– Dolph Ziggler is now officially added to the WWE Intercontinental Championship ladder match at WrestleMania 31. Other participants confirmed for the match include Bad News Barrett, Luke Harper, R-Truth and Dean Ambrose.
– WWE has officially announced Big Show and Kane as the newest entrants in this year’s Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31. With those two added, the following is the updated list of participants, which as noted, is expected to feature 20 competitors in total.
* The Miz
* Curtis Axel
* Ryback
* Fandango
* Adam Rose
* Zack Ryder
* Jack Swagger
* Titus O’Neil
* Darren Young
* Big Show
* Kane
Raw emanated from the Garden State this week, but it was certainly no walk in the park for Seth Rollins. Fans were treated to two title matches during the show, as well as a special appearance from Jon Stewart. Without further ado, here are the pros and cons from this week’s episode of Raw.
Pros
The highlight of the night was Seth Rollins’ phony “Daily Show.” He immediately insulted the crowd by calling Newark the “armpit of America” before recapping his appearance on the real deal last Thursday. Mr. Money in the Bank had J&J rolling with a few corny jokes, while pondering the whereabouts of Mr. Stewart. His question was quickly answered, as Stewart showed up to a nice pop from the crowd. Stewart ripped on Rollins hard while displaying his knowledge of legends past in an absolutely hilarious segment that ended with Stewart delivering a swift kick to Rollins’ nuts. Entertaining top-of-the-hour segment, and it should provide a bit of crossover buzz heading into WrestleMania.
Triple H was so intense during his promo this week, and as always, his delivery was solid. Hunter took a few shots at the “kids” who think they know the backstage politics of the business, while threating: “I will make sure it is as if Sting’s career never existed.” Booker T’s involvement in the segment was refreshing and something new, even if it meant seeing The Game almost hand the five-time champ his walking papers.
Daniel Bryan vs. Luke Harper went into the “Pros” column before it even started. When you get two guys with this kind of talent in the same ring, it’s almost impossible to disappoint. Even though they weren’t given much time at all, the two worked a stiff match that saw both superstars take their fair share of abuse. Bryan was unceremoniously dumped over the top rope to the floor at one point, but was eventually able to counter a modified crossface into the Yes! Lock for the win. Following the match, Ambrose, Harper, Barrett, Ziggler, and R-Truth, all attempted to walk away with the Intercontinental Championship while Bryan looked on. It looks like our lineup for the WrestleMania ladder match is basically set.
It was a pleasant surprise to see Seth Rollins open the show, as he hyped his confrontation with Jon Stewart later in the night. He of course talked a little smack, saying: “Unlike the Daily Show where they give away their tickets for free, every single person in a seat tonight paid to see Seth Rollins.” The only downside to this segment was the involvement of Roman Reigns. He arrived, said a few words that weren’t exactly memorable, performed his two signature moves, and basically stood in the ring hoping to be cheered (he failed miserably, in case you’re wondering). It’s sad that even when the the company is using New Jersey’s own Jon Stewart to get Rollins heat, the crowd still universally boos the thought of Reigns becoming champion. Overall, it seemed like another lame attempt to get Reigns over, but Rollins was money.
The Miz “Niagara” commercial was on point. I loved Mizdow’s involvement in the backstage segment and commercial.
There weren’t many spots during the Ambrose/Barrett match, but it was pleasant. Most of the exciting action took place outside of the ring, with Ambrose diving through the middle ropes to take out Barrett and later delivering a big elbow from the ring apron. He eventually picked up the win after hitting Dirty Deeds following a distraction. It’s nice to see the company getting multiple midcarders involved in this Intercontinental Championship ladder match (including Dean Ambrose, Luke Harper, probably Daniel Bryan as well). With that said, it is absolutely cringeworthy hearing JBL and Cole interact with R-Truth on commentary.
Alundra Blayze was announced as the latest inductee into the Hall of Fame. That’s cool, I guess.
