This past weekend’s Bad Blood pay-per-view is in the books, and despite being a clear B-show in terms of importance on the WWE calendar, with a five-match card, the show was still very newsworthy after it went off the air. It’s important to note that while the term “B-show” traditionally implies something lackluster, that wasn’t the context in this case. With the new era of the WWE, more specifically post-Vince McMahon, the “big four” traditional pay-per-views usually have a longer runtime with more matches on the line-up, while other events, such as this show, are specifically booked for an abbreviated card, which isn’t a negative. However, it should be noted that despite only five matches scheduled for this PPV, the broadcast still stretched to three and a half hours, creating a very tedious viewing experience at certain points, simply because of the delays between the bell-to-bell action. For example, the PPV had 15 minutes of pryo and ballyhoo before the opening bell of the first match. This just wasn’t necessary, as the tighter broadcasts have been much easier to watch in recent months. At least thirty minutes could’ve been trimmed off this show, and running over the three-hour mark almost defeats the purpose of a five-match card.
The show opened with the Drew McIntyre/CM Punk HIAC match, which was somewhat surprising, given the history of the feud and the PPV itself. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that management looked to book end the show so to speak with a major match at the start and then close the show with the star power of the Cody Rhodes/Roman Reigns tag match, but at the same time, it puts the rest of the under card at a disadvantage since they had to follow the signature gimmick match. The match itself was exactly what a payoff to a feud should be, all of the bells and whistles, and the most definitive moments were put in this segment to create a specific conclusion to the feud. There were very physical strikes, some brutal bumps on the steel stairs, and a lot of blood, which stands out because you rarely see it in the modern era. Punk did a blade job after he was lawn darted into the side of the cell, but Drew got a nasty hard way cut from a toolbox shot, bleeding buckets throughout most of the match. The only downside was that on two occasions, the referee used a towel to wipe away the blood, which defeats the entire purpose of using it in the bout, especially after Punk planned to bleed. It takes away a key piece of the presentation because it’s anything goes, except if there’s too much blood. McIntyre needed 16 staples to close the nasty gash after the contest. Either way, this was still a quality match-up with a level of intensity that was justified for the feud. The only criticism for the structure of this segment was that it used a very methodical pace and dragged at a few points, but this was still the best match on the card. Drew took a brutal bump on the stairs before CM Punk landed the GTS to get the victory.
After 10 minutes of video packages and entrances, Nia Jax defended the WWE Women’s title against Bayley. The only thing that I can think of when it comes to Nia’s continued push is that being related to The Rock has its perks. Listen, I’m sure that the real-life person behind the character is probably very nice, but we’re discussing the performance of the pro wrestling persona. Quite frankly, nothing about Nia’s in-ring ability or lack thereof says that she should be in a prominent role in the biggest sports entertainment company in the world. Early in the match, her strikes and in-ring work were extremely sloppy. Her worked punches either lacked effort, skill, or both. At one point, Nia attempted a hurricanrana that looked comically terrible.When Bayley made a comeback about halfway through the segment, Nia’s selling wasn’t great either. Eventually the action spilled outside the ring and Nia nailed Bayley with a power bomb on the steps before she whipped her into the guardrail for what looked like a dangerous bump. Given the history that Jax has hurting opponents, it was probably not a spot that should’ve been planned for this match. Nia attempted a pop up Samoan drop, but Bayley landed awkwardly on her shoulder on the canvas, and even the announcers didn’t know what the spot was supposed to be when Nia went for a pin fall. The ref got bumped and was down when Bayley got the visual pin before Tiffany Stratton ran out for the possible cash in of the MITB title shot. Nia interrupted before she nailed a Samoan drop from the second rope to get the win.
Damien Priest vs. Finn Balor was a really solid match and they probably did the most that they could do with the 10 minutes they were given for the contest. Everything was crisp and well done. Who knows if Priest will remain near the title picture since Gunther looks to be set for a dominate reign, but performances like this will keep Priest in the mix as a featured star. Balor made his opponent look great and it’s one of the reasons that he’s such an asset to the company. Carlito and JD McDonagh ran in, but were dispatched by Priest before he choke slammed Balor to win the contest.
Liv Morgan defended her Women’s title against Rhea Ripley in a match that had Dominik Mysterio placed in a shark cage partially above the aisle way. This match was more smoke and mirrors than in-ring work, as from an in-ring perspective, it was basically a television match, but there wasn’t anything wrong with that, especially given the finish. Somehow, Dominik ended up hanging upside down from the cage and was pummeled by Ripley before Raquel Rodriguez made her return to attack Rhea, causing the disqualification. Usually, a DQ at a pay-per-view is really flat, and there was some of that here, but since everyone involved has done a very good job in the storyline, this could set up for a bigger match in the future since this obviously isn’t the concussion to the angle with the introduction of Raquel Rodriguez as an enforcer.
The main event was the star power portion of the program, but they put in the work bell-to-bell as well. Granted, this was definitely a WWE style main event, but it was still a quality bout that had the “big fight” atmosphere to close the show. It goes without saying, but everything these guys, including the less experienced Solo Sikoa, did was quality work. That being said, Jacob Fatu is a special athlete, he’s one of the very few guys, similar to Gunther in some ways, that brings a legitimate level of authenticity to the table. Fatu has an aura and an intensity that can undoubtedly be used to draw money on a major scale in the future. If Roman has another title run as a baby face, a feud against Fatu for the championship could be an excellent series of matches. Speaking of Fatu, at one point Cody put him on the announce desk and dove from the ring post through the table for a wild spot. Eventually, the Bloodline interfered and the heels had the advantage until Jimmy Uso returned to even the odds, allowing Roman to hit the spear for the win. I’m guessing this is to set up a potential War Games match at Survivor Series, which gets yet another main event match from this evolving storyline.
Post-match, The Rock made his return to the company after a six-month hiatus to film a movie. Again, this could go toward the potential War Games match between the Bloodline factions at Survivor Series, but in the grand scheme of things, this could also be a way to start the build to Cody Rhodes vs. The Rock for the WWE title at Wrestlemania next year. I think to bring The Rock back here as opposed to The Royal Rumble suggest that he will be involved with something at Survivor Series, but one this is for sure, The Rock/Cody Rhodes would be a major draw for Wrestlemania next year.
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Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
