WWE WrestleMania 40 - Night One

By Steve Ward

The 40th installment of the Showcase of the Immortals, WWE WrestleMania, emanated from the home of the Philadelphia Eagles, Lincoln Financial Field, in Philadelphia, PA. As has become the norm for the past few years, WWE again elected for a two night event in order to capitalize on their ability to produce to sellout gates with two mediocre cards padded with unnecessary vignettes and advertisements between every bout. This evening’s card featured seven matches with three titles contested and was headlined by Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins teaming up against The Rock and Roman Reigns to determine the stipulation for night two’s Universal Championship match.

Women’s World Championship

Becky Lynch vs. Rhea Ripley (c)

Winner: Rhea Ripley via pinfall

The opening bout of the weekend would have the potential to set the bar high as Becky Lynch, winner of the Women’s Elimination Chamber, earned her shot at the dominant Rhea Ripley’s RAW Women’s Championship. Becky Lynch gave a commendable effort but was clearly slowed as she battled strep throat. In the closing moments, Ripley was simply too much for The Man as she delivered a Riptide into the turnbuckle and immediately followed it up with yet another Riptide to successfully defend her title.

Six Pack Challenge for the Undisputed Tag Team Championship Ladder Match

DIY (Tommasso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano) vs. Awesome Truth (R-Truth & The Miz) vs. New Catch Republic (Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne) vs. A-Town Down Under (Austin Theory & Grayson Waller) vs. The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston) vs. The Judgement Day (Finn Balor & Damian Priest) (c)

Winners: Smackdown Tag Team Championship - Grayson Waller & Austin Theory; RAW Tag Team Championship - R-Truth & The Miz

Although this match was for the Undisputed Tag Team Championship, both the RAW and Smackdown Tag Team titles were suspended above the ring separately and the match would continue until both sets were retrieved. The first set of titles removed from their suspension above the ring were the Smackdown titles by Grayson Waller and Austin Theory. In the closing moments, R-Truth dumped Damian Priest out of the ring with an Attitude Adjustment and scaled the ladder to retrieve the RAW Tag Team Championship.

Rey Mysterio & Andrade vs. Dominik Mysterio & Santos Escobar

Winners: Rey Mysterio & Andrade via pinfall

The leader of the LWO, Rey Mysterio, recently returned from injury and dove right back into his bitter rivalry with former stablemate Santos Escobar (who has since reformed Legado del Fantasma). Dominik Mysterio then decided to insert himself back into Rey’s business making tonight’s affair a tag team match. Rey was set to team with Dragon Lee initially, however, he was taken out on Smackdown last night leaving the door open for Andrade to step in after he decided he didn’t agree with Escobar’s tactics. The match reached its conclusion shortly after Dominik Mysterio attempted to get a chair from ringside to use on his father. Before he was able to crack Rey’s skull with the steel chair, a pair of men donning luchador masks emerged from the crowd to thwart his efforts. This left Escobar vulnerable to the Tadpole Splash from Rey Mysterio which secured the pinfall.

Jimmy Uso vs. Jey Uso

Winner: Jey Uso via pinfall

Following his departure from The Bloodline, Jey Uso left Smackdown for RAW in search of a new start - his brother Jimmy, however, would not allow this as he has continued to insert himself in his brother’s business time and time again which brought us to, tonight. The conclusion of the match saw Jey Uso deliver a spear and subsequent splash from the top rope to solidify the victory.

Damage Ctrl (Kairi Sane, Asuka, & Dakota Kai) vs. Bianca Belair, Naomi, & Jade Cargill

Winners: Bianca Belair, Naomi, & Jade Cargill via pinfall

Interestingly enough, WWE decided to book the Women’s Tag Team Champions, The Kabuki Warriors, in a six-woman tag team match instead of a title bout. The Kabuki Warriors teamed with fellow Damage Ctrl member Dakota Kai as Bianca Belair recruited Naomi and Jade Cargill who returned/debuted at the Royal Rumble. In the closing moments of a rather brief bout, Jade Cargill was left alone with Dakota Kai who she dispatched with Jaded.

