Opinion: WWE Future Endeavoured - King Barrett, Damien Sandow, El Torito, Alex Riley, Santino Marella, Zeb Colter, Hornswoggle & Cameron

WWE has released El Torito, Alex Riley, Zeb Colter, Hornswoggle, Cameron from their contracts. Here's the low down on their WWE careers and just why WWE might have decided to let them go.

king barrett 

Formerly known as Stu Sanders, Stu Bennett, Lawrence Knight, Wade Barrett and Bad News Barrett throughout his time under contract for WWE, Barrett joined WWE in October 2007. Having debuted for developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling in dark match against Ace Steel that same month, Barrett would move to Florida Championship Wrestling in April 2008, teaming with Drew McIntyre on his debut in a losing effort against The Puerto Rican Nightmares (Eddie Colon (Primo/Diego) & Eric Perez (Eric Escobar)). He held the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship with Paul Burchill and the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship twice with McIntyre as part of The Empire. A main roster debut came in April 2008 in a loss to Funaki in a dark match for Friday Night Smackdown, but a full TV debut wouldn't come until March 2010, where he defeated Daniel Bryan on the 2nd episode of the original NXT. Despite main-eventing PPV's like SummerSlam, Night of Champions, Bragging Rights, Survivor Series, TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs as part of the major storyline involving The Nexus in 2010, Barrett was never able to capture the main strap during this time and found himself shuffled down the card for the remainder of his career. 

A couple of injuries hampered his progress, although he did win the WWE Intercontinental Championship on five occasions, with his most recent run ending in March of last year. He also won the 2015 King of the Ring, defeating Dolph Ziggler, R-Truth and Neville in his run to the crown. He was part of a number of memorable matches, including Money in the Bank ladder matches in 2011 and 2013, an Elimination Chamber in 2011, the 14 man Tag Team Elimination match from SummerSlam 2011, the Seven-Way Ladder match from WrestleMania 31 and a singles match with John Cena at Hell in a Cell 2010. 

Managing just two WrestleMania matches (XXVII & 31) in his six years on the main roster, Barrett's final WWE match came on this years post-WrestleMania Monday Night RAW in April, where he teamed with Sheamus as The League of Nations in a failed attempt to take the WWE Tag Team Championships from The New Day's Big E and Kofi Kingston. Across his time with WWE he teamed up with his League of Nations' partner Sheamus and Nexus and Corre buddies Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel most regularly, whilst spending most of his time opposite Randy Orton, Sheamus and Kofi Kingston.

Reason For Release - According to a Twitter post, Barrett had decided not to re-sign with the company and requested an early release from his contract. I guess that Barrett had had enough of repeatedly hitting the glass ceiling and being unable to break it.

Future - There's plenty of options for Barrett right now. The British Indy scene is bristling with talent and the most the popular it's been in years and Barrett would be a big draw across the country, with a trip to join pal Drew Galloway in ICW possible. Galloway's other main haunt right now, TNA, would also offer plenty of opportunity for growth for Barrett as it has provided Galloway and other WWE talent in the past. If he fancies some travelling he could be a good fit for NJPW's current product and help to beef up their roster that WWE has picked apart in recent months. He's said he'll return to the ring after a short break.

damien sandow

Formerly known as Damien Mizdow, Macho Mandow and Idol Stevens during his most recent run with the company, Sandow had previously been employed between 2002-2007 using Aaron Stevens, The Easter Bunny and The Idol as names. Re-signing with WWE in July 2010, Sandow spent time in Florida Championship Wrestling, debuting in a six man tag team bout alongside Jackson Andrews & Ryan O'Reilly (Konnor) and losing to Devin Allen, Rhys Ali & Wes Brisco on a August live event, before going on to capture the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship with Titus O'Neil from Marcus Owens and Xavier Woods in 2010 and the FCW 15 Championship from Seth Rollins in 2011. 

Sandow lost to Tyson Kidd on his re-debut on a Smackdown House Show in December 2011, before returning to television in May 2012 with a victory over Yoshi Tatsu on Friday Night Smackdown. He infamously failed to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase on John Cena during an October 2013 episode of Monday Night RAW. The peak of his time with the company was arguably his time spent as The Miz's "stunt double", Damien Mizdow, when the pair captured the WWE Tag Team Championship from Goldust & Stardust in a Fatal Four-Way match that also included Los Matadores & The Usos. Despite, the popularity of Mizdow the title reign only lasted just under a month. 

