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The Official Wrestling Thread (now with more news and stuff)
Arcademan:
6 -- SIN CARA vs. CURT HAWKINS
The mood lighting turned on, which made this match look like a Skittles commercial with blue lights, Cara's red tights, and Hawkins wearing new bright, neon green tights. Cara knocked Hawkins to the outside, then landed a flying plancha press. Hawkins returned the favor yanking Cara to the outside before mocking Cara. Back in the ring, Cara cut off Hawkins and landed successive high-flying moves before landing a flying armdrag. Both men appeared blown-up before Cara landed a head scissors single-arm DDT for the pin and the win. Cole said he can't wait to see more from Cara in the weeks to come.
WINNER: Sin Cara at 2:29. Until WWE comes up with an actual program for Cara, his role is pretty clear as an in-between-match guy to provide athleticism on the show, but not much more than that.
McMahon siting: McMahon confronts Daniel Bryan,ried comparing themselves to one another...Vince mentions he's never finished anything in 18 seconds and walked off.
7 -- VADER vs. HEATH SLATER
The crowd, which popped for the nostalgia return during ring intros, chanted "Let's Go Vader" as Vader frustrated Slater early on. Cole relayed a story about the first rib ever played on him in WWE when McMahon told him to put on Vader's mask. Vader beat down Slater before using his gut to cut off Slater's comeback. The fans chanted for a Vader Bomb before Vader scoop-slammed Slater in the corner. Vader then climbed to the second rope and delivered a big Vader Bomb. Pin and the win for Vader Time.
WINNER: Vader at 3:16.
8 -- WWE champion C.M. PUNK & A.J. vs. DANIEL BRYAN & KANE
Kane and Bryan took turns working over Punk early on as A.J. stood tentatively on the ring apron. Bryan landed Yes! Kicks before taunting A.J. as she stood on the ring apron. Punk came back with a powerslam before climbing up top, where he missed with a Macho Man elbow drop. Bryan then tagged in Kane as Punk teased tagging in A.J. before stopping short. Punk returned to face Kane, who slammed him into the corner, where Punk accidentally tagged A.J. The ref said it was a legal tag, then A.J. slowly walked into the ring and flashed a smile toward Kane. A.J. backed away, then skipped around Kane. "I'm very confused right now," Lawler said. Kane turned around, then A.J. suddenly hopped into Kane's arm and planted a big kiss on him. Kane maintained the embrace as the ref stood stunned in the corner. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" chant from the vocal males.
WWE went to a wide-shot to reveal Punk slowly reaching the corner ring steps selling disbelief over this. Kane eventually just walked over to Bryan and tagged him into the match before leaving the match. Bryan smirked and tried to go after A.J., but A.J. ran toward Punk, who tagged into the match and smashed Bryan. Punk then hit a top-rope Macho Man elbow drop for the pin and the win.
Post-match: The males stood still trying to figure out what just happened as A.J. sat down in the ring cross-legged a la Punk rocking back and forth. Kane stood on the ramp with hands-on-hips, Punk tried to do the math on what happened, and Bryan acted stunned ringside recovering from the finish.
WINNERS: Punk & A.J. at 4:58. This did not feel come across like the final hype for a WWE Title match on PPV, but WWE is treating the PPV like filler, so it was fitting WWE focused on the TV story centered on A.J. It's also partly a product of the WWE Title being complete de-valued.
Final segment: Not much to say that wasn't too predictible: McMahon calls Laurinaitis to the ring...is ready to fire him, Big Show comes out to defend him. John Cena then comes out. Show and Cena get into it...whoops! Big Show knocks out Vince by accident (too bad the punch missed him by a mile!). Laurinaitis calls Big Show away...Cena shows shock...fade to black.
Arcademan:
WWE NXT Results: 6-13-12
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to James's complete report).
