SHOWN IN CLUB 69 FLIRTS

SATURDAY AUGUST 31ST 2024

FROM 4PM

CONFIRMED MATCHES

World Heavyweight Championship -- Gunther (c) vs. Randy Orton: Gunther earned a world title shot at SummerSlam by defeating Orton in May's King of the Ring finals. Gunther made the most of his opportunities but a small black cloud hangs over his young title reign. Orton's shoulder was off the mat when Gunther pinned him to become King of the Ring. Orton challenged Gunther to a world title match that will reinforce Gunther's success against Orton or wrong a right for the "The Viper."

Undisputed WWE Championship -- Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Kevin Owens: Rhodes offered Owens a title shot to show his gratitude for Owen's support against The Bloodline. Owens declined, arguing his recent win-loss record didn't justify the opportunity. Rhodes took the request to SmackDown general manager Nick Aldis, who booked the match for Berlin.

Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley vs. Dominik Mysterio & Liv Morgan (Mixed Tag Team Match): Priest and Ripley have been on the warpath since both were violently bounced from Judgment Day. Priest's bigger issues are with Finn Balor, but he's more than happy to also get his hands on Mysterio. After Mysterio left Ripley for Morgan, Ripley's issues with the women's world champion hit a new level. Morgan has done everything she can to keep Ripley from getting any physical revenge but now they have to share the ring for the first time since Mysterio helped Morgan get a win in their SummerSlam match. 

CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre (Strap Match): McIntyre beat Punk in their long-awaited match at SummerSlam thanks to Punk being distracted by guest referee Seth Rollins and the bracelet McIntyre stole. If there was any big criticism of that match, it was a lack of "hate" in the match in favor of the drama of a stolen friendship bracelet made by Punk's wife. After Punk delivered a follow-up beating with a belt, he was inspired to challenge McIntyre to a strap match, which should provide the level of violence fans wanted from the first meeting. 

WWE Women's Tag Team Championships -- Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) vs. Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill: Unholy Union pinned Shayna Baszler to win the titles in a triple threat tag match involving defending champs Belair and Cargill. The former titleholders were never pinned and get a chance to retrieve their belts at Bash in Berlin. 

HIGHLIGHTS

RESULTS

Undisputed WWE Championship -- Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Kevin Owens: Rhodes and Owens know each other too well for a tactical clash. The longtime friends countered each other repeatedly through the early portion of the match. Only when their friendship cracked under the weight of their competitive spirits did either man find success. Rhodes repeatedly hunted submission holds while Owens pummeled the champ. Both men also regularly took flight to land diving moves ringside. Rhodes landed the first near fall of the match after surprising Owens with a Cody Cutter. Owens reciprocated with a fireman's rolling senton off the middle ropes. A brilliant piece of business saw Owens counter a Cody Cutter into a stunner setup, only for Rhodes to reverse it into a Cross Rhodes. The champion's hubris got the better of him. Rhodes took Owens back to the corner despite setting up Owens for that rolling senton last time. Owens again countered Rhodes on the middle rope, landing a brutal fisherman brainbuster for the near fall. 

Rhodes bested Owens in an exchange of super kicks but his knee -- which Owens teased was injured on SmackDown -- gave out as he went for a corner Cody Cutter. Owens stopped himself short of kicking out Rhodes' injured knee, hesitant to capitalize on his friend's previous injury. Owens tried to talk down Rhodes but the champion retaliated with forearm shots while claiming, "I'm OK!" Owens kicked out Rhodes' leg and the champ immediately crumpled. Owens considered hitting his friend with a powerbomb on the apron, a move he's used to storyline injure other superstars. Owens' principles got the better of him and he tossed Rhodes aside. Owens snapped at Wade Barrett as the commentator criticized Owens for his lack of a killer instinct. Back in the ring, a series of Cross Rhodes and stunners ended with Rhodes landing the final blow. They embraced post-match as a dejected Owens pushed the camera out of his face. Rhodes' is great on the microphone but he's brilliant at telling stories in the ring. Each of his title defenses has painted a unique story. Owens has been a cutthroat athlete for most of his career. Owens' maturity and recent commitment to friendship cost him his first singles title in eight years. Wonderful work that exceeded the expectations of their short build. Rhodes def. Owens via pinfall to retain the title.

WWE Women's Tag Team Championships -- Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) (c) vs. Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill: The four superstars threw fists before the bell rang. The challengers' physical presence overwhelmed the champion's early but Unholy Union's tandem experience paid dividends. Fyre and Dawn used timely interference, angles and Cargill's short fuse to isolate Belair. It all fell apart for the champion's when Belair finally found the opening to tag her partner. Cargill stormed into the ring, effortlessly tossing Unholy Union around the ring. Each team scored a near fall after hitting one of their opponents with an impressive double-team maneuver. The finishing sequence saw Cargill sloppily pull Belair out from under a flipping senton. A tag team finisher on Dawn led to the pinfall. The match started to fall apart the moment Cargill hit the ring. It's an unfortunate trend for her. Cargill has elite star power and presentation but her skills haven't developed at the same rate as her push. Belair and Cargill def. Unholy Union via pinfall to win the titles. 

CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre (Strap match): The brutalities of a strap match were introduced before the match started. McIntyre cut Punk's entrance and lashed him several times. McIntyre eventually placed the strap on his wrist, inviting Punk to do the same. Things only got worse for Punk. McIntyre relished in whipping and chopping his rival. McIntyre prioritized abusing Punk over winning the match, which requires touching all four corner turnbuckles in succession. His lack of competitive focus gave Punk a small window to land a surprise GTS. Punk could have won the match but chose to punish McIntyre instead. Punk subsequently countered a Future Shock DDT into a backdrop on the announcers' table and handed out more lashes. 

The match's increasing physicality compelled McIntyre to prioritize the victory. McIntyre regained control, busting open Punk with a headbutt and making his way to the turnbuckles. Punk intercepted McIntyre with a running corner knee. A bloody Punk retrieved a table from underneath the ring but ate a Claymore kick upon his return to the squared circle. McIntyre once again started hitting the turnbuckles, but Punk wisely slid outside of the ring, putting too much tension on the strap for McIntyre to reach the final turnbuckle. Punk gave the strap a firm yank causing McIntyre to go head-first into a steel chair in the corner. Punk wisely carried McIntyre with him from corner to corner but the proximity allowed McIntyre to counter a bulldog into a throw through the table positioned ringside.

McIntyre lifted Punk onto his shoulders and carried him from turnbuckle to turnbuckle. Punk wisely struck each turnbuckle after his opponent did and McIntyre was none the wiser. Punk tried to sneak the victory ahead of McIntyre, starting a power struggle culminating in a brawl that reset both superstars' progress. Punk locked in a sharpshooter that elicited taps from McIntyre, but submissions are not a victory condition in this match. McIntyre hit another Claymore Kick and struck three turnbuckles before Punk intervened. Punk caught McIntyre with a GTS, plus three additional ones during his round of the ring to assure McIntyre wouldn't get up. Punk retrieved the bracelet stolen by McIntyre before striking the final turnbuckle to win the match. A well-paced strap match chock-full of psychology. The superstars nicely balanced feeding their feud while tactically pursuing the victory. Punk def. McIntyre.

Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley vs. Dominik Mysterio and Liv Morgan (Mixed Tag Team match): This mixed tag team match was an exercise in catharsis. Priest and Ripley relished in punishing Mysterio and Morgan for their betrayals. Priest effortlessly tossed Mysterio around the ring to start the match. The German crowd pleaded for "Mami" and Priest obliged by trying to tag Ripley in. Mysterio fled -- knowing Ripley would tear his head off -- and tagged Morgan. The women's world champion soon fled under the pain and pressure of Ripley's offense, tagging Mysterio back into the match. The new lovebirds finally took control with a series of underhanded tactics. Morgan repeatedly distracted or attacked Priest, even raking his eyes, behind the referee's back. Ripley got the hot tag and took control. After laying out Morgan, Ripley turned her attention to ex-boyfriend Mysterio. "Dom Dom" begged for reconciliation but was gifted a whooping that sent the live crowd into a frenzy. Ripley's obsession with revenge allowed Morgan to hit a series of big moves, including a crucifix bomb that earned a near fall. 

A hot tag to Priest swung the pendulum back toward the exiled Judgement Day members who planted their teammates with matching Razor's Edges. The former world champion had the match won before Judgement Day members Carlito, JD McDonagh and Finn Balor swarmed. Morgan hit Ripley with a wild projectile sunset flip powerbomb off the steel steps into the ringside barricade. Mysterio hit Priest with a 619 but only got a two-count. Morgan nearly overshot a suicide dive before hitting a modified version of Oblivion for another close pinfall. Priest turned Mysterio inside out with a clothesline on the announcers' table, and Ripley folded Morgan with Riptide to win the match. A dramatic match that the crowd ate up. Ripley and Priest def. Morgan and Mysterio via pinfall. 

World Heavyweight Championship -- Gunther (c) vs. Randy Orton: Gunther is an intimidating physical presence but Orton's new, larger frame served him well. Orton, billed at 290 pounds, manhandled the world champion. Orton carried Gunther outside and landed four backdrops on the announcers' table, causing a large bruise on the champ's shoulder. "The Ring General" repeatedly tried to control the tempo with submission holds but couldn't keep Orton grounded. Gunther's damaged shoulder prevented him from throwing everything into his infamous strikes. Orton repeatedly absorbed clotheslines from the world champ and retaliated with a clothesline that dropped Gunther. Shortly after, Orton spiked Gunther with his trademark rope-assisted DDT.

Gunther finally turned the table by countering an RKO into a German suplex followed by a running drop kick and top rope splash. A signature powerbomb only garnered Gunther a two-count and an attempt to repeat the move left him open for an RKO for another near fall. Orton's late career obsession with the announcers' table served him well on Saturday. He went back to it a fifth time with elevated stakes. Orton carried Gunther up a flight of steel steps before launching the champion with a backdrop that drove him through the table. Back in the ring, Gunther locked in a Hail Mary sleeper hold that fatigued Orton. "The Legend Killer" desperately slammed himself backward to break the hold. Gunther released it, only to pop back up like The Undertaker and lock it in again. Orton passed out. The superstars shook hands post-match in a symbolic passing of the torch. A solid match that put Gunther in the unfamiliar role of fighting the babyface champion. The match psychology was well-executed and the finish was memorable. It was a little too plodding for my liking especially as fatigue sets in at the end of a pay-per-view. Gunther def. Orton via submission to retain the title.