Saturday 31 March 2018

WWE Elimination Chamber 2018 Review

Elimination Chamber, the last RAW Pay-Per-View before Wrestlemania, took place on the 25th February at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Not only will we get to see the first Women's Elimination Chamber match plus we will determine who face Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania. So, let's take a look.

The match on the Kick Off Show was Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows taking on Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel. Dallas dumps Anderson to the outside to get his team the advantage. Anderson hits a running kick on Axel, giving him the chance to tag in Gallows. In the end, Gallows and Anderson hit Axel with the Magic Killer to get the win.
Winners: Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows (1 for 1)

The first match of the show is Bayley, Mandy Rose, Mickie James, Sasha Banks and Sonya Deville challenge Alexa Bliss in the first ever Women's Elimination Chamber Match for the RAW Women's Championship. Bayley and Sonya start in the ring and Rose is the next one to enter followed by Sasha Banks. Rose is the first to be eliminated when Banks gets her to submit to the Banks Statement. Mickie is the next one to enter and she does a senton splash from on top of a pod to eliminate Sonya. However, Mickie is eliminated when Bayley hits her with a Belly-to-Bayley. When Alexa enters, Sasha and Bayley team up before they turn on each other. Bayley hits Sasha with a Belly-to-Bayley but Alexa rolls up Bayley to eliminate her. Sasha comes close to winning with the Banks Statement. However, Alexa bangs Sasha's head off a pod and follows that up with a hangman's DDT to get the win.

I really enjoyed this match and all the competitors did well. Alexa winning was the obvious call and her promo afterwards was brilliant. As for Wrestlemania, it did look like Alexa was going to be destroyed by Asuka. However, Ronda Rousey arriving and events at Fastlane (spoiler alert) have changed that.
Winner: Alexa Bliss (2 for 2)

The next match is Apollo Crews and Titus O'Neill  challenging Cesaro and Sheamus for the RAW Tag Team Championship. Cesaro and Sheamus take out Apollo to get the advantage. Sheamus misses a shoulder charge, going into the ring post. This gives Apollo the chance to tag in O'Neill. O'Neill hits the Clash of the Titus on Sheamus but Cesaro breaks up the pin. In the end, Cesaro and Sheamus pin Apollo to get the win.
This match was quite a fun match to watch.
Winners: Cesaro and Sheamus (3 for 3)

Next is Asuka taking on Nia Jax. If Nia wins, she will have a Championship match at Wrestlemania. Asuka takes the fight to Nia but it doesn't take long. Nia goes on to be completely dominant. Nia goes for a banzai drop but she misses. Nia gets out of an armbar and goes for a powerbomb. However, Asuka manages to get out if it and reverse it into a pin to get the win. Nia doesn't take the loss well and fucks up Asuka, sending her crashing into the timekeeper's area. This was quite a good match although I'm not sure if it was as good as their matches in NXT.
Winner: Asuka (4 for 4)

Our penultimate match is Bray Wyatt taking on Broken "Woken" Matt Hardy. Wyatt teleports(?) into the ring but Hardy isn't there. Matt attacks him outside the ring but Wyatt hits a running block to get the advantage. After a while, Matt hits a tornado DDT to start his comeback. Wyatt goes for the Sister Abigail but Matt gets out of it and hits the Twist of Fate to get the win. This match was weird at times but it was otherwise pretty decent.
Winner: "Woken" Matt Hardy (4 for 5)

After we see the signing of Ronda Rousey,  we get our main event to determine the number 1 contender for the Universal Champion Brock Lesnar. It is an Elimination Chamber Match between Elias, Finn Balor, Seth Rollins, John Cena, Hollywood Miz, Roman Reigns and Bruan Strowman. Balor, Miz and Rollins start in the ring and they are followed by Cena and then Strowman. Strowman goes on to eliminate Miz, Elias, Cena, Balor and Rollins with powerslams. During this time, all the wrestlers teamed up on Strowman; at one time hitting their finishing moves on him. However, Strowman manages to survive it all. In the end, Reigns hits multiple Superman punches and 2 Spears on Strowman to get the win. This match really bothered me. It was good but it annoyed me that Strowman eliminates 5 people yet Reigns goes on to win. It seems like a heel move to me.
Winner: Roman Reigns (5 for 6)

I thought that Elimination Chamber was a good event. This is the last RAW event before Wrestlemania and it looks good for them

Sunday 11 March 2018

WWE Fastlane 2018 Preview

WWE Fastlane 2018 Poster.jpeg 

The final Pay-Per-View before Wrestlemania, Fastlane, will be taking place this evening at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. There are 6 matches on the card at the time of writing this and there are a couple of them that I'm really looking forward to seeing. So, let's take a look.