1 - PERCY WATSON & DERRICK BATEMAN vs. CURT HAWKINS & TYLER REKS - Tag Team Match
Hawkins and Reks have bright neon green ring gear, which Regal says is a tribute to the Dynamic Dudes, and "People Power" t-shirts are also in Johnny Laurinaitis's honor.
Bateman and Hawkins start things off with a struggle for control. Hawkins kips up and Bateman launches a dropkick to Hawkins's stomach in return. Bateman exudes confidence as Reks tags in. Big boos for Reks, who then looks like he's going to cry when Bateman chops him. Watson and Bateman keep Reks isolated as Hawkins mouths off from the corner. Hawkins finally gets the tag and now Bateman is on the receiving end of a beating. Jawbreaker from Bateman lets him tag in Watson, who takes out both Reks and Hawkins and sends Bateman in to execute a suicide dive.
Watson is controlling Hawkins, but Reks distracts him so Hawkins can take him down. Watson takes a good stretch of abuse. Josh Mathews reminds viewers that the "New NXT" is arriving next week, without mention of where or when fans can watch it. Desperation enziguri and encouragement from Bateman lets Watson finally make a tag. Bateman unleashes on Reks and keeps Hawkins out of the game. Bateman with a running neckbreaker for a nearfall. The crowd is really enjoying this. The ref gets distracted and Reks takes advantage of Hawkins's interference to land the Burning Hammer and pin Bateman.
WINNERS: Reks & Hawkins in 11:20. Decent match, but some of the extended beat downs dragged it down a bit. I was happy to hear the crowd get involved in the match.
2 - KAITLYN vs. NATALYA
Natalya is continuing her new outfit, with some variations - lots of sparkly pink now. Natalya easily shows Kaitlyn who is boss with a take down, and Natalya responds with an armdrag, Natalya is incensed. Kaitlyn with a jackknife and Natalya bridges out and transitions into a backslide. Natalya says, "I hate you!" to Kaitlyn. The crowd isn't sure who to boo or cheer here. Natalya sits on Kaitlyn to cover her, and Kaitlyn kicks out so hard that Natalya goes flying. Nice sequence with a bow and arrow submission move from Natalya. Kaitlyn continues to try various leverage pins, then Natalya rams Kaitlyn hard into the turnbuckles. Kaitlyn tries a pin with her feet on the ropes, but the ref sees it. There's a couple of reversed roll-throughs and Kaitlyn ends up with the win.
WINNER: Kaitlyn in 5:15. I liked the story they were telling in the ring (the veteran Natalya having difficulty with the young upstart Kaitlyn, and getting more frustrated and using dirty tricks to win out of desperation), but a couple of the sequences didn't flow quite right. Still, it's better than the "Divas match" from Raw, right?
3 - THE USOS vs. JOHNNY CURTIS vs. MICHAEL MCGILLICUTTY - Tag Team Match
Jimmy and McGillicutty start the match. McGillicutty is quite arrogant, but he hurts himself headbutting Jimmy, which is pretty funny. Regal insinuates that Curtis goes to S&M clubs and asks if Mathews goes with him. Curtis tries to rip Jey's nose off, but Jey responds by nearly choking him out. McGillicutty takes out Jey from the outside, letting Curtis bring him to the corner for isolation.
McGillicutty has Jey's leg grapevined. Jey is desperate for a tag, but Curtis cuts him off. Jey is finally able to get the space needed for a tag, and Jimmy goes on hard, high-speed offense. Jimmy shows incredible fire in his attack. McGillicutty gets a Saito suplex to show Jimmy down. Tag is made, and the Usos land the Alley Use tag team Samoan Drop. Jey looks to cover McGillicutty, and Curtis lands a top-rope leg drop that goes more than halfway across the ring. Jimmy superkicks Curtis off the apron. McGillicutty misses the Turning Heads neckbreaker, allowing Jimmy to nail McGillicutty with a superkick and Jey hit the Superfly Splash for the win.
Josh Mathews signs off encouraging viewers to catch the New NXT next week. I hope so!
