klunderbunker
Welcome to My (And Not Sly's) House
Monday
Tigre Uno separated his shoulder last night. No word on how long he'll be out for.
Monday Night Raw
Date: October 5, 2015
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Byron Saxton
We're past the first big show of the month and now it's time to start setting up Hell in a Cell. It's going to be interesting to see how they get ready for the show as there's nothing for Cena to do at the moment and Undertaker vs. Lesnar has just been mentioned in name only. Lesnar is in the house tonight though so let's get to it.
The opening recap focuses on Rollins vs. both Kanes from last week.
Opening sequence.
Here are Lesnar and Heyman to open things up. Now that Big Show is out of the way, all focus is now on Undertaker. Since November 1990, Undertaker has destroyed every single man who has dared to cross him but this is different. They're about to step inside the devil's playground and Undertaker thinks it's his match. Just like Wrestlemania was his match right?
After a video of the Streak being broken, Heyman shows us Undertaker tapping out and being forced to cheat to defeat Lesnar at Summerslam. Heyman gets serious to say that only one of them is going to walk out of that Cell as a winner. Only one of them is going to walk out of that Cell at all and that's a spoiler. Heyman's eyes have seen the glory of the coming of his beast....and here's Big Show.
Lesnar leans against the ropes and smiles as Big Show talks about what a fight that was in Madison Square Garden. Show offers him a handshake but Brock walks past him. Show wishes him bad luck against Undertaker and hopes that Brock loses again. That gets Brock back in the ring and it's a belly to belly and F5 to leave Show laying. Again.
Rollins is worried because Big Show was supposed to be his partner. Stephanie tells him to figure it out since he's the man.
Randy Orton/Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose vs. Wyatt Family
So they're getting this one out of the way early. Roman and Harper get things going but Reigns goes after Wyatt on the floor. Strowman makes the save but the good guys knock him and his family out to the floor for a break less than 90 seconds in. Back with Ambrose laying down and telling Harper to come get him. Luke does just that and gets small packaged for two.
It's off to Strowman but Dean knocks him off the apron and tries a dive, only to get caught in a slam onto the floor. The Wyatts start taking turns back inside and a big shoulder from Strowman takes us to another break. We come back with Bray getting two of his own off a big clothesline but missing the backsplash.
Strowman's save attempt fails as well as he goes shoulder first into the post. The hot tag (with some real heat this time) brings in Orton to clean house but Strowman pulls him to the floor and sends him into the announcers' table. Another tag brings in Reigns as everything breaks down. No one can put Strowman down so Roman powerbombs Harper. The spear takes too long though and Harper scores with a superkick. Orton RKO's Harper and it's the spear from Reigns for the pin at 15:54.
Reigns says he and Wyatt are done at Hell in a Cell and he's the one ending it.
Neville vs. Sheamus
King Barrett is on commentary. Before the match, Sheamus talks about how this is supposed to be a real Irish town but they have some lame leprechaun as a mascot. Sheamus talks down to Neville about what it means to be tough so Neville kicks him in the ribs to start fast. Barrett isn't pleased and gets up for a distraction, allowing the Brogue Kick to end Neville at 32 seconds.
Here's Corporate Kane with something to say. He knows Rollins is in need of a partner tonight against the Dudleys and offers his services to the champ. Here's Rollins to say no way because Kane is just trying to get his way into a title shot. Kane says his coffee cup says World's Best Director of Operations and that's not just a cheap slogan. It's his job to bring out the best in Seth, but Rollins holds up the title and says it brings out the best in him.
Kane thinks Rollins doesn't like what he sees when he looks in the mirror and Kane wants to change that. Rollins gets right in Seth's face but here's Stephanie to suck up to the fans by talking about how great Tom Brady is. She gets to the point (thank God) and says Kane can fight with Rollins tonight. She also makes the title match for the pay per view. However, if the demon doesn't win, Corporate Kane is fired. No word on if this is a Cell match or not.
Post break Rollins is appealing to HHH, who tells him to turn things around on Kane. Rollins likes this idea.
Natalya vs. Paige
They trade rollups to start and Paige is sent to the floor for a THIS IS MY HOUSE (take a shot). Natalya gets superkicked to put her down and Paige slaps on a bodyscissors back inside. That and an abdominal stretch don't go anywhere so Natalya reverses into an abdominal stretch of her own. The discus lariat gets two on Paige but she comes back with the Paige Turner (I miss that move) for two of her own. A basement dropkick from Natalya sets up the Sharpshooter but Paige is right next to the ropes for the break. The second attempt works better though as Paige taps out at 6:08.
Quick recap of Ryback losing the Intercontinental Title to Kevin Owens at Night of Champions and Owens walking out of their recap on Smackdown. Yeah stuff actually happens on Smackdown. Not important stuff mind you but stuff.
Ryback says he's the lion and Owens is his prey. It's feeding time.
Sin Cara vs. Kevin Owens
Non-title and this was actually set up on the pre-show where Cara interrupted Owens' interview. A chinlock slows Owens down but Kalisto's cheering distracts him, allowing Cara to fight up. The Pop Up Powerbomb is countered into a sunset flip for two. Owens will have none of that though (Owens: That was a good try!) and the Pop Up Powerbomb ends Cara at 2:36. This is exactly the kind of thing I like to see: a lower card guy being used to make a bigger name look good. You save the big showdowns for later and Owens gets to be a bully. Everyone wins.
Owens loads up the apron bomb on Kalisto but Ryback runs out for the save, sending Owens bailing to the crowds.
The New Day comes up to Stephanie in the back and threatens to send them somewhere that makes Suplex City look like Disneyland if they play one note on the trombone. She saw the show on Saturday and it's New Day vs. the Dudleyz at Hell in a Cell. Stephanie adds three more sets of balls to her collection. There was zero need for this to be on TV.
The roster is on the stage for a big breast cancer presentation. There are a bunch of breast cancer survivors in the ring and Cena talks about how important it is to help in the fight against cancer. Reigns talks about how instead of one vs. all it's all vs. one and plugs their breast cancer awareness stuff on WWEshop.com. I know Kommen is a very questionable organization but there's nothing wrong with something like this.
Kane/Seth Rollins vs. Dudley Boyz
Kane limps to the ring and has on a shirt and tie. Well pants too but I figured that was a given. Bubba and Kane start but the ankle flares up almost immediately. Rollins tags himself in and tells Kane to stay on the apron. Bubba shouts about being the best tag team in the world before running Seth over with a shoulder. A double elbow gets two on the champ and it's off to Kane vs. D-Von.
Some kicks to the leg send Kane back over for a tag so D-Von elbows Seth in the face for two. Kane tags himself back in though as Seth puts D-Von in trouble. The bad guys start working together and Seth drops an ax handle to D-Von's back as we take a break. Back with Kane's leg giving out again and the doctor looking at him on the apron.
The doctor thinks they need to take him to the back so Rollins DIVES over and handcuffs Kane to the post. I liked that. D-Von catapults Rollins into the corner though, knocking Kane off the apron and breaking the cuffs. Kane is taken away but looks back with a smile. Seth is left alone and it's What's Up. The Dudleyz go for a table but Seth baseball slides it into their faces for the DQ at 13:45.
Post match Kane comes after Rollins but eats a 3D (payback from Smackdown when Kane laid them out). Seth goes to leave but looks at the table. I think you can fill in the details between Rollins looking back and the chokeslam through the table.
Earlier today, Team Bella arrived but were met by Team BAD with hometown girl Sasha ripping off Nikki's New York Yankees hat.
Team BAD vs. Team Bella
Naturally BAD comes out to Naomi's song instead of Sasha's music. Sasha says she put the Boss in Boston but here are the Bellas to interrupt. Nikki gets the cheap heat with the Yankees stuff (nothing wrong with cheap) and says they're going all the way. Naomi: That's something you're used to. Nikki says she's winning the title back but Sasha says whoever wins is just keeping it warm for her. Cattiness ensues and it's time for the actual match.
Naomi and Nikki start things off with Naomi doing her eternally stupid shaking in the corner spot. Off to Banks who gets to sell Brie's kicks in the corner. Thankfully she comes back with the double knees to send Brie outside as we take a break. Back with Cole talking about how the Divas Revolution was this perfect storm that led us to Takeover this Wednesday. They do realize people can actually watch these shows right?