Sandow counts amongst his most memorable bouts the 2012 & 2013 Money in the Bank Ladder matches, a six man tag bout alongside Antonio Cesaro & Jack Swagger against Cody Rhodes, Goldust & John Cena from Friday Night Smackdown in 2013, a ten man tag team Elimination bout from Survivor Series 2012 and the 2013 Royal Rumble match. Regular tag team partners included Cody Rhodes as part of Team Rhodes Scholars, Curtis Axel and The Miz, whilst Brodus Clay, Heath Slater & Jimmy Uso were Sandow's most frequent opponents. His final WWE match will air on tomorrow's Main Event, where he faces former FCW Tag Team partner, Titus O'Neil.

Reason For Release - Clearly, WWE didn't see a whole lot in Sandow and refused to feature him regularly on their main television shows, despite him getting loud reactions whenever he did appear. Sandow was clearly unsettled and wanted to make the most of his popularity by heading elsewhere.

Future - Similar to Barrett, I could see Sandow turning up in a lot of places. His strong mic-work and character will see him well on pretty much any wrestling television show. I expect a tour of the Indys first though to make the most of autograph signings, merchandise and what have you. 

el torito

Signed with WWE since April 2013, El Torito debuted for the company as the sidekick to a repackaged Epico & Primo, Los Matadores, with his first match coming a month later. Having previously wrestled for CMLL and AAA in Mexico, but was mainly kept at ringside for Fernando and Diego. His only in-ring PPV appearance came in the 2014 Royal Rumble match, but he did also spend time opposite Hornswoggle, Heath Slater & Titus O'Neil, whilst teaming with Diego, Fernando and Sin Cara. His final WWE bout came in January, teaming with Kalisto to defeat Los Matadores at a WWE Live event in Monroe, Louisiana.  

Reason For Release - Los Matadores reverted back to Epico and Primo with vignettes currently aired for their return. What else can you do with a tiny bull? 

Future - Most likely a return to Mexico, probably with AAA. I wouldn't be surprised to see him turn up in a future series of Lucha Underground either, back under his original name, Mascarita Dorada.

alex riley

Alex Riley had also been signed since 2007, but didn't make his debut on the main roster until 2010. During his run in developmental he held the FCW Florida Heavyweight Championship, but failed to capture any gold in WWE. His most highly regarded matches included a Tornado Tag Team match with Rey Mysterio against The Miz & Jack Swagger from Monday Night #RAW #944 and a Fatal Four-Way over the WWE United States Championship at Night of Champions 2011, that also featured Swagger, Dolph Ziggler & John Morrison. He spent a while teaming with Mason Ryan, The Miz and Primo whilst regularly squaring off with the likes of Michael McGillicutty, Primo and David Otunga. 


Reason For Release - Riley hadn't been seen on WWE's main block of programming since way back in April 2013 and stopped touring with the main roster in January 2015. Apart from an appearance in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on the Kick-Off show for WrestleMania 31, Riley has been down in NXT. He tried his hand on commentary and then got back in the ring, he clearly didn't do enough during this run to impress anyone in WWE management. His last match was against Shinsuke Nakamura at a recent NXT TV taping, that will air later this year.

Future - If Riley's still got his heart in the wrestling biz after a turbulent couple of years with WWE, then I'm sure TNA would be interested in giving him a run. Personally, I don't think Riley has the talent to be a major star for the company, in the same way that Ethan Carter III had and has really lost any name value that he might have had a few years ago, but hey, this is TNA we're talking about, he wrestled for WWE that's good enough for them!

santino marella 

Arguably the most decorated of those released today, Marella had been signed with WWE since 2005. Originally in developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling, after making his OVW against Mo Sexton under the name Boris Alexiev, Marella won the OVW Television Championship twice before debuting on the main-roster in a Friday Night Smackdown dark match against Jamie Noble in January 2007. Going on to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship twice, as well as the WWE United States Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship (alongside Vladimir Kozlov), Marella had a fairly fruitful WWE career, up until a neck injury forced him into retirement in July 2014. His final bout for the 'E came at house show in Portland, Maine in June 2014, where he teamed with Emma to defeat Fandango & Layla. Following retirement he appeared in two films for WWE, as well as making occasional appearances on WWE television. His best remembered matches were probably his appearances in multi-man matches like the 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013 Royal Rumble's, an Elimination Chamber and Money in the Bank Ladder match in 2012. His most regular opponents were Jack Swagger, David Otunga and Cody Rhodes, whilst he frequently teamed with Vladimir Kozlov, Carlito & Beth Phoenix. 

Reason For Release - As stated above he'd been officially retired since the summer of 2014, so it was only a matter of time with the company running out of projects for him to do. 