Becky Lynch and Naomi vs Natalya and Carmella
This has the ability to be a good match and I think that Carmella and Natalya will find some way to win.
Predicted Winners: Natalya and Carmella

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Rusev
I'm afraid that it will not be a Happy Rusev Day for Rusev so Nakamura to win.
Predicted Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura

Bobby Roode vs Randy Orton
United States Championship Match
A tough one to predict. I feel that Orton is above the Championship but because WWE wants to piss me off, that will mean he'll win. Despite that, I'm still going for Roode to win.
Predicted Winner: Bobby Roode

Charlotte Flair vs Ruby Riott
This should be an interesting match. I can't see Riott winning but she has the support of Sarah Logan and Liv Morgan. Also, with Carmella waiting in the shadows with her briefcase, it does throw up a few possibilities. Unless, they want her to lose and then win at Wrestlemania, I'm going for Charlotte to win.
Predicted Winner: Charlotte Flair

The Usos vs The New Day
Smackdown Tag Team Championship
Based on their awesome matches, I'm really looking forward to this one and it could be the match of the night. It's a tough one to call but I'm going for The New Day to win.
Predicted Winners: The New Day

AJ Styles vs John Cena vs Kevin Owens vs Sami Zayn vs Baron Corbin vs Dolph Ziggler
Six Pack Challenge for the WWE Championship
This match should be really good with a couple of stories going into it. Will Cena win and go on to face Nakamura at Wrestlemania? Will Sami Zayn betray Kevin Owens like he did last Tuesday and pin him to become Champion? I have no doubt that Styles will win but it does create a few possibilities for Wrestlemani.
Predicted Winner: AJ Styles

I've not had a chance to watch Elimination Chamber so it will be at least a week before I get to see Fastlane. Until then, I hope you guys enjoy the show.         
 

Thursday 8 March 2018

Royal Rumble 2018 Review

The 31st Royal Rumble took place on Sunday 28th January at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.  Not only is the start of the road to Wrestlemania 34, but we will see the first ever Women's Royal Rumble. So, who will win the Rumbles and go on to have a Championship match at Wrestlemania? Let's take a look.

The first match on the Kick Off Show was a six-man tag match with Kalisto, Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik taking on Drew Gulak, TJP and Gentleman Jack Gallagher. TJP manages to take down Dorado, giving his team the advantage. Gallagher misses a splash, after getting distracted by Gulak, and this gives Dorado the chance to tag in Metalik. In the end, TJP tags himself in and goes for the Detonation Kick on Kalisto. However, Kalisto avoids it and hits the Salida Del Sol to get the win. This was a fun way to start the event.
Winners: Kalisto, Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik (1 for 1)

The next match was Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson taking on The Revival. Dawson and Wilder focus on Anderson's knee to get the advantage. Eventually Gallows tags tagged in and they go for the Magic Killer on Wilder but Dawson stops it. In the end, Anderson is punching Dawson in the corner but Wilder chop blocks him then covers him to get the win. This was quite a good match and it was nice to see The Revival get the win after getting fucked over at the 25th Anniversary RAW.
Winners: The Revival (1 for 2)

The final match on the Kick Off Show was an open challenge for Bobby Roode's United States Championship. Mojo Rawley takes on the challenge. Roode goes for the Glorious DDT early on but Rawley avoids it and sends Roode to the outside to get the advantage. After some back and forth, Roode manages to hit a DDT to get the win. This match was pretty good, although I do wonder if Rawley's heel run has stalled.
Winner: Bobby Roode (2 for 3)

The first match of the Rumble event is for the WWE Championship with Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens challenging AJ Styles  in a handicap match. After some mind games, Zayn and Owens ge the advantage and keep Styles down. In the end, Styles takes out Zayn and Owesn goes for the pop up powerbomb. Even though Zayn was the legal man, Styles rolls up Owens to get the win. Owens and Zayn complain to Shane McMahon, who gives a grand total of zero fucks about it. Whilst it would have been interesting to see Zayn and Owens as Co-Champions, I feel that Styles winning is the best decision and that match itself was pretty good.
Winner: AJ Styles (3 for 4)

The second match is a 2-out-of-3 falls match for the Smackdown Tag Team Championship as Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin challenge The Usos. Both teams come close to getting the first fall but The Usos avoid Chaos Theory and superkick Gable to death to take the lead. A couple of minutes later, Jey rolls up Gable to get the second fall and the win. Even though I was surprised at the 2-0 win, this match was a lot fo fun. However, the finish fell a little flat for me.
Winners: The Usos (4 for 5)

We now get the Men's Royal Rumble Match. Highlights of the match include:
  • Rhyno who came in at number 3, being the 1st to be eliminated thanks to Baron Corbin. Corbin gets eliminated seconds later by Finn Balor. Corbin doesn't take well and after, beating up Balor and Rusev, brutally destroys Heath Slater as he makes his entrance.
  • Seeing NXT Superstars Andrade "Cien" Almas come in at number 7 and Adam Cole at number 23. 
  • Tye Dillinger was scheduled to come in at number 10. However, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens beat him up and Zayn's takes his place.
  • Slater's day doesn't get any better. He gets attacked by Elias, Almas, Bray Wyatt and Sami Zayn as he makes their entrances. Sheamus shows sympathy and throws Slater in the ring and Slater returns the favour by throwing him out. Slater is eliminated by Wyatt seconds later.
  • Kofi's spot this year was one of the best that he's done. Jinder Mahal throws him over thr top rope but he lands one foot on Xavier Woods. After getting a plate of pancakes to keep his foot off the floor, Big E and Woods vault Kofi over Mahal back into the ring.
  • We saw the return of The Hurricane at number 21 and Rey Mysterio at number 27.
The final four ended up being Finn Balor, Shinsuke Nakamua, John Cena and Roman Reigns. Cena eliminates Balor, who lasted 57 minutes and Nakamura eliminates Cena. In the end, Nakamuura eliminates Reigns to win the Rumble. 

I really enjoyed this Rumble and it had some really cool spots. I'm quite surprised that Nakamura won but I think it's the right choice. That means that we will have AJ Styles taking on Nakamura at Wrestlemania and that is a match that I'm really looking forward to seeing. Well, unless WWE find a way to ruin it for us.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura (4 for 6) 

Our 3rd Championship match was Cesaro and Sheamus challenging Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan for the RAW Tag Team Championship. During the match, Cesaro sends Jordan into the ring post. Because of that, Rollins does 99.9% of the match. Jordan does tag in but it's for less then 20 seconds before Rollins is tagged back in. Cesaro and Sheamus go on to get the win and become the new Champions. I thought this was an interesting match and it wasn't known at the time but Jordan has a neck injury that led to what happened during the match. Here's hoping Jordan makes a full
recovery and goes on to cement the heel turn that has brewing for a while.
Winners: Cesaro and Sheamus (5 for 7)

The penultimate match is Bruan Strowman and Demon Kane challenging Brock Lesnar in a triple threat match for the Universal Championship. The match starts at a fast pace and everyone gets fucked up. Strowman powerslams Lesnar through a table but he gets F-5'd  through the German announce table by Lesnar. After tipping the English announce table on top of Strowman, Lesnar then sends Kane through the Spanish announce table with a F-5. In the end, Lesnar sends Kane into Strowman then hits him with a F-5 to get the win. This was a fun match to watch.
Winner: Brock Lesnar (6 for 8)

The main is the first ever Women's Royal Rumble Match. During the match, we saw NXT Superstars Kairi Sane and Ember Moon; plus the return of Lita, Torrie Wilson, Molly Holly, Michelle McCool, Vickie Guerrero, Kelly Kelly, Jaqueline, Beth Phoenix, Brie Bella and Trish Stratus. One of the highlights is Nia Jax, who almost eliminated Naomi but she landed on a group of wrestlers then ends up on the barrier. She manages to get back into the ring thanks to a chair but Nia eliminates her anyway.

The final four end up being the Bellas, Asuka and Sasha Banks. The Bellas eliminate Sasha than Nikki betrays Brie and eliminates her. In the end, Asuka and Nikki fight on the ring apron and Asuka kicks her off to get the win.

Even though there wasn't much that really stood out, I quite enjoyed this match. It was nice to see people such as Beth Phoenix, Molly Holly and Brie Bella make an appearance. Asuka winning was no surprise but it means she will go on to destroy Alexa Bliss at Wresrtlemania.
Winner: Asuka (7 for 9)

I thought that the Royal Rumble was a pretty good event and a good way to start the year. We are now officially on the Road to Wrestlemania and at the minute, I'm quite looking forward to it.