So this was a crazy crazy weekend for myself and my wife, who I will be referring to as The Manager from here on out as we took in Royal Rumble Axxess on Saturday morning, TakeOver Phoenix on Saturday evening and the Royal Rumble itself on Sunday. Most of it good, some of it bad, but all of it deserves a story. At this time, I'm going to focus on the experience of Saturday, which means Royal Rumble Axxess (which includes the first round of the Worlds Collide event that will be airing on the network this upcoming Saturday) as well as NXT TakeOver Phoenix. Let me preface this post by saying that this was the really really good day (aside from some parking hiccups, but we won't get into that).
Getting to Axxess was wild, and not always great. First, they had, for the whole weekend, a really insane clear-bag policy. Basically, if you wanted to bring stuff in to any of the events, you had to have it in a clear bag that couldn't be more than 12" X 6" X 12". We were going to be seeing Finn Balor at 8am, and I wanted to bring my figurine that I got with my preorder purchase of WWE 2K17 NXT edition (if you haven't seen that, you should look it up, because it's really cool) for him to sign, but that wasn't an option with that bag-size thing. Anyway, The Manager and I met him, had our photos taken with him, exchanged a few words and yes, he really is as cool as he seems. Then we went over to the WWE Superstore where they had every goddamn thing you could pretty much ever want available to purchase, including a title replica belt that cost over $2000 (I don't remember what it was for, but that's a lot of money to spend on a replica belt). I got the special Johnny TakeOver shirt (the red one) and The Manager got a "I Was There" shirt with a cactus on it because she's a huge mark for cacti. Then we went to sit down by the ring they had set up for Worlds Collide. Now, I've never been to one of these so I wasn't aware that there was going to be lines for open meet-and-greets with other WWE talent, so I was kind of bummed to take part in any of that, but it didn't really matter because staying and sitting right beside the entrance ramp for Worlds Collide was way cooler.
For those of you unfamiliar with this setup, this was a tournament between 5 stars each from NXT, NXT UK and 205 Live. The lineup from 205 Live was Cedric Alexander, Drew Gulak, TJP, Humberto Carrillo and Tony Nese. From NXT UK, it was Tyler Bate, Travis Banks, Zack Gibson, Mark Andrews and Jordan Devlin, and from NXT, it was Velveteen Dream, Adam Cole, Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic and Shane Thorne. I'm not going to get into spoiler territory, but it was just so fucking cool to be able to slap hands with everyone coming up and going back down the entrance ramp. There were a few surprises as well as Toni Storm came out to cut a promo, and was interrupted by Rhea Ripley, and WALTER had a dark match against Danny Burch. Worlds Collide really felt like a tiny house show and it was just so much damn fun and I would have liked to stay for more, but when you're at Axxess, you're basically buying into a block of time, and our time was from 8am - noon. So once the first round was over, the next one was at 1pm, so you had to go.
The next few hours were spent by going back to our car, changing our shirts so we could rep Johnny Gargano, finding a place to eat that was potentially vegetarian-friendly or at least had some gluten-free options, and we ended up at Carl's Jr., because they were right inside Talking Stick Arena and they had inexpensive fries.
Then came TakeOver Phoenix. The Manager was in charge of all the ticket-purchasing, and she did a fantastic job squaring away tickets for this event. We were hard camera-facing side, just a little to the stage right side of camera, in the front fucking row. We were both in awe. Now, we've been to three other WWE shows at Talking Stick (2 eps of Raw and Elimination Chamber 2017), but this was the dream to see a live NXT TakeOver, considering that these are essentially the best shows put on by WWE as a whole. I was a little uncertain as to how the taped events for the NXT after a TakeOver would go. I didn't know if they were filmed after or before. Common sense dictated they would go on before, but who knew? We were there as soon as the doors opened, and we could see the pre-show being taped around 3-ish, which meant that they were going to show the taped matches beforehand, and we got the team of Io Shirai and Kairi Sane vs Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir to kick it off, followed by Street Profits vs The Forgotten Sons. I'm not going to spoil the results, but these were really fun matches to get the crowd hyped up, and then it was time. Side-note: I'm going to be referring back to the Hopes and Predictions column I put up last week as I go through these matches so I could see where I was right and where I was wrong.