Future - He will most likely continue to run Battle Arts Academy in Mississauga, Ontario. With him being done with wrestling, I wouldn't expect to see him appear for any other major promotion, but could definitely see him being popular at autograph signings and conventions.

zeb colter

Zeb Colter had been with the company since 2013, in his latest run, having previously worked with the company between 1994-1997. Returning on a February 2013 edition of Friday Night Smackdown, Colter was portrayed mostly as a xenophobe with strong beliefs on immigration and quickly became one of the companies most controversial characters since the Attitude Era. Having once held the WWC Universal Championship, Colter was mostly utilised as a manager for the likes of Jack Swagger, Antonio Cesaro and most recently, Alberto Del Rio. He had a brief in-ring run on television during April 2013, facing Del Rio, Ricardo Rodriguez and Big E. Langston and tagging with Swagger. His final appearance for WWE came on the 7th December 2015 episode of Monday Night RAW when his Mex-America gimmick with Del Rio came to an abrupt end.

Reason For Release - After the Mex-America gimmick bombed, WWE creative have been unable to find a role for Zeb Colter. After a lengthy period off television as they tried to come up with a new role for him in the first place, it's obviously been decided that Colter is surplus to requirements.

Future - Whilst he may decide to seek work in the creative department elsewhere, I'd expect to see Colter join the Legends convention circuit in North America and potentially a trip to the UK also.

hornswoggle

Formerly known as The Little Bastard, Hornswoggle had been with the company since 2007 and held the WWE Cruiserweight Championship on one occasion, wrestling at both Royal Rumble and Survivor Series and featuring in major storylines like becoming Vince McMahon's illegitimate son after his "real" Dad, Finlay, had faked a DNA test. He teamed frequently with Heath Slater, Finlay and Titus O'Neil and took on the likes of El Torito, Diego & Fernando most regularly. His final match for the company came in August 2015, where he defeated Heath Slater in a dark match before the taping of Main Event.

Reason For Release - Hornswoggle was suspended for 30 days for violating WWE's wellness policy back in September 2015 and hasn't been seen in the company since that point. I guess creative had just run out of ways to take the piss out of small people. 

Future - Umm. Honestly, I don't have a clue.

cameron

Also known as Cameron Lynn during her WWE career, Cameron signed with the company in April 2011, having been the first competitor to be eliminated from the Tough Enough reality show, after infamously claiming her favourite match of all-time was Melina vs. Alicia Fox. First heading to Florida Championship Wrestling, she teamed with Naomi in her debut to defeat Caylee Turner & Kaitlyn at a September 2011 TV taping. It didn't take long for her to make her main roster debut, as she appeared as Brodus Clay's valet, alongside Cameron, on a January 2012 episode of Monday Night RAW, with the pair being collectively known as The Funkadactyls. However, Cameron wouldn't make her in-ring debut on WWE TV until December 2012, appearing in a Santa's Little Helper Battle Royal on the Pre-Show for TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, that would be won by Naomi. Her most-notable achievement with the company was starring as a regular on the season one to three of reality series Total Divas.

She spent most of her in-ring time taking on Emma, Naomi and Natalya, whilst also teaming with Naomi as the aforementioned Funkadactyls, Summer Rae and former idol, Alicia Fox! Her final match with WWE came in March 2016, where she teamed with Team B.A.D. (Naomi & Tamina) to lose to Alicia Fox, Paige and Sasha Banks on a WWE Live Road to WrestleMania event in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Reason For Release - Cameron was sent back down to NXT in October 2015 and spent four months performing on TV tapings and house shows for the brand. Despite returning to touring with the main roster in February and March this year, she hadn't shown enough improvement to warrant her place on the roster, alongside talented new additions Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Becky Lynch. 

Future - Anything but wrestling please. Girl bye.

Rightio, all that's left to do now is wish all of these guys and girl the very best in whatever they choose to do outside WWE! Thanks for entertaining us over your time with the company, or at least trying to!

TV REVIEW: WWE NXT #179 (Women's Championship #1 Contenders Battle Royal)

The first proper edition of NXT in 2016 featuring Sami Zayn's return to the Full Sail Arena and a Battle Royal to crown the new Number One Contender to Bayley's Women's Championship...but was it any good?

