Apron Bumps

Talking a bit about the game changing summer wrestling has gone through this year and why the signings of CM Punk and Bryan Danielson are more than game changing. This card has been beautifully built all summer long and is the most hyped show of the entire season. Easily eclipsing SummerSlam and Takeover just a few weeks ago. I also run down my predictions for this soon to be largest AEW PPV of all time. A stacked card that will feature the return match of CM Punk after nearly 8 years away from wrestling, as he takes on Darby Allin. Kenny Omega defends his All Elite World Championship against Christian Cage in a match of Canadians eagerly anticipated by yours truly! The Young Bucks defend their Tag Titles inside a Steel Cage against the Lucha Brothers, and so much more! Listen to me ramble on!

Going over the card for tonight's rushed Takeover card. A list of matches that look good on paper but are honestly super predictable in their outcomes. Should be an easy night for the Braester! A swerve could be possible for the main event but I see Trips and company sticking with the Karrion Kross experiment. Having Cole, O'Reilly, Gargano and Dunne in the same match guarantees the main event to be great. Raquel Gonzalez defends the NXT Women's title at Takeover for the first time against Ember Moon. Also Cameron Grimes and LA Knight battle in a ladder match for the affection of Ted Dibiase as his Million Dollar Championship hangs in the balance.

Me and Gabe Nozid go over the marquee pay-per-view event from All Elite Wrestling: Double or Nothing 2021. We thought the show was very good overall as it featured a handful of great matches. Highlights were the opener of Adam Page vs. Brian Cage, The Young Bucks vs. Moxley and Kingston, and of course the Three-way match for the AEW World Championship pitting Kenny Omega against Orange Cassidy and Pac. Other newsworthy takes from the show are also discussed!

Going down the card 40 minutes before the show!

Two huge nights of Takeover midweek starting tomorrow night in fact! The week of WrestleMania breeds Wednesday and Thursday night Takeover cards packed to the brim. Honestly looking to be the best card the brand has done in ages on paper. Night 1 (April 7th) on USA Network will feature the following: Pete Dunne vs. Kushida, a six-man Gauntlet Eliminator Match to determine Johnny Gargano's challenger on Night 2, MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Legado Del Fantasma for the vacant NXT Tag Team Championship, Walter (c) vs. Tommaso Ciampa for the NXT United Kingdom Championship, and Io Shirai (c) vs. Raquel Gonzalez for the NXT Women's Championship in the main event. Night 2 (April 8th) exclusive to Peacock / WWE Network will feature: Ember Moon and Shotzi Blackheart (c) vs. The Way for the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship, Johnny Gargano (c) vs. Gauntlet Winner from Night 1 for the NXT North American Championship, Jordan Devlin (c) vs. Santos Escobar (ic) in a Ladder Match to determine the undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion, Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly in an Unsanctioned Match, and Finn Balor (c) vs. Karrion Kross for the NXT Championship in the main event. The boys sent in their predictions to read during the recording to compare with mine. How many did we agree on? Where did we differ? Listen and find out!

Myself and Nozid recap this past weekend's first quarter pay-per-view from All Elite Wrestling. It was a good show that was a little more average than normal saved by a hell of an opener and terrific main event. Though most will admit the post-match angle ruined a lot of the good that the main event produced. Nonetheless, Moxley and Omega had the best match of the show in an Exploding Barbwire Deathmatch even if the end explosion was just sparkly pyro. The Young Bucks also had a great opening tag title defense against Chris Jericho and MJF. Scorpio Sky won the Face of the Revolution Ladder Match which was the debut performance of Ethan Page in AEW. Sting and Darby Allin defeated Brian Cage and Ricky Starks in terrific cinematic style Street Fight, and lastly Christian Cage has signed with AEW full time and was the identity of the mystery Hall of Fame caliber signing that was teased half a week prior. Many ups and downs, but has enough good to keep it above a poor grade.