First up, we got the NXT tag title match with War Raiders vs champs The Undisputed Era. First of all, what a fucking cool entrance for War Raiders, and this was a really smart decision. Of almost all of the competitors, these guys were the ones that really needed some pre-match pomp and circumstance. I know that War Machine has been around in New Japan and ROH for a while, and I only saw them maybe twice in NJPW matches, and I haven't made a secret of how sort of underwhelmed I've been with them in NXT, but this entrance and this match really changed my mind on these guys. I was fucking amazed at how much chemistry they had with Strong and O'Reilly, and as the match progressed, with so many badass moments (like watching a 300-lb man do a handspring off the ropes) had me really getting behind War Raiders. So when they took the win and became the new NXT tag champs, I was not disappointed at all. All parties involved put on a ferociously solid match with really excellent chemistry and terrific dramatic moments all around. So with this match, I was wrong with my hopes, but I was right with my predictions. Undisputed Era had a good long run with the titles, and it was time to see what someone else could do with them, so I'm excited to see what Rowe and Hansen have in store for us.
Then we got the grudge match between Kassius Ohno and Matt Riddle. This was a really good match with some good storytelling. It was more interesting to watch Riddle fight from underneath than just to come in and dominate, and that really helped give the match the drama it needed. Again, Booking 101 goes a long way, and there were very clear reasons that this match was happening. I still don't fully understand why the main roster tries to hard to muddy up the waters when it comes to their booking, but whatever; Vince is gonna Vince. So as predicted (and hoped), Riddle came out on top leaving Ohno tapping out after a flurry of hard-hitting strikes and a submission hold combined with more elbow strikes, leaving Ohno not only defeated, but with a massive chip on his shoulder as well, so the future for Ohno looks a lot more interesting even with this loss. I do have to add that one of my favorite moments of the night happened during the post-match, when Riddle took a break from strutting around the ring to looking up at the Tron and watching his own victory and genuinely looking surprised and happy that he was on TV. It was such a great little character moment that makes things go a long way to show how committed he is to this character. Riddle is going to be a big star in NXT, and everyone knows it.
Then we got the match. The one I had been waiting for and the one that I knew was going to be just magical to watch, and that was the North American title match between Johnny Gargano and champ Ricochet. What can I honestly say about this match that hasn't already been said? This match had me on the absolute edge of my seat all throughout. The Manager and I were jumping up and down with each new spot and with each near fall and false finish. At a certain point, I thought I was going to go blind from the sheer awesomeness content of this match. As Johnny gave us the MOTY winner in the NXT Year-End awards at this same time last year in his match against Andrade at TakeOver Philadelphia, he and Ricochet may have done it again here. I'm sure Johnny will find a way to top this, because he usually does, but this was everything for me. As Johnny hit that final slingshot DDT to get the win, it confirmed my hopes and predictions, but it also confirmed that Johnny should have a nice run with the North American title, and that even bigger things might be headed his way. And that ring gear for both of them... goddamn. The One and Only wearing some Spider-Man inspired gear, and Johnny had put on his Instagram a tease from the legendary Dark Phoenix Saga from Uncanny X-Men and to see that reflected in his gear just made my heart soar. He truly is Johnny TakeOver.