Winners: The Usos in 11:20. William Regal ends the match (and the season of NXT) begging the WWE higher-ups to give the audience more of this, and I concur. There were a lot of great spots here, including the Alley-Us Samoan Drop (one of my favorite moves in WWE) and Curtis's top-rope leg drop is downright impressive to see. The action broke down in a logical manner at the end.
Arcademan:
TNA Impact Wrestling Results: 6-14-12
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.
1 -- X Division champion AUSTIN ARIES vs. CHRIS SABIN vs. ZEMA ION -- Ultimate X match for X Division Title
As the bell sounded, the announcers hyped Aries conquering Samoa Joe at Slammiversary on Sunday. The match started with Sabin and Aries clearing Ion from the ring before engaging in a mid-ring back-and-forth. Ion then tried to sneak into the ring, but Sabin cut him off. Tenay noted Sabin is the veteran of this match, claiming Sabin has appeared in 15 Ultimate X bouts. All three men became involved as the announcers plugged the BFG Series starting tonight. Aries then cleared the ring and Sabin sold a left knee injury, which isn't good, even if he's selling. Aries followed with a double suicide dive, then ran around the ring to celebrate as the ref chased him down to offer some instructions.
Back in the ring, Aries and Ion had a mid-ring exchange while Sabin continued to sell ringside. Sabin then slid into the ring and hobbled over to Aries to deck him before rolling out of the ring again. Sabin disappeared ringside as Aries and Ion resumed an exchange on the top turnbuckle, which led to Ion sliding down one of the trusses holding up the structure. Ion recovered and tried to go after Aries again, but Aries delivered a big huracanrana, followed by a snap brainbuster center-ring. Aries then quickly scaled the cables, grabbed the title, unhooked it after a few moments, and dropped to the mat with possession of the title to win. Taz said it's just another day at the office for Aries.
WINNER: Aries at 7:21 to retain the X Division Title. Sabin's apparent injury put a damper on what had the makings of a good opener. It is unfortunate the Ultimate X match has become just-another-match in TNA with so many occurring through the years.
2 -- TV champion DEVON vs. HERNANDEZ -- TNA TV Title match
As Devon stood ringside waiting to make his entrance, Hernandez came flying over the top rope with a supersplash. Hernandez then rolled Devon into the ring, and, despite the unfair start, the ref called for the bell and Hernandez made a quick cover for a two count. Hernandez then settled into a bearhug trying to wear down Devon. After breaking free, Devon came flying off the ropes with a big shoulder tackle center-ring.
The two men traded bombs center-ring before Devon built momentum with successive offense. Suddenly, Hernandez came running out of the corner with a big shoulder tackle that sent Devon flying across the ring. It was good for a two count only. Hernandez tried to set up a top-rope move, but couldn't find his balance as Devon stood on his feet waiting. Hernandez eventually attempted a move off the top for a two count, then Devon came back with his spinebuster finisher for the pin and the win.
WINNER: Devon at 3:34 to retain the TV Title. Good sequences during this match before the clunky finish.
3 -- 11-MAN GAUNTLET BATTLE ROYAL -- BFG Series match -- 20 points at stake
After some back-and-forth between Hardy and Styles, Rob Van Dam came out as the third entrant. Van Dam executed trademark high-flying offense before they cut to break with RVD posing in the ring.
Back live, Bully Ray's music was playing to bring out Ray as the fifth entrant. During the break, Magnus entered as the fourth entrant, and there were no eliminations. Ray eventually hit the ring and did some damage before Kurt Angle entered as #6. Angle cleaned house before focusing on Ray to stomp a mudhole in him in the corner. Still no eliminations.
"The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero's music played to bring out a returning Pope, who Tenay said has been away doing TV and movies. Pope, #7, cleaned house before Ray attacked him from behind to cut off Pope's momentum. Hardy, who had been selling an injury after the break, was eliminated for the first cut of the evening. Suddenly, Abyss appeared from under the ring and yanked Ray over the top rope as everyone watched. Apparently that's legal in TNA, so Hardy and Ray are out. Chaos resumed leading to a break.