WWE Intercontinental Championship

Gunther (c) vs. Sami Zayn

Winner: Sami Zayn via pinfall

Gunther put his record-setting Intercontinental Championship reign on the line this evening against the resilient Sami Zayn. “The Ring General” Gunther dominated the entire match and seemed to have an impressive victory at hand after delivering a barrage of power bombs and splashes. After Zayn kicked out of a late pinfall attempt, Gunther scaled the turnbuckles only to be intercepted with a Helluva Kick. Zayn then delivered a brain buster in the corner and immediately followed with another Helluva Kick to shock the WWE Universe and end the record championship reign of Gunther.

The Rock & Roman Reigns w/ Paul Heyman vs. Cody Rhodes & Seth Rollins

Winners: The Rock & Roman Reigns via pinfall

The main event of Night One had significant implications for the stipulation of Cody Rhodes match with Roman Reigns on Night Two with the Universal Championship hanging in the balance. If Rhodes and Rollins were victorious, the Bloodline would be banned from ringside, however, if The Rock and Roman Reigns prevailed, then the Universal Championship would be contested under Bloodline Rules. This carnage-filled encounter showed that The Rock didn’t lose a step in his near decade away from the ring. With broken tables and broken bodies galore, the final moments of the match saw Seth Rollins incapacitated by Roman Reigns after being speared through the ringside barricade. This left The Rock and Rhodes in the ring alone. The Brahma Bull executed The Rock Bottom and immediately proceeded to hit the most electrifying move in sports entertainment, The People’s Elbow, to put away The American Nightmare and set up Bloodline Rules for Night Two’s main event.

WWE Survivor Series: War Games 2023 Recap

By Steve Ward

WWE’s Thanksgiving weekend tradition, Survivor Series, emanated this evening from Chicago’s Allstate Arena for its 37th installment. This year they would again incorporate the War Games component, adapted from WCW’s annual Fall Brawl events, in place of the traditional Survivor Series bouts. The event featured five matches with two titles contested and would be headlined by two War Games matches.

Women’s War Games Match

Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Shotzi, & Bianca Belair vs. Damage Ctrl

(Asuka, Bayley, Iyo Sky, Kairi Sane

Winners: Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Shotzi, & Bianca Belair

The War Games match, for those unfamiliar with the concept, takes place within two adjacent rings with a colossal cage encasing them. The match begins with one competitor from each team in the ring with a new participant entering the fray in three-minute intervals alternating between teams. A winner can only be determined by pinfall or submission after ALL competitors have entered the match.

The women’s War Games began with Becky Lynch and Bayley going toe to toe. The subsequent order of entry was Shotzi, Iyo Sky, Bianca Belair, Kairi Sane, Charlotte Flair, and Asuka. Once Asuka entered the imposing War Games structure, the match officially began meaning the first pinfall or submission would crown a winner. The closing moments saw Bayley singled out as Becky Lynch climbed to the middle turnbuckle with a table set up in front of her. Bayley then was hoisted up on the middle turnbuckle by The Man’s teammates where Becky Lynch delivered a Manhandle Slam to her plunging through the table setting up the pinfall.

WWE Intercontinental Championship

Gunther (c) vs. The Miz

Winner: Gunther via submission

This evening the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion in history, Gunther, put his 533-day title reign on the line against The Miz who sought to capture his ninth Intercontinental Championship. The Miz gave a valiant effort and was able to land several low blows, while distracting the referee’s attention, but in the end, Gunther was too much as he cinched in the Boston Crab to capture the win.

Santos Escobar vs. Dragon Lee

Winner: Santos Escobar via pinfall

Over the past several weeks, Santos Escobar systematically took out each member of the LWO after he decided he no longer wished to remain in Rey Mysterio’s shadow. Escobar was supposed to square off with the last man standing in the LWO, Carlito, until he was brutally attacked on Smackdown last night. Following the assault, Dragon Lee stepped up and pleaded with Smackdown general manager Nick Aldis to put him in the match bringing us to tonight’s bout. Santos Escobar proved to be too much for Lee as he hit the South of the Border Destroyer and then the Phantom Driver to solidify the victory.

