SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Before we get started, a few notable updates to go over:
•J.D. McDonagh suffered an injury last Monday on Raw, but continued wrestling his match. On commentary, Michael Cole visibly broke character out of worry. Subsequent reports confirmed McDonagh suffered broken ribs & a punctured lung, and will be out several months (likely missing Wrestlemania). McDonagh proved his devotion to the sport last Monday, and we wish him a speedy recovery.
•Triple H was announced as the headliner of the 2025 WWE Hall Of Fame. While critics raised an eyebrow at the Head Of Creative anointing himself despite supposedly wanting to be out of the spotlight, one cannot deny the huge impact Triple H has had on the current wrestling landscape and WWE’s resurgence. The man deserves his flowers and more as the face of WWE corporate, and should make a great choice as a 1st ballot HOFer.
•In preparation for the Royal Rumble, Indianapolis renamed a street to “Yeet St.” in honor of Jey Uso. Sometimes wrestling bleeds into the real world and I remember just how ridiculous this sport is, in the best possible way. I love it. YEET!
A lot happened since last week’s column. First off, the second episode of the revival of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event took place. Despite a sold-out crowd, this episode felt noticeably less prestigious than the premiere and validated my opinions that SNME will likely be closer to a TV special with fun exhibition matches than a PPV-level storytelling event. And again, I don’t necessarily a bad thing.
Having different presentations always helps to switch up the rhythm of WWE programming, and sometimes it’s nice to give banger matches the spotlight they might not get on a five-match PPV. Jacob Fatu became a full-fledged singles star last Saturday (more on that below), which might not have happened if the match was jammed into the middle of a stacked PPV.
Additionally, the transfer window was in full effect last week on Smackdown. Main roster members were switching brands way more frequently than I expected. In fact, I think we saw more movement now than last year’s brand split. And frankly, I’m a fan of that move.
In recent years, there’s been far less wrestlers floating between brands without cause, so adding a plot device to get people in their current places on the road to Wrestlemania is welcome switch. Last year, both general managers went on a signing spree around this time of year, which played off their kayfabe work rivalry at the time. Nowadays, Pearce and Aldis seem to be more cordial, so it makes sense in kayfabe they would work out an arrangement.
And finally, we’re here at the final stop before the Royal Rumble. And by god, it looks like the most stacked one in years. Not only is the star power off the charts, the winners truly feel unpredictable for the first time in years. With Cody Rhodes playing up the worn-down champ narrative and Gunter biding his time in filler feuds on Raw, there’s no clear route to WrestleMania for either champ in the men’s division. The women’s division is even murkier, with both Tiffany Stratton and Rhea Ripley blowing off their feuds in the last few weeks. And that makes the Rumble feel so much more exciting. It feels like the Attitude Era, where a pool of top-level wrestlers were all clamoring for the belts rather than one obvious challenger being telegraphed as the main character for WrestleMania season.
So where do things stand going into the Rumble weekend? Let’s review:
MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS vs. DIY vs. PRETTY DEADLY
Latest Developments:
After turning heel, DIY succeeded in their long-awaited quest to reclaim the WWE Tag Team Championship by attacking #1 contenders The Street Profits backstage and taking their place, defeating the Motor City Machine Guns later that night.
As heels, DIY recruited Pretty Deadly to assist them in retaining their belts, promising them a title shot in return (although they continued deflecting attempts to set the match). Pretty Deadly then framed Los Garzas for attaching The Street Profits, and continued helping DIY cheat over the next few weeks.
To crown the next #1 contenders to the tag belts, Nick Aldis organized a tourney. Los Garzas and MCMG faced each other in the finals last week, where MCMG won despite Pretty Deadly’s attempts to stop them.
Last week, MCMG defeated Pretty Deadly in a tune-up match. Post-match, Pretty Deadly were chewed out by DIY. Later, Los Garzas hinted at revenge at Pretty Deadly.
Later that night, Nick Aldis announced that MCMG’s rematch would be a two-out-of-three falls match at the Royal Rumble.