Nikki knocks Banks to the floor and puts Naomi in a front facelock. Fox comes in and chinlocks Naomi while trying to remember if she turned off the bedside lamp before she left this morning. Naomi finally shrugs off some more kicks in the corner and brings in Sasha as everything breaks down. The Bank Statement makes Fox tap at 11:48.
Charlotte and Becky are watching in the back. The champ isn't worried about Paige.
Here's Summer Rae to introduce Rusev. She has a tribute for him and we see a video of the two of them together and Rusev destroying various people (namely Ziggler). Summer talks about how much Rusev means to him and how he's changed her life for the better. Back in the arena, Rusev is stunned and says he didn't like Summer to start. Things have changed over the last few weeks though and now he cares about her very much.
Summer is thrilled because she has a question to ask him. She gets down on one knee and pulls out a ring to pop the question. Rusev takes his time and says yes.....but not yet. They need to prove how awesome they are, and that means Rusev winning some gold before Summer gets to wear gold.
It's Open Challenge time in Cena's hometown. Cena gets right to the point and says come get some.
US Title: John Cena vs. Dolph Ziggler
Well in theory at least as there's no Ziggler. Instead it's the New Day dragging an unconscious Ziggler to the stage. Woods asks if this is serious enough for Cena and Kofi asks who might take the challenge now. Kofi says this is a big moment in a big city in a big match in big challenge from a big star on a big network in a big ring. As luck would have it, New Day has a big man.
US Title: John Cena vs. Big E.
A shoulder puts Cena down and we take a break less than 40 seconds in. Back with Cena in trouble after taking a hard belly to bell and spear through the ropes during the break. E. hits the splash on the apron for two but Cena gets in a backdrop to send E. out to the floor. A hard whip puts Cena into the steps though and he's in trouble again. The straps come down and Cena slugs away, followed by the ProtoBomb. New Day breaks up the AA though and gets ejected. The distraction lets E. try a trombone shot but Cena counters into the AA for the pin at 9:52.
Post match New Day comes in but Ziggler hobbles out for the save. Dolph superkicks Cena by mistake though and New Day is in control again. This brings out the Dudleyz but they both eat Trouble in Paradise, setting up the Midnight Hour to D-Von to end the show.
Results
Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose/Randy Orton b. Wyatt Family Spear to Harper
Neville b. Sheamus Brogue Kick
Natalya b. Paige Sharpshooter
Kevin Owens b. Sin Cara Pop Up Powerbomb
Dudley Boyz b. Kane/Seth Rollins via DQ when Rollins kicked a table into the Dudleyz
Team BAD b. Team Bella Bank Statement to Fox
John Cena b. Big E. Attitude Adjustment
Tuesday
Matt Hardy has vacated the TNA World Title due to a storyline injunction from Ethan Carter III.
Wednesday
NXT Takeover: Respect
Date: October 7, 2015
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Corey Graves, Rich Brennan
This is one of the weaker looking Takeovers on paper as it's only been about six weeks since the last special. However, there are four major matches taking place tonight with a thirty minute women's Iron Man match for the Women's Title and the final three matches in the inaugural Dusty Classic Tag Team Tournament. Let's get to it.
The opening video talks about Bayley having the title but now it's about earning respect.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semi-Finals: Finn Balor/Samoa Joe vs. Mechanics
There's no stage this time but just the screen and a flat aisle. Balor gets knocked outside to start so Joe pounds on Wilder. Dawson pulls his partner out of the way of a corner charge though and the villains take over. Balor finally gets back on the apron as his partner is getting beaten down but an enziguri allows for the tag to the champ. A pair of kicks put the Mechanics on the floor and Balor unleashes the big flip dive to get the crowd even more fired up.
Wilder saves Dawson from the Coup de Grace and Dawson chop blocks Balor to put the champ in trouble. The Mechanics start taking turns working on the knee, including wrapping it around the post and a half crab from Dawson. Balor avoids an elbow drop but Wilder takes Joe off the apron to keep Balor in trouble. This is classic tag team formula stuff so far and it still works. Wilder doesn't have as much luck though as Balor dives over and makes the tag to Joe for some house cleaning. There's the Muscle Buster to Wilder and Balor adds the Coup de Grace for the pin at 9:08 but Balor wrenched his knee again.
Clips of NXT at the Louder than Life festival in Louisville.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic: Semi-Finals: Chad Gable/Jason Jordan vs. Baron Corbin/Rhyno
Corbin throws Jordan around with ease so for some reason Baron tags out to Rhyno. A quick suplex gets two on Rhyno and Gable gets the same off a slingshot sunset flip. The fans are entirely behind Gable here (complete with a Gable chant to the tune of Kurt Angle's old music) as he starts on Rhyno's arm. Jordan comes in to do the same and a double northern lights suplex gets two on Rhyno.
Rhyno tries to throw Gable over the top but Chad grabs the armbar over the ropes to put him in even more trouble. Corbin gets in a few shots on the floor so Rhyno can take over with a chinlock. It's off to Corbin for a chinlock of his own (fans: SAVE THE GABLES!) before Rhyno misses a top rope splash.
Gable crawls over and makes the tag and it's Jordan coming in to speed things up. Everything breaks down with Jordan cleaning house but he has to save Gable after the End of Days knocks him silly. Gable O'Connor rolls Corbin out of the corner into a German suplex (awesome) but Rhyno makes the save. There's a Gore to Jordan and the second End of Days puts Gable away at 10:27.
Kevin Nash is here.
Video of Asuka.
Asuka vs. Dana Brooke
Brooke has Emma with her. Asuka comes to the ring with a long robe and a white mask for a cool visual. Dana has no interest in a handshake and they fight over a wristlock with Asuka moving at twice Dana's speed. A slap to the face takes the taste out of Asuka's mouth but she just smiles at Dana. Asuka comes back with a quick striking rush and Dana's pose followed by a Fujiwara Armbar.
Emma finally helps her partner with a distraction and the handstand choke has Asuka in some trouble. Asuka comes right back with a snap German suplex and a cross armbreaker followed by a cross face chickenwing. There's a spinning elbow to knock Emma off the apron. Fans: ASUKA CITY! Dana is almost done and gets caught in another cross face chickenwing with a bodyscissors (the Asuka Lock) for the tap at 5:30.
Asuka takes Dana down again and stares at Emma post match.
Breast cancer is bad.
We look at Balor injuring his knee again.
Nia Jax finally arrives next week.
Apollo Crews vs. Tyler Breeze
Crews powers him up against the ropes to start and knocks Tyler to the floor like he's nothing. A delayed vertical suplex gets two for Crews but Breeze leverages him out to the floor to take over again. Back in and Breeze starts in on the back with some knees and a chinlock with a knee in the spine. A sideways Backstabber gets two and sets up a Sharpshooter of all things from Breeze.
Apollo makes the ropes and nails a jumping clothesline, followed by a BIG kick to the face to knock Tyler silly. The back gives out though and Breeze Supermodel Kicks him for two. Tyler dives into a powerslam for two and there's the gorilla press but Breeze gets the knees up to block the standing moonsault. Breeze gets all fired up with forearms but Apollo kicks him square in the jaw. Crews loads up a belly to back suplex but spins him around into a powerbomb for the pin at 9:47.
Hideo Itami is here.
We look back at tonight's first two tournament matches.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Finn Balor/Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin/Rhyno
Balor is limping to the ring. Finn and Rhyno get things going and Corey immediately declares this as a dumb idea. Rhyno shoves the champ around with ease and it's off to Corbin for some feeling out. The knee starts to go out though so it's off to Joe for the rapid fire strikes in the corner. Off to Rhyno who has some more luck with a knee to the ribs before Corbin comes in again to a chorus of booing.
A big boot gets two on Joe but he comes back with the enziguri in the corner. Joe tags off to Balor who uses Corbin as a launching pad into a dropkick to Rhyno. The knee seems fine at first but it gives out again when he charges into the corner. That's fine with Balor though as he nails an enziguri, only to have Rhyno drill him in the knee again to take over. Balor's comeback is stopped with a Boss Man Slam for two but he comes back again with a Sling Blade out of nowhere.
