SummerSlam/NXT/UFC 202/ROH fan feedback

WWE SummerSlam

– Best Match: AJ vs Cena
– Worst Match: Nattie, Nikki Bella & Alexa Bliss vs Naomi, Carmella & Becky Lynch

The Balor vs Rollins match was brought down by the annoying commentary. How many times do they have to say Demon King? It would have been a good drinking game to get hammered on. Same thing applied to Raw when he appeared. Just overkill.

Great to see AJ get the clean win over Cena to elevate him even more. Styles has performed in every WWF match he has had and with a couple years of great PPV performances, it should solidify him a spot in the Observer Hall of Fame along with his dominance in TNA and great run in NJPW.

Brock vs Orton was an interesting finish but something that will get people talking. Will they go the PED route and overturn the TKO win? All I can say is this better not end up with Shane vs Brock with Shane beating Brock to avenge Summerslam.

Grant Zwarcych

– Best match: John Cena vs AJ Styles

– Worst match: Carmella, Naomi and Becky Lynch vs Natalya, Alexa Bliss and Nikki Bella

Thumbs up. This show definitely could have had some different match order and there were parts of the show that suffered from it.

I had minimal interest in Orton vs Lesnar and although their work was good I am still not all that interested in them. I’ve enjoyed Lesnar over the years but at this point he is given so many privileges including using juicing in more ways than one that it is hard to have interest in him.

But Cena vs Styles was an incredible match. Ambrose vs Ziggler suffered but the result works out well. And although the heat was weak early on I would call Rollins vs Balor a big success.

Dave Musgrave of Oshawa, ON 

Best Match: Cena vs. Styles

Thumbs up show. First I appreciate they are trying to give you your money’s worth, but they don’t need to make these shows six hours long.  One hour for a preshow would be fine with one or two matches and then a three plus hour show.  It doesn’t need to be this long. As far as the preshow goes the 12 man tag was fine for what it was to kick things off, but it still didn’t do a great job of putting over the tag team division on Smackdown except for a couple of teams.  Everyone else is basically just there.

Neville & Sami Zayn vs. Dudleys was just a nothing match.  Neville and Zayn deserve much better than this and a Dudleys break up didn’t work too well the last time they did it.  Hope they have a reason to split them up.

Sheamus vs. Cesaro was good, but after two weeks of them in a row, now we get another six weeks of this I assume.  Not sure that is necessary.  I hope the end result is a big push for Cesaro, but I won’t hold my breath.

Now the main show starts.  Jericho and Owens beat Enzo and Cass.  Decent match.  These guys are all fun, but again I think there is a better use for Owens and Jericho then this.  The end spot wasn’t timed out great.  We will probably get Owens vs. Jericho at some point out of this when they can’t stand each other anymore.

Charlotte vs. Sasha wasn’t going so well early on.  Looks Charlotte was trying to kill Sasha.  Then they still tried to do some horrendous stuff.  That top rope Razor’s Edge into the huracanrana looked to dangerous and nearly a bad landing.  I’m surprised at some of what they attempt.  Was a little surprised at Charlotte winning it back this quickly but it ended up a good match overall.

Miz vs. Crews for the I-C TItle was nothing special.  I don’t like Miz with the title and there is no reason for Crews to keep jobbing out.  I-C Title seems like the least important title in the company right now as in dead last below every title including the NXT Titles which seems more important even than the main roster ones.  At least they don’t all look the same either.

AJ Styles vs. John Cena was tremendous.  Best match on the show.  Cena really pulled out a number of moves that he doesn’t usually do and Styles is just great.  Plus Styles winning clean made it even better.  Hope Styles gets a title shot soon.

Tag Titles was nothing memorable really.  Jon Stewart didn’t seem to really add anything and no one seemed to care that he was there.  I thought they would finally do a title change, but maybe they are saving it for Clash of Champions. 

