WWE Champions Corner (19-20 Mar): Suspension? What Suspension?

brock roman
Source: WWE

What a week! We witnessed the Ultimate Deletion where Bray Wyatt is currently drowning in a lake, Randy Orton showed some emotion, and Daniel Bryan has been cleared by WWE to compete once more. But my territory is purely golden, so on we go to the Champions Corner.

 

The Universal Title

Hell must have frozen over at some point, because Brock Lesnar actually showed up on Raw this week. What’s more, he didn’t just skip on the spot while Paul Heyman cut a promo. So what did the Universal Champion do? He kicked Roman Reigns’ arse.

Jumping the barricade like the “valiant hero” he is, Reigns “bravely” defied his suspension order to confront Kurt Angle on Lesnar’s whereabouts. Naturally, this led to his immediate arrest because three US Marshals had nothing better to do other than watch wrestling. I’ll be honest, when Angle said Lesnar was running late, I thought that WWE were going down that no-show route again, so seeing “The Beast Incarnate” come down the ramp to beat the crap out of a handcuffed “Big Dog” was a genuine surprise.

It looked like Lesnar was having fun as well, and the crowd was cheering too. The only person who didn’t like it was Michael Cole, who insisted that Reigns hadn’t done anything to deserve such treatment. I guess Cole missed the bit where Roman attacked three US Marshals for doing their job.

For some, this segment has done enough to build up the Lesnar/Reigns match at WrestleMania. For others, it’s too little, too late. It’s always fun to watch the crowd reject Roman and chant “you deserve it” whilst Lesnar kicks the shit out of him, but this bout has been on the books officially for over two months (and unofficially for three years). This hasn’t been a feud, it’s been an argument, and one good week doesn’t make up for several bad ones.

Take note, WWE. Even though you’ve been pushing Reigns as the one who shows up every week, the crowd still rejected him in favour of Lesnar. Stop pushing “The Big Dog” as the next John Cena, and let him find an organic way to the top. He’s a much better performer than the fans give him credit for, and the reason for that is Vince McMahon’s ongoing stupidity.

 

The Intercontinental Title

We are less than three weeks away from WrestleMania, and our Intercontinental Champion The Miz still isn’t getting the respect he deserves. Aiming to beat it out of his opponents, Miz teamed up with The Miztourage to take on Gallows & Anderson with “Prince Nevitt” in a six man tag match (I double-checked, The Miz definitely called Finn Bálor ‘Nevitt’).

So, the two mini factions went back and forth in standard six-man action. Nothing truly exciting or original happened, and having Seth Rollins on commentary throughout wasn’t very entertaining. As much as I love Seth’s in-ring work, he’s just not enjoyable to listen to for so damn long. Surprisingly, Bálor got the win by pinning the champ. I knew Bálor was getting the win, but to have him pin his Mania opponent when there were two others who could’ve took the fall seems detrimental to “The A-Lister.”

After the match, The Miz, Dallas & Axel took out The Club, and Rollins made his way to the ring, saving Bálor from a serious beating. The segment ended with Rollins and Bálor standing tall over Miz, with Rollins proclaiming “The Demon” owes him. In what way, I’m sure we’ll find out.

The attention the Intercontinental Title is getting is great, and having three former world champions fight for it is making the strap feel very important. But in all the ‘standing tall’ moments going on between Rollins and Bálor, the champion is coming across as very weak. The Miz is arguing that he’s not getting respect, but losers don’t tend to be the most respected athletes. It wouldn’t hurt to give Miz a few big wins; it’d give his campaign a lot more meaning.

 

The Raw Women’s Title

All in the same week, Brock Lesnar showed up on Raw and Alexa Bliss had a match that wasn’t some crappy six-woman tag bout. And who did Bliss face in her first one-on-one match in what must be a decade? Asuka!

But before all that, “Little Miss Bliss” had some words for Nia Jax, and none of them were very nice. She said she was sorry she didn’t make her spiteful feelings towards Jax public sooner, and that venting to the audience felt like dropping 300 lbs of sad, pathetic loser from her back. That was cruel, Bliss, very cruel.

