WWE/TNA/ROH: My Top 15 Moments of the Week (Aug. 19-24)

Another week of professional wrestling has come to an end, and it was an overall good week.

WWE presented SummerSlam last Sunday and it was a good show. There were a few duds during the event, but the rest of the show made up for them.

WWE Monday Night Raw was a decent show. There were a few good matches and segments, but most of the night felt like a giant filler.

TNA Impact Wrestling presented Open Fight Night and they delivered a very solid show! Some of the matches were quite good and the segments all tied together and were great.

WWE Friday Night SmackDown was an overall good show. The event had a couple of good matches that outshined the cons of the show.

I didn’t have the time to watch NXT, Superstars or Ring of Honor Wrestling this week. I was just so busy that I didn’t have the opportunity to sit down and watch the shows. So unfortunately, those shows will not be featured this week.

Who had the best show of the week? As always, I want you decide! Click here to decide on what you thought was the best this week and the result will be revealed next week.

As for this week, here are my top 15 moments!

Worst Moment of the Week

This week featured a couple of major duds and I thought all of them came from WWE.

The WWE Championship match at SummerSlam was extremely boring while the commentary on Raw was so bad I found myself muting my television during parts of the show.

Apparently Triple H is the only important person in the entire WWE as the “spirit” of the company died because he lost to Brock Lesnar, and Santino Marella talking to his hand on SmackDown was just stupid.

I felt that one moment surpassed the rest, though, and that was the Divas battle royal on Raw.

With Rosa Mendes and Aksana rolling around on the mat for some reason and Eve lying in the corner while Natalya, Tamina, Alicia Fox and Kaitlyn fought, I thought this match was just a train wreck.

Also, WWE advertised both Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly in the pre-match graphic, but neither woman was in the match.

Two-minute singles matches are bad enough, but when WWE puts them all in the ring for a battle royal, nothing good ever comes of it.

I’m glad Kaitlyn won, though, as it’s someone different getting a title shot for a change; it’s just the match was so sloppy. I miss women’s wrestling in WWE, I really do.

WWE should take some notes on TNA’s Knockouts division and actually give the Divas the time to have a real match.

No. 15: Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar

I thought this match was overall pretty boring. Half of the match saw Brock Lesnar beating up Triple H and the other half saw Triple H beat down Lesnar.

It didn’t get interesting until the final minutes when the contest finally became more back-and-forth and both wrestlers kicked out of each other’s respective finishing moves. This only makes the list because of the ending of the match and I needed one more moment to finish this.

I was fully expecting to see Triple H pull out the sledgehammer here, so I was surprised to see Lesnar win the match. Lesnar winning was the right move, though. He lost to John Cena at Extreme Rules, so he needed this victory.

If he lost this match and disappeared for another few months, I don’t think anyone would care when he showed up again.

Seeing him beat Triple H makes him look legitimate after his loss in April and it gives him plenty of heat to play off when he comes back.

No. 14: Kofi Kingston and R-Truth vs. Primo and Epico

This was some good tag team action right here as the champions and the Colon cousins delivered a fast-paced match with a nice amount of back-and-forth action. .

These two teams worked really well together here and it shows me that the tag team division in WWE is very much alive. I remember in the beginning of the year when the division was nothing, but it’s been built up nicely over the past couple of months.

Kofi Kingston and R-Truth have developed into a good tag team while Primo and Epico Colon continue to impress every time they step foot into the ring.

I can see a multi-team match for the Tag Team Championship at Night of Champions, especially with the events that happened after this match backstage, so the division will certainly continue to heat up!

No. 13: The Claire Lynch Storyline Comes to an End

Hallelujah! This ridiculously horrid storyline is finally over!

With Claire Lynch’s lawyer coming out to reveal that she was never pregnant and that the whole blackmail scheme was the idea of Christopher Daniels and Kazarian, Claire was effectively written off television and the storyline was killed.

I was fine with this thing at first, but it soon became more ridiculous as time went by and it turned into what may have been a sure winner of the worst storyline of the year.

The feud between AJ Styles, Daniels and Kazarian isn’t over just yet, but that’s fine. They will continue to deliver a few more good matches until probably Bound for Glory.

Then again, it could very well end at No Surrender, but the important thing is that this particular part of the feud is finally over!

No. 12: Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

With the history between these two superstars, I was expecting their match at SummerSlam to be a good one. I was not disappointed, as Daniel Bryan and Kane had a good back-and-forth match. 

Parts of the match were dominated by Kane, which I liked. Bryan is much smaller than the Big Red Monster, so it makes sense to see him get beat up for a short time.

Bryan's slap to Kane was a really nice touch as it showed his defiance towards his monster-like opponent and the victory via a small package was well done.

While Bryan could out wrestle Kane, the current storyline doesn't really make it believable that he could beat him, let alone make him tap out to the No Lock.

The small package gives him a victory and gives the storyline the opportunity to continue.  I think these two will be at each other's throats until Hell in a Cell in October, and I love it. 

As long as they can keep up the solid in-ring work and deliver, continuing the feud is a good thing as far as I'm concerned.

