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Welcome to my live, ongoing blog for WWE Night of Champions, which is being held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
A personal note: I’m asking everyone reading this coverage to consider joining me today in donating to Vibrant Emotional Health, formerly known as the Mental Health Association of New York City. VEH have, for over 50 years, promoted and supported the emotional and mental health of those in NYC. I am asking that anyone who is able to do so please help me today in honoring my late friend Roney Leroy and donate in his name. For more on what Vibrant Emotional Health does or to make a donation, as I have, visit www.vibrant.org. Either way, thank you for indulging me. Onto the coverage.
We get the traditional opening segments showing everyone walking somewhere as they arrive for their matches. Usual formula, again.
Big reaction for Sami Zayn live in Riyadh when they showed him. GUNTHER and Cody were each booed when shown.
Triple H voiced over the opening, so he can have some ESPN TV time.
Jey Uso vs. Oba Femi opens us up. Uso gets the usual electric reaction coming out through the audience. No Jimmy with him.
They did a big entrance for Oba. The crowd was super into chanting for him. Say what you will about WWE running there (and I have), the audience is always joyous about having them there.
Will this match be about ascending Femi to the Summerslam main event or will this be setting up Brock-Oba 3? We will see soon enough.
Early on, it's all about Oba showing off his monstrous power and wrecking Jey. Jey tried to fight back but was beaten on the floor. He shoved Oba into the ring post and nailed some dives but the idea was Femi was still not taken off his feet. He smashed Jey going for a third dive. Lots of Oba chants, almost like the Goldberg chants of the late '90s in WCW. Oba went for a chokeslam but Jey escaped and nailed some offense,. Femi still doesn't go down. Jey finally takes him down and hit a top rope splash but Oba kicks out at one. He smashes Jey with a chokeslam and almost gets the pin.
Uso attacks the mid-section and smashes him with a spear. He goes for another splash off the ropes and this time, gets a two count. Uso cinched in a sleeper and scissorred Femi's body. Oba fought to his feet and just tossed Jey off. Puny human, Oba smash! He nailed the sit-out powerbomb and scored the pin. Match played to Oba's strengths and was OK.
Nick Aldis hands Oba the King of the Ring crown. Oba cut a solid promo about winning.
Oba will main event Summerslam. My guess is that unless they pull some shenanigans with Brock Lesnar to divert him (which they should NOT do), Oba challenges Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight title. We'll see if I'm right.
No commercial breaks during the match. We are 20 minutes in now.
Michael Cole said over 18,000 fans are in attendance. This is not the venue they will use for Wrestlemania next year. They'll be in a stadium for that.
Danhausen came out on stage. He said it was his first time here and it's been very wonderful. I guess we'll see the Internet turn on Danhausen now. He said he came into some money and is continuing his experiments. Liv Morgan's ring introduction cut him off and she came out. She told Danhausen that he owes The Judgment Day a lot of money and needs to pay them back or he's in a lot of trouble. Danhausen said the only person in "Trouble, Trouble" (playing off her theme song) is Liv and cursed her. Oh boy, here we go.
Liv Morgan vs. IYO SKY is up.
Usual full body suits for the women. The crowd was super into each as they came to the ring.
IYO played some games with Liv early on. Morgan cut her off with a rana. They battled to the floor, where IYO hit a bodypress off the guard rail. Morgan cut off SKY and went after the leg, because you can't fly if you can't stand. Morgan scores several two count and drill IYO with strikes. IYO fought back and they battled back and forth with punches, IYO went for a missile dropkick but was caught and slammed down. Morgan stomped her and cinched in a Boston Crab but IYO slipped out and drilled her with a double stomp. IYO nailed a flapjack. She worked over Morgan's arm and finally caught her with a missile dropkick.
IYO scored several pinfall attempts. Liv escaped a double underhook suplex attempt and drilled SKY with a backstabber. Morgan went for a dive but was caught with a forearm. SKY Asai moonsaulted to the floor. SKY nailed a double underhook into a backbreaker but Morgan kicked out. SKY went for another moonsault but was shoved off, crashing down to the steps. She began selling her knee with Morgan attacking the extremity like an Anderson. Morgan pulled at the leg with a single-leg Boston Crab as IYP wailed in agony. IYO kept fighting back even as her knee was giving out.
Morgan drilled SKY with a springboard into a Codebreaker. They battled to the top, Morgan was knocked into the ring, hit with a moonsault and pinned. Well, Liv was cursed!
IYO is the Queen of the Ring and I am guessing she will now challenge Liv for the title at Summerslam.
Good. solid match with a nice story. I'm glad they didn't do Danhausen making something explode or such silliness. That's fine for undercard stuff but not with what's supposed to be a main event.
Nick Aldis presented IYO with the crown. She declared she was the Queen and challenged Liv for Summerslam. It's an easy story to sell. The champ was pinned by her top contender and now has to defend the belt. Fine by me.
They aired a promo for Fanaticsfest featuring names who have canceled off, including Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton. Oops.
Next up is Bron Breakker vs. Seth Rollins inside a Steel Cage
Rollins was out first and Riyadh had a good time singing his song. Rollins tossed a bunch of weapons in the ring quicker than you could say New Jack.
They sat across each other with chairs. Are they going to do the Necro Butcher deal where they sit there and punch each other?
They are NOT. They charge and begin brawling. Rollins was sent into the cage but caught himself and dove off. He tried to throw Bron into it but Breakker blocked and hit a German suplex, then repeated the feat. He is a Steiner, after all! Breakker pressed and slammed Seth to the cage. He began caning Rollins. Breakker kept wrecking Seth until being caught with a powerbomb. They battled back and forth. Rollins caught Bron with a running clothesine. He began tuning up Bron with the cane. Bron was thrown into the cage over and over. Rollins went to the corner but Bron caught him and began wailing away. He nailed a top rope Frankensteiner onto chairs in the ring.
Breakker sat Rollins in a chair and hit a clothesline from the ropes. The announcers claimed he flew 3/4ths of the way across the ring. Breakker began ripping apart Seth verbally, telling him he was going to die. He even sounds like his family. Rollins escaped certain doom and superkicked Breakker, but was speared hard in the center as he was setting up for the stomp. Close two count. Bron kept wrecking Seth and placed him on a table. He teased coming off the top but went to the top of the cage. Seth met him and they battled there. Is someone going off the top of the cage?
Seth ducked back down to the buckles and superplexed Breakker off the top of the cage through the table. He immediately was bleeding from his eye as it appeared a corner of the table caught him as he crashed through it, sending it upwards. There was a lot of of blood. Rollins went for the stomp but Breakker lariated Rollons, then speared him. The crowd chanted, "This is awesome" They showed a close-up of Breakker's face (this is how you know it's a new company) and it appeared the cut was right near the eye socket, so he's lucky it wasn't his eye itself.
Breakker tried to escape but Seth screamed at him to be a man and find out who you are. Lots of Roman Reigns-esque usage of verbal taunts here. Breakker missed a charge and smashed through a table in the corner. Rollins hit a pedigree AND a stomp but Breakker still kicked out. Rollins came off the top with a stomp and pinned Breakker clean.
Seth wins and I can see a lot of people wondering why the hell that was the finish. They wouldn't be wrong in my eyes. One loss won't hurt Breakker but the appearance of being under a glass ceiling certainly will.
WWE United States Champion Trick Williams vs. Ricky Saints is next.
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