Analysis:
After complaining last week about MCMG receiving another title shot, this week’s booking did a lot to amp up my excitement. Both MCMG and DIY excel at longer epic in-ring storytelling, and a two-out-of-three falls match feels like the perfect vehicle to do so. With how short PPV cards are nowadays, this is guaranteed to get some time, and should be a great way to differentiate this rematch from the teams’ previous encounters.
Two-out-of-three falls matches tend to center around a narrative of one party growing increasingly desperate to win. Given that DIY has historically only won against MCMG by cheating, my guess is that this will play into the match. Likely DIY will slowly grow more and more desperate, eventually relying on outside help like Pretty Deadly to secure their win. Similar to Jey Uso’s slow rebellion against Roman Reigns in 2023, I doubt we’ll get a Pretty Deadly babyface turn this quick, but we’ll likely get a concrete moment of DIY fully becoming the villain. This should be the first concrete step for Pretty Deadly’s babyface turn.
Speaking of, the British duo finally began to click with me as potential. Last week, Los Garzas hinted they were looking for revenge, and Pretty Deadly sold the fear perfectly. It was an honest and vulnerable character beat that cut through their usual posturing and made them sympathetic for a moment. The consequences of cheating for DIY are about to haunt Pretty Deadly, and watching them atone for their sins should be alternately endearing and hilarious.
In any case, we’re guaranteed a certified banger this weekend at the Royal Rumble. Following that, I don’t see a path for MCMG back to the tag titles, and it’d be nice to see them involved in a feud with more personal stakes on the road to WrestleMania.
Grade: B
APOLLO CREWS: THE ULTIMATE WILDCARD
Latest Developments:
Apollo Crews got involved in DIY’s business by telling The Street Profits who had actually attacked them. This caused a domino effect causing The Profits to seek revenge against DIY, Los Garzas to seek revenge against Pretty Deadly, and both heel teams furious at Crews.
Over the next few weeks, Crews repeatedly warned Pretty Deadly that DIY was manipulating them, much to DIY’s anger. Last week, after another instance, Crews was formally challenged to a match by Gargano. Despite Ciampa repeatedly interfering, Crews miraculously secured the win thanks to MCMG taking Ciampa out.
Analysis:
I can’t believe this story thread is actually developing. It felt like such an odd choice having Crews be a wild card in the tag title scene, but somehow it worked with his babyface character.
It’s such a genius idea to include Crews. The narratives needed a plot device to expose the heel teams’ lies, and using Crews gave him a character base to play off of. Despite not being involved in the narrative, he was looking out for other babyfaces, and that gave the audience a reason to respect him.
Now, he’s got alliances, a steady continuing feud with DIY, and he’s even picking up wins on TV. A damn war in the tag title scene may have kicked off thanks to Crews, and he might just walk out on top. It’s such genius layered booking that we rarely see in WWE. Usually tag teams don’t interact with solo acts unless they’re acting as heaters. This level of integration makes the roster feel so much more connected. Give me more. Let Crews somehow become WWE Champion just by inserting himself into more stories. Comeback of the century.
Grade: A+
THE MIZ WILL NEVER ESCAPE THE WYATT SICKS
Latest Developments:
Several months ago on Raw, Karrion Kross began to manipulate the Miz into turning heel on his then-partner R-Truth. Miz then allied with the Final Testament, and the group became the target of the Wyatt Sicks due to Miz’s actions. Eventually, the Wyatt Sicks were drafted to Smackdown, ending the feud.
Last week, Nick Aldis informed the Miz that he had been drafted to Smackdown, causing him to panic as he realized he was on the same brand as the Wyatt Sicks yet again. Lacking allies, Miz briefly found respite with resident a**holes A-Town Down Under before Aldis informed them they were going to Raw, leaving Miz alone yet again.
Analysis:
The Miz continues to find new ways to be extremely hatable. No one plays a snivelling weasel better than him. Miz’s acting chops were on full display, as he sold the genuine fear of the Wyatt Sicks better than any of their booking has in the past year. It’s always a treat seeing Miz get his comeuppance, and doing so would be a great way to reintroduce the Wyatt Sicks after a year of awful stop-start booking.
