WWE Clash In Italy

By Steve Ward

For the first time in history, a WWE premium live event emanated from Italy as Clash In Italy was live from Inalpi Arena in Turin. This evening’s card, arguably more stacked than both nights of WrestleMania 42 combined, featured five matches with four titles contested and was headlined by a Tribal Combat Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship between defending champion Roman Reigns and his cousin Jacob Fatu.

WWE Undisputed Championship
Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Gunther
Winner: Cody Rhodes via pinfall

This was a solid back and forth affair to open the card that had the crowd fully invested from the start, however, it ended in a shroud of controversy. In the closing moments, Cody executed a Cody Cutter and immediately followed it up with the Cross Rhodes to set up the pinfall. It was not seen until after the pinfall was counted that referee Dan Engler missed Gunther’s foot under the rope. Gunther proceeded to protest for several minutes to no avail before storming out of the arena.

WWE Women’s Championship
Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Jade Cargill
Winner: Rhea Ripley via pinfall

After losing her title to Ripley at WrestleMania, Jade earned another opportunity at the Women’s Championship recently on Smackdown to set up tonight’s encounter in Italy. Late in the match, B-Fab and Michin tried to insert themselves in the match by placing Jade’s foot on the bottom rope to halt the pinfall. Moments later, Charlotte Flair emerged from the crowd to even the odds. After dispensing Jade’s backup, Flair repaid the favor by placing Rhea’s foot on the rope as Jade attempted a pinfall. Shortly thereafter, Rhea hit the Riptide to retain her title.

Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi
Winner: Brock Lesnar via pinfall

Following his embarrassment at the hands of Oba Femi at WrestleMania which left him seemingly retired, Brock Lesnar exacted his revenge two weeks ago on RAW as he shocked the WWE Universe with a ruthless ambush of The Ruler which brought us to tonight’s grudge match. Brock was ready tonight as he brought the fight to Oba from the opening bell. Following an onslaught of F5s and Kimura Locks which allowed him to systematically break down Femi, Lesnar finally put him away with a SEVENTH F5 for the win.

WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Sol Ruca
Winner: Sol Ruca via pinfall

In a match that saw Becky Lynch jarring with referee Jessika Carr several times, she seemed like she would overcome her challenger until she attempted a Sol Snatcher only to be countered with her own Manhandle Slam. This proved to be the turning point of the match as just moments later, Ruca hit the Sol Snatcher to capture her first championship since her main roster call up.

WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tribal Combat Match
Roman Reigns (c) vs. Jacob Fatu
Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall

After Jacob Fatu came up short in his title opportunity at Backlash, he refused to acknowledge the Tribal Chief which brought us to tonight’s Tribal Combat match with championship gold at stake once again. Following an absolutely brutal encounter, Roman Reigns was able to survive Jacob Fatu and the deadly Tongan Death Grip which he took from his uncle, the legendary Haku. In the final moments of the match, Roman drove Fatu through a table propped up in the corner of the ring with a devastating spear that left splintered wood everywhere. Reigns then nailed the Samoan Werewolf with yet another spear to solidify the win.

WWE WrestleMania 42 Night Two

By Steve Ward

WWE returned to Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada for night number two of WrestleMania. Night One didn’t feel like it was firing on all cylinders with the four-minute commercial breaks between every match that consistently broke the momentum of the show and consumed more of the four hour block than the combined time of multiple matches, the clearly empty sections in the upper deck that were tarped over, and the matches that felt rushed and void of that special “WrestleMania Moment.” While night one did provide some highlights in the form of the Gunther and Seth Rollins bout that featured the return of Bron Breakker and Paige’s surprise return for the Women’s Tag Team Championship match, night two seems poised to be the more electrifying card of the weekend. Sunday’s card featured six matches with four titles contested and was headlined by CM Punk defending the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Roman Reigns.

Brock Lesnar w/ Paul Heyman vs. Oba Femi

Winner: Oba Femi via pinfall

Tonight’s show kicked off its first hour on ESPN with Brock Lesnar returning to the ring to square off with the up and coming Oba Femi who seems poised for a monster push. Brock Lesnar appeared overpowered for the first time in his illustrious career as Femi withstood Suplex City and an F5 to deliver the Fall From Grace powerbomb as he conquered The Beast. 