WWE Women’s Championship

Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Zoey Stark

Winner: Rhea Ripley via pinfall

Zoey Stark showed some brief flurries of offense, but Ripley was simply too formidable of an opponent. Ripley finally vanquished Stark with The Riptide to retain her title.

Men’s Wargames Match

Drew McIntyre & The Judgement Day (Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio, and JD McDonagh) vs. Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Sami Zayn, Jey Uso, and Randy Orton

Winners: Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Sami Zayn, Jey Uso, and Randy Orton

The same rules would apply for the men’s match as the women’s earlier in the evening.  The key storyline to follow in this match would be whether Randy Orton, who’s been on the shelf injured for over a year and a half, would show after being announced as the final member of Rhodes’ team this past Monday on RAW. The first two participants in the match were Finn Balor and Seth Rollins. The order of entry following the first two competitors was JD McDonagh, Jey Uso, Damian Priest, Sami Zayn, Drew McIntyre, Cody Rhodes, Dominik Mysterio, and Randy Orton.

When it appeared Orton would no show, Rhea Ripley ran to the ring with Damian Priest’s Money In The Bank briefcase after Rollins, the World Heavyweight Champion, was put through a table. Just as Priest was going to cash in his contract, Orton interrupted and made his way to the ring. Orton helped his team run roughshod on the opposing team culminating in Cody Rhodes hitting the Cross-Rhodes on Damian Priest for the win.

As they celebrated in the ring, the shock of the night came as CM Punk’s music echoed throughout the arena and he made his return to WWE after his termination from AEW in August following a backstage altercation with Jack Perry.

WWE Summerslam 2023

By Steve Ward

WWE finally returned to the United States this evening following back-to-back Premium Live Events (aka pay per views) in Saudi Arabia and England as Summerslam emanated from a sold-out Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. Tonight’s card was scheduled for eight bouts with four titles contested. As the show opened, Michael Cole proclaimed that there would be FOUR main events…really? In my opinion, stating four matches are main events is not only contradictory, but also, diminishes the luster of the final bout of the night. Nonetheless, the final match of the evening pit Roman Reigns against his cousin Jey Uso in a familial civil war with the Undisputed Universal Championship on the line.

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet

Winner: Logan Paul via pinfall

The evening kicked off with the polarizing Logan Paul, who made his way to the ring welcomed by an overwhelming chorus of hatred, to take on the high-flying Ricochet. In the closing moments of the contest, Ricochet seemed poised to claim victory as he ascended to the top rope to attempt the 630. Paul rolled out of harm’s way and as the referee checked on him, a member of Paul’s entourage slipped him a pair of brass knuckles which he used to drop Ricochet to solidify the victory.

Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes 

Winner: Cody Rhodes via pinfall

Following Brock’s betrayal of Cody on RAW the night after Wrestlemania, the two have engaged in a bitter rivalry that has seen each man claim one victory a piece in each of their two previous meetings with the deciding match this evening. Brock Lesnar dominated the vast majority of this bout as he delivered everything in his arsenal only to have Rhodes continue to ask for more. Late in the match, Lesnar met the dreaded exposed turnbuckle with his head which opened the door for Cody to cinch in Brock’s own patented Kimura Lock on him. Brock managed to escape and attempt the F5 again only to have Cody slip out. Rhodes proceeded to deliver three consecutive Cross Rhodes to slay The Beast.

Summerslam Battle Royal

Winner: LA Knight

In an effort to pack more talent onto the card, an over-the-top battle royal was added to the card with nothing other than bragging rights at stake. The final four men in the bout were AJ Styles, Bronson Reed, LA Knight, and Sheamus. The first to go was Bronson Reed at the hands of LA Knight. Styles was eliminated next by Sheamus thanks to an assist by Karrion Kross. As Styles stood on the ring apron, likely setting himself up to deliver a Phenomenal Forearm, Kross grasped Styles’ leg allowing Sheamus to take advantage and kick him in the face. LA Knight then clotheslined Sheamus over the top rope to reign victorious.

