RAW and SmackDown got real quiet in December, and the TLC PPV stunk – Match of the Night ended up at #9 here. NXT picked up the slack, but there’s less matches in the Honorable Mentions here than most months this year. Lio Rush vs. Angel Garza is incredible – the rest is better than usual TV.
1. WWE Cruiserweight Title: Lio Rush [c] vs. Angel Garza (NXT 12/11/19)
Loved the match last month – this was better and had a title change. It went from two guys throwing hands to two guys doing stuff normal people just can’t do like a rope-to-rope quebrada from Rush or a tilt-a-whirl headscissors that goes on for like four rotations, as well as coming up with counters to their signature moves that they’ve gotten hit with before. It felt like what WWE always wanted the cruiserweight division to be, with the random insane flying maneuver but also an intensity that established these little fellas as just as badass as the heavyweights. Beyond epic finish, even if I didn’t love what ultimately ended Rush. Then Garza asked his girlfriend to marry him afterwards. What a trip.
2. NXT Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler [c] vs. Rhea Ripley (NXT 12/18/19)
A well laid out and well executed match that cemented a wrestling superstar. It’s fun to see the machine get behind someone, and Ripley has delivered. Grabbing the referee’s hand while in the sleeper hold was the kind of thing you save for somebody real cool. Shayna was the glue that made this work too, the most straight-up heel badass there is.
3. KUSHIDA vs. Cameron Grimes (NXT 12/18/19)
KUSHIDA might pop up once or twice a month but the guy is still doing it, playing all the hits like the handspring kick and somersault plancha opposite Cameron Grimes who gels right with all of it. Great straight-up wrestling.
4. Mustafa Ali & Shorty G vs. The Revival (SmackDown 12/13/19)
Once in a while the people in charge let these boys loose and it rules. The action kept moving and spots kept surprising, all while the good guys bumped like nuts and The Revival provided a quality slowdown. Sweet double somersault plancha, sweet Shatter Machine out of nowhere – so good.
5. NXT Title: Adam Cole [c] vs. Finn Balor (NXT 12/18/19)
My eyes got a little glazed over as they traded armbars and hammerlocks over Nigel and Mauro plugging Jordan Peterson, but these two can do a finish like nobody else outside of the New Japan fellas. Lots of strikes out of nowhere and perfectly timed kickouts with the crowd losing their minds.
6. WWE U.S. Title: Rey Mysterio [c] vs. AJ Styles (RAW 12/9/19)
So they flubbed a Styles Clash counter but otherwise this was Rey and AJ staying within their limits and ruling. Styles played the professional base, while Rey actually doesn’t have limits so we just get really amazing wrestling. Guy is wrestling like he’s 25 still, just ridiculous. Good chaotic finish too.
7. Aleister Black vs. Buddy Murphy (RAW 12/30/19)
This got more time and crowd appreciation than the TLC match – real fun seeing a WWE-paced match get This is Awesome chants thanks to some stiff-as knees, quality near falls, and general wrestling insanity. They got a standing ovation!!
8. NXT North American Title: Roderick Strong [c] vs. Austin Theory (NXT 12/25/19)
These two casually went 20 minutes and did that thing a wrestling debut is supposed to do: showcase a guy. Theory’s a good looking fellow who also seems to be able to go toe-to-toe with the high-flying athletic style that permeates WWE these days. I’m starting to think Roderick Strong is the most reliable guy on the roster right now too. A promising debut and just a fun match to watch play out.
9. Aleister Black vs. Buddy Murphy (TLC 12/15/19)
Aleister Black looks cool as fuck, does sweet moonsaults, and a lot of fun spots where he sits down Indian-style. Buddy Murphy plays along well with that, though he also did his superkick into the corner spot four times in a row where he slapped his leg every time and that really hurt me. I am actually pro-leg slap on one kick, but any more than that and we’re just being silly. They closed it up nice with some cool strikes, but I’m not sure it was the star-maker anyone was hoping for.
10. Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee & Dominik Dijakovic vs. Adam Cole, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly (NXT 12/4/19)
A 6-man tag brimming with pro wrestling talent, plus a great showcase of the quietly incredible Dominik Dijakovic. Big time finish too.
11. Humberto Carrillo vs. Andrade w/ Zelina Vega (RAW 12/10/19)
These two can pull off each other’s most graceful and complex maneuvers and the match felt like a proper showcase of two new acts that really do rule in-ring but have not made it over the mountain of #OVER on WWE television. The crowd slowly started grooving with this like it was a 205 Live match, where nobody expected to be freaking out but it just starts happening. I think Lawler was legitimately marking out too.
