Superstars Reax - 4/29/16, TNA and ROH names on GFW show, WWE Network wins award, Chyna content added to Network, Interview with Camp WWE actor, even more potential WWE DVDs, Smackdown audience, another announcer gone from WWE, new TNA signings, TNA contract renewal, new NXT name speaks, and Questions on Trish vs. Sasha, watching LU, Mulligan's autobiography, and meeting wrestlers

Superstars:
The final WWE appearance of Rich Brennan.

- Ryder vs. D-Von:
I'm surprised the Dudleys are just on Superstars. I expect them to do something at Payback or the night after to set up a feud with Enzo and Cass for Extreme Rules.

I might be the only one who wants Mojo to come out and make the save on a beatdown to set up a tag match.

This is going alright so far.

Surprising win. Good to see Ryder look good after disappearing from TV.

- Kalisto vs. Breeze:
No promo from Breeze about Kalisto wearing a mask? Man. He's really persona non grata right now.

This is pretty good so far.

Nice for Breeze to go for the leg. It's good to see him show more tenacity.

I love the story being told here.

Really solid match. I like seeing both men in action.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Slammys gone from Network, Network targeting scammers and sharers, NXT callups losing names?, Whitmer update, new ROH matches in RI, Ziggler note, lots of potential WWE DVDs, bomb scare at ROH HQ, WWE considering another tier of Network subscriptions, looking at Chyna's impact, Xavier on the reality of wrestling, and Questions on WWE ending up on ESPN, Dreamer vs. WWE, Rose's future, and They Live 2

WWE has removed the Slammy Awards section from the Network. Slammy editions of Raw are still up under that show's category, but the older versions of the awards are no longer available. It's possible not a lot of people were watching those segments, so they were taken down.

WWE Network is cutting back on sharing accounts across devices, as well as implementing stricter verification of payment methods to cut down on the many people letting friends use their accounts without paying, as well as those trying to "game the system." This is LONG overdue, and hopefully leads to more people paying for the Network. It costs money and effort to make the content on the Network, and the people who create that content should be compensated.

WWE has filed to trademark the name Enzo. It's possible WWE pulls a "Cesaro" or "Rusev" and just shortens the new team's names to Enzo and Big Cass. I mean, that's what everyone calls them now. I don't see any problem with it.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

ROH and Smackdown Reax - 4/28/16

Read on for my thoughts on yesterday's ROH and Smackdown.

NJPW name working ROH live event, Flair incident in airport, Impact audience, Chyna's cause of death, new NXT hire, Balor update, WWE shows footage from GCS qualifiers, WWE announcer released, and Questions on "smark" crowds, WWE referencing NJPW, why Shane's running the show (it's the same answer as the last 50 times), LoN losing, and rebooting Rollins

NJPW's KAMAITACHI will debut in ROH against Frankie Kazarian at a live event this weekend, facing ACH as a replacement for Roderick Strong. Interesting that they're using a NJPW name instead of another ROHer or local star; no other stars from Japan are on the show.

- KAMAITACHI has moved to the United States, leading to speculation he's looking to head to WWE. If only WWE had some kind of global series of cruiserweights coming up.

- Strong is missing the show due to a personal issue. Strong is still advertised for the May 9 War of the Worlds PPV.

Ric Flair was held off a flight home to Atlanta after needing medical attention following a fall.

- TMZ published an update as Flair headed home. I hope he's OK and this truly wasn't alcohol-related.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

NXT and Main Event Reax - 4/27/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's NXT and Main Event.

More on CMLL on Fight Network, what happened after Raw, Bret buries Payback, remembering Mahoney, Raw audience, new War of the Worlds match, Titus returns to the ring, and Questions on Graves' commentary, Y2J winning so much, Harts vs. Flairs, how Vince bought WCW, and how WWE is using Shane

The weekly CMLL show coming to Fight Network is expected to be the promotion's Friday night Arena Mexico event. I hope CMLL does well on Canadian TV.

After Raw, Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens attacked Roman Reigns. Dean Ambrose came out to even the odds and run off the heels to end the taping. 

Bret Hart basically threw his Payback appearance under a bus. I'm sure he's a blast at parties.

Memorial services for Balls Mahoney will take place on Saturday in New Jersey. I'd love to hear that a big steel chair brawl breaks out in his honor, complete with entrance music.

Raw's audience Monday was 3.13 million, the lowest mark in almost five months. That's very disappointing given how people have enjoyed the show lately.

Tetsuya Naito vs. Kyle O'Reilly has been added to ROH/NJPW's War of the Worlds event.

Titus O'Neill returned to the ring for WWE in a dark match before Smackdown, defeating Tyler Breeze. I'm curious as to where he and Darren Young go from here.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:

1. He's definitely great in his role. Corey replacing Lawler or JBL would be great given how tired their performances are. Lawler in particular clearly stopped caring a long time ago.

2. It now means more when Ambrose beats him. Styles pinned Jericho the next night on Raw to make it to the WWE Title match at Payback, so he's definitely rising. We'll see what the future holds for Zayn, who's just starting out his WWE career. Wins and losses don't mean all that much in the long run; it's all a matter of momentum.

3. Uggghhhhh.... this is a rematch from Charlotte winning NXT's Women's Championship with the same stipulation. Charlotte's the dirty, dastardly heel. We're supposed to boo her for always having her dad's help. It has nothing to do with "not empowering women" and everything to do with using legends to enhance their feud. It's Bret Hart's niece vs. Ric Flair's daughter. Of course they're going to play into that, especially after Bret's recent health scare.

4. Vince's inside man just pulled the plug on something that was already declining, at a time when the company was getting rid of divisions left and right. They did a good job burying themselves without a Trojan horse.

5. That's really silly. No, they're using a name who's over with casual fans to introduce new characters and presumably a brand split. There's no conspiracy or anything.

More wrestling tomorrow.

TNA Sacrifice Reax

Read on for my thoughts on last night's special edition of Impact Wrestling.

Top lucha promotion airing in Canada, LoN ending soon?, WWE celebrates Canada, ROH travel trouble, concussion in ROH match?, Camp WWE preview, more on WWE in Europe, new T-shirts, Chyna death ruling delayed, Cena return set, new WWE exec for China, more EVOLVE tryouts coming, Payback kickoff match set, more HoH shows set, and Questions on turning AJ, fixing TNA, ROH replacing TNA in the UK, and announcers using the restroom

Mexican lucha promotion CMLL will debut its weekly TV show on Fight Network in Canada beginning May 5. That's great for both sides! Fight Network recently added ROH as well, so there are a number of alternatives to WWE easily available to Canadians.

Alberto Del Rio indicated the League of Nations will be ending soon. With Bray and Harper injured, they're not feuding with the Wyatts, so I guess there's not much else for them to do. I kind of want to see Del Rio team with Primo and Epico; it's not like they're going to get very far by themselves.

