself and John Cena. He reminded us this could be the last time we see it because of the brand split. The crowd chanted “Cena” and there was no anti-Cena chant in response.

    Styles said the past decade has been the Cena era, but it was time for a change, and the new era will begin when he takes out Cena. Styles said when he came to WWE, he let the company know that the Club was a package deal (revisionist history). He said they have dominated everywhere, he would beat Cena, and Gallows and Anderson would become the new tag champions.

    They were interrupted by Enzo and Cass. Enzo did his usual promo. Cass said they would be the ones to win the titles, and he called Gallows and Anderson the “Mr. Clean dream team.” Anderson cut them off and said they’ve been all over the world for years proving that they’re the best. Anderson asked Enzo what he was doing all that time and mocked him for being the manager of a Hooters.

    Enzo said yeah, of course he managed a Hooters, he’s a G. Gallows mocked him for going to sleep the last time they had a big match, and Styles actually started dancing like Enzo. Enzo said he risks it all every time he steps in the ring, he and Cass are all-in, they came here to get money, and at Money in the Bank they would beat the crap out of the Club. Cass called them soft.

    Side note: There was a graphic on the stage for MITB, saying it was “a week from this Sunday.” They can’t just put the date?

    Gallows & Anderson (w/AJ Styles) NC Enzo & Cass

    The match started after a break, and New Day were at commentary. Big E said they brought a broom because they were going to clean up the tag division, which they called a mess. The Club worked over Enzo for a while when the Vaudevillains walked out on stage as they went to commercial.

    Enzo nailed a tornado DDT on Gallows and made the hot tag to Cass, who hit Anderson with a fallaway slam, big boot and elbow drop. Gallows broke up the cover, so Cass booted him out of the ring. Anderson dumped out Cass and the Vaudevillains made their way down the ramp, so New Day left commentary to go after them.

    The fight spilled into the ring, all four teams brawled, and the referee called for the bell. The segment ended with Enzo and Cass knocking the Vaudevillains out of the ring and standing tall, while New Day stared down the Club as they slowly backed away up the ramp.

    They played the Muhammad Ali tribute video. Before it aired, Mauro Ranallo put over Ali as a three-time champion and called him a paragon of philanthropy. Jerry Lawler was grateful to have Ali in Memphis and said he told Lawler that he was the greatest of all time.

    Renee Young asked Rusev and Lana about Rusev backing down from Titus O’Neil. Lana thought that was ridiculous. Rusev called himself the greatest of all time, not Muhammad Ali. Lots of heat. O’Neil interrupted, offended Rusev compared himself to Ali. O’Neil quoted Ali and told Rusev he was taking the U.S. Title.

    Kevin Owens & Alberto Del Rio beat Cesaro & Sami Zayn via pinfall

    Owens started with Zayn when Del Rio tagged himself in. Del Rio worked on his own for a while, but when he went to tag out, Owens told him he was doing a great job and left. As Owens walked backwards up the ramp, giving Del Rio two thumbs up, Zayn ran after him. Owens then sprinted to the back, which was funny.

    That left Cesaro alone with Del Rio. Cesaro gave him a cannonball off the apron, jumped on the announce table to celebrate, and high-fived Ranallo. After a break, Lawler called Ranallo a homer for high-fiving Cesaro. After Cesaro hit a suplex, Zayn and Owens brawled back down the ramp. Zayn rolled Owens in the ring and he got into an argument with Del Rio.

    Del Rio was about to leave, so Owens cut him off. Zayn used the opportunity to hit Owens with a dive. Del Rio tossed Zayn into the barricade, Cesaro gave Del Rio a running uppercut and suplex on the black mats. Cesaro followed with a flying crossbody for a near fall. Cesaro went for the big swing, but Owens superkicked him, Zayn suplexed Owens, Del Rio kicked Zayn, and Cesaro uppercut Del Rio.

    Cesaro did the uppercut train on Del Rio and applied the sharpshooter, but let go to get rid of Owens. He tried a superplex on Del Rio, but Owens tripped him off the top. That allowed Del Rio to hit the double foot stomp. As soon as he did, Owens pulled Del Rio out of the ring, tossed him into the barricade, and pinned Cesaro for the win. Really good match that went about 14 minutes.