The Braester runs down some predictions for the first pay-per-view card of All Elite Wrestling in 2021! It is an absolutely stacked show like most of these pay-per-views are. The main event will feature Kenny Omega defending his AEW World Championship against Jon Moxley in an Exploding Barbed-wire Deathmatch. Also Sting will have his debut match in AEW, and his first bout in over five years when he teams with Darby Allin against Team Taz's Brian Cage and Ricky Starks in a long awaited Street Fight! Other championship affairs include The Young Bucks defend the tag team titles the Inner Circle's Chris Jericho and MJF. And Hikaru Shida defends her women's title against fellow Joshi wrestler: Ryo Mizunami. Other news includes two major debuts that will happen for the company: a Hall of Fame caliber talent and a mystery competitor in the Face of the Revolution Ladder Match, where the winner will become the number one contender to Darby Allin's TNT Championship. Meanwhile on the undercard Miro and Kip Sabian look for revenge against Best Friends (Orange Cassidy and Chuck Taylor). A Casino Tag Team Royale will determine the next Number One Contenders to the AEW World Tag Team titles. And Hangman Adam Page takes on Matt Hardy in a Big Money Match.

Me and Nozid give our review to the best Takeover in well over a year of not close to two! In fantastic show that featured the finals of the women's and men's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. Won by Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez and MSK (Wes Lee and Nash Carter). The women's match was a vert good opener and the men's match was a great showcase for MSK. Meanwhile there were two solid MOTY candidates: Johnny Gargano vs. Kushida for the NXT North American Championship. Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne for the NXT Championship in the main event of the show. Also in the penultimate match Io Shirai defended the NXT Women's Championship against Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez. An A+ effort from the black and gold brand, which also featured an A+ closing angle featuring the beginning of the break up of the Undisputed Era.

Going solo to predict yet another NXT Takeover event. After an over three month absence and missing key events like Takeover: WarGames and the Royal Rumble I felt now was the time to make up for those missing shows with predicting tonight's Takeover card. A very promising and stellar looking card from top-to-bottom that features the finals of both the men and women's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, a triple threat match for the NXT Women's championship, Kushida's first shot at gold against Johnny Gargano for NXT North American Championship, and an exciting main event featuring Finn Balor defending the NXT Championship against Pete Dunne. A certainly promising start to the year as far as Takeover cards are concerned!

Myself and Gabe Nozid give our candid thoughts on the Full Gear pay-per-view from All Elite Wrestling last weekend. It was a spectacular show that had great matches throughout. Without a doubt the best AEW PPV of 2020, and perhaps the candidate for Best Major Show of the year! Featuring the greatest opening match of the year between Kenny Omega and "Hangman" Adam Page in the final of the AEW World Championship Eliminator Tournament. A Match of the Year candidate between (c) FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler) defending the AEW World Tag Team titles against The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) in a dream tag match we have wanted to see for YEARS. The show was also capped off by a brutally-great "I Quit" Match for the AEW World Championship between Jon Moxley (c) and Eddie Kingston. What a showcase to end the pay-per-view calendar year for All Elite Wrestling!

Me and Nozid review the very best show WWE has produced during the pandemic era. NXT Takeover 31 had great matches throughout including a hell of an opener of Damian Priest defending the North American title against Johnny Gargano, the first Takeover Cruiserweight Championship match between Santos Escobar and Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, a fun Women's Championship bout featuring Io Shirai defending against Candice Lerae, and a potential NXT match of the year main event pitting NXT Champion Finn Balor against Kyle O'Reilly. Easily the best Takeover show since Portland, and a must see show for any wrestling fans who have not seen it. Two thumbs up show in every sense of the description!