Things got off to a strong start this week with William Regal introducing former NXT Champion Sami Zayn on his return to the Full Sail Arena, with the crowd giving Zayn a great rendition of the "Ole" chant. Samoa Joe's interruption bought plenty of energy, with Joe coming across as a major bad-ass, as the former ROH World Champion ran through why he deserved a title shot ahead of Zayn in a tenacious promo, with intense pitch perfect delivery. I felt that Baron Corbin handled himself well on the microphone with a counter argument to Joe's, as he presented his victory at Takeover: London as why he deserved a title shot, and whilst he's still got some way to come to be on the level of Joe or Zayn, he didn't look out of place here at all. With no one managing to get the better of anyone else for too long in the back and forth brawls that followed, the three are poised to put on an intriguingly well-balanced Triple threat bout to crown a new Number One Contender to Finn Balor's NXT Championship in two weeks time.


fast-forward...
The results of the NXT 2015 Year-End awards were revealed in a video package, with Finn Balor winning Male Competitor and Overall Competitor of the Year, Sasha Banks vs. Bayley from Takeover: Brooklyn winning the Match of the Year, Bayley winning Female Competitor of the Year, Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady winning Tag Team of the Year and Takeover: Brooklyn winning Show of the Year...Tomasso Ciampa squashed Danny Burch in a short, but physical encounter, winning via Submission with the Sicilian Stretch...Enzo Amore cut a fiery promo with the help of tag partner Colin Cassady on Tag Team Champions Dash & Dawson, it looks like that feud is only just beginning...The Ascension got a surprisingly big pop upon their returning to the Full Sail Arena for the first time since losing to Chad Gable & Jason Jordan on NXT #172 (filmed in late October 2015)...Tag Team Champions Scott Dawson & Dash Wilder went over a babyface Konnor & Viktor in an enjoyable brawling contest, that went a good couple of minutes too short for me...Whilst Corey Holis got a jobber entrance, "The Drifter" Elias Sampson was swanning around with a guitar on his shoulder and that funky scarf on his neck...Unsurprisingly, Corey Holis jobbed to Elias Sampson in quick order, with The Drifter getting a win with a new neckbreaker finisher...Sampson got some mic time after the bout, but I'm still to be convinced by the character or the performer...Alex Reyes got Finn Balor's thoughts on the Number One Contender's Triple Threat being set for two weeks, with Balor cutting a typically understated promo claiming that he'd still be holding onto the belt no matter who won...Promos from the Women's Battle Royal competitors aired throughout the show, but the section with former Funkadactyl and Total Diva, Cameron, Breaking Ground favourite Aaliyah, someone called Liv Morgan and the wonderful Asuka having their say on the match...Only Asuka, Eva Marie, Carmella, Emma & Alexa Bliss got entrances for the Battle Royal, chances are the winner would come from that pack...

  
The battle royal to become Number One Contender to Bayley's Women's Championship was a bit slow to get going, due to the majority of the girls in the ring clearly not having much of a chance of winning (Aaliyah, Deonna Perazzo, Liv Morgan, Cameron, Billie Kay & Peyton Royce) from either being used exclusively to put others over, still being very green, a combination of the two or just being Cameron. An early botch-fest from Liv Morgan and Cameron as the girls attempted some weird powerbomb elimination, fucked it up and then struggled to repeat the spot, did not make for a good start. Whilst Alexa Bliss and Emma were eliminated surprisingly early, Billie Kay & Peyton Royce both put in great performances that will hopefully see them move onto bigger things over the coming months. The final few moments of action in this were superbly booked and had the Full Sail crowd completely buying into every bit of action. Firstly, after spending pretty much the entire match on the outside Eva Marie eliminated Asuka to massive heat, before the crowd went nuts when Carmella tossed Eva over the top and earned herself a shot at the Women's Championship. A brilliant finish to an entertaining main event, with Carmella offering an interesting story opposite champion Bayley, thanks to their real life friendship that was showcased on Breaking Ground, whilst managing to keep Asuka away from the title for at least a few weeks! 


fast-forward...
Bayley came out to raise Carmella's hand and celebrate her friends victory, I half expected Carmella to turn heel, but that didn't happen and the show ended on high note...

Finally...

ATPW Scale Rating - 5.32 (Good)

A strong start to the year for NXT as the opening segment set the wheels in motion for an intriguing title picture that will hopefully unfold over the coming months and the main event gave an opportunity to shine to a number of female competitors as NXT continues to rebuild the division, after a number of big departures in 2015. A handful of shorter matches also entertained with Tomasso Ciampa and Danny Burch's psychical encounter standing out from the bunch.


Here's to a massive 2016 for NXT.

WWE Main Event #94 Review (Sheamus vs Miz VIII)

This week's WWE Main Event was headlined by a rematch from Raw (Review here - http://www.acrossthepondwrestling.co.uk/2014/07/wwe-raw-14th-july-2014-review.html) as United States Champion Sheamus battle the man who defeated him the previous night, The Miz. After a match that seemed to have potential but fell flat on Raw, could the pair deliver live on the WWE Network? Let's find out! 

The show kicked off with everyone's favourite wrestling talk show... MIZ TV! Essentially, this was just THE MIZ cutting a promo with a special set as it didn't appear like he would be having a guest. Miz's new self-obsessed Hollywood star gimmick is a million times better than anything he ever during his ill-fated babyface run. Miz has changed up his promo style and takes a lot more time with his delivery and actually managed to get a decent reaction out of the Fayetteville crowd. The idea of Miz reading out a letter he had written about himself was a nice idea on paper, that seemed to lose a little in it's delivery. 

