The Official WWE / NXT Discussion Thread *May Contain Spoilers*

[RayW]

After reading the comments here it seems I may be in the minority in that I didnt enjoy Brock vs Cena.

 

I love MMA, I love wrestling. I love one sided MMA fights. It's something you know you're getting yourself into when you buy an event. If it was a UFC event last night and Lesnar done 16 German suplexes I'd be marking out that he could do that to someone in a legit battle.

 

But this is professional wrestling. I don't buy an event to see an extremely one sided main event. I buy to be entertained. And sixteen German suplexes isn't entertaining in professional wrestling.

 

I get what they are trying to do, it's the whole "Lesnar still has the MMA mentality", but come on. I want to see professional wrestling when I buy WWE events, not faux MMA combat.

 

Anyway...

 

Other than that, it was a top event. Thoroughly enjoyed the Ambrose / Rollins match.

[FINisher]

Really loved the main event, I wouldn't have enjoyed as much if it hadn't been someone else than Cena taking the beating. Not that great as a match but great as a moment. Anything where Cena takes a beating and actually loses, I like. Though I do like Lesnar but after beating Taker and Cena, who's really left for him to take on? Roman Reigns seems to be the only face who has atleast some credibility to take on Lesnar.

 

Ambrose - Rollins was fun to watch, really loving the whipping lariat from Ambrose. Paige vs. AJ could have used more wrestling and more spots but I'm not complaining, they're both awesome. I was disappointed with Steph vs. Bella though.

[Rickymex]

Wasn't there originally going to be a Rock-Brock WM31 match until Rock injured himself filming Hercules and needed surgery or something?

 

rock got injured against John cena

[Teh_Showtime]

Loved Paige vs. AJ Lee and Orton vs. Reigns.

 

Best women's wrestling I've seen in the WWE in a long time.

 

Really? It wasn't bad at all but it was five minutes and nothing close to what NXT produces on a regular basis

 

The only lowlight of the show was the lack of time their match got because with 10-15 minutes they could have a compelling match with more than just cool moves

 

Fantastic show with pretty much no bad things happening though. Any Lesnar hate has been and always will be silly

[Kitarzu]

Wasn't there originally going to be a Rock-Brock WM31 match until Rock injured himself filming Hercules and needed surgery or something?

 

I also think Bryan would be the ideal guy but all signs seem to be pointing to Reigns-Brock WM judging by how Reigns has been pushed

 

That was the plan. The injury happened during WM29. 2 years, even after a surgery and shooting movies is a long recovery time.

 

Reigns main eventing WM31? Another nightmare after The Miz? No thanks. I had enough after the rumble this year.

[milamber]

SummerSlam Review:

 

Cesaro vs RVD - Good match but RVD winning was pointless if he's leaving again. Cesaro is putting on good matches every week and deserved the win, even if it's just the pre-show.

Miz vs Ziggler (Intercontinental Championship) - Good match. Surprised that Ziggler won. I'm torn because I like Ziggler but Miz has been entertaining as the IC Champ.

Paige vs AJ (Divas Championship) - Good match. I marked out for Paige winning with the RamPaige. I'd like to see an NXT-style match at Night of Champions, as we've only seen these 2 brawling before hitting their finishers.

Rusev vs Swagger - Good match. I like the injuries angle and it allowed Rusev show that he could sell for his opponent. I'm glad Rusev won because it's only his 2nd proper feud so he needed a big win, even if it was at the

expense of what would have been a crowd-pleasing victory for Swagger.

Rollins vs Ambrose - Great match. Contender for best Lumberjack match in history. Now that's how you do an overbooked finish. This has the makings of an all-time classic feud if they keep it going through Night of Champions and Hell in a Cell. LOL at Sandow's casual lumberjack costume.

Bray vs Jericho - Good match. Bray's best solo performance since he beat Bryan last year but I still think he needs to work harder to impress in longer matches. He got the clean win he needed after the Cena feud. Bray's butcher outfit and Y2J's red-light jacket and countdown clock were cool.