The second hot tag brings in Joe to take over on Rhyno with the Rock Bottom out of the corner and an STO to Corbin. A Gore gets two on Rhyno with Balor making the save, only to damage the knee again in the process. Another Gore is countered by a kick to the face and it's the Muscle Buster into the Coup de Grace for the pin and the tournament at 11:09.
The Rhodes Family (with Stardust out of character) present Balor and Joe with the trophy. Cody talks about his dad being the oak of NXT and how his dad was beamed into homes around the world for over forty years. Tonight, we are all part of the Rhodes family. Dusty's theme music plays with nothing from Joe or Balor.
Stephanie (of course), Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Lita are in the front row.
We recap Bayley taking the title in Brooklyn and Sasha wanting a rematch. The result is tonight's 30 minute Iron Man match for the title. We also see some more of Bayley training in an awesome montage.
Women's Title: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
Bayley is defending and this is an Iron Man match, meaning the most falls (pin, submission, countout or disqualification) in thirty minutes wins. We get the entrances following the girls to the ring, thankfully with no talking from the announcers. Bayley has a cape and Iron Man colors, meaning my life is complete. Fans: WOMEN'S WRESTLING!
They stare each other down and there's no contact until a little over a minute in. A lockup gets us to Sasha holding a headlock, followed by some rollups for two. Bayley gets some rollups of her own for two each and a pinfall reversal sequence gives us even more near falls. Sasha gets in the first big move with a dropkick to knock the champ into the corner but Bayley comes back with a Japanese armdrag to drop Sasha on her head for two. That looked bad but Sasha seems to be ok.
We're five minutes in and Sasha sends her into the corner with a top rope wristdrag. Both finishers are blocked and Sasha chills in the corner. Sasha suckers her in and pulls the hair to get a quick two but it ticks Bayley off. Some hard elbows and a clothesline put Sasha on the floor. Bayley keeps the pressure on with a dropkick under the bottom rope (ala Sami Zayn) and a bulldog back inside for two. Both of them nearly crush the referee in the corner but Sasha uses this to her advantage and pokes Bayley in the eye for the first fall at 8:32.
Bayley rams her face first into the buckle over and over but gets sent into them herself. Both of them are banged up as we're ten minutes in. The double knees in the corner are countered into something like Snake Eyes and the Bayley to Belly ties it up at 10:55. Sasha bails to the floor so Bayley tries the sliding kick again. Banks catches her coming in this time though (I love psychology) and slams Bayley into the steps, right in front of her family and Izzy in a nice touch. Sasha throws her into the steps two more times and makes sure to talk trash to the family. Bayley kicks out at two and the fans are chanting for Izzy.
The champ is thrown to the floor and bangs her knee on the landing. Sasha whips her into the video board and it's a countout to give Sasha a 2-1 lead at 14:12. Banks steals Izzy's headband and throws it at her, making Izzy cry to get the fans entirely on Bayley's side. Bayley beats the count back in at fifteen minutes to go but Banks starts right in on her back. Sasha is brimming with confidence as she slaps on a Liontamer and stomps on the bad hand for old times' sake. Bayley makes the rope and grabs a fluke rollup to tie us up at 2-2 with 12:38 to go.
The double knees in the corner miss again and Bayley makes the comeback with ax handles to the face followed by an awkward looking spinning facebuster for two. The middle rope back elbow gets the same and Bayley's hair is almost down. Bayley puts her in the Tree of Woe for a running springboard elbow as we have ten minutes left.
Banks crotches her on top and now the double knees hit (great job of building that move up) for two. Bayley kicks her to the floor as the fans think it's better than Raw (time for Vince and Dunn to crush this show then). Now Bayley starts working on Sasha's hand and the fans want Izzy to slap Banks. The arm gets snapped across the middle rope and Sasha falls out to the floor again.
Bayley starts setting up the steps and Izzy looks like she's about to cry again. Sasha's hand is slammed into the steps again and a clothesline off the steps puts her on the floor. She's still able to kick Bayley into the steps though and the champ is in trouble again. Sasha's suicide dive is caught and a Bayley to Belly on the floor knocks her silly. Somehow that only gets two back inside and we've got five minutes to go.
Bayley puts her on the middle rope and a running super Bayley to Belly gets....two as the cover sent Sasha's feet into the ropes. Three minutes left and they're both spent. Bayley loads up the reverse hurricanrana but Sasha lands on her feet and hits a Bayley to Belly of her own. There's the Bank Statement and Sasha spins her away from the ropes. She can't get the full hold on though due to the hand injury from earlier.
Sasha kicks away from the ropes and gets a better version on with a minute left. Bayley reaches up and bends the hand back for the break before slamming the bad hand into the mat to get out. Sasha hooks the backbreaker to set up another Bank Statement but Bayley rolls through into an armbar while cranking on the hand with ten seconds left. Bayley KICKS HER IN THE HEAD until Sasha taps with three seconds left to retain Bayley's title at 30:00 by a score of 3-2.
Bayley looks drained as the roster comes out to the entrance to help Sasha up. HHH presents Bayley with a bouquet and she soaks in the cheers. Bayley and Sasha smile at each other to end the show.
Results
Finn Balor/Samoa Joe b. Mechanics Coup de Grace to Wilder
Rhyno/Baron Corbin b. Chad Gable/Jason Jorda End of Days to Gable
Asuka b. Dana Brooke Asuka Lock
Apollo Crews b. Tyler Breeze Spinning powerbomb
Finn Balor/Samoa Joe b. Baron Corbin/Rhyno Coup de Grace to Rhyno
Bayley b. Sasha Banks 3-2
Impact Wrestling
Date: October 7, 2015
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D'Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews
Bound For Glory has come and gone and not a lot has changed because the World Title is now vacant. Matt Hardy won the title by pinning Drew Galloway, but Ethan Carter III fired an injunction against him for reasons that aren't entirely clear. Therefore, tonight we're starting a 32 person series to crown a new champion at some point in the future. In other words, we'll be seeing a lot of matches taped a few months ago cobbled together into a competition. Let's get to it.
We open with a stills package of Sunday's main event, which means nothing now.
Dinero and Matthews are in the studio and throw us into a package of everything that has happened since Sunday. Ethan Carter III has gotten an injunction from a judge to prevent Matt Hardy from appearing on Impact. Why? Not important enough to explain but we'll go with reasons.
Therefore, since Matt can't appear on TNA TV, we see a video of Matt vacating the title. So yeah, we still don't get any new details and the story is still all muddled and a way to get to the ends they need because just having Carter retain was too complicated. Matt kept talking about a controversy but there's still no explanation of what exactly happened.
Dixie Carter talks about how the 72 hours since Bound For Glory ended have been insane. It really is insane since 72 hours ago (remember that this was recorded earlier today) would have been since Sunday afternoon, not Sunday night but we'll just chalk that up to another reason why Dixie isn't that bright. Dixie and Billy Corgan (who the fans are just supposed to know works for TNA) announce the 32 person series to determine the new champion. Its name: the World Title Series. Dig that creativity!
The men and women will both be involved in the series with eight groups of four each. The groups will compete against each other in round robin style matches with three points for a win, one point for a draw and zero points for a loss. There are fifteen minute time limits and the top two from each group advance to the round of sixteen, which is a single elimination tournament with no time limits.
Here's the first group (Group UK):
Bram
Rockstar Spud
Grado
Drew Galloway
Group #2 (Group Wild Card):
Aiden O'Shea
Crazzy Steve
Kenny King
Mahabali Shera
Group #3 (Group Knockouts)
Awesome Kong
Madison Rayne
Brooke
Gail Kim
Group #4 (Group Champions)
Lashley
Austin Aries
Mr. Anderson
Ethan Carter III
Dinero and Josh make their predictions on the first four groups.
Drew Galloway talks about Sunday being the hardest night of his life. He'll be back though.