Miz was, of course, interupted by his opponent for the evening Sheamus and the two had some back and forth  on the microphone, mainly focused around Miz calling his face his "moneymaker" and Sheamus threatening to kick it. Eventually, Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick, with Miz once again escaping and fleeing up the entrance ramp. An enjoyable opening segment that set up the main event nicely, laying out the storyline clearly and setting up an issue between the two opponents, it really couldn't have done much more. 

Match 1 - EMMA vs CAMERON

YIPPEE-KAY-EH, Emma is back! She must have begged, borrowed and stole to get a place on the show. 

Her opponent Cameron is currently embroiled in a feud with former Funkadactyls partner NAOMI who joined Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton on commentary. I found the commentary to be very frustrated throughout this match, as whilst it did push the feud hard and Naomi offered some nice insights into her relationship with Cameron there was no real effort to call the match and tell the story of the match embroiling in front of them. For the time they were given I thought the girls did well, incorpating a nice story where Cameron continued to escape a number of Emma's signature moves, including the DilEmma, which unfortunately wasn't picked up on by the commentary team. The finish saw Cameron to focused on taunting Naomi and walking into an inside cradle that allowed Emma to steal the victory. It was surprising to see Emma pick up the victory here for a number of reasons, but it did make sense in the continuing storyline with the former Funkadactyls pair. 

Following the match a frustrated Cameron attacked Emma, with Naomi quickly making the save, chasing off her former partner. Am I particularly interested in watching the match between the the Naomi and Cameron on the Battleground Kick Off show? Hmmmm...not really. 

Match 2 - RYBAXEL vs BIG E and KOFI KINGSTON

Billed as a look at four participants in the Intercontinetal Championship Battle Royal, this was an decent slice of tag team action, with all four men pulling out some nice looking offence. Big E again looked impressive against a similar sized man, in the shape of Ryback, before launching Kingston over the top rope onto RybAxel in a nicely worked highspot to send the match into the break. The momentum changer of Curtis Axel leaping off the apron onto E was looking solid and the use of repeated knee drives in the corner by RybAxel was also well done. The booking of the match was good enough to get a "We Want Kofi" chant out of the game crowd, as RybAxel worked off E for an extended period. Following the hot tag the match headed to it's conclussion with a flurry of action seeing all four men get involved, ending with Kingston delivering Trouble in Paradise to Axel for the pinfall victory. An enjoyable finish to an enjoyable match, although I would've liked to have seen more tension between the teams to remind us of the ever man for himself aspect of the upcoming battle royal. 

Backstage, RENEE YOUNG interviewed Miz in a segment that really wasn't needed. That's not to say Miz using phrases describing himself as "WWE's most valuable asset" or a "1000 watt megastar" weren't good lines, it just felt like after the opening segment set up the main event this was a little bit of overkill. 

Chris Jericho vs Luke Harper for Friday's Smackdown was hyped, that has potential to be a very good match and add a little extra spice to Jericho's battle with Bray Wyatt at Battleground on Sunday.

Match 3 - THE MIZ vs United States Champion SHEAMUS

This was the match that the Raw bout should have been. The story was much more focused than we saw Monday night, as Miz attempted to protect his face and avoid Sheamus' Brogue Kick. Whilst the match was slow to get going and at times felt a little awkward, the final few minutes were pretty entertaining with the two putting together a good sequence of reversals and quick pins that go the crowd into the match. The finish was cleverly done as Sheamus attempted a Brogue Kick with Miz quick to protect his face, allowing Sheamus to get the victory with a School Boy roll up. Not only did this call back to the finish of their match the previous night, but it also set up a potential rematch for next week's Raw with Sheamus still to hit Miz with the Brogue Kick. I would have like to have seen this match be for the United States Championship, as Miz holding a victory over the champion should have earned him a shot and if Sheamus was going to win this one anyway it would've meant the match could remain the same, yet feel a little more important. 

This episode of Main Event was an enjoyable watch, the matches were all passable, whilst also furthering some storylines and adding something to match-ups occuring on this Sunday's Battleground. It wasn't must see WWE television however, and you won't really have missed out on anything if you didn't watch the show, but it was still decent piece of action to pass an hour away with.

Let us know what you thought of this week's Main Event on our Facebook and Twitter pages.

