Stomping Grounds
The week kicked off with the New Day team of Big E and Xavier Woods back in action. They went down in their bid to avenge their comrade; the age of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn continued for one more night.
After earning a US Title match, Ricochet was put over when he took Samoa Joe to the limit. It’s possible that this is the direction that was intended for Rey Mysterio following Money in the Bank.
Kofi Kingston’s summer reign is mirroring that of Jinder Mahal in some ways. The steel cage match put Kingston in a position to overcome a formidable opponent in Dolph Ziggler, while also making his survival look all that more impressive. Kofi being acrobatic didn’t hurt either.
Raw
The New Day bounced back to participate in an 8-man elimination tag contest only to be eliminated before the Usos picked up the W for their team. Before it was over, both teams were on the main line for their show’s respective tag titles.
Drake Maverick attempted to redeem himself after losing the 24/7 Championship at his wedding; he requested a rematch from R-Truth, who quickly prevailed, but it was later in the night when Truth would lose his title to Heath Slater, win it back, lose to Cedric Alexander, and finally win it from EC3 to remain champ for another night.
The tussle between Bobby Lashley and Braun Strowman in an old fashion tug-o-war. The Lashley teaser included him breaking a rope from pulling at a light pole. Some teaser because Strowman snatched The Almighty like he was a toddler.
Kofi is still out here working show after show. Add two more contests and a beating to his week; Sami Zayn then Kevin Owens went down in back to back matches. Samoa Joe raised his hands to become the next challenger for the WWE Title.
Several possible options were put into place with the main event of AJ Styles and Ricochet; none of those seem to speak to the direction of the US Champ.
SmackDown Live
Big E and Xavier were teamed with Heavy Machinery in half rebooking of the previous night to pick up another victory over a team that contained the tag champions.
The second women’s match of the night featured Ember Moon in her quest to overcome Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose; a moment of interruption cost her a chance to get that big victory.
The final match of Kofi’s week was a 2-out of- 3 contest in which Dolph Ziggler could have earned a spot in the Extreme Rules match with Kingston and Joe. Thank goodness he didn’t, at least for this week.
NXT
The celebration phase was short lived for the new champs, the Street Profits. The Forgotten Sons reared their heads again, yet it was Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch standing face to face with the champs by the end of the segment.
Impact! Television
A new look Kiera Hogan challenges Madison Skye and reminds us that everyone in the women’s locker room is selfish.
We had another Dezond Xavier sighting by way of the Rascalz and their big win over LAX. Tag team title run anyone?
Best In The World
The first of a three-match run came in the form of the series finale between Jay Lethal and Kenny King. This was worth the price of admission or PPV buy. Both pulled out all the stops to get the victory. King topped it off with a Lethal Injection and Royal Flush combo.
What are the Pure Rules? Well for those who are not familiar, Jonathan Gresham battled Silas Young under Pure Rules style. The limited rope breaks played to Gresham’s favor still somehow there was a low blow worked into the mix that gave him the edge over the Last Real Man.
The Television Champ, Shane Taylor, brought it back for the bruisers. Bandido had all in attendance behind him going in the match. Taylor only needed his mean streak and the power game to keep his title in his hands.