For the first time in Apron Bump's brief history I will be going solo for the "NXT Takeover 31 Predictions" podcast. A Takeover show that was kind of put together at the last minute with little build, stills has a card that looks incredible from an in ring quality point of view. Getting his first shot at as a singles competitor Kyle O'Reilly will challenge Finn Balor for the NXT Championship in the main event. In a match that very well could end up being NXT's best of the year! Also on the card, Io Shirai will defend the NXT Women's Championship against Candice LeRae. These ladies have magical chemistry together and should deliver something very special yet again. Damien Priest will also have his first Takeover title defense of the NXT North American Championship as he defends against Johnny Gargano. The undercard also features two Takeover debuts: the NXT Cruiserweight Championship being defended for the first time at such an event, as Santos Escobar defends against Isaiah "Swerve" Scott. And Kushida makes his Takeover debut in the bright lights against the Velveteen Dream.

Myself and Mr. Brandon Moyes predict the results of tomorrow night's All Out event. The third quarter pay-per-view from All Elite Wrestling. A stacked card that features an interesting main event pitting challenger MJF against world champion Jon Moxley, Chris Jericho vs Orange Cassidy, in Mimosa Mayhem match, FTR getting a tag title match against Kenny Omega and Hangman Page, plus so much more on the undercard! The undercard features a few compelling tag team matches, the second Casino Battle Royale that will determine the next contender to AEW World Championship, and Hikaru Shida defending her AEW Women's title against NWA Women's Champion: Thunder Rosa.

Me and Nozid give me out thoughts on the biggest party of the summer. The first actual WWE pay-per-view event to feature the new Thunderdome venue came off very well for a first major show to use it. Bringing in a new atmosphere which was sorely needed to improve WWE programming during these trying times. The show featured two very good women's title matches with Asuka challenging for both belts, a great WWE title defence that pitted Drew McIntyre against Randy Orton, the debut of Rey Mysterio's son Dominik in a Street Fight against Seth Rollins, and much more! Give this a listen to hear our full analysis on this past Sunday's PPV event!

Me and Nozid go over this past weekend's Takeover XXX show. A very good-to-great show that featured a very technical opener, a wild ladder match for the vacant NXT North American Championship, perhaps the best celebrity match in WWE history, a very good women's championship bout and hoss fight in the main event for the NXT Championship. It may not have been to the level that was Takeover: Portland, but was certainly a better show than Takeover: In Your House. While the main event might have been weak compared to the build and hype. Two great matches and solid wrestling throughout makes this a show you should find the time to see!

Myself, Nozid, and Mr. Brandon Moyes give our predictions for tomorrow night's SummerSlam pay-per-view. It's finally time for the biggest party of the summer. And with it comes a decent looking match card. Drew McIntyre defends the WWE Championship against Randy Orton while Braun Strowman defends the Universal title against The Fiend. Asuka has an opportunity to leave as a double champion if she can defeat both Bayley and Sasha Banks for their women's championships. Dominik Mysterio will take on Seth Rollins in a street fight while making his WWE debut in the process. And lastly Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose look to have a big blow off match to their quality feud. What will the group known as Retribution do next? I suppose we all find out tomorrow night!

Myself, Nozid, and Mr. Brandon Moyes go over tomorrow night's Takeover show and give our predictions for the exciting event! In an interesting card that features Pat McAfee in his debut WWE match against Adam Cole, a five man ladder match will determine the next NXT North American Champion, Io Shirai has her first Takeover title defense of the NXT Women's Championship against Dakota Kai, and Keith Lee defends the NXT Championship in a battle of dominance against Karrion Kross. Another stacked show taking place over SummerSlam weekend. Could be another home run from Triple H and company!

The Apron Bumps Krew review one last show before Gabe Nozid goes on hiatus for military training. We go through this past Sunday's Takeover: In Your House. An odd Takeover show but with glimmers of greatness and the horrible. Solid women's tag team opener, Balor vs. Priest and Lee vs. Gargano were very good, and the women's triple threat main event was great! A bit of stinker cinematic match between Adam Cole and Velveteen Dream in a Backlot Brawl for the NXT title, but still a good show overall but certainly the weakest Takeover in years.

