It was impressive to see what Ricochet did in the main event of NXT to fight through his knee injury. This is probably the biggest aspect of wrestling that resonates with me: the ability of superstars to fight through injuries to the point where their bodies are doing things that not even their mind should allow. They push themselves to the point where their bodies don’t even seem to be responsible for these amazing feats, and not even their minds seem to be responsible. They are one line on pure heart. This inspires me to do my best every day to live like that as best I can. I can’t wait for Elimination Chamber.
Day: February 16, 2019
A Flair or Steamboat Type of Performance
From SmackDown Live, the performance from Kofi Kingston was absolutely incredible. That reminded me of a Flair or Steamboat type of performance, or if you want to go back in more recent history, it reminded me of the performance from Seth Rollins just last year in a gauntlet match right around this time. Seth pinned Roman Reigns and John Cena that night. But going back to Kofi, he lasted for over an hour last night and that match is unprecedented in today’s terms. It’s impressive any night when you pin Daniel Bryan, Jeff Hardy, and Samoa Joe.
I want to also take a second to mention that backbreaker that AJ Styles delivered to Kofi out of that STO. It has to be the most vicious looking backbreaker I have ever seen. I really hope that Kofi Kingston gets an opportunity to become WWE champion before he retires, because he’s done everything else there is to do. I’m not sad at all for Mustafa Ali being taken out of the Elimination Chamber for two reasons:
- WWE will push him hard when he returns as he has proven to be a great performer, and
- Kofi’s performance on SmackDown Live was extremely well-received by fans.
The other guy who I hope eventually gets that opportunity is Cesaro, but that’s a different topic to be talked about at a different time. I am extremely sad for Mustafa Ali having to be pulled out of this weekend’s Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, but on the flip side I’m not that sad for him because this injury will probably begin a big feud for him upon his return with Randy Orton.
But back to my main point, Kofi Kingston is a massively underrated superstar and WWE should recognize and be fully appreciative to him for the talent they have right now. I appreciate great wrestling and the flow to it, and Kofi is a valuable commodity in that regard. I can’t wait to see what Kofi does at Elimination Chamber. We may also see the return of Bray Wyatt after nearly a year off TV. He’s been healthy for several months, but I assume WWE creative simply hasn’t had anything for him.
Storyline Setups & Kayfabe Definition
No need to worry, this is all a storyline to set up a triple threat match at WrestleMania with Becky Lynch, Ronda Rousey, and Charlotte Flair. It is a little bit surprising, however, in terms of how WWE decided to go about it, with Becky Lynch apologizing to Stephanie and Triple H and Vince McMahon immediately electing to not accept her apology and replacing her with Charlotte Flair. It seems that Charlotte is now playing in a similar role to the one Randy Orton played at the end of 2013 up to WrestleMania in 2014, where she is the corporate chosen one. Not to worry though, this is all just a show, after all kayfabe is dead. The new generation of wrestling fans probably does not even know what that means. The only reason I know, being 22 and all, is because I have studied up on my wrestling history. But Becky Lynch will in fact be a part of this match.
Kayfabe Definition: In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as “real” or “true,” specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not of a staged or predetermined nature of any kind.
I also thought EC3 looked really good again this week, despite the fact that he lost. It’s good to see him doing well this goes around as a WWE superstar after his first round with the company down in NXT didn’t go so well. He significantly improved in the ring after spending a few years in TNA. I also absolutely need to mention The Revival becoming new Raw tag team champions. Corey Graves is absolutely right, it is about time. These guys are superb technicians in the ring. If you have ever seen them wrestle in NXT, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Don’t get me wrong, I love Roode and Gable, but Roode is approaching the end of his career and Gable is capable of so much more as a single competitor after being a two-time tag team champion. The fact that The Revival is being pushed after I don’t even know how long of doing little to nothing is a sign that WWE is taking notice of the new promotion AEW spearheaded by Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks as well as the Khan family.
They are beginning to realize that superstars such as The Revival and Finn Balor may jump ship if they are self-aware enough to realize that they are not being pushed the way they probably would be with another promotion, and they are doing everything they can to keep the guys they currently have since WWE is self-aware enough to recognize the presence of a potential competitor. I’m not saying by any means that AEW will turn into WCW, but it’s worth keeping an eye on since they are targeting WWE superstars whose contracts are expiring.