The Sicks, as a babyface spooky act, was always going to be a tough fit in the more realism-driven current era of WWE. It’s an act that needs to be consistently winning to be taken seriously, and having them spin their wheels against low-card teams like The Final Testament and then disappear for months has completely diluted their act. Hopefully this brand switch leads to something more concrete for both acts on the road to WrestleMania.
Finally, I’m glad that A-Town Down Under is moving to Raw. After a strong start, the two were completely lost in the Smackdown midcard, and despite teasing a Theory face turn their characterization faded and they quickly became flanderized. Even if that narrative had to be put on ice, it felt like their dynamic completely changed over the course of a few months. The two desperately need a change of scenery to freshen up.
But seeing Miz with two of his character contemporaries was a nice touch. I’m glad we got to see that at least once. Now all we need is Ethan Page to complete the smarmy himbo quartet.
All in all, a necessary reset for a bunch of acts gone cold.
Grade: D
JACOB FATU vs. BRAUN STROWMAN
Latest Developments:
Following his return from injury, Braun Strowman transferred to Smackdown and quickly became entangled against the New Bloodline. Two weeks ago, Strowman saved LA Knight from Tama Tonga & Jacob Fatu. Following a staredown, Fatu vs. Strowman was confirmed for Saturday Night’s Main Event.
At SNME, following a battle where Strowman dominated early, Fatu went berserk and beat Strowman bloody so badly that the refs called off the match. However, Fatu continued to beat the life out of Strowman and stood tall as the show ended.
Analysis:
Jacob Fatu became WWE’s next big monster following his dominant performance last night. Ever since Sikoa lost Tribal Combat in early January, WWE has slowly been giving Fatu more shine as a singles star. In recent weeks, they’ve been giving him solo time on the mic while he walks to the ring. Fatu’s Eddie Kingston-styled promos have a raw intensity and swagger well beyond anyone else in WWE, and delivering them on his way to beat someone up is a great touch. It makes him look like a vicious bloodthirsty animal.
And then, there was the match. Like The Big Show once did for him, Braun Strowman did his damnedest to make Fatu look like a killer. And it worked in spades. No huge build, but the simple visual of seeing a giant like Strowman in a bloody heap was truly shocking. It felt like Fatu’s in-ring work, promo abilities, and connection with the crowd finally coalesced into a genuine superstar last week. And the crowd came unglued for him.
If WWE plays their cards right, they may have found their next WWE Champion. There’s no clear route for Fatu on the road to Wrestlemania, but it definitely feels like WWE plans to fast-track his separation from the New Bloodline. And I’ll be along for the ride.
Grade: A+
CHELSEA GREEN & PIPER NIVEN vs. MIA YIM & B-FAB
Latest Developments:
At the inaugural Saturday Night’s Main Event, Chelsea Green (with help from her ally Piper Niven) defeated Mia Yim to become the inaugural Women’s US Champion, following a long-term rivalry between the two throughout most of 2024.
After earning a rematch several weeks later, Yim was defeated by Green yet again thanks to interference from Niven. B-Fab eventually began feuding with Green independently, allying with Yim after losing a title shot of her own.
Last week, Michin & Yim defeated Green & Niven in a tag match following a botched move from Niven. Post-match, Yim received another title shot from Nick Aldis, leaving Green fuming.
Analysis:
Not much of substance here, but a typical booking pattern in wrestling: heat up a babyface contender by letting them pin the champion in a non-title match. Interestingly, it seems like Yim’s been much more successful against Green & Niven now that she has an ally on her own. The build to this new rematch has been much more heavily skewed in Yim’s favor, with her standing tall more frequently while Green & Niven flee.
Interestingly, this week’s win happened because, for the first time, Niven wasn’t there to save Green mid-match. This is crucial, as the key to Green’s entire reign has been Niven. This seems to be planting the seeds for another match where Green finally loses due to the odds finally not being in her favor. To be clear, I don’t think that will happen since WWE has so much more mileage to gain from Green being champ. BUT, it’s a great way to ramp up tension for a feud that’s already been going for quite a long time.