The match between Bliss and Asuka was good and scrappy. It wasn’t Mania-worthy, but it was definitely better than most Raw matches. The ending was 50/50. I liked seeing Bliss fight through the pain to get out of the ankle lock, but for her to walk off and throw the match, it just put a damper on an enjoyable segment. It made sense though in the long-run; Asuka wins, Bliss doesn’t really lose, and everyone still looks good for their Mania matches. And of course, it set up for the post-match events.

Nia Jax came charging after Bliss, and was so close to getting her hands on the evil little so-and-so. “The Goddess” made her escape through the crowd and complained to Kurt Angle, but Angle was having none of it. Angry at her demeanour as champion, the GM said Nia will get what’s coming to her: a title match against Bliss at WrestleMania.

Story-wise, everything has gone pretty well. The Raw Women’s Championship has gained a lot of exposure, and there’s a lot of emotional investment in it to carry the match, considering it won’t be as good as the SmackDown bout from an in-ring perspective. Nia vs. Alexa is a good call. I just hope Vince does the right thing by giving “The Irresistible Force” the win.

 

The Raw Tag Team Titles

There is news! By the decree of Kurt Angle, Braun Strowman must find a partner to take on Sheamus & Cesaro, or else he forfeits the right to challenge for the Raw Tag Team Championships. But on Monday, Strowman wanted to prove himself in one-on-one action against Cesaro.

Both men knew their roles in this one. Braun slammed Cesaro around like a rag doll, and “The Swiss Cyborg” used his speed, cunning, and mohawked cohort to his advantage. Cesaro attempted to Neutralize “The Monster Among Men” several times, but Strowman’s power game was just too much. While it would have been a hell of a feat, it was the right move to not let Cesaro hit it; for now, we have to believe that Strowman is a god-damn monster. In the end, a quick Powerslam spelled the end for the tag champ, and Braun has picked up a good chunk of momentum on his way to the titles.

It’s interesting to speculate who Strowman’s partner will be. The smart money is on Elias, considering their recent altercations, but other names that have popped up include Samoa Joe and James Ellsworth. Some people have suggested Alexa Bliss as well! The odd situation has a lot of people hooked, and it’s brought an interesting twist to keep the titles from getting lost in a flood of other Mania matches. It pays not to get your hopes up too much though if you’re expecting a decent pay off, this is WWE after all.

 

The Cruiserweight Title

This was the week we’d find out who’d be going on to WrestleMania to face Cedric Alexander in the finals of the Cruiserweight Championship tournament. Battling for their spot at the Show of Shows was Mustafa Ali and Drew Gulak, and boy, did they give it their all.

When you watch a match, you want to believe the wrestlers are fighting for a reason. The way Ali and Gulak went at each other, you could tell they believe in their dream of becoming champion at Mania. Ali was once again a human highlight reel, hitting a 450 knee strike from the top rope to the outside, diving across the announcer’s desk to launch a flurry of strikes, and reversing a dragon sleeper into a DDT. Likewise, the man from Pennsylvania was as ferocious as ever, whacking Ali’s eye into the ring apron, and tossing him from the desk to the hard floor below. Gulak made one mistake and it cost him dearly, allowing Mustafa to hit his inverted 450 splash to advance to the finals at WrestleMania.

Literally any two superstars in this tournament could’ve won, and there’d be no complaints. The fact Mustafa Ali and Cedric Alexander are competing at Mania though says a lot about how Triple H wants to run the cruiserweight division going forward. Both wrestlers are superb ambassadors for 205 Live, they represent how hard work, determination, and the courage to face adversity can result in great things. If this is how Triple H wants to run things, he has my vote 100%. Now that the final is set in stone, it’s time to sit back and watch as Ali and Alexander build up their match.

 

The WWE Title

With AJ Styles quietly trying to nurse his injury, he stayed on the sidelines this week for the rematch between Rusev and Shinsuke Nakamura.

