Opinion
NXT Minus 6: Takeover 31, After
After ranking WWE NXT Takeover 31’s matches beforehand, Bradley Jay is back with his post-show rankings. What changed?
After ranking WWE NXT Takeover 31’s matches beforehand, Bradley Jay is back with his post-show rankings. What changed?
Here’s the dillio. Before the show, I ranked the matches based on my excitement for them. Now that the show is over, let’s see how things worked out.
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6. Damian Priest versus Johnny Gargano 3 stars
I don’t expect insane spots off a ladder for no reason or a thousand chair shots. For a Takeover match, I do expect something special, some moment that makes the match stand out. Sadly and surprisingly, this did not have that moment. It was a good match. It was a Wednesday night match. Something was missing. I thought that a lot watching this PPV. In fact, it should have been called Takeover 31: Something is missing. Dropped from 1 to 5
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5. Io Shirai versus Candace Lerae, 3 stars
As good as she can be, I feel like Shirai isn’t consistently bringing her A-game. Her matches feel repetitive. Her moonsault has lost some of its air. And the revelation of not one but TWO returning superstars that I don’t care about seemed to drag everything down. Up from 5 to 4
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4. Swerve Scott versus Santa Claus Ice Cream Bar, 3 ½ stars
Swerve did his thing, and that’s always a good thing. I don’t mind the interference, because that’s what factions do. They stick together and cheat. If someone is going to make the save, it at least has to be someone we recognize. Drake Maverick? Fandango? Even Tony Neese would have made sense. I feel bad for Swerve. I hope they don’t move on from his chance to grab the gold, but I’m afraid they will. Up from 4 to 3

3. Kyle O’Reilly versus Finn Balor 4.2 stars
You know you’ve done something special when you lose the match & still come out smelling like a rose. Kyle O’Reilly showed us that he’s ready to be a singles guy. His combos and transitions are as good as anybody. His one man leg sweep looks almost as devastating as Total Elimination. He was made for a long run as the intercontinental champion. Up from 3 to 2
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2. KUSHIDA versus Velveteen Dream 4.6 stars
When this match ended, I gave it 4.4 stars. The post-match beatdown was fan-flipping-tastic, so I gave it an upgrade. Hyper violent KUSHIDA is wicked awesome. I get the same savage vibe from him that I get from Timothy Thatcher. These are 2 guys who can brutalize an opponent without weapons. This was the only match of the night that was as good as I thought it would be. Bonus points to VD for the Marty McFly reference. Up from 2 to 1

1. Overall, it was a good show. Everybody worked hard. Nothing was horrible (except for Ridge Holland), but nothing was MOTY. Maybe it would have been better if the bar for Takeover wasn’t so insanely high, and if the production didn’t suck ass. Sometimes there was crowd noise. Sometimes it was silent. Some cheering seemed real. Some sounded piped in. Sometimes the ring itself sounded like it was cranked up to 11. And I don’t see the value in having faces in the audience if we don’t get the accompanying crowd noise. It all felt disconnected and detracted from the overall atmosphere. But if this was the stepping stone for KUSHIDA and O’Reilly, then it was all worth it.
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Opinion
Chris King: Is Brock Lesnar Truly Retired?
Brock Lesnar retired at WWE WrestleMania 42, right? Are we totally sure? Chris King asks…
Brock Lesnar retired at WWE WrestleMania 42, right? Are we totally sure? Chris King asks…
At WrestleMania 42, ‘The Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar took off his boots and gloves following his loss to Oba Femi. Lesnar has done it all inside of his twenty-four-year career in professional wrestling. He’s a ten-time WWE Champion and former UFC Heavyweight Champion, and he’s one who ended The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania.
While Lesnar was in the ring, he was visibly overwhelmed with emotion and crying while he thanked the fans in his own way. The Beast even threw up an x to signal to Paul Heyman, his longtime friend and advocate, that this was not scripted and was real. There had been rumors that Lesnar and Oba were supposed to have a series of matches before everything went down at Mania.
‘The Career Killer’ Gunther was doing Heyman’s bidding as he faced Seth Rollins for a favor. For a while now since Gunther retired Goldberg, John Cena, and AJ Styles, the rumor has been Gunther was set to retire Lesnar in his hometown at this year’s SummerSlam event. There’s been no confirmation if Lesnar is truly retired, but on this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, we saw Heyman talking with General Manager Nick Aldis. Later that night following Rhodes’ match against the debuting Ricky Saints, Gunther choked out the WWE Champion. Could this be the favor from Heyman?
I know in the world of professional wrestling we live by the mantra of “never say never,” but what if Lesnar is actually retired and this was WWE’s way of shutting down those rumors about Gunther and Lesnar? What if Gunther’s next program is chasing after the WWE title, and where is Randy Orton at in all of these plans? There are so many questions that need to be answered, hopefully soon!
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Opinion
Chris King: Defend The Intercontinental Championship At Backlash!
With WWE Backlash upon us, Chris King wants to see Penta defend the Intercontinental Championship in Tampa!
With WWE Backlash upon us, Chris King wants to see Penta defend the Intercontinental Championship in Tampa!
This year’s annual Backlash showcase is only a few days away, and while there are many big matches announced, one that definitely should be isn’t on the card. In my opinion, outside of Roman Reigns/Jacob Fatu and Seth Rollins/Bron Breakker, the Intercontinental Championship scene has been stellar over the last month.
Penta has been an excellent champion, especially after his triumphant title defense in a ladder match against JeVon Evans, Rusev, Dragon Lee, and the Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania 42. Their ladder match at Mania was one of the best that WWE has produced in a while.
The momentum never stopped, as on the post-Mania episode of Monday Night Raw, ‘All Ego’ Ethan Page made his debut and was quickly inserted into the Intercontinental title scene. Page had a fantastic showing against his longtime NXT rival Evans and picked up a big win in his debut match thanks to an assist from Rusev.
All Ego immediately joined forces with ‘The Bulgarian Brute’ Rusev, who was also vying for the Intercontinental Title in his own right. On this week’s episode of Raw, Page and Rusev defeated Evans and Penta. All Ego pinned the champion, making a huge statement and putting him one step closer to getting a title shot. For the past few weeks I’ve been anxiously waiting to see if WWE was going to add this incredible fatal four-way match for the Intercontinental Championship, but it hasn’t happened yet.
As much as the WWE Universe enjoys witnessing great matches on free television, I truly believe all four superstars deserve the chance to showcase their talents on the PLE. While Penta has done a terrific job as the intercontinental champion, it’s time for a fresh face to hold the prestigious title. Page would make a great braggadocious heel that would help elevate the Intercontinental Championship to new heights!
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