    Becky Lynch (w/Natalya) beat Dana Brooke (w/Charlotte) via submission

    Quickly into the match, Brooke slapped Natalya, but before Natalya could retaliate, Charlotte tackled her. The referee kicked them out. Lynch was distracted, so Brooke got a near fall with a school boy. Brooke tried her finisher, but Lynch rolled through and applied the Disarmer for the tapout win. Match was 3 minutes and was the only women’s segment on the show.

    Life Lessons with Darren Young

    Bob Backlund wanted to see how Young would celebrate a win. Young thought maybe the millions of dollars dance, or a moonwalk. Backlund told him to be down to earth and save his money. Young agreed to save his money, and asked Backlund how he’s saved his money. Backlund deadpanned, “This is my only pair of clothes.” This segment was… slightly better than usual.

    Baron Corbin beat Kalisto via pinfall

    Corbin won in 3 minutes with the End of Days. Dolph Ziggler was on commentary and kept calling Corbin “kid” and also a millennial.

    Throughout the show, they aired about 3 or 4 clips from the Ambrose-Jericho feud to hype tonight’s main event. Before the main event, the announcers again put over MITB as a huge show, calling the two main events WrestleMania caliber.

    Backstage skit with Sheamus and friends

    Sheamus was watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on TV (or a trailer anyway), as Zack Ryder, Goldust, R-Truth and Summer Rae stood there too for some reason. Sheamus informed them that he plays a giant rhinoceros, and Ryder joked it must’ve been hard for Sheamus to get into character. Sheamus had a funny comeback, saying Ryder dresses up in his bedroom like a Ninja Turtle, but he was actually in the movie.

    Sheamus put himself over as a star, like the new Rock, when Apollo Crews joined and got in his face. Sheamus asked if he was starstruck, so Crews punched him in the face, putting Sheamus on his ass. Crews left, Truth made a joke, and they all laughed. Sheamus threw boxes at them and yelled.

    Chris Jericho beat Dean Ambrose via pinfall

    Jericho was pissed about the thumbtacks, so he slapped Ambrose. He then ran away from Ambrose who chased after, eventually hitting a clothesline and chops. As Jericho got some offense, he yelled some more, claiming it was 69 thumbtacks pulled out of him. Ambrose came back with a suicide dive and tried a Dirty Deeds on the announce table, but Jericho countered and catapulted him off.

    Jericho had control after a break as the crowd chanted “Let’s go Ambrose.” Ambrose made a comeback but Jericho cut him off with a flying enziguri. Ambrose used a la magistral cradle for a near fall.

    They countered each other’s finishers, when Jericho whipped Ambrose toward the turnbuckles. However, Ambrose had to stop himself from running into the referee, and when he turned around, Jericho hit the Codebreaker for the win. Huh.

    The match was about 14 minutes. Jericho set up a ladder in the corner and tried to toss Ambrose into it, but Ambrose reversed and tossed Jericho into it instead. Ambrose then dropped the ladder onto Jericho’s back. Ambrose was about to leave but stopped as the crowd chanted “one more time.” Ambrose stood up the ladder, climbed it, and hit Jericho with an elbow drop. Ambrose stood tall.

    – Final Thoughts:

    The first half of the show was pretty good, as the tag match with Owens/Del Rio vs. Cesaro/Zayn was actually before the top of the hour. The main event was good enough, but I hated the finish.

    Ambrose and Jericho feuded for months, leading to Ambrose getting the big win in the finale. They’ve protected Ambrose since losing to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania, and not only did Ambrose beat Jericho in their blow-off match, he won the first one too.

    Having Jericho beat Ambrose randomly a few weeks later is pretty dumb, and a sign that they can’t handle a feud with 6 guys. They just keep fighting each other on every show and none of the results matter. They’re all still in the ladder match at MITB no matter what the result of any of these matches.

    They could’ve had Ambrose beat Del Rio, and put Jericho in the tag match instead. Or, Ambrose could’ve just beaten Jericho again. I certainly don’t think Jericho should be “putting over” everyone, but there’s nothing wrong with the story that Chris Jericho simply cannot beat Dean Ambrose.

  • Nakamura to face Kevin Owens, Bray Wyatt on WWE Japan tour

    The WWE’s July tour of Japan is coming into shape with the cards officially released on their Japan microsite including Nakamura’s first official scheduled WWE action. 