Following the match, Lesnar removed his gloves and boots in the center of the ring before embracing his longtime advocate, Paul Heyman,  in what appeared to be his retirement from professional wrestling.

WWE Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match 

Penta (c) vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Rusev vs. Je’Von Evans vs. Dragon Lee vs. JD McDonagh

Winner: Penta

Penta would defend the title on night two against a very interesting mix of challengers. We had Rey Mysterio who was conveniently cleared for action after Gunther was booked in another match, the veteran powerhouse Rusev who hasn’t been able to build momentum since his return, the “Young OG” Je’Von Evans who is out to prove himself as a top contender, and JD McDonagh who is out for revenge for Penta taking the title from his Judgement Day cohort Dominik Mysterio. In a match that saw plenty of broken ladders and broken bodies, the final moments saw Je’Von Evans seemingly poised to capture the Intercontinental Championship until Penta came out of nowhere to deliver a Mexican Destroyer off the ladder to put him down. This opened the door for Penta to scale the ladder and retrieve his title.

WWE United States Championship 

Trick Williams w/ Lil Yachty vs. Sami Zayn (c)

Winner: Trick Williams via pinfall 

Sami Zayn recently dethroned Carmelo Hayes as champion on Smackdown and was quickly thrown into a feud with another rising star, former TNA Heavyweight Champion Trick Williams. Many have viewed Zayn as a transitional champion with speculation that WWE wants to build a long program between Williams and Hayes - tonight would determine if that plays out. In the closing moments, Zayn hit the Exploder Suplex and was positioned to attempt The Helluva Kick. As Zayn charged Williams, he was stunned with The Trick Shot which allowed Trick to cover him for the pinfall.

Street Fight

Dominik Mysterio vs. “The Demon” Finn Balor

Winner: “The Demon” Finn Balor via pinfall

Following his unceremonious removal from The Judgement Day, Finn Balor has decided to invoke the return of his Demon persona, following a lengthy three year absence, for tonight’s grudge match. Balor withstood a barrage of chair shots, being put through a table, and a Frogsplash to achieve his measure of revenge on “Dirty” Dom. In the closing moments, Balor beat Dom down with a chair and then laid him out on a table to deliver the Coup de Grace for the win.

WWE Women’s Championship 

Jade Cargill (c) vs. Rhea Ripley

Winner: Rhea Ripley via pinfall 

Rhea Ripley earned her opportunity to ascend to the top of the Women’s Division once again with her victory in the Women’s Elimination Chamber against a champion who has never seemed to defend her title. Rhea appeared in dire straits as Cargill’s Baddies, Michin and B-Fab, made their presence felt late in the contest. Iyo Sky then made her way to the ring and dispatched of the two while also creating a distraction. This allowed Ripley to stun Jade with a headbutt followed by the Riptide for the victory.

Following the match, John Cena made his way to the ring to announce the attendance before he was interrupted by The Miz and Kit Wilson. As The Miz proclaimed he wanted his WrestleMania moment, Danhausen made his way to the ring with a group of mini Danhausens. After the mini Danhausens eliminated Kit Wilson, Danhausen delivered a Five Knuckle Shuffle to The Miz. Danhausen’s exit was seemingly botched as a plume of smoke went off and dissipated around him before he could make his exit.

WWE World Heavyweight Championship 

CM Punk (c) vs. Roman Reigns 

Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall

WrestleMania 42 weekend closed out tonight with the 2026 Men’s Royal Rumble winner, Roman Reigns, challenging CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship. The buildup to this encounter did get ugly at times with the personal attacks that blurred the lines of kayfabe promising a fever pitch intensity level for the main event on “The Showcase of the Immortals.” Late in the match CM Punk seemed to be in prime position to put Roman away after he put him through the announce table with a devastating elbow drop. Punk then delivered the Go To Sleep, however, when he attempted a second consecutive GTS, his body gave out. This opened the door for Reigns to deliver two devastating, body-breaking spears after which Punk was unable to kick out before the referee’s three count.

