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Post by EoE: Well There's Your Problem on Apr 11, 2021 22:50:22 GMT -5
By the way, coming out of this... Bianca Belair, only babyface champion standing. Menâs world belts, Reigns and Lashley, HEEL. Other womenâs belt, Ripley, HEEL. Midcard belts, Sheamus and Crews, HEEL. Tag belts, Styles and Omos, Ziggler and Roode, Baszler and Jax, HEEL, HEEL, HEEL. Fascinating times coming out of this.
(Yeah, thereâs R-Truth and the 24/7 belt, but that doesnât count)
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john84
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Post by john84 on Apr 11, 2021 22:51:34 GMT -5
Guess this answers the questions about the crowd reactions. Riddle is pretty damn over. Good match Yeah, it was a good match. Best I've seen of Riddle personally, including his NXT and one of his indie matches. Glad that Sheamus got the win though, can't remember the last time he had a solo belt.
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agent817
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Post by agent817 on Apr 11, 2021 22:52:15 GMT -5
What a maneuver! Unbelievable! NGL, been watching old RAW episodes from 1995 since the Lockdown where Vince was still commentating on shows and I do actually kinda miss his commentary I know some people are critical of Vince's commentary but when I hear his commentary, it always makes me think of the New Generation days. I know he called action earlier than that as well, but Vince's commentary, to me, is synonymous with the mid-1990s.
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Post by Harry The Arrow was Wrong! on Apr 11, 2021 22:56:02 GMT -5
Guess this answers the questions about the crowd reactions. Riddle is pretty damn over. Good match Yeah, it was a good match. Best I've seen of Riddle personally, including his NXT and one of his indie matches. Glad that Sheamus got the win though, can't remember the last time he had a solo belt. Yeah i feel the same. Shemaus is a beast and has been killing it lately. He deserves this.
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Post by hbkid718 on Apr 11, 2021 22:56:36 GMT -5
Usually this takes me a few days to do, but I got it done, so hereâs the Complete History of WrestleMania updated with this yearâs results.What a match to end another amazing night. Once again, WWE does it with a crappy build leading to one of the best Manias in recent memory. A good Kickoff. I can get used to not having any matches on it. It makes my life easier. Ashland Croft singing America The Beautiful was OK. I liked the highlights of last night, but the rest of the opening video was the exact same one from last night. They should have done something different. The pyro was cool. I have no idea what to think of Titus OâNeil & Hulk Hogan being dressed like pirates and their pirate puns were stupid. I liked Randy Ortonâs entrance. Awesome entrance for Bray Wyatt & Alexa Bliss, but I hate the red light. The match was way too short & was more of an angle than anything. The segment in the back with OâNeil, Hogan, Bayley, & Bischoff was stupid. The Women's Tag Team Match was horrible. I have no idea what is wrong with the Women's Tag Team Division. Awesome match between Owens & Zayn, but it could have been a little longer and we didn't get Owens jumping off the pirate ship. Hilarious segment with RVD, Riddle, & Great Khali. I still don't understand the birds for Riddle's entrance but I loved that they were dressed like pirates. Hell of a match between Riddle & Sheamus. Loved the finish. Big E VS Apollo Crews was a fun match & I love Dabba Kato's debut with Crews. Congrats to the 2021 HOF. Kane should have wore his mask. It's cool for Rhea Ripley to get a big Mania intro with her theme song being played live. Incredible match between Asuka & Rhea Ripley. Amazing reaction for