Ambrose vs. Ziggler should have gone later in the show.  This was lacking something.  I guess that’s it for Dolph.  He lost clean so seems like there isn’t much left for him.  No Bray Wyatt involvement.  Surprised he wasn’t on the show at all.

Six woman tag was decent with the return of Nikki Bella.  She gets the win which makes sense.  Guess she had to be on Cena’s brand.

Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins was a good match.  Glad to see Balor win the title, but I don’t like the title itself.  Now we have three titles in the company that are nearly identical with the WWE, Universal, and Women’s Titles.  Each title should have a unique look.  They must be using a cookie cutter mold for the belts now.

Rusev vs. Reigns wasn’t a match.  Why they didn’t just do this angle on Raw instead of Summer Slam I don’t know.  I guess Rusev and Lana are headed for their Bulgarian wedding ceremony. 

Lesnar vs. Orton was a different kind of good, but not sure I would have done the non match and then this finish in a row instead of having the big title match at the end.  The match really puts Lesnar over strong again and thought it would be more competitive with Orton.  No sign of Goldberg who I thought maybe would come in after Orton was bleeding.  Lesnar vs. Shane next?  Maybe Orton gets another match with Lesnar?  Not sure what this leads to. 

It wasn’t the greatest Summer Slam and again they had a hard time following NXT the night before, but the Cena vs. Styles match was great and that made it worth while.

Robb Block

– Best Match: Cena v Styles
– Worst Match: Six Women tag
– Worst segment: KFC

Thumbs up. Dont mind the way the show ended with Brock laying waste but have to start by saying I would have sent the crowd home happy with say the Balor win. Hard to say that since Lesnar/Orton always felt” like the main event. Instantly wondered if that was the planned finish and perhaps just too much blood ended whatever other lead up they had until the finish. 

They need to shorten these shows. Sorry but the six woman match and the dudleys match added nothing. As a result we have the crowd dying totally during a solid match. Its just too too long. A rematch of the 12 team too. Man. And that match was fun but not at the cost. 

Cena and AJ may have been my favorite of the weekend. And thats over three amazing NXT matches and a wonderful Sasha Charlotte match. Sheamus Cesro was very good. Hope they can keep topping it for another 6. Ziggler Ambrose didnt deserve that reaction but as mentioned crowd ran out of gas. Balor Rollins was great. Surreal to see Balor with a “world” title. Even if it looks live eva marie designed it. Cant believe they still did the Eva Marie gimmick!!  

Again, a thumbs up show very entertaining just lets not overdo the time on the big ppvs guys

Submitted anonymously

Thumbs in the middle to SummerSlam

– Best: AJ Styles vs. John Cena

– Worst: Lesnar vs. Orton

I cannot believe what I just saw. SummerSlam totally went off a cliff after AJ/Cena – and even though they had a good match for the Universally Red title, the crowd turning on that belt left a real stink on the match.

It was a weird show. The order of the matches really telegraphed where WWE have slotted people  Ambrose is not going to last as a champion on SmackDown, judging by his midcard match and reaction, but likewise, aside from AJ, who else does that brand have? Orton’s stock has to have taken a battering from that main event finish, at least in the eyes of the fans.

Whether Lesnar “went into business for himself” with those elbows, or the spot was planned (and the blood wasn’t), I think Lesnar’s overall stock has to have taken a hit. He cannot be seen as being reliable to either UFC or WWE, not now he’s had a heavily promoted main event that was stopped because he didn’t pull his punches.

Ian Hamilton

– Best match: AJ vs Cena
– Worst match: Miz vs Crews

Thumbs in the middle. Show was way too long. Really enjoyed Charlotte v Sasha but so scary. Enjoyed Brock v Orton finish as well. Much of the show unnecessary. Jon Stewart was awful. Ambrose v Ziggler was super underwhelming as well.

Erin Hotovy

NXT Takeover

– Best Match: Revival v Gargano Ciampa

– Worst Match: Roode v Cien (but fine!)

