This week in WWE wrestling featured more questions than answers leading up to Summer Slam 2019. Will we find out who tried to kill Roman Reigns, is Samoa Joe turning face, will TakeOver steal the show this weekend? Ok, the last one usually a yes. Let’s take a look in the week leading up to SummerSlam.
Raw:
Legends abound for Summerslam one-off’s this week on Monday Night Raw.
Pittsburgh, PA was home to the longest weekly episodic show in history from the PPG Paints Arena on 8/5/19 and we saw feuds advanced and matches announced for the biggest spectacle of the summer.
Dolph Ziggler found out he’d be facing The Miz next Monday Night on Raw as the show closed with MizTV and Hall of Famer, Shawn Michaels. Ziggler inked the contract to face not Miz, not HBK, but a returning Goldberg! It’ll happen this Sunday.
Nikki Cross and Alexa Bliss are the new Women’s tag team champions, besting the now former champions, the Iiconics, The Kabuki Warriors and Fire and Desire in the main event.
Samoa Joe sought an apology from Roman Reigns after implications that he pushed the set on Reigns this past Tuesday on Smackdown. He confronted “The Big Dog” in the parking lot only for a speeding car to nail Reigns’ own vehicle. Joe wanted a fight, but instead, he called for medical attention. We’ll find out the culprit tomorrow night on Smackdown.
Seth Rollins took further punishment from Brock Lesnar before their Universal Title match this weekend. Rollins has been decimated by “The Beast”, can he overcome the injuries Sunday?
“The Fiend” took his liberties with another Hall of Famer. Kurt Angle was the recipient of a mandible claw as he was the guest referee for a Drew McIntyre/Cedric Alexander match that never saw its end.
Trish Stratus and Natalya teamed up against Becky Lynch and Charlotte before their respective matches this weekend. A DQ finished occurred when Natalya wouldn’t break the Sharpshooter and they only teased Stratus getting in the ring. She’ll do so Sunday night.
The Viking Raiders continued their siege of the Raw enhancement talent roster and R-Truth is once again the 24/7 champion after pinning Mike Kanellis, who covered his pregnant wife to recapture the gold himself.–Joel Reser
SmackDown Live:
In the last network show for the second biggest WWE PPV, we get a Firefly Funhouse, Roman Reigns seeking answers, and Dolph Ziggler looking like the old Show Stealer Dolph. How did the show fare? Well let’s find out!
Charlotte Flair and Trish Stratus start off the show and for me, it was lackluster. It was Flair doing her part on the mic and Trish slapping the taste out of her mouth. But Flair doesn’t retaliate, she just walks off. WHAT?! The daughter of the “Dirtiest Player In The Game” and a suoerstar in her own right, just walks off?! Fine, I get that Trish is being saved for SummerSlam, but let them tussle a bit.
Dolph Ziggler beats up Rey Mysterio, then Ali. Ok.. WWE has to make Ziggler look strong. But to do it at the cost of a legend AND an upcoming talent that was going to be the “Kofi Kingston” is a bit odd. However, if you are a Zig fan, this was a refresher… until Goldberg decimates Dolph at SummerSlam.
Ember Moon vs Natalya. This was a yawner, why? Because these two fighters should not have faced off right before SummerSlam. There was no way either ladies would look strong if defeated. So what does WWE do? Bayley runs in to save Moon from the Sharpshooter, what? Such a downer for a build.
Shane McMahon shows that not only he “The Best In The World” but now the “Strongest”. Shane flips over the announcers table onto Kevin Owens, a move reserved for the WWE Monsters. The Omni-Shane then hits a dropkick to a trapped KO’s faces with a steel chair. This was kind of eye opening since Shane has been of TV for a bit and makes KO look vulnerable.
Not even going to go long with Aleister Black vs Sami Zayn. Aleister hits a Black Mass on Zayn to job them both of a SummerSlam match. Boooo!! Why can’t Sami get a break and/or a push?
Kofi respond to Orton’s interview last week and was just as great as Orton’s. Unlike Randy holding down talent with his influence, Kofi states that he will bring up the talent with his. That my friend is golden.
New Day vs Daniel Bryan and Rowan could’ve been another classic. However, it turned into a the standard heel vs face, then have the heel disqualify to make room for a story (more on that) match. The show is almost over, then Roman Reigns walks out.
Earlier in the show, Roman is interviewed about his near death situation. Reigns then confront Buddy Murphy, but Murphy decides not to talk. Roman beats up Buddy until he tells Roman Rowan is the one. The Big Dog asks if Daniel Bryan was involved, Murphy states that he didn’t see him. Then after the DQ match with New Day, Roman confronts Rowan and Daniel Bryan just as the show cuts off. WHAT?! The viewers get no conclusion, just questions.. all before the second biggest WWE PPV. That is a poor showing WWE.- David G
205 Live:
The show opened with GM Drake Maverick addressing his in-ring victory over Mike Kanellis last week. Maverick claims to be done competing in the ring, because he was hired to be an impartial GM and that’s what he intends to do. My question, are we supposed to pretend that impartial, non-wrestling general manager Drake Maverick is NOT the same guy running around chasing the 24/7 Title on every other WWE broadcast? Regardless, with Kanellis now out of the picture, Maverick makes a 6 pack match to determine a new #1 contender to the Cruiserweight Title.