WWE will release a Canadian-exclusive DVD celebrating the best of their superstars next month. That's a pretty clever idea! They should do that in the UK as well. 

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Raw Reax - 4/25/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw.

TNA Sacrifice preview

Read on for my ideas for booking tonight's special episode of Impact Wrestling (if it wasn't already taped).

NBA mascot goes ECW, ROH live event note, UK names qualify for GCS, and Questions on Rose's statement, Chyna in the HoF, remembering Chyna, not pushing Paige, and teasing Punk in Chicago

NBA's Memphis Grizzlies mascot went hardcore with the Spurs mascot in one of the most based things I've ever seen as part of a basketball game.

Jay Lethal got the pinfall in the six-man mayhem match at ROH in San Antonio, so no one got a title shot that night. I'll give ROH one thing: They've kept Lethal really strong as champion. With the big wins he has, he looks like a credible champion.

Zack Sabre, Jr. and Jack Gallagher have qualified for WWE's Global Cruiserweight Series following wins in PROGRESS.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I definitely see why he wanted to get his story out. It was ballsy, but sometimes WWE respects that kind of assertiveness from its talents. I think he'll be OK for now unless he really stirs the pot.

2. I think so, because now WWE can control the narrative. They can induct the woman who was a pioneer of women's wrestling in the modern era without addressing Joanie Laurer's personal life. I don't think they would have given her a live mic; they can have someone else speak when inducting her now. None of this means Chyna passing away is a good thing, but if they want to honor her accomplishments, they can present her in a more positive light.

3. I think she'll continue to get recognition for her WWF accomplishments. People were hoping for her to make a comeback in her personal life so she'd get a "happy ending" before passing away, but that doesn't mean she won't be respected for her WWF tenure.

4. I also think she'll be fine. Becky, Charlotte, and Sasha getting the spotlight at WM32 made sense; Paige had feuded for the title earlier in Charlotte's reign. Now it's Natalya's turn to challenge for the title. The division is cyclical.

5. I really hope they don't. They've played that card enough; it's old at this point.

More wrestling tomorrow.

NXT preview, Swagger rumorkiller, Slammiversary set, Balor-NXT update, and Questions on turning Nikita Koloff face, Finn dropping the title, why WWE hasn't bought TNA yet, when we'll see a physical HoF, the Red Rooster, and why there's so much Saxton on WWE TV

This week's NXT will feature:
- Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Elias Samson
- Asuka vs. Eva Marie
- Carmella vs. Aliyah
- Hype Bros vs. Blake and Murphy
- The Revival in action

In a correction to an earlier statement I made, they're unlikely to show content from AXXESS on future episodes as there's another TV taping coming up this week. As such, this week will probably be the last episode using content from Dallas. That's a good thing, as new content will get the brand's momentum moving forward again.

Jack Swagger recently put out a tweet that some interpreted as him leaving WWE. He later confirmed it was in reference to the European tour ending. It's a real shame Zeb Colter wasn't on that tour; he was AMAZING at getting heat when they were there together on a previous tour.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Superstars Reax - 4/22/16, NXT star back in action, NXT injury?, Ascension update, Raw and Smackdown in Scotland, Balor's future, ROH sellouts, new ROH matches, video of NXT Title change, EVOLVE name works TNA, Roode and Young updates, Interviews with Cena/Linda/Bret, another UK qualifying match for GCS, promoting Payback in Chicago, more Smackdowns on Network, more on Chyna, NFL star at NXT show, Knockout leaves TNA, NXT live event notes, and Questions on Chyna

Superstars:
- Show vs. Dallas/Axel:
Really funny segment with everyone locking up Big Show.

The Bo Train's getting a little old at this point.

I guess this is the point of the tour where they gave up and just went to comedy stuff.

The test of strength spot was pretty funny.

Yeah, I can only watch so much of Big Show as a big part of things.

- Kalisto vs. Breeze:
I hope Kalisto doesn't lose another non-title match here.

This is alright so far. Both men have a lot of energy.

LOTS of flippy from Kalisto.

Good to see Breeze wanting to avoid Kalisto's finisher because he knows it'll be lights out if it's hit. You know, because moves hurt and the show isn't just a circus act of stunts.

That ended up mostly good.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

New Day member off European tour, assorted WWE press, TMDK talk NXT, Omega-ROH update, WWE content back on DirecTV, big surprise at NXT live event, and Questions on McGregor to WWE, Paragon Pro Wrestling, trademarking, Team Tremendous, and Cody Rhodes

Kofi Kingston has left WWE's European tour in order to join his wife as she goes into labor. He had full permission to do so. Some things are more important than wrestling!

Sheamus, Rusev, and Sasha Banks visited the Manchester City soccer team to get press for WWE's tour.

The former TMDK talked to WWE.com about arriving in NXT:
- I hope they get a good team name/ring names for their new home.

- Australians with years of experience in Japan makes for an interesting combination of cultures.

- It's crazy to stop and think sometimes that people from all over the world want a shot in WWE.

- They talk a big game about the NXT tag team division. The big test will be the main roster.

- A successful tag team of people who don't get along well is a pretty interesting concept.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Chyna passes away and the industry responds

Read on for coverage of Chyna's passing and reactions to it.

ROH and Smackdown Reax - 4/21/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's ROH and Smackdown.

Lio update, Cena honored, next week's Impact special, more on Dupree lawsuit, post-Smackdown dark matches, WWE live event press, Rose on suspension, Total Divas and Impact audiences, Nash on '97 WCW, another WWE Encyclopedia, WWE Q1 earnings update, another TNA departure official, and Questions on WWE doing a tag team show, WWE matches as stories, Owens feuding with Saxton, TNA's lack of momentum, and "smart" fans affecting ratings

Lio Rush will be competing on EVOLVE 61, so he's not under an exclusive deal with ROH. It's conceivable he ends up in the GCS and/or NXT at some point.

John Cena was given USO's Legacy of Achievement award at their 75th anniversary event. That's a big honor.

- Cena wrote about receiving the honor.

- Triple H flew back to the States to be part of that event before flying back to work the remainder of the European tour. Wow. Bryan and Taker pulling out of those shows really left him with a busy schedule.

Next week's episode of Impact Wrestling will be this year's TNA Sacrifice special featuring:
- TNA World Championship: Drew Galloway vs. Tyrus
- TNA Tag Team Championship Valley of Shadows match: Beer Money vs. Decay
- TNA King of the Mountain Championship: Eric Young vs. Bram
- No Disqualifications, there must be a winner: Ethan Carter III vs. Mike Bennett

This show features the final appearances of Bobby Roode and Eric Young as contracted talent.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

NXT and Main Event Reax - 4/20/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's NXT and Main Event.