Group UK: Drew Galloway vs. Bram
Josh says the injunction might be about Jeff Hardy hitting Carter on Sunday. That really should have been mentioned earlier as it almost kind of makes sense, but we're 20 minutes into the show and FINALLY hearing about that theory. As usual, TNA comes off as disorganized and doesn't bother to explain something that really should be covered earlier, assuming that's what's going on.
They fight into the corner to start and Bram bails to the floor. Back in and Bram bails again as we go split screen to see some clips of a roundtable group discussion from earlier in the day. I can't stand it when this happens as it's very distraction. Just do the audio or something as it's not like they're hard to tell apart.
As Bram talks about being better than the rest of the group, Drew suplexes Bram to the floor again but this time Bram sends him into the steps to take over. Back in and Bram grabs a chinlock until Galloway gets to his feet and wins a slugout. They head outside again so Galloway can send him face first into the steps over and over. Back inside and Drew's running big boot is good for the pin and three points at 7:59.
Group UK Standings
Drew Galloway 3 points (2 matches left)
Rockstar Spud 0 points (3 matches left)
Grado 0 points (3 matches left)
Bram 0 points (2 matches left)
Gail Kim is thankful for the chance to be in the tournament.
Drew Galloway says Bram's mistake was going to the floor. They're treating this like a traditional sports event with analysis and the pre and post match interviews.
Group Knockouts: Brooke vs. Gail Kim
No title with Gail because of the taping schedule which Josh attributes to Gail being focused on the World Title. They keep the split screen stuff to a minimum here and come back to Gail monkey flipping her over, only to get caught in a pinfall reversal sequence for some near falls. Brooke grabs something like a reverse Cattle Mutilation but can't keep the hold on.
Eat Defeat is broken up and they slug it out until Brooke grabs the Butterface Maker (in case you didn't get the theme of Brooke's character). She misses a top rope elbow though and Gail bends Brooke's ribs around the post. Eat Defeat is countered again so Gail tries a leg lock, only to get rolled up for the pin at 6:25.
Group Knockouts
Brooke 3 points (2 matches left)
Awesome Kong 0 points (3 matches left)
Madison Rayne 0 points (3 matches left)
Gail Kim 0 points (2 matches left)
EC3 wants this to be called the Memorial Screwjob Series. He should be the champion because he got ripped off but it's motivated him to win this thing. Carter promises to defeat Austin Aries tonight in record time. This series isn't over until he wins.
The announcers talk about the first two matches.
Group UK: Rockstar Spud vs. Grado
In the split screen discussion, Grado and Spud argue over who the real underdog is. In the ring, Grado sits on Spud's chest for two and drops a backsplash for good measure. A Cannonball misses though and Spud scores with a dropkick in the corner. Grado comes back with a Pedigree (not a good one either) for two. There go the straps but Grado's ankle lock is quickly broken up.
Spud hits an overly complicated Worm for two but Grado tops him with a People's Elbow. The running the ropes (multiple times across the ring) makes him tired though and Pope thinks this is the funniest thing he's ever seen. Spud hits a decent chokeslam and the Undertaker cover gets two. Matthews calls this a slobberknocker as Grado escapes an AA but walks into a Stunner and the Underdog to give Spud the pin at 5:57.
Group UK
Drew Galloway 3 points (2 matches left)
Rockstar Spud 3 points (2 matches left)
Grado 0 points (2 matches left)
Bram 0 points (2 matches left)
Pope picks EC3 to lose all of his matches.
Tyrus, with headphones around the side of his head to make him look even angrier, says he's going to sit back and see who wins the Series because he's up next. It would be interesting if EC3 wins.
Group Champions: Ethan Carter III vs. Austin Aries
Aries has Thea Trinidad with him for no apparent reason. Josh says the internet nerds are asking why Aries is here after he lost a career match. No Josh, actually we're wrestling fans who sit around and listen to your mindless drivel as you try to be the cool announcer while coming off as the biggest tool this side of your local hardware store.
Heaven forbid we listen to the rules and stories your company presents and then expect them to follow their own ideas. No instead we're nerds for trying to make sense of a business that you couldn't even get into because you couldn't beat freaking Maven and then no major company wanted to see you get in the ring so you're stuck with this sinking ship of a company because WWE realized they could get any hack to replace you.
So after the explanation of HAHA we don't have to explain why Aries is back we're ready to go. Pope starts talking about Jeff Hardy getting involved on Sunday so I guess that's the official reason for the injunction. Again, not that Ethan ever actually mentioned that but why waste time on something like that? Ethan cranks on a wristlock and then runs Aries over with a shoulder. Aries pops back up and forearms Carter outside, followed by a slingshot hilo to send Carter to the floor again.
Some elbows to the head (am I a nerd for knowing what an elbow is Josh? Or do I need to be a professional like you?) knock Ethan back inside but Aries dives on Tyrus when he gets too close to Thea. We take a break and come back with Aries fighting out of a chinlock until Ethan pulls him back to the mat for the same hold. We've got less than five minutes to go and this was the only match to have the time limit announced during the entrances. Aries fights back and gets a neckbreaker across the middle rope, followed by a suicide dive into the barricade.
Back in and another Tyrus distraction lets Carter get two off a TKO. Carter's superplex is broken up and Aries gets two off the 450 in a surprising kickout. Even Tyrus was freaked out. Aries wins a slugout but Tyrus trips him up, allowing Ethan to grab a sitout powerbomb for another near fall. The Last Chancery goes on with a minute left but since that move never gets a submission, Carter gets to the ropes. Both finishers are countered three times each and Aries can't get the Last Chancery as time runs out at 15:00.
Aries gives Carter a brainbuster after the match.
Group Champions
Austin Aries 1 point (2 matches left)
Ethan Carter III 1 point (2 matches left)
Mr. Anderson 0 points (3 matches left)
Lashley 0 points (3 matches left)
Pope says getting a draw and one point is like getting zero points.
Mr. Anderson is glad that he's in the toughest group. He's all in against Lashley tonight.
Aries says Carter knows what the brainbuster feels like and it's his first loss if he ever feels it again.
Group Knockouts: Madison Rayne vs. Awesome Kong
An early Implant Buster doesn't work for Kong so she throws Madison across the ring. As the split screen gives us some rare talking from Kong (the seas will boil with her rage it seems), Kong throws Madison in a Torture Rack before just dropping her. Madison comes back with a missile dropkick for two but the Implant Buster ends Rayne at 4:12.
Group Knockouts
Brooke 3 points (2 matches left)
Awesome Kong 3 points (2 matches left)
Madison Rayne 0 points (2 matches left)
Gail Kim 0 points (2 matches left)
Lashley is glad to be in a tournament because he's gotten here in tournament style competition. Mr. Anderson is victim #1 tonight.
Matt Hardy talks about what a great moment Sunday night was but now it's all gone. He's entered into the Series and will start competing next week. So.....Carter's injunction didn't get rid of Matt and now he has to go through a bunch of people instead of someone he's already beaten twice to get the belt back. Bad business sense is a bad family trait for the Carters.
Group Champions: Mr. Anderson vs. Lashley
Lashley takes him to the mat to start and we're in a break just a few seconds after the bell. Back with Lashley suplexing Anderson with ease but the spear can't connect yet. The split screen has Lashley and Anderson saying that they should both move on and then fight in the round of sixteen. Lashley charges into the post to give Anderson two and it's time to work on the arm.
Anderson dropkicks Lashley's leapfrog out of the air and it's time to go back to the arm. A single arm DDT gets two and it's back to the armbar. Back up and Lashley fires off some clotheslines with the good arm, including a big one in the corner. There's a spinebuster as we have less than five minutes to go. The spear still can't connect though and Anderson hits a pair of Regal Rolls. Anderson tries a third but Lashley rolls out and hits the spear for the win at 12:16.
Group Champions
Lashley 3 points (2 matches left)
Austin Aries 1 point (2 matches left)
Ethan Carter III 1 point (2 matches left)
Mr. Anderson 0 points (2 matches left)
Results
Drew Galloway b. Bram Running boot
Brooke b. Gail Kim Small package
Rockstar Spud b. Grado Underdog
Austin Aries vs. Ethan Carter III went to a time limit draw
Awesome Kong b. Madison Rayne Implant Buster
Lashley b. Mr. Anderson Spear
Tigre Uno separated his shoulder last night. No word on how long he'll be out for.