Next up was the NXT Women's title match between Bianca Belair and champ Shayna Baszler, and I have to say, this was easily Belair's best showing in NXT to date. I haven't been shy about Belair's need to not only have a really strong outing, but also to have a more clearly-defined character. She's not exactly a heel, not exactly a babyface, but she's not exactly a tweener either. This match and its booking went a long way towards making her a more solid babyface than I thought possible. It wasn't exactly a full-steam match, but it had some really good spots and fucking hell, I don't care who you are; that hair whip has got to hurt, and Bianca did not pull it with this match. As far as my hopes and predictions, I was partially wrong on both ends, because I had predicted that it would end in a DQ, or that Baszler would retain clean, but when that ref bump happened, I knew that Duke and Shafir were going to schmozz it up to help their fellow MMA Horsewoman retain, and while that wasn't exactly what happened, as The EST cleared out the interfering duo, it still helped Shayna to choke out Bianca, despite her attempts to power out. I know I stated that having a DQ finish would protect them both, especially Belair, since that meant she could keep her undefeated streak, but in hindsight, this was the better move. It will allow Belair to work on getting back to a point where she's confident enough to take on The Queen of Spades again after this ended her undefeated streak, and that will allow her character to become more clearly defined, which is all Belair really needs. Overall, this was a great match that really sold me on where Belair is going and the wicked triumvirate of Baszler, Duke and Shafir looking to continue their stranglehold on the Women's roster in NXT.
Then we got the main event, the one-on-one rematch between Aleister Black and champ Tommaso Ciampa for the NXT title. As predicted, this was all about pain, and which competitor could take the most. No big spot-fest, no really fancy moves, just punishment. And this was more fantastic storytelling as Ciampa went to work early on Black's leg to take away the ability to hit the Black Mass. Watching Black fight from underneath is when he's at his best, and that was the story of this match as we saw Aleister struggle and claw his way back into the match. As is the case with Blackheart, he was relentless in dealing out the damage, and this is where Ciampa is at his best. At a certain point, it almost felt like they were just about to forget the rules and just pound the shit out of one another with everything at their disposal. When Aleister finally was able to hit the Black Mass but his leg left him unable to capitalize, it was heartbreaking and that's what pro wrestling is all about. And when Tommaso hit the Fairy Tale Ending the last time for the win after Black failed at his attempt to hit another Black Mass because of the damage to his leg, it solidified Ciampa as the very best heel in all of WWE. It was like watching a chess grandmaster pull out his whole bag of tricks in order to get over his stronger, tougher opponent. I was bummed because I didn't get it right in either my hope or prediction for this match. Yet another great match for Blackheart and for The Devil's Envoy. A great final match to an evening of great matches.
However, this wasn't the finale. As Ciampa headed up the ramp, holding his title up high, Johnny was there to meet him. There was a palpable energy and furious tension as we didn't know exactly what was going to happen between them. Was Johnny finally going to take out two years of frustration on his former best friend in the same fashion that Tommaso had, or were they going to celebrate their titles together? But Johnny held his title up high alongside his former tag partner, and this prompted Velveteen Dream to come out, who had been competing all day in Worlds Collide, and he made it clear that he was coming for someone, whether it was Ciampa again or Gargano. Dream was met by Adam Cole, who had also been competing at Worlds Collide, and the trio of heels was facing off against a trio of babyfaces as Black and Ricochet joined them. An all-out brawl broke out between the trios that had to be broken up backstage by none other than Triple H, who went into the room with the heels. Now this signaled to me that, while I was wrong about my predictions for Black/Ciampa, again in hindsight, I see how this was the better move. This is not the end for any of these stories, and that makes me freakishly excited to see how 2019 is going to unfold for NXT, because this is where it all really begins to take shape. After the show officially ended and the cameras were off, the babyfaces came out to pose and basically thank the audience to massive applause and cheers, which were much deserved. So since I promised some photos, here comes a gif of that:
And here's a still of that.
And here's some other photos. They're not great, but they're good enough...
Here's Tommaso pleased with his handiwork.
Here's Shayna and Bianca getting ready to square off.
Here's a short video of Ricochet getting in the ring.
Here's Velveteen Dream at Worlds Collide POINTING AT ME.
Here's Aleister hitting the Black Mass as best as I could get it.
Here's Bianca doing her thing pre-match.
Here's Johnny giving a big smile after his title win. Watch his expression change. It's why I slowed it down:
Here's Matt Riddle strutting after his victory.
And here's me and The Manager repping Johnny in our seats.