Before we get to the main event, rising star Humberto Carrillo and Lucha House Party member Lince Dorado get a chance to show off their Lucha style. It’s a fun match that ends in a double count out. Carrillo is unhappy with the finish, because he could have beaten the count had Dorado not pulled him off the apron. Later in the show Ariya Daivari approaches Dorado backstage and tries to capitalize on his post-match frustrations and turn him against the LHP. Was the luchador truly tempted, and what exactly is Daivari’s motivation?
Former cruiserweight champions Tony Nese, Akira Tozawa, and Kalisto joined Jack Gallagher, Oney Lorcan, and Ariya Daivari for the big 6 man main event. As one would expect from this collection of talent, the match was a lot of fun and each man had a moment or two to shine. It seemed as though former champion Nese was about to claim victory until Lorcan caught him from behind with a suplex. Oney Lorcan now goes on to face Drew Gulak for the title this Sunday at Summerslam.-Jason Moore
NXT:
Wednesday’s NXT was the standard NXT before TakeOver, a glorified video package for TakeOver. However, for someone who does not get the chance to catch NXT often, it was a godsend. Not only did I get more invested in TakeOver vs SummerSlam, I got to see a match between Jaoquin Wilde vs Shane Thorne! Don’t know who they are? Me either and I loved every second of it! Also, the Bro King Matt Riddle was taken out by Killian Dane before their match, leaving Riddle in a heaping pile of mess. The video packages served all the emotions that a great promo needed and NXT TakeOver will benefit from it. This was more entertaining than the 5hrs of network airplay that WWE gave us on Raw/SDL.- David G
NXT UK:
The opening contest saw Noam Darr taking on Ashton Smith. The announcers did their best to talk up the “potential” of Smith, but he’s thus far been nothing more than a glorified enhancement talent for NXK UK. Smith did get a little bit of offense and even a near fall during this match, but it was ultimately a showcase for Darr’s cocky schtick. Post match Darr got on the mic and asserted that his contract guarantees him a showcase at TakeOver Cardiff. We’ll have to wait and see if that’s indeed true and if so who he’ll be facing.
UK Tag Champions the Grizzled Young Veterans came out to yell about how great they are until they were interrupted by Gallus who want a shot at the titles in Cardiff. They aren’t the only ones with their eyes on the prize though. Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster came out to make their intentions known as well. The champs don’t seem to think either team is worthy, but they’ll leave the decision to GM Johnny Saint. I suspect either a number one contenders match or a triple threat match are coming soon.
Jinny and her enforcer Jazzy Gabbert next took the ring to face the tandem of Xia Brookside and Piper Niven. They were having an excellent battle with both sides pretty evenly matched until Rhea Ripley showed up on the ramp. Niven made the mistake of going after Ripley and leaving her young partner alone with their foes. Brookside fought valiantly for as long as she could, but ultimately fell victim to the numbers advantage. In spite of the loss this was one more chapter in the excellent building of Brookside as a fantastic underdog favorite. Within a year I predict this 2nd generation superstar will have a very big moment of triumph.
The main event between Joe Coffey and Bomber Dave Mastiff got off to an expected hard hitting start, and it never let up. Early in the match Mastiff was sent into an exposed turn buckle and suffered a back injury that plagued him throughout. The Bomber fought on through the pain and eventually evened the score by injuring Coffey’s ears. Both men were clearly in pain but unwilling to quit until they found themselves outside of the ring and counted out. Even after the double count out finish, both men were still amp up and wanting to fight, so I predict some sort of hardcore match between them at TakeOver. ~Jason Moore
Injury Report
- Following up on last week’s note about Rachel Evers being stretchered out of a live event, the diagnosis was a torn ACL. Evers had surgery this week and will begin her road to recovery.
- Bobby Lashley had bone spurs removed from his elbow this week. A November return to the ring is expected currently.
- After undergoing a successful surgery on her right shoulder back in May, Ruby Riott was back under the knife this week to get the left shoulder repaired. She probably won’t be back in action until early 2020.
News Briefs
- Former Lucha Underground stand out King Cuerno has reportedly resolved his contract issues with LU and will be signing with WWE soon.
- Three Pro Wrestlers have been booked for AEW’s Casino Battle Royal. Former WWE and Lucha Underground talent Ivelisse, former WWE talent Jazz, and Legendary Hall Of Famer and late Rowdy Roddy Piper’s daughter, Teal Piper.