    Nakamura will face both Bray Wyatt and Kevin Owens on the tour, while WWE Champion Roman Reigns will be involved in two fatal-four way matches for the title. Also, it looks as if the John Cena/AJ Styles feud will last a few months as they are also scheduled for both nights.

    Thanks to reader Robin Clarke for sending these over:

    Friday, July 1st:

    – Fatal Four-Way: WWE Champion Roman Reigns vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins

    – John Cena vs. AJ Styles

    – Fatal Four-Way: WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day vs. The Usos vs. Vaudevillains vs. The Club

    – Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bray Wyatt

    – WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte vs. Natalya

    – Dolph Ziggler vs. Curtis Axel

    – Titus O’Neil vs. Baron Corbin

    – NXT Women’s Champion Asuka vs. Becky Lynch

    – Ric Flair is also listed as doing an appearance.

    Saturday, July 2

    – Fatal Four Way: WWE Champion Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho vs. Seth Rollins

    – John Cena vs. AJ Styles

    – WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day vs. Vaudevillians

    – Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kevin Owens

    – The Usos vs. The Club

    – WWE Women Champion Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch

    – Dolph Ziggler vs. Baron Corbin

    – Titus O’Neil vs. Curtis Axel

    – NXT Women’s Champion Asuka vs. Natalya

    As always, the cards are subject to change.

  • WWE Odessa, TX, live results: Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles vs. Seth Rollins

    Submitted by Chappell Guthrie

    – R-Truth vs Tyler Breeze

    Truth came out first and got a loud pop. Breeze had little reaction. Started out as comedy match, then Breeze took control until run-ins by Fandango and Goldust. Truth won with a roll up after about 8 minutes.

    – Cesaro vs Primo

    Cesaro came out first to a really loud pop. Primo had no reaction until he cut a local promo. Epico wasn’t there. Back and forth match, Cesaro hit all his spots, and won with the Sharpshooter after about 10 minutes.

    – AJ Styles did a local backstage video promo. Hard to understand, but the crowd was heavily booing throughout.

    – Karl Anderson vs. an Uso (not sure which)

    Anderson and Gallows came out first to medium boos then one of the Usos came out to a huge pop. The other Uso wasn’t there. Anderson won with a roll up after Gallows distracted Uso.

    – Baron Corbin vs Dolph Ziggler

    Corbin came out first to little reaction. Dolph has one of the biggest pops of the night. Crowd wasn’t really into except six little kids relentlessly chanting for Ziggler, Baron eventually zeroed in on them and started saying each punch was for them and the like. This got the crowd more into it. Ziggler won by DQ after about 14 minutes when Corbin used a chair. Ziggler then came back in and kicked Corbin in the nuts, and hit the Zig Zag.

    – WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte vs Natalya

    Natalya entered first to a pretty good reaction. Charlotte got a really loud reaction, probably 70% negative. They worked the crowd before the match and got the crowd all on Natalya’s side. Crowd was probably most engaged in the near falls of this match than any other, besides the main event. Good match, eventually Charlotte started working the leg. Ended when Charlotte pinned Natalya, but ref missed Charlotte’s feet on the ropes.

    – US Champion Rusev vs Sin Cara

    Rusev got a lot of boos. Sin Cara got an ok reaction, but it was obvious that crowd was wanting Kalisto, who wasn’t there. Crowd couldn’t decide between chanting “USA”, “We want Lana” (who wasn’t there), or “lucha.” Rusev wins with the Accolade after about 9 mins. After the match, Rusev cut a promo until Titus O’Neil entered the ring and eventually hit a spinebuster.

    – WWE World Champion Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins vs AJ Styles

    AJ came out first to almost entirely boos, even though I saw quite a few people with his t-shirt on. His reaction was definitely not as strong as the other two guys. Rollins out next, and his reaction was about 70% boos. Finally, Reigns came out to by far the loudest reaction of the night. I would guess 80 to 90% cheers. Rollins started as cowardly heel, sitting out until he found a spot.

    Really fun match, eventually Seth and AJ teamed up, and Seth teased tapping “too sweet” hand signal with AJ, but eventually turned on him. They kinda went back and forth working with Reigns, until everybody hit their signature moves (forearm, Superman punch, and Pedigree). Roman eventually won with a spear on AJ after about 17 minutes.