Fallout from NJPW PPV cancellation, AJ to address Bullet Club attacks, WWE painter to work live at future taping, future ROH matches, TNA airing in new international market, ManU player to WWE?, new WWE trademarks, Raw audience, top UFC name heading to WWE?, more on TNA's financial problems, Stone Cold facing surgery, WWE live event note, and Questions on TNA's financial situation, unrecognizable wrestlers, AJ Styles in WWE's HoF, WWE working with Bret, and Vince sabotaging TNA

With NJPW's recent PPV cancellation, the matches set for that event will instead take place on their April 27 and May 3 shows.

AJ Styles will appear on MizTV on  Smackdown to discuss the attacks by Gallows and Anderson. Him joining the duo as heels is way too obvious, and would hurt AJ's momentum as a face a mere three months into his WWE career.

Rob Schamberger will be painting live at the May 2 Raw taping. I'm glad WWE is working with him.

ACH vs. Roderick Strong has been added to ROH's show in Rhode Island.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Impact Wrestling Reax - 4/19/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Impact Wrestling.

NJPW PPV canceled, big business for New Day, assorted WWE press, ROH heading to TV in Canada, Kazarian signs ROH deal, new title for ROH?, ROH matches in RI, HOH attendance, HOH teaming with Japanese promotion, HOH moving school, more NXT sellouts, Global Wars PPV main event, NJPW tag champs set for ROH debuts, new Bellas show confirmed, Total Divas update, Dixie losing majority ownership?, Matt vs. Jeff on TMZ, and Questions on turning Roman, Enzo/Cass, the tag team tournament, Shane in charge, and Taker's last match

NJPW canceled their April 29 PPV in the aftermath of recent earthquakes in Japan. That's unfortunate. I hope those in the area are able to bounce back shortly.

Big E thanked New Day fans for the group's big merch sales. I'd like to see more acts grab the bull by the horns like they have.

- New Day are "guest editors" of the UK's New Day newspaper this week. Pretty fitting, I think.

Charlotte and Paige promoted WWE in the UK. Kayfabe is dead.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Raw Reax - 4/18/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw.

NXT and WWE live event notes, more on HOH remembering Balls, NJPW names announced for ROH tour, Undertaker update, Renee to miss TV, Bray injury update, Titus returning soon, and Questions on a tag team main event, pushing Ryder, HHH at Payback, Ambrose's spot, and New Day as singles stars

A number of talents from the most recent Tough Enough competed at NXT's latest live event in Florida. Also, Alex Riley played babyface in a tag match with Mojo Rawley. Ryder's recent singles storyline on the main roster makes me wonder what the status of the Hype Bros is.

Tommy Dreamer released video of him tributing Balls Mahoney along with other ECW alumni and the House of Hardcore roster. Cool to see them all gather together like that.

Ryback discussed his frustrations with how he's being booked and more. Interesting to hear him tease leaving WWE. I'm curious as to how he'd do elsewhere.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Superstars Reax - 4/16/16, NXT live event notes, Interview with Eva Marie, WWE sells out in Japan, E&C show finishes shooting, HoH guests and surprises, two Wellness suspensions, and Questions on GCS qualifiers on the Network, bringing Hogan backs, NXT in MSG, and Mid-South DVDs

Superstars:
- Ryback vs. Sandow:
One good thing about Main Event and Superstars is we get to see some wrestlers with some of the chains off. Ryback's impressive here.

I miss seeing Sandow in longer matches.

Ryback's a better wrestler than we see him as a power guy.

Sandow's pretty impressive here. He's crisp in the ring.

Good ending and good match.

- Breeze vs. Ziggler:
I fantasy-booked these two as a tag team and as cousins before Breeze actually came to the main roster. That seemed like a natural direction so Breeze could learn from the former World Champion.

These two match up well as always.

Also, pairing Breeze with Corbin in an odd-couple team could have been pretty fun. Their styles would mesh pretty well, I think.

I'm liking the counter-wrestling here.

Nice ending. It's nice to see a superkick actually finish a match.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

NXT name returns to the ring, Interview with Credible, Bray update, another NXT sellout, reacting to the former Bullet Club, WWE live event note, GCS qualifiers set, next Takeover special set, top names added to WWE in Europe, HoH remembers Balls, More whining about WM32, Questions on Bryan's future, the Wrestling Album, and deserving NXT callups

Adrienne Reese returned to the ring at an NXT live event this weekend. Given she was working with Asuka, they could be building the former Athena as an upcoming title contender.

Justin Credible discussed "coming out of retirement," the lack of selling today and more:

-  It definitely sounds like he has more important things in his life than wrestling. The match he had was a tag match where his team did the job, so it's not like he made a huge "return."

- He's absolutely dead-on about wrestling today vs. 20 years ago. A lot of wrestlers don't want to learn from veterans. They just want to show off every single move they know.

- I can somewhat forgive NXT being choreographed since it's developmental. The main roster, though? Definitely too rehearsed and too many big moves, taking its cue from the indies. I hope they don't go too far in that direction, but I think it might be inevitable given where the indies are going.

- Since Credible didn't see Ambrose in the weeks and months ahead of Mania, he would see why Dean stood a chance. I think a lot of it is how the business has changed so much to where smaller guys are now pushed as believable and threats.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

GFW notes, Interviews with Morrison/Balor, new WWE trademarks, more Raw on the Network, remembering Mahoney, Piper book update, Steiner opens restaurant, WWE live event notes, another promotion on Fite app, and Questions on Bayley moving up from NXT, Tough Enough alumni, Shane vs. Taker, the lack of seatbelts in driving scenes, Rude on commentary, and TNA's mistakes

Colby Corino will debut for GFW in May. Even if GFW doesn't become as big as TNA, it's still giving work to wrestlers.

Nova Pro Wrestling will hold a No. 1 contender's match for GFW Women's Championship, as ROH's Veda Scott will face Amber Rodriguez.

GFW's Sonjay Dutt will compete against ROH's Sonjay Dutt at an event called for Masters for Ring Entertainment.

Working with other promotions to get GFW names more work is a good move. Right now, the promotion is still an indie vying for a bigger TV deal.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

ROH and Smackdown Reax - 4/14/16

Read on for my take on yesterday's ROH and Smackdown.

Mahoney remembered, another international destination for HoH, Lady Blossom note, indie promotion dropped from MSG Network, more ROH matches set, Interview with Ryder, Impact/Total Divas audiences, another WWE injury, Stardust update, and Questions on the WM32 legends segment, why Y2J beat AJ, fans getting themselves over, and Shane running the show

Balls Mahoney was remembered in his hometown. Wrestling was obviously a big part of his life. It would have been hard to let that go.

- Taz discussed Balls' passing on his radio show.

House of Hardcore will have a show in Australia on June 24. I always assumed the rings were upside down there. Seriously though, that's pretty big for HoH; it's making something of a name for itself.