That is it for this recap, everyone! Thanks for reading and being patient. I will have my recap of the Royal Rumble later this evening, so be on the lookout for that, and naturally, I will follow that up this week with recaps of the regular broadcasts of Raw, Smackdown and NXT, so stay tuned!
Until next time, kids...
Getting to Axxess was wild, and not always great. First, they had, for the whole weekend, a really insane clear-bag policy. Basically, if you wanted to bring stuff in to any of the events, you had to have it in a clear bag that couldn't be more than 12" X 6" X 12". We were going to be seeing Finn Balor at 8am, and I wanted to bring my figurine that I got with my preorder purchase of WWE 2K17 NXT edition (if you haven't seen that, you should look it up, because it's really cool) for him to sign, but that wasn't an option with that bag-size thing. Anyway, The Manager and I met him, had our photos taken with him, exchanged a few words and yes, he really is as cool as he seems. Then we went over to the WWE Superstore where they had every goddamn thing you could pretty much ever want available to purchase, including a title replica belt that cost over $2000 (I don't remember what it was for, but that's a lot of money to spend on a replica belt). I got the special Johnny TakeOver shirt (the red one) and The Manager got a "I Was There" shirt with a cactus on it because she's a huge mark for cacti. Then we went to sit down by the ring they had set up for Worlds Collide. Now, I've never been to one of these so I wasn't aware that there was going to be lines for open meet-and-greets with other WWE talent, so I was kind of bummed to take part in any of that, but it didn't really matter because staying and sitting right beside the entrance ramp for Worlds Collide was way cooler.
For those of you unfamiliar with this setup, this was a tournament between 5 stars each from NXT, NXT UK and 205 Live. The lineup from 205 Live was Cedric Alexander, Drew Gulak, TJP, Humberto Carrillo and Tony Nese. From NXT UK, it was Tyler Bate, Travis Banks, Zack Gibson, Mark Andrews and Jordan Devlin, and from NXT, it was Velveteen Dream, Adam Cole, Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic and Shane Thorne. I'm not going to get into spoiler territory, but it was just so fucking cool to be able to slap hands with everyone coming up and going back down the entrance ramp. There were a few surprises as well as Toni Storm came out to cut a promo, and was interrupted by Rhea Ripley, and WALTER had a dark match against Danny Burch. Worlds Collide really felt like a tiny house show and it was just so much damn fun and I would have liked to stay for more, but when you're at Axxess, you're basically buying into a block of time, and our time was from 8am - noon. So once the first round was over, the next one was at 1pm, so you had to go.
The next few hours were spent by going back to our car, changing our shirts so we could rep Johnny Gargano, finding a place to eat that was potentially vegetarian-friendly or at least had some gluten-free options, and we ended up at Carl's Jr., because they were right inside Talking Stick Arena and they had inexpensive fries.
Then came TakeOver Phoenix. The Manager was in charge of all the ticket-purchasing, and she did a fantastic job squaring away tickets for this event. We were hard camera-facing side, just a little to the stage right side of camera, in the front fucking row. We were both in awe. Now, we've been to three other WWE shows at Talking Stick (2 eps of Raw and Elimination Chamber 2017), but this was the dream to see a live NXT TakeOver, considering that these are essentially the best shows put on by WWE as a whole. I was a little uncertain as to how the taped events for the NXT after a TakeOver would go. I didn't know if they were filmed after or before. Common sense dictated they would go on before, but who knew? We were there as soon as the doors opened, and we could see the pre-show being taped around 3-ish, which meant that they were going to show the taped matches beforehand, and we got the team of Io Shirai and Kairi Sane vs Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir to kick it off, followed by Street Profits vs The Forgotten Sons. I'm not going to spoil the results, but these were really fun matches to get the crowd hyped up, and then it was time. Side-note: I'm going to be referring back to the Hopes and Predictions column I put up last week as I go through these matches so I could see where I was right and where I was wrong.