MMA Rules Match

Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler

Winner: Shayna Baszler via submission

Following Baszler’s betrayal of Rousey during their tag team title bout at Money In The Bank, which cost them their titles, things have gotten ugly between the two former sparring partners. With a long-standing friendship dating back to their UFC days, the two have quickly become bitter rivals as Baszler has felt like she’s been trapped in Rousey’s shadow which has brought us to tonight’s match. Following a rather uneventful match, Baszler cinched in the Kirifuda Clutch to earn the submission victory.

WWE Intercontinental Title Match

Gunther (c) vs. Drew McIntyre

Winner: Gunther via pinfall

Since Gunther overcame McIntyre and Sheamus at Wrestlemania to retain his championship, he has continued his torrid streak as the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion of the 21st Century. Recently, McIntyre made his return to WWE television for the first time since Wrestlemania and immediately confronted The Ring General. That lead us to tonight’s hard-hitting encounter between the two as Gunther entered the night only 32 days from matching the Honky Tonk Man’s legendary reign as Intercontinental Champ. McIntyre gave Gunther a run for his money as he was perched on the top rope and appeared to be in dire straits as The Scottish Warrior seemed poised to deliver a superplex until he was propelled by Gunther onto the top rope in a quite precarious landing position. Gunther then capitalized and delivered the power bomb to solidify his title defense.

World Heavyweight Championship

Seth Rollins (c) vs. Finn Balor

Winner: Seth Rollins via pinfall

Their ongoing rivalry continued this evening as Balor received another title shot against Rollins after he was arguably cost a victory at Money In The Bank thanks to the distraction of his fellow Judgement Day stablemate, Damian Priest. Just as Rollins was building momentum late in the match, Priest made his way to ringside with Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley soon to follow. The distraction was enough to give Balor a temporary edge as he was able to land the Coup de Grace but could not capitalize. Priest then slid the Money In The Bank briefcase in the ring and proceeded to distract the referee. As Balor crawled over to retrieve it, Rollins stopped him with the stomp as he drove Balor’s face into the briefcase allowing him to secure the pinfall.

WWE Women’s Championship

Asuka (c) vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Bianca Belair

Winner: Bianca Belair via pinfall

Asuka looked to continue her title reign following her victory over Bianca Belair at Night of Champions as she engaged in a triple threat affair with Belair and Charlotte Flair who made her recent return. In the closing moments of the match, Flair had the Figure 8 cinched in on Belair. Asuka then sprayed the mist in the face of Flair and attempted to kick Belair in the head. Belair ducked and rolled up Asuka to become the new champion - for a few minutes.

WWE Women’s Championship

Bianca Belair (c) vs. Iyo Sky

Winner: Iyo Sky via pinfall

Just moments after Belair won the Women’s Championship, Miss Money In The Bank, Iyo Sky’s music echoed throughout Ford Field as she made her way to the ring with Bayley. Sky cashed in her briefcase and immediately hit a moonsault on Belair to become the new WWE Women’s Champion.

WWE Undisputed Universal Championship Tribal Combat Match

Roman Reigns w/ Paul Heyman vs. Jey Uso

Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall

Following Jimmy and Jey Uso’s election to turn on Roman Reigns, they have become embroiled in a bitter Bloodline civil war which led us to tonight’s Tribal Combat. Essentially this no holds barred match was not only for the Undisputed Universal Championship, but also to determine who would sit at the head of the table as the tribal chief. As Jey Uso seemed poised to pull off the unthinkable late in the match, Solo Sikoa emerged to turn the tides. Jey was able to remove Sikoa from the equation with a splash through the announce table and again turned his attention to Roman. After delivering an Uso Splash to Roman, Jey was pulled from the ring by his brother Jimmy who emerged from the crowd. Roman then capitalized and drove Jimmy through another table propped up in a corner of the ring with a devastating spear to retain his title.