Lady Blossom will not be appearing at a fan convention as advertised this weekend due to travel issues.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

NXT and Main Event Reax - 4/13/16

Read on for my thoughts on yesterday's NXT and Main Event.

Eric Young update, former ECW Champion back in the ring, more on Orton returning, more on TNA moving, Cena's future, NXT gets new class of recruits, Kalisto update, Raw audience, why Impact's replay was moved, ECW original passes away, new WWE reality show?, and Questions on Jordan on Tough Enough, why Mania is still a hit, Taker's future, changing WWE's announce teams, and Low Ki in the GCS

Eric Young is continuing to get regular indy bookings, so WWE isn't in his immediate future. If WWE does sign Roode, as expected, it'd only be natural for Young to eventually follow. Since neither man is officially part of WWE at this time, it's not out of the question for either or both to work the next set of TNA tapings.

Justin Credible recently returned to the ring despite announcing his retirement a few months back. I get the feeling this is something he's just doing to give back to the business and pick up some extra money while his body can still take bumps. 

Randy Orton indicated he'll be back in a WWE ring in time for Summerslam during an appearance promoting this weekend's live events in the Middle East. Orton vs. Styles would be pretty interesting.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Impact Wrestling Reax - 4/12/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Impact Wrestling.

Where's Cena, Brooklyn sells out again, action star shouts out wrestlers, NXT preview, Holy Foley preview, ROH San Antonio notes, TNA moving HQ, more on TNA's cease and desist, more Taker, Interviews with Cena/Sting, another Field of Honor, football player eyeing WWE, Network lawsuit dismissed, TNA's replay moved, and Questions on WM32 booking, Velocity/Heat on the Network, Reigns' future, and why Breeze isn't pushed

John Cena has been absent from WWE TV due to promoting his new reality show on FOX. I think the show's been great with all the new, fresh matches. His return should be saved for when things aren't so crowded.

The Raw after Summerslam has sold out. It's going to be another big week for Brooklyn.

Actor Chris Pratt thanked a LOT of wrestlers during his MTV Movie Awards acceptance speech. The show was hosted by The Rock and Kevin Hart. Pratt's pretty awesome. I hope he's on Raw someday. I know die-hard fans would hate this, but I'd be totally down for Pratt teaming with Batista in a big match to promote Guardians of the Galaxy 2.

On this week's NXT:
- Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Elias Samson
- Asuka vs. Eva Marie
- The Revival in action
- Hype Bros vs. Blake and Murphy
- Carmella vs. Aliyah

Those first two matches are interesting combinations of experienced names and newcomers. The last match might be really rough given how little experience each woman has. They need the learning experience, though.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Raw Reax - 4/11/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw.

Superstars Reax - 4/9/16, Namakura wounded, Interview with Enzo, where Doc and Karl are, LU releases MVP, and Questions on WM32 booking, Ryder losing to Miz, WWE's roster cuts, WM33, and Brock beating Taker

Superstars:
- Fandango vs. Ryback:
Fandango is about to be kill. :(

Nice action so far. I like Fandango doing the little things that make the match more than moves.

Fandango's getting in more offense than I expected.

Ohhh... well, he was. That was fine for what it was.

I hope this promo doesn't mean they're ending the Outcasts.

PHEW. Bo Train lives on.

- Bo vs. Kalisto:
I like the pushing back and forth thing. Bo's a pretty fun character.

Kalisto's a really great flyer. Sure, he doesn't have great promo skills or anything, but he's fine as a mid-level flippy guy.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

NXT live event notes, Interview with Xavier, Sin Cara grants a wish, more on Mulligan's passing, TNA sued over new faction, new WWN/EVOLVE signing, more Lio, WWE tries to shut down concussion suits, ROH PPVs announced, Smackdown/HoF audiences, and Questions on Bischoff in the WWE Hall, Sunny in rehab, WWE Network airing EVOLVE, HoF speeches, next year's HoF headliner, and Bryan's small package

Notes from NXT's North Carolina debut:
- No Way Jose won.

- John Skyler lost to Elias Samson. I'm under the impression Skyler's not under contract, just working as an enhancement talent.

- Alex Riley beat Blake. No Murphy or Alexa.

- Eva Marie beat Carmella, so those two are at least working NXT for now.

- Austin Aries beat Manny Andrade (formerly La Sombra).

- Two fans got engaged.

- Baron Corbin teamed with Tye Dillinger in a loss to Balor and Nakamura.

- Finn Balor held up a sign after the match asking where Doc and Karl are. They're just going to keep teasing those two, aren't they?

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Cena to donate brain, WWE headed to Hawaii, top NXT names to work in Japan, Interview with Styles, Mulligan passes away, WWE faces class-action lawsuit over Network, Nakamura's theme makes waves, Brie's new WWE role, and Questions on the marathon Mania, talents using agents, using AJ to help get Reigns over, WWE's monitors, and the Gorilla position

John Cena plans to donate his brain to science after he passes away. That's great news for future research purposes.

WWE has announced a show in Hawaii on June 29, leading into their July 1 and 2 shows in Tokyo. Chris Jericho, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Asuka are all listed as being on that loop, so it's safe to say they'll be part of WWE's return to Japan. I wouldn't assume that means Nakamura and/or Asuka will be "called up" by then, but it does look like Jericho will be staying around longer than initially expected.

AJ Styles talked about his jump to WWE, working with Vince, and more. Some are speculating Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows will debut in some fashion during Styles vs. Reigns at Payback.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

ROH and Smackdown Reax - 4/7/16

Read on for my thoughts on yesterday's ROH and Smackdown.

Kickoff TV audience, WWE nominated for Webbys, musical act on Monday's Raw, Stephanie Q&A, more on Network subscriber numbers, top matches set for ROH in San Antonio, Nikki update, more on Shaq vs. Show, EVOLVE shifting its focus, more EVOLVE shows coming, Stokely-EVOLVE update, Impact and Total Divas audiences, and Questions on the Andre battle royal, WWE not booking surprises, the WM32 main event, Shane's punches, and Reigns appealing to kids

The second half of Wrestlemania Kickoff, airing on USA Network, drew 1.32 million viewers. That's not bad. Hopefully it led to more people watching WM32.

WWE Network is nominated for Webby Awards for Best Online Film and Video Sports Channel and Network, as well as Best Streaming App. WWE as a whole was named an honoree for Overall Social Presence, and Xavier Woods' "Up Up Down Down" channel is an honoree in the gaming category. That's all good news for WWE!

Pop rock band Hundred Handed will be part of next week's Raw. The lead vocalist is Dr. Phil's son. I can't say I ever saw a Dr. Phil/WWE connection happening, but it could be pretty fun.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

NXT and Main Event Reax - 4/6/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's NXT and Main Event.