Back live, Robbie E. was in the ring as the eighth entrant, and there were no eliminations during the break. Suddenly, RVD was eliminated. Daniels then came out as the ninth entrant. Daniels pointed to the crowd, walked into the ring, and ate a springboard forearm smash from an angry Styles. Styles suddenly and accidentally nailed Angle in the head with a Pele kick when Daniels ducked, then Daniels tossed a distracted Styles over the top rope. Moments later, Angle was eliminated at Styles's feet, ending the night for the new tag champs. Styles tried to give Angle some aid leading to the top of the hour.
Samoa Joe's music played at the top of the hour to bring out entrant #10. Joe walked right up to Robbie and eliminated him, then lit up Magnus with a chop. The former tag champs had a staredown center-ring, then traded blows before Magnus landed a big boot. But, Joe pulled down the top rope and Magnus went flying to the outside for another elimination. Joe, Daniels, and Pope were left in the ring.
The final entrant (#11) was James Storm, who eliminated Pope right away, then teed off on Daniels as Joe sold in the corner. Storm eliminated Pope, leaving Joe and Storm. Tenay then passed along a word that whoever does not win the TNA World Title match later tonight will be the 12th man in the BFG Series. Joe and Storm battled on the ring apron, then Storm landed a Last Call Superkick to send Joe off the ring apron to the floor and win. Storm gets 20 points.
WINNER: Storm at 20:35 to win 20 points in the BFG Series. Plenty of interesting developments sprinkled throughout this match to set the stage for the three-month BFG Series. Overall, a nice quality, lengthy match to bridge the gap from the first to second hour.
4 -- Knockouts champion MISS TESSMACHER vs. MADISON RAYNE -- non-title match
Back in the Impact Zone, Rayne came out first to face the new Knockouts champion fresh off her title victory at Slammiversary. Rayne quickly took control of the match, then Tessmacher came back with successive offense. Rayne cut off Tessmacher, but Tessmacher hit a legsweep finisher for the pin and the win.
WINNER: Tessmacher at 2:50. Fine start to Tessmacher's title reign trying to establish some credibility with a clean victory using her finish.
5 -- TNA World Hvt. champion BOBBY ROODE vs. MR. ANDERSON -- TNA World Title match
Anderson quickly took it to Roode, who did not bail from the ring as he did at Slammiversary. Roode then turned the tables and knocked Anderson to the floor, but airballed a plancha attempt. Anderson ran Roode into the ring steps and taunted him ringside leading to break.
Back live, Roode had Anderson in a headlock center-ring. Roode continued to apply pressure to Anderson, who tried to fight out with elbow strikes before executing a backslide for a two count. Roode then elbowed Anderson in the back of the head before landing a neckbreaker for a nearfall. So, Roode went to work on the back of the head/neck looking to exploit Anderson's past concussion issues. Anderson absorbed the attack, then made a comeback with successive offense before landing a spinwheel kick to the head. Anderson set up for the Mic Check, but Roode ducked and slapped on a Crossface submission center-ring. Anderson escaped, then scored a series of close nearfalls before Roode rolled to the ring apron.
From the ring apron, Roode yanked Anderson's left shoulder across the top rope. Roode followed with a whip into the top turnbuckle before slapping on the Crossface again. Anderson fought the hold as Taz noted he must be in a lot of pain at this point. Anderson tried to get to the bottom rope, but had no choice but to tap out. Taz quickly covered for Anderson, saying there's no shame in tapping in that situation. Anderson was shown recovering in the corner with a stern look on his face as Roode celebrated the win by standing tall in the ring.
WINNER: Roode via submission at 11:31. Nice match and a good, clean, needed victory for Roode after looking weak recently. Anderson wasn't hurt taking a loss here. (**1/2)
Arcademan:
WWE Superstars Results: 6-14-12
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to James's complete report).