First up, we got the NXT tag title match with War Raiders vs champs The Undisputed Era. First of all, what a fucking cool entrance for War Raiders, and this was a really smart decision. Of almost all of the competitors, these guys were the ones that really needed some pre-match pomp and circumstance. I know that War Machine has been around in New Japan and ROH for a while, and I only saw them maybe twice in NJPW matches, and I haven't made a secret of how sort of underwhelmed I've been with them in NXT, but this entrance and this match really changed my mind on these guys. I was fucking amazed at how much chemistry they had with Strong and O'Reilly, and as the match progressed, with so many badass moments (like watching a 300-lb man do a handspring off the ropes) had me really getting behind War Raiders. So when they took the win and became the new NXT tag champs, I was not disappointed at all. All parties involved put on a ferociously solid match with really excellent chemistry and terrific dramatic moments all around. So with this match, I was wrong with my hopes, but I was right with my predictions. Undisputed Era had a good long run with the titles, and it was time to see what someone else could do with them, so I'm excited to see what Rowe and Hansen have in store for us.
Then we got the grudge match between Kassius Ohno and Matt Riddle. This was a really good match with some good storytelling. It was more interesting to watch Riddle fight from underneath than just to come in and dominate, and that really helped give the match the drama it needed. Again, Booking 101 goes a long way, and there were very clear reasons that this match was happening. I still don't fully understand why the main roster tries to hard to muddy up the waters when it comes to their booking, but whatever; Vince is gonna Vince. So as predicted (and hoped), Riddle came out on top leaving Ohno tapping out after a flurry of hard-hitting strikes and a submission hold combined with more elbow strikes, leaving Ohno not only defeated, but with a massive chip on his shoulder as well, so the future for Ohno looks a lot more interesting even with this loss. I do have to add that one of my favorite moments of the night happened during the post-match, when Riddle took a break from strutting around the ring to looking up at the Tron and watching his own victory and genuinely looking surprised and happy that he was on TV. It was such a great little character moment that makes things go a long way to show how committed he is to this character. Riddle is going to be a big star in NXT, and everyone knows it.
Then we got the match. The one I had been waiting for and the one that I knew was going to be just magical to watch, and that was the North American title match between Johnny Gargano and champ Ricochet. What can I honestly say about this match that hasn't already been said? This match had me on the absolute edge of my seat all throughout. The Manager and I were jumping up and down with each new spot and with each near fall and false finish. At a certain point, I thought I was going to go blind from the sheer awesomeness content of this match. As Johnny gave us the MOTY winner in the NXT Year-End awards at this same time last year in his match against Andrade at TakeOver Philadelphia, he and Ricochet may have done it again here. I'm sure Johnny will find a way to top this, because he usually does, but this was everything for me. As Johnny hit that final slingshot DDT to get the win, it confirmed my hopes and predictions, but it also confirmed that Johnny should have a nice run with the North American title, and that even bigger things might be headed his way. And that ring gear for both of them... goddamn. The One and Only wearing some Spider-Man inspired gear, and Johnny had put on his Instagram a tease from the legendary Dark Phoenix Saga from Uncanny X-Men and to see that reflected in his gear just made my heart soar. He truly is Johnny TakeOver.
Next up was the NXT Women's title match between Bianca Belair and champ Shayna Baszler, and I have to say, this was easily Belair's best showing in NXT to date. I haven't been shy about Belair's need to not only have a really strong outing, but also to have a more clearly-defined character. She's not exactly a heel, not exactly a babyface, but she's not exactly a tweener either. This match and its booking went a long way towards making her a more solid babyface than I thought possible. It wasn't exactly a full-steam match, but it had some really good spots and fucking hell, I don't care who you are; that hair whip has got to hurt, and Bianca did not pull it with this match. As far as my hopes and predictions, I was partially wrong on both ends, because I had predicted that it would end in a DQ, or that Baszler would retain clean, but when that ref bump happened, I knew that Duke and Shafir were going to schmozz it up to help their fellow MMA Horsewoman retain, and while that wasn't exactly what happened, as The EST cleared out the interfering duo, it still helped Shayna to choke out Bianca, despite her attempts to power out. I know I stated that having a DQ finish would protect them both, especially Belair, since that meant she could keep her undefeated streak, but in hindsight, this was the better move. It will allow Belair to work on getting back to a point where she's confident enough to take on The Queen of Spades again after this ended her undefeated streak, and that will allow her character to become more clearly defined, which is all Belair really needs. Overall, this was a great match that really sold me on where Belair is going and the wicked triumvirate of Baszler, Duke and Shafir looking to continue their stranglehold on the Women's roster in NXT.