Myself, Nozid and Mr. Brandon Moyes go over this Sunday's Takeover and give our predictions for all six matches scheduled for the event! In another stellar looking card; Keith Lee defends the NXT North American Championship against Johnny Gargano, Karrion Kross makes his Takeover debut against Tommasso Ciampa, and Charlotte Flair defends the NXT Women's Championship in a Triple Threat Match against both Rhea Ripley and Io Shirai. While what we assume will be the main event; Adam Cole defends the NXT Champioship in a Backlot Brawl against Velveteen Dream, in Dream's last chance against Cole's title. A stacked show that is a play on words while also recognizing WWE's past. We had a decently long Takeover drought due to the pandemic, but now we have a hell of a show to look forward too!

Me and Nozid go over a hell of a pay-per-view event by All Elite Wrestling. A solid card of action that included a show stealing performance by both Jungle Boy and MJF, as well as the pro wrestling wackiness that was the Stadium Stampede match in the main event. The card over delivered with a contender for show of the year 2020 even without a proper crowd in attendance. The under and upper cards also featured a ton of memorable stuff including: a crazy ladder match for future world title contention, the debut of TNT Championship, an absolute war for the Women's title, and a fantastic brawl for the AEW World Championship. A hell of a show that will remain memorable for a long time!

Me and Mr. Brandon Moyes predict this Saturday's flagship pay-per-view for All Elite Wrestling: Double or Nothing! A pretty solid card that features Jon Moxley defending his title against the Exalted One: Brodie Lee, a Casino Ladder Match that will determine a new number one contender for the world championship, and a Stadium Stampede match between the Elite and the Inner Circle. And pretty good undercard that will feature Cody taking on Lance Archer in the tournament finals to crown the inaugural TNT Champion. As well as a perfectly built women's championship bout between Nyla Rose and Hikaru Shida! Do enjoy your listen of our predictions for the entire card!

Me and Nozid give our thoughts on this year's Money in the Bank PPV event. Which featured a great WWE championship bout, an interesting turn in the Universal title picture, and without question the most whacky Money in the Bank ladder match of all time. It also featured a largely decent undercard too. Certainly had some surprising results in the main event corporate ladder matches.

Me and Nozid predict this Sunday's Money In The Bank PPV card. Which includes two intriguing and interesting world title matches. As well as the most whacky Money In the Bank Ladder Matches ever. The men and women will fight simultaneously through WWE corporate headquarters. They will fight to the roof and battle for both briefcases which are both hanging high from the corporate tower. Most of the men have even threatened to throw each other off the building too.

The whole trio of myself, Nozid and Brando go over the huge list of performers and producers that WWE let go in the last week. How WWE has decided to do taped shows for the next three months due to talent safety and AEW's announcement that Double or Nothing will still be live come May from an undisclosed location. Also a weekly recap of last week's wrestling programming.

Me and Nozid go over the latest news in the wrestling world as well as the results and storyline progressions of last week's shows. Apparently Vince McMahon is determined to return to live programming and has been apparently dubbed an essential business by the state of Florida. But there are greater concerns of wrestler's healths being put at risk. As a employee of the WWE has been confirmed to have tested positive for COVID-19.

Me and Nozid go over our thoughts and ratings on the second night of WrestleMania 36 which aired last night. It was an up and down show that had a few highlights including a killer opening match for the NXT Women's title. Edge and Randy Orton battled in a Last Man Standing match and The Fiend had a whacky Funhouse match with John Cena. Bayley's match for the Smackdown Women's title was surprisingly good and the main event between Brock Lesnar and Drew McIntyre was what it needed to be with the right result.

Me and Nozid go over our thoughts and ratings on the first night of WrestleMania 36 which aired last night. It featured a decent undercard but had three matches that made it a show worth watching that triumphed even without a crowd which made them all the more impressive in my opinion. The highlights of course being a solid women's title match between Becky Lynch and Shayna Baszler, a crazy triple threat ladder match, Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins and The Undertaker and AJ Styles in a cinematic style Boneyard match in the main event.