Post by Slade on Jan 3, 2021 8:08:24 GMT -5
Date: December 28, 2020
From: Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey
Commentary Team: Michael Cole, Tony Schiavone and Jim Cornette
Ring Announcer: Lillian Garcia
***
EDDIE EDWARDS vs. LUKE HARPER
You would be forgiven for thinking you witnessed a lucha libre contest between two cruiserweights here. While Edwards could pass as one, Harper way to be big, and yet, he matched Edwards’ speed, agility, and penchant for high-risk maneuvers. After a topé suicida and chokeslam on the floor, Harper was in control. Edwards mounted a short-lived comeback that was snuffed out when Harper executed a superkick on a diving Edwards. He waited for Edwards to get up before nearly taking his head off with a discus lariat and pinning him for the win. (8:47)
Winner: Luke Harper
***
MONTEZ FORD vs. JAKE HAGER
Montez Ford brought a swagger into the ring that had the fans on his side. Jake Hager brought a nasty attitude into the ring. Hager was in control to start, but Ford’s incredible vertical leap allowed him to hop over a charging Hager, whose shoulder met the turnbuckle post. After that, Ford rallied. He was in a groove right up until he went for a frog splash. Hager put his knees up and when Ford landed on them, Hager grabbed him by the ankle and applied the ankle lock. Ford tried to get to the ropes and then flipped around and tried to kick Hager away, but Hager avoided it and kept the hold on to force the submission. (6:58)
Winner: Jake Hager
After the match ended, Hager was joined in the ring by the rest of the Inner Circle, who came to congratulate him. They also came to talk crap about the Hart Foundation, who it was noted were not in the building tonight. Jericho accused them of going home to Calgary to lick their wounds over the holidays after Santana and Ortiz beat The Hitman and The Anvil (and two other teams) in last week’s main event. Jericho went on to say that The Hitman probably wouldn’t show his face until the Royal Rumble when he challengers Samoa Joe for the MUW Men’s World Championship, a match he predicts will be a squash for the Samoan Submission Machine.
Before anything more could be said, Brian Pillman hopped the guardrail and entered the ring, not afraid to face the Inner Circle on his own. He said the rest of the Hart Foundation couldn’t get out of Calgary because of bad weather, not because they were afraid of the Inner Circle. He said no one was afraid of this collection of clowns standing before him and challenged any of them to prove their superiority by beating him in a match right here, right now.
BRIAN PILLMAN vs. ORTIZ
Ortiz answered the challenge, but like his partner, Santana, a few weeks earlier, he was forced to submit to the cross armbreaker, which Pillman applied after hitting Santana with Air Pillman. (6:09)
Winner: Brian Pillman
After getting the win, Pillman was attacked by the rest of the Inner Circle. After Hager landed a Hager Bomb on Pillman, and Sammy Guevara gave him a shooting star press, Santana and Ortiz held him up by both arms so that Jericho could give him the Judas Effect. However, as Jericho was getting ready, Samoa Joe’s music hit and the MUW Men’s World Champion came out. He said that the Inner Circle was a joke, and Jericho was the biggest punchline of them all. He hears Jericho run his mouth about how great he is week-in and week-out but doesn’t see him do anything to prove it. He knows Jericho wants a shot at his gold and that he thinks he deserves it way more than Hart. Joe said that because we’re about to enter a New Year and he wants to start it off on a winning note, next week, if Jericho can beat him one-on-one, he’ll let him join the Royal Rumble main event for the MUW Men’s World Championship. Just then, Pillman started attacking members of the Inner Circle again. He went through Santana, Ortiz and Guevara before getting knocked out by Jericho’s Judas Effect. Having finished with that, Jericho picked up the mic and accepted Joe’s offer, telling him that he’s making the biggest mistake of his life because when Jericho beats Joe twice in January and becomes the MUW Men’s World Champion, 2021 will be known as the Year of Jericho!
***
Jonathan Coachman had an interview with Bayley, who bragged effusively about her dominance over Ember Moon last week. Bayley said that she barely broke a sweat in winning the match in under five-and-a-half minutes. Even she surprised herself at how easily she defeated the so-called War Goddess. Bayley made a point of talking herself up as a great, golden role model, and said that all the betting houses in Vegas will be putting the odds on her to become the first WWE Women’s Champion. Ember Moon crashed the interview set to say that Bayley took the cheap way out of their match last week and challenged her to rematch, but Bayley balked, saying that she had nothing more to prove against such poor competition.
