WWE Main Event
WWE Network
Orlando, FL
July 22, 2014
Last night on WWE Raw, we were introduced to a new faction in WWE. Xavier Woods motivated Kofi Kingston and Big E into joining forces with him to take what is theirs – a better spot in WWE. How will this new group handle their first night as a unit? We find out tonight on WWE Main Event!
Before our first bout, we were alerted that tonight’s main event has been changed to Rusev vs Jack Swagger in a Battleground rematch. On Raw, the match was announced as Sheamus vs Rusev.
Seth Rollins vs FANDANGO: Seth Rollins pinned Fandango via curbstomp. Seth Rollins could not believe he was in the ring, forced to wrestle, this joke that is Fandango. At first, Seth was toying with Mr. Dango. However, Fandango hit a nice dropkick on Rollins early which forced Mr. MITB to take the dancer a bit more seriously. A bit, anyway, because Fandango is still kind of a joke. Rollins did win rather easily with his turnbuckle powerbomb into the curbstomp combo.
Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton discussed, then cut to a video of, Brock Lesnar’s return last night on Raw.
Jey Uso vs The Ryback: Ryback pinned Jey Uso after a meathook clothesline. The crowd is still kind of getting into The Ryback again. It’s amazing. As an early jumper onto the Ryback bandwagon, I am glad to see this little resurgence out of nowhere. Curtis Axel and Jimmy Uso were at ringside, cornering their tag partners. Axel tried to get involved late by distracting Jey, but Jimmy cut him off with a dive off the apron. Jimmy’s move backfired, however, as Jey was watching on. This allowed Ryback to surprise Jey with the meathook and get the pinfall. New tag contenders are made just that easy. This match, like the opener, wasn’t very long at all. Rapid fire night here on Main Event.
Backstage: Heath Slater was super excited about Slater Gator, but his partner, Titus O’Neil, is not so enthused. He told Renee Young that he and Heath are not a team. O’Neil told Heath to shut up and follow his lead. Slater remained enthused, saying they’re the best tag team since Chief Jay Strongbow and Sonny King.
Roman Reigns vs Alberto Del Rio is your Smackdown main event.
Slater Gator vs Don’t Call Them ‘The New Nation’: Kofi Kingston & Big E defeated Heath Slater & Titus O’Neil when Big E pinned Titus, who was stacked under Heath. Another short match, with Big E and Kofi dominating the action. Kofi was doing his best to play a mean guy. He’ll need some time with it. The new Xavier Woods unit came out to Big E’s music, and all did their best to show that they’re no longer interested in dancing around or playing up to the fans. They mean business now!
Tom & Byron (Do not google Tom Byron) played a recap video of Battleground’s Rusev vs Swagger. The finish was shown, specifically calling it a countout. So the ambiguity from Raw, where they made it seem like a submission victory, was not seen here tonight.
Backstage: Zeb gave a history lesson to the Russians. He said that if Americans gave up at the first sign of struggle, where would the world be? He told everyone to pay attention to which flag they’d be waving at the end of the night.
Backstage: Renee Young asked Slater Gator about their loss tonight. Titus called Heath bad luck, saying he’s better as a one man team. When Titus left, Slater told Renee that he’s just upset. Slater Gator is here to stay!
Before the next match, Lana got her microphone time back. She referenced the white flag mystery surrounding the Brooklyn bridge, saying it is a sign of America’s surrender. Tonight, Swagger will surrender to Rusev.
The Main Event: Jack Swagger defeated Rusev via DQ. This 8 minute match was slowly paced for the most part, with a lot of HOLDS taking place. Late in the match, Swagger went for a Swagger bomb but Rusev stuck his foot up to counter. Swagger saw it, avoided the foot, and locked in the ankle lock. Rusev struggled to the rope, but got there to break the hold. Then, the fight broke down as the two men went outside the ring. Rusev nailed Swagger with the Russian flag, causing referee Jason Ayers to signal for the bell. SWAGGER WINS! Back in the ring, Rusev was about to nail Swagger with the flag stick again, but Zeb grabbed at it to turn Rusev’s attention. Swagger then recovered and landed a big boot onto Rusev as Lana looked on worried. With Rusev taken out, Zeb Colter grabbed the flag of the USA and gave it to Swagger. Swagger held up the flag, waving it around as Rusev and Lana backtracked towards the entrance stage. The battle rages on, and we may get a flag match at SummerSlam after all.
Final Thoughts:
No Sheamus last night, and no Sheamus tonight. Nice surprise! The matches were all short, with the main event lasting 8 minutes, which was almost as much as the previous three matches combined. Unlike the last few weeks of Main Event, this show didn’t have a singular theme. The last few weeks were all about getting over the IC Title battle royal. This week’s was about advancing, albeit slightly, a couple of new directions and a big match going into SummerSlam. It was a fine show, although nothing special. I keep waiting for that special Main Event. I may be waiting a while.