Daniel Bryan & Edge & cool intro for Reigns. They should have brought back Tony Chimel to do the Rated R SUUUUUUUPERSTAR for Edge. Bryan VS Edge VS Reigns was an unbelievable match. All 3 men worked so hard, given all of their stories leading to this match & in the career. This has to be one of the best Mania Main Events of All-Time Here are the Facts & Stats for Night 2: ⢠Randy Orton VS Bray Wyatt was the 13th match to be re-matched from WrestleMania, as it was a re-match from WrestleMania 33, & the 3rd year in a row a match was re-matched at WrestleMania after Triple H VS Batista (WM 35) & John Cena VS Bray Wyatt (WM 36). This was Randy Ortonâs 17th WrestleMania, tying him with The Big Show & Shawn Michaels for 4th of All-Time after The Undertaker (24), Triple H (23), & Kane (21), & his 5th in a row, the 2nd time he was on Night 2 & his 4th PPV in a row in 2021. This was the 1st time he has wrestled the same opponent multiple times in a Singles Match at WrestleMania. This was Bray Wyattâs 5th WrestleMania & 2nd in a row. He was the 4th wrestler to wrestle in multiple re-matches at WrestleMania after The Undertaker (3), Triple H & John Cena (2) & the 2nd year in a row he wrestled someone he previously wrestled at WrestleMania. This is the 2nd time he was on Night 2. It was his 1st match overall since he lost to Randy Orton at TLC on December 20, 2021. This was the 6th 1-on-1 Match between them after No Mercy on October 9, 2016 (won by Wyatt), WrestleMania 33 on 4/2/17 (won by Orotn), Payback on April 30, 2017 (won by Wyatt), Raw on December 7, 2020 (ended in No Contest), & TLC on December 20, 2020 (won by Orton), so now Orton has won 3, Wyatt has won 2, & 1 ended in a No Contest. It was the 1st Non-Title Singles Match to open WrestleMania since AJ Styles VS Shane McMahon at WrestleMania 33, Ortonâs 3rd opener & 1st since WrestleMania 29, & Wyattâs 1st ever opener. It was Ortonâs 1st WrestleMania win since he defeated Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania 33. ⢠Natalya & Tamina VS Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax was the 6th Womenâs Tag Team Championship Match of 2021, the 1st since Fastlane on March 21 & 3rd PPV in a row, the 3rd year in a row at WrestleMania, & was the 1st time it was on Night 2. This was Natalyaâs 9th WrestleMania, keeping as the woman with the most WrestleMania Matches in History, Taminaâs 6th WrestleMania, & they were the 1st women to wrestle multiple times at WrestleMania. This was Shayna Baszlerâs 2nd WrestleMania in a row & 1st match on Night 1. She was the 1st wrestler to challenge for the Raw Womenâs Championship & then defend the Womenâs Tag Team Championship at back-to-back WrestleManias. This was Nia Jaxâs 4th WrestleMania & 1st since WrestleMania 35, her 2nd Womenâs Tag Team Championship Match & 1st since WrestleMania 35. Natalya, Tamina, & Jax are the 1st wrestlers to wrestle in 2 Womenâs Tag Team Championship Matches. This was Baszler & Jaxâs 5th Womenâs Tag Team Championship Defense, so if they would have lost, they would have tied Sasha Banks & Bayleyâs 2nd Reign, who lost to Baszler & Jax at Payback on August 30, 2020, for most Womenâs Tag Team Championship Defenses. As of WrestleMania, Baszler & Jaxâs Womenâs Tag Team Championship Reign has lasted 70 Days, which is the 4th Longest of All-Time after The Kabuki Warriors (10/6/19 â 4/4/20, 180 Days), The Iiconics (4/7/19 â 8/5/19, 120 Days), Baszler & Jaxâs 1st Reign (8/30/20 â 12/20/20, 112 Days), & Sasha Banks & Bayleyâs 2nd Reign (6/5/20 â 8/30/20, 85 Days). This was the 1st time ever that the Womenâs Tag Team Championship was successfully defended at WrestleMania. ⢠Kevin Owens VS Sami Zayn was Owensâ 5th WrestleMania in a row & the 2nd time he is on Night 2 & his 1st PPV since Elimination Chamber on February 21. This was Sami Zaynâs 5th WrestleMania & 2nd in a row, the 1st time he was on Night 