Finally, John Cena cut his usual “inspirational” promo this week. It’s obvious Cena doesn’t possess the necessary credentials to warrant inclusion into the prestigious Andre the Giant Battle Royal, and Stephanie of course quickly shot down his hopes. The two engaged in their typical banter to start the nine o’clock hour. Stephanie declaring, “For once, I actually like this chant” when referring to the Yes! chant was humorous.
Axel was easily the MVP of this segment though, and the crowd was eating it up big time. The two followed up the segment with a quick match, with Cena quickly forcing Axel to tap out to the STF. Rusev once again denied Cena his rematch following the match, keeping us all on edge as to whether this will match occur at WrestleMania.
WWE is gearing up for their annual post-WrestleMania European tour, with the following matches being advertised:
The “A-Crew” will be headlined by John Cena vs. Rusev for the United States Championship, Bad News Barrett vs. Dean Ambrose for the Intercontinental Championship and Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins.
For other touring roster will feature Roman Reigns vs. Big Show in the main event, Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt, Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper and Tag Team Champions Tyson Kidd and Cesaro vs. The Usos.
While this doesn’t reveal anything big about what could transpire at WrestleMania, it does give an idea of which feuds will be continuing.
The following matches were taped prior to Monday’s RAW in Nashville, Tennessee for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
– Erick Rowan def. Adam Rose in singles action to kick off the taping. Rowan controlled the majority of the offense in the match. He hit a few power moves and then took out Rose via pinfall after hitting him with his finisher.
– Luke Harper def. Kofi Kingston in the headline match of the WWE Superstars taping. Harper absolutely dominated the match, which he ended up winning via pinfall after hitting Kingston with his 360-clothesline.
The following matches were taped prior to Monday’s edition of WWE RAW in Columbus, Ohio for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars on the WWE Network.
– Titus O’Neil def. Jack Swagger in the opening match of the taping. This was said to be a pretty decent match with its’ fair amount of crowd heat. In the end, the finish saw O’Neil hit Swagger with his finisher for the 1-2-3.
– Luke Harper def. R-Truth in the main event of the show. Harper dominated throughout the majority of the match, with Truth getting in a few hope spots here and there. The finish saw Harper blast Truth with his 360-clothesline for the pinfall victory.
The following matches were taped on Thursday night in Hartford, CT. prior to the live edition of WWE SmackDown for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event. While they will not air on the WWE Network, they will still be available on Hulu Plus on Friday and will air in some international markets on television this weekend.
– The New Day def. The Miz & Damien Mizdow in tag-team action to kick off the show. Big E. and Kofi Kingston represented The New Day in this one. The finish saw Big E. and Kingston pick up the pin after The Miz yelled at Mizdow outside of the ring, causing a distraction.
– Luke Harper vs. Dolph Ziggler is announced for the main event of the show.
– Erick Rowan def. Curtis Axel in singles competition. This was described as a really solid match, however the fans in Hartford were apparently not making a lot of noise for it. There was a “Rumble winner!” chant directed towards Axel during the match. In the end, Rowan picked up the win with his finisher.
– Roman Reigns is shown on the big screen, which prompted a loud boo response from the fans in attendance. The Arnold Schwarzenegger WWE Hall Of Fame video package was also shown.
– Dolph Ziggler def. Luke Harper in the main event of the show. Ziggler got a great pop from the Hartford fans for his entrance, and the crowd was said to be really hot for Ziggler throughout the entire duration of the bout. In the end, Ziggler picked up the win to end this week’s show.
Part-time WWE Superstar Chris Jericho made an unannounced surprise appearance at the WWE non-televised live event on Saturday night in Montgomery, Alabama. This came off as pretty unexpected and interesting, considering the fact that Jericho was not scheduled to begin working WWE live events until next weekend in St. Louis, Missouri.
According to a fan in attendance at the Montgomery show on Saturday night, Jericho received an enormous pop when he came out.
