WWE NXT 6/25/2024

WWE NXT 6/25/2024

Last week's show is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2024/06/wwe-nxt-6182024.html

Ava Raine talks to security and refs outside. She said anyone could show up tonight and says new issues are coming up. She says she doesn't want anything going wrong.

Winners gets a tag title shot - Tag Team Turmoil

Leg 1 - Edris Enofe and Malik Blade vs New Catch Republic

Bate headlock takeovers Enofe and headscissors him. Bate uses the ropes to headscissor Enofe down. Dunne double stomps Enofe's arm. Dunne takes a bulldog + knee dropkick and Bate is double dropkicked. Blade hits a nice double headhunter. Bate is held in the air and Blade 2nd rope twisting blockbusters him for 2.

Enofe pumping knees Dunne. Dunne step up enzugiri's him. Blade takes a rebound lariat + german. Bate tope con hilos Blade through the ropes. Enofe ddt's Bate for 2. Blade comes off the top and Dunne forearms him. Enofe takes a double tiger driver and is pinned.

Leg 2 - New Catch Republic vs Legado del Fantasma (Berto and Angel)

Dunne and Bate get submissions on them at the same time. Bate does an octopus on Berto. Angel pulls up the ropes and sends Bate out. Bate's head is banged off the apron. Bate takes a gori bomb + slingshot cutter combo. Bate is popped up into a headscissors on Berto.

Angel double underhook backbreakers Bate for 2. Berto springboard enzugiri's Dunne and nails his own head off the ropes. Apollo Crews comes down and is pulled away. Bate knocks Berto off the ropes then Bate tiger drivers Berto. Bate pins Berto.

Leg 3 - New Catch Republic vs The OC

The OC hit a backdrop + neckbreaker combo. Bate takes a drop + flying knee combo. We go to PiP break and return. Bate airplane spins Karl. Luke takes a double punch. Luke high kicks Dunne. Dunne cradles Luke and pins him.

Leg 4 - New Catch Republic vs Chase U (Duke Hudson and Andre Chase)

OTM gets in the aisle and wants some of The OC. Chase and Dunne trade shots. Chase russian legsweeps him and hits C-H-A-S-E-U stomps on him. Dunne clubs on Chase's chest Sheamus style. Chase gets his hands stomped and gets double headkick. Duke uranages Dunne and Bate from the corner. Bate ends up landing on Dunne.

Duke handstand hurricanrana's Bate. Duke hits a bionic elbow on Bate. Duke spinning side slams Bate.  Bate does an impressive suplex on Duke. Dunne rebound germans Chase. Chase takes a 2nd rope sunset bomb from Dunne. Bate backdrops Chase for 2.

Dunne splits Duke's fingers. Bate flips out of a back body drop. Chase is back body dropped over the top. Bate plancha's and Ridge sacrifices himself, taking the plancha for Chase. Chase top rope crossbodies Bate.

Thoughts: Gauntlets are like buffets - you get a little of everything but not the full serving of various items. The finish helped push the Ridge and Chase U partnership and they pushed a new angle with Crews/LdF and OTM/The OC. It was pretty impressive to get all of that done in one sitting and it was good overall.

Various girls watch Perez nailing Vice last week. They gossip and Perez comes in. Karmen says she doesn't like Lola Vice, but she says she's on her game. Perez says she is as well. Perez says Karmen can't reach her level. Perez tells her to go back to watching the stars of the women's division and maybe she will get there one day.

Ethan Page heads to ringside.

They show a graphic of Wild Samoan Sika, who died today.

Dante Chen and Nathan Frazer talk in the back. Chen says he will be in his corner if he wants tonight. NF says he appreciates it and said he hasn't talked to Axiom in a few days. He said he can't go out alone. Axiom comes in. Ax says he is his partner and will step in. Ax says he will be a Heritage Cup champ and a tag champ tonight.

Ethan Page comes out and has a new theme song. 

Page says Heatwave is a week from Sunday and says it is heating up. Page says Trick will face Je'Von Evans for the title at Heatwave. Page says the problem is Evans won a battle royale to get this that he was never eliminated from. Page says he pinned him the same night. Page says Evans should be out of the title match and he should be in. Page asks Ava Raine to come out.

Ava Raine comes out. She says All Ego isn't a catch phrase, he really believes it. She says she doesn't like it when wrestlers try to back her into a corner. She says he does have a point and did pin Je'Von.

Shawn Spears comes out. He said he doesn't have a problem with him and says they traveled the same roads. He said it's nice to have someone follow in his foot steps. Shawn says he pinned Evans first two weeks ago. Page says Evans eliminated him at the battle royale.

Shawn says he will beat Trick tonight and make Ava' decision easier. Trick Williams comes out and tells Shawn to sit his goofy @ss down. Trick says it doesn't matter who his opponent is. Trick says people will chant his name when he gets to Toronto. Spears and Page then jump him. Je'Von Evans makes the save and they fight 2v2. The heels are thrown out.

Ridge Holland and New Catch Republic talk in the back. Dunne says Ridge was supposed to go off on his own and is now in Chase U. Hank and Tank said NCR did well out there. Tank says he knows they are bummed but says they should test their energy vs them next week. 

Robert Stone and Stevie Turner talk in the back. They ask each other what they want. Stone says he's helping Ava make big decisions. He says it was only a matter of time until he was seen as an asset. Stevie said she helped her make decisions too. She said she's been doing a better job of it too. She said she fought Jordynne Grace and gets the inside scoop on everything. Stone says, "so you are saying you are a narc?". They both say they aren't going anywhere and Stevie says she will win when it comes to Ava. Stone says she couldn't beat him on his best day.

Thoughts: Stone is now back to being Robert Stone instead of Mr. Stone. Stevie has done nothing since coming to NXT so even this is an upgrade for her.

Joe Coffey vs Wes Lee

Wes jumping double knees him. Gallus gets on the apron. Wes misses a shot on Wolf. Joe flying headbutts/battering rams him. Joe backbreakers him then slips on a springboard elbow.

Joe forearms Wes. Wes does a mean looking wrap around ddt. Wes hits mounted shots on Joe then jumping punches him. Wes double stomps his back. Wes knocks Mark Coffey off the apron then Joe pop-up powerslams Wes down.

Wes rolls him up then Joe headbutts him. Joe hits a flying euro. Wes handspring backflip kicks him and wins.

Thoughts: It was over before it really got started. The ending was quite sudden and I was surprised to see Joe jobbed out like that.

Oba Femi gets on the riser after. He says Wes has cleared his final hurdle and gets to fight him for the last time. Oba says he will see him at Heatwave. 

The D'Angelo Family are interviewed in the back. Tony says he's only concerned about the after party. He says Nathan Frazer is dangerously fast and has more experience. He says Stacks and Luca gave him a gameplan that will work. He says the cup stays in the family.

Ridge Holland and Duke Hudson talk in the back. Duke is given an envelope. Thea jumps at Duke and is thrilled about winning. Ridge steals Duke's envelope. Chase says they will go international at Heatwave and become the 2x tag champs. 

NXT Heritage Cup Title Match - Tony D'Angelo (c) vs Nathan Frazer

No entrance for either guy here.

Round 1 - NF side headlock takeovers him. NF goes up and over in the corner then Tony throws him off the waistlock. NF runs at him fast and rolls him up. NF gets the pin and is up 1-0.

Round 2 - Tony takes him down and rolls him. Tony back body drops him and belly to belly suplexes him. Tony hits shots to the gut. NF comes off the buckles and is hit in the gut. NF flips over Tony then Tony spinebusters him. Tony gets the pin and this is tied 1-1.

Round 3 - Tony corner spears NF. Tony blocks a sunset flip and misses a punch off of it. NF dropkicks him off the apron. Tony catches NF's tope and throws him into the steps. We go to full break, not PiP break and do not get to see the end of the round. We later see that NF hit a step up enzugiri but ran out of time before he could try and get the pin.

Round 4 - We join this with about 2 minutes left in the round. Tony is lariated over the top to the floor then NF topes him twice. NF slingblades him then superkicks him in the face. NF enzugiri's him from the apron and is caught on a springboard.

NF rolls him up for 2 then is spinebustered for 2. NF is rammed into the buckles and put in tree of woe. Tony spears the post. NF top rope dropkicks him and the round ends.