Update on Divas' Champ returning, where's Carmella, the future of Los Matadores, more on Brie retiring, looking at WWE's stock drop, more on the end of Divas, why Zayn didn't compete on Raw, Bullet Clubbers at Raw, new Network collections, WWE lessens effect of contrarian Raw crowd, former TNA name arrested, Raw audience, EVOLVE draws big numbers in Dallas, how Foley made WWN's show, upcoming wrestling books, Summerslam sells out, interviews on Dudleys DVD, and Questions on adding a title to NXT, the road to WM32, Shane vs. Taker, and explaining New Day

Maryse is back with WWE as a regular. It's unknown if she'll return to the ring, but she certainly looks to be in good enough shape to do so.

There's no word on whether Carmella will join Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady on the main roster. She wasn't with them on Raw. While she's a great addition to their act, I think it might be for the best for her to continue to improve as a wrestler in NXT.

Primo and Epico are returning to those ring names after being Los Matadores. It's unknown what this means for El Torito, although it would be hilarious to put him in the GCS.

Brie Bella's retirement will be a focus of next season's "Total Divas." WWE didn't mention her last match on Raw, but they did more or less confirm the news on WWE.com.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Titus O'Neill will be eligible to return at next week's TV tapings. I assume he'll hang out in undercard matches on Main Event and Superstars for now.

- Titus is advertised for a WWE/USA Network sweepstakes at Universal Orlando, so things must be relatively amicable with his return.

Variety looked at the notable drop of WWE stock following the announcement of a slight decline in paying U.S. subscribers to the Network. I think international growth should more than make up for that; a lot of shareholders probably cashed out following the biggest show of the year since "it can only go downhill from there."

NPR covered the transition from the Divas division back to the women's division. WWE really wants to be known as a progressive, family-friendly (and female-friendly) company after the years of raunchy storylines.

The Rock put over his Wrestlemania appearance. I wonder what role he'll have on the show next year; I highly expect him to be part of the show in his home state.

Sami Zayn being "unable to compete" on Raw was just a storyline to set up Cesaro's return. He's fine. I can't wait to see those two mix it up again.

Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows were backstage at Raw, but haven't yet made their WWE debuts. As much else as was going on that night, I think they made the right call in saving them for later. We didn't even see Triple H, Paul Heyman, or Dean Ambrose. I fully expect them to appear before Payback unless they're going to be used for a big angle there (like The Shield debuting at Survivor Series a few years ago). WWE didn't sign them just to keep them on the bench.

WWE Network has added collections showcasing DX and Swerved Season 1. I think collections are a good concept to continue growing the Network. The venture will continue to evolve in the months and years to come.

WWE adjusted the audio of the crowd at Raw for TV. I'm all for that. There's a line between voicing your opinion and negatively affecting the quality of the TV product for the people who are watching for the workers, not the crowd. I doubt this will affect the people wanting to get themselves over, but it does lessen their detrimental impact outside of the arena.

Former TNA wrestler Crimson was arrested and charged with domestic assault after police responded to a call of a man headbutting his wife. That's a very unfortunate story. There were times when he looked like he had a lot of potential to become a big name in wrestling; I expect this will further hamper whatever momentum he had from his TNA run. Interestingly, I can't find any record of him working a match since September.

The post-Wrestlemania Raw drew 4.09 million viewers, a sizable boost from previous weeks. They likely would have gotten even more viewers if they weren't going against the NCAA Championship basketball game.

EVOLVE 58 had close to 1,200 fans, EVOLVE 59 had more than 1,500 fans, and the WWN Supershow drew around 1,200 fans. Those are the biggest attendances in the EVOLVE's history.

Mick Foley got permission from Vince McMahon to skip the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony in order to attend WWN's tribute to Terry Funk. That was a pretty big moment for both men.

A Roddy Piper book written by his son and daughter will be published in October. I hope he's WWE's next statue.

Former WCW wrestler Lady Blossom will be releasing a book soon. She helped create the Stone Cold persona for Steve Austin, including that name.

Summerslam in August has sold out. I expect the following Raw and preceding NXT show to do very well, too.

WWE's soon-to-be-released Dudley Boys DVD features interviews with Spike Dudley, Tommy Dreamer, Taz, and Sign Guy Dudley. 

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I don't think the show is long enough for another title, and, really, the point is to use title matches as a draw for the bigger events. I'm OK with that philosophy. If they did add another championship, I'd suggest a Florida Heavyweight Championship to be contested for exclusively during live events there. The championship would ideally signal who's getting ready for that "next step" of NXT TV and the bigger tours; people like Balor and Joe wouldn't compete for it. Instead, it'd be for people like Andrade, Girard, and Swann to tour the area and build some momentum.

2 and 3 are pretty much the same question. I think the issue is more about certain fans being jaded from having watched wrestling for so long and seeing so much wrestling content in a week. It's harder to impress fans in an era with so much access to past and present footage of many different promotions.

4. Maybe Vince was so confident in Taker winning he didn't care? Or he was caught up in the moment and didn't think that part through? 

5. Hilarious, not booty, and one of the best parts of the show in years. But, yes, it would be more descriptive to describe them as incredibly positive and fun-loving. Personally, I'd take the easy way out and just show them a video.

More wrestling tomorrow.

Impact Wrestling Reax - 4/5/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Impact Wrestling.

Stephanie on ending the Divas division, Goldberg on WM32 rumors, new champions celebrate, Shane's status after HIAC, Taker's homecoming, more on Women's Championship plans, LU name and former Divas' Champ at WM32, Shaq vs. Show, ROH attendance, Cabana-ROH update, Supercard visitors, ROH names hurt, WM32 exit for Brie, more talent scouting in Dallas, big WWE conference call, and Questions on the HoF, rebooking the road to WM32, hot tags, Owens vs. Zayn, and changing Smackdown's announce team

Stephanie McMahon discussed rebranding what is now the WWE women's division. I'm pleasantly shocked they've dropped the "Divas" name entirely outside of the E! show. That's a big statement from Stephanie and Triple H. 

- It's worth noting Stephanie also referred to NXT as WWE's third brand (rather than it just being "developmental"). Big things are afoot in WWE these days as they recruit talent they wouldn't have considered in the past.

Goldberg confirmed on Twitter there were never any plans for him to work  Wrestlemania. I kind of like that he kept us in suspense in this "everyone needs to know everything right now" society. 

Zack Ryder got his wish of holding his  Intercontinental Championship with Scott Hall/Razor Ramon. That's a really cool moment.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

Raw Reax - 4/4/16

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw.

I kind of wish Shane was still in the hospital bed to sell that hellacious match, but at least he's beaten up.

I like Vince blaming the fans for encouraging Shane's dangerous behavior. He's got a point.

That was kind of a weak reason to give up control of Raw for the night. Especially after all Vince went through to stop Shane.

Good promo to get New Day back on track. They could use a win after WM32.

- Kofi/Big E vs. Barrett/Sheamus:

New Day are a lot of fun inside and outside the ring.