1 - ZACK RYDER vs. MICHAEL MCGILLICUTTY
There's some early back-and-forth and jawing to each other. Ryder reverses much of McGillicutty's offense and sends him outside, then lands a slingshot plancha. McGillicutty turns it around with action on the apron. Ryder can't get any traction, and the announcers are focusing on how both McGillicutty and Ryder need wins to get back into the championship picture.
McGillicutty is continuing his domination out of the break. Ryder dodges an elbow from the ropes to mount a comeback. Broski Boot gets a nearfall. Ryder reverses a suplex with a smooth neckbreaker for a nearfall, and calls for the Rough Ryder. McGillcutty avoids it, but eats an enziguri, then the Rough Ryder for the loss.
WINNER: Zack Ryder in 9:45. I really liked the focus that both Scott Stanford and Josh Mathews paid to the match itself and things related to the wrestlers in the ring, instead of totally unrelated things. It was also good for them to talk as if matches on Superstars are important, and emphasize the importance of wins and losses. This was a smooth match.
2 - THE USOS vs. TITUS O'NEIL & DARREN YOUNG - Tag Team match
"The Primetime Players" have their own music now. Jey and Young start the match. Jey mocks Young's pre-match hair primping, then the Usos start a stretch of offense. O'Neil comes into the match and the momentum shifts. O'Neil and Young isolate Jey for a stretch. Double tag and it is Jimmy firing up on Young. O'Neil breaks up a tag, and Young takes out Jimmy's knee when he deals with O'Neil. They hit their tag team finisher for the win.
WINNERS: O'Neil & Young in 5:20. I didn't care much for this match the times I saw it on NXT, and I still don't care much for it. Jimmy Uso is really good coming off the hot tag, and he shows fantastic intensity when it prepares for the stinkface. O'Neil and Young need to be introduced as "The Primetime Players" instead of as a team of individuals. Right now, The Usos are the only "true" tag team in WWE, in that they have a name for the team. I think that Superstars is the right place for the Primetime Players right now, but the wrong place for the Usos.
3 - JUSTIN GABRIEL vs. HUNICO (w/Camacho)
They start with some fine mat work. As things progress, the speed picks up and they spend more time in the air. Gabriel risks a big dive to the outside towards the announce desk and it pays off. Springboard cross-body gets a two count for Gabriel, who then gets aggressive and fends off Hunico's attempts to strike back.
Hunico is controlling out of the break. The crowd laughably chants "USA!" to fire up the South Africa native Gabriel. Hunico turns the match into a series of potential submissions. Gabriel does a backflip off the turnbuckle, catches Hunico, and lands a reverse DDT, which was so well done. Gabriel speeds things up. A nice series of nearfalls and counters ensues. Gabriel wants his new DDT finisher, but Hunico catches him and turns it into a suplex for the closest nearfall I've seen in a while. Enziguri puts Hunico on the mat. Gabriel up top, but Hunico pops up and nails him with a punch. They vie for control on the turnbuckle and Camacho gets involved. Hunico finally is able to win the test of strength, and lands a sweet huracanrana directly into a pin for the win.
WINNER: Hunico in 13:15. Both men are very skilled in the ring and they had the time to show it. No matter what kind of wrestling style you like, it was on display in this match. This may be the best match I've seen on WWE in a few months that did not involve Tyson Kidd. If you don't like this match, you shouldn't be watching wrestling.
Arcademan:
WWE Smackdown Results: 6-15-12
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Parks' complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.
