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Spandex and Suplexes: A Wrestling Review Issue #86

Welcome everyone to the 86th edition of Spandex and Suplexes: A Wrestling Review. I cover a week that saw the AEW Double or Nothing PPV, the continued build to WWE Hell in a Cell, and the NXT Tag Team Championships on the line. Let’s get started.

 

AEW Double or Nothing:

My Match of the Week: Pac vs. Kenny Omega vs. Orange Cassidy for the AEW World Championship
Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Results:
1. Serena Deeb (c) defeated Riho by submission to retain the NWA World Women’s Championship
2. “Hangman” Adam Page defeated Brian Cage
3. The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) (c) defeated Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston after interference by The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson) to retain the AEW World Tag Team Championships
4. Jungle Boy won by the Casino Battle Royale last eliminating Christian Cage to earn a shot at the AEW World Championship
5. Cody Rhodes defeated Anthony Ogogo
6. Miro (c) defeated Lance Archer by technical submission to retain the AEW TNT Championship
7. Britt Baker defeated Hikaru Shida (c) by submission to become the new AEW Women’s World Champion
8. Darby Allin and Sting defeated The Men of the Year (Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky)
9. Kenny Omega (c) defeated Orange Cassidy and Pac in a Triple Threat match to retain the AEW World Championship
10. The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Jake Hager, Sammy Guevara, Santana, and Ortiz) defeated The Pinnacle (MJF, Wardlow, Cash Wheeler, Dax Harwood, and Shawn Spears) in a Stadium Stampede match

Thoughts: AEW delivered another entertaining PPV this past Sunday at Double or Nothing. Sting looked great in his first traditional match since 2015 as The Icon and Darby Allin defeated Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky. It will be interesting to see how often The Stinger competes in the ring from here on.

While I found last year’s Stadium Stampede to be more entertaining, this year’s match was still very fun as it had some great spots and humorous moments. One of the highlights of the match for me was Sammy Guevara getting to be the one behind the wheel of the golf cart as he ran it into Shawn Spears after being the one hit by it in last year’s match by Kenny Omega and Matt Hardy. It was a great call back to a memorable moment. Keeping The Inner Circle together was the smart move as the group is still super popular with the crowd and with AEW soon to go back on the road, they are going to need every draw they have.

Overall, this was a fantastic PPV with the highlights being Hangman vs. Cage, The Young Bucks vs. Moxley/Kingston, Sting/Allin vs. Sky/Page, Omega vs. Pac vs. Cassidy (which is My Match of the Week), and the main event.

 

WWE Raw:

Drew McIntyre defeated Kofi Kingston to earn a WWE Championship match.
Credit: WWE

Results:
1. Nikki Cross defeated Charlotte Flair in a Beat the Clock Challenge match
2. Randy Orton defeated Xavier Woods
3. Reginald defeated Shayna Baszler
4. Mace and T-Bar defeated Lucha House Party (Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik)
5. Ricochet defeated Sheamus after interference by Humberto Carrillo
6. Humberto Carrillo defeated Sheamus after interference by Ricochet
7. Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke defeated Naomi and Lana
8. Cedric Alexander defeated Shelton Benjamin
9. AJ Styles and Omos (c) defeated Elias and Jaxson Ryker to retain the WWE Raw Tag Team Championships
10. Drew McIntyre defeated Kofi Kingston in a #1 Contender match to earn a shot at the WWE Championship at WWE Hell in a Cell

Thoughts: In the main event of the show, Drew McIntyre defeated Kofi Kingston in a great match to earn a shot at Bobby Lashley’s WWE Championship at WWE Hell in a Cell. I expect the McIntyre/Lashley match to take place in the PPV’s titular match. I see The Scottish Psychopath overcoming The All Mighty to regain his WWE Championship, though I can see WWE wanting Lashley to keep the title until they are back in front of live fans again. Whoever wins, this needs to be the end of the feud as I do not see how WWE can stretch this storyline out any longer.

Overall, this was a good episode of Monday Night Raw with the highlights being Orton vs. Woods, Styles/Omos vs. Elias/Ryker, and the main event.

