SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE Live Show Results
July 17, 2016
Augusta, Maine
Report by Brandon LeClair, PWTorch correspondent
Like the Bangor show the night prior, attendance suffered due to the stacked roster over in New York. Augusta shows have historically drawn pretty well, but I’d estimate this one to have fared similarly to Saturday night’s show in Bangor.
I’d put attendance somewhere in the 1,700-1,800 mark. The floor was full, and, once again, the cheap sections seemed to be pretty well accounted for too. The central risers were filled sporadically at best, and the upper bleachers were entirely empty.
The Augusta Civic Center seats about 4,800 using WWE’s configuration and they’ve sold out the building as recently as 2012, but with a card that featured John Cena, C.M. Punk, and Daniel Bryan.
For the most part, the show was incredibly similar to Bangor, with a few changed finishes and a different match order.
(1) Enzo & Cass beat the Dudley Boyz in 10 minutes. I was very surprised to see Enzo & Cass go on first, given the star reaction they received last night. It sort of left a large gap until the main event. Enzo & Cass hit the ring with all the energy and flair they had the night before, cutting a quick promo before being interrupted by the Dudleys. The match featured similar spots to the night prior, with Enzo juking and ducking most of Bubba’s shots before obliging his request to tag in Big Cass. Cass eventually hit a powerslam and tagged in Enzo for the Rocket Launcher Splash and the victory.
No additional quips from Enzo tonight, just the usual mic work. The pair slapped hands and took pictures with fans as they headed to the back.
(2) Sasha Banks beat Summer Rae via submission in 5 minutes. Another big pop for Sasha, though not quite as strong as Bangor. These two worked largely the same bout they did the night before, with Summer Rae trying to draw cheers by posing on the turnbuckle, only to have Sasha do the same and out-pop her. Sasha hit the diving double knee drop for a near fall, then got rolled up by Summer. Sasha escaped the pin attempt and countered it into Bank Statement (again, sans backbreaker) for the tap-out victory.
Post-match, Summer Rae was helped to the back by the official. At the top of the ramp, she screamed, “I HATE YOU ALL!” which drew a laugh.
(3) The Golden Truth (R-Truth & Goldust) beat Breezango (Tyler Breeze & Fandango) in 9 minutes. Truth did his “What’s Up” schtick to get things started. Mostly a comedic performance, with Truth again stealing Tyler’s turnbuckle taunt. They ran the same atomic drop as last night – Goldust delivers the move to both Breeze and Fandango, then accidentally gives on to Truth as well. This time, though, they didn’t play up the accident. Goldust almost immediately atomic dropped himself and they moved on. Truth got a quick tag and transitioned into a sunset flip pinning combination for the win.
(4) Darren Young (w/Bob Backlund) beat Intercontinental champion The Miz (w/Maryse) via count-out in 16 minutes; Miz retained the IC Title. The Miz welcomed Augusta to the 104th day of his never-ending Intercontinental Championship Tour. The crowd was all over Maryse and him. Darren Young hit the ring to a subdued reaction. It appeared as though less people in the audience were familiar with Bob Backlund than the night prior. The bulk of the match played out similarly to the previous, until the closing sequence.
Maryse got herself ejected by slapping Darren Young in front of the referee. She protested to the back as The Miz decided he’d had enough. He grabbed his Intercontinental Title and began to leave up the entrance way, but his path was blocked by Backlund. Miz shoved Backlund hard to the ground, but got thrown back into the ring by Young. Backlund tried to retaliate, but The Miz slapped himself, drawing attention from the referee. Miz accused Backlund of hitting him, and the referee ejected Backlund as well. Young attempted the Cross Face Chicken Wing shortly thereafter, but Miz battled out and hit the Skull Crushing Finale for a believable near fall. He tried set it up a second time, but Young escaped and lifted him up for a Gut Check. The Miz squirmed his way out of it, escaped the ring, and hopped the barrier into the crowd to lose the match by count out.
Post-match, Bob Backlund returned to walk Young up the ramp. Backlund lifted up and screamed at some children (not threateningly, of course) on his way out.