Steph vs Brie - Unexpectedly good match. Steph can really go in the ring and her moveset puts a lot of experienced wrestlers to shame. And her outift looked awesome. I found myself rooting for Brie for the first time ever. Using Ronda Rousey as Steph's muscle instead of a predictable Nikki heel turn (probably my fault for reading the dirt sheets) would have been more interesting. I suppose a Nikki feud could be a way to build up Brie for a future title match with Paige.

Orton vs Reigns - Good but predictable match. I suggested a few weeks ago a Top Rope Samoan Drop would be a nice move for Reigns and I got my wish.

Lesnar vs Cena (WWE World Heavyweight Championship) - Epic hype video. Awesome match. The scripting was perfect: Lesnar destruction, Cena flurry, Lesnar destruction, Cena flurry, Lesnar wins. Brock lived up to The Beast Incarnate nickname and Cena looked strong taking so much punishment. Some of those Germans looked legit dangerous. I can't believe it got "boring" chants near the end, but each to their own.

 

Verdict: Best PPV of the year. Consistently entertaining from start to finish with 2 memorable matches. And 2 good Divas match with strong builds on a single PPV is just crazy! Perfect timing for the WWE after all their recent Network pimping. MVPs: Ambrose, Rollins, Steph, Lesnar & Cena.

[bigtplaystew]

Yea I thought it was a solid Summerslam. And I agree that the booking with Cena/Lesnar was smart.

 

And who ISN'T watching Raw tonight assuming Heyman opens the show??

[dpoolez]

Now, who's gonna beat him?

 

For me there's only one plausible option... Daniel Bryan.

 

I'm convinced he was the design victim for Brock Lesnar, but the injuries scrapped the plans and change the actors of this story. I still think the WM31 main event in original was Cena vs Lesnar. The only concern is the injury, unless they are trolling on his health status, like they did in the past.

 

The super monster against the ultimate underdog. Easy to write, not to so easy to excute, considering the initial idea for the WM30 main event.

 

It will likely be Roman Reigns who ends up taking the belt from Brock. As of right now there is still no timetable for Daniel Bryan's return so I doubt the WWE are making any long term plans for him right now.

 

If WWE plans on letting Brock run with the ball then I think that Rock/Brock II would be a perfect Royal Rumble ME. That would give Brock one last big win (to add on to his Taker and Cena wins) and would give Reigns even more credibility when he beats him for the title.

[bigtplaystew]

Just rewatched it on the Network. Cole's "Lesnar has just won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in convincing fashion!" witht he close up of Brock's face... man that was good stuff.

 

It's smart. Lesnar's the only person active in the company that is even close to Cena in terms of mainstream popularity so I think putting the belt on him for a while makes sense. Heyman will cut killer promos week in and week out. He can make personal appearances on TV and radio and really potentially bring eyes on the product. He can do the "legwork" so to speak that Brock can't.

 

Where do you think they go with Cena from here?

[Teh_Showtime]

If they go with Reigns/HHH at the next PPV they should probably give Cena a month or so off for the sake of his health and character

 

Naturally I'd say Rusev is going to be fed to Cena to get him back in the win column but I could see them doing a rematch already (which I don't think should happen)

[Jaysin]

Isn't Cena filming a movie anyway? He could use the time off for that and just in general to rest. I know Ambrose is supposed to go film a movie too. Actually look forward to seeing that.

[Teh_Showtime]

Cena has already missed 2 recent Raws for the movie stuff and Ambrose is coming up I suppose

 

Hopefully Dean won't miss too many TVs because if Brock isn't around I think there is a great chance Dean/Seth HIAC could main event

[Mootinie]

So, will Lesnar appear on every PPV up until WrestleMania where he inevitably loses to Bryan? If so, who does he defend against in the meantime? I'd say Ziggler and/or Sheamus but both are wrapped up in belts they surpassed last year.