WWE Elimination Chamber 2026

By Steve Ward

The final stop on the Road to WrestleMania rolled into the United Center in Chicago, Illinois this evening as WWE presented Elimination Chamber. Tonight’s card featured four bouts with two titles contested and two elimination chamber matches, each with a ticket to a championship match at WrestleMania on the line. 

Women’s Elimination Chamber Match

Asuka vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Raquel Rodriguez vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Kiana James vs. Tiffany Stratton 

Winner: Rhea Ripley 

The card kicked off tonight with the Women’s Elimination Chamber where the winner would earn the opportunity to square off with WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill at WrestleMania. The match kicked off with Stratton and James while the remaining competitors would enter in five minute intervals. Asuka was the first to be released from her pod and enter the fray and immediately went on the offensive crushing her opponent’s skulls into the plexiglass of the chamber pods. Bliss was the next to enter the match with no eliminations recorded yet. The fifth entry into the match was Rhea Ripley who quickly incapacitated the field before directing her attention to Bliss. The first elimination came moments later as Asuka sprayed the mist in Bliss’ eyes allowing James to pin her just seconds before Rodriguez finally entered. Rodriguez unleashed a path of destruction in her wake as she put James through a pod wall and then body slammed Asuka onto her in the middle of the ring before pinning both women simultaneously. The next elimination came after Tiffany Stratton hit the Prettiest Moonsault Ever on an incapacitated Raquel leaving her alone with Ripley. The final moments saw Rhea Ripley hit the Riptide on Stratton to earn the pinfall and punch her ticket to WrestleMania.

Women’s Intercontinental Championship 

Becky Lynch (c) vs. AJ Lee

Winner: AJ Lee via submission 

This evening’s bout would mark Lee’s first singles bout in over a decade with championship gold hanging in the balance. In the closing moments, Becky’s attempt at cheating backfired as she took a header into the turnbuckle she had earlier removed the cover from. This allowed Lee the opportunity to cinch in the Black Widow for the submission victory.

World Heavyweight Championship 

CM Punk (c) vs. Finn Balor

Winner: CM Punk via pinfall

Balor was given another opportunity at the World Heavyweight Championship tonight against CM Punk as Balor vowed to turn the WrestleMania main event on it’s head. Following a long and grueling battle, Punk was able to withstand a late Coup de Grace to put Finn away with the Go To Sleep.

Prior to the main event, Smackdown GM Nick Aldis and RAW GM Adam Pearce opened the mysterious large crate that has been sitting backstage the past few weeks with a note not to open it until February 28. The crate was pried open revealing a wood coffin. Both GMs shook their heads and walked away. The coffin slowly opened and revealed the debut of the newly signed Danhausen.

Men’s Elimination Chamber Match 

Trick Williams vs. LA Knight vs. Logan Paul vs. Randy Orton vs. Je’Von Evans vs. Cody Rhodes

Winner: Randy Orton

The main event of the evening was the Men’s Elimination Chamber Match with a shot against Undisputed WWE Champion Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania hanging in the balance. Evans and Rhodes would kick off the match with another combatant joining the chaos every five minutes. The first competitor to be released from the pods was Trick Williams. Following Williams was Logan Paul who was immediately assaulted by the other three men in the ring. The fifth to enter the match was LA Knight. Just moments after Logan Paul was launched off the top of a pod by Knight and Evans, Orton became the final entry into the match. Evans became the first elimination after he executed a frogsplash on Williams as Logan Paul capitalized on Evans hurting himself by nailing him with the Paulverizer. Paul then eliminated Knight after hitting him with a low blow. Next, Rhodes hit the Cross Rhodes on Williams only to be discarded by Paul who claimed the pinfall on Trick for himself. Moments later, a decoy masked man attempted to scale the chamber only to be removed by security. This created a diversion for another masked man to enter the chamber and deliver a stomp to Logan who was then pinned by Rhodes. The man then revealed himself as Seth Rollins before fleeing through the crowd. In the final moments, Drew McIntyre emerged and attacked Rhodes with his championship belt. After McIntyre failed to nail Rhodes with a Claymore Kick, Orton hit him with an RKO and then delivered another RKO to Cody to help him claim victory and punch his ticket to WrestleMania.