***
RED VELVET vs. MICKIE JAMES
In Mickie James’ first match since Survivor Series, she reminds us how talented she is by dominating Red Velvet, finishing her off with a Mick Kick followed by the Mickie-DT. (3:38)
Winner: Mickie James
***
Kevin Owens came down to the ring. Before getting in, he looked under the ring and found a few chairs. He brought them inside and opened them up, placing them about 5-feet apart facing each other. He grabbed a microphone and said that he was desperate to talk about what happened last week between he and Rowdy Roddy Piper, but he felt that a formal interview was the best way to do it and invited Tony Schiavone into the ring to conduct the interview. Schiavone entered the ring and Owens told him to ask him any questions he wanted. Nothing was off topic nor out of bounds. Ever the professional, Schiavone started light by asking him about his holiday and then got to more pointed questions about his time here in WWE. When Schiavone asked Owens specifically about what happened last week, Owens had some choice words for Piper. He said that his New Year’s resolution is to end Piper’s career.
Then, he said he had a question for Schiavone, and asked him what gave him the right to hurl insults at him on the commentary table. Schiavone looked confused and feigned ignorance. Owens told him not to take that tone with him because he was way too smart to fall for it. He watches the tapes back. He sees and hears what goes on. He knows that, unlike Cornette, who is unbiased and says nothing but nice things about him, that Schiavone is an unprofessional twat who has been Piper’s number one cheerleader since the relaunch of Monday Night RAW. Owens went on to say that he had an important message he wanted Schiavone to pass on to his idol. Then, he pulled Schiavone up out of his seat, kicked him in the stomach and gave him the Stunner! After that, Owens folded up the chairs and threw them down on Schiavone’s back. A long line of referees and security personnel came flooding out of the back. Owens left the ring as they arrived and left of his own accord. Schiavone was put on a stretcher and taken out of the arena, leaving a 2-man booth of Michael Cole and Jim Cornette for the rest of the evening.
***
ROB VAN DAM vs. ERICK ROWAN
This match saw one of the loudest pops of the night for the surprise debut of Mr. Monday Night. Van Dam was in fine form, and while Rowan threw his weight around, the end result was never really in question. Van Dam did a matrix evasion to avoid a running clothesline. He caught a kick attempt from Rowan and countered with his windmill kick. He followed that with a variety of kicks, leading to a rolling thunder and then a slingshot leg drop, which he followed with a Five-Star Frog Splash for the win. After the match, Luke Harper entered the ring and tried to take Van Dam down with a discus lariat, but he ducked it and gave him a spin kick and then a clothesline over the ropes. He followed that up with a springboard topé con hilo! Van Dam left his hands raised and the Wyatt Family looking like an embarrassment. (6:45)
Winner: Rob Van Dam
***
DAVEY RICHARDS vs. ANDRADE CIEN ALMAS
This match turned in Andrade’s favour when Graza tried to trip up Richards, who then turned around and argued with Garza, who then spat in his face. Eddie Edwards ran around the ring and attacked Garza. As the referee was distracted by this, Zelina Vega climbed the turnbuckle and gave Richards a diving hurricanrana. With Richards landing in the corner, Andrade ran in and hit him with double-knees to the face. After that, he dragged him out of the corner and gave him La Sombra for the win. (10:31)
Winner: Andrade Cien Almas
***
Jonathan Coachman had an interview with Bianca Belair, who reminded us that was still pissed off at the IIconics for their actions in helping Tenille Dashwood to defeat her 3-weeks ago. She says that Dashwood couldn’t beat her without the help of her lackeys, and she’ll prove it. Belair is going to take out both members of the IIconics, one at a time, starting next week when she goes one-on-one with Billie Kay. Then, we’ll see how Dashwood does without them around to win her matches for her.
***
DANIEL BRYAN & RICKY STEAMBOAT vs. WORLD’S GREATEST TAG TEAM
This tag team match was about as technically sound as they come. It didn’t lack for drama either. Charlie Haas, Shelton Benjamin, Daniel Bryan and Ricky Steamboat all had their moments to shine. The longer the match went on, the more intense it became. Pinfall and submission attempts also became more frequent, but it seemed like no matter what anyone tried, it was not going to work.
The first time it seemed like the match might end was when Bryan got Haas in the Yes! Lock while Benjamin and Steamboat were brawling outside the ring. Haas couldn’t reach the ropes and tried to get his body turned to get a toe on the bottom rope, but he was about two inches too short. It seemed hopeless, but then Benjamin, after giving Steamboat a release German suplex on the floor, came around the ring and broke up the hold with a springboard elbow drop to Bryan’s lower back.
Later, decorum broke down after Steamboat saved Bryan from a pinning predicament. Bryan tagged out, making Steamboat the legal man. With all four wrestlers engaged in a fight, Steamboat went to the top rope to try to finish off Haas. Benjamin shoved Bryan into Haas, knocked his partner down but putting Bryan right in the path of Steamboat’s diving crossbody. Steamboat checked on his partner’s well-being after hitting him the move, but by taking his focus off his opponents for a few moments, he made himself vulnerable to them. Haas and Benjamin were ready. As soon as Steamboat got back to his feet, he turned to face Benjamin, who gave him a superkick into Haas’ bridging German suplex. 1…2…3! (19:43)
Winners: World’s Greatest Tag Team
***