  • Wrestling Weekly: WWE Injuries; Schedule or Style?

    Just how much has the injury bug that’s bitten WWE in recent years been a result of the schedule?  That’s the main topic of discussion on Wrestling Weekly!  Les and Vic will start the show with some sad news about Danny Miller, who is a longtime friend and former tag team partner with Les.  After some quick talk about Roderick Strong and Zack Sabre Jr.(4:25) and the very few things that went well on Raw this week, (6:47) we’ll take a look at Dave Meltzer’s article in the new Observer regarding how many of the guys who work the most matches in WWE in recent years have suffered significant injuries the following year (13:41).  Is it the schedule?  Is it the style?  Or is there something that has to do with one of those things that may not be talked about often enough?  After that, we’ll open the mailbag and answer questions about Vader (40:09), adding talent to the WWE main roster for the brand split(44:00), Randy Orton being a bully (47:09), guys who didn’t speak great English during the territory days but got over big anyway (50:50), promotions that had split crews years ago (53:41), and whatever happened to the elbow drop (56:44)?  Thanks for listening and have a great weekend~!

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  • WWE Smackdown results: AJ Styles vs. Kofi Kingston

    – Air Date: June 2, 2016
    – Location: BMO Harris Bank Center in Rockford, IL

    – The Big News:

    AJ Styles is a full-fledged heel and won a match with the Styles Clash. Also, it appears the MITB ladder match will just involve the six guys already announced.

    – Show Recap:

    AJ Styles & The Club confront The New Day

    The New Day came out to a big reaction. They mentioned the Vaudevillains robbing everyone of the opportunity to see Stephanie McMahon dance. Xavier Woods seemed particularly bummed about this.

    What was more notable to New Day though was the attack by Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows. New Day were about to remind us that they are our WWE Tag Team champions, but Anderson and Gallows interrupted. The Club said the New Day didn’t exactly look like champions on Raw, and the Club would be the champs soon.

    Woods wondered what kind of “club” they actually were, and figured they meet in a treehouse. Big E said they definitely weren’t the hair club for men. New Day challenged them to a fight but figured they wouldn’t accept without their papi AJ Styles with them. That brought out Styles.

    Styles was a full-fledged heel. He said this wasn’t a new day, it’s “our day,” and the WWE belonged to the Club. New Day reminded them who the tag champs were. Styles called Kingston a joke for being in an act like New Day after all these years. Kingston reminded Styles that he was a multiple time IC, U.S. and Tag Team champion, and what was really funny was how long it took AJ just to get to WWE.

    Styles reminded them what happened on Raw and challenged Kingston to a match, which he accepted. Good segment. Styles and Kingston both came off well.

    They announced a tag match between Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn vs. Alberto Del Rio and Kevin Owens. 

    Non-Title: Becky Lynch beat Women’s Champion Charlotte (w/Dana Brooke) via DQ

    Like JBL, Lawler is not a fan of what Charlotte did to Ric Flair, although he doesn’t seem as disgusted by it. Brooke provided a distraction two minutes into the match allowing Charlotte to take over going to commercial.

    They went back and forth after the break leading to Lynch trying an armbar as Mauro Ranallo let us know she trains in Brazilian jiu jitsu. Charlotte powered out, though, and hit a powerbomb. Charlotte went for a moonsault but landed on her feet as Lynch rolled out of the way. Lynch applied the Disarmer but Brooke tried pulling Charlotte out of it so the referee called for a DQ.

    Brooke finally pulled Charlotte out of the ring, but Natalya cut them off on the ramp. Natalya and Lynch tried to apply their submission moves on the heels but they escaped through the crowd. The action was fine but the finish was crap. The crowd liked Becky.

    MITB Interview Segment

    Backstage, Renee Young interviewed Zayn and Ambrose. With Ambrose standing right there, Zayn tipped his hat at Renee. Zayn said he and Ambrose have a good track record as a team despite Ambrose’s comments on Monday.

    Ambrose was skeptical of Canadians because of Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho and the border patrol guy. Zayn told Ambrose he shouldn’t have tried to bring nunchucks into the country. Owens and Del Rio interrupted. Owens tried to convince Ambrose that Zayn was manipulating him. After Del Rio added some insults of his own, Ambrose said they should just fight right now but the heels left.