Round 5 - Tony blocks a kick and punches him. Tony corner lariats him. NF superkicks him for 2. NF comes off the 2nd rope and is caught with a spinebuster for 2. NF flips out of a half-nelson suplex and enzugiri's Tony out. NF shotgun dropkicks Tony into the steps. Tony gets in and NF coast to coast dropkicks him for 2. NF back elbows him off the ropes and hits a phoenix splash. The round ends as he goes for the pin.

Round 6 - Last round. NF needs the pin or submission. Tony wins if it goes to a draw. NF sunset flips him then cradles him for 2. NF lifting and spinning suplexes him. NF boots Tony then Tony does a 2nd rope belly to belly suplex. Tony hits a high spinebuster and wins the round and match 2 falls to 1.

Thoughts: Tony's not a top flight worker and it wasn't anything too special. He wasn't bad or anything but he still hasn't really figured out what his logic is in the ring. These matches are better on taped shows as we wouldn't miss parts of it like we did here.

Trick Williams and Je'Von Evans talk in the back. Evans says he can't let him go out there by himself. He says he will be in his corner. Trick says Evans has a match with him coming up and needs to focus. He says he has seen people lose their mind over the title. He said he's cautious when people say they have his back (a subtle Melo reference) and he'd rather him not be out there. Evans is okay with it.

Roxanne Perez vs Karmen Petrovic

Lola Vice comes out before this starts. Lola joins the commentators.

RP takes KP down with a hammerlock then bridges while putting it on. KP misses a high kick and RP stares at her. RP misses a punch but it is sold anyway. RP foot chokes her in the corner. KP then superkicks her. KP is swept off the buckles then RP flails on her.

KP's head is banged off the buckles. RP russian legsweeps her for 2. Lola pulls on KP's hair then pulls backwards on a chinlock. KP spinning lariats her. KP legsweeps her and RP blocks a screw kick. RP hits a code red and wins it.

Thoughts: It was another short one here. They did a lot of spinning around for various strikes and those strikes often didn't look that good. RP won as expected here.

Lola gets in the ring after. RP goes for a uraken. Lola blocks it and hits her own, dropping RP.

Noam Dar talks on facetime. He says Ethan Page ripped a tendon on his leg and he's out for a while. He says he knows Oro, Lash and Jakara will keep Meta-Four strong. Oro says this is more than just Page, this is for Noam. Oro says he loves this group. He says he would never guess that he'd be here when he grew up in Nigeria. He said his dad had to run through fire in a car accident and got burned. He said they had to move to Switzerland to get care. Oro said they went to foster care for a while. He said he didn't feel like he fit in there and said he didn't feel like he fit in anywhere until he met them. He says he won't rest until he gets revenge for Dar.

We go to the back and The OC hit OTM with chairs. Michin then goes after Jaida Parker.

Ava Raine talk to a ref in the back. The ref says OTm look banged up. Ava talks to Kendal Grey and Carlee Bright. She says Carlee faces Wendy Choo next week. Lola Vice comes in and says when Perez wakes up, she can give the title back to her. Lola says to tell her she wants a title match at Heatwave.

If Tavion wins, he joins No Quarter Catch Crew - Damon Kemp vs Tavion Heights

We get a bio sidebar on both guys. Tav hiptosses Kemp then armdrags him. Kemp sleepers him. Tav hits a shoulderbreaker. Dempsey pops Kemp's shoulder back in. Kemp lariats Tav on the floor. Kemp bangs Tav's head off the mat.

Kemp germans him. Kemp olympic slams Tav for 2. Tav goes up and over in the corner. Kemp hits headbutts then Tav overhead belly to belly suplexes him. Tav belly to belly suplexes him again and wins.

Thoughts: It was too short here and wasn't much before it ended. Tav joining NQCC was expected here. I'm not a big fan of NQCC as this is not the group for people who struggle getting over as characters and all of these guys are struggling to get over as characters.

Kelani Jordan is interviewed. She said she wants to be a drama free champ and move on from one superstar who wants a chance to the next. She says Sol is chill but Arianna Grace is the opposite. She says props to her for getting a match.

Jaida Parker walks in. She complains about Michin jumping her and challenges her to a street fight.

Brinley Reece, Enofe and Blade talk in the back. Brin says she's proud of them and says they did good. Enofe complains about not winning. Izzi Dame comes up to them and says being happy go lucky does nothing for them. Izzi says they don't want her around. She says they won't amount to anything with her and neither will Brin. Brin asks them if it's true and Blade says no.

Axiom talks to Nathan Frazer. NF said he thought he had it. He says he has a WWE Speed match tomorrow and will focus on their team after.

#1 Contender's Match - Sol Ruca vs Arianna Grace

Sol headscissors her on the mat and side headlocks takeovers her. Sol shoulders her over, flips out of a hiptoss and facebusters her. Sol slingshot codebreakers her. Sol trips her then surfs on her back.

Sol goes to springboard and is pulled down. Grace boots Sol in the corner and suplexes her for 2. Sol cradles her for 2. Grace 2nd rope elbow drops Sol's neck. Grace running knee lifts her for 2 then grounded cobra twists her.

Sol shoulders her over then springboard shoulders her. Grace backrolls her. Sol slips on the ropes and superkicks her in the chest. Sol then hits a sol snatcher and wins.

Thoughts: Sol botched the finish here which brought this down. It was short and there was nothing too special about it. 

Kelani Jordan holds up Sol's arm after.

Roxanne Perez talks to Ava in the back. She accuses her of taking the title. Ava says Lola brought it here after laying her out. Ava says she can get he revenge on Lola when she faces her at Heatwave. Perez isn't happy.

Kelani Jordan and Sol Ruca talk and walk in the back. KJ says she's excited she is going up against her. Jacy Jayne and Jazmyn Nyx catch that and mock it. Fallon Henley walks in and says they are overlooked. Jacy agrees. Karmen Petrovic walks past them and they say she got opportunities she hasn't earned too. Jacy says they should do something about it and Fallon agrees.

Trick Williams vs Shawn Spears

Ethan Page is on commentary. Trick hits punches on SS then SS slides out. They fight outside and Trick chops him. SS hits a thesz press with punches. Trick hits chops then lariats him out of the corner.

Trick goes up and over and they pump kick each other at the same time. Oro Mensah jumps Ethan Page and security quickly comes in as we go to PiP break.

We return and SS has Trick in a crossface. SS hits shots and Trick no sells it. Trick gives him the Hulk Hogan finger point and hits punches. Trick hits leg lariats then flapjacks him. SS superkicks him then single leg codebreakers him.

Trick pop-up uppercuts SS then upkicks him from the mat. SS backcrackers him then Trick hits a uranage. Trick kips up and pounds on his chest. Someone tries to get in the ring and is stopped by security. SS is thrown out. Trick plancha's SS. The guy who came in hits Trick with the table top and Trick is death valley drivered in the corner. SS then pins Trick.

Thoughts: I'm not a fan of Trick losing, especially to Shawn Spears. Having Trick take losses is taking a risky bet with how over he is and it's not a bet I'd be making.  The match was just average and I have no idea who interfered.

Shawn sits down and stares at Trick after.

Stevie Turner and Stone asks what Ava will do about this. Ava sets up a fatal four way at Heatwave and the show ends.

Overall thoughts: It was a good show overall with them setting up a lot of stuff for next week and Heatwave and giving a nice mix of in-ring and outside the ring happenings. Nothing was too great here but nothing was awful either.

CMLL 6/21/2024 NJPW Fantastica Mania Mexico 2024

CMLL 6/21/2024 NJPW Fantastica Mania Mexico 2024

Los Viajeros Del Espacio (Futuro & Max Star) & Vegas vs. Dinasta Karonte (Astro Boy Jr., Dr. Karonte I & Dr. Karonte II)

NOTE - The Karonte's and Astro are wearing the same colors and nearly identical outfits so it's a little hard to tell them apart. Astro is thinner than the other two and doesn't have tattoos.

Kar = Either one of the Karonte's, Fut = Futuro

Futuro and Astro go at it. They roll on the mat and Fut wristlocks him. Astro armlocks him. Fut flips out and armdrags him. Fut fireman's carry takeovers him then is popped up and armdrags Astro. Max and a Kar go at it.

Kar trips him then Max armdrags him. Max spinning headscissors him out from the mat. Veg is plancha'd by Astro. Astro cartweels on the ropes and springboard tornillo's him. Astro spinning headscissors him out then springboard tornillos him outside. Fut goes up and over a Kar in the corner then spinning bodyscissors him. Kar armdrags Fut over.