So much for that "'smart' crowds only try to get themselves over when the action sucks/it's acts they don't like in the ring" theory. It was a pretty booty theory to begin with.

Nice ending to give New Day the rebound.

Time to kick those "Barrett's leaving soon" rumors up a notch, it looks like.

Oh, NOW we get the LoN/Wyatts feud? Bray really picks his spots.

So Vince just gives up his flagship show for the night? That's pretty out of character for him. 

I'm very glad we're seeing more of Summer Rae after she was on the shelf so long.

- Sasha vs. Summer:

That was OK for the time it had. It was pretty much just to give Sasha some momentum again.

So, did Crews just happen to be backstage already or did Shane call him and tell him to come to Raw? Either way, I'm surprised to see him. He's good, but I think he could use more WWE experience before making as big of a splash as he's capable of.

- Crews vs. Breeze:

Really impressive work from Apollo. We know he can have great squash matches; I just hope he has the promo skills and longer match abilities, too.

Short and sweet Reigns promo. He can be the champion WWE needs if they don't script awful verbiage for him.

I'd be fine with Jericho being Reigns' first big defense. He needs to stack up some credible wins, and Jericho can probably help him reach a higher level in the ring.

Three cool potential opponents for Reigns. I'd like to see all those matchups.

I like Sami, but it's way too early in his main roster tenure for him to challenge for the WWE Title. That would be setting the fans up to complain; pretty much anything is a step down from that.

Jericho's the only one of these four who won at Wrestlemania. I think he has the biggest claim at the title shot.

Good enough promo, though I'm still a little surprised to see Baron called up. NXT's going to need a new big heel.

- Corbin vs. Ziggler:

Fine work from Baron so far. I think he can do pretty well for himself; he certainly has tools to succeed.

Dolph's always a good workhorse to have around.

I'm fine with that ending setting up (an) additional match(es). This is a good first feud to acclimate the Lone Wolf.

Good promo from the new champ.

Miz is great at getting under people's skin.

- Ryder vs. Miz:

Good action to start us off. I can't help but wonder if Zack's NXT partner is waiting in the wings.

Pretty good so far. 

I hope the angle with Zack's dad didn't encourage fans to try to attack wrestlers. Sadly, we've seen that a fair amount in the past year or so.

That was fine for a surprise return and title change. I don't like the "jumping the rail" aspect due to fans wanting to do that more lately, but this could be an interesting direction for Miz.

Nice promo from Owens. He's motivated.

Wow. I like the Vaudevillains OK, but I think they're still missing something as an act. They wouldn't have been my first choice to be called up from that division. I have a feeling we're in for two sets of tag team titles in a brand extension, and they're stacking the roster for that future.

It's a shame that even when the fans do get a segment putting over women's wrestling, they have to disrupt it with chanting before an NXT alumna and leader of the push for that can put the division over.

This is an odd segment, with Charlotte putting the division over and herself over. It's kind of a face segment, but not entirely.

A little surprised to see them going back to Charlotte vs. Natalya, but I guess they're setting the stage for Bret to make a big comeback.

I hope AJ makes it further than that other WCW/TNA alum who lost at a Wrestlemania, then lost a WWE Title match against a member of The Shield.

WOW.  "Two guys from Puerto Rico" is a really boring gimmick. At least they'll be doing something different, although I wouldn't mind them being shipped to NXT to replace the Vaudevillains.

- Usos vs. Dudleys:
Looks like this one's Texas Tornado style.

The Dudleys work better as heels, I think.

I love the Dudleys sticking it to the crowd chanting for tables.

This was more the Usos losing than the Dudleys winning.

Not a bad Zayn promo. He's not really known for being amazing on the mic.

Good angle for Owens to get revenge.

Wow. The Dudleys were out there for a while, huh?

YYYYEEESSSSSSS!! It was definitely time for Enzo and Cass to arrive in WWE. They're a lot of fun.

Wow. No Carmella? I think she's a good addition to the act as a valet, but still has a lot of work to do as a wrestler.

Enzo eating these two up on the mic. I REALLY hope WWE doesn't split the team in order to put Cass over at Enzo's expense. They're a team for a reason.

OH FUCK VACANT'S GOING TO TAKE THE WWE TITLE BACK. Talk about a Hall of Fame-worthy career.

I kind of want to see Ryder and Emma vs. Miz and Maryse at Payback.

Oh, no... another unrelated guest star. I think he's pretty fitting for WWE, though. It could end up being funny.

- Styles vs. Y2J vs. Owens vs. Cesaro:
Cesaro in a No. 1 Contenders'  match works for me! Glad to see the suave Swissman in action again.

AJ Styles, Kevin Steen, and Claudio Castagnoli in the main event of the Raw after Wrestlemania, competing to challenge for the WWE Championship. That's amazing. We could have easily ended up with Big Show vs. Kane vs. Snitsky vs. Khali or something, the way things were headed a few years ago.

Owens teasing Cesaro's swing was great.

I think the Tower of Doom is pretty overused, but I'm glad to see Cesaro's strength in action.

I would have been fine with Owens vs. Reigns at Payback.

 

I'm not really sure why, but I'm not a huge fan of the Giant Swing. It's about as silly to me as the old criss-cross spot.

 

I love submission wrestling.

Well, that makes up for the loss at WM32. I have a feeling Jericho will end up in the title match before it's all said and done. I have mixed feelings about that.

More wrestling coming up.

Neville status update, Vince on HoF, Interviews with Terri Runnels/Bryan, Takeover dark match on this week's NXT, new entrant in GCS, Undertaker meets famous fan, Bryan tributes Brie, delays at WM32, WM32 breaks records, and Questions on Ambrose the MVP, outside talents keeping their names, the debut of the Balor Club, Reigns 2016 as Cena 2006, and Velvet in WWE

Neville stated in an interview he will not require surgery for his recent fracture. While there's no timetable for a return at this time, that's presumably good news on the recovery front. Hopefully we see him in plenty of future Wrestlemanias to make up for missing WM32.

Vince McMahon commented on the WWE Hall of Fame. I don't know whose idea the Legacy Awards was, but I applaud it  wholeheartedly.

Terri Runnels discussed her friendship with Big Boss Man. I'm glad she made the trip to Dallas.

Wednesday's NXT will feature the Apollo Crews/Elias Samson match taped before Takeover in Dallas. I'm glad we'll see that match after all.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

WWE Wrestlemania 32 Reax

Read on for my thoughts on last night's WWE special.