    The Dudley Boyz beat Golden Truth via pinfall

    Tyler Breeze and Fandango sat in Breeze’s lounge at ringside. Truth rapped a new song on the way out, and they had the lyrics on the screen. Lawler called it terrible, and he’s right.  During the match, Breeze jumped on the apron to take a selfie, so Truth knocked him off. Goldust was distracted, so D-Von pushed him into Truth and used a school boy for the win. Breeze and Fandango made bad jokes afterwards. This was not good.

    They ran a video package for, of all things, Baron Corbin and Dolph Ziggler. Outside of the arena, Renee said Corbin requested for interview time. She asked why they were doing it outside, and Corbin said the crowd doesn’t deserve his presence after they cheered what Ziggler did on Raw. Corbin said the next time he enters an arena it would be to end Ziggler.

    Sami Zayn & Dean Ambrose beat Alberto Del Rio & Kevin Owens via pinfall

    Ranallo plugged Raw in Oklahoma City and Lawler namedropped “J.R.” They showed a graphic for the MITB ladder match and there was no seventh mystery guy, just the six guys who already qualified.

    There were some “Ole” and “Let’s go Ambrose” chants early on. There was a dumb spot during the heat where Del Rio hit a version of his double foot stomp finisher and never went for the cover. They double-teamed Ambrose on the outside so Zayn hit a flip dive to take out the heels.

    Ambrose hit the rebound clothesline and went for the hot tag, but Del Rio knocked Zayn off the apron. Ambrose used a neckbreaker and went for the tag again but Zayn was still down. Del Rio tried a running enziguri on Ambrose, but he ducked and Del Rio nailed Owens instead. Zayn made the hot tag and immediately hit Del Rio with the Helluva kick for the win. Really good finish.

    An enraged Owens grabbed Saxton’s headset and said he was sick of his partners costing him matches and he would show them what will happen at MITB. Owens grabbed a ladder to go after the briefcase, but Cesaro ran out and gave him a springboard uppercut – while wearing in his suit. Cesaro climbed the ladder and grabbed the briefcase, sealing his fate. Ambrose and Zayn appeared nonplussed.

    Non-Title: U.S. Champion Rusev (w/Lana) beat Jack Swagger via submission

    Lana introduced Rusev, and her accent was about 20% as strong as usual. As Swagger made his entrance, Rusev attacked him and tossed him into the steps. The referee asked Swagger if he was ok to start the match and he said yes. I feel like they’ve done this exact angle with these two before.

    Rusev tried a superkick immediately but Swagger caught him for the ankle lock. Rusev escaped to the outside and cut off Swagger with a clothesline and took control. Swagger did get some offense but Rusev won with the Accolade. He refused to break the hold, so Titus O’Neil made the save, and Rusev bailed.

    They actually plugged that after a break they would show the crap angle with Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. And then they did. Also, there was another dumb segment with Darren Young and Bob Backlund. Basically, Backlund wants Darren to walk, not run. Literally.

    AJ Styles (w/The Club) beat Kofi Kingston (w/New Day) via pinfall

    They had a quick back and forth exchange and they both did a kip-up at the same time to face off, because wrestling is fake and choreographed. Just kidding. It’s fine. Styles got the better of Kingston with a couple of arm drags and posed with the Club.

    Kingston got the better of the next exchange, which led to a corner dropkick accompanied by Woods playing the trombone. The Club and New Day all jumped in the ring but they were held back from fighting. This led to a commercial break, which was only two minutes into the match. Keep in mind they had already gone to commercial break after the entrances.

    Anyway, after a while, Woods, Big E, Gallows and Anderson all got in each others faces outside the ring. Kingston was distracted so Styles ran him face first into the steel post. Crowd chanted for Kofi as Styles had control. As the announcers discussed Styles’ attitude, Saxton asked why AJ didn’t just show his hand in the first place, to which Lawler replied, “You’ve obviously never played poker.”

    Kingston came back with a monkey flip, dropkick, clothesline and leg drop. Styles ducked the Trouble in Paradise and hit a fireman’s carry into a neckbreaker. Styles went for the Styles Clash but Kingston (sort of) countered and eventually hit a double knee attack for two. Styles set up for the Phenomenal forearm but Woods distracted him with the trombone, allowing Kingston to use an S.O.S. for a near fall.