Max handspring corkscrew crossbodies Max then Max flying headscissors him. Kar over the back armdrags Max then Veg dropkicks Kar in the knee. Kar goes for a headscissors and is dropped on his chest. Veg takes a spinebuster then is 2nd rope dropkicked in the butt.

Max is popped up into a cutter then Kar 2nd rope moonsaults Max. Astro does a corkscrew elbow. Fut springboard double dropkicks his opponents. Fut flips over a Kar and topes him into the rails. Max rotation headscissors Astro then step-up springboard tope con hilos him outside. Kar does rope tricks and moonsaults out onto opponents.

Veg corkscrew tope con hilos outside. Fut is put on the 2nd rope then Kar springboard hurricanrana's him down for 2. Fut dragon suplexes him to pin him. 

Thoughts: It was a good opener here. I would argue the Karonte's and Astro were the faces here even though they weren't supposed to be. They got a bunch of dives in and had a good showing on this one.

The Wolf Zaddies (Bad Dude Tito & Che Cabrera) vs. Los Depredadores (Magnus & Rugido)

1st Fall - Rug and Che go at it. Rug abdominal stretches him and Tito breaks it up. Rug takes double boots from his opponents. All four go outside and the faces are dropped head first on the apron. Mag is sent into the rails. The heels are sent into each other inside but stop it. The heels hit stereo tilt-a-whirl backbreakers then stereo F-5's to win the fall.

2nd Fall - Rug is double flapjacked and takes a double hip attack. Che flying dropkicks Mag. Rug is double teamed then he lands on his feet on a springboard. Rug is popped up into a double dropkick on the heels. Rug and Mag then do stereo sunset flips off of F-5's and win the fall. 

3rd Fall - Mag dropkicks Che into the ropes and 619's him. Tito pump kicks Mag. Rug powerslams Tito for 2. Rug is popped up into a spinebuster for 2. Tito is double teamed and takes a double back elbow and double basement dropkick for 2.

Mag takes a double spinning forearm then a double team cutter for 2. Tito and Che are pulled over the top and take topes. Che flying shoulders Mag for 2. Che takes corner attacks and a meteora in the corner. Rug germans Tito and the faces get stereo pins to win the fall and match.

Thoughts: Mag and Rug weren't the most exciting of faces here and it was just an average match. The ending to the match wasn't that interesting either.

NJPW STRONG Women's Title Match - Stephanie Vaquer (c) vs. La Catalina

They lock-up and head to the ropes. They lock-up again. SV takes her down and they stand off. SV upkicks Cat then they go chest to chest. Cat hits mounted forearms and bangs SV's head off the mat.

SV rolls and headflips out of a wristlock. SV armlocks her then Cat hits armdrags. SV blocks an armdrag by grabbing the hair then stomps Cat's arm into the mat. SV kicks Cat in the back. Cat dropkicks SV.

Cat goes up and over SV, corner lariats her and does bad flying clotheslines. SV hits a soul foot. Cat trips her into the ropes and hip attacks her there. Cat crossbodies her off the apron. Cat is on the ropes and SV dragon screws here there. 

Cat is sent into the rails outside. SV straightjacket chokes her over her knees inside then  tries a bridge pin. SV does facewash kicks then bangs Cat's head off the mat with her legs. Cat boots her out of the corner and hip attacks her. SV hits a headbutt flurry. Cat flying knees her.

They trade forearms on their knees and SV headbutts her. Cat hip attacks her on the buckles. Cat top rope splashes her for 2. Cat hits a pedigree for 2. SV ddt's her and gets a 2 count on a pin. Cat dropkicks her. SV springboard crossbodies her for 2. Cat michinoku drivers her for 2.

SV meteora's her in the corner for 2. Cat hits forearms and SV hits superkicks. SV package backbreakers her and wins.

Thoughts: They tried to have a good one here with a bunch of kickouts. The crowd was into it but I thought it was just average and nothing too great. It also could have had a few minutes cut off of it. 

Mercedes Mone comes out after. She says to say hola to your CEO and TBS champ. She says she's not the same SV she faced a year ago. She says she will show her why she is the CEO as money changes everything.

SV has words for her and they fight until the ref breaks it up. Mone holds up the Strong title and throws it at SV after.

Rocky Romero & Taiji Ishimori vs. Mascara Dorada & Templario

1st Fall - Temp and TI trade wristlocks. Temp armdrags him and is armdragged. MD and RR go head to head. MD armdrags him then RR spinning headscissors him. MD flips over his back an they stand off. RR takes a top rope crossbody from. Temp catches TI's crossbody and double knee gutbusters him. MD 450's RR off the top while Temp flying space tigers on the ramp and both get pins to win the fall.

2nd Fall - Temp shoulders TI over. TI flying knees him. MD corkscrew headsissors TI then sitout powerbombs RR. MD is pushed off the top into the railings then RR topes MD. TI flying headscissors Temp then tope con hilos him. MD is thrown over the rails and flips into the front row.

Temp takes a shoulder breaker from TI then RR unlaces MD's mask. The heels try to take off the faces masks. RR rolling armbars MD off the top then TI border city stretches Temp. The heels get dual submissions and win the fall. 

3rd Fall - The faces take corner attacks. The faces walk up the ropes and hit dropkicks then do stereo topes outside. The heels take spinebusters then MD is flipped onto RR. Temp then jumps off of MD's back and moonsaults.

MD takes a double team. MD is dropped onto TI's knees then takes a running shiranui. Temp powerslams RR then gordbusters TI on him. MD hits a running ssp and the faces get 2 counts on pin attempts.

Temp wheelbarrow germans RR then MD tilt-a-whirl backbreakers TI. RR camel clutches MD and Temp breaks it up. Temp and TI fight on the apron then both are dropkicked off. RR hurricanrana's MD then rolls him up for 2. MD dominators RR off the razor's edge then MD top rope ssp's RR. The ref only counts 2 but RR doesn't move. I have no idea if he is pinned or not. TI drops MD on his knees and pins him.

Temp pumping knees TI. TI pulls dwon Temp's mask and pins him.

Thoughts: It went long and dragged in the 3rd fall. Then the ref ended up screwing up one of pin's. They also did too much in the first that didn't really carry over to the later falls. 

Kyle Fletcher does a promo from the airport. He said he wants to be the greatest and says he'll defend his title against Atlantis Jr. next week. Atlantis had challenged him on ROH TV.

Averno & Volador Jr. vs. Michael Oku & Zack Sabre Jr.

1st Fall - Zack cravates Av then Av does a rolling leg takedown. Av legbars him. Zack ties his legs up and bridges. Zack ties up Av's legs. Vol and Oku go at it. Vol has new trunks and Oku flying headscisosrs him. Oku springboard triangle dropkicks him. Oku fosbury flops outside onto Vol.

Av gets some shots in on Zack. Zack rolls him up then bow and arrows him. Zack cobra twists Av then armbars him. The foreigners get stereo submissions on the faces and win the fall.

2nd Fall - Oku ddt's Av then PK's him. Oku asai moonsaults him for 2. Av chops Oku. Av is hiptossed over the top. Vol superkicks Oku then flying headscissors Zack. Vol topes Zack outside. Av la magistrals Oku for 2.

Av ties up Oku's legs then Zack sleepers Av while he does it. Vol superkicks Zack in the side of the head. Oku top rope dropkicks Zack when Av moves. Oku single leg crabs Av and Zack hits foot slaps on Oku. They argue then both are double teamed.

Oku corner dropkicks Zack on acicdent. Vol backbreakers Zack for 2 while Av 2nd rope angel's wings Oku for 2. Vol basement dropkicks Av on accident then Vol flying headscissors Zack. Av boots Vol in the chest. Vol code red's Oku and Av breaks the pin up. Av low blows Vol. Zack bridge pins Av and then Oku top rope splashes Vol to win the fall.

Thoughts: Well, this was odd with both teams turning on each other and fighting their partners as much as their opponents. I did not expect that.

Av talks to Vol on the mic after. He then boots Vol and KeMalito.

Mistico vs. Hiromu Takahashi

Mistico had new music and was given a plaque. Karonte and Astro Boy (his relatives) came out as did some kids in Mistico outfits.

HT takes him down and is armdragged. Mist springboard crossbodies him then headscissors him out. Mist topes him into the rails. Mist walks up the buckles and is swept on the ropes. Mist is sent into the rails. Mist has his legs banged off the post.