WWE Main Event 21st August 2013 Review

This week's Main Event was a bit hit and miss, with some matches working extremly whilst others were simply thrown together and didn't really do much for anyone. The Shield reminded everyone that they're still the most consistent team in WWE, whilst Funkacactyl Naomi got a chance to show what she can do in singles action against Diva's Champion AJ Lee.

Six Man Tag Team Match: 

Kofi Kingston & The Usos

 vs. 

The Shield

This weeks main event saw new McMahon assoiciates The Shield taking on Kofi Kingston and The Usos. There is a fair amount of history between the two teams, after Dean Ambrose defeated Kofi Kingston for the United States Championship at Extreme Rules, whilst The Usos challenged for Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns' Tag Team Championships at Money in the Bank. If I remember rightly, they've also had this exact same match a few months ago on Main Event, but Kingston and The Usos certainly weren't in the same positions they are in now, therefore this bout felt like it had a little more importance.

The bout was strong from the outset, with some good team work from the Usos and Kingston. The opening section was superb, flowing well and with some exciting spots, concluding with the three faces sending Rollins over the top rope into the arms of Ambrose and Reigns, before all three performed a spectacular dive over the top rope, even if Kingston over shot a little. It was a refreshing change to usual dynamic of The Shield's matches and really got the crowd involved in the contest. Of course, it didn't take long for The Shield to get back in control, with all three member doing a good job of working over an Uso, their psychology is always sound in these kind of matches, and coupled with good selling for Uso and Kingston and the other Uso working the crowd in the corner well, the match was coming together nicely.

The ending was so pacy and frenetic that there really was too much for me to cover here, Kofi Kingston's hot tag was great, Kofi's energy within a WWE ring over the last six years has been outstanding and this was much of the same, as he put on a good sequence with Ambrose, even making SOS look good! The ending saw Rollins throw an Uso into the ring, distracting the referee, allowing Rollins to push Kingston off the top rope and Ambrose to pick up the pinfall victory following a Headlock Driver. Whilst I'm not sure what the referee would have done if he hadn't been distracted, surely Rollins action wouldn't have resulted in disqualification, it was at least a creative finish and allowed The Shield to pick up a victory following their loss on Smackdown.

The Shield's association with the McMahon, Triple H and Randy Orton, could go one of two ways. Either The Shield will get pushed back into their previous role taking on some of WWE's top names before transitioning into singles competition seperatly, or they could end up being viewed simply as the McMahon's lackeys and struggling to recover, it all depends on if the WWE has any long term plans for the group. Kofi Kingston and The Usos on the other hand are once again in limbo, with WWE not having much for them at the moment. WWE has really dropped the ball with Kingston's return from injury, a feud with Ryback, the man who injured him a few months back, could have given both something to do over the last month.

Best of the Rest (In The World)

Elsewhere Diva's Champion AJ Lee, accompanied by Layla, took on Naomi, who was joined by Cameron in an average contest. Whilst the majority of the action was good and showed off the atleticism of Naomi well, the bout lack any coherent story or flow which was a shame. AJ Lee was also over reliant on the sleeper hold which she locked in twice and for a long time considering this bout was only a few minutes long. The ending saw Naomi look to have picked up the victory with Rear View (seriously? Her arse is big, but as finishing move?) but Layla caused the distraction, allowing Lee to lock in Black Widow to get the submission victory. I liked this ending mainly because of how beautifully Lee transitions into the submission hold, and the reason that a women finally has a recognisable finisher hold in WWE. This bout was simply there to allow Lee to pick up her victory after the loss in the tag team match on Raw.

So who will be AJ Lee's opponent at Night of Champions? It appeared that we might see one of The Funkadactyls get a shot after their victory on Raw, but this bout quickly dispelled any thoughts of that. Kaitlyn's time as Lee's opponent also seemed to come to a close at SummerSlam, and another match would certainly feel like overkill. That leaves the only other face woman on the roster, Natalya. Natalya holds victories over AJ in both singles and tag team action, as well as going over Brie Bella at SummerSlam, therefore she would seem like the perfect opponent for the Diva's Champion. Natalya's in ring skills, matched up against AJ Lee's could produce one of the most memorable women's matches in WWE, if the two are given enough time.

Bray Wyatt was also in action on Main Event, taking on Justin Gabriel. Similiar to Wyatt's match against R-Truth on Raw, this was simply a squash match to show off Wyatt's signature moves and make him look strong. Wyatt destroyed Gabriel in mere minutes, picking up the victory with Sister Abigail. I'd imagine that this will continue for sometime, with Wyatt running through WWE's undercard roster, expect matches against the likes of Zack Ryder and Yoshi Tatsu to come soon. They certainly need to build up Wyatt as singles performer, after pretty much having him destoryed by Kane in the Ring of Fire Match at SummerSlam.