Thumbs up. Those three title matches, wow. Very difficult to pick between the 3 but Dash and Dawsons performance wa something else. If youve never seen these guys at a house show they even add in more perfect heel pro wrestling stuff and just nail everything on TV. Nakumaras entrance was electric and their work was outstanding. Dying for Joe Lesnar eventually. Ive gotten a bigger reaction in public wearing my Nakamura shirt than any wrestling apparel in years.

They need to also call him up ASAP and push him differently than every stereotypical role they have basically given to so many other folks who have come over from Japan. Bayley/Asuka was even better than the first one, which was awesome and so much emotion at the end. Wish Roode was in the company years ago and hope they dont delay his call up too long either though do all those call up requests cause an end to the never ending string of mind blowing Takeovers?

A great weekend with that great UFC main event thrown in!!  

Michael O’Brien | Brockton, MA

I thought that the Tag Team title match was by far the best match on the show tonight. Just an excellent match, both teams were great, I hope they do it again some time in the future.

Austin Aries and No Way Jose was good opener.

I liked Ember Moon but she’ll be much better when she wrestles against women who are less green.

Bobby Roode’s entrance was great, but one thing that really stood out to me in the match was that Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas can get over with his work. The big problem with him is his gear. I also don’t see why he comes out with red suspenders and a red hat but then wrestles in white gear. They need to just ditch the suspenders and hat.

I liked the Women’s title match, though I didn’t think it was as good as last year’s. Now I’m just hoping that they don’t squander Bayley on the main roster. Honestly she’s the one wrestler in the company I’m most frightened for in that regard.

The first half of Joe and Nakamura I thought was a little disappointing to be honest. Granted it did pick up by the end, but I didn’t think it was as good as the other two title matches.

Overall, I thought the show was 7-8 out of 10

– Kevin Timmins

Thumbs way up. May be the best takeover to date. Incredible atmosphere and everything a wrestling show should be.  Worst match: moon-Kay. Just kinda eh. Finished was impressive though.

Best match: I’m going to go with Revival-ciampa/gargano. Nakamura-Joe was awesome but the tag match had such raw emotion from the crowd whole heartedly wanting Gargano-Ciampa to win. Incredible near falls and wrestling.

Mike Flynn

Best match tag title match. the most heated match on the show. Great work by all involved.  Worst was Roode v Almas.  Roode entrance was super over but it was just a match. Nothing really special. 

Becky and Sasha turned down going backstage after the Women’s title match and stayed for the main event. It was funny because Mick was initially sitting next to Finn Balor then slowly changed seats with each member of his family until he was next to Becky. Not implying anything just thought it was funny. 

Everyone in the area was singing ‘All night long’ at Rich Swann. He was by far the most over of the guys. Will be a real star if they pull the trigger on him. 

The main event was mostly just entrances. Nakamura’s entrance was really something special. It has to be experienced live.  The match was a bit slow and seemed rushed to finish. Maybe Joe being injured sped up the ending. 

John Berke

ROH Death Before Dishonor

– Thumbs: Middle tilted up

– Best Match: Okada vs Castle

– Worst match: Shibata vs Young

I’m not a regular viewer of ROH’s stuff but I thought the show was about thumbs middle curving upward. I bought in tonight because I was really looking forward to the main event and Okada vs Castle. Commentary and videos did a good job keeping me caught up on what was going on. The production missing spots commentary was calling was really bad though. The best match of the night for me was Okada vs Castle, Dalton Castle looked great and the big personalities were on full display even if it looked like at points Okada was running at about 50 percent.

The worst match of the night was Shibata vs Silas Young, Shibata doesn’t really do much for me even when he’s against great opponents and Silas Young is not what I’d call great. Overall I enjoyed the show but probably won’t be following up on more ROH stuff until the next big show.

– James Rood

– Best Match: Revival vs. Gargano & Ciampa

– Worst Match: Ember Moon vs. Billy Kay

Thumbs up. From top to bottom, once again NXT delivers a solid fun show with not really anything to complain about.  Not like a WWE show where it may be very good, but there is always something to be criticized. 