Not much time given to the ladies since it doesn’t seem like this feud will be involved at Royal Rumble. But, given Elimination Chamber is in Green’s home nation of Canada, it wouldn’t surprise me for WWE to hold off this title match until then. That way, with the odds against her, Green can plausibly play situational babyface for a night and walk away victorious.
Grade: B+
THE NEW BLOODLINE vs. L.A. KNIGHT
Latest Developments:
At Survivor Series, L.A. Knight lost the WWE US Championship to the returning Shinsuke Nakamura. The following week, The Bloodline laid out Knight as he confronted Nakamura, intending to make a statement to the locker room.
Knight’s continued disrespect to The Bloodline led to them interfering in his rematch for the U.S. Title. In the following weeks, Knight made it clear he wasn’t finished with Tama Tonga and Jacob Fatu.
Last week, Knight proclaimed he and Tonga had a score to settle. Later that night, Knight defeated Tonga despite an impressive showing from the Samoan. Post-match, Jacob Fatu beat Knight down until Braun Strowman saved him.
Analysis:
Knight’s promo work remains as impressive as ever, but it’s hard to see where this feud is going to. With The New Bloodline having their fingers in so many pies, Knight’s feud with Tama Tonga feels like a fourth priority, making Knight feel lesser than other babyfaces also feuding with the group. It’s not a good look for him, and speaks to his lackluster booking following his US title reign. As bulletproof as Knight feels on the mic, he’s a loss away from falling out of the main event scene. Interestingly, Knight mentioned the US Championship this week. WWE doesn’t normally let wrestlers do that unless they plan to revisit a storyline, which makes me think WWE plan to keep Knight as an underdog before re-inserting him into the US title picture. If so, their strategy doesn’t seem to be working because crowds were noticeably quieter throughout most of Knight’s match this week. People just aren’t into this feud very much.
On the plus side, it’s nice to see Tama Tonga getting some solo love. Alongside Jacob Fatu, Tama’s in-ring work is highly underrated, given that his role in the New Bloodline has largely been a henchman brawler type. His top rope run and diving lariat looked superb, and more high-flying moves would go a long away in differentiating Tama from his fellow Samoans when the time eventually comes to split them up.
Grade: B-
EVERYONE WILL WIN THE WOMEN’S ROYAL RUMBLE
Latest Developments:
Last week, WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton proclaimed she would enter and win the Royal Rumble. Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley interrupted her, showing respect to Stratton but claiming she would win the Royal Rumble.
One by one, Nia Jax (with Candice LeRae),Bianca Belair, Naomi, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez all entered the ring and stated their intent to win the Royal Rumble. Eventually, a brawl broke out between the women, which turned into a six-woman match between the faces and heels. After a brief showcase where everyone hit their spots, the heels won by LeRae pinning Belair.
Also, a brief vignette for Charlotte Flair aired after the segment.
Analysis:
Not much storyline implication here, just a quick showcase to set up the major players in the women’s Royal Rumble this weekend. Many have criticized WWE for building the men’s Rumble entrants with pomp and circumstance while neglecting the women’s. I understand what WWE’s intent was, but the execution failed. Right now, the men’s Rumble feels filled with likely winners, with 8-10 wrestlers believably being frontrunners.
The women’s rumble has more of an air of mystery. With at least three returns likely and both champions having recently wrapped up feuds, it feels like WWE is banking on the Women’s Rumble being unpredictable because there is no obvious winner. It’s definitely an intentional lack of build, but the execution failed because it just looks like WWE doesn’t care about the women’s division. This week felt like a conscious effort to add some hype to proceedings. And it gave us a fun trainwreck-style match, but not much else.
Grade: C+
PRIEST IMMEDIATELY TARGETS WINNING A TITLE
Latest Developments:
Nick Aldis announced Damien Priest as the newest member of the Smackdown roster. After swiftly winning a match against Carmelo Hayes, Priest made his intentions clear to come for championship gold.
