AJ Styles vs. Luke Harper
Harper shoves AJ Styles to the corner. Harper poses for the crowd. Harper grabs Styles by the leg. Harper places Styles on the top rope. Styles applies a side headlock. Harper goes for a back suplex, but Styles gets back on his feet. Styles leapfrogs over Harper. Harper dropkicks Styles. Styles rolls out of the ring. Harper launches Styles back first to the barricade. Harper bounces Styles head on the steel ring step and the announcers table. Styles with a leaping roundhouse kick to the leg of Harper. Styles follows that up with the Pele Kick. Style comes back into the ring and stomps on the back of Harper. Styles lands a forearm smash. Harper shoves Styles to the other side of the ring.
Harper with a right hand to the jaw of Styles. Styles with a roll through, but Harper drops him with a big right hand. Harper connects with a slingshot senton. Harper follows that up with a big boot for a two count. Harper catapults Styles throat to the second rope. Styles tumbles to the outside. Harper connects with the suicide dive. Harper rolls Styles back into the ring. Harper goes for a sit-out powerbomb, but Styles counters with a hurricanrana. Styles lights up Harper with the Phenomenal Blitz.
Harper responds with a Dragon Suplex. Harper plants Styles with a Sit-Out Powerbomb for a two count. Harper has Styles on a fireman’s carry position. Styles lands on the ring apron. Styles with an enziguri. Styles connects with the Phenomenal Forearm and scores the pinfall, but Harper’s boot was placed on the bottom rope. Shane McMahon comes out and reverses the decision of the match. Styles goes for the Styles Clash, but Harper counters with a jack knife cover for two count. Harper tosses Styles to the outside. Styles begins to argue with Shane. Harper SuperKicks Shane. Styles whips Harper face first to the steel ring post. Styles connects with the Springboard 450 Splash to pickup the victory.
An excellent performance from both men, especially Luke Harper. I have seen flashes of this, but not against main talent like AJ Styles. When Harper was IC Champion, he put on some really good matches but never fully got to the point to fight guys at a higher level than him. He carried the match offensively and showcased his agilty and athleticism for a guy pushing close to 300 pounds. I know LaBar has seen it up close, but Luke Harper showed everyone why he can become a future world champion.
Talk about a twist, huh? I was thrown off by the winner and by the placement on the show. It would make some sense later on, but a really solid bout that AJ Styles almost lost. The seeds were planted if he ultimately does not get the opportunity to challenge for the World Championship and has to face off against Shane McMahon at WrestleMania. Any match AJ Styles is involved in, count me in.
Ambrose and Corbin Continue Feud
Dean Ambrose makes a few jokes about what he has learned in the past and then talks about being pushed and having to push back. He circles around to Baron Corbin and then calls out “The Lone Wolf.” Corbin appears on the screen and issues threats and a warning before stepping off camera.
We have seen 3 weeks of attacking, so a night off was the right call here. Dean Ambrose cut a strong promo and Baron Corbin killed it as well. He really looked great on the big screen, showcasing his best features to look like a beast. I am enjoying this feud and think a Street Fight for the Intercontinental Championship is exactly what they need. You should be able to get more physicality and more intensity from both men heading into the final four weeks of this feud. WWE is doing right with both men, perfectly placed on a card that will feature them and not saturate a title match.