More Takeover notes, another Table for 3, WWE honors pioneers of wrestling, guests in Dallas, Joe's battle scars, updates on rumored upcoming WWE signings, new stip for Reigns vs. HHH, LoN/New Day note, more on NXT heading to the UK, Galloway-EVOLVE update, Interviews with AJ/Sasha, Hogan-WM32 note, Supercard notes, NXT signings official, Orton update, WWN Supershow notes, Sting retires, and Questions on Molly in the Hall, where Shelton is, expanding on the Divas feud, and Smackdown going live

Vince McMahon was backstage watching Takeover:Dallas, and Stephanie was shown in the crowd. I imagine they didn't want Triple H out there getting a face reaction before Wrestlemania, so he stayed backstage. Another big success for NXT. They sold out an arena that fits roughly 10,000 people. 

TNA Lockdown in San Antonio in 2013 (when they were on Spike, featuring the Dudley Boyz, Jeff Hardy, Kurt Angle, and Sting) only drew about 7,200 in their most-attended U.S. show ever. 

WWE filmed a Table for 3 episode with Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, and Tully Blanchard. OH BOY. I bet that one was fun.

WWE, via their official Hall of Fame guide, announced a Legacy Award for Lou Thesz, Pat O'Connor, George Hackenschmidt, Ed "Stranger" Lewis, Sailor Art Thomas, Mildred Burke and Frank Gotch. I'm very glad they did that to honor the legends of years gone by who have passed away. I hope more of those are coming in future years.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

WWE Wrestlemania 32 preview

Read on for my ideas for booking tomorrow's WWE special event.

Kickoff:
- Andre battle royal: This is likely Mark Henry's final Wrestlemania in his home state. I think he's earned the right to win here unless he's feeling really generous. If he wants to give the rub to a younger talent, Braun Strowman is my pick. Being big and dominant is his whole gimmick, and they need a monster for when Henry, Kane, and Big Show retire. I wouldn't be against Henry getting a title feud as part of his "farewell tour." Maybe he puts over the U.S. Champion at Payback and Extreme Rules before having a last hurrah for the WWE Title at MITB? He could snap after Extreme Rules and go on a tear to set that last one up. Make it a Title vs. Career match if the stakes aren't high enough.

- Kalisto vs. Ryback: I don't see any reason to end the Kalisto experiment here. Kalisto wins and faces a bigger challenge in the months to come, as hinted in the previous preview.

- 10-Divas tag: Team Brie wins. Brie thanks her team and the fans on Raw. Naturally Lana interrupts this heartfelt speech to lead to them facing off in Brie's last match. 

- Usos vs. Dudleys: Usos win, but the Dudleys escape the tables. This time... rematches await.

WM32:

- Jericho vs. Styles: AJ gets his Wrestlemania moment in a great match. AJ wants to move forward to the IC Title, and Y2J sets his sights on the belt as well. 

- IC Title ladder match: Zayn vs. Owens at Extreme Rules could be amazing. To build to that and get his heat back from losing at Takeover, Zayn wins here. Zayn, Owens, Styles, and Y2J tango their way to a four-way at Payback.

- New Day vs. LoN: This one builds to an all-out four-on-three brawl. The ref loses control as everyone's in the ring at once, and he eats an accidental Brogue Kick or Bull Hammer when someone else moves. It looks like LoN will win due to the numbers game until a certain someone comes down to electrify the audience and even the odds. Turns out The Rock's been cooking Booty-O's. With his help, New Day retains. I know it's a little silly to think the ref wouldn't hear Rock's music and all that, but I think the crowd will be fine with it. On Raw, New Day celebrate yet another successful title defense. They're cut off by the debuting Enzo Amore, Colin Cassady, and Carmella, because those promo exchanges should be GOLD.

As for Rock, after he has some fun with New Day, he turns serious and addresses the crowd about Roman Reigns, reminding everyone of when HE was getting booed out of the building, and how that put him on the road to becoming The Great One, etc. He says win, lose, or draw, he'll have Roman's back after the match.

- Charlotte vs. Sasha vs. Becky: Ric Flair saves Charlotte from losing, leading to Snoop Dogg coming out and putting Naitch in his place. Sasha gets the win to celebrate with the new Hall of Famer.

- Ambrose vs. Lesnar: These two beat the holy hell out of each other all over the place. Ambrose wins in some insane fashion. Personally, I think they could do a callback to Halftime Heat and have Dean pin him via forklift. They need to put Dean over while keeping Lesnar looking pretty invincible.

- Shane vs. Taker: I hope you liked the booking to HHH vs. Sting. Shane does a big dive that sends both men through one wall of the cell. Or Taker chokeslams him through it or whatever. Cue the Mean Street Posse. Taker eventually fights them off and kicks out of Shane's Van Terminator or whatever his "finisher" is. Then, here comes HBK. He tunes up the band and hits Sweet Chin Music on his Wrestlemania rival. No dice. Vince comes down and has Michaels taken from ringside. Then the Texas Rattlesnake himself makes an appearance. The Stunner can't finish Taker either, and he's ejected, too. Vince decides he's going to get in on the action himself, making it a handicap match. He goes in for the kill on Shane, but Sting appears and hits the Chairman with a bat before disappearing again. Taker breaks up Shane's pin. Taker, Vince, and Shane all get up at the same time, and Vince gets in Taker's face for not getting the job done. Vince slaps Taker, then eats a Tombstone. Taker walks out, and Shane gets the pin. Shane hires Taker back on Raw. Crazy booking? You bet. But it got the Texas legends involved, kept Taker strong, made him reject being Vince's bitch, AND let Shane win without pinning Taker. 

- NOTE: They could also turn Hell in a Cell into Shane/Cena vs. Vince/Taker if Wolverine is actually ready to compete again. If that's the case, they can have Vince take the pin to save Taker. Taker vs. Cena should still be set up for WM33 on Raw. They could even throw a retirement stip in for Taker at some point. Hell, Vince could decide to overrule his previous idea just so Taker can face Cena next year. If Cena is involved here, I think you can use HBK, Sting, Stone Cold, and Von Erich in an homage to the Rock/Austin/Hogan segment at WM30 in order to tribute Texas wrestling. 

- HHH vs. Reigns: Reigns wins an all-out slugfest. Rock comes out to congratulate him, and the show ends with those two getting a standing ovation from the crowd. There isn't a dry eye in the sold-out stadium as they chant "Roman Reigns" in unison. Just kidding. Roman attacks The Rock to turn heel, and more or less "shoots" on the whiners on Raw. HHH vs. Ambrose vs. Reigns at Payback (HHH is something of a tweener. He'll end up being the face authority figure of Smackdown, dumping Stephanie and Vince in the process). Personally, I want Reigns to "replace" Rollins and Ambrose with Bobby Roode and Eric Young as a "new" Shield to further getting heat from the salt mine that is a large chunk of the modern WWE audience. Him leading the former Bullet Clubbers is an interesting idea, too.

More wrestling tomorrow.

NXT Takeover: Dallas Reax

Read on for my thoughts on last night's NXT special.