Analysis:
Damian Priest, more than anyone, needed a change of scenery. Following a muted ending to his prolonged feud with The Judgement Day, Priest felt like he had done all he could do on the current Raw roster. As a bona fide main eventer, Priest’s arrival on Smackdown immediately adds a new dimension to the title scene. With his intentions to go after Cody Rhodes clear, the championship picture just got a lot murkier.
And that’s a good thing. Priest has always been an incredible worker, but felt hampered by being in long drawn-out feuds that lost the attention of the audience. The minuses of booking long-term storytelling: if your story isn’t hot with audiences (The Judgement Day getting punked out 5-to-1 by Priest every week), then you’re stuck with a cold story for several months.
More so than others, Priest’s arrival felt electrifying, and should be the start of something new for the Puerto Rican star.
Grade: A-
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “Acknowledging WWE” with Javier Machado, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “pwtorch” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
CARMELO HAYES IS JUST HERE TO LOSE
Latest Developments:
Following a string of recent losses to Jimmy Uso, Carmelo Hayes whined to Nick Aldis about moving brands. Aldis offered him the new transfer from Smackdown which wound up being Priest.
After swiftly losing to Priest, Hayes continued talking trash to old rival Jimmy Uso before their rematch next week.
Analysis:
Hayes is pretty much here to be a whiny heel that gives babyfaces a little extra shine when they’re getting heated up before a narrative beat. Someone has to be that role, and right now it’s him. It’s a shame, because Hayes could be a main-event heel in WWE had he been hotshotted like Bron Breakker and Tiffany Stratton, but WWE seems to be taking their time with him. Hopefully, post-WrestleMania, they don’t wait to pull the trigger, or they risk audiences forgetting Hayes’ phenomenal run in NXT.
Next week, Hayes will probably face off to Jimmy Uso again, and lose again so Uso can look good for the next part of The Bloodline’s story.
Nothing else to say about this, really.
Grade: D
CODY RHODES vs. KEVIN OWENS
Latest Developments:
Since returning to ally with Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes was betrayed by longtime ally Kevin Owens due to his supposed hypocrisy in teaming with the enemy. After a long violent feud, Rhodes and Owens faced off for the WWE Championship at Saturday Night’s Main Event where Rhodes won. Owens stole the original “Winged Eagle” let and began calling himself the true WWE champion.
In the following weeks, Owens challenged Rhodes to a ladder match at Royal Rumble. Over the next few weeks, the two brawled on sight, and a fed-up Nick Aldis announced the bout would unify both belts.
Last week, Rhodes cut another passionate promo about reclaiming his legacy. Owens, meanwhile, yelled at Joe Tessitore for not getting his own interview. At SNME, the two met for a contract signing. Rhodes signed immediately, but Owens spent so much time mouthing off that moderator Shawn Michaels and superkicked him to a huge ovation.
Analysis:
Strangely for a world title feud, there wasn’t much of substance covered in the past week. It was mainly Rhodes and Owens cutting separate promos, and the difference in their mentality was highlighted. The SNME contract signing largely felt pointless, existing mainly to get a Shawn Michaels pop for the live crowd. That’s disappointing, as this could have been a great spotlight for the feud going into Royal Rumble. The pacing for this feud has felt extremely frontloaded, with the past few weeks having to stretch out any remaining plot points simply to make it to February.
Frankly, both wrestlers are engrossed in more engaging solo work on Raw, with Owens manipulating Sami Zayn’s moral code into helping him while Rhodes verbally sparred with CM Punk over the struggles of being champion. Despite a muted response from the crowd (especially for Rhodes-Punk, the crowd was SILENT for that), it’s hilarious that both men have been evolving their character on one brand yet their actual feud hasn’t touched on much beyond constant brawls the past few weeks.
I do give credit to WWE for playing up the baggage of Rhodes’ reign just enough to plausibly buy Owens as a shock victor this weekend. There’s enough juice in their solo stories for Owens to have a brief championship run while Rhodes finds another path to Wrestlemania (likely against Punk or The Rock). I doubt that will happen given Rhodes’ marketability as the face of WWE, but it’s credit to the booking that I find this scenario plausible at all.
Grade: B-
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