Oh, we’re back to Top 25 now? Great. Everybody just accepted COVID and kind of started trying again. Tremendous.
1. RAW Women’s Title: Asuka [c] vs. Sasha Banks (The Horror Show at Extreme Rules 7/19/20)
It deserved a crowd, but up until the stupid finish the wrestling was as good as anything this year – crowd or not. Sasha was working as stiff as she used to in NXT and Asuka is just straight-up the best in the world. Nobody wrestles more seriously while making sure to show a range of emotions like her.
2. Winner Takes All – NXT Title & NXT North American Title: Adam Cole [c] vs. Keith Lee [c] (NXT 7/8/20)
The big Keith Lee title win delivered, with an excellent character dynamic and all the big bumps and WWE “awwww what the HELL” reactions needed for a big time match.
3. Kairi Sane w/ Asuka vs. Bayley w/ Sasha Banks (RAW 7/20/20)
A completely unexpected match in that it wasn’t announced beforehand, got a bunch of time, and Kairi actually wins. This is way too dramatic for a match with nobody there. Kairi’s counter of the Bayley to Belly is up there with Eddie Guerrero’s counter of the Rock Bottom.
4. RAW Women’s Title: Sasha Banks [c] vs. Asuka (RAW 7/27/20)
When it comes down to it all wrestling needs is a must-win attitude and cool chain wrestling counters, and these two once again brought a ton of that. Sasha puts everything into these matches.
5. Oney Lorcan vs. Timothy Thatcher (NXT 7/1/20)
6. Oney Lorcan vs. Timothy Thatcher (NXT 7/22/20)
Two fellas grabbing faces and limbs and chopping and slapping each other super hard. Oney gets a legitimate near fall off a half Boston Crab in the first, while the second has a brilliant simple finish. Badass TV.
7. NXT Title & NXT North American Title: Keith Lee [c] vs. Dominik Dijakovic (NXT 7/15/20)
This lacked the atmosphere of a crowd that takes these over the top, but was still a heck of a match. I’m not sure how much they or I have left to say, but all the big hits were impressive and well-timed and Dijakovic hit one of the most incredible cyclone boots ever if that’s even possible.
8. WWF Women’s Tag Team Title: Bayley & Sasha Banks [c] vs. The Kabuki Warriors (RAW 7/13/20)
Bayley and Sasha doing a heel beatdown on Kairi Sane to setup an Asuka hot tag is basically the definition of a dream match and I’m happy we got it. Sasha eats a kick here like an absolute legend too.
9. SmackDown Women’s Title: Bayley [c] w/ Sasha Banks vs. Nikki Cross w/ Alexa Bliss (The Horror Show at Extreme Rules 7/19/20)
10. SmackDown Women’s Title: Bayley [c] w/ Sasha Banks vs. Nikki Cross w/ Alexa Bliss (SmackDown 7/31/20)
Nikki Cross is finally showing up as a babyface on WWE TV and worked a pair of SERIOUS matches with Bayley for the championship.
11. Johnny Gargano vs. Roderick Strong (NXT 7/29/20)
Like any good NXT TV match it lacked a second gear, but this is genuinely impressive work that went from chain wrestling to chain back-breakering. These guys trust each other with their lives and it shows.
12. Kevin Owens vs. Murphy (The Horror Show at Extreme Rules 7/19/20)
Absolute bell-to-bell action – one might say they “brought it.”
13. Tables Match – SmackDown Tag Team Title: The New Day [c] vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro (The Horror Show at Extreme Rules 7/19/20)
The Tables Match is dead, but this was a bunch of wild spots from four absolute professionals with a spectacular bump at the end.
14. Io Shirai vs. Sasha Banks w/ Bayley (NXT 7/1/20)
Sasha Banks having a blast is a great version of Sasha Banks, and they didn’t get a lot of time here but they kept it credible and delivered some wild spots. Sasha’s tope suicida sunset flip was a THING.
15. #1 Contender’s Fatal 4-Way Elimination Match: Mia Yim vs. Tegan Nox vs. Candice LeRae vs. Dakota Kai (NXT 7/1/20)
The first part of this was a 4-Way Match that was OK but a little too convenient, while the second part was Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai one-on-one which completely ruled. It felt like after all the gimmicks they got to just rip it up and delivered.
16. Asuka vs. Bayley (RAW 7/6/20)
17. Kairi Sane vs. Sasha Banks w/ Bayley (RAW 7/6/20)
Two quality TV matches from the July 6th RAW that continued the going theory that women’s wrestling is the only real wrestling going on in WWE right now.
18. Humberto Carrillo vs. Murphy (RAW 7/27/20)
A 205 Live reunion saw these guys go harder than anyone would expect for a late-third hour match.
19. Timothy Thatcher vs. Denzel Dejournette (NXT 7/15/20)
Denzel Dejournette is the low key squash MVP of WWE 2020, while Timothy Thatcher delivered a tremendous promo before he tore apart poor young Denzel.
20. WWE Intercontinental Title: AJ Styles [c] vs. Matt Riddle (SmackDown 7/17/20)
21. WWE Intercontinental Title: AJ Styles [c] vs. Gran Metalik w/ Lince Dorado (SmackDown 7/31/20)
22. WWE Intercontinental Title: AJ Styles [c] vs. Drew Gulak (SmackDown 7/3/20)
All three of these matches are probably a bit better than I am giving them credit for, but they were all matches where IC Champ AJ Styles struck to the script. Riddle, Metalik and Gulak have enough flashiness to help make sticking to the script pretty good, but pretty good still felt a little empty.
23. Mustafa Ali, Ricochet & Cedric Alexander vs. Bobby Lashley, Shelton Benjamin & MVP (RAW 7/20/20)
This was the night Mustafa Ali returned to TV, leading to a fun 6-man that probably would’ve flipped a live crowd out.
24. Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins (RAW 7/13/20)
Owens vs. Rollins probably peaked at WrestleMania, but they had a perfectly fine bordering on really good version of their match here.
25. Tony Nese & Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. Joaquin Wilde & Raul Mendoza w/ Santos Escobar (205 Live 7/31/20)
The most interesting 205 Live match in a while, four talented guys who have been around for a while doing nothing finally having a wrestling match with some meat to it.
Honorable Mentions: Johnny Gargano vs. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott (NXT 7/8/20), Triple Threat North American Title Qualifying Match: Bronson Reed vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Roderick Strong (NXT 7/22/20), Winner Faces Bayley for the SmackDown Women’s Title: Alexa Bliss vs. Nikki Cross (SmackDown 7/24/20), Fatal 4-Way Match – Winner Faces AJ Styles for the IC Title: Drew Gulak vs. Shorty G vs. Lince Dorado vs. Gran Metalik (SmackDown 7/24/20), Mansoor vs. Tehuti Miles (205 Live 7/10/20)
Extreme Rules: Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler (RAW 7/27/20), NXT Women’s Title: Io Shirai [c] vs. Tegan Nox (NXT 7/15/20), Aleister Black vs. Seth Rollins w/ Murphy (7/20/20), Dexter Lumis vs. Killian Dain (NXT 7/22/20), Winning Team Picks the Stipulation for Extreme Rules: Rey Mysterio & Kevin Owens w/ Dominick Mysterio vs. Seth Rollins & Murphy (RAW 7/6/20), Triple Threat Tag Team Match – Winners Face Street Profits at SummerSlam: The Viking Raiders vs. Ricochet & Cedric Alexander vs. Andrade & Angel Garza w/ Zelina Vega (RAW 7/27/20)