(5) The Big Show & Kane beat The Vaudevillains (Aiden English & Simon Gotch) in 5 minutes. A simple reversal of last night’s bout. Kane entered first, and was quickly attacked by English and Gotch in the ring. Show ran out to make save. Gotcha and English took turns working Kane’s leg until they got him to the ground. Kane eventually got the hot tag to Big Show, who cleaned house. Show caught both Gotch and English by the throat, but passed one off to Kane. The duo landed a pair of chokeslams for the quick finish.
Main Roster newcomers Mike Rome and Dasha Fuentes (both of whom worked last night’s show in Bangor as well, and did a great job!) sent us to intermission.
(6) Women’s champion Charlotte (w/Dana Brooke) beat Alicia Fox in 5 minutes to retain the Women’s Title. Back from the break, Charlotte and Dana Brooke hit the ring. Charlotte and Alicia worked a similar match to the night before, though Alicia got in a bit more offense this time around. There were a couple of botched spot that looked pretty rough – the first was a tilt-a-whirl-backbreaker that Alicia didn’t quite land well, leaving Charlotte to have to sell minimal to no impact. The second one was actually a bit scary, as Alicia attempted a suplex, but ended up hitting a sort-of-almost-brainbuster that Charlotte didn’t appear to be prepared for. Charlotte recovered quickly and pulled Alicia to the mat into a standard pin for the win. I was initially concerned that they went for the finish so quickly after the move (and that it looked so awkward), but Charlotte didn’t seem to be showing any ill-effects.
Post-match, Charlotte ordered Dana to continue the beat down on Alicia. Unlike last night, though, Alicia was saved by a returning Sasha Banks! Sasha hit Dana with two of her patented forearms, and got some shots in on Charlotte before the two escaped. Sasha helped Alicia up and to the back.
(7) Baron Corbin beat Titus O’Neil in 2 minutes. Corbin was evidently flown in as a replacement for the injured Heath Slater. Baron attacked Titus before the bell rang, and the fight spilled to the outside. The two brawled briefly around ringside before Corbin got the upper hand by sending Titus crashing into the barricade. They eventually got back to the ring and the referee called for the bell. This one was all Corbin, with Titus never really recovering from the pre-match attack. Baron executed a simple roll-up on O’Neil for the quick victory.
Mike and Dasha thanked the fans for coming and introduced the main event…
(8) U.S. champion Rusev (w/Lana) beat Kalisto, Sami Zayn, and Cesaro in a Fatal Four-Way Match to retain the U.S. Title in 15 minutes. Another excellent match by these four guys. The match began with all four men taking turns at quick roll-ups, trying to get a quick victory. Rusev put an end to that and cleared the ring early on. The meat of the bout was a bit different than the night prior, but all of the major spots were almost identical. Mid-match, Rusev climbed to the top rope but was thwarted by Sami Zayn and Kalisto. Both unsuccessfully attempted superplexes, but were able to hook Rusev once they worked together. Cesaro came crashing into the trio with an uppercut, weakening them all enough to deliver the super powerbomb-superplex combo, which received a massive ovation from the crowd.
Deep in, Cesaro ran the uppercut train to his three opponents, then took Rusev for an airplane spin. He locked on the Sharpshooter for several seconds before it was broken by Kalisto. (No Lana interference/ejection tonight – she was well-behaved at ringside.) This brought Zayn back in the ring. He hit a Helluva Kick on Cesaro before being taken out with the Salida-del-Sol. Kalisto spun around and received a super kickfrom Rusev. Rusev slapped on the Accolade, and Kalisto fought valiantly for a solid 30 seconds before Rusev cranked backward into a sitting position and got an immediate submission.
Post-match, Rusev continued his beat down on Kalisto. Cesaro returned to the ring and made the save with a Neutralizer to the champion. The three babyface danced around to each other’s music before making their rounds at ringside. At the entrance way, they continued to dance in and out of the staging, disappearing, then returning doing a new dance or pose. It was quite funny.
I find it worth noting, on both nights, Rusev wore MMA gloves to the ring, and during the match itself. It’s just a small change, but, man, it made him look like a legitimate badass. Hopefully it’s something he’s adopting into his ring attire.
Overall, a faster-paced show than the previous night’s, with a lesser-engaged crowd and what felt like a need to get in, get out, and get to Providence for Raw. Still, the main event brought the fun and made for an enjoyable night, despite the line-up and minimal changes from the night before.
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