[Teh_Showtime]

Probably NoC and SvS and of course Rumble

 

If they just want to have Heyman there and Brock only on PPV he could pretty easily appear on the rest though. The question of who challenges him is indeed a good one though because you can't do Reigns this soon and him and Cena won't have 4 matches before Mania

[Stennick]

So, will Lesnar appear on every PPV up until WrestleMania where he inevitably loses to Roman Reigns?

 

FTFY

[Stennick]

Isn't Cena filming a movie anyway? He could use the time off for that and just in general to rest. I know Ambrose is supposed to go film a movie too. Actually look forward to seeing that.

 

Cena's not really filming a starring role though. He's playing a boyfriend or an ex boyfriend or something like that in a Tina Fey comedy. Its not a huge role and I'm sure the weeks's he's missed coupled with other downtime he's already fulfilled his obligations for the role.

[Jaysin]

Cena's not really filming a starring role though. He's playing a boyfriend or an ex boyfriend or something like that in a Tina Fey comedy. Its not a huge role and I'm sure the weeks's he's missed coupled with other downtime he's already fulfilled his obligations for the role.

 

I was unaware that it was a smaller part. I still think he should take some time off. His body and the fans could probably use a break for a few weeks or a month. I'm not even so much anti-Cena these days and I know the whole being there all the time thing is part of his personality, but everyone needs a break at some point.

[Teh_Showtime]

He DESERVES a break honestly

 

He spent 20 minutes getting dropped on his head Misawa style last night

[Kitarzu]

It will likely be Roman Reigns who ends up taking the belt from Brock. As of right now there is still no timetable for Daniel Bryan's return so I doubt the WWE are making any long term plans for him right now.

 

If WWE plans on letting Brock run with the ball then I think that Rock/Brock II would be a perfect Royal Rumble ME. That would give Brock one last big win (to add on to his Taker and Cena wins) and would give Reigns even more credibility when he beats him for the title.

 

They could do the same thing they've done with Cena @ MSG. Number 30 in the Royal Rumble and victory. WWE has long term plans for Daniel Bryan. The Authority heat is used to have a McMahon/Bella storyline, Triple H/Bryan's wives. They created a Stephanie McMahon t-shirt, extremely similar the first YES! one. All of this is made to keep Daniel Bryan relevant in people's mind, until he'll be ready to compete, with people exploding again in YES! chants.

 

Reigns now is pushed as the #2 babyface, maybe #1 in their rankings after Summerslam but is far, far away from Cena and Bryan levels. He has a big question mark on his head because he needs to step up his in-ring and entertainment skills to be a solid main eventer.

 

For me two people with more upside than Reigns are Cesaro and Dean Ambrose. The first one, aside Bryan, is the best ring general they have. The booking team failed pretty bad, using Paul Heyman just to remind us that Brock Lesnar was coming back, instead of establish him as a legit contender. The RVD loss in the Summerslam preshow swear vengeance! Ambrose instead was the real star of The Shield. His mannerisms and facial expressions reminds of Roddy Piper and he could fill the void left by an "alternative" main eventer like was CM Punk.

 

Brock Lesnar vs The Rock is probably the biggest WM31 main event they could throw, especially from a mainstream perspective. An Hollywood superstar, starring a worldwide blockbuster, against a former Heavyweight Champion of the most important fighting promotion in the world. A potential worth successor of the WM1 main event.

 

Having Lesnar-Reigns is like having your #1 or #2 against the #5 or #6. You can't sell WWE Network subscriptions with that Wrestlemania main event, considering the wide popularity gap. Especially if a lot of them expire after Royal Rumble 2015. The only worthy options are Lesnar-Rock, Lesnar-Cena and Lesnar-Bryan. If you want to play extreme fantasy booking, Lesnar-Punk, or Lesnar-Undertaker. Even Lesnar-Hogan. Because all of them, some more than the others, are part of the mainstream. A point Reigns hasn't reached yet, unless he improves a lot in these six months.

 

Sorry for the wallpost.

 

P.S. It's not properly a punch, it's a forearm strike, but the best Superman impression is made by AJ Styles.