HT locks up his legs then tries to take his mask off. HT death valley drivers Mist on the apron. HT double axe handles Mist off the apron. Mist handspring back elbows HT then HT dropkicks him in the knee. Mist handsprings then flying headscissiors HT. Mist hits a 619 then springboard dropkicks him out.

Mist tornillos onto him outside. HT superkicks him and back elbows him. HT rebound germans him then takes a rebound german. HT falcon arrows him for 2. HT puts on a Mistico mask that he wore for his entrance then he rips at Mist's mask. Mist then takes off the mask HT has.

HT superkicks him then suplexes him for 2. Mist step up enzugiri's him then is superkicked. HT sunset bombs him on the floor. HT then jumps off the top and sentons him outside. HT 2nd rope death valley drivers him for 2. 

Mist walks up the buckles and spanish flies HT off the top. Mist top rope moonsaults and HT gets his feet up. Mist powerslams him for 2. Mist springboard swantons him then springboard crossbodies him for 2.

Mist is nearly pushed in the ref then low blowed. HT rolls him up. Mist crucifix bombs him for 2. HT superplexes him for 2. Mist does a la mistica and taps him out.

Thoughts: It was your usual awful Hiromu match where they do way too much, it goes on forever and no one sells anything. It started off well with basic heel vs face stuff then just became an indy style match. I couldn't wait for this to be over.

The various wrestlers in the ring after and pose for a photo. Mist then talks on the mic.

Overall thoughts: I wasn't a big fan of this. The main had a horrible Hiromu Takahashi main event. The Volador tag was dumb with partners fighting each other and their opponents. The ref messed up the pin in the Rocky Romero tag and the women tried but just didn't have a great match.

New Japan Pro Wrestling 6/23/2024 New Japan Soul 2024 Day 5

New Japan Pro Wrestling 6/23/2024 New Japan Soul 2024 Day 5

El Desperado & Shoma Kato vs. Just 5 Guys (DOUKI & Yuya Uemura)

Kato and Yuya start us off. Yuya rides him and they get up. Yuya wrstlocks him, Kato tries to roll through but Yuya rolls with him. Yuya side headlock takeovers him and they stand off. Despy and Douki go at it and stand off. Despy side headlocks him and shoulders him over. Douki flying headscissors him then springboard back elbows him for 2.

Despy spinebusters him for 2 then stretch mufflers him. Kato hits forearms on Yuya then Yuya throws him out. Douki puts the douki chokey on Despy. Yyua hits chops on Despy. Despy chops him and is chopped down.

Despy takes a double team double chop. Douki slingshots, gets caught and is suplexed. Douki flying headscissors Despy. Yuya and Kato go at it. Yuya chops him then Kato hiptosses and dropkicks him for 2. Yuya slams Kato then Kato flying dropkicks him. Kato rolls up and cradles Yuya. Yuya front suplexes Kato and gets the win.

Thoughts: It was an average opener that needed more time. The Douki/Despy and Yuya/Kato pairings were fine but the match ended too soon before they could really go off here. I think Kato reminds me some of Yuya and I'd like to see them go at it again. 

Hiroshi Tanahashi & Katsuya Murashima vs. Tomoaki Honma & Tomohiro Ishii

Ishii and Tana start us off. They trade forearms. Tana 2nd rope twisting crossbodies him. KM is tagged in and cheapshots Ishii. Ishii just tags out. Honma and KM shoulder battle. KM knocks him over. Honma slams him.

KM hits forearms on Ishii that aren't sold then Ishii hits chops. Honma single leg crabs KM. Honma forearms him then takes a flying forearm. Tana flying forearms Honma and slams him. Tana 2nd rope swantons him for 2.

Honma ddt's Tana then misses a headbutt drop. Honma flying shoulders him. Tana twists and shouts Ishii. KM hits forearms on Ishii then dropkicks him. Ishii shoulders him over then crabs him. Tana slaps Ishii and KM rolls him up off of it. KM misses a dropkick and cradles Ishii for 2. KM dropkicks him and they trade forearms. Ishii crabs him and wins.

Thoughts: I thought Ishii should have tapped KM out after the first crab. What followed after really wasn't necessary. It was a short tag and wasn't much of anything. Tana didn't get much in on this one.

United Empire (Francesco Akira, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb) vs. Just 5 Guys (SANADA, Taichi & TAKA Michinoku)

Khan and Sanada start us off. Khan does some basic holds and rolls him into a pin attempt. Khan cravates him and Sanada flips out of the snapmare. Sanada is taken down and rolled up for 2. Khan shoulder throws him and stands on him for a pin. Khan goes for the kimura.

Khan mongolian chops Sanada in the back of the neck then sits on him and poses. Akira 2nd rope hurricanrana's Sanada then hits baseball slides. Akira gets on Cobb's shoulders then is dropped down onto Sanada. Cobb standing moonsaults Sanada.

Sanada slams Cobb. Taichi facekicks Cobb in the corner and Kawada kicks Akira. Taichi side kicks Cobb for 2. Taichi chops Cobb then is crossbodied. Cobb superkicks him then Taichi running lariats him.

Taka and Akira go at it. Taka eye pokes him then Akira flying headscissors him. Akira top rope crossbodies Taka then Taka puts him in just facelock. Khan bites Taka in the shoulder to break it. Taka superkicks Akira then Takira rolls him up. Akira meteora's Taka in the back of the head and wins.

Thoughts: It was fine but it needed more time than it got. I laughed at Khan biting Taka to break up the facelock. We need more of that in wrestling.

United Empire (Callum Newman & HENARE) vs. House Of Torture (Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Yujiro Takahashi)

Henare gets jumped as he poses in the ring. Henare is pulled over the top. CN pushes the heels into each other then running facekicks YT. CN plancha's YT outside. CN is pushed into the exposed buckle then Henare is sent into it. CN is sent into the rails outside.

CN is sent into the exposed buckle then YK footchokes him. YK eye rakes CN then YT slaps CN for 2. YT stomps on CN then facekicks him. CN legsweeps YT and double stomps him. Henare hits chest kicks on YT then shoulders him over.

Henare sentons YT. YT Tries to bang his head off the buckles but Henare no sells it. Henare berzerker bombs him for 2. Henare takes a stun gun. The ref is pushed into Henare. Henare shoulders over YK then takes corner attacks. YT fisherman suplexes Henare. YK comes off the 2nd rope and is caught but Henare. Henare samoan drops him. YK rolls Henare up then Henare step up knees him. Henare fisherman suplexes him and wins.

Thoughts: It was nothing special here as expected. It's not that he can't do it, but Henare's better off being the big heel not the selling face. The heels brought nothing to the table as usual.

Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) vs. BULLET CLUB (Chase Owens & Gedo)

Can someone explain to me why this match is happening other than being filler?

Yoshi and Chase go at it. Chase hits shots on him and drops him with a punch. Chase takes a double shoulderblock then Yoshi is hiptossed onto him. Gedo takes the double clubs to the back.

The heels go to leave and the faces stop them. Goto is sent int othe ropes and Chase chairs Yoshi in front of the ref, who could care less. Gedo hits Goto with a hammer then Chase chokes Goto with a shirt.

Chase splits Goto's fingers. Goto then gets the double club on his back. Goto tries a comeback on Chase and lariats him off the ropes. Yoshi headhunters Chase. Chase is laid on the top rope and dropkicked.

Chase russian legsweeps Yoshi into the buckles. Gedo eye rakes Yoshi. Goto spinning heel kicks Chase and backdrops him. Gedo takes a double team elbow slice bomb and is pinned.

Thoughts: It was a complete waste of time as expected with the faces winning as expected. Chase should have been DQ'd for the chair shot. 

G1 Climax 34 Block B Qualifier Tournament First Round Match - Toru Yano vs. Oleg Boltin

They battle for the lock up. Oleg rolls him on the mat and Yano ropebreaks. Oleg goes for karelin's lift and Yano grabs the ropes to avoid it. Yano throws water and throws the ref aside. Yano sits on a chair in the aisle then hits Oleg with it.

Yano wraps Oleg up in the ring skirt and takes a turnbuckle pad off. Oleg is sent into the exposed buckle then Yano trap holds him. Oleg is sent into the exposed buckle again and Yano hiptosses him.

