Welcome to another edition of WOMEN'S WRESTLING WEEKLY—a rundown of the events which have transpired in the world of women's professional wrestling over the past several days not just with the Superstars on WWE programming, but with Impact Wrestling's Knockouts, ROH's Women of Honor, and even a glimpse at the women on the independent circuit.
WWE Monday Night Raw
Charlotte Flair & Asuka vs Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler
The brief pairing of Charlotte Flair and Asuka is seemingly at an end. Following miscommunication that resulted in Flair hitting Asuka with a Big Boot, Nia Jax took advantage to hit a Leg Drop and secure the pinfall victory. This match was not flat out bad, but the narrative of the match did not entertain me.
Winner: Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler
Rating: 2/5
Naomi & Lana vs Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke
With all due respect to everyone involved in this match, there was nothing to enjoy here. Naomi and Lana are quite an insipid team, whilst Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke are struggling to display any real cohesion. Naomi and Lana won via pinfall, but there was a real lack of effort shown here.
Winner: Naomi & Lana
Rating: 2/5
Impact Wrestling
Kimber Lee & Susan vs Jordynne Grace & Jazz
In all honesty, Impact Wrestling have a serviceable Knockout's tag team division, with Jordynne Grace and Jazz arguably one of the better teams. They worked well with Kimber Lee and Susan here, creating a fairly entertaining match that felt very competitive. Both teams worked hard, but Grace secured the pinfall victory for her team following a Grace Driver. Overall, this was a solid effort from all four women.
Winner: Jordynne Grace & Jazz
Rating: 2.5/5
AEW Dark
Leyla Hirsch vs Brooke Havok
Leyla Hirsch once again showed how she is one of the better talents in AEW's women's division, however it needs to be noted that Brooke Havok reportedly tore her ACL during this match. Although it was unclear when she tore it during the match, I hope she has a speedy recovery.
Winner: Leyla Hirsch
Rating: 2.5/5
Ivelisse & Diamante vs Miranda Alize & Renee Michelle
This was a fairly standard tag team match for Ivelisse and Diamante. Whilst not a bad thing, it's not also a great indictment of how they are performing as a team. Every match feels the same, and this one was no different. They took out Miranda Alize for the victory, