SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE MAIN EVENT
JANUARY 23, 2019
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA.
AIRED ON HULU
REPORT BY MIKE MEYERS, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Announcers: Percy Watson, Byron Saxton, Renee Young
REASONS TO WATCH…
- Rezar turns up the personality while working solo.
- Revolving door of announcers continues.
(1) REZAR (w/Drake Maverick) vs. TYLER BREEZE
During ring entrances, the announce team spoke of the upcoming match with regards to the upcoming Royal Rumble match, and the wrestlers “making a case” to participate. Also, it was pointed out that Rezar’s AOP partner, Akam, is out injured. Breeze’s beard is coming in very nicely – his face now resembles Jason Lee’s character from Mallrats.
The bell rang and Rezar immediately started in with big-man tactics against Breeze. Breeze was punished in the corner, tossed across the ring, and strung up on the rope and punished some more. When Breeze managed to use his agility to escape one move, Rezar caught him anyway and punished him some more. Between these bouts, Rezar screamed angrily at the crowd in another language. (Dutch? I’m out of my element.) The announcers agreed that Breeze should wave the white flag. “He just celebrated his birthday, he might want to make it to his next one,” said Renee.
Breeze kicked out of a pin after sustaining a sidewalk slam. Rezar lifted Breeze from the mat and applied a chinlock while Maverick screamed, “Squeeze! Squeeze! Aggression!” from ringside. While being urged on by the clapping crowd, Breeze managed to get to a vertical base, but Rezar took that opportunity to toss Breeze across the ring again with a fallaway slam. Rezar attempted a reverse body splash off the middle turnbuckle, but Breeze rolled aside and got to his feet. Rezar staggered toward Breeze, and Breeze landed a reverse kick to Rezar’s abdomen – his first offense of the match.
Breeze landed a drop kick, an enzuigiri, and two flying forearms. Rezar caught Breeze in his attempt at a third forearm, but Breeze struggled out and landed a super kick, knocking Rezar to the mat. Breeze covered for a two-count. Breeze was the first to his feet and scaled the outside corner. Rezar rose and caught Breeze at the top, and executed a normal looking body slam. Rezar then covered for a two-count.
Breeze reversed out of Rezar’s lumbering grip and applied a sleeper hold while perched on his shoulders. After some awkward wriggling around, Rezar finally applied a big choke slam and pinned Breeze for the three-count.
WINNER: Rezar by pinfall.
(Meyers’ Analysis: It was neat to see one half of AOP working a singles match – this pseudo spotlight allowed a solo character to be displayed more prominently. Neither Rezar nor Maverick ‘took the night off.’ Both were highly engaged, screaming at the crowd, at each other, and at Breeze. If Breeze had gotten in 30% less offense it would‘ve been an old school enhancement match.)
-Main Event recap session:
Replay of Balor vs. Strowman (with Lesnar at ringside) from Raw
Statistics of the Royal Rumble video package
Replay of Natalya & Rousey vs. Banks & Bayley from Raw
Match rundown for upcoming PPV, Royal Rumble
(2) NO WAY JOSE vs. MOJO RAWLEY
As with the first match, the announcers said that the wrestlers could make “one final statement” to get a spot in the Royal Rumble match. After a brief exchange in the middle of the ring, Jose got the early upper hand with a body splash in the corner and repeated kicks. Jose leaped over a charging Rawley, but was then powered into the corner by Rawley’s bulldozer shoulder, followed up by three shoulder thrusts into Jose’s stomach.
After the ref backed him away from the corner, Rawley delivered the world’s safest head butt into the eight-inch buffer zone that is Jose’s hair. While Rawley applied heel maneuvers to Jose now in the opposite corner, Vic reminded us that Rawley won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royale two years ago, and that he expected to be a champion by now. When Rawley started “toying” with Jose, Jose clotheslined Rawley out over the top rope, then leveled him with a cannonball dive from the apron.
After a commercial break, Jose maintained the advantage back in the ring. Jose landed chops and punches in the corner, and went to whip Rawley across the ring but Rawley blocked the move with a fistful of Jose’s hair – which Jose sold nicely. Rawley hoisted Jose onto his shoulders and dropped him neck-first across the top rope. Jose writhed across the canvas in agony and draped his arms over the opposite bottom rope, and Rawley charged from across the ring to land repeated kicks on his prone opponent. Rawley delivered more shoulder thrusts in the corner before slamming Jose to the mat and covering for a two-count.
Rawley postured cockily toward the crowd, who booed him for his antics. Rawley locked in a chinlock and shouted at the crowd, “This is your boy!” Jose got to his feet but Rawley slammed him to the mat and covered for another two-count. Jose began to pick up steam, knocking Rawley down multiple times before splashing him in the corner and landing a big boot. Jose scored two-count after a high cross body from the corner. After trying to pump the crowd up, Jose was leveled by Rawley with a running shoulder tackle. Vic shouted, “Whoa, talk about explosivity!”
(Meyers’ Fun Fact: The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) is a relative measure of the explosiveness of volcanic eruptions.)
Rawley charged at Jose in the corner but Jose sidestepped, then rolled up Rawley for another two-count. Rawley executed a sit-down Alabama slam for the three-count. Rawley continued to taunt Jose after the victory, and shouted emphatically at the crowd.
WINNER: Mojo Rawley by pinfall.
(Meyers’ Analysis: A skippable match. Rawley‘s finishing move looked kind of neat, but the two points of impact (Jose‘s back bump and Rawley‘s butt bump) did not occur simultaneously – Jose landed a split second first so it was a noticeable one-two crash. This seems really nitpicky, but with 10% more precision, the move would look 200% cooler.)
SHOW SCORE (0-10): 6.2
FINAL THOUGHTS: Tune in to watch the amped-up Rezar perform in solo action with the amped-up Maverick at ringside. Then turn Main Event off and check out the newly added old Superstars programs added to the WWE Network.
CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S REPORT: 1/16 WWE Main Event TV Report: Dana & Moon vs. James & Fox, Hawkins & Breeze vs. Ryder & No Way Jose
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