 

WWE NXT:

Karrion Kross challenged everyone.
Credit: WWE

Results:
1. Johnny Gargano vs. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne in a #1 Contender Triple Threat match went to a no contest after interference by Adam Cole
2. Jake Atlas defeated LA Knight
3. Kushida (c) defeated Carmelo Hayes by submission to retain the NXT Cruiserweight Championship
4. The Way (Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell) defeated Zoey Stark and Zayda Ramier
5. MSK (Nash Carter and Wes Lee) (c) defeated Legado del Fantasma (Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza) to retain the NXT Tag Team Championships

Thoughts: After Adam Cole ruined the #1 Contender Triple Threat match between Gargano, O’Reilly, and Dunne by attacking all three competitors and the referee, Cole would demand a shot at the NXT Championship and insulted the champion, Karrion Kross. This brought out Kross, who declared that he wanted to face all four men at NXT TakeOver: In Your House. While this is certain to be a great match, it seems rather foolish to willingly put yourself in a position where you defend your title against four other men at the same time, but I guess it fits Karrion’s character’s level of confidence in his abilities. If the plan is to have Karrion called up to Raw or SmackDown soon, then this could be the perfect opportunity to have Kross lose the title without being pinned, keeping him unbeaten.

Overall, this was a great episode of NXT with the highlights being Gargano vs. O’Reilly vs. Dunne, Kushida vs. Hayes, and MSK vs. Legado del Fantasma.

 

All Elite Wrestling:

Andrade is All Elite.
Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Results:
1. The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) (c) defeated Death Triangle (Pac and Penta El Zero Miedo) after interference by Brandon Cutler to retain the AEW World Tag Team Championships
2. The Factory (QT Marshall and Anthony Ogogo) defeated The Nightmare Family (Cody Rhodes and Lee Johnson) after interference by Aaron Solow
3. Christian Cage and Jungle Boy defeated Private Party (Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen) by submission
4. Red Velvet defeated The Bunny
5. Dustin Rhodes defeated Nick Comoroto in a Bullrope match

Thoughts: The biggest news to come out this past Friday’s Dynamite was the announcement that Andrade El Idolo has signed with AEW. Andrade is a great talent and there are many on the AEW roster that he could have great matches with. The only drawback of this announcement for me was that Vickie Guerrero is going to be his manager which means I am going to have to listen to her shrill rants more often each week. Andrade is the favorite to be the man to take the AAA Mega Championship away from Kenny Omega as they are scheduled to face each other at the upcoming AAA Triplemania XXIX on August 14th so it should be interesting to see how much the two interact on AEW TV ahead of their match.

Overall, this was a good episode of Dynamite with the highlights being The Young Bucks vs. Death Triangle, Andrade’s debut, and Christian/Jungle Boy vs. Private Party.

 

WWE SmackDown:

Roman Reigns brutalized Dominik Mysterio.
Credit: WWE

Results:
1. The Mysterios (Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio) (c) defeated The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) to retain the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championships
2. Carmella defeated Liv Morgan by submission
3. King Corbin defeated Shinsuke Nakamura
4. Apollo Crews (c) defeated Kevin Owens to retain the WWE Intercontinental Championship
5. The Mysterios (Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio) (c) defeated The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) by DQ after interference by Roman Reigns to retain the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championships

Thoughts: Roman Reigns opened the show and indicated that he is now fine with The Usos going for the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championships but warned them that they better win. After failing to win the titles due to the referee not seeing Jimmy’s shoulder up during the pin by Dominik, Roman sent The Usos to convince Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville to give them another shot, which they would get in the main event of the show. The Usos would, unfortunately for them, fail a second time to win the championships, but this time due to Roman interfering and brutalizing Dominik. Jimmy was disgusted by The Trible Chief’s actions and implored Jey to join him in leaving, but Jey continued to show loyalty to The Head of the Table.

The battle for Jey’s soul between his brother Jimmy and his cousin Roman continues as Jey will soon have to choose a side with either choice sure to be a big moment. Reigns’ brutal attack on Dominik should lead to a one-on-one match with Rey Mysterio which, if given enough time, should be a great match.

Overall, this was a good episode of Friday Night SmackDown with the highlights being the opening promo by Roman and the two Mysterios vs. Usos matches.

 

That’s it for this week’s Spandex and Suplexes. While you are here on Florida Geek Scene, be sure to check out the second episode of my spin off series, Spandex and Suplexes: The Interview Series, where I interviewed veteran pro wrestler, Randy Hogan. Until next time, I’ll see you at ringside!

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Nicholas grew up reading J.R.R. Tolkien's books, watching Disney and Studio Ghibli films, and reading Marvel comics and Japanese manga. The superb storylines and characters ignited his passion for writing. He graduated from Full Sail University in 2015 with a BFA in Creative Writing for Entertainment. During his writing career thus far, Nicholas has had numerous short stories and articles published in an array of literary magazines and websites.