2 & his 1st PPV since Elimination Chamber on February 21. This was the 1st ever NXT Takeover Match to be re-matched at WrestleMania. In their entire career, WrestleMania was their 177th Match against each other, including Singles, Tag, & Multi-Person Matches, & their 69th Singles Match against each other. In WWE & NXT, this was their 50th 1-on-1 Match against each other, with Owens now winning 18 times, Zayn winning 29 times, & 3 No Contests. In their entire career, Owens has won 27 times, Zayn has won 39 times, & there has been 3 No Contests. This was their 1st 1-on-1 Match in WWE since Raw on April 9, 2018, which ended in a No Contest & their 1st on PPV since Zayn defeated Owens at Battleground on July 24, 2016. It was the 1st time ever that Owens won 2 WrestleMania Matches back to back. ⢠Riddle VS Sheamus was the 6th United States Championship Match of 2021, the 1st since Fastlane on March 21, 3rd PPV in a row, the 10th at WrestleMania & 1st since WrestleMania 35. This was Riddleâs WrestleMania debut, making him the 1st since Samoa Joe at WrestleMania 35 to make his debut as defending United States Champion, & is his 4th PPV in a row in 2021. This was Riddleâs 3rd United States Championship Defense, so he is the 1st since Rey Mysterio who lost to Andrade at a live event on December 26, 2019 to lose in his 3rd Defense. As of WrestleMania, Riddleâs United States Championship Reign lasted 49 Days, so he is the 1st since Jack Swagger (1/16/12 â 3/5/12) to lose their title in 49 Days. This was Sheamusâ 11th WrestleMania match, as he wrestled twice at WrestleMania 28, tying him in 9th place with Mark Henry, JBL, The Rock, Randy Savage, & Daniel Bryan, 10th WrestleMania event, & 1st since WrestleMania 35. He was the 4th wrestler to wrestle in 2 United States Championship Matches after John Cena, Chris Benoit, & Rusev, his 1st United States Championship Match since WrestleMania 27, his 4th Singles Match at WrestleMania & 1st since he defeated Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 28. This was his 4th PPV in a row in 2021. This was the 5th 1-on-1 Match between them after Smackdown on August 7, 2020 (Won by Riddle by DQ), Raw on October 26, 2020 (won by Sheamus) & Raw on November 23, 2020 (won by Riddle), & Raw on March 29, 2021 (won by Sheamus) so now Riddle has won 2 & Sheamus has won 3. This was the 1st WrestleMania match between 2 1-named wrestlers since Kalisto VS Ryback for the United States Championship at WrestleMania 32 & 1st on the main card since Batista VS Umaga at WrestleMania 24. This was Sheamusâ 1st WrestleMania win since The League of Nations defeated The New Day at WrestleMania 32 & his 1st Singles win since he defeated Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 28. Sheamus defeating Riddle was the 2nd United States Title Change of 2021, the 1st since Elimination Chamber on February 21, the 5th at WrestleMania & 1st since Jinder Mahal won a Fatal 4-Way at WrestleMania 34. This began Sheamusâ 3rd United States Championship Reign, & 1st since 2014, making him the 8th wrestler to be US Champion 3 or more times & the 1st since AJ Styles in 2017. ⢠Big E VS Apollo Crews was the 1st ever Nigerian Drum Fight in WWE History, the 7th WWE Intercontinental Championship Match of 2021, the 1st since Fastlane on March 21 & the 2nd PPV in a row, the 27th at WrestleMania & 7th in a row & the 1st time it is on Night 2. It was Big Eâs 7th WrestleMania & 1st since WrestleMania 34, his 1st ever Singles Match at WrestleMania & 1st ever Intercontinental Championship Match at WrestleMania. This was the 1stt time that he was in a WrestleMania match without The New Day since he & Dolph Ziggler lost to Team Hell No at WrestleMania 29. It was his 2nd PPV in a row in 2021. This was Big Eâs 8th Intercontinental Championship Defense, so he was the 1st since Seth Rollins who lost to Dolph Ziggler on Raw on June 