8/31 WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT: T-Bar vs. Cedric Alexander, R-Truth vs. Benjamin, more

WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT
AUGUST 31, 2022
HULU STREAMING TV
REPORT BY MIKE F. MEYERS, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

WWE Main Event Announcers: Byron Saxton, Kevin Patrick

REASONS TO WATCH…

Alexander and T-Bar bring near falls and big impacts

(1) R-TRUTH vs. SHELTON BENJAMIN

Benjamin began the match by taking Truth to the mat with a waist lock. Truth broke the hold by grabbing the bottom rope, then applied a side headlock. Benjamin fired him off but Truth held onto the ropes to avoid rebounding back at Benjamin. Truth rolled through a sunset flip pin-attempt, then covered Benjamin with a jackknife pin of his own for a two-count. Both men got to their feet and Truth clapped his hands while Benjamin seemed amused with Truth’s ring prowess. They moved closer and stood face to face. Truth lightly smacked Benjamin’s face and pointed at the hard camera. Benjamin was angered and went on the attack and fired Truth into a corner.

Truth smacked Benjamin three times, this time with the intent to injure. Benjamin fired him into the opposite corner and hit a knee strike to Truth’s jaw, then covered him for two. Benjamin hit a standard suplex and covered for another two. Benjamin applied a chin lock.

Truth got to his feet and Benjamin pushed him into a corner. Truth dodged three haymakers, then fought out of the corner with more slaps before taking Benjamin down with a drop kick. Both men relaxed on the mat. Truth dodged a Benjamin splash in the corner, then Truth transitioned into John Cena shoulder blocks and a Five Knuckle Shuffle. Benjamin got to his feet and Truth hoisted him onto his shoulders but Benjamin slipped out. Truth missed a scissor kick, allowing Benjamin to hit the Paydirt for the three-count.

WINNER: Shelton Benjamin by pinfall in 4:45.

(Meyers’s Analysis: Nothing special – a bit of low-effort wrestling with a dash of comedy.)

-Main Event recap session:

• Replay of Bloodline / Zayn backstage segment from Smackdown
• Replay of McIntyre vs. Zayn from Smackdown
• Replay of Edge promo against the Judgment Day from Raw
• Replay of Kai & Sky vs. Rodriguez & Aliyah from Raw

Match rundown for upcoming PLE Clash at the Castle

(2) T-Bar vs. Cedric Alexander

T-Bar missed a running bicycle kick just as the bell rang, allowing Alexander to land a series of quick strikes. T-Bar fired Alexander into a corner, then super kicked him off the top turnbuckle where Alexander was seated. T-Bar carried him away from the corner and hit a gut buster, then covered Alexander for a two. He lifted Alexander to his feet and pushed him against the ropes, then drove his shoulder twice into Alexander’s abdomen. He fired Alexander off the opposite ropes and rammed his ribs again with a shoulder block. T-Bar lifted his knee into Alexander’s gut, then covered for two.

Alexander was reeling on the mat while T-Bar paced around him. He lifted Alexander again, and Alexander landed some token chops to T-Bar’s chest. T-Bar came back with another knee lift to the gut, sending Alexander back to the canvas. He tried this move a third time, but Alexander rolled through the knee lift and covered T-Bar for a one-count. Alexander quickly hit a low drop kick to T-Bar who had only gotten up to his knees after the cover. Alexander ran the ropes but T-Bar stopped him by grabbing his throat. T-Bar tried another shoulder tackle near the ropes, but Alexander dodged, causing T-Bar to travel through the ropes and land on the floor. Alexander ran off the opposite ropes and dove to the floor, taking T-Bar out with a flying forearm strike. We cut to break.

Back in the ring, T-Bar leveled Alexander with a big boot to the face. He lifted Alexander and slammed him to the mat with the High Justice, but Alexander kicked out at two. T-Bar slowly got up and dragged Alexander toward one corner. T-Bar climbed to the middle rope, but Alexander met him there and went for a power bomb. Alexander couldn’t pry him off of the corner, so he yanked T-Bar’s arm downward, exposing his face between his own legs. Alexander super kicked T-Bar’s inverted face, stunning him enough to execute the powerbomb successfully. Alexander covered for two.

Alexander lingered on the mat, unable to believe T-Bar’s kickout. He slowly went to the top rope but T-Bar knocked him down. T-Bar climbed the corner instead and flew into a big moonsault and remained on Alexander to cover for a two-count. T-Bar yanked Alexander to his feet and set up for a suplex, but Alexander turned the tables and hoisted up T-Bar instead – he brought him crashing to the mat with a brainbuster, then covered for the three-count.

WINNER: Cedric Alexander by pinfall in 6:30.

(Meyers’s Analysis: Pretty cool match with multiple believable near falls. Alexander did a nice job selling the weight of T-Bar as he carried him on his shoulders for the powerbomb. T-Bar’s High Justice finisher continues to lose stock as an effective finisher.)

SHOW SCORE (0-10): 8.0

Find Mike Meyers on Twitter: @themikeshow42

CATCH-UP: WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT 8/24: Alexander & Ali vs. Benjamin & T-Bar, women’s tag match, more