Then we got the main event, the one-on-one rematch between Aleister Black and champ Tommaso Ciampa for the NXT title. As predicted, this was all about pain, and which competitor could take the most. No big spot-fest, no really fancy moves, just punishment. And this was more fantastic storytelling as Ciampa went to work early on Black's leg to take away the ability to hit the Black Mass. Watching Black fight from underneath is when he's at his best, and that was the story of this match as we saw Aleister struggle and claw his way back into the match. As is the case with Blackheart, he was relentless in dealing out the damage, and this is where Ciampa is at his best. At a certain point, it almost felt like they were just about to forget the rules and just pound the shit out of one another with everything at their disposal. When Aleister finally was able to hit the Black Mass but his leg left him unable to capitalize, it was heartbreaking and that's what pro wrestling is all about. And when Tommaso hit the Fairy Tale Ending the last time for the win after Black failed at his attempt to hit another Black Mass because of the damage to his leg, it solidified Ciampa as the very best heel in all of WWE. It was like watching a chess grandmaster pull out his whole bag of tricks in order to get over his stronger, tougher opponent. I was bummed because I didn't get it right in either my hope or prediction for this match. Yet another great match for Blackheart and for The Devil's Envoy. A great final match to an evening of great matches.
However, this wasn't the finale. As Ciampa headed up the ramp, holding his title up high, Johnny was there to meet him. There was a palpable energy and furious tension as we didn't know exactly what was going to happen between them. Was Johnny finally going to take out two years of frustration on his former best friend in the same fashion that Tommaso had, or were they going to celebrate their titles together? But Johnny held his title up high alongside his former tag partner, and this prompted Velveteen Dream to come out, who had been competing all day in Worlds Collide, and he made it clear that he was coming for someone, whether it was Ciampa again or Gargano. Dream was met by Adam Cole, who had also been competing at Worlds Collide, and the trio of heels was facing off against a trio of babyfaces as Black and Ricochet joined them. An all-out brawl broke out between the trios that had to be broken up backstage by none other than Triple H, who went into the room with the heels. Now this signaled to me that, while I was wrong about my predictions for Black/Ciampa, again in hindsight, I see how this was the better move. This is not the end for any of these stories, and that makes me freakishly excited to see how 2019 is going to unfold for NXT, because this is where it all really begins to take shape. After the show officially ended and the cameras were off, the babyfaces came out to pose and basically thank the audience to massive applause and cheers, which were much deserved. So since I promised some photos, here comes a gif of that:
And here's a still of that.
And here's some other photos. They're not great, but they're good enough...
Here's Tommaso pleased with his handiwork.
Here's Shayna and Bianca getting ready to square off.
Here's a short video of Ricochet getting in the ring.
Here's Velveteen Dream at Worlds Collide POINTING AT ME.
Here's Aleister hitting the Black Mass as best as I could get it.
Here's Bianca doing her thing pre-match.
Here's Johnny giving a big smile after his title win. Watch his expression change. It's why I slowed it down:
Here's Matt Riddle strutting after his victory.
And here's me and The Manager repping Johnny in our seats.
And here's arguably my favorite video from Worlds Collide as Tyler Bate and Cedric Alexander faced each other.
That is it for this recap, everyone! Thanks for reading and being patient. I will have my recap of the Royal Rumble later this evening, so be on the lookout for that, and naturally, I will follow that up this week with recaps of the regular broadcasts of Raw, Smackdown and NXT, so stay tuned!
Until next time, kids...
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