11/24 WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT: Viking Raiders vs. Los Lotharios, Gulak vs. Mansoor, more

WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT
NOVEMBER 24, 2021
HULU STREAMING TV
REPORT BY MIKE F. MEYERS, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Announcers: Byron Saxton, Kevin Patrick

REASONS TO WATCH…

Both matches exceed Main Event standard of quality

(1) DREW GULAK vs. MANSOOR

The wrestlers locked up and twisted into a corner, then broke apart at the ref’s three-count. Gulak used a side headlock takedown, but Mansoor reversed into a brief front chancery. They got back to their feet where Mansoor flipped out of a wrist lock, then applied a side headlock of his own. He wrenched the hold a few times, but Gulak backed him into a corner, then punched Mansoor in the ribs. Gulak leveled Mansoor twice with shoulder blocks, then ran the ropes a few times. Mansoor eventually caught Gulak in midair and hit an inverted atomic drop. Mansoor hit a couple chops, then attempted a tornado DDT but Gulak broke free before the drop. Gulak followed up with a big clothesline, then covered Mansoor for a one-count.

Gulak laid in some clubbing forearms, then dropped an elbow and covered Mansoor for another one-count. Gulak immediately trapped Mansoor’s arm, then moved to his right knee and pulled back on a modified half crab. Mansoor broke free, but Gulak grappled his leg and twisted Mansoor into a proper single -leg crab. Mansoor turned onto his back and landed a series of kicks from the mat. This busted up the hold, but Gulak came back with another elbow drop. He tried for a another, but Mansoor rolled out of the way. The men locked up in a suplex position and it was Mansoor who out-muscled Gulak and tossed him onto his back. Mansoor hit another inverted atomic drop, then held on for a spinebuster. Mansoor then applied his own single-leg crab.

Gulak crawled to the ring’s edge and the ref called for a break. Mansoor backed away, then moved in and landed a forearm strike. From the apron, he hopped over the top rope and on the way down grasped Gulak’s skull to deliver a neckbreaker. He covered Gulak for the three-count.

WINNER: Mansoor by pinfall in 5:45.

(Meyers’s Analysis: A good, brief match. Something about this didn’t feel like a cookie cutter Main Event match – likely the substitution of the single-leg crabs for the standard chin lock. It’s odd how this one detail makes the match stand out among others on this program.)

-Main Event recap session:

• Replay of Lashley vs. Rey & Dominik Mysterio from Raw
• Replay of Carmela & Vega vs. Ripley & Nikki A.S.H. from Raw
• Replay of Vince McMahon / Egg segments from Raw
• Replay of Theory vs. Big E from Raw

(2) VIKING RAIDERS (Erik & Ivar) vs. LOS LOTHARIOS (Garza & Carrillo)

Ivar exhibited an early size and strength advantage against Garza. After being roughed up, Garza briefly begged off before grabbing Ivar’s beard with both hands and face planting him to the mat. Carrillo tagged in and los Lotharios double teamed Ivar with forearm blows. Carrillo landed additional blows and kicks before tagging Garza back in. Ivar battled his way out of their corner, then somersaulted across the ring to tag in Erik.

Erik immediately had the upper hand and suplexed Garza out of the ring. Carrillo jumped at Erik from the top turnbuckle, but Erik caught him and gave him the same suplex treatment. Ivar tagged in and the Raiders revved side-by-side to dive through the ropes at los Lotharios, but the latter scurried out of range over the ringside barrier. The Raiders remained in the ring and we cut to break.

Back in the ring, the Raiders maintained control and Erik was covering Carrillo for a two-count. Garza tagged in and landed a big right cross that sent Erik slowly crumbling to the mat, as if knocked out. Garza removed his pants and covered Erik for two. Garza situated Erik in a tree of woe in the corner, then Carrillo tagged in and los Lotharios ran and hit tandem drop kicks to his ribs. Carrillo covered for two, then applied a chin lock.

Garza tagged in and immediately caught an elbow to the jaw. Carrillo and Ivar both made hot tags into the match. Carrillo entered and Ivar dodged his attack with a cartwheel, then clotheslined him to the mat as he rebounded off the ropes. Erik tagged back in and flipped Carrillo to the mat, then planted his knee to Carrillo’s face. With both Lotharios on the floor, Ivar hit a somersault senton to both of them from the ring apron. Ivar rolled Carrillo back into the ring, and the Raiders began double teaming Carrillo, but Garza dragged him out of the neutral corner to their own. Garza then tagged in and hit a springboard kick to Erik and covered for the three-count.

WINNERS: Los Lotharios by pinfall in 6:50.

(Meyers’s Analysis: Another good match that both teased and delivered big moves. It was a good depiction of the smaller Lotharios having to scramble and hustle to pull one off against their larger opponents, with a small dose of heel tactics thrown in.)

SHOW SCORE (0-10): 8.6

Find Mike Meyers on Twitter: @themikeshow42

NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S MAIN EVENT REPORT: 11/17 WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT: Crews & Azeez vs. Hurt Business, John Morrison vs. Veer Mahaan, more