Yano eye rakes him and Oleg goes into the exposed buckle. Oleg shoulders Yano over and slams him. Oleg splashes Yano for 2. Oleg karelin's lifts Yano. Yano belly to belly suplexes Oleg.

Oleg hits forearms on Yano then Yano catapults him into the exposed buckle. Oleg dropkicks him then hits a corner splash. Oleg slams and vader bombs Yano for 2. Yano cradles Oleg then backslides him. Yano hits a low blow an dclips him for 2. Oleg rolls him up off a fisherman and wins.

Thoughts: Yano did all of his usual tricks here and Oleg overcame them to win. I guess it made sense and was okay for what it was, but it was also little more than a comedy match.

G1 Climax 34 Block B Qualifier Tournament First Round Match - Satoshi Kojima vs. TJP

They lock up. Koji shoves him over and wristlocks him. TJP misses a dropkick then side headlocks him. TJP shoulders him over then Koji hiptosses him. Koji shoulders him out of the ring. Koji hits double axe handles on TJP then is sent into the rails. TJP facekicks him on the rails.

TJP machine gun chops Koji then Koji chops him over. Koji stomps and elbows him then chokes him on the ropes. Koji neckbreakers him for 2. Koji hits forearms. TJP hammerlocks one arm with his feet and cranks the other back. TJP cannonballs him off the apron.

Koji ddt's TJP on the apron. Koji machine gun chops TJP. TJP dropkicks him in the corner and flying back elbows him. TJP facewash kicks Koji TJP facewsh kicks Koji. Koji hits forearms then ddt's him. TJP springboard diving ddt's Koji. TJP cartwheels out of a cutter. TJP misses a top rope splash then Koji hits a cutter for 2.

TJP spin kicks him then Koji lariats him for 2. Koji brainbusters TJP for 2. TJP superkicks him then rolls him into a pin attempt.

Thoughts: It was an okay match, but it was really a lose-lose. Both of these guys try and would have been solid additions to the G1. Neither one would have won it though. I thought TJP's cartwheel out of the cutter here was creative and they did pretty good with the obvious styles clash they had here.

Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Tetsuya Naito, Titan & Yota Tsuji) vs. House Of Torture (Dick Togo, EVIL, Ren Narita & SHO)

Sho talks on the mic before the match. Naito and Evil start us off. Naito gets nailed from behind by the heels then Naito is posed on. Sho stomps on Naito then Bushi comes in to flying headscissors Sho. Bushi is tagged in and top rope dropkicks Sho. Bushi does the spinarooni up and ddt's Sho for 2.

Titan gets in and is crotched on a ropewalk attempt. Togo knocks Titan over the rail outside then Naito is sent into the rail. Naito is sent into the rail and knocks the timekeeper over. Togo unties Titan's mask and tries to take it off.

Ren back elbows Titan and facekicks Yota off the apron. Evil corner lariats Titan then Togo 2nd rope chops Titan in the nuts. Evil stands on Titan's head.

Titan ducks a lariat and jumping kicks Evil. Yota gets in. Yota hits forearms then headsicssors Evil. Yota tilt-a-whirl backbreakers Togo then suplexes Evil for 2. Yota hangs on the 2nd rope and Evil footpresses him down. Ren flying kicks Yota in the corner and rakes his eyes on the ropes.

Ren pulls on Yota's hair then is curbstomped. Naito armdrags Ren then baseball slides him. Naito neckbreakers Ren. Ren jumping kneepresses Naito down. Naito takes corner attacks. Togo chokes Naito with a weapon. Togo is atomic dropped and Naito rolls on him into a pin attempt.

Titan springboard double dropkicks the heels then dropkicks Ren on the ropes. Titan does a tope con hilo on 3 opponents outside. Togo takes a codebreaker then Naito codebreakers him to win.

Thoughts: Don't get me wrong, it was a short match and a pretty lazy effort. But it was timed okay and wasn't bad. The heels got their stuff in then the faces made their comeback and won.

Overall thoughts: Like the last show, it was a house show and nothing more. Nobody did anything too wild here. Kojima/TJP was the match of the night but not a classic. I would not recommend this show.

New Japan Pro Wrestling 6/22/2024 New Japan Soul 2024 Day 4

New Japan Pro Wrestling 6/22/2024 New Japan Soul 2024 Day 4

Daiki Nagai vs. Masatora Yasuda

Yasuda is the taller of the two. They trade shots and Nagai headlock takeovers him. Yasuda wristlocks him. Nagai reverses it on him then Yasuda trips him. Yasuda ties up the legs and hammerlocks him. They escape wristlocks. Yasuda trips him.

Nagai side headlock takeovers him and side headlocks him. Yasuda works the leg and legbars him. Yasuda stomps his leg and does another legbar. They trade forearms and Nagai dropkicks him. Nagai hits another dropkick then crabs him. The time limit then expires.

Thoughts: Young lions matches aren't super exciting and I wasn't real interested in this 10 minute bout. It's not that they were botching stuff, but you can only watch so many kicks to the knee and legbars. Nagai makes some real animated faces.

Katsuya Murashima & Shoma Kato vs. United Empire (Francesco Akira & Great-O-Khan)

KM and Kato shove each other. Khan trips Kato and goes for the pin. Khan takes him down then Kato forearms him. Khan hits mongolian chops and Kato flying dropkicks him for 2. Kato hits mounted forearms and kimura's him.. Khan does a dragon screw and a legbar on him.

Akira corner lariats Kato then baseball slides him. Kato dropkicks him. KM hits forearms on Akira then flying forearms him. Akira takes a hiptoss. KM hits forearms then Akira is double dropkicked. Khan takes a double dropkick then KM crabs Akira.

Akira dropkicks and flying knees KM. Akira meteoras KM in the back of the neck and wins.

Thoughts: The young lions got a little in here and Kato had a nice showing. Khan seems like he might be taking a little more serious path which would be nice. This was just short but the young lions got more in than you would think.

Satoshi Kojima, Tomoaki Honma & Tomohiro Ishii vs. United Empire (HENARE, Jeff Cobb & TJP)

TJP and Kojima rade forearms. They shoulder battle and TJP dropkicks him. Kojima shoulders him over then stomps him. Ishii takes a flying shoulder from Cobb when they get in. Cobb short arm shoulders him then standing moonsaults him for 2. TJP slingshot swantons Ishii for 2 then hits euros. Ishii flying shoulders TJP over.

Ishii suplexes Cobb. Kojima comes in and machine gun chops TJP. TJP dropkicks him and does facewash kicks. Kojima hits forearms and a ddt on TJP. TJP final cuts Koji. Henare and Honma get in. They trade forearms. Henare hits chest kicks then Honma shoulders him. Honma misses a falling headbutt drop.

Cobb spinebusters Honma then Henare PK's him for 2. Honma flying headbutts him then falling headbutts him. Henare spinning high kicks him then fisherman busters him for the win.

Thoughts: It wasn't anything special and was just a match. Everyone got a section in and once everyone got theirs, it was over.

Be-Bop Tag Team (Hiroshi Tanahashi & Toru Yano), El Desperado, Hirooki Goto & Oleg Boltin vs. Just 5 Guys (DOUKI, SANADA, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku & Yuya Uemura)

Despy and Douki fight. They do some rolls and Despy armdrags him off the hiptoss. Douki springboard armdrags him then Despy does a backdrop to him. Yano takes off a turnbuckle pad then Sanada rolls him around the ring. Tana and Taichi get in.

Tana 2nd rope twisting crossbodies Taichi. They grab each other by the gut. Tana hits forearms then Taichi side kicks him. Taichi grabs Tana's gut again. Tana hits forearms on Yuya then hits a twist and shout.

Goto gets in and lariats Yuya. Goto lariats Taichi then spinning heel kicks Sanada and Yuya before double bulldogging them. Yuya armdrags Goto then gets chopped. Yuya then running chops him.

Yuya dropkicks Oleg then Oleg shoulders Taka over. Oleg karelin's lifts Taka. Oleg takes a running knee from Taka and just facelock. Douki flying headsicssors Despy out and topes him. Taka eye pokes Oleg then Oleg finlay rolls him to win.

Thoughts: This was a total joke. It got no time at all and Taka went down to a finlay roll.

Oleg and Taichi fight after.