Jericho would go on to face Luke Harper in a singles match, one that Jericho ended up winning in a match that was described by our correspondent as “excellent and refreshing,” considering the way the rest of the card came off that evening.
Last night’s Raw was the first of 2015 and the company started the year not with a bang but with a whimper. The show was held in Corpus Christi, TX, and it’s unclear whether the audience was drugged prior to filming, because it was probably the most silent crowd I’ve ever heard at a WWE event. Without further ado, here are the pros and cons from last night’s episode of Monday Night Raw.
Pros
The clear highlight of the night was the Ambulance Match between Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt. As always, the two worked pretty well together and delivered a few memorable spots. The ending felt just a bit sloppy, but the rest of the match more than made up for it. In all, it was good to see Wyatt come out on top, as he needed the win more than Ambrose. This program has been one of the only good things going over the past few weeks, so it’s kind of sad to see it come to an end.
Another clear highlight was the Intercontinental Championship match. It was a good way for the Authority to exact revenge against Ziggler, and the 2-out-of-3 falls swerve was decent. It’s also nice to see that the company still has confidence in Bad News Barrett, and this hopefully means that Ziggler will move into the main event picture permanently.
It was nice to see the program actually have an intro and pryo again. This is a minor complaint, but the intro-less format felt really cheap, with it simply going to a lifeless Michael Cole saying, “Welcome to Raw” while panning over the crowd. Unfortunately, the intro and pyro will probably be gone next week due to budget cuts.
Adding Seth Rollins to the main event at the Royal Rumble was brilliant. With Rollins essentially having two chances to win the title in a few weeks, it provides many booking possibilities. My interest level in the main event went from nonexistent to moderately intrigued in a matter of seconds.
Booker T on commentary was a nice change of pace. Hopefully King is well soon, but they really need to shake up the commentary team. I wouldn’t mind seeing Booker become a regular at the table again.
The Kane/Rollins vs. Ryback match was somewhat entertaining but nothing to write home about. The double Curb Stomp was at least a decent finish.
Finally, it was nice to see the company giving guys more time to cut backstage promos. Rusev, Reigns, Ambrose, Wyatt, and possibly a few superstars whom I’m forgetting all received promo time last night. Good to see the company letting the talent speak instead of filling that time with ads or plugs for the Network.
The following are highlights of the latest blog by WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On the Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper match at RAW: “Ziggler vs. Harper…both men sold well, which is missing in many talent’s game within the business these days, and told a great story of competition and made me feel better about the IC Title status and how it an be heated up. I knew Harper had ‘it’ when I watched him down in NXT and Ziggler has been ready for ‘prime time’ for a good while now. I like how WWE has begun to utilize Dolph.”
On the Seth Rollins vs. John Cena match at RAW: “Rollins vs. Cena….nice chemsty..competitive…and we got a clean winner and a disgruntled loser who will want redemption. Leaving fans feeling empty with a impotent count out or disqualification can do more harm than good in any promotion.”
On The Ascension vignettes: “Interesting Ascension vignettes…almost Road Warrior-esque which will be interesting to see how the audience accepts. WWE needs a hot, fan favorite tag team for Ascension to come in and ravage to get the fan’s attention.”
On Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt at RAW: “Loved the effort of Ambrose vs. Rollins and I’m a fan of each talent but I felt like they depended too much on weaponry in their match. Less is more especially after we’ve seen the recent TLC PPV plus other cage matches recently. These two beat the hell out of each other….again.”
On The New Day faction: “Really curious as to how “New Day” is going to be accepted by the fans once they are launched officially IE in earnest. Today’s fans don’t seem to be too willing to provide second chances. I’d surmise that dressing in Carolina Blue and espousing such positivity that today’s wrestling fan may be a little hard on the talented trio who I happen to like personally and professionally. These three need to be special and draw positive attention to themselves by what they do in the ring and how they present themselves. If it’s the same old stuff, it won’t work. This sis where talents need to brainstorm and strategize on what they can do differently while they are being repackaged.”
Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.
As a bit of a reminder, there will be no WWE television tapings tonight, as both Main Event and SmackDown were taped on Sunday in Sioux Falls, Iowa. Below are the matches scheduled for tonight’s edition of WWE Main Event, which airs on the WWE Network.
– Cesaro & Tyson Kidd vs. Los Matadores
– Brie Bella vs. Summer Rae
– Big E. vs. Stardust
– Luke Harper vs. Jack Swagger
For complete spoiler results of this week’s Main Event, click here.
The following are WWE Main Event taping results for this coming Tuesday’s show on the WWE Network. Results are courtesy of ProWrestling.net.
– Cesaro and Tyson Kidd defeated Los Matadores. Cesaro and Kidd dominated most of the match and got the win with a powerbomb from Cesaro while Kidd performed a flip into a neckbreaker off the top rope.
– Brie Bella beat Summer Rae. Brie hit her running knee and a missile dropkick for the win.
– Big E defeated Stardust (w/Goldust). Starust went to the ropes for the Beautiful Disaster kick, but Goldust accidentally knocked him off the ropes. Big E used the Big Ending to get the win.
– Luke Harper defeated Jack Swagger in a really good match. They both kicked out of the others big moves but Harper won with a huge clothesline.
2014 is quickly coming to an end. With only two weeks left in the year, fans have seen basically everything the WWE has to offer in 2014, for better or worse. In particular, the fourth quarter of 2014 was filled with exciting action, unexpected debuts, and a noticeable lack of WWE World Heavyweight Championship matches.
With all four quarters essentially “in the books” at this point, we want you to familiarize yourself with our picks from all four quarters. Next week, we are going to create a poll where you can vote on your pick for 2014 Match Of The Year.
– Members of the former Ring of Honor stable The Age Of The Fall were reunited backstage at this week’s WWE TV tapings. The members included Seth Rollins (as Tyler Black), Luke Harper (as Brodie Lee), Joey Mercury (as Joey Matthews) and Jimmy Jacobs, who has been working as a Rosebud.
– NXT Superstar Aiden English of the Vaudvillains is engaged to Shaul Guerrero, daughter of Vickie and the late Eddie Guerrero. Vickie posted the following on Instagram:
– On the post-TLC edition of WWE RAW from Detroit, Michigan, it was announced that WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan will be at next week’s RAW.
– As noted earlier today, Luke Harper received several staples in his head after his brutal ladder match with Dolph Ziggler at Sunday’s WWE TLC pay-per-view. Below is a video from the official WWE YouTube channel that shows Harper receiving medical attention.
The following are highlights from the latest blog by WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On the Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper match: “Thought the first match featuring Ziggler vs. Harper for the IC Title in a Ladder match was a great start and arguably the best match on the show. They were lucky to get the live audience fresh and they did not have to follow several other specialty matches. These two needed medical attention after their match which should come as no surprise. Harper got five staples in his head while Ziggler got a cut glued shut. I actually had a cut glued shut after being schooled by HHH in Madison Square Garden many years ago. It beats the heck out of stitches ”
On the John Cena vs. Seth Rollins match: “Liked the position on the card for Cena vs. Rollins and the Reigns involvement was timely. It’s smart to have a long window to promote Cena vs. Lesnar for the WWE Title at the Royal Rumble in January which should stimulate January subscribers for the Network. Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury certainly earned their keep in this match in their role of J&J Security. I’ll say this, John Cena is beastly strong.”
On Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt: “Happy that young talents Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt closed the show for multiple reasons that all essentially come down to perception. These two beat the Hell out of each other, without question, and both took another step forward to becoming main event talents. I applaud their work ethic and willingness to put their bodies at such risk. Going on last after everything that was done in the ring earlier makes it tremendously challenging and I don’t know how Ambrose and Wyatt could have done any more.”