1 – DOLPH ZIGGLER & DANIEL BRYAN vs. C.M. PUNK & SHEAMUS
Match began immediately out of break. Forward roll on Bryan for a one-count. Punk tagged in to renew his rivalry with Bryan. Quick tags on both sides in the early going. Punk whipped Ziggler into the ropes, but Sheamus propelled himself over to shoulder tackle the Show-Off. Standing vertical suplex on Ziggler. Both A.J. and Vickie were still at ringside, for what it’s worth. Ziggler surprised Bryan with a tag, and Bryan was hesitant to enter against Sheamus. A distraction led to Bryan taking over on offense. Standing elbowdrop, lateral press, only a one-count at 3:44. Hot tag to Punk at 4:18, firing away offensively on Bryan. However, momentum was squarely in the heel corner, with Punk outside the ring, as they went to break at 5:09.
Back at 9:05 with Punk and Bryan still in the ring, but the heels were making frequent tags in wearing down the WWE Champion. Sheamus finally made the hot tag and connected with White Noise on Ziggler. He called for the Brogue Kick, but Vickie got on the apron. A.J. shoved her into the ring. Sheamus tried to get her out, but Ziggler rolled him up for the victory.
WINNERS: Ziggler and Bryan, at 11:39. By-the-numbers booking to make Ziggler seem like a threat to Sheamus at the PPV.
2 – “FUNKASAURUS” BRODUS CLAY vs. HEATH SLATER
Running heabutt to the chest of Slater as soon as the bell rang. Big corner splash, then overhead suplex. Big splash for the big finish.
WINNER: Clay, at :23. At least Slater is getting a lot of TV time. He seems to be the go-to JTTS for the up-and-coming guys.
As Clay danced with the Funkadactyls after the match, David Otunga ran out and took out Clay’s leg. The ladies fled to ringside as Otunga continued going after the leg. They replayed Otunaga’s attack. Trainers and a few referees checked on Clay in the ring. I’m surprised they’re spending TV time to hype up the pre-show match, but they have to do that if they want people to tune in and care about it.
3 – ALICIA FOX vs. BETH PHOENIX
No entrances for anyone, actually. Layla joined in on commentary. Back elbow by Fox but she missed a flip leg-drop. Back-breaker by Phoenix, then she gave Fox the Glam Slam while looking at Layla.
WINNER: Phoenix, at :51. Beth seems head-and-shoulders above the other Divas in the division in a lot of ways.
4 – CHRISTIAN vs. JACK SWAGGER
Swagger’s gyrations on the ramp before coming down the aisle make it so difficult to take him seriously. Swagger powered Christian into the corenr, but fell victim to the Flip Kick in the opposite one. Christian low-bridged Swagger out of the ring. A Vickie distraction led to Swagger clotheslining Christian down. Back in the ring, Swagger slammed the IC Champ. Christian turned things around and set up for a Spear, but Swagger tripped him up and applied the ankle-lock. Christian quickly escaped and hit a diving elbow off the second rope. He went to the top where Swagger met him, but he knocked Swagger off and landed the frogsplash for the win.
WINNER: Christian, at 2:47. Swagger is barely one step above the Slaters and the Hunicos at this point.
5 – ARI COHEN & MIKE TESTA vs. RYBACK – HANDICAP MATCH
The two jobbers acknowledged that everybody thinks they’re jokes, then did a knock-knock joke predicting the end of Ryback’s winning streak. Then a “chicken crosses the road” joke. And before they could get to their “two guys walk into a bar…” joke, Ryback’s music hit.
Ryback knocked a jobber out of the ring with another on his back. The one on his back went up to his shoulders and tried punches, but Ryback no world and turned him around and into a powerbomb. Fallaway slam one into the other. Ryback finished them both with his now routine double-team finish.
WINNER: Ryback, at 2:04. It’ll be interesting to see what happens when he goes to facing main roster guys and can’t treat them like the jobbers.
6 – TYSON KIDD vs. DAMIEN SANDOW
Side Russian leg-sweep right off the bat. Sandow argued with the ref about a pin, allowing Kidd to hit a moonsault off the top for two. He attempted a Sharpshooter, but Sandow shoved him off with his legs. Knees to the chest, then a neck-breaker for three.
WINNER: Sandow, at 1:02. Would like to have seen a longer match here, but hopefully that’s to come.
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