WWE Wrestlemania Backlash 2023

By Steve Ward

WWE made it’s pay per view/premium live event debut this evening as they emanated from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Tonight’s card seemed to be overshadowed with the buildup to Night of Champions later this month where a new World Heavyweight Champion will be crowned for the RAW brand as Roman Reigns will be confined to Smackdown with his Undisputed Universal Championship following this year’s WWE Draft. With Reigns out of the picture for tonight, the show would be headlined by Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar. In addition to the colossal main event, the show featured seven matches in all, and three titles were contested.

WWE RAW Women’s Championship Bianca Belair (c) vs. Io Sky Winner: Bianca Belair via pinfall

Despite being drafted to Smackdown last week, Belair still holds the RAW Women’s Championship and would put it on the line this evening against Damage Ctrl’s Io Sky. Sky seemed poised to upset the champ in the closing moments of the match, but one could argue the late appearance by her Damage Ctrl stable mates cost her the title. Belair was laid out on the canvas as Sky ascended to the top turnbuckle for a moonsault attempt, however, Bayley decided to grab the hair of Belair and hold her down only to be caught by the referee. This distraction was enough for Belair to recover and roll out of harm's way as Sky leaped from the top rope. Belair then executed the KOD to retain her title.

Seth Rollins vs. Omos w/ MVP Winner: Seth Rollins via pinfall

Following the announcement recently of a soon-to-be-crowned World Heavyweight Champion on the RAW brand, Seth Rollins made his intentions known for targeting the new title only to be interrupted by Omos. Omos and MVP proceeded to challenge Rollins to a match this evening as a way for Omos to secure a signature win over “The Architect.” Omos proved to be quite the formidable opponent for Rollins in this contest. The Nigerian Giant withstood the frog splash and multiple stomps (the first of which he stopped with his neck), however, Rollins finally overcame the odds in the end as he delivered the Stomp from the top turnbuckle which allowed him to cover Omos for the victory. 

WWE United States Championship Bobby Lashley vs. Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory (c) Winner: Austin Theory via pinfall

This bout created another interesting dynamic with the recent roster shake-up from the 2023 WWE Draft as new Smackdown Superstars, Theory and Lashley, competed with RAW’s Bronson Reed in a three-way dance for the United States Championship. In the closing moments of the match, Lashley speared Reed after he missed a moonsault attempt on Theory. The defending champ then snuck up on Lashley and tossed him out of the ring allowing him to easily cover Reed and steal another victory in familiar Theory fashion.

WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Zelina Vega Winner: Rhea Ripley via pinfall

In another situation where the defending champion was recently drafted to the brand opposite of the title which she holds, RAW Superstar Rhea Ripley would defend the Smackdown Women’s Title she just won a few weeks ago at Wrestlemania against Zelina Vega who represented the newly reformed Latino World Order, LWO. Despite the overwhelming crowd support for Vega, who’s family was seated at ringside, the size and power of Ripley was too much for her to overcome as she finally dispensed of Vega with Riptide to successfully defend her title.

San Juan Street Fight Match Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest Winner: Bad Bunny via pinfall

In a battle of Puerto Rican natives, The Judgment Day’s Damien Priest went toe to toe with multi-platinum recording artist and ally of the LWO, Bad Bunny, in a San Juan Street Fight. Late in the match, Finn Balor and Dominik Mysterio came to the aid of Priest until Rey Mysterio, a surprising appearance by Carlito, the LWO, and Savio Vega all evened the odds and restored order to the match. Bad Bunny, moments later, was able to dispense of Priest with a Bunny Destroyer (a variation of the Canadian Destroyer) following a barrage of chair shots.