G1 Climax 34 Block A Qualifier Tournament First Round Match - Yujiro Takahashi vs. Callum Newman

YT boots him to start and clubs on him. YT knees him in the gut then CN running facekicks him. CN hits a dropkick then misses a plancha. YT reverse ddt's him on the floor. CN is thrown into the rails. YT hits back elbows and a facekick on CN for 2. YT legdrops him.

YT hits knees to the gut then baseball slides him. CN trips him then double stomps his back. CN corner dropkicks YT then PK's him for 2. CN puts YT on the 2nd rope and dropkicks his back.

The trade forearms and CN takes a stun gun. YT facekicks him then fisherman busters him for 2. YT olympic slams CN. CN high kicks him. The ref is thrown into CN. YT grabs a weapon, CN grabs it then the ref takes it from CN. YT low blows and ddt's CN for 2.

CN tiger suplexes YT for 2. CN corner dropkicks YT then springboard double stomps his back. CN os cutters him and wins.

Thoughts: It was an average match as expected. YT cheated and CN was able to recover from it and beat him. The good news here is that a G1 spot will not be wasted on Yujiro, who has not impressed in prior tournaments.

G1 Climax 34 Block A Qualifier Tournament First Round Match - YOSHI-HASHI vs. Chase Owens

Chase backs him up and spits on him. Chase knocks him off the apron then Chase is thrown into the rails outside. Chase rusian legsweeps Yoshi into the rails. Yoshi is then thrown into the rails. Chase running knees Yoshi inside for 2.

Chase splits Yoshi's fingers then throws him into the buckles. Chase pump kicks him then Yoshi suplexes him. Yoshi hits chops in the corner then shoulders him over. Yoshi headhunters him for 2.
Yoshi forearms him. Chase lariats him then gutbusters him. Chase pumping knees him in the back of the head then pepsi twists him for 2. Yoshi codebreakers him and dropkicks him in the knee. Chase rolls him up with his feet on the ropes. Yoshi blocks a pumping knee then superkicks him. Yoshi dragon suplexes him.

Chase half-nelson suplexes him and pumping knees him. Yoshi hits superkicks then canadian destroyers him for 2. Yoshi running lariats him for 2. Yoshi then hits a made in japan and wins it.

Thoughts: It wasn't good. They did a canadian destroyer kickout here and there was just nothing special about it. It does mean Chase won't be in the G1 though and that's a win. 

Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Tetsuya Naito, Titan & Yota Tsuji) vs. House Of Torture (EVIL, Ren Narita, SHO & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)

Sho talks on the mic before the match and the heels jump the faces.  Sho beats up on Titan. Titan kick combos him then pele kicks YK off the kip up. Titan walks the ropes and springboard dropkicks an opponent off of them.

Naito wristlocks Sho. Bushi gets kicked on the apron and send into the rails. Everyone fights outside. Evil fisherman suplexes Bushi inside. HoT rings the bell like Evil won and Togo gets on the mic to announce that he won when he didn't.

Bushi step up enzugiri's Ren. Yota is tagged and he armdrags YK then tilt-a-whirl backbreakers the heels. Ren chinlocks Yota then pulls off the turnbuckle pad, sending Yota into the exposed corner. Yota flatliners Evil.

Naito armdrags Evil then running back elbows him. Naito baseball slides him. Evil sharpshooters Naito. Naito ttakes corner attacks then Togo 2nd rope chops him in the nuts. YK figure fours Naito.

Titan ducks a lariat from Sho. Titan is thrown into the ropes and he tope con hilos outside. YK takes a triple team and Naito is assisted on a tornado ddt on YK. Naito destino's YK and wins it.

Thoughts: It was a basic and average tag. There was nothing special or that interesting here and it was a very weak main event. It also only went 12 minutes which isn't enough for how many people were involved.

Overall thoughts: It looked like a weak show on paper and it was. Nothing got a ton of time and nobody really put that much effort into their matches. It was a house show style card and is not worth checking out.

WWE Monday Night Raw 6/24/2024

WWE Monday Night Raw 6/24/2024

Last week's show is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2024/06/wwe-monday-night-raw-6172024.html

Michael Cole and The Miz are the commentators today. They go to talk about what happened with The Wyatt's and Drew McIntryre walks past him.

Drew says everyone talked about how he quit last time, but now they are talking about him beating up Punk. Drew said he prayed for it and the big man made it happen - him. He says he's done with the people chanting for Punk. He said Punk embarrassed him in front of his friends and country. He said the fans are dead to him.

Drew says he hopes Punk is uncomfortable because he put him there. Drew also shows the bracelet he took from him. He says it has Punk's wife's and dog's name on it. We then get a "Larry" chant for Punk's dog. Drew says Punk is in pain and will watch him win MITB.

Drew said he told everyone how bad Punk was when he returned and said he will win and cash in the MITB briefcase. He says he will have Punk's family by his side (as their names are on the bracelet). Drew then leaves.

We see The Wyatt Sicks' attack last week.

We see Chad Gable, who is not dead, arrive with security. 

Cathy Kelley is outside of Chad Gable's locker room. Security is guarding it and she says wrestlers are shocked he's even here.

Ludwig Kaiser is interviewed. He says Bron Breakker is strong and fast. He says Bron attacked him last night but he will prove he is destined for greatness. He says he will prove that Bron Breakker is no Ludwig Kaiser.

Bron Breakker vs Ludwig Kaiser

Kaiser piefaces him and Bron grabs the throat. They trade shots. Bron running body blocks him. Kaiser hits mounted shots. Bron hits corner spears and Kaiser eye rakes him. Kaiser hits mounted shots and throws his shoulder into the post.

They go outside. Kaiser is on the commentary table outside and Bron diving lariats him off the apron. We go to break and return. Kaiser hits mounted punches. Bron gets angry. Kaiser chop flurries him. Bron runs through his clothesline and flying elbows him. Bron overhead throws him on a suplex. Bron release german suplexes him.

Bron hits a corner lariat and gets big pops. Kaiser is up top, Bron walks up the buckles and hurricanrana's him. Kaiser escapes a gorilla press then is belly to belly suplexed over the top to the floor. Bron misses a spear outside and goes into the steps. Kaiser runs at him outside and Sheamus nails him. Kaiser gets the win via DQ.

Sheamus goes to powerbomb Kaiser then Bron spears Sheamus.

Thoughts: What we got here was good with Kaiser taking some big bumps. The reaction to Bron was a bookers dream come true. If there were any doubts about pushing Bron, those are gone. 

The Judgment Day talk in the back. They are playing video games on a TV and Dom says it's a gift from Liv Morgan. Priest asks when the distractions from Liv will end. Dom then shows a photo on his phone that seems to be some kind of sexy photo of Liv. Priest says he's going to have to explain this to Rhea and says if it were him, he'd find a way to end this with Liv tonight. Priest says he's glad they are having fun playing games, but Bron Strowman is also having fun playing with them. Finn agrees and says the time for games is done.

Bron Breakker bangs on Adam Pearce's door. Adam asks what his issue is. Bron says he's tired of people getting in his business. He said he would have beaten Sheamus and Kaiser if it wasn't for them interfering and said he'd be challenging Sami Zayn. He tells Adam to do something. Sami Zayn walks in. He says anytime, anyplace and name it. Bron says how about a match at Money In the Bank. Sami agrees and Adam makes it official.

Women's MITB Qualifier - Lyra Valkyria vs Shayna Baszler vs Kairi Sane

Lyra hiptosses Sane. SB lariats Lyra over and gutwrench suplexes Sane. Lyra northern lights suplexes SB. Sane does a headsicssors + headlock takeover on both opponents. Sane hits a top rope crossbody on both opponents outside. We go to PiP break and return.

Sane hits some weird ddt on the apron to SB. Lyra dropkicks Sane through the ropes. Lyra top rope dropkicks Sane then fisherman busters her for 2. SB backdrops Lyra for 2. Sane headhunters SB. SB blocks a top rope elbow from Sane then puts her in a choke. Lyra rolls up SB for 2.

Lyra step up enzugiri's SB. Lyra gutwrench powerbombs Sane. Sane urakens SB. SB puts Lyra in a choke then Sane top rope elbow drops SB. Lyra cradle shocks Sane and wins.

Thoughts: It was a three way and nothing special. They really didn't have enough for all of the people involved.

Drew McIntyre says he should automatically be in MITB. Adam Pearce says everyone should qualify for it. Adam said all Drew has done is disrupt things this week and doesn't deserve automatic qualification. Drew says he believes Adam will do the right thing or he will find out the meaning of disruption. 

