With our Bash in Berlin rankings in the rearview, we assess the first WWE Bad Blood event in over 20 years. Headlining in a brutal Hell in a Cell match, Drew McIntyre and CM Punk had an encounter for the ages. We also saw Roman Reigns’ first match since losing his title at WrestleMania. Meanwhile, the feud between Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan intensified as the returning Raquel Rodrigez made her presence known. But who dominated our pound-for-pound rankings this month?
Read on to find out who topped the list based on their storyline over the past few weeks and their performance in Atlanta.
10. Nia Jax
Last Month’s Ranking: N/A
Last Month’s Segments: The inevitable turn between Nia Jax and Money in the Bank winner Tiffany Stratton has been enough to keep us intrigued. The story between Bayley and Jax appears to be the vehicle that’ll get us to Stratton and Jax. Unfortunately, the interest in what is presented as the main story currently in the Smackdown women’s division pales in comparison to what’s to come. The television segments weren’t engaging, and I think we’re all just waiting for a cash-in. Jax and Stratton should be money (excuse the pun) once we commence.
Bad Blood Performance: Since returning to WWE, Jax has shown improvement in the ring. Yet this match wasn’t her best. A few of her moves were a bit sloppy and poorly timed. One spot that really didn’t work was when Jax went for a cover following a pop-up Samoan drop that Bayley seemingly countered. Very confusing. The match was fine, I guess, but I wouldn’t be the first in line for another between these two.
9. Bayley
Last Month’s Ranking: N/A
Last Month’s Segments: Former Women’s Champion Bayley defeated Naomi on Smackdown to earn an opportunity to challenge for Nia Jax’s title. As mentioned, this whole feud feels underwhelming. Solely based on the booking and writing on the show, I haven’t been that invested.
Bad Blood Performance: Everything Bayley did in this match from a wrestling standpoint was decent, though Jax couldn’t quite keep up. At one point, Bayley went for a version of a sunset flip in the turnbuckles, and the champ landed on her knee, which looked quite painful. This was obviously not the plan. Overall, Bayley showed she’s a bit more advanced and skilled than her opponent.
8. Damian Priest
Last Month’s Ranking: No.5
Last Month’s Segments: Since losing his title because of Finn Bàlor, Damian Priest has been hellbent on payback. Priest has been getting destroyed by Judgment Day for weeks. “The Punisher” was focused on getting his hands on Bàlor in particular but hadn’t been able to until Bad Blood. These two have good on-screen chemistry, and I enjoyed the build-up.
Bad Blood Performance: Damian Priest has some of the best strikes on the roster, a trait that was on full display in Georgia. The size difference between him and Bàlor played to both their strengths. Priest’s offense is enjoyable to watch because he blends his mixed martial arts background with pro wrestling, which can be challenging for a less skilled competitor. The New Yorker got the win here and looked strong in the process.
7. Liv Morgan
Last Month’s Ranking: N/A
Last Month’s Segments: By design, WWE Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan has been insufferable over the last few weeks. She’s been playing up the fact that she took everything from former champion Rhea Ripley. The New Jersey native made it easy for all of us to want Ripley to tear her apart. It’s been good television.
Bad Blood Performance: Liv Morgan truly excels in selling moves for bigger opponents, and, much like Ripley, she’s able to feel out the audience and react based on the crowd. She has a new move called “The Home Wrecker,” which absolutely works for her. Although the finish of the match featuring the returning Raquel Rodriguez felt a bit predictable, the in-ring work was still exemplary.
6. Rhea Ripley
Last Month’s Ranking: No. 4
Last Month’s Segments: Following the last PLE, Ripley and her Terror Twin Damien Priest were subjected to attacks all month from Judgment Day, who made shrewd use of the numbers advantage they held over the former world champions. Generally speaking, there were great promos on television each week to keep fans interested in this match.
Bad Blood Performance: Although much of the drama was focused on Dominik Mysterio hanging above the entrance ramp in a shark cage, there were also great moments in and around the ring. “Mami” showed awesome power throughout the match. Her often debated “Riptide” finisher looked excellent as she performed it on Morgan outside the ring right in front of Mysterio. Ripley got some more direct revenge on “Dirty Dom” while he was hanging in the cage, hitting him repeatedly with well-deserved kendo stick shots. Elsewhere in the match, I was thoroughly impressed by the counter she had for Morgan’s finisher, “The Oblivion,” as she kip-upped out of it. The Australian superstar continues to deliver quality in-ring performances.