No. 11: Miss Tessmacher vs. Tara

In the spirit of Open Fight Night, Miss Tessmacher challenged her mentor, Tara, to a non-title match.

These two Knockouts delivered a good back-and-forth match here, but if they were given a little more time, I think they could have had a great match.

Tessmacher was really at the top of her game here and I think working with Tara really helped her in this match. At times, Tara really took her to school and I think that was great. What better way to improve than to learn during an actual match?

The superplex was a nice touch and I’ve noticed the Knockouts doing big moves like that a lot more lately. I give these women a lot of credit for doing something like that.

That’s why I love the Knockouts! These women put their bodies on the line to entertain the fans and that’s what makes them one of the best women’s divisions in wrestling today.

No. 10: AJ Styles vs. Robbie E vs. Rob Van Dam

This match in the Bound for Glory Series was a good one that was highlighted by Robbie E. His character leads some to believe that he’s just a comedy character, but the man can deliver in the ring.

He was great in the fatal four-way tables match at Hardcore Justice and he continued to shine here as well. While his character is ridiculous, it seems like TNA is finally taking him a little more seriously, which is certainly a good thing.

AJ Styles was great like he always is and Rob Van Dam was RVD. The match featured a lot of solid back-and-forth action, but it was Robbie E that was the star of it.

While he has no chance of winning the series, it was great to see Robbie actually win the match. His only victory before this was a count out win over Jeff Hardy, so seeing him pin a star like Van Dam is going to open the eyes of some fans.

A victory in a triple threat match over two former TNA world champions may very well open some major doors for him.

No. 9: Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler

The world heavyweight champion and Mr. Money in the Bank delivered a good match here. It seemed a bit short, but they made the most of the time they were given.

Sheamus continues to impress as world heavyweight champion and Ziggler just keeps proving that he is the true future of the WWE. I thought that the disqualification finish was a smart move. It keeps Sheamus winning and it keeps Ziggler looking like a strong heel.

It also allows the Showoff to continue to tease cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase, which advances his “I’ll do it on my time” storyline.

I think that whenever he does cash in, it’ll be on Sheamus or Randy Orton, and the ensuing feud over the World Heavyweight Championship will be a great one!

No. 8: Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio

These two superstars faced off on both Raw and SmackDown this week and since I enjoyed both matches, I decided to include them both into one moment. Both contests featured some good back-and-froth action and each had a different outcome.

Raw’s match saw Sheamus inform the referee that Orton’s foot was on the rope and that led to Del Rio yelling at Sheamus and ultimately getting an RKO to secure Orton the victory. The finish continued the Sheamus/Del Rio feud while also making Orton look strong.

I thought that the finish to the SmackDown match was the best, though.

With the No. 1 contendership for the World Heavyweight Championship on the line, Del Rio actually made the Apex Predator tap out. The match ended cleanly, which is a shock for a Del Rio match, and Orton tapping out was itself a big shock as well.

Orton has lost cleanly before, but I can’t remember the last time he actually tapped out to a submission hold. The finish made Del Rio look strong as he did something others have never been able to do before.

I’m a bit disappointed that Del Rio is getting another title shot, though, but I’ll worry about that when the match actually occurs.

No. 7: The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio

This was a SummerSlam match I was looking forward to, and the Miz and Rey Mysterio didn’t disappoint me. They had a good back-and-forth match that saw some nice action.

The Miz really stepped up his game here and I think being in the ring with Mysterio caused that to happen. While he has slowed down, Mysterio is still very quick in the ring and the Miz was able to keep up with him during the whole match.

The champion dominated for part of the match and I really liked that. It keeps to Mysterio’s “ultimate underdog” persona while showing that the Miz is a serious champion.

The Miz retaining the title was a great move, I thought. Mysterio doesn’t need the title, but the Miz does. He fell so far after losing the WWE Championship last year and he is now finally beginning his rise back to the top.

No. 6: Raw’s Opening Segment

WWE Monday Night Raw opened with Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar and I thought it turned out really well.

Talking of Triple H returning from a torn quadriceps, but being taken out by Lesnar, Heyman once again proved to be a master of the mic. Calling Lesnar the new “King of Kings” was a great way to generate more heat for him as well.

When Heyman called out referee Scott Armstrong, I thought that he’d be getting an F-5, but what happened was a really nice touch. With Lesnar patting him on the head and simply saying “good job,” Lesnar’s small actions really tied the whole segment together.

The star here was definitely Heyman, though. With the tone of his voice and his facial expressions, the former head of ECW can rarely be matched on the mic.

Adding together his mic work, Lesnar’s cockiness and just what was said, and Raw’s opening segment delivered.

No. 5: Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio

Sheamus retained his World Heavyweight Championship here in a good match. These two had a good showing last month at Money in the Bank, so I fully expected this to be another good one.

Sheamus was Sheamus, who is a solid worker, and Del Rio kept with the intensity. I loved the ending as well when Sheamus smacked Del Rio with Ricardo Rodriguez’s shoe.

It’s a tactic Del Rio would use and was most likely going to utilize himself, so he got a taste of his own medicine. At the same time, the end result surprised me. I was expecting to see Del Rio win the match as it was just time to give him the belt.