Monday Night Raw
Date: October 5, 2015
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Byron Saxton
We're past the first big show of the month and now it's time to start setting up Hell in a Cell. It's going to be interesting to see how they get ready for the show as there's nothing for Cena to do at the moment and Undertaker vs. Lesnar has just been mentioned in name only. Lesnar is in the house tonight though so let's get to it.
The opening recap focuses on Rollins vs. both Kanes from last week.
Opening sequence.
Here are Lesnar and Heyman to open things up. Now that Big Show is out of the way, all focus is now on Undertaker. Since November 1990, Undertaker has destroyed every single man who has dared to cross him but this is different. They're about to step inside the devil's playground and Undertaker thinks it's his match. Just like Wrestlemania was his match right?
After a video of the Streak being broken, Heyman shows us Undertaker tapping out and being forced to cheat to defeat Lesnar at Summerslam. Heyman gets serious to say that only one of them is going to walk out of that Cell as a winner. Only one of them is going to walk out of that Cell at all and that's a spoiler. Heyman's eyes have seen the glory of the coming of his beast....and here's Big Show.
Lesnar leans against the ropes and smiles as Big Show talks about what a fight that was in Madison Square Garden. Show offers him a handshake but Brock walks past him. Show wishes him bad luck against Undertaker and hopes that Brock loses again. That gets Brock back in the ring and it's a belly to belly and F5 to leave Show laying. Again.
Rollins is worried because Big Show was supposed to be his partner. Stephanie tells him to figure it out since he's the man.
Randy Orton/Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose vs. Wyatt Family
So they're getting this one out of the way early. Roman and Harper get things going but Reigns goes after Wyatt on the floor. Strowman makes the save but the good guys knock him and his family out to the floor for a break less than 90 seconds in. Back with Ambrose laying down and telling Harper to come get him. Luke does just that and gets small packaged for two.
It's off to Strowman but Dean knocks him off the apron and tries a dive, only to get caught in a slam onto the floor. The Wyatts start taking turns back inside and a big shoulder from Strowman takes us to another break. We come back with Bray getting two of his own off a big clothesline but missing the backsplash.
Strowman's save attempt fails as well as he goes shoulder first into the post. The hot tag (with some real heat this time) brings in Orton to clean house but Strowman pulls him to the floor and sends him into the announcers' table. Another tag brings in Reigns as everything breaks down. No one can put Strowman down so Roman powerbombs Harper. The spear takes too long though and Harper scores with a superkick. Orton RKO's Harper and it's the spear from Reigns for the pin at 15:54.
Reigns says he and Wyatt are done at Hell in a Cell and he's the one ending it.
Neville vs. Sheamus
King Barrett is on commentary. Before the match, Sheamus talks about how this is supposed to be a real Irish town but they have some lame leprechaun as a mascot. Sheamus talks down to Neville about what it means to be tough so Neville kicks him in the ribs to start fast. Barrett isn't pleased and gets up for a distraction, allowing the Brogue Kick to end Neville at 32 seconds.
Here's Corporate Kane with something to say. He knows Rollins is in need of a partner tonight against the Dudleys and offers his services to the champ. Here's Rollins to say no way because Kane is just trying to get his way into a title shot. Kane says his coffee cup says World's Best Director of Operations and that's not just a cheap slogan. It's his job to bring out the best in Seth, but Rollins holds up the title and says it brings out the best in him.
Kane thinks Rollins doesn't like what he sees when he looks in the mirror and Kane wants to change that. Rollins gets right in Seth's face but here's Stephanie to suck up to the fans by talking about how great Tom Brady is. She gets to the point (thank God) and says Kane can fight with Rollins tonight. She also makes the title match for the pay per view. However, if the demon doesn't win, Corporate Kane is fired. No word on if this is a Cell match or not.
Post break Rollins is appealing to HHH, who tells him to turn things around on Kane. Rollins likes this idea.
Natalya vs. Paige
They trade rollups to start and Paige is sent to the floor for a THIS IS MY HOUSE (take a shot). Natalya gets superkicked to put her down and Paige slaps on a bodyscissors back inside. That and an abdominal stretch don't go anywhere so Natalya reverses into an abdominal stretch of her own. The discus lariat gets two on Paige but she comes back with the Paige Turner (I miss that move) for two of her own. A basement dropkick from Natalya sets up the Sharpshooter but Paige is right next to the ropes for the break. The second attempt works better though as Paige taps out at 6:08.
Quick recap of Ryback losing the Intercontinental Title to Kevin Owens at Night of Champions and Owens walking out of their recap on Smackdown. Yeah stuff actually happens on Smackdown. Not important stuff mind you but stuff.
Ryback says he's the lion and Owens is his prey. It's feeding time.
Sin Cara vs. Kevin Owens
Non-title and this was actually set up on the pre-show where Cara interrupted Owens' interview. A chinlock slows Owens down but Kalisto's cheering distracts him, allowing Cara to fight up. The Pop Up Powerbomb is countered into a sunset flip for two. Owens will have none of that though (Owens: That was a good try!) and the Pop Up Powerbomb ends Cara at 2:36. This is exactly the kind of thing I like to see: a lower card guy being used to make a bigger name look good. You save the big showdowns for later and Owens gets to be a bully. Everyone wins.
Owens loads up the apron bomb on Kalisto but Ryback runs out for the save, sending Owens bailing to the crowds.
The New Day comes up to Stephanie in the back and threatens to send them somewhere that makes Suplex City look like Disneyland if they play one note on the trombone. She saw the show on Saturday and it's New Day vs. the Dudleyz at Hell in a Cell. Stephanie adds three more sets of balls to her collection. There was zero need for this to be on TV.
The roster is on the stage for a big breast cancer presentation. There are a bunch of breast cancer survivors in the ring and Cena talks about how important it is to help in the fight against cancer. Reigns talks about how instead of one vs. all it's all vs. one and plugs their breast cancer awareness stuff on WWEshop.com. I know Kommen is a very questionable organization but there's nothing wrong with something like this.
Kane/Seth Rollins vs. Dudley Boyz
Kane limps to the ring and has on a shirt and tie. Well pants too but I figured that was a given. Bubba and Kane start but the ankle flares up almost immediately. Rollins tags himself in and tells Kane to stay on the apron. Bubba shouts about being the best tag team in the world before running Seth over with a shoulder. A double elbow gets two on the champ and it's off to Kane vs. D-Von.
Some kicks to the leg send Kane back over for a tag so D-Von elbows Seth in the face for two. Kane tags himself back in though as Seth puts D-Von in trouble. The bad guys start working together and Seth drops an ax handle to D-Von's back as we take a break. Back with Kane's leg giving out again and the doctor looking at him on the apron.
The doctor thinks they need to take him to the back so Rollins DIVES over and handcuffs Kane to the post. I liked that. D-Von catapults Rollins into the corner though, knocking Kane off the apron and breaking the cuffs. Kane is taken away but looks back with a smile. Seth is left alone and it's What's Up. The Dudleyz go for a table but Seth baseball slides it into their faces for the DQ at 13:45.
Post match Kane comes after Rollins but eats a 3D (payback from Smackdown when Kane laid them out). Seth goes to leave but looks at the table. I think you can fill in the details between Rollins looking back and the chokeslam through the table.
Earlier today, Team Bella arrived but were met by Team BAD with hometown girl Sasha ripping off Nikki's New York Yankees hat.
Team BAD vs. Team Bella
Naturally BAD comes out to Naomi's song instead of Sasha's music. Sasha says she put the Boss in Boston but here are the Bellas to interrupt. Nikki gets the cheap heat with the Yankees stuff (nothing wrong with cheap) and says they're going all the way. Naomi: That's something you're used to. Nikki says she's winning the title back but Sasha says whoever wins is just keeping it warm for her. Cattiness ensues and it's time for the actual match.
Naomi and Nikki start things off with Naomi doing her eternally stupid shaking in the corner spot. Off to Banks who gets to sell Brie's kicks in the corner. Thankfully she comes back with the double knees to send Brie outside as we take a break. Back with Cole talking about how the Divas Revolution was this perfect storm that led us to Takeover this Wednesday. They do realize people can actually watch these shows right?