18, 2018 to lose in his 8th Defense. As of WrestleMania, Big Eâs Intercontinental Championship Reign lasted 107 Days, making him the 43rd Champion to have a Reign over 100 Days, & he was the 1st to lose in 107 Days. This was Apollo Crewsâ 4th WrestleMania & 1st since WrestleMania 35, his 1st ever Singles Match at WrestleMania, & the 1st time he will not be in a Battle Royal. It was his 2nd PPV in a row in 2021. This was the 4th 1-on-1 Match between Big E & Crews after Smackdown on January 8, 2021 (won by E), January 22, 2021 (won by Crews by Disqualification), & Fastlane on March 21, 2021 (won by E) so E has won 2 & Crews has won 2 & was the 3rd match to be re-matched from Fastlane. This was Big Eâs 7th WrestleMania loss, tying him with Heath Slater for the 3rd Worst WrestleMania W/L Record ahead of R-Truth (0-8-0) & Goldust (0-12-0). It was Crewsâ 1st ever WrestleMania win & 1st win on PPV since he & Kalisto defeated Dolph Ziggler in a Handicap Match at Elimination Chamber on February 12, 2017 & he is the 1st to be both the United States & Intercontinental Champion since Jeff Hardy in 2020 & the 26th in History, the 1st first time Champion since AJ Styles in 2020, & it was the 1st Intercontinental Title Change of 2021, the 12th at WrestleMania & 1st since Finn Balor defeated Bobby Lashley at WrestleMania 35, & 179th of All-Time. ⢠Asuka VS Rhea Ripley was the 2nd Raw Womenâs Championship Match of 2021 & 1st since Raw on January 25, the 1st on PPV since Asuka defeated Zelina Vega at Clash of Champions on September 27, 2020, the 23rd at WrestleMania & 8th year in a row, but 5th Raw Womenâs Championship Match & 2nd year in a row there were 2, & the 1st time the Raw Womenâs Title was on Night 2. This was Asukaâs 4th WrestleMania in a row, her 1st Womenâs Championship Match at WrestleMania since she lost to Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 34. She was the 2nd in a row after Bayley at WrestleMania 35 & 36 to go from Womenâs Tag Team Champion to a defending Womenâs Champions, but Bayley was Smackdown Womenâs Champion, so sheâs the 1st Raw Womenâs Champion to do it. It would be her 1st PPV since Elimination Chamber on February 21 & the 1st time she was on Night 2. It was Asukaâs 8th Raw Womenâs Championship Defense, so she was the 1st to lose in her 8th Defense. As of WrestleMania, Asukaâs Raw Womenâs Championship Reign lasted 229 Days, which was the 3rd Longest of All-Time after Becky Lynch (4/8/19 â 5/10/20, 398 Days) & Ronda Rousey (8/19/18 â 4/8/19, 231 Days). This was Rhea Ripleyâs 2nd WrestleMania in a row. She was the 1st to be NXT Womenâs Champion & then challenge for the Raw Womenâs Championship at back-to-back WrestleManias. It is her 1st PPV since the Royal Rumble on January 31 & was her 2nd time on Night 2. This was Asukaâs 4th WrestleMania loss, tying her with Lana for 2nd most Mania Losses after Sasha Banksâ 6 losses. It was 1st Raw Womenâs Title Change of 2021, the 9th at WrestleMania, including the last 5 years in a row, but 3rd Raw Womenâs Title Change, & 1st since WrestleMania 35, when Becky Lynch defeated Charlotte Flair & Ronda Rousey. Rhea Ripley is the 5th wrestler to be both NXT & Raw Womenâs Champion & the 1st ever to be NXT UK, NXT, & Raw Womenâs Champion. This was the 1st time that both the Raw & Smackdown Womenâs Title changed hands at WrestleMania in separate matches, as they changed hands in the same match at WrestleMania 35 ⢠Daniel Bryan VS Edge VS Roman Reigns was the 4th Universal Championship Match of 2021 & the 4th PPV in a row, the 55th WWE, World, or Universal Championship Match at WrestleMania, but 5th Universal Championship Match, & 35th year in a row, the 5th year in a row there were 2, & the 1st time the Universal Championship was on Night 2. This was the 7th Triple Threat Match of 2021, the 1st since Takeover: Stand & Deliver on April 7, the 1st for WWE proper since