Liv Morgan comes out to talk. She says she hopes Dom likes the gift she gave him and hopes he likes the text she sent even more. She said she knows he is playing hard to get and says she knows she is what he really wants. Liv says she has more in store for him.

Liv says Rhea has never gotten him any gifts or cared for him the way she does. She asks if Dom will come out and says she will give him one more gift in front of everyone.

Zelina Vega comes out. She says she has a gift - shutting Liv up. She says she doesn't know why she's obsessed with Dom. She said she's chasing the title why Liv chases Dom. She said Liv is only worried about fun. Vega said she starved for opportunities and said Liv should put the title on the line tonight. Liv says she's busy and says next week. Vega says tonight.

Dominik Mysterio comes out. Dom says he didn't like Liv's gift. Liv holds the rope open for him. The crowd chants "sloppy seconds" at Liv. Liv say she doesn't care. Vega calls Dom "Liv's man" and Dom says he's not. 

Dom says he wants to help Vega fight for the women's title. Vega said she doesn't need his help then Liv attacks Vega. Rey Mysterio comes out and pulls Liv off. Dom then shoves Rey.

Thoughts: As usual, the Liv and Dom stuff was entertaining.

Adam Pearce talks to Cathy Kelly. He said Chad Gable is cleared but shaken up.

Liv tries to talk to Dom in the back. She thanks Dom for being her hero and saving her. Liv says now she knows he wants this as bad as he does. Liv then tries to hug him. R-Truth walks in and asks if that was Tom and Nick Mysterio she was talking to. Truth says he always has a soft spot for Tom and Nick. Liv says she knows how she can do something nice for Dom - by getting Dom a match for the tag titles with JD or Finn. Truth said he never liked JD and says he was never in Judgment Day and has a big head. Liv begs for a title shot and Truth agrees. Truth then says, "I always liked Carmella" and says he loves love.

Miz is angry on commentary and says he has to go find Pearce before Truth does. Cole asks who will work with him?

Men's MITB Qualifier - Braun Strowman vs Chad Gable vs Bronson Reed

Chad gets on the mic as he enters. He says he was left for dead last week but says he cannot be killed. He says he will go on to MITB and call himself, "Master In the Bank".

Chad hits chops on Braun that are no sold. Chad is chopped from both opponents and knocked down. Reed flying shoulders Braun and Braun nearly falls out of the ring. Braun shoulders him over thne goes over the top.  Reed gorilla presses Chad outside. Braun catches him then Reed topes both opponents outside. 

We go to break and return. Chad goes for a hanging armbar over the ropes on Braun. Chad dropkicks Reed. Reed misses a senton. Reed corner splashes both opponents. Braun running shoulders Reed and facekicks Chad. Braun throws Chad into a Reed in a cool spot. Braun hits running shoulders outside. Chad germans Reed for 2. Reed is pushed into the post by Braun then slammed on the floor. Judgment Day then come out attack Braun. They eventually get the edge on him. Chad then top rope moonsaults Reed to win.

Thoughts: It had it's moments but it was a three way and that limited it. Braun struggled to move around here and Chad played underdog here to his opponents. The interference was lame but made sense at least.

The lights go out and smoke fills the ring while Chad is in it. I think Sarah Logan comes in wearing a mask and Chad backs out. She crawls around and somehow two people are knocked out on the commentary table. Cole is given some kind of box and Logan walks through the crowd. The segment then ends.

Cole opens up the box and it's a VHS tape that says "play me".

Chad Gable goes up to Otis in the back. He says he's glad to see him and wants to talk to the whole crew. Chad said his life flashed before his eyes last week. He said all he could see was them and said they are his family. He said he was wrong and said he stepped over the line once or twice. He says he's sorry. He says families fight and stick together. Otis says anyone who hurts them isn't family and says we're done.

Maxxine says he put them all through a lot. She said he really hurt Otis and said they are glad he's okay. Max says to let her talk to Otis.

The Creed and Ivy Nile go up to Chad. They ask if he's aright. Chad says he needs help.

Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn vs Kayden Carter and Katana Chance

Alba pulls down Carter. Carter pulls both opponents out and baseball slides one into the other. Carter then pop-ups Chance onto her opponents. We go to break and return. Carter hits a double ddt off a double suplex attempt. Chance does a kegstand onto Isla.

Chance misses a move off the top and rolls up Isla for 1. Isla high kicks her. Chance takes a gori bomb + flatliner and is pinned.

Damage Ctrl comes out and attacks everyone. Iyo hits a double moonsault onto Isla and Alba.

Thoughts: The match was a short waste of time that did nothing for either team. It probably would have been good if they gave it some time.

Damian Priest catches Liv Morgan coming out of Judgment Day's hideout. He sees Finn Balor in there and says it looks sketchy. Finn says Liv told him Dom's fighting Rey next week and Finn and JD got a tag title shot from her tonight.

They show clips from the Wrestlemania documentary, saying the card was 85% planned months ahead of time. I don't like that since it is implies this is fake.

The Miz talks to R-Truth in the back. He tells him not to say the tag title match is set. Truth says it is. Truth says he loves love and compares Liv and Dom to Sleepless in Seattle. Miz says this is about us and Truth says he loves him, but only as a friend.

Damian Priest comes out. He talks about Seth and said he's a man he doesn't want to become. He says Seth will never see the mountain top as long as he is champ. Seth Rollins comes out.

Seth talks about The Royal Rumble coming here to Indiana. He says this is still his show. Seth said he doesn't believe the crap that is coming out of his mouth. He says Priest says he doesn't want help in his matches but needed help in his title matches. Priest said he can't change what happened. He says Seth doesn't hold any titles. Seth said he respects him but doesn't like being one-upped. He says he's here to one-up him.

Seth said he wants to sweeten the pot at MITB. Seth said he'll never challenge Priest for the title as long as he is champ if he loses. But he says if he beats him, Priest leaves Judgment Day. 

Priest says he's the champ. He says Judgment Day needs him more than he needs them. He accepts his bet.

Gunther comes out. He wishes them both good luck and said he can't wait to see this match. He says may the better man win and says the better of them will be the lesser when he fights him at Summerslam.

Thoughts: They really need to get Gunther some kind of storyline before Summerslam. He has really fallen off the map and does not feel as important as he did months ago.

We see the contents of the VHS that Cole was given. Uncle Howdy asks if someone is happy and asks how they have been since the loss. He asks if they feel forgotten and asks if they remember who they are. We then see Bo Dallas. He says he is nobody. Howdy says "there you are" and asks how it felt when his brother died. Bo says it felt like the most important thing in his life was taken away from him, like nothing was going to matter again.

Howdy asks if he's exploiting his brother's legacy. He says all he wanted was to be like his brother. He says they were going to roll together and they finally had it, then it was taken from him. He said not one person feels what he feels.

He said they wanted to forget about all of them. Bo says they made them all remember. Howdy says, "yes we did".

Thoughts: It's still too early into this thing and I'm still not sure what to make of it. 

Karrion Kross vs Kofi Kingston

Kofi dropkicks him out to start then tope con hilos him. Kross backbreakers Kofi then death valley drivers him for 2. Kofi springboard chops him and dropkicks him. Kofi crossbodies him off the top then flying lariats him. Kofi boom drops him.

We see the AOP and Paul Ellering in the back beating up Woods. Paul asks Kofi if it's worth it on the tron. Kross hits the final prayer and wins.

Thoughts: It was a short one here but they didn't match up bad.

We see Jacob Fatu's debut. They announce Cody, Orton and Owens vs The Bloodline at MITB.

Word Tag Titles - Awesome Truth (c) vs Judgment Day (JD McDonaugh and Finn Balor)

JD hits Truth from behind and stomps on him. Truth kicks Finn then scissors kicks him. Truth corner splashes him. Finn takes a double elbow drop and JD takes a double hiptoss. Finn takes a double flapjack and JD is double clotheslines over the top. Liv Morgan comes out and we go to PiP break.

We return and JD seated springboard moonsaults in one Truth. Finn and Truth knock each other down at the same time. Miz corner lariats JD and trips Finn on the apron. The rest of Judgment Day come out. Miz sends Carlito onto the commentary table then springboard crossbodies JD. JD sits on the 2nd rope and takes a codebreaker.