Nikki knocks Banks to the floor and puts Naomi in a front facelock. Fox comes in and chinlocks Naomi while trying to remember if she turned off the bedside lamp before she left this morning. Naomi finally shrugs off some more kicks in the corner and brings in Sasha as everything breaks down. The Bank Statement makes Fox tap at 11:48.
Charlotte and Becky are watching in the back. The champ isn't worried about Paige.
Here's Summer Rae to introduce Rusev. She has a tribute for him and we see a video of the two of them together and Rusev destroying various people (namely Ziggler). Summer talks about how much Rusev means to him and how he's changed her life for the better. Back in the arena, Rusev is stunned and says he didn't like Summer to start. Things have changed over the last few weeks though and now he cares about her very much.
Summer is thrilled because she has a question to ask him. She gets down on one knee and pulls out a ring to pop the question. Rusev takes his time and says yes.....but not yet. They need to prove how awesome they are, and that means Rusev winning some gold before Summer gets to wear gold.
It's Open Challenge time in Cena's hometown. Cena gets right to the point and says come get some.
US Title: John Cena vs. Dolph Ziggler
Well in theory at least as there's no Ziggler. Instead it's the New Day dragging an unconscious Ziggler to the stage. Woods asks if this is serious enough for Cena and Kofi asks who might take the challenge now. Kofi says this is a big moment in a big city in a big match in big challenge from a big star on a big network in a big ring. As luck would have it, New Day has a big man.
US Title: John Cena vs. Big E.
A shoulder puts Cena down and we take a break less than 40 seconds in. Back with Cena in trouble after taking a hard belly to bell and spear through the ropes during the break. E. hits the splash on the apron for two but Cena gets in a backdrop to send E. out to the floor. A hard whip puts Cena into the steps though and he's in trouble again. The straps come down and Cena slugs away, followed by the ProtoBomb. New Day breaks up the AA though and gets ejected. The distraction lets E. try a trombone shot but Cena counters into the AA for the pin at 9:52.
Post match New Day comes in but Ziggler hobbles out for the save. Dolph superkicks Cena by mistake though and New Day is in control again. This brings out the Dudleyz but they both eat Trouble in Paradise, setting up the Midnight Hour to D-Von to end the show.
Results
Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose/Randy Orton b. Wyatt Family Spear to Harper
Neville b. Sheamus Brogue Kick
Natalya b. Paige Sharpshooter
Kevin Owens b. Sin Cara Pop Up Powerbomb
Dudley Boyz b. Kane/Seth Rollins via DQ when Rollins kicked a table into the Dudleyz
Team BAD b. Team Bella Bank Statement to Fox
John Cena b. Big E. Attitude Adjustment
Tuesday
Matt Hardy has vacated the TNA World Title due to a storyline injunction from Ethan Carter III.
Wednesday
NXT Takeover: Respect
Date: October 7, 2015
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Corey Graves, Rich Brennan
This is one of the weaker looking Takeovers on paper as it's only been about six weeks since the last special. However, there are four major matches taking place tonight with a thirty minute women's Iron Man match for the Women's Title and the final three matches in the inaugural Dusty Classic Tag Team Tournament. Let's get to it.
The opening video talks about Bayley having the title but now it's about earning respect.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semi-Finals: Finn Balor/Samoa Joe vs. Mechanics
There's no stage this time but just the screen and a flat aisle. Balor gets knocked outside to start so Joe pounds on Wilder. Dawson pulls his partner out of the way of a corner charge though and the villains take over. Balor finally gets back on the apron as his partner is getting beaten down but an enziguri allows for the tag to the champ. A pair of kicks put the Mechanics on the floor and Balor unleashes the big flip dive to get the crowd even more fired up.
Wilder saves Dawson from the Coup de Grace and Dawson chop blocks Balor to put the champ in trouble. The Mechanics start taking turns working on the knee, including wrapping it around the post and a half crab from Dawson. Balor avoids an elbow drop but Wilder takes Joe off the apron to keep Balor in trouble. This is classic tag team formula stuff so far and it still works. Wilder doesn't have as much luck though as Balor dives over and makes the tag to Joe for some house cleaning. There's the Muscle Buster to Wilder and Balor adds the Coup de Grace for the pin at 9:08 but Balor wrenched his knee again.
Clips of NXT at the Louder than Life festival in Louisville.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic: Semi-Finals: Chad Gable/Jason Jordan vs. Baron Corbin/Rhyno
Corbin throws Jordan around with ease so for some reason Baron tags out to Rhyno. A quick suplex gets two on Rhyno and Gable gets the same off a slingshot sunset flip. The fans are entirely behind Gable here (complete with a Gable chant to the tune of Kurt Angle's old music) as he starts on Rhyno's arm. Jordan comes in to do the same and a double northern lights suplex gets two on Rhyno.
Rhyno tries to throw Gable over the top but Chad grabs the armbar over the ropes to put him in even more trouble. Corbin gets in a few shots on the floor so Rhyno can take over with a chinlock. It's off to Corbin for a chinlock of his own (fans: SAVE THE GABLES!) before Rhyno misses a top rope splash.
Gable crawls over and makes the tag and it's Jordan coming in to speed things up. Everything breaks down with Jordan cleaning house but he has to save Gable after the End of Days knocks him silly. Gable O'Connor rolls Corbin out of the corner into a German suplex (awesome) but Rhyno makes the save. There's a Gore to Jordan and the second End of Days puts Gable away at 10:27.
Kevin Nash is here.
Video of Asuka.
Asuka vs. Dana Brooke
Brooke has Emma with her. Asuka comes to the ring with a long robe and a white mask for a cool visual. Dana has no interest in a handshake and they fight over a wristlock with Asuka moving at twice Dana's speed. A slap to the face takes the taste out of Asuka's mouth but she just smiles at Dana. Asuka comes back with a quick striking rush and Dana's pose followed by a Fujiwara Armbar.
Emma finally helps her partner with a distraction and the handstand choke has Asuka in some trouble. Asuka comes right back with a snap German suplex and a cross armbreaker followed by a cross face chickenwing. There's a spinning elbow to knock Emma off the apron. Fans: ASUKA CITY! Dana is almost done and gets caught in another cross face chickenwing with a bodyscissors (the Asuka Lock) for the tap at 5:30.
Asuka takes Dana down again and stares at Emma post match.
Breast cancer is bad.
We look at Balor injuring his knee again.
Nia Jax finally arrives next week.
Apollo Crews vs. Tyler Breeze
Crews powers him up against the ropes to start and knocks Tyler to the floor like he's nothing. A delayed vertical suplex gets two for Crews but Breeze leverages him out to the floor to take over again. Back in and Breeze starts in on the back with some knees and a chinlock with a knee in the spine. A sideways Backstabber gets two and sets up a Sharpshooter of all things from Breeze.
Apollo makes the ropes and nails a jumping clothesline, followed by a BIG kick to the face to knock Tyler silly. The back gives out though and Breeze Supermodel Kicks him for two. Tyler dives into a powerslam for two and there's the gorilla press but Breeze gets the knees up to block the standing moonsault. Breeze gets all fired up with forearms but Apollo kicks him square in the jaw. Crews loads up a belly to back suplex but spins him around into a powerbomb for the pin at 9:47.
Hideo Itami is here.
We look back at tonight's first two tournament matches.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Finn Balor/Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin/Rhyno
Balor is limping to the ring. Finn and Rhyno get things going and Corey immediately declares this as a dumb idea. Rhyno shoves the champ around with ease and it's off to Corbin for some feeling out. The knee starts to go out though so it's off to Joe for the rapid fire strikes in the corner. Off to Rhyno who has some more luck with a knee to the ribs before Corbin comes in again to a chorus of booing.
A big boot gets two on Joe but he comes back with the enziguri in the corner. Joe tags off to Balor who uses Corbin as a launching pad into a dropkick to Rhyno. The knee seems fine at first but it gives out again when he charges into the corner. That's fine with Balor though as he nails an enziguri, only to have Rhyno drill him in the knee again to take over. Balor's comeback is stopped with a Boss Man Slam for two but he comes back again with a Sling Blade out of nowhere.