    Anderson attacked Woods on the outside, so Big E tossed Gallows into the barricade. Anderson lept at Big E, but Big E caught him and hit a belly-to-belly onto the announce table, which was cool. Gallows booted Big E, so Kingston took out Gallows with a crazy flip dive. As Kingston stepped back into the ring through the ropes, Styles caught him with a Pele kick and nailed the Styles Clash for the win. Fun stuff.

    – Final Thoughts:

    AJ Styles as a heel with The Club is cool and freshens things up. Tonight’s main event was pretty good but this was an otherwise normal Smackdown show.

  • WWE Smackdown spoilers: AJ Styles vs. Kofi Kingston

    From tonight’s Smackdown tapings in Rockford, IL, for the show airing Wednesday in Canada and Thursday in the U.S.:

    – The New Day opened the show with an interview. The Club then came out. The segment set up an A.J. Styles vs. Kofi Kingston main event for the show.

    – Becky Lynch beat WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte via DQ in a non-title match. Dana Brooke interfered. They double-teamed Lynch and Natalya made the save. The faces cleaned house on Charlotte and Brooke.

    – Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn did a backstage interview. Kevin Owens and Alberto Del Rio came out to interrupt to set up a tag match for later in the show.

    – The Dudleys beat R-Truth & Goldust when Tyler Breeze & Fandango distracted them. This set up another R-Truth & Goldust vs. Breeze & Fandango match.

    – Sami Zayn & Dean Ambrose beat Kevin Owens & Alberto Del Rio. They all brawled after the match. A ladder got in the ring. Owens went to climb up when Cesaro ran in and pulled Owens down and he grabbed the MiTB briefcase.

    – U.S. Champion Rusev beat Jack Swagger via DQ on a reversed decision when Rusev wouldn’t break the Accolade. Titus O’Neil made the save.

    – A.J. Styles pinned Kofi Kingston using the Styles Clash. Anderson, Gallows, Big E and Xavier Woods all brawled at ringside. Roman Reigns got involved (not sure if this was dark or not) and Reigns was strongly cheered when he confronted Styles.

  • WWE Madison, WI, live results (Sun): Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles

    Submitted by Heather Kastenson

    – Enzo & Big Cass def. Dudley Boyz

    Huge pop for Enzo and Cass when the music hit.  They were one of the most over acts of the night.  Lots of crowd interaction with the Dudleys and fans as well as with Enzo & Cass and the fans.  Several hot tags with Enzo & Cass.  Lots of “Oh Enzo Amore,” “How You Doin” chants.  Enzo was in really good form, excellent selling. Big Cass was also really over with the crowd. Enzo’s charisma is magnified in person, easily one of the most charismatic people on the roster.

    – Titus O Neil def. Viktor

    A pop for Titus when he came out. Viktor was also interacting with the crowd at ringside, which was something I did not expect. It was a good match, seemed to be shorter than the others.

    – Goldust def. Tyler Breeze

    Big pop for Goldust when he came out. Tyler was booed. It was a solid match. Fandango attempted to interfere which led to R-Truth coming out as well. Huge pop for R-Truth. Following the match, R-Truth did his rap, and several tried to throw Truth off by saying he was in Milwaukee or Green Bay. It was a really fun segment.

    – Anderson & Gallows def. The Hype Bros

    Good match. Mojo got a big pop from the crowd and there was a “Let’s Go Packers” chant that started. (Mojo was with the Packers pre-WWE for a short time). Anderson & Gallows were booed, but also got a good mix of cheering for them as well.

    – Sami Zayn def. Kevin Owens

    This was an excellent match match. Great promo by Owens who played off of the crowd and how he wanted to “get out of this town”  Zayn and Owens both had some incredible selling during the match and kept the crowd engaged and going for the match.

    – Apollo Crews def. Sheamus

    Sheamus got a big pop, and cut a really good promo before the match. Apollo is super agile, had a near fall on Sheamus with a standing moonsault that got a huge pop. There was a CM Punk chant that started to which Sheamus responded with the “go to sleep” gesture which was funny.

    – WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte def. Natalya

    Charlotte is really good at interacting with the crowd. There was a “Charlotte sucks” chant again, which she played off of perfectly. Lots of submission work by both, which got huge pops.  atalya had excellent selling, really great technical work.  Charlotte won by pinfall by putting her foot on the ropes for stability

    – WWE Champion Roman Reigns def. AJ Styles

    Odd thing is that Reigns and Styles both had a mixture of being booed and cheered for. The match spilled out to ringside where Roman was thrown into the steel steps by AJ. This match kept the crowd really engaged, great selling by Reigns and Styles. 

  • WWE Peoria, IL, live results: Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles

    By Alex Yohkna

    – Enzo and Cass vs. The Dudley Boys

    Dudleys got a lot of heat ripping up signs and yelling at kids. Cass wrestled most of the match, but Enzo did quite a bit as well. Right away, Enzo took a double team back body drop/neckbreaker which definitely shows that he’s fully cleared, I would assume. He took a bunch of head hits and hard clotheslines, so I’d assume he’s fully ready to go. E&C won when Cass takes the hot tag and cleans house, tagging Enzo back in to hit their double finisher pinning Bubba. Decent match. Crowd was INSANELY LOUD for Enzo and Cass. I’d say biggest pop of the night, honestly.

    – Viktor vs Titus

    Crowd really got behind Titus. Nothing big here. Just a bunch of hard chest slaps to Viktor to get the crowd cheering. Titus wins with his spinebuster and poses with the little fans on his way back.

    – Tyler Breeze vs Goldust

    Not really much reaction for either person. Match was pretty slow up until Fandango ran out to help Breeze which quickly brought R-Truth’s music and him running out for the save. Goldust picked up the win and R-Truth and Goldust danced in the ring for what seemed like 20 minutes.

    – Gallows and Anderson vs The Hype Bros

    Mojo spent about 75% of the match in the ring. Ryder hits the Broski Boot on Anderson, but was quickly attacked by Gallows drawing the double team finish. Gallows and Anderson pick up the win here. Side note–Anderson’s trunks looked very similar to all of the Balor Club logos.

    – Sami Zayn vs Kevin Owens

    Owens got a huge crowd reaction. Zayn did as well, but not as big as Kevin’s. Really good match. Zayn went over completely clean. Hits Owens with the Helluva kick after countering the pop-up powerbomb. Pinned him 1-2-3. No false finishes in this match. Was really good.

    – Sheamus vs Apollo Crews

    Sheamus cuts a promo apologizing for his actions on Raw then immediately attacks Crews once Crews gets into the ring. Really fun match between the two of them. Looking forward to seeing them work a program together. Sheamus hit a beautiful chokeslam/powerbomb, but Crews gets the win with a classic school boy roll up.

    – Natty vs. WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte

    Natty, by far, had the second loudest crowd reaction of the night. Not surprising as every time she’s in Peoria, the crowd loves her. This match was 10x better than the Extreme Rules match. Charlotte retains with a roll up while putting her legs on the second rope for leverage. It got the heat she needed and still puts Natty over as she can’t beat her clean. Very good match. Natty also hit a wonderful Batista Bomb on Charlotte.

    – WWE Champion Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles

    Almost identical to the match at Extreme Rules, and that was just fine! Great match! Roman looked extremely strong and AJ looked like a threat to pull away a victory the whole match. Roman went for the Superman Punch and AJ countered with the shoulderblock into Roman’s leg like at ER. Roman sold the leg injury for most of the match. AJ rolled him up into the calf crusher and had it broken up once Roman grabbed the ropes. The crowd was really into the match the whole time. 

    AJ never hits a finisher, but Roman wins after dodging the Phenomenal Forearm and turning it into a spear — the same ending as the Payback match — for the clean win. Both looked absolutely amazing. Those two work so well together. Crowd loved AJ and was very indifferent to Roman. The last two years Roman has loudest cheers, this visit was equal in boos and cheers.

    Overall wonderful show, they never disappoint in Peoria.