Elimination Chamber on February 21, the 24th at WrestleMania, the 4th year in a row, the 7th for a WWE or Universal Championship, 1st since WrestleMania 31, & 1st ever for the Universal Championship. This was Daniel Bryanâs 11th WrestleMania match, as he wrestled twice at WrestleMania 27 & 30, tying him in 9th place with Mark Henry, JBL, The Rock, Randy Savage, & Sheamus for most WrestleMania Matches, his 9th event, & 4th in a row. It was his 3rd Title Match in a row, but 8th overall, his 1st Universal, but 4th WWE or World Championship Match. It was his 4th PPV in a row in 2021. This was Bryanâs 10th Triple Threat Match in his career, 1st since he defeated King Corbin & The Miz on Smackdown on December 17, 2019, his 1st on PPV since he defeated Mustafa Ali & Kevin Owens at Fastlane on March 10, 2019, & his 2nd at WrestleMania & 1st since he defeated Batista & Randy Orton at WrestleMania 30, now giving him a Triple Threat Record of 6-4-0. This was Edgeâs 12th WrestleMania, tying him with Goldust, Matt Hardy, Hulk Hogan, & The Miz for 8th of All-Time, the 1st time since WrestleMania 26 & 27 that he wrestled 2 WrestleManias in a row. It was his 5th WWE, World, or Universal Championship Match in his career, & 1st since he defeated Alberto Del Rio at WrestleMania 27. He was the 2nd year in a row after Brock Lesnar that someone wrestled in their 5th Championship Match at WrestleMania, tying with Shawn Michaels & Randy Orton for 4th, behind Triple H (9), John Cena (8), & Hulk Hogan (6). This was his 1st PPV since the Royal Rumble on January 31. This was his 20th Triple Threat Match in his career & 1st since he defeated Alberto Del Rio & Rey Mysterio on Smackdown on October 29, 2010, & his 2nd at WrestleMania & 1st since he lost to John Cena along with The Big Show at WrestleMania 25, now giving him a Triple Threat Match Record of 8-12-0. This was Roman Reignsâ 8th WrestleMania & 1st since WrestleMania 35. It was his 4th WWE or Universal Championship Match, tying him with The Rock & Batista in 5th place. It was his 1st Championship Match since WrestleMania 34. It was his 4th PPV in a row. It was his 9th Triple Threat Match & 1st since he defeated Braun Strowman & Bray Wyatt at Payback on August 30, 2020, his 2nd at WrestleMania & 1st since he & Brock Lesnar lost to Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 31, now giving him a Triple Threat Record of 4-5-0. This was his 4th PPV in a row in 2021. This was Reignsâ 9th Defense, which is the most of All-Time. As of WrestleMania, Reignsâ Universal Championship Reign has lasted 223 Days, which is the 2nd Longest of All-Time after Brock Lesnarâs 503 Days (4/2/17 â 8/19/18). This was the 32nd time that a WWE or Universal Championship Match was the main event of WrestleMania & the 2nd year in a row. This was Roman Reignsâ 5th WrestleMania main event, tying him with Shawn Michaels, The Rock, & John Cena for the 3rd most WrestleMania main events after Hulk Hogan (8) & Triple H (7). It was Edgeâs 2nd WrestleMania main event & 1st since WrestleMania 24 & Daniel Bryanâs 2nd WrestleMania main event & 1st since WrestleMania 30. Roman Reigns is the 1st Universal Champion since Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 34 to retain. ⢠This was the 1st WrestleMania since 33 to have 5 title changes.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Apr 11, 2021 22:58:54 GMT -5
NXT WrestleMania 37 Night Two April 11th, 2021 | Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida | Attendance: 25,000
A lot of people seemed pretty upset that I ignored a Hulk Hogan promo, had a technical issue that caused me to miss some of a match, and didnât note about a tag promo that meant nothing on night one. What will night two bring?
By the way, I rewatched Bianca/Sasha this morning and itâs even better a second time around. I bumped up the score to ****ž and night one is an 8/10.