The Great Khali also featured this week, taking on Jack Swagger of The Real Americans. The bout really was awful. With a minute or so of Swagger targeting Khali's knee (despite his finisher being an Ankle Lock), there was some cofuffle on the outside with Swagger throwing Hornswoggle in the wall, after Natalya had slapped Cesaro. With Khali waiting in the ring, hitting Swagger with a Brain Chop to pick up the victory. I've got absolutely no idea why Khali went over here, as his appearances are few and far between, whilst Swagger has been appearing on Raw regularly in tag team action. All this match really showed was how far Swagger's star has fallen since WrestleMania.

Finally...

What did I learn from this week's Main Event?

1. WWE has nothing for Kofi Kingston and The Usos at the moment.

2. AJ Lee should be facing Natalya at Night of Champions.

3. Both The Miz and Josh Matthews are seriously annoying on commentary.

WWE Main Event 12th June 2013 Review

This week’s edition of Main Event was slightly disappointing in comparison to the last two episodes which I’ve reviewed, mainly because the Main Event didn’t quite feel big enough, especially with it being a rematch from Raw two days ago.

The Miz vs. Cody Rhodes

The match between these two on Raw, wasn’t a contest I particularly wanted to see again. It was a short contest and saw The Miz get absolutely no offence in until he managed to find a way into the Figure Four Leg Lock for the victory. I was expecting this match to take much the same shape, only in a much longer more drawn out version of Monday’s Match.

The Miz can have some fairly good wrestling matches at times and it’s clear he’s come a long way since his days in ECW, but his matches are rarely particularly exciting to watch, especially since his face turn. This was much of the same with a lot of what was going on in the ring being fairly good, but nothing that would make you sit up out of your seat, and lacked any particular “Wow” moments throughout the contest. For some unknown reason Cody spent a lot of the match working over “The Awesome One’s” arm, which seemed a strange route to go down seeing The Miz has no real arm based holds and Cody doesn’t really use submission holds! However, the spot with Cody sending Miz’s arm into the ring post was well worked and The Miz did a good job of selling the injury.

Strangely, The Miz was allowed to kick out of Cody’s Beautiful Disaster Kick finishing move, it would seem WWE has no plans for Cody at the moment. The ending saw the Miz duck Rhodes and go for a Schoolboy roll up, only to change the pin into the Figure Four Leg Lock for the victory. The Miz might be no Ric Flair, but he has certainly worked hard at coming up with new was to get the Figure Four locked in and he is definitely more adept at that move than when it was first bestowed upon him.

With the triple threat contest with Wade Barrett and Curtis Axel at Payback for the Intercontinental Championship, it seems like a strange decision by WWE to attempt to build the Figure Four up at this time, when the move is going to be difficult to use, as it should get easily broken up. It would have been more interesting to see Cody injure Miz’ knee and the Miz have to win with the Skull Crushing Finale, which would have built the Miz as more than a one move guy. 

Best of the Rest

Damien Sandow was also in action against Sin Cara. Before the contest, Sandow cut a good promo, berating the WWE Universe, and announcing he plans to get his message across through more physical means, as well as putting over his match with Sheamus at Payback Kick-Off. So, we should be to expect a more aggressive side to Damien Sandow over the next couple of months, hopefully this will not be forgotten too soon, as we’ve seen with numerous competitors in past, Kofi Kingston springs to mind.

While the match couldn’t live up to Sin Cara’s match with Antonio Cesaro on Raw, I think that’s more to do with Cesaro being more aware of Sin Cara’s style of wrestling than anything else. The match was worked well by both men, as Sin Cara is beginning to look a lot more comfortable in a WWE ring and was a good opponent to help make Sandow look strong heading into his match with Sheamus. The ending saw Sin Cara miss a Senton Bomb, and Sandow hit his new Silencer finishing move. It was a quick ending and the match would have benefitted from another four or five minutes, but apart from that it did it’s job well.

The Usos continued their recent push with a match against Tons of Funk. There was an interesting face vs. face chemistry throughout, which at times left the crowd a little confused, especially the younger audience. The match at times was slightly drawn out with Tons of Funks spending a lot of the time dancing, which is fine before the match and maybe once during for a comedy spot but every four or five moves it got a bit tedious. Having said this there was a nice near fall with Brodus hitting a Splash on Jimmy only for Jey to make the save, and a ridiculous Samoan Drop from Jey on Tensai. Inevitably, The Usos picked up the winner after a Superfly Splash on Brodus Clay. Hopefully the Usos push continues until they finally gain the tag team titles they deserve, however I can’t see Tons of Funk moving up much higher in the tag team pecking order with the current gimmick.

Finally...

What have we learned from this weeks WWE Main Event?