WWE once again didn’t pull the trigger, so I don’t get why they keep putting him in the main event just to lose.

If WWE doesn’t give him the World Heavyweight Championship at Night of Champions, then they really should take him out of the title picture.

No. 4: Mr. Anderson vs. Bully Ray

These two wrestlers had a great feud last year that culminated at Bound for Glory in a falls count anywhere match in October. I was there live at the big event and it was truly a great match!

With their history, I knew that they could deliver again and I think that they did here. This was no falls count anywhere match, but they delivered a solid back-and-forth contest that saw Mr. Anderson pick up seven points in the Bound for Glory Series.

Bully Ray dominated the first part of the match, but once they got mid-way through, the match became more even.

I was kind of confused as to why Anderson won the match, though. He stated before the match that this was his final Bound for Glory Series match, and even with the win giving him 47 points, he didn’t make it to the top four.

No matter the reasoning behind his victory, this was a good match and that’s all that counts in my book.

No. 3: Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler

Chris Jericho and Dolph Ziggler went at it twice this week and both matches were very good.  Instead of giving both matches separate moments, I decided to combine them into one so a spot could remain free for something else. 

Both contests featured constant back-and-forth action as Jericho and Ziggler worked very well together. They wrestled one another in multi-man matches, but the extent of how well they work together didn't really show until the match at SummerSlam. 

I was surprised to see Jericho win at the big summer event. I was expecting him to lose since he was touring with his band at the Uproar Festival, but his victory was a good move as it gave him his first pay-per-view win of the year. 

They continued their feud the next night on Raw with a stipulation that made the result an obvious one. Despite the obvious result, Jericho and Ziggler delivered for the second night in a row.

The post-match actions of Jericho make me think that he will be back after the tour. Fozzy’s tour doesn't end until March, according to his website, so perhaps Ziggler will be world heavyweight champion when he returns. That way they'll have their rubber match for the World Heavyweight Championship. 

It was certainly a good week for both wrestlers and things can only go up for Ziggler at this point.

No. 2: Raw’s Closing Segment

Part 2 of the segment

I thought that this was a powerful segment. With CM Punk talking of taking a back seat to John Cena, Triple H and the Rock out of respect, but never getting any in return, and Cena refusing to stroke Punk’s ego, these two superstars really delivered here.

While the match at Night of Champions will most likely be happening, this puts the contest in jeopardy. Punk chose Cena as the No. 1 contender, but only if he said that Punk was the best in the world. The face of the WWE refused, so where does that leave the title match at Night of Champions?

It’ll be interesting to see how it all develops.

The end of the segment was intriguing as well. Punk wanted an apology from Jerry Lawler because he said Punk turned his back on the fans, so he did apologize, but he wouldn’t call him the best in the world either.

That resulted in a kick to the back of the head, so I’d imagine a match between them is on the way. Of course, it could lead to something completely different. Time will tell, I suppose.

No. 1: The TNA Roster United to Battle the Aces & 8s

The brawl

This past Thursday was Open Fight Night on Impact Wrestling and it was one of the best shows TNA has produced this summer. The night was highlighted by the ever-developing Aces & 8s storyline.

The show opened with a united roster. Fans saw AJ Styles with Christopher Daniels and Kazarian, Bully Ray standing next to Devon and even Robbie E and Robbie T were there to fight alongside TNA’s biggest names.

The opening saw two “prospects” come out and get beat down for their patch, but it was only the beginning. Sting screwed with three of them backstage while Hulk Hogan, or should I saw Hollywood Hogan, took them out with a baseball bat.

Hollywood Hogan fits this storyline so much better than regular Hulk Hogan and that was shown with just one segment.

Later on backstage, Robbie T and Gunner fought right next to Kurt Angle as they took out another three and the night came to a close when the united roster and the Aces & 8s had it out in a massive brawl that saw the group of masked men sandwich Austin Aries’ arm between a piece of the guard rail and a steel chair.

I though this whole thing was just so well done. Seeing enemies unite to battle a common threat was great to see and seeing Hulk Hogan and Sting fight alongside them really added to it.

The big thing here, though, was that despite getting beat all night, the Aces & 8s did the most damage. They took out the TNA world heavyweight champion and in a situation like this, the world champion is someone who could be looked to for leadership.

Sting and Hogan may be the generals of this TNA army, but they lost one of their biggest assets here. It’ll be very interesting to see how the roster reacts to losing their world champion.

Poll Results/Cast Your Vote

Here are the poll results from last week, the week of August 12-17:

• TNA Hardcore Justice: 52.9%
• WWE Raw: 17.6%
• TNA Impact Wrestling: 8.8%
• WWE SmackDown: 8.8%
• WWE NXT: 5.9%
• ROH Wrestling: 4.4%
• WWE Superstars: 1.5%

The voters saw TNA’s annual August pay-per-view Hardcore Justice as the best show last week by a landslide. In terms of the regularly scheduled television shows, you felt that WWE Raw was the best of the week.

Don’t forget to vote for what you thought was the best show this week, and as usual, the results will be revealed on next week’s list.

Thanks for reading!