12. TLC Match – WWE Women’s Tag Team Title: The Kabuki Warriors [c] vs. Becky Lynch & Charlotte Flair (TLC 12/15/19)
This will probably be remembered more than anything for Kairi Sane’s injury and all the uncomfortable spots that followed, but before the concussion she was really awesome as a psychopath heel and they did have some cool stuff laid out here with Asuka and Kairi torturing Becky and Charlotte before the big comeback.
13. Ladder Match – SmackDown Tag Team Title: The New Day [c] vs. The Revival (TLC 12/15/19)
A good match with Kofi Kingston somehow still finding new ways to use old props, but the WWE Ladder Match needs a serious break or makeover. Lots of big bumps, but I was most taken by Big E’s tight stretch muffler on Scott Dawson. You could just feel Dawson’s thigh muscle swarming into Big E’s thick neck like Gorilla Glue bonding to a piece of wood.
14. The Hunt vs. The Outliers (Riddick Moss & Dorian Mak) (NXT UK 12/5/19)
I like The Hunt, but I wasn’t expecting this to rule as much as it did – Wild Boar got throttled in a bearhug, The Primate made a feisty hot tag, and FOUR diving headbutts (including a double one to close it) made for a legitimately feel-good ending as these crazy animals overcame these Ghosts of OVW’s Past.
15. Triple Threat NXT Title #1 Contender’s Match: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Keith Lee vs. Finn Balor (NXT 12/11/19)
Actually a good Triple Threat, but still a Triple Threat. Won’t remember any of it but I do know they kept it bumping, didn’t look silly, and showcased the HELL out of Keith Lee who looked great even in defeat. Balor did some wild counters here too.
16. A-Kid vs. Jordan Devlin (NXT UK 12/5/19)
Jordan Devlin is a cock and A-Kid did a couple crazy spots to let you know that though he is A Kid, he is also A Man. Awesome end too where A-Kid rolls inside after a dive and Devlin just kicks him in the face.
17. Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno (NXT 12/4/19)
They did what they do and it wasn’t the best version of it but it sure was fun – quality matwork, fighting for everything, and presumably hits that hurt real bad.
18. Heavy Machinery vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro w/ Sami Zayn (SmackDown 12/13/19)
Great TV tag with big WE WANT OTIS chants and Otis rubbing that belly before an incredible Kinshasa out of nowhere.
19. Akira Tozawa vs. Drew McIntyre (RAW 12/2/19)
Drew is great at working with cruiserweights and Tozawa is finding a niche for himself as spunky fun guy who occasionally looks like he has died. This match might be where it started actually. Amazing Claymore at the end.
20. Pete Dunne vs. Travis Banks (NXT 12/18/19)
I want Pete Dunne to start doing something more interesting, but I’ll still take him beating up Travis Banks with one of the most fun movesets in wrestling as Banks tried to kick his way into a comeback.
21. Tyler Bate vs. Noam Dar (NXT UK 12/19/19)
This is 20 minutes and the first 10 are what I’d call “slow” but they eventually roped the crowd into some incredible teases of Noam Dar actually beating Tyler Bate.
22. Asuka w/ Kairi Sane vs. Deonna Purrazzo (RAW 12/16/19)
Cool little showcase for the Very Talented and Missing in Action Deonna Purrazzo. Lots of fun with armbars.
23. Breezango vs. The Singh Brothers (NXT 12/11/19)
Breezango decided to work like they were The Bludgeon Brothers or something here, with Samir taking some nasty bumps to play along. Tremendous squash that didn’t have to be.
24. Cedric Alexander vs. Bobby Lashley w/ Lana (RAW 12/23/19)
There’s a boring Bobby Lashley in here, but there’s also Cedric Alexander showing off some cool stuff and almost looking like he wasn’t going to take the L.
25. Aleister Black vs. Tony Nese (RAW 12/2/19)
I am putting this here just for Tony Nese yelling “I am the Premiere Athlete!” on Monday Night RAW before he got spin kicked in the face by Aleister Black.
Honorable Mentions: WWE U.S. Title: Rey Mysterio [c] vs. Seth Rollins w/ AOP (RAW 12/23/19), Aleister Black vs. Akira Tozawa (RAW 12/9/19), Bianca Belair vs. Kayden Carter (NXT 12/11/19), Ridge Holland vs. Jack Starz (NXT UK 12/12/19), Miracle on 34th Street Fight: Heavy Machinery vs. The Revival (SmackDown 12/20/19)