Top British wrestler passes, more TNA tapings, Foley reality series coming, big Cena update, big debuts set for week after WM32?, indie names wrestling at AXXESS, Bryan update, ROH doing business in Dallas, HHH conference call, first names set for GCS, another international NXT tour, WWE teaming with Snapchat, ROH signing official, Heyman on Kaufman, NXT taping this weekend, lots of names in Dallas, Dusty remembered, and Questions on New Day inducting the Freebirds, supershows, old video libraries, Shane's streak, Ali vs. Inoki, and WCW's Tower of Doom

British wrestler Kris Travis passed away due to stomach cancer at the age of 32. Kris was a contestant on TNA's second British Bootcamp. That's an unfortunate end to someone who could have had a bright future.

- He was remembered by the head of PCW, who dedicated an upcoming show to Travis.

- PROGRESS also remembered Travis.

- As did a cancer charity he worked  with in his final months. 

- Jeremy Borash remembered Travis on TNA's Instagram account.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.

ROH and Smackdown Reax - 3/31/16

Read on for my thoughts on yesterday's ROH and Smackdown.

ROH:
- Strong vs. Moose vs. Sydal vs. Page:
I hate random clustermess matches with no heat. It's lazy booking.

Strong's a pretty talented technician.

I'm liking Strong countering Sydal's flippy shit.

Page is OK. Nothing really stands out with him.

I like Moose bringing something different to this match.

NICE power by Moose.

Strong's a pretty solid worker from an in-ring standpoint. He'd be a good hand to have around.

Sydal is pretty much Indy Wrestler personified. I don't think WWE's missing anything without him.

Moose vs. Strong is pretty interesting. I'd like to see them do their thing without the other two.

And now we're getting into MOVES territory. I hope this isn't the whole show tonight.

Based Whitmer. Easily one of the best parts of ROH.

I liked Roderick stealing the win. He's growing on me as a performer.

Adam Cole should have taken the title. He works circles around Jay as a wrestler and (especially) a talker.

Cole beating Lethal one-on-one would be fine with me to end the monotony of Lethal's reign.

Yeah, the Kingdom's not a thing anymore. TNA unfortunately got Mike Bennett.

Cole, kill this jabroni.

Taven is delusional. He's not even Cole's Jannetty. He's the Barber Shop Window...

Cole should have just superkicked him and broken his crutch.

I enjoyed Castle's promo. Talented character. I don't know how he's survived in ROH with actual charisma, but good on him for doing it.

- Cheeseburger vs. Vinyer:
That was going OK, but I can't say I'm upset at ANX interrupting it. Actually, can this show be 50% non-matches? Those are usually the most dreadful part.

I'm liking ANX's promo here.

Good heeling from ANX. They've got passion here.

ANX's burial of other teams is fine for me, although they're pretty spotty as well.

I was wondering when someone would come save Cheeseburger.

Kind of a forced potential tag team title feud, but at least there's a story.

- Goto vs. Lethal:
I'm liking Goto so far.

Uggghhhh.... Truth Martini. Where's Donovan Dijak already? I was starting to think he was released.

This is alright so far.

Goto's pretty impressive. Can ROH trade Lethal for him?

That was good to show what Goto can do.

OH BASED DIJAK PLEASE DESTROY ALL OF THESE IDIOTS! AND NANA!

FINALLY! FINALLY!

I wish that would have gone on longer... I seriously do wish Truth the best in recovery, though.

Smackdown:

Fun stuff with the Social Outcasts as always. I can't wait to see them win the Andre battle royal.

- Styles vs. Slater:
AJ showing what he's made of, and why he was signed.

AJ's definitely a solid technical athlete, and an exciting performer. Great pickup by WWE.

Oh, well. Maybe Slater will have better luck in Dallas.

- Jey vs. D-Von:
This is going pretty well so far. D-Von works alright as a singles guy here and there.

Fine match overall. The real show is Dunday.

- Ambrose vs. Rowan:

I like seeing Rowan's offense. He's more like Frankenstein's monster than a choreographed performer.

This is fine for something of a filler match. 

Rowan's definitely better in a tag match. I like him, but he works better when he's playing off someone like Harper.

Glad that ended when it did. On to Wrestlemania!

More wrestling coming up.

NXT: Takeover: Dallas preview

Read on for my ideas for booking tonight's WWE Network special.

OK, first things first: key to my plans here would be setting up another NXT special for June. Even if it's "just" in Full Sail, I think the brand needs a good midpoint between this special and Summerslam weekend.

-Crews vs. Samson:

I know a lot of people really don't like Samson, but I don't think they should abandon the project yet. Hopefully we see more of what he can do against a more versatile opponent. This match should give him a chance to show us he's worth doing more with, while Crews shows us he's good enough to be NXT Champion by year's end. Crews wins.

-Asuka vs. Bayley:

I know a lot of people want to see Bayley called up to the main roster with the other Horsewomen. Good things come to those who wait. I don't think the women's division is quite ready for her to go yet; I think I'd rather her debut there around Summerslam or so in order to get the most from the current Horsewomen feuding. If we get a new Divas' Champ at WM32, they shouldn't rush her into a feud with Bayley. Her debut should be a big deal. Anyway, as for this match, Bayley wins a hard-fought contest. Asuka's disappointed in herself for the loss, and refuses a handshake after the match. The stage is set for Asuka to turn heel on the way to a rematch in June (after beating Nia in a contender's match). Bayley can feud with Dana in the meantime. If Dana's not ready to return yet, someone new can challenge the champion. They've got a few women working live events to choose from for that endeavor.

-A. Alpha vs. Revival:

It'd be crazy to stop Alpha's momentum here. They're on fire. I'd be tempted to do a big DQ here to set up a no-DQ match on NXT TV and blow off the feud in June, but I wouldn't complain about a title change.

-Aries vs. Corbin:

I like Corbin, but Aries needs to make a splash in his first (televized) NXT match. Corbin brings all he's got, but Aries is a former World Champion for a reason. He wins.

-Zayn vs. Nakamura:

This is pretty much Zayn's NXT swan song. I think they should use this opportunity to give Shinsuke a big first win. He and Aries are going to be part of "carrying" the show with Zayn leaving. Nakamura vs. Crews for the No. 1  Contendership at the June special.

-Balor vs. Joe:

Balor definitely needs to be done with his NXT commitments in time for WWE's July special in Japan. Rumor has it both men will be called up in a post-Mania brand spilt. I'd let Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows play Hall and Nash for a bit on the main roster, trying to get AJ Styles on their side while hinting at someone else joining them "when the time is right." I'd have Joe get the hard-fought win here, and Aries stops him from maiming Balor in the post-match. Balor gets a rematch on NXT TV, leading to Joe vs. Aries at the June Takeover special. Nakamura challenges the winner for the title in Japan. 

As for main roster futures, how about get Balor vs. Styles in Japan and MITB, then Balor/Anderson/Gallows vs. Joe/Styles/(Cesaro or Zayn) at Summerslam? 

More wrestling coming up.