The second hot tag brings in Joe to take over on Rhyno with the Rock Bottom out of the corner and an STO to Corbin. A Gore gets two on Rhyno with Balor making the save, only to damage the knee again in the process. Another Gore is countered by a kick to the face and it's the Muscle Buster into the Coup de Grace for the pin and the tournament at 11:09.
The Rhodes Family (with Stardust out of character) present Balor and Joe with the trophy. Cody talks about his dad being the oak of NXT and how his dad was beamed into homes around the world for over forty years. Tonight, we are all part of the Rhodes family. Dusty's theme music plays with nothing from Joe or Balor.
Stephanie (of course), Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Lita are in the front row.
We recap Bayley taking the title in Brooklyn and Sasha wanting a rematch. The result is tonight's 30 minute Iron Man match for the title. We also see some more of Bayley training in an awesome montage.
Women's Title: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
Bayley is defending and this is an Iron Man match, meaning the most falls (pin, submission, countout or disqualification) in thirty minutes wins. We get the entrances following the girls to the ring, thankfully with no talking from the announcers. Bayley has a cape and Iron Man colors, meaning my life is complete. Fans: WOMEN'S WRESTLING!
They stare each other down and there's no contact until a little over a minute in. A lockup gets us to Sasha holding a headlock, followed by some rollups for two. Bayley gets some rollups of her own for two each and a pinfall reversal sequence gives us even more near falls. Sasha gets in the first big move with a dropkick to knock the champ into the corner but Bayley comes back with a Japanese armdrag to drop Sasha on her head for two. That looked bad but Sasha seems to be ok.
We're five minutes in and Sasha sends her into the corner with a top rope wristdrag. Both finishers are blocked and Sasha chills in the corner. Sasha suckers her in and pulls the hair to get a quick two but it ticks Bayley off. Some hard elbows and a clothesline put Sasha on the floor. Bayley keeps the pressure on with a dropkick under the bottom rope (ala Sami Zayn) and a bulldog back inside for two. Both of them nearly crush the referee in the corner but Sasha uses this to her advantage and pokes Bayley in the eye for the first fall at 8:32.
Bayley rams her face first into the buckle over and over but gets sent into them herself. Both of them are banged up as we're ten minutes in. The double knees in the corner are countered into something like Snake Eyes and the Bayley to Belly ties it up at 10:55. Sasha bails to the floor so Bayley tries the sliding kick again. Banks catches her coming in this time though (I love psychology) and slams Bayley into the steps, right in front of her family and Izzy in a nice touch. Sasha throws her into the steps two more times and makes sure to talk trash to the family. Bayley kicks out at two and the fans are chanting for Izzy.
The champ is thrown to the floor and bangs her knee on the landing. Sasha whips her into the video board and it's a countout to give Sasha a 2-1 lead at 14:12. Banks steals Izzy's headband and throws it at her, making Izzy cry to get the fans entirely on Bayley's side. Bayley beats the count back in at fifteen minutes to go but Banks starts right in on her back. Sasha is brimming with confidence as she slaps on a Liontamer and stomps on the bad hand for old times' sake. Bayley makes the rope and grabs a fluke rollup to tie us up at 2-2 with 12:38 to go.
The double knees in the corner miss again and Bayley makes the comeback with ax handles to the face followed by an awkward looking spinning facebuster for two. The middle rope back elbow gets the same and Bayley's hair is almost down. Bayley puts her in the Tree of Woe for a running springboard elbow as we have ten minutes left.
Banks crotches her on top and now the double knees hit (great job of building that move up) for two. Bayley kicks her to the floor as the fans think it's better than Raw (time for Vince and Dunn to crush this show then). Now Bayley starts working on Sasha's hand and the fans want Izzy to slap Banks. The arm gets snapped across the middle rope and Sasha falls out to the floor again.
Bayley starts setting up the steps and Izzy looks like she's about to cry again. Sasha's hand is slammed into the steps again and a clothesline off the steps puts her on the floor. She's still able to kick Bayley into the steps though and the champ is in trouble again. Sasha's suicide dive is caught and a Bayley to Belly on the floor knocks her silly. Somehow that only gets two back inside and we've got five minutes to go.
Bayley puts her on the middle rope and a running super Bayley to Belly gets....two as the cover sent Sasha's feet into the ropes. Three minutes left and they're both spent. Bayley loads up the reverse hurricanrana but Sasha lands on her feet and hits a Bayley to Belly of her own. There's the Bank Statement and Sasha spins her away from the ropes. She can't get the full hold on though due to the hand injury from earlier.
Sasha kicks away from the ropes and gets a better version on with a minute left. Bayley reaches up and bends the hand back for the break before slamming the bad hand into the mat to get out. Sasha hooks the backbreaker to set up another Bank Statement but Bayley rolls through into an armbar while cranking on the hand with ten seconds left. Bayley KICKS HER IN THE HEAD until Sasha taps with three seconds left to retain Bayley's title at 30:00 by a score of 3-2.
Bayley looks drained as the roster comes out to the entrance to help Sasha up. HHH presents Bayley with a bouquet and she soaks in the cheers. Bayley and Sasha smile at each other to end the show.
Results
Finn Balor/Samoa Joe b. Mechanics Coup de Grace to Wilder
Rhyno/Baron Corbin b. Chad Gable/Jason Jorda End of Days to Gable
Asuka b. Dana Brooke Asuka Lock
Apollo Crews b. Tyler Breeze Spinning powerbomb
Finn Balor/Samoa Joe b. Baron Corbin/Rhyno Coup de Grace to Rhyno
Bayley b. Sasha Banks 3-2
Impact Wrestling
Date: October 7, 2015
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D'Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews
Bound For Glory has come and gone and not a lot has changed because the World Title is now vacant. Matt Hardy won the title by pinning Drew Galloway, but Ethan Carter III fired an injunction against him for reasons that aren't entirely clear. Therefore, tonight we're starting a 32 person series to crown a new champion at some point in the future. In other words, we'll be seeing a lot of matches taped a few months ago cobbled together into a competition. Let's get to it.
We open with a stills package of Sunday's main event, which means nothing now.
Dinero and Matthews are in the studio and throw us into a package of everything that has happened since Sunday. Ethan Carter III has gotten an injunction from a judge to prevent Matt Hardy from appearing on Impact. Why? Not important enough to explain but we'll go with reasons.
Therefore, since Matt can't appear on TNA TV, we see a video of Matt vacating the title. So yeah, we still don't get any new details and the story is still all muddled and a way to get to the ends they need because just having Carter retain was too complicated. Matt kept talking about a controversy but there's still no explanation of what exactly happened.
Dixie Carter talks about how the 72 hours since Bound For Glory ended have been insane. It really is insane since 72 hours ago (remember that this was recorded earlier today) would have been since Sunday afternoon, not Sunday night but we'll just chalk that up to another reason why Dixie isn't that bright. Dixie and Billy Corgan (who the fans are just supposed to know works for TNA) announce the 32 person series to determine the new champion. Its name: the World Title Series. Dig that creativity!
The men and women will both be involved in the series with eight groups of four each. The groups will compete against each other in round robin style matches with three points for a win, one point for a draw and zero points for a loss. There are fifteen minute time limits and the top two from each group advance to the round of sixteen, which is a single elimination tournament with no time limits.
Here's the first group (Group UK):
Bram
Rockstar Spud
Grado
Drew Galloway
Group #2 (Group Wild Card):
Aiden O'Shea
Crazzy Steve
Kenny King
Mahabali Shera
Group #3 (Group Knockouts)
Awesome Kong
Madison Rayne
Brooke
Gail Kim
Group #4 (Group Champions)
Lashley
Austin Aries
Mr. Anderson
Ethan Carter III
Dinero and Josh make their predictions on the first four groups.
Drew Galloway talks about Sunday being the hardest night of his life. He'll be back though.
