WWE Leeds, England, live results: Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose

Submitted by Alex White

The show opened with a pre-taped recording of Kevin Owens on the screen trash talking Sami Zayn before being interrupted by R-Truth, who did his usual ‘my bad’ routine for some laughs. Owens sold the interruption well and refused to do the rest of the promos.

U.S. Champion Kalisto def. Ryback to retain

An okay match to start the show, with Kalisto being overpowered for most of it before coming back with high flying offense and a nice reversal out of the ShellShock into Salida del Sol for the win. The ‘lucha’ chant is really over with the kids, and I saw a handful wearing the (£60!!) replica mask.

R-Truth def. Bo Dallas (w/Heath Slater)

Truth won a short match with a roll-up after several breaks for crowd interactions, including a Bo-lieve vs What’s Up battle and Bo’s lap around the ring. Slater got on the mic after the match and trash-talked before he and Bo attacked Truth, which brought Goldust out to make the save. There was a Golden Truth chant and Truth even got Goldust to dance with him for a while.

Fandango def. Damien Sandow

Sandow came out first to a decent pop and thanked the fans for their appreciation despite him not being on TV. He said that having fans chanting his name while he was getting off the bus meant more than any championship ever could. Switching seamlessly into the Intellectual Saviour of the Masses, he lamented the “certifiable, card-carrying idiots” of the UK that enjoyed Fandangoing. Sandow got back on the mic mid-match during a beatdown of Fandango to ask if this is who we really idolised, which led to him being rolled up while still holding the mic. Funny. He genuinely looked emotional during his thank you speech at the start.

AJ Styles and Sami Zayn def. Kevin Owens and Alberto Del Rio

Huge pops for the babyface team. I hadn’t checked the card before the event, so I was pleasantly surprised with this one. The kids were really excited to see AJ, which is a nod to WWE’s booking of him so far as you have to assume that not many of them know him from NJPW or TNA. There was an improvised spot on the outside where Owens grabbed a Styles sign and almost took the kid holding it over the barrier with him.

The crowd was hot for Owens v Zayn, but the match was effectively over when Del Rio collided with Owens on the apron. Moments later, KO refused a tag and
walked out, leaving Del Rio to eat a Helluva Kick, a Phenomenal Forearm and the pin.

Paige, Natalya, Eva Marie and Alicia Fox def. Tamina, Naomi, Summer Rae and Lana

Huge home country pop for Paige and the obligatory boos for Eva. All 8 women worked the match well (including relative newcomers Eva and Lana) with a nice Tower of Doom spot that was well executed. I thought it was over when Paige locked in the PTO on Summer Rae but it was broken up. After some chaos, Paige got the pin after a Rampaige on Tamina. Nattie managed to start a small Eva chant amongst some of the fans down the front, but they were really playing up the divide between her and the rest of the Total Divas babyfaces.

Big Show def. Los Matadores (2-on-1 handicap match)

This ended up being a comedy match, with Diego y Fernando taking it in turns to get shoved to the other side of the ring by Show. After some slaps in the corner and the giant paying homage to the New Day with a booty dance, Diego sat on Fernando’s shoulders and patted Show on the head. Another slap and a double chokeslam ended the bout, with Show staying behind for a good few minutes to sign autographs, pose for pics with the crowd.

WWE I-C Champion The Miz (w/Maryse) def. Dolph Ziggler and Dean Ambrose to retain

Miz came out with Maryse who told the crowd that real men like Miz have women like her, while other men have women like that, pointing to someone in the crowd which drew some heat. Miz showed the audience how to kiss a woman properly, prompting an interruption from Ziggler. Ambrose was out next to the loudest pop of the night. The match was decent, with Miz staying on the outside to start and breaking up pinfalls.

After about 10 minutes, a distraction from Maryse allowed Miz to roll up Ambrose and grab the ropes for the 3 count. Afterwards, Miz called upon Superman in the front row to use his X-Ray vision to confirm that the Miz hadn’t cheated. Ambrose was having none of the Miz’s offer of a handshake and told him that Ziggler had something to say. That something was a superkick, and Ambrose nailed Dirty Deeds to send the crowd home happy.

A really enjoyable first live event for me, despite New Day and three of the four horsewomen being in Nottingham instead of Leeds. AJ and Sami were ridiculously over, along with Big Show and obviously Paige. Some more mic time for guys like Bo Dallas and KO would have been nice, but nobody was walking out of the arena disappointed.