Country singer Ashland Craft performed âAmerica The Beautiful.â
Titus OâNeil and Hulk Hogan arrived dressed as pirates and made lame jokes. Hogan got booed whenever he spoke while Titus got cheered. They welcomed the fans to the show, put over last night, and hyped tonight. There, I covered it.
Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton I only wanted this if they had a Firefly Funhouse style fight because a match between them sounds uninteresting. Then Orton came out in sick WrestleMania whites (some of his best gear ever) and I turned around on it a bit. Fiend healed magically during his special effects entrance and then Alexa Bliss turned a giant Fiend-in-a-Box that he emerged from. Bray jumped off the box and clotheslined Orton to start this and they were back to the old red light gimmick. Bray did some no selling early on but Orton managed to get in some offense, only for Bray to find ways to stop him with stuff like the Mandible Claw. As Bray went for Sister Abigail, fire erupted from the turnbuckles like Kane arrived but it was Alexa Bliss with black ooze dripping down her face. It distracted Bray, allowing Orton to win with the RKO in 5:53. I honestly donât really know how to rate that. The match itself was pretty bland and the wackiness was kept to an ending that was mostly just confusing. [**]
Backstage, Bayley interrupted Eric Bischoff with Hogan and Titus by trying to get him to join her talk show. Bischoff put over Bianca and Sasha, saying he wanted Bianca on his podcast, which irritated Bayley. They ignored her and left.
WWE Women's Tag Team Championship: Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler [c] vs. Natalya and Tamina Imagine booking this as your WRESTLEMANIA Womenâs Tag Title match. Two Tamina matches on one WrestleMania is no bueno. They have tried to hype the Nia/Tamina face off at like six different PPVs and itâs never interesting. That was the case here again. Nia slammed Tamina outside, leaving Nattie to take the heat from the only interesting wrestler in the match, Shayna. Tamina saved Nattie and they looked awkward standing in place waiting for a Nia cross body. Nia talked smack to Tamina and Tamina retaliated with a PUTRID body slam. She barely did it. Tamina missed the splash and Nattie got the tag, trying for the Sharpshooter on Nia. Shayna was legal and chocked her out to retain in an absurd 14:18. Who looked at this and said it should go nearly 15 minutes? I thought this was oddly just so Tamina and Nattie could get some kind of veteran moment or something like that but it was just the same old, stretched out over a boring timeframe. [½*]
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn Itâs the first time a TakeOver match is run back at Mania. These two went right at it, as KO hit a Popup Powerbomb instantly and Sami hit an apron Brainbuster about a minute later. We also got a Michinoku Driver (that Michael Cole called a Blue Thunder Bomb) and frog splash in the early stages. That ended up being the theme. It was two guys who know each other incredibly well hitting each other with their best moves. It didnât have the story that some of their past encounters did and thatâs why this format worked. This was a sprint with tons of action, cool looking moves, and was to the point. They basically got to have a PWG style match at WrestleMania, which is too cool. The finish came after 9:15 when Owens hit a Stunner. Honestly, I canât ask for much more than that. Two great wrestlers having a balls to the walls match playing off their history. [***ž]
After the match, Sami got mad at Logan Paul and got shoved. Then, KO planted Logan with a Stunner, which he sold pretty well. Why Bad Bunny and Logan Paul better at selling than most wrestlers?
Backstage, Riddle tried to sell The Great Khali on one of his goofy ideas. Rob Van Dam came over to translate and said they needed good branding like his own âRVDâs Rolling Papers.â
WWE United States Championship: Riddle [c] vs. Sheamus I may not want to root for Riddle these days but the hard hitting matches these two have had on TV are undeniable. This was similar in pace to the last match as it was worked at a quick pace and featured a lot of big offensive moves. Riddle hit a top rope belly to belly suplex and a freaking Jackhammer in the first five minutes. He also kicked out of some of Sheamusâ biggest offense. The key moment came when he wanted a top rope White Noise, which wouldâve been a ROUGH bump to take. He slipped and had to hit the move in normal fashion. It looked like Riddle was about to power up and win but his attempt at a quebrada saw Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick to take home the title in 10:51. Good match and a fantastic finish, with the right guy winning. [***ž]
An ad ran with Triple H and Bad Bunny plugging the latterâs 2022 tour.