[milamber]

It will likely be Roman Reigns who ends up taking the belt from Brock. As of right now there is still no timetable for Daniel Bryan's return so I doubt the WWE are making any long term plans for him right now.

 

If WWE plans on letting Brock run with the ball then I think that Rock/Brock II would be a perfect Royal Rumble ME. That would give Brock one last big win (to add on to his Taker and Cena wins) and would give Reigns even more credibility when he beats him for the title.

 

I would prefer he beat Cesaro at the Rumble to give him the rub. Plenty of time to turn Cesaro face and build him up. So long as Cesaro gets in more offense than Big Show did Or Reigns for the Rumble match unless he proves he's worthy of a big WM moment in the coming months. But this is WWE, so it'll probably be Brock vs Reigns at WM and a Brock vs Kane/Show/Henry beatdown at the Rumble.

[Mootinie]

He spent 20 minutes getting dropped on his head Misawa style last night

 

Major props for the Misawa reference, he is; in my mind, the greatest wrestler of all time. Although I prefer Kobashi, dude was so tough even cancer tapped out.

 

But anyway, back to WWE.

 

I don't see Lesnar vs. Reigns happening at WrestleMania 31. I'm fine with WWE just moving Reigns along slowly, there's no rush here. They should be investing in Ziggler and Ambrose more now anyway, both are closer to the finished product than Reigns. But Bryan is the man to end Lesnar's reign, he should return at Royal Rumble and no his appearance shouldn't be previously announced. Just imagine DAT POP when his music hits.

[djthefunkchris]

Major props for the Misawa reference, he is; in my mind, the greatest wrestler of all time. Although I prefer Kobashi, dude was so tough even cancer tapped out.

 

But anyway, back to WWE.

 

I don't see Lesnar vs. Reigns happening at WrestleMania 31. I'm fine with WWE just moving Reigns along slowly, there's no rush here. They should be investing in Ziggler and Ambrose more now anyway, both are closer to the finished product than Reigns. But Bryan is the man to end Lesnar's reign, he should return at Royal Rumble and no his appearance shouldn't be previously announced. Just imagine DAT POP when his music hits.

 

I second this. That would even get people to buy the network, just to see that pop, after the fact.

 

I've been thinking that would be the best way to bring him back for a couple of weeks.

[Teh_Showtime]

The only thing is if Bryan comes back in the rumble and doesn't win it, there could be another moment of fan backlash towards the winner (Reigns). At this point regardless of our feelings on him it's painfully obvious that Reigns is their next top guy and I can't see them putting him in a position to get turned on like that. Initially I would say Bryan/Lesnar for the belt at RR but that just wouldn't be safe for Bryan's well being truthfully.

 

I personally would think Brock/Bryan with Reigns beating Cena would be the preferable Mania matches but if they think WM is where Reigns becomes the guy and the champion we can only hope he starts rapidly improving.

[The Swanton825]

Oh...my...God... That was the best spot I've seen in a long time! I just love this feud between Ambrose and Rollins!

[djthefunkchris]

The only thing is if Bryan comes back in the rumble and doesn't win it, there could be another moment of fan backlash towards the winner (Reigns). At this point regardless of our feelings on him it's painfully obvious that Reigns is their next top guy and I can't see them putting him in a position to get turned on like that. Initially I would say Bryan/Lesnar for the belt at RR but that just wouldn't be safe for Bryan's well being truthfully.

 

I personally would think Brock/Bryan with Reigns beating Cena would be the preferable Mania matches but if they think WM is where Reigns becomes the guy and the champion we can only hope he starts rapidly improving.

 

I think he should win it. It would be the perfect way to put him in the Main Event vs. Lesnar.

 

I know everyone is thinking "Take your time with Reigns, let him improve." I don't think that's what WWE will do though.

 

Even if Bryan comes back before the Royal, he doesn't go near the title at first, because he will have to go through obstacles first. That opens up the Rumble one more time as the perfect obstacle, he comes out as number one and lasts through all thirty competitors, against the odds.... Shades of Mysterio.