  • Wrestling Weekly: Cody Rhodes Quits, AJ Styles Dilemma, WWE Brand Split

    From Cody Rhodes to Extreme Rules to the build to Money in the Bank to the WWE brand split, it’s been an incredibly eventful week and Les and Vic return to talk about it all!  We’ll start with Cody and the statement he released that didn’t do him any favors at WWE Headquarters, how many guys feel the way he does, and having a lot of respect for him being willing to walk away from a good amount of money if the money doesn’t come with the opportunity he’s seeking.  Vic was live in the building for Extreme Rules last Sunday and he’ll talk about a feeling he couldn’t shake while watching AJ Styles vs Roman Reigns (18:41) and just how far (and for what reasons) AJ Styles is willing to go to have a great match.  Also, is that willingness doing him any good within the company at this point?  No discussion would be complete this week without touching on the brand split (47:10) and the announcement that Smackdown is moving to Tuesdays and going live in July.  We’ll talk the idea of 2 champions as opposed to 1 and something that might be missing from the product today that will be essential to the brand split being a successful one this time around.  We hope you have a happy and healthy holiday (in the USA) weekend and thanks for listening~!

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  • WWE Springfield, IL, live results: AJ Styles vs. Roman Reigns plus Simpsons & Abe Lincoln references

    Submitted by William Buss

    – Enzo and Cass defeated The Dudley Boyz

    The first match saw Enzo and Cass taking on the Dudley Boyz. Everyone was into Enzo and Cass’ mic work and shouted along to their catchphrases. Bubba Ray got hear before the match by taking a sign from a fan but Enzo saved the day before he could rip it. Enzo and Cass went over in the end with the rocket launcher.

    – Titus O’Neil defeated Viktor of the Ascension with the Clash of the Titus

    – Goldust defeated Tyler Breeze

    Fandango ran down to distract Goldust. R Truth ran down to even the odds and Goldust put Breeze away with the Final Cut. Afterwards Golden Truth danced to R Truth’s theme song and did some comedy work.

    – Gallows and Anderson defeated the Hype Bros

    Anderson and Gallows won with the Magic Killer on Mojo. Lots of Bullet Club chants and Wolfpack/Too Sweet handsigns. Okay for what it was.

    – Sami Zayn defeated Kevin Owens

    Owens got some heat especially after doing some mic work after bailing to ringside at the beginning. He even threw in a Simpsons reference by saying Shelbyville was better than Springfield. These guys click. It was more tame than previous matches the two of had because it was a house show, but these guys have such good chemistry together, that it makes even simple matches really good. Owens played such a good heel. The match was built like most of their matches with Owens beating Zayn up, Zayn getting in a few hope spots only to be cutoff by Owens again. In the end, Owens went for a pop up powerbomb, Sami turned it into a drop kick in mid air and then hit the Helluva Good Kick in the corner for the win.

    – Apollo Crews defeated Sheamus

    Sheamus got on the mic before the match and said he was going to defeat the New Era because it was garbage. He tried to get some heat by saying that even if Abraham Lincoln was alive today, he would be ashamed of calling Springfield his hometown. This match was just there. Lots of rest holds. In the end, Sheamus went for White Noise and Crews slipped out and rolled him up for the three.

    – WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte defeated Natalya to retain

    Charlotte got heat early on by ripping up a fan’s sign in the ring that Natalya had brought in. They worked the match around both of them trying to lock in their submission moves with Charlotte getting the figure four on once and Natalya reversing it, and Nattie sinking in the sharpshooter once and Charlotte making the ropes. In the end, Natalya was thrown into the turnbuckles and Charlotte schoolboyed her from behind, placing her feet on the ropes for the win. Afterwards, the crowd gave Natalya a good ovation and chanted her name.

    – WWE Champion Roman Reigns defeated AJ Styles to retain

    This match was pretty decent for a house show match. The crowd was actually pretty split in who they were rooting for. Reigns played a somewhat cocky heel, not fully committing to it but doing some heelish mannerisms. The match was built around both guys going for their big moves and each time falling short. At one point, Reigns went for the Superman punch only to be met with a Pele kick from AJ.

    AJ went for the Phenomenal Forearm three times, each time getting countered. He even teased a Styles Clash at one point. In the end, AJ went for the forearm, Reigns countered it with a Superman Punch and then hit the spear to retain the championship.

    First time taking my youngest kid to see wrestling and he really enjoyed it. The building was maybe half to three fourths full. The crowd seemed to be into mostly everything. Overall, it was an entertaining show that the people around me were entertained by including my son. I went in expecting a house show and that’s what I got which isn’t bad. The Owens-Zayn match and the main event were actually good matches and there really wasn’t any terrible matches as they all had fun elements in them.