WWE Bad Blood 2024

By Steve Ward

WWE resurrected it’s Bad Blood moniker following a several year hiatus for tonight’s Premium Live Event (that still doesn’t sound right) which emanated from the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. This evening’s show had a special start time of 6 pm ET to cater to those who wanted to also watch UFC 307 at 10 pm ET (a downside of WWE being under the same umbrella as UFC - TKO Holdings). Additionally, the card for tonight’s event was rather slim at five matches, as opposed to AEW’s regularly robust shows, and would be headlined by Roman Reigns teaming up with Cody Rhodes to face Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu.

Hell In A Cell Match

Drew McIntyre vs. CM Punk 

Winner: CM Punk via pinfall

The longstanding, bitter rivalry between these two combatants would come to a head tonight as they would do battle in Hell In A Cell to mark the third encounter of their trilogy - with each man holding a win over the other. This match was the bloodiest encounter I’ve seen in WWE for more than a decade as both men were busted open early in the match (a sign of WWE looking to potentially ditch the PG era) and took each other to the limit with the use of tables, ring steps, and wrenches to name a few weapons put to use. In the end, Punk wrapped his knee in a chain before delivering his fourth Go To Sleep to finally put away the Scottish Psychopath.

WWE Women’s Championship

Nia Jax (c) vs. Bayley

Winner: Nia Jax via pinfall

Bayley sought to regain the title she lost to Jax at Summerslam (with an assist from Tiffany Stratton) tonight. Tiffany Stratton again made her presence felt in the contest after the referee was inadvertently pancaked by Nia Jax. This allowed the champ to regain momentum as she executed a Samoan Drop from the turnbuckle and the followed it up with her version of the Bonzai Drop to retain her title.

Finn Balor vs. Damian Priest

Winner: Damian Priest via pinfall

Balor and Priest have been embroiled in a bitter feud since Finn betrayed his former Judgement Day brethren at Summerslam costing him the World Heavyweight Championship in the process and tonight the animosity would spill over. In the closing moments of the match, Carlito and JD McDonagh made their way to ringside in an attempt to give Balor the edge. Balor was able to execute his patented Coup de Grace three times but his fourth attempt would prove to be his downfall as Priest countered with the South of Heaven to solidify his victory.

WWE Women’s World Championship (with Dominik Mysterio in a shark cage)

Liv Morgan (c) vs. Rhea Ripley

Winner: Rhea Ripley via DQ

Mysterio viciously betrayed Rhea Ripley at Summerslam costing her the coveted Women’s Title and subsequently seeing her ousted from the Judgement Day. To help ensure “Dirty” Dom would not interfere in the bout, he was suspended in a shark cage above the entryway. Late in the match, Dom managed to get the cage open but fell out of the door and found himself hanging upside down. This prompted Rhea to take a kendo stick to Dom until she was jumped from behind by a returning Racquel Rodriguez. This led to a disqualification of Liv Morgan, however, a title cannot change hands by DQ so Liv escaped with her title.

Solo Sikoa & Jacob Fatu vs. Cody Rhodes & Roman Reigns

Winners: Cody Rhodes & Roman Reigns via pinfall

Cody recruited his former bitter rival and the man he took the Universal Championship from at WrestleMania, the “Original Tribal Chief” Roman Reigns, to battle the new tribal chief Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu. In the closing moments of the match, Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa made their presence known to turn the tide back in favor of Solo and Jacob. This didn’t last long as an individual concealing his face with a bandana emerged from the crowd to neutralize the Tongans with a pair of super kicks. The man then revealed himself as Jimmy Uso who had been out of action since April. This supplied just enough of a distraction for Roman Reigns to break Solo in half with a devastating spear to cap the victory for his team.

Following the match, the New Bloodline proceeded to beat down Cody Rhodes only for Jimmy Uso to convince Roman to return to the ring and save him. Once the dust settled The Rock’s music echoed throughout the arena as he stood in the entryway and stared down the Universal Champion, Cody Rhodes to close the show.