The Bloodline (Solo Sikoa, Jimmy Uso, and Jey Uso) vs. Matt Riddle, Kevin Owens, & Sami Zayn Winners: The Bloodline via pinfall

The ongoing feud between The Bloodline and Undisputed Tag Team Champions, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens (with the recent infusion of Matt Riddle in the fray), continued tonight in a six-man tag team encounter. The Bloodline was able to overcome several disagreements amongst themselves to dispense of the tag champs and Riddle in the end. The closing moments of the match saw Solo blind tag himself into the match without Riddle’s awareness. Riddle proceeded to focus on Jey Uso as he executed the Bro Derek only to be ambushed by Solo from behind and put down with a Samoan Spike.

Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes Winner: Cody Rhodes via pinfall

Following his betrayal of Cody Rhodes, the night after Wrestlemania, a bitter feud has embroiled between Brock Lesnar and Cody Rhodes. In the closing moments of tonight’s main event, a bloodied Brock Lesnar seemed to have a victory in his sights after he dropped Rhodes with the F5 and immediately followed it up with the Kimura Lock. Rhodes who appeared to be in dire straits, drove The Beast back onto his shoulders while still trapped in the submission hold to shock Lesnar with the pinfall victory in a rather abrupt match.

WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night Two

By Steve Ward

WWE’s 39th installment of the Showcase of the Immortals continued this evening from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA following a solid overall first night. While night one featured some WWE legends in action and entertaining bouts for the Smackdown Women’s and United States Championships, the star power is much more prevalent across the card for night two with names such as Brock Lesnar, Edge, and Roman Reigns showcased. This evening’s card featured seven matches, three title contests, and was headlined by Roman Reigns putting his 945-day title reign on the line against “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes.

Brock Lesnar vs. Omos w/ MVP

Winner: Brock Lesnar via pinfall

Tonight’s card kicked off with one of WWE’s biggest draws, Brock Lesnar, squaring off with the 7’3” Nigerian Giant, Omos. With no title bout for Lesnar this year, WWE decided to pair him up with the largest man in WWE - and one of the largest competitors ever. A dire situation appeared to be afoot for Lesnar to open this bout as he was manhandled by Omos. Lesnar capitalized on a window of opportunity that opened when he ducked out of the way of a charging Omos while in the corner. Lesnar’s evasion lead the Nigerian Giant to slam his head into the ring post. Lesnar then took the massive Omos to Suplex City and finished the massive giant off with an impressive F5.

Wrestlemania Showcase Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Match

Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan vs. Natalya & Shotzi vs. Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville vs. Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler

Winners: Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler via submission

Much like the men’s tag team showcase on night one, the women were featured tonight in an effort to give more of the roster exposure on the stage of Wrestlemania and the winners would put themselves in prime position for a future tag team title opportunity. In the closing moments of the match, Shayna Baszler made a blind tag on Liv Morgan and then Rousey tagged her partner to become the legal competitor in the match. Rousey and Baszler disposed of Morgan and then Rousey cinched in the armbar on Shotzi for the submission victory.

WWE Intercontinental Championship Triple Threat Match

Gunther (c) vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus

Winner: Gunther via pinfall

Gunther was forced to put his historic 296-day Intercontinental Title reign on the line against both Sheamus and McIntyre after the two men fought to a no contest in their match to determine the number one contender for tonight’s contest. Late in this incredibly hard-hitting affair, that left all three competitors with bruised and swollen pectorals, Sheamus appeared poised to earn the victory on McIntyre when Gunther flew from the top turnbuckle to break up the pinfall attempt. Gunther then hoisted Sheamus up and powerbombed him onto McIntyre and then powerbombed McIntyre as well to secure the pinfall victory.

WWE RAW Women’s Championship

Asuka vs. Bianca Belair (c)

Winner: Bianca Belair via pinfall

After Rhea Ripley elected to use her Royal Rumble victory to challenge Charlotte Flair for her Smackdown Women’s Championship at Wrestlemania, RAW Women’s Champion Bianca Belair was left without an opponent until the Empress of Tomorrow answered her challenge. Tonight, Belair would put her second longest ever RAW Women’s Championship reign on the line against the highly decorated Asuka on the grandest stage of them all. In the closing moments, Belair avoided the dreaded mist and was able to survive the armbar to deliver a KOD to solidify her title defense.