1. Focussing on random body parts doesn't lead to a very entertaining match!

2. Damien Sandow works a lot better on the mic when not having to deal with rubbish segments like the Gordian Knot!

3. Wade Barrett is a very good commentator and does a good job of getting over the action in the ring.

WWE Main Event 10th April 2013 Review

I've enjoyed Main Event since it debuted in October last year, I originally enjoyed the concept of one big match with interviews and build up before hand, which made it feel worthwhile viewing and something different to the usual WWE programming. However within the last few months it has reverted to a usual WWE format, similiar to that used by Superstars, albeit still using Superstars higher-up the WWE totem pole. That doesn't mean there still can't be some great matches from time to time, just removes a little of the shows originally unique identity.

In this weeks Main Event, The Shield took on Tons of Funk & Kofi Kingston. As well as appearances from Jack Swagger and Big E Langston.

The Shield Vs. Tons of Funk & Kofi Kingston w/The Funkadactyls

Another solid outing from Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns. They are steadily becoming one of the best things about WWE programming constantly proving themselves in the ring against a huge variety of opponents. It's especially noticeable how far Roman Reigns has come since the formation of the group. I remember at the time wondering why WWE had put Reigns with Rollins and Ambrose after seeing the pair's previous work on the independent scene as Tyler Black and Jon Moxley respectively, but Reign's has since proved that he belongs amongst this elite group. 

It's also becoming interesting to see The Shield beginning to win their matches in a variety of way, we've seen the Triple Powerbomb, as well as The Flying Antelope, but on Main Event, Seth Rollins picked up the victory with a Leaping Knee Drop. Giving this group a variety of finishes will add to the unpredictable nature of the group that WWE has been running with.

However, we may have a case of too much of a good thing going on with The Shield, who we've already seen on Raw and NXT this week, and I believe we'll be seeing them on Smackdown as well. If WWE continue to have to group on all their programming, they may run out of steam quicker than they should do, which would be a shame after a great few months of build up.

Another point of interest is the fall of Kofi Kingston. After being a foot note in the Fandango and Chris Jericho confrontation on Raw, as well as being relegated to panelist on the Wrestlemania Pre-Show, and then another loss here to The Shield, it would appear Kofi is very out of favour with WWE at the moment, despite seemingly having a lot of support from the fans, both young and old, Kofi seems like someone who could do the rare thing of uniting the fan base, as he is both likeable and competent in the ring. However WWE obviously don't see that in Kingston as he has been stuck in the midcard for what seems like forever and now seems to have slipped even further. May we see Kofi future endeavoured very soon?

Best of The Rest

 

 

Zeb Colter continues to prove his worth to Jack Swagger, after a superb speech before Swagger's match with Yoshi Tatsu. Colter berated the Boston crowd on a number of topics including Boston playing a "Canadian Sport" which seemed to get a ton of heat (although it's difficult to tell on the pre-taped Main Event) Colter went on to bully Tatsu, by asking questions about his culture. This makes for uncomfortable watching, but I'm pretty sure that's the point, the character continues to push the fans buttons in wrestling world where real heat is difficult to come by, it's hard not to hate the Zeb Colter character and his views.

The match itself was quick and pacy, although it did not although either competitor to show much of what they could do in the ring as Swagger picked up an early victory with The Patriot Lock. It really is a shame how little WWE uses Yoshi Tatsu as he's had some of the best matches on WWE TV over the last few years, his match with Tyson Kidd (another under used talent) were completely different to anything on WWE at the time and they even managed to make an Object on a Pole Match worth watching.

There was also another outing for current NXT Champion Big E Langston who faced Zack Ryder. Before the match Langston was interviewed by Josh Matthews about his Wrestlemania match, his Raw debut and Dolph Ziggler cashing in Money in the Bank. Langston proved to be just as impressive on the mic as he is in the ring, switching between humourous and serious with expert pace. The match saw Langston dominate Ryder who barely got any offence in at all. It seems as if the Ryder Revolution truly is over (and not in the way Ryder had hoped)

Finally...

This Main Event was basically a collection of squash matches, there was no doubt who was going to win all three of these matches, something which wouldn't have happened in the earlier episodes. However there was some interesting stuff on the show, The Shield's match was solid, and their Triple Powerbomb of Tensai was impressive, Big E Langston showed us what he could do with a Microphone and Zeb Colter continue to do great work in making Jack Swagger look like a star. However for me, this Main Event was one of the under utilized star, the likes of Kofi Kingston, Yoshi Tatsu and Zack Ryder all extremely talented, but this new Post-Wrestlemania landscape and new stars like Bray Wyatt, Kassius Ohno and Adrian Neville on the horizon how long will it before these Superstars are sent packing by WWE?