On TLC compared to NXT Takeover: R Evolution: “As much as I enjoyed many aspects of the TLC show, it wasn’t quite as good, merely in my opinion, as the overall @WWENXT show, from start to finish, that I watched Thursday night from Orlando.”
Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.
– Below is the official promo for the next season of WWE Total Divas, which returns in January of 2015. As noted, Naomi and Summer Rae will not be included in the next season of the show.
– WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin posted the following tweet after last night’s WWE TLC pay-per-view, praising the Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper ladder match.
TLC came and went last night, leaving behind a trail of broken tables, dented chairs, and fried television monitors. There were plenty of highlights last night, but the company certainly took a few missteps as well. Overall, here are the pros and cons from last night’s TLC pay-per-view.
Pros
The show got off to a hot start last night with the ladder match. Ziggler and Harper really gave everything they had, as both were men were bruised and bloodied by the end of the contest. There were a number of memorable spots (especially when Harper catapulted Ziggler into the ropes with the ladder), and overall, it ranked up there with some of the best ladder matches in company history. Amazing way to start the show, and unfortunately for WWE, the rest of the show paled in comparison.
Ambrose and Wyatt also put on an amazing show. This was about as brutal as it gets during the PG era, with Ambrose leaping from the top of a ladder to drive Wyatt through a table on multiple occasions. It was also nice to see the company have the confidence to let these guys close the show, although the ending was less than desirable (more on that later).
As expected, Damien Mizdow was over big time with the crowd, with the fans even booing Miz in his hometown of Cleveland in favor of Sandow. I couldn’t help but crack up when Mizdow started emulating the half crab on the apron. The guy has major star potential, and he and the Miz play perfectly off of one another.
Although the booking was atrocious, Rollins proved why he is a future star during his match with John Cena. Join me in the “Cons” section to read more about this one.
Finally, I thought it was a decent decision to have Nikki Bella retain the title, and honestly, it was far from being the worst match of the night. It seems like the company has being playing hot potato with the Divas Championship since AJ Lee’s long title reign ended so it’s nice to see the title stay around someone’s waist for more than a month.
Here is an injury report from Sunday’s WWE TLC pay-per-view, courtesy of the WWE website:
– Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper were treated for wounds following their Intercontinental Title Ladder Match. Harper received five staples to the side of his head and Ziggler had a laceration on his head as well, which was treated with skin glue and bandages.
– AJ Lee was tended to by trainers after TLC due to a “scary incident” in which Nikki Bella blinded her with the hairspray in their match.
WWE’s Dr. Stephen Daquino told WWE.com that AJ suffered “chemical conjunctivitis” but they were able to flush her eyes with saline. Dr. Daquino said that the quick treatment helped prevent any long-term damage to AJ’s vision.
Dolph Ziggler posted the following extended tweet regarding his WWE Intercontinental Championship ladder match with Luke Harper at tonight’s WWE TLC pay-per-view.
“Here I am… again! another chance to set the measuring stick in this business. I don’t strive to have great matches, I strive to be the best, EVER! If that angers you, you’re one of those “stand up for yourself, but don’t ruffle any feathers” types…get in line. This ladder match will raise the bar in what’s great & what’s legendary. If it doesn’t, I failed. guess there’s a 1st time for everything. Harper has a chance to be part of history and a rebirth of intercontinental prestige. Has he earned it? Maybe more than I have. this match is special bc of what it could mean for those not in the gold circle & if done right, can not be followed. but let’s be honest, That is how I do it, every damn night. Here I am…again”
Make sure to join us here tonight for live WWE TLC play-by-play results coverage.
The final pay-per-view of 2014 is only a few hours away, and there should be enough tables, ladders, and chairs to fill a large dining hall. (I’m not entirely sure that I’ve seen a ladder in a college dining hall, but whatever.) The card will feature a total of nine matches, including a main event featuring Seth Rollins and John Cena. With that said, here are my predictions for this Sunday’s TLC pay-per-view.