The Miz vs. Snoop Dogg

Winner: Snoop Dogg via pinfall

After The Miz and Snoop Dogg announced the attendance for Night Two, The Miz proceeded to reprimand Snoop for putting him in an impromptu match with Pat McAfee on Night One. Snoop then introduced Shane McMahon as the opponent for The Miz tonight. Shortly after the bell rang, Shane McMahon landed wrong as he leapfrogged a charging Miz and legitimately tore his quadricep. While the ringside doctor attended to McMahon, Snoop Dogg stepped up and dropped The Miz with a couple right hands and then delivered his version of The People’s Elbow to pin The Miz.

Hell In A Cell

Edge vs. “The Demon” Finn Balor

Winner: Edge via pinfall

In what should be the final chapter in the long, bitter rivalry between Edge and Finn Balor, they decided to do battle in the ominous Hell In A Cell tonight. At the end of this brawl, the confines of the cell was littered with chairs, kendo sticks, ladders, broken tables, and blood. Balor appeared to have the match in hand until Edge evaded his Coup de Grace attempt leaving him to crash through a table. Edge then speared The Demon and finished him off with the Conchairto to leave Wrestlemania victorious.

WWE Undisputed Universal Heavyweight Championship

Roman Reigns (c) w/ Paul Heyman vs. Cody Rhodes

Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall

Cody Rhodes made his shocking return to WWE after leaving the company he helped to build, AEW, at last year’s Wrestlemania but was derailed shortly after with a torn pectoral muscle that put him on the shelf for over six months. Rhodes then made his triumphant return at this year’s Royal Rumble as entrant number 30 and prevailed to punch his ticket to the main event tonight against Roman Reigns. The real question would be whether WWE would elect to end Roman Reigns’ title reign short of 1,000 days. Following a hard-hitting affair where each competitor emptied their arsenals, the difference proved to be Solo Sikoa. Roman’s title reign appeared to be in serious jeopardy late after Rhodes built momentum following interference from both The Usos and the new tag team champions, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Rhodes executed back-to-back Cross Rhodes and was about to try and put away The Tribal Chief with a third when Paul Heyman climbed up to the ring apron to draw the referee’s attention. With Dan Engler distracted, Solo Sikoa snuck into the ring and delivered a Samoan Spike to the neck of Rhodes. This gave the defending champ the opportunity he needed to put away The American Nightmare with a body-crumbling spear to continue his historic title run.

WWE Royal Rumble 2023

By Steve Ward

The road to Wrestlemania officially kicked off this evening as the Royal Rumble emanated from a sold out Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. This evening’s stacked card featured five matches with two titles contested and was headlined by the Men’s and Women’s 30-participant over the top battle royals. While the return of Cody Rhodes has already been confirmed for the match, there has also been the annual air of speculation with what surprises could be in store with one popular theory being the return of The Rock which would potentially set up a showdown at the Showcase of the Immortals with his cousin Roman Reigns - assuming he retains his title in a showdown with Kevin Owens.

Men’s Royal Rumble Match

Winner: Cody Rhodes

Quite to my surprise, this year’s show opened with the Men’s Royal Rumble Match - possibly to set up a face to face with the winner of the Universal Championship Match.

Participants:

Gunther

Sheamus

The Miz

Kofi Kingston

Johnny Gargano

Xavier Woods

Karrion Kross

Chad Gable

Drew McIntyre

Santos Escobar

Angelo Dawkins

Brock Lesnar

Bobby Lashley

Baron Corbin

Seth Rollins

Otis

Rey Mysterio (never entered the match after he was allegedly jumped by Dominik Mysterio

backstage)

Dominik Mysterio

Elias

Finn Balor

Booker T

Damian Priest

Montez Ford

Edge

Austin Theory

Omos

Braun Strowman

Ricochet

Logan Paul

Cody Rhodes

In the closing moments, the commentators believed the final four to be Gunther, Cody, Rollins, and Austin Theory. Theory was the first to go thanks to a clothesline from Cody Rhodes. Next, Logan Paul (thought to be out of the match) returned to eliminate Seth Rollins. Next, Cody hit the Cross Rhodes on Logan and promptly eliminated him. This left the Intercontinental Champion, Gunther, who set the record for longest time in a traditional Royal Rumble match, and the returning Cody Rhodes. In the closing moments, Cody hit the Cross Rhodes on Gunther and then promptly dumped him over the top rope to solidify his victory.