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 Payback 2023

By Steve Ward

The WWE emanated from the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA this evening as they presented Payback. Tonight’s card featured six matches with four titles contested and was headlined by Seth Rollins defending the World Heavyweight Championship against Shinsuke Nakamura. The World Heavyweight Championship was of course brought back earlier this summer because Roman Reigns is essentially a part-timer, despite holding the Undisputed Universal Heavyweight Championship, and WWE needs to have a major title to defend on each Premium Live Event. In addition to the headlining title bout, the show also boasted a grudge match between Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch inside an unforgiving steel cage.

Steel Cage Match

Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch

Winner: Becky Lynch via pinfall

Tonight’s card opened with a rare women’s steel cage match pitting “The Man” Becky Lynch against Hall of Famer, Trish Stratus, who made a rather surprising full-time return earlier this year. Initially aligned with each other, Trish became tired of the “sidekick” role and turned her back on Lynch igniting a bitter rivalry between the two. Following an encounter that left Trish Stratus covered in welts and bruises, Zoey Stark decided to become involved in the match. Stark attempted to hold The Man at bay as Trish scaled the cage. Lynch delivered a Manhandle Slam to Stark and then ascended the cage to intercept Trish. Lynch then pulled Trish back down the side of the cage and delivered a Manhandle Slam from the top turnbuckle to solidify the victory. 

The Miz vs. LA Knight 

w/ Special Guest Referee John Cena

Winner: LA Knight

Prior to this match, John Cena made his way to the ring as the host of Payback and decided to announce that he was naming himself the special guest referee for the next match. In the closing moments of the match, The Miz hit the Skull Crushing Finale, however, it wasn’t enough to secure the pinfall. Moments later, LA Knight was able to rebound and hit the elbow drop before the Blunt Force Trauma to put away The Miz.

United States Championship

Rey Mysterio (c) vs. Austin Theory

Winner: Rey Mysterio via pinfall

Theory was recently set to defend his title against Santos Escobar until he unleashed a vicious attack on his knee and took him out of the bout. Fellow LWO member Rey Mysterio then stepped in and was able to bring the title home. Tonight, Theory attempted to regain his title as he again squared off with the Hall of Famer, Rey Mysterio. In a rather abrupt match, Mysterio found himself up on the shoulders of Theory in a rather precarious position but turned it to his favor as he rolled up Austin for the pinfall victory.

Undisputed Tag Team Championship Pittsburgh Steel City Street Fight

Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (c) vs. Finn Balor & Damian Priest

Winners: Finn Balor & Damian Priest via pinfall

Sami Zayn and his tag team partner Kevin Owens, who made his recent return from injury, defended their titles against the Judgement Day’s Finn Balor and Mr. Money In The Bank, Damian Priest, in a no holds barred Pittsburgh Steel City Street Fight where victory could only be attained by pinfall or submission. It appeared that Zayn and Owens were poised to defend their titles late in the match as Balor was the recipient of a Helluva Kick from Sami. As Balor was covered for a pinfall attempt, Dominik Mysterio stormed the ring with Priest’s Money In The Bank briefcase and cracked Zayn over the back. Mysterio then rolled Balor on top of Zayn to secure the pinfall and crown new tag team champions.

Following this match, there was another filler segment on the show as there was an installment of The Grayson Waller Effect with guest Cody Rhodes. Instead of Rhodes making any substantial announcement regarding himself, he introduced “Main Event” Jey Uso as the newest member of the Monday Night RAW roster. Uso came out, received a few insults from Waller, and reciprocated with a Superkick to the face.

RAW Women’s Championship

Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Winner: Rhea Ripley via pinfall

Rhea Ripley had her most physically imposing opponent to date in Raquel Rodriguez set to go toe to toe with her this evening with her coveted championship gold on the line. This match came to it’s merciful conclusion following interference once again by Dominik Mysterio which opened the door for Ripley to execute the Riptide and retain her title.

World Heavyweight Championship

Seth Rollins (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Winner: Seth Rollins via pinfall

Nakamura has had the World Heavyweight Champion in his crosshairs for the past month, following a shocking surprise attack on him on Monday Night RAW, which culminated in their title bout this evening. Shinsuke Nakamura controlled the tempo for a vast majority of this match as he continued to target Rollins’ back. Late in the match, Rollins surprised Shinsuke with a Pedigree and quickly followed up with The Stomp to retain his title.