The New Day vs. Gold and Stardust
The New Day hasn’t done much since returning from a brief hiatus, as they’ve been largely relegated to SmackDown and other programs that aren’t worth watching. However, they’ve looked impressive the few times they’ve been on Raw and all three are above average workers. The New Day has more to gain from a win here, so I’m expecting Big E finish off Stardust after hitting the Big Ending.
Winners: The New Day by pinfall
Ryback vs. Kane (Chairs Match)
Each December, fans can usually look forward to a Chairs Match at TLC. It’s like receiving a Christmas gift you didn’t request or care to receive. You put a smile on your face, do your best to enjoy it, but nine times out of ten, it ends in disappointment. This year’s edition should be no different. Nobody would want to see these guys square off in a singles contest, and throwing a few chairs into the mix will do little to save it. Ryback will win after a “brutal” match where the two exchange chair shots to the back for ten minutes.
Winner: Ryback by pinfall
The Miz and Damien Mizdow (Tag Team Champions) vs. The Usos
This contest should be an entertaining way to fill ten to fifteen minutes of the midcard. Mizdow is perhaps the hottest thing in WWE right now, so I expect he and the Miz to go over. However, it likely won’t be without some dissension. Overall, this should be an entertaining contest with a lot of back and forth action. If booked correctly, it should advance the tension between Miz and Mizdow, hopefully leading to a payoff at WrestleMania.
WWE will attempt to deliver an early Christmas present this Sunday during its annual TLC pay-per-view. It will be the last pay-per-view of 2014, and should also be the last special event before Brock Lesnar’s return to the ring. The card is set, but how will it play out? Here are 5 potential shockers for Sunday’s TLC.
5. Mizdow Turns on The Miz
It seems obvious that the Miz and his stunt double will be breaking up sooner rather than later, and for good reason, as Mizdow is perhaps the most over superstar in the WWE.
There was tension once again during Monday’s Slammy Awards after the Miz accepted his partner’s award on his behalf. Although their time together seems to be limited, I’d be shocked if the two break up on Sunday. It would make more sense to have the dissolution occur at the Royal Rumble, setting up a WrestleMania payoff that could be one of the top matches on the midcard.
Last night on Raw, the WWE handed out some shiny plastic hardware, and more importantly, finalized the card for this Sunday’s TLC pay-per-view. With CM Punk badmouthing WWE before signing with UFC, and Brock Lesnar sitting at home while the title collects dust, it seems like the most exciting WWE-related action these days is taking place outside of the squared circle.
With that said, TLC actually looks like a solid pay-per-view on paper, especially considering it’s another event without a WWE World Heavyweight Championship match.
Ziggler has performed well in ladder matches during his career. Will the Show Off steal the show on Sunday?
In general, gimmick pay-per-views can be pretty lame. With events such as Elimination Chamber, Hell in a Cell, TLC, and Extreme Rules, the stipulations often seem forced and predictable (Money in the Bank is the only exception). However, it seems like the gimmick could be highly beneficial this time around.
This is due to the fact that most of the matchups would be forgettable without a special stipulation. Take Ryback vs. Kane for example. Nobody wants to see a washed-up Libertarian and supposed steroid user battle in a regular singles contest; that’s the same garbage fans are served up every week on Raw. However, if the two are going to beat the hell out of each other with chairs, it increases the possibility (albeit slightly) that fans will remain interested.
The same holds true for Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper. They are two of the better workers in the company, and they’d undoubtedly put on a great show without any gimmick at all, but the ladder match stipulation gives them the opportunity to completely steal the show.
Not only will the midcard benefit from the TLC gimmick, hardcore stipulations were necessary at the top of the card to get this event over with the fans. In particular, the tables match between John Cena and Seth Rollins should be one of the highlights of the night, as Cena will attempt to remain number one contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.