Austin Aries vs. No Way Jose was a good opener and Jose is fun to watch, but I am glad to see Aries pick up the win and now he heads into a feud with Hideo Itami.  Looking forward to that match. I didn’t think Ember Moon vs. Billy Kay was too bad, but it was the weakest thing on the show.  The big stunner off the top was a cool move. 

Bobby Roode vs. Andrade Cien Almas was a fun match.  Not sure what they should do with Almas.  He isn’t really getting over like they want.  He seems more like a heel with his mannerisms and he just looks cocky even if he isn’t.  Roode has a great entrance is a good solid heel.  Glad to see him get over.  I mean he is Glorious right

Revival vs. Gargano and Ciampa was great.  I love watching real tag team matches.  You don’t see them on WWE TV.  I love seeing double team moves, the hot tag that was missed by the ref and all that kind of stuff.  Tag matches today in WWE really have that kind of flow usually.  This was great.  I imagine they will meet again.

Asuka vs. Bayley for the Women’s Title was another strong match.  I assume with Bayley losing again that she will finally be moving to the main roster.  They probably need her more on Smackdown, but she’ll end up on Raw because they have more going on.

Samoa Joe vs. Shinsuke was a strong main event and once again these two are so great.  How can they not be headlining WWE ppvs?  Perhaps a Joe lost means he is also moving up soon.  I do hope we get a Joe vs. Lesnar properly built match for a WrestleMania.  That just seems like a natural.

Like so many times before NXT delivers big and now WWE has to follow the next day.  It’s a pretty strong line up for Summer Slam so hopefully they deliver the goods.

– Robb Block

UFC 202

– Best Match: Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz

– Worst Match: Raquel Pennington vs Elizabeth Phillips

Thumbs up. This show was very easy to watch and entertaining. That punch that Johnson delivered could have knocked out a buffalo or bison.

– Eric Poon

Thumbs way up. Only caught the last three bouts but they were all amazing. The rest of the show could’ve been crap and I’d still give the show a positive review. Cerrone’s liver kick was killer and Johnson’s KO was awesome, but hell. Let’s give it up for Conor and Diaz. That was arguably the best fight of 2016, if not ever. Just amazing guts and determination from both guys. I honestly thought Diaz won more rounds, but I could see why Conor got the nod from the judges.

McGregor’s salvation is the story of the year. Can’t wait for McGregor vs Diaz III.

– Dann Lennard | Sydney, Australia

– Best: Diaz vs. McGregor

– Worst: Lobov vs. Avila

Best UFC show I’ve seen this year, headlined by the FOTY so far. I had the main event a draw and can’t wait for the rubber match.

– Nick Randall

After seeing some of parts of the first fight and listening to you guys talk about the press conference and the weigh in, I decided to make my way down to the local bar and watch UFC 202. Before I go any further, even though I have been a subscriber for a number of years, this is the first time I’ve watched a UFC card.

I got there about 10am my time (12 hours ahead of US east coast time) and the place was about a quarter full. The main card had just started with Tim Means winning in the second round. Slowly over the next hour to hour and a half, the crowd grew to being three quarters full for the start of Conor vs Nate and pretty close to being full by the end.

By the way, What an uppercut by Rumble Johnson and combination by Cowboy Cerrone.

Now to the Main Event, first round obviously went to Conor 10-9, but I thought Nate was smart by making sure Conor couldn’t get on top of him. Second round maybe went to Conor as Nate went to the canvas mind you Nate came back towards the end of the round. I thought the third round went to Nate as he seemed the more aggressive of the two. Fourth round seemed pretty even as fatigue settled in. I have no idea how to score the fifth round with all the grappling and leaning on the fence. Crowd gives both fighters a rapturous round of applause.

If I were to judge a winner, Nate wins but it could go either. Crowd goes wild with Conor’s decision. A good card for my first UFC but it would have been cooler if the main event didn’t go to a decision.

Darren Garrett | Perth, Australia