WWE Intercontinental Championship Nigerian Drum Fight: Big E [c] vs. Apollo Crews Wale played Big E to the ring. Nobody knows the rules coming into this but there are kendo sticks and other random weapons outside, as well as a big ass gong. They each grabbed a kendo stick and started whipping each other with them. They brought the big guns offensively, from Big Eâs sick spear off the apron to a uranagi onto steel steps. Apollo came off the top and went through a table that Big E moved out of the way from. It was a tough landing and Big E seemed set for the Big Ending. However, Babatunde/Dabba Kato showed up dressed as some kind of general and he attacked Big E. That allowed Apollo to win the title in 6:49. That had potential despite the weird gimmick. It ended too quickly and didnât have enough drum based offense but was fun. [***Âź]
The 2021 Hall of Fame inductees came out to be honored.
WWE Raw Women's Championship: Asuka [c] vs. Rhea Ripley Rhea Ripley has a great entrance theme but the live performance of it came off poorly. There was a lot to like in here. Rhea took it right to Asuka, showing no intimidation against someone who has such a sterling record in WWE. You got the sense that Asuka understood how tough Rhea was because she resorted to bigger offense. The moment where she hit a DDT off the apron marked a change of pace a bit. Asuka became more vicious and aggressive, firing off kicks at a rapid pace. Rhea was just too strong at times, catching kicks and stomping her out. Then, Asuka could just outwrestle or outsmart her with veteran instincts. It made for some good back and forth before Rhea hit Riptide to win the title in 13:27. This was good and had some really fun moments but never sniffed greatness. Rhea and Bianca winning could be huge and set the tone for the future. [***]
Titus and Hulk came out to pump up the crowd again but got interrupted by Bayley. She wanted the spotlight and had her pyro go off. The Hall of Fame queens that are the Bella Twins interrupted and Nikki put Bayley down with her forearm that is better than what the NXT Champ does. Nikki and Brie threw Bayley down the aisle and posed to end the segment.
WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns [c] vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Edge The fact that weâre getting to see THESE three guys in a WrestleMania main event is wild. Two of them retired and thought theyâd never wrestle again, while the other beat leukemia. Main event Jey Uso was with Roman and got involved early since thereâs no DQ in these kind of matches. So, Edge took him out with an Edgecution onto steel steps. They also took Reigns out for a short while, which allowed us to get the Edge/Bryan battle fans have clamored for. I absolutely loved the spot where Roman and Edge collided shoulders on Spear attempts. It made sense and looked brutal. Bryan had a hot run hitting kicks and slapping on submissions before Roman powerbombed him through a table, only for Edge to Spear him off the steel steps. It was wild and glorious. There was a really cool spot where a chair broke and Edge used the piece of it for extra leverage on a crossface on Roman. Bryan saved a tap out and put on the Yes Lock at the same time, only for him and Edge to headbutt each other because Bryan is a madman. Edge had it won with a Spear but Bryan pulled out the referee, causing Edge to snap and beat them both up with chairs. Bryan even took a Con-chair-to. Jey Uso got involved but Edge got rid of him only for Roman to Spear him. A con-chair-to later and Roman dragged Edge onto Bryan, pinning both to win in 21:40. Outstanding pro wrestling. It hit some expected tropes and had the heel win but what a ride to get there. They wrestled this like it was their last match, which is fitting given who was involved. Wild spots, huge drama, tons of emotion, and three of the best wrestlers ever putting on a showcase on the biggest stage. [****ž]
Overall: 7/10. Ultimately, I found this to be a slight step down from night one. It was looking rough to start with a goofy Bray segment and a bad tag match. Then the next two matches were really good, the IC Title match was short by sweet, Asuka/Rhea was good, and that main event is an all-timer.
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