5. Solo Sikoa
Last Month’s Ranking: N/A
Last Month’s Segments: It’s unclear whether Solo Sikoa is trying to convince us or himself that he’s the true Tribal Chief. He hasn’t exactly been setting the world on fire as the leader of the new Bloodline. Regardless, the “street champion” has talent and has been cutting decent enough promos to ensure this feud with Reigns and Rhodes remains high profile.
Bad Blood Performance: Bloodline matches are heavily storyline-based, which helps the new Tribal Chief. Sikoa has an ability to garner jeers from the audience like no other. He isn’t a bad wrestler (despite the crowd chanting “you can’t wrestle” during the match). However, he’s still learning (and improving) each week. He hit a jaw-dropping frog splash on his cousin Roman Reigns and had a passable move set during the remainder of the match. Good job all around by the still-evolving superstar.
4. Cody Rhodes
Last Month’s Ranking: No. 3
Last Month’s Segments: The last few weeks of Smackdown focused not only on the Undisputed WWE Champion’s internal struggle but also the uncertainty his friends Kevin Owens and Randy Orton had with his tag partner, Roman Reigns. Rhodes assured them every time the “Head of the Table” gave his word, he’d been truthful. The build-up towards this match was intriguing, to say the least.
Bad Blood Performance: Before things got started, the champ had a live band play him to the ring. This factored into the psychology of the match. His tag partner, Roman Reigns, also had a grand entrance, which incensed their opponents. Once the match started, Rhodes did what he does best. His offense and his selling were both very impressive. Another fantastic showing from the hometown hero.
3. Roman Reigns
Last Month’s Ranking: N/A
Last Month’s Segments: Although the original Tribal Chief hasn’t made a live appearance since Smackdown’s debut episode on USA Network, the aura of Reigns has been substantial. Throughout the month, we saw various vignettes hyping up this blockbuster Bad Blood tag match. Efforts to keep Reigns relevant have been effective for most fans, keeping us on the edge of our seats.
Bad Blood Performance: At Bad Blood, we saw Reigns team with his WrestleMania opponent, Cody Rhodes, during a match in which the Head of the Table was seeking revenge against his family members, Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu. At this point in his career, Reigns focuses more on story than having classics from a technical perspective. With that being said, the star power of the former WWE Champion was more than enough to keep us engaged. Reigns has perfect timing on kick-outs or “false finishes” and has the best in ring psychology around. His physicality is usually on point, and this match was no different. Great effort from the “only Tribal Chief.”
2. Drew McIntyre
Last Month’s Ranking: No. 9
Last Month’s Segments: At times, the former world champion may come off as annoying to fans who have grown tired of his same old story of being screwed out of the title, for which he deliberately blames CM Punk. In the lead-up to Bad Blood, McIntyre told us he would end Punk for good. We’ve heard him make similar claims many times in the past, yet we remained curious about how their Hell in a Cell match at Bad Blood would unfold.
Bad Blood Performance: When you promise to make someone bleed, you better deliver. McIntyre was able to bust CM Punk open after long-darting him into the cell wall. The Scottish psychopath’s facial expressions following the move were menacing, which added to the danger Punk was in. Amazing work!
Drew missed a “Claymore” and landed on the ring steps, which I imagine he’ll be feeling for the next few weeks. That spot in the match was the catalyst for the finish. This performance for McIntyre was top-tier. Even in a loss, he deserved a standing ovation not only from the audience inside State Farm Arena but also from everyone in the locker room.
1. CM Punk
Last Month’s Ranking: No. 2
Last Month’s Segments: Week after week leading up to Bad Blood, Punk continuously told us that he would do anything to defeat McIntyre. In one episode of Raw, he stated his family tried to talk him out of stepping inside Hell in a Cell, and not even they could stop him. After a while, the promos did become a tad repetitive. Nevertheless, fans were looking forward to the conclusion of this feud.
Bad Blood Performance: Being a marquee performer at any show is no easy task. Punk is no stranger to this position, and he went above and beyond to prove he can still entertain at a high level. The “Chicago Made” Punk delivered a ton of kicks and strikes that all connected, ending with a very clean-looking “Go to Sleep” on a bloody and prone McIntyre–with a chain wrapped around his knee, no less. Hell in a Cell requires an extreme amount of violence, and Punk delivered that tenfold. To loosely quote the live crowd in attendance, “This was awesome.”
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