The Post’s Joseph Staszewski brings you around the world of professional wrestling in his weekly column, Post Match Angle.
The Post Match Angle will return Feb. 11
One of wrestling’s best storylines isn’t happening in WWE or AEW.
John Bradshaw Layfield keeps showing up in random promotions — GCW, AAA, MLW and, most notably, TNA — and having an impact on the world championship feud between Nic Nemeth and Joe Hendry.
For a while, it appeared Layfield and Nemeth had some secret arrangement as the WWE Hall of Famer kept showing up to help the man formerly known as Dolph Ziggler retain the TNA World championship.
Things took a turn at Genesis when Layfield appeared and gave a Clothesline from Hell to Frankie Kazarian to keep him from cashing in his Call Your Shot title opportunity and knocked out Nic’s brother Ryan Nemeth, allowing Hendry to finally become TNA World champion for the first time in a huge moment for the company.
We got another twist on Thursday as Layfield came for the crown again, this time clotheslining Matt Cardona in Hendry’s first title defense. It led to on-air speculation that Layfield and Hendry were actually in cahoots.
Once you think you have the answers this storyline line keeps changing the questions, in the words of the immortal Rowdy Roddy Piper.
Who is Layfield working with? Is he just an angel of justice and fairness? Is he looking for a world title shot himself in a potential return to the ring at 58 years old as part of the partnership with WWE? He was just on Raw. Could another wrinkle be coming?
Not enough wrestling stories make you ask questions — let alone multiple throughout the course of the angle — and this one is doing it on so many levels.
It was all part of a TNA show that felt like a momentum-builder after its first PPV while officially partnered with WWE.
We also saw the debut of Mance Warner, we got the news of Mustafa Ali signing and appearances by NXT stars Wes Lee and Cora Jade.
Layfield’s story is at the top of it all. If it’s paid off well it could be a nice jumping-off point for his world title run.
Brand New Day
Damian Priest’s shift to SmackDown may be the most significant and refreshing move WWE has made during its new “transfer window” phase.
For the first time since April 2022, Priest will not be connected to both The Judgment Day and close friend Rhea Ripley in any direct way, and it couldn’t come at a better time. Priest’s stories with Finn Balor, Dominik Mysterio and the group had run their course — ending with a street fight win over the Irishman.
Priest has told Undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes he will see him soon. The New York native has already proven he’s a main-event-level talent. This should give him a chance to see if he can reach that elite level without the help of an ensemble cast to lean on.
New Rumble Wrinkle
Besides being a little drawn out, that was a great Cody Rhodes-CM Punk promo to close Raw. For the first time, there was some acknowledgment that the weight and responsibilities of being a first-time world champion are getting to Rhodes and he’s cracking under it.
We also got a storyline reason why Punk vs. Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE championship should and could happen at WrestleMania 41 with “The Best in the World” now chasing the person who once chased his accomplishments.
Both men played out the emotions of going from friend to potential foe so well. I don’t think Punk is winning. But that story is set if and whenever WWE wants to go to it
The 10 Count
Toni Storm had me fooled as much as she did Mariah May, revealing she was faking her amnesia all along in a fantastic segment on Collision. This still will go down as one of AEW’s best and any issues with Storm winning back her AEW Women’s championship in her home country of Australia at Grand Slam are gone now.
It was nice of WWE to finally do something to set a story and some entrants for the women’s Royal Rumble eight days before the show. The segment felt rushed and somewhat silly that champions Rhea Ripley and Tiffany Stratton’s presence made five of the top women in WWE — including Nia Jax for the second time — all want to declare on the same night.
It was great to see Ricky Starks back in a ring again for House of Glory Wrestling over the weekend. Starks has always had an undeniable connection to the audience and a palpable energy around them. If things stand as they are now with him frozen out and him asking for his release from AEW, he will be among the bigger “what ifs” in company history. Fans at the HOG event were chanting “Raw on Netflix” and “F–k TK.” There is a monster angle here if AEW were ever to embrace it.
If you’re AEW, do you have Jeff Jarrett get oh-so-close to beating Jon Moxley for the world championship only to have a jealous MJF — kind of looking like Don Callis with those rose-colored glasses — cost him the match? Is something that dramatic even needed at this point? I’m glad Jarrett apologized for his call-girl comments toward MJF’s mom and girlfriend. That was too much in the mud for a babyface.
The Hurt Syndicate are your new AEW world tag team champions by basically running over Private Party I get it, but hate to see the homegrown, young team have to lose that way for now, especially since their reign ends with just two successful defenses.
The stereo moonsaults off the balcony and light stanchion by Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega, respectively, was a pretty sweet and high-energy moment to start Dynamite and unite the two against the Don Callis Family, which now teased a sixth member on Collision.
I’m not convinced Sami Zayn’s second missed Helluva Kick, this time landing right in Cody Rhodes’ kisser, is the start of a heel turn because Zayn is too valuable an underdog babyface. But credit to WWE for even making that turn feel possible.
The excellent Charlotte Flair vignette we got to announce her being an entrant in the Royal Rumble made it feel like we are getting an even more limousine-riding and jet-flying glamourous version of the Queen. Also, her calling herself the GOAT makes her return from a more-than-year-long knee injury feel that much more important.
Big Bill’s attack on Will Hobbs is the first time he has felt like a monster big man in AEW. Having it be impromptu and connected to the parking lot attack by Hobbs early in the show made for something we don’t see often enough from AEW.
Kevin Owen’s T-shirt game remains undefeated.
Social Media Post of the Week
Wrestler of the Week
Jacob Fatu, WWE
At some point, Fatu should beat Braun Strowman clean, which will be even more impressive than his electric Bronson Reed 2.0 post-match attack on “The Monster Among Men” at Saturday Night’s Main Event. He had the crowd chanting his name, so the DQ and attack worked for one night as his rise to the top of the card truly begins.
Match to Watch
Men’s Royal Rumble match, WWE, Royal Rumble (Saturday, 6 p.m. Peacock)
This will rank among the most star-studded men’s Rumble matches ever with John Cena, CM Punk, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns leading the contingent and The Rock always a possibility. There is a good chance we see an entrant from TNA with the two companies’ new partnership. There are a ton of storylines coming in, all centering on Reigns in one way or another, outside of Cena being on his retirement tour. What happens here could define several top stars’ WrestleMania paths.