As expected, it was a very good back and forth, but the winner was never in doubt. Shinsuke picked up the 1, 2, 3 with a roll up, but was immediately pounced on by Aiden English and Rusev. Styles got up very slowly to make the save, but by the time the champ was ready, “The King of Strong Style” had already dispatched those wily miscreants by himself, something AJ failed to do last week.

This was a very interesting ploy by WWE. Obviously, Styles’ involvement is being kept minimal so he doesn’t aggravate his injury, but it’s also adding just a dash of heelishness (I know that’s not a word, but it should be!) to his character. Whether it turns into something full-blown or whether it’s just a red herring, it’s definitely worth keeping an eye on to see what happens. It’s a shame all this is happening at the expense of Rusev though…

 

The US Title

No match for the three men embroiled in the feud for the US Championship this week, but we got something quite rare in its place: a passionate promo from Randy Orton.

Jinder Mahal came out spouting his usual ‘I’m the best, I deserve the title’ spiel, which Bobby Roode put a stop to. Roode told Mahal that he will beat him to become US Champ again, and he’ll do it at WrestleMania and it will be… something. I’m not sure what because Randy Orton came out, his title in tow.

Randy’s obviously getting sick of hearing from Jinder, as “The Viper” cut a promo that had actual emotion behind it. It’s nice to see Orton finally getting the hang of the basics. He told “The Modern Day Maharaja” the truth, that without his boys, Mahal sucks. From there, that Singh Brother whose name I can never remember got planted by Roode, and the former champ went to DDT Orton as well. Things ended with a stalemate, with all three men vying for the title standing their ground.

Not a bad week at all in regards to the US Title. They’re still trailing behind the IC strap on Raw, but Randy was funny this week. He said what most of us are thinking to Jinder, and things are looking pretty balanced with no one seeming to have the upper hand.

 

The SmackDown Women’s Title

Charlotte Flair looked to renew an old rivalry this week, going toe-to-toe with Natalya. Could the Women’s Champion manage to best her old foe, or did “The Queen of Harts” steal some of Flair’s much needed momentum?

It goes without saying that Flair and Natalya have truly incredible chemistry. Their match this week was way too good for a generic SmackDown broadcast, but I am damn glad to have seen it anyway. The fun went into overdrive as Carmella’s music hit right near the end of the match. With her Money in the Bank briefcase in tow, “The Princess of Staten Island” looked to become champion, but Charlotte pretty much booted the make-up from Carmella’s face before the official cash-in. In the confusion, Natalya rolled up Flair for the victory.

A very interesting sequence of events indeed. With Mania so close, it seems odd that Flair would take a loss. It wasn’t a completely clean loss, but it’s still in the record books. There are talks of Carmella cashing in at WrestleMania, so maybe her run-in this week was foreshadowing of things to come. I suppose we’ll have to wait and see.

 

The SmackDown Tag Team Titles

The Usos might have been beaten senseless by The Bludgeon Brothers, but they weren’t staying down. This week, Jimmy and Harper faced each other in singles action.

If there’s one thing that both Usos and Bludgeon Bros can do, it’s deliver intensity. Every kick, every slam, every move has power and ferociousness behind it. The match wasn’t a long one, but it did its job in making Jimmy look like a valiant fighter, and Harper a merciless harbinger of doom. Harper got the win with a big clothesline that spun Jimmy into a spiral. Saving his brother from more punishment, Jey pulled his tag partner out of the ring and headed back up the ramp.

It seems to be a trend that Raw is going for story-telling to build their title matches, where SmackDown are going for pure in-ring action. The Usos vs. The Bludgeon Brothers will certainly be a hard-hitting affair, and I can’t wait to see what they can do in an official tag team match.

And that’s that for another week. As per usual, there were ups and downs, but if nothing championship related tickled your pickle this week, just remember that Daniel Bryan is cleared to compete in WWE. If that doesn’t bring a smile to your face, nothing will.

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