Miz hits a double ddt on JD and Finn. JD takes a skull crushing finale for 2. JD headbutts Miz and both go down. Braun Strowman hobbles down to ringside. He chases Dom and Carlito out. Truth flying shoulders Finn then blue thunders him. Finn blocks the five knuckle shuffle. Truth trips Finn then STF's him. JD stops it. Miz springboards and takes a JD dropkick.

Finn rolls up Truth then Truth blue thunders Finn. Truth goes for a double five knuckle shuffle. Liv gets on the apron and hugs Truth. Liv pulls Truth's throat down over the top. Finn john woo's Truth into the corner then Finn top rope double stomps Truth. Finn then picks up the win.

Thoughts: Judgment Day kind of needed a win after not doing much as of late. Miz and Truth are Miz and Truth. They don't really need the titles and can turn just about anything into something that is digestible. The Liv/Judgment Day storyline just got a lot more interesting and I'm really interested to see where it goes from here. The match was fine but nothing too special. 

Liv poses with JD and Finn after.

Overall thoughts: There were a lot of short and not so satisfactory matches tonight. Three ways are just limited matches, especially when they don't get much time. The Liv/Judgment Day storyline is really good stuff though and carried tonight's show. We don't know enough about The Wyatt Sicks yet for me to comment on it. Bron Breakker got a great reaction and likely further sealed his deal as one of the next stars. We're still kind of waiting to see what happens next in the Drew/Punk and Alpha Academy/Gable storylines. It was an entertaining show and I liked it, but it wasn't great.

WCW Monday Nitro 10/16/1995

WCW Monday Nitro 10/16/1995

Last week's show is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2024/06/wcw-monday-nitro-1091995.html

Mongo, Bischoff and Heenan are our hosts. Pepe the dog is dressed up like an alien. Heenan says "that's where the batteries go" when Mongo turns him around.

We see clips from WCW Pro of Flair asking Sting to be his partner. Sting says he will give him the benefit of the doubt this one. He says he will leave him for dead if he swerve's him once.

Diamond Dallas Page vs Johnny B. Badd

Page pushes the WCW mascot over. We see clips of Johnny B. Badd knocking Page out on WCW Saturday Night.

Badd poses during his entrance and Page nails him from behind with a title belt. The Diamond Doll is shocked and disgusted. Page then counts his own pin and shoots off Badd's confetti gun.

Thoughts: This would have kept going if it were NJPW. I don't know why Badd had decked Page on Saturday Night as they didn't explain it, but one could almost say Badd had it coming for decking him based on the footage.

Eddie Guerrero vs Chris Benoit

This is CB's debut. He's wearing blue with white stripes here. CB armdrags him. Eddie shoulders him over and takes him down by the arm. CB is pulled up and headscissors him then Eddie headscissors him. Eddie goes to tiger feint but gets stuck. Eddie top rope planchas him outside.

They get back in and Eddie is back body dropped over the top to the floor. CB goes with him. CB is sent into the post then takes a forearm to the head from behind. CB backdrops him.

CB northern lights suplexes him then suplexes him. CB back elbows him. Eddie tilt a whirl armdrags him the nspringboard tornad oddt's him. CB short arm clotheslines him. Eddie's selling the arm and CB hits chops. CB slams him then does a shoulder throw. CB wristlocks him. Eddie gets up to the top and springboard headscissors him. Eddie backdrops him.

Eddie hits a brainbuster for 2 and Mongo says you are dumber than dirt if you aren't a fan after this. CB blocks Eddie's top rope frogsplash. CB hits a jack knife powerbomb for 2. Eddie sunset flips him then punches him. Eddie hurts his own on it and is dragon suplexed. CB gets the win.

Thoughts: CB at least got the win on his debut here. CB's offense looked pretty vicious in this one. The crowd didn't know or care who these guys were and didnt' react much. I liked the work but the match didn't work at all. 

Eric says WCW is working on establishing a cruiserweight division. 

Mean Gene Okerlund is in the ring and shills the WCW Hotline. He says a top official in WWF is gone and says a superstar got into a fight with a fan and lost (referring to Shawn Michaels).

The Taskmaster and The Giant come out. Task says he told everyone that he is evil and Hulk Hogan created him. He said they took Hulk's identity when they shaved his mustache. They said they also got Hulk to give up his colors. Task says the fans followed him because he was a winner. He says they will become the children of The Dungeon of Doom when Giant beats him at Halloween Havoc.

Task calls Giant the future WCW champ. Giant says he will push Hulk off the roof and then take the belt. Giant asks Gene if he wants to see the hand that destroys Hulkamania then claws him with it.

Thoughts: I liked the idea of the fans suddenly becoming DoD followers when Giant wins. I could see kids dressing up like Shark and Zodiac. I think there were some good lines here that got lost in the evil talk.

Disco Inferno comes out to dance and Eric says this guy "makes him cough up his toenails".

Meng vs Hacksaw Jim Duggan

Meng is wearing some goofy masked hood that looks so cheap and doesn't fit. Jim poses on the ropes and Meng nails him. They trade shots in the corner and Meng eye rakes him. Meng drops him with a punch and chokes him on the ropes. Meng misses some offense and Jim gets punches in. Jim running lariats him. Jim slams him then Meng superkicks him. Meng sticks his thumb in Jim throat and wins via submission.

Thoughts: I really liked this. It was short and all of the shots looked great. They kept a good pace here as well. 

Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Hart do a promo. Hulk says everyone knows the evil in Hulk is real and said Kevin Sullivan was right. He says it's time to take care of the family business and protecting the training, the prayers and the vitamins. He says The Giant doesn't realize he can stop an elephant in its tracks and make promoters cry. He says what he did to Andre is nothing compared to what he will do to him. He says Giant is on his turf.

He says the stage is set for the ultimate showdown. Jimmy says he's worried about what Hulk will do. Hulk tells him to stay out of this. He says it's machine vs machine. He says they will fight for the truth to show that Hulkamania is the strongest force in the universe. He says he will beat "big, stinky Giant" down in the grave next to Andre and does his whatcha gonna do line.

Thoughts: One would swear the seeds were starting to be planted for his NWO run here. This really wasn't Hulk's best work here.

Ric Flair and Sting vs Arn Anderson and Brian Pillman

Sting is nowhere to be found as the match starts. BP and Ric trade chops in the corner. BP eye pokes him and Ric fights off Arn and BP in the corner.  BP throws Ric out. Arn goes after Ric. Ric chops Arn then throws BP onto the rails. Ric blocks a kneedrop from Arn inside and goes for the figure four. BP tries to top rope splash Ric but misses. Ric then figure fours him.

Ric double axe handles Arn off the top. BP kicks Ric form the apron and Arn spinebusters Ric. Sting comes down. BP back body drops Ric then nails Sting. BP and Ric trade shots. Ric avoids a dropkick. Sting gets the hot tag in and beats up both opponents. Sting pop-up drops BP then facebusters Arn.

Sting hits stinger splashes then lariats both opponents. Sting lariats Arn over the top. BP is thrown and crotched on the ropes. Sting and Ric then win by countout when Arn and BP leave.

Thoughts: It's a shame the finish was so weak here because this was a really fun match. Flair did such a good job on the 1v2, making everything seemed like it really counted and BP/Arn bumped well for him. They tried some tricks as well to keep him down. Sting came in at the right time and had a great hot tag in and then we went to the finishing stretch which had a bad finish. This was 100x more fun than it had any right to be and is probably one of the better handicap matches ever done minus the finish.

Mean Gene interviews Sting and Ric. He announces a Ric/Sting vs Flair/Pillman match at Halloween Havoc. Sting said he was watching the monitor and was concerned about getting tricked here. He said Ric had a lot of guts and showed heart. He said he knows now that Ric is walking the straight and narrow. He said they will destroy these two. He tells him to high five him right now. They high five. Ric says he's the greatest and says, "let's hear it for The Stinger".

The commentators talk about the Sting/Flair team. Bobby said he's sick of Sting and Flair and says to watch what Arn and Pillman do at Halloween Havoc.

Overall thoughts: It was a good show though I was surprised at the lack of Macho and Lex here. That had been a big storyline since Nitro started yet nothing new happened here with that. We saw Chris Benoit vs Eddie Guerrero which was cool to see even if they did too much. Meng and Duggan had a decent little match and Sting/Flair vs Pillman/Arn was very good outside of the finish. Hogan/Giant isn't working out that great but Hulk's new all black feels like a sign of things to come. I liked this one and recommend it.