Group UK: Drew Galloway vs. Bram
Josh says the injunction might be about Jeff Hardy hitting Carter on Sunday. That really should have been mentioned earlier as it almost kind of makes sense, but we're 20 minutes into the show and FINALLY hearing about that theory. As usual, TNA comes off as disorganized and doesn't bother to explain something that really should be covered earlier, assuming that's what's going on.
They fight into the corner to start and Bram bails to the floor. Back in and Bram bails again as we go split screen to see some clips of a roundtable group discussion from earlier in the day. I can't stand it when this happens as it's very distraction. Just do the audio or something as it's not like they're hard to tell apart.
As Bram talks about being better than the rest of the group, Drew suplexes Bram to the floor again but this time Bram sends him into the steps to take over. Back in and Bram grabs a chinlock until Galloway gets to his feet and wins a slugout. They head outside again so Galloway can send him face first into the steps over and over. Back inside and Drew's running big boot is good for the pin and three points at 7:59.
Group UK Standings
Drew Galloway 3 points (2 matches left)
Rockstar Spud 0 points (3 matches left)
Grado 0 points (3 matches left)
Bram 0 points (2 matches left)
Gail Kim is thankful for the chance to be in the tournament.
Drew Galloway says Bram's mistake was going to the floor. They're treating this like a traditional sports event with analysis and the pre and post match interviews.
Group Knockouts: Brooke vs. Gail Kim
No title with Gail because of the taping schedule which Josh attributes to Gail being focused on the World Title. They keep the split screen stuff to a minimum here and come back to Gail monkey flipping her over, only to get caught in a pinfall reversal sequence for some near falls. Brooke grabs something like a reverse Cattle Mutilation but can't keep the hold on.
Eat Defeat is broken up and they slug it out until Brooke grabs the Butterface Maker (in case you didn't get the theme of Brooke's character). She misses a top rope elbow though and Gail bends Brooke's ribs around the post. Eat Defeat is countered again so Gail tries a leg lock, only to get rolled up for the pin at 6:25.
Group Knockouts
Brooke 3 points (2 matches left)
Awesome Kong 0 points (3 matches left)
Madison Rayne 0 points (3 matches left)
Gail Kim 0 points (2 matches left)
EC3 wants this to be called the Memorial Screwjob Series. He should be the champion because he got ripped off but it's motivated him to win this thing. Carter promises to defeat Austin Aries tonight in record time. This series isn't over until he wins.
The announcers talk about the first two matches.
Group UK: Rockstar Spud vs. Grado
In the split screen discussion, Grado and Spud argue over who the real underdog is. In the ring, Grado sits on Spud's chest for two and drops a backsplash for good measure. A Cannonball misses though and Spud scores with a dropkick in the corner. Grado comes back with a Pedigree (not a good one either) for two. There go the straps but Grado's ankle lock is quickly broken up.
Spud hits an overly complicated Worm for two but Grado tops him with a People's Elbow. The running the ropes (multiple times across the ring) makes him tired though and Pope thinks this is the funniest thing he's ever seen. Spud hits a decent chokeslam and the Undertaker cover gets two. Matthews calls this a slobberknocker as Grado escapes an AA but walks into a Stunner and the Underdog to give Spud the pin at 5:57.
Group UK
Drew Galloway 3 points (2 matches left)
Rockstar Spud 3 points (2 matches left)
Grado 0 points (2 matches left)
Bram 0 points (2 matches left)
Pope picks EC3 to lose all of his matches.
Tyrus, with headphones around the side of his head to make him look even angrier, says he's going to sit back and see who wins the Series because he's up next. It would be interesting if EC3 wins.
Group Champions: Ethan Carter III vs. Austin Aries
Aries has Thea Trinidad with him for no apparent reason. Josh says the internet nerds are asking why Aries is here after he lost a career match. No Josh, actually we're wrestling fans who sit around and listen to your mindless drivel as you try to be the cool announcer while coming off as the biggest tool this side of your local hardware store.
Heaven forbid we listen to the rules and stories your company presents and then expect them to follow their own ideas. No instead we're nerds for trying to make sense of a business that you couldn't even get into because you couldn't beat freaking Maven and then no major company wanted to see you get in the ring so you're stuck with this sinking ship of a company because WWE realized they could get any hack to replace you.
So after the explanation of HAHA we don't have to explain why Aries is back we're ready to go. Pope starts talking about Jeff Hardy getting involved on Sunday so I guess that's the official reason for the injunction. Again, not that Ethan ever actually mentioned that but why waste time on something like that? Ethan cranks on a wristlock and then runs Aries over with a shoulder. Aries pops back up and forearms Carter outside, followed by a slingshot hilo to send Carter to the floor again.
Some elbows to the head (am I a nerd for knowing what an elbow is Josh? Or do I need to be a professional like you?) knock Ethan back inside but Aries dives on Tyrus when he gets too close to Thea. We take a break and come back with Aries fighting out of a chinlock until Ethan pulls him back to the mat for the same hold. We've got less than five minutes to go and this was the only match to have the time limit announced during the entrances. Aries fights back and gets a neckbreaker across the middle rope, followed by a suicide dive into the barricade.
Back in and another Tyrus distraction lets Carter get two off a TKO. Carter's superplex is broken up and Aries gets two off the 450 in a surprising kickout. Even Tyrus was freaked out. Aries wins a slugout but Tyrus trips him up, allowing Ethan to grab a sitout powerbomb for another near fall. The Last Chancery goes on with a minute left but since that move never gets a submission, Carter gets to the ropes. Both finishers are countered three times each and Aries can't get the Last Chancery as time runs out at 15:00.
Aries gives Carter a brainbuster after the match.
Group Champions
Austin Aries 1 point (2 matches left)
Ethan Carter III 1 point (2 matches left)
Mr. Anderson 0 points (3 matches left)
Lashley 0 points (3 matches left)
Pope says getting a draw and one point is like getting zero points.
Mr. Anderson is glad that he's in the toughest group. He's all in against Lashley tonight.
Aries says Carter knows what the brainbuster feels like and it's his first loss if he ever feels it again.
Group Knockouts: Madison Rayne vs. Awesome Kong
An early Implant Buster doesn't work for Kong so she throws Madison across the ring. As the split screen gives us some rare talking from Kong (the seas will boil with her rage it seems), Kong throws Madison in a Torture Rack before just dropping her. Madison comes back with a missile dropkick for two but the Implant Buster ends Rayne at 4:12.
Group Knockouts
Brooke 3 points (2 matches left)
Awesome Kong 3 points (2 matches left)
Madison Rayne 0 points (2 matches left)
Gail Kim 0 points (2 matches left)
Lashley is glad to be in a tournament because he's gotten here in tournament style competition. Mr. Anderson is victim #1 tonight.
Matt Hardy talks about what a great moment Sunday night was but now it's all gone. He's entered into the Series and will start competing next week. So.....Carter's injunction didn't get rid of Matt and now he has to go through a bunch of people instead of someone he's already beaten twice to get the belt back. Bad business sense is a bad family trait for the Carters.
Group Champions: Mr. Anderson vs. Lashley
Lashley takes him to the mat to start and we're in a break just a few seconds after the bell. Back with Lashley suplexing Anderson with ease but the spear can't connect yet. The split screen has Lashley and Anderson saying that they should both move on and then fight in the round of sixteen. Lashley charges into the post to give Anderson two and it's time to work on the arm.
Anderson dropkicks Lashley's leapfrog out of the air and it's time to go back to the arm. A single arm DDT gets two and it's back to the armbar. Back up and Lashley fires off some clotheslines with the good arm, including a big one in the corner. There's a spinebuster as we have less than five minutes to go. The spear still can't connect though and Anderson hits a pair of Regal Rolls. Anderson tries a third but Lashley rolls out and hits the spear for the win at 12:16.
Group Champions
Lashley 3 points (2 matches left)
Austin Aries 1 point (2 matches left)
Ethan Carter III 1 point (2 matches left)
Mr. Anderson 0 points (2 matches left)
Results
Drew Galloway b. Bram Running boot
Brooke b. Gail Kim Small package
Rockstar Spud b. Grado Underdog
Austin Aries vs. Ethan Carter III went to a time limit draw
Awesome Kong b. Madison Rayne Implant Buster
Lashley b. Mr. Anderson Spear