Sadly, this match had only one real surprise in Booker T and the booking was simply lazy by saving the one participant who everyone knew was in the match for #30 - this received a chorus of boos from the WWE Universe when Logan Paul entered at 29 which solidified Cody for 30 removing any air of mystique.

Mountain Dew Pitch Black Match

Bray Wyatt vs. LA Knight

Winner: Bray Wyatt via pinfall

The past several weeks has seen LA Knight (who many better recognize as Eli Drake from his Impact and NWA days) finally receive a significant push, following his abysmal Maximum Male Models program, with Bray Wyatt. Not much was known about the match stipulations heading into this event except that anything goes and the identity of Uncle Howdy could possibly be revealed.

Once the bell rang, the normal lights went out revealing a black light reactive ring so essentially this was a hardcore match in what looked like a ring that would fit in at a glow in the dark mini golf course. In a rather short affair, Wyatt put Knight away with the Sister Abigail.

RAW Women’s Championship

Alexa Bliss vs. Bianca Belair (c) 

Winner: Bianca Belair via pinfall

In a rather uneventful match, Belair put Bliss away with the KOD in rather short order to retain her title. Following the match, an eerie vignette played in the arena displaying Bliss from her time under Bray Wyatt’s “control” seemingly foreshadowing an upcoming turn in character for her.

Women’s Royal Rumble Match

Winner: Rhea Ripley

 

Participants:

Rhea Ripley

Liv Morgan

Dana Brooke

Emma

Shayna Baszler

Bayley

B-Fab

Roxanne Perez

Dakota Kai

Iyo Sky

Natalya

Candice Lerae

Zoey Stark

Xia Li

Becky Lynch

Tegan Nox

Asuka

Piper Niven

Tamina

Chelsea Green

Zelina Vega

Raquel Rodriguez

Mia Yim

Lacey Evans

Michelle McCool

Indi Hartwell

Sonya Deville

Shotzi

Nikki Cross

Nia Jax

The final four in the Women’s Royal Rumble came down to Asuka, Nikki Cross, Liv Morgan, and Rhea Ripley. The first to be eliminated was Nikki Cross at the hands of Liv Morgan as she stood on the ring apron attempting to eliminate Asuka. Minutes later, all three women found themselves standing on the apron. Asuka delivered the mist to the face of Liv and Ripley proceeded to kick Asuka’s legs out from under her sending her to the floor. Then a “blinded” Liv was launched from the ring apron as Ripley hung from the top rope and lifted her legs up around Liv’s head to eliminate her and punch her ticket to Wrestlemania.

Undisputed Universal Championship

Roman Reigns (c) w/ Paul Heyman & Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens

Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall

This match really only seemed to manifest because of the longstanding history between the “Honorary Uce” Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens with Zayn’s loyalty being questioned for months. Tonight, Reigns absolutely steamrolled Owens enroute to yet another successful defense of his title as his historic reign continues.

After the match, the beat down of Owens continued until he found himself handcuffed to the ring ropes. The Usos proceeded to deliver countless super kicks to Owens until Reigns picked up a steel chair and gave it to Zayn to finish the job. A conflicted Zayn proceeded to strike The Tribal Chief instead and received a beat down of his own for his efforts by The Bloodline, with the exception of Jey Uso who had his own conflict of conscience and walked out of the arena. The remainder of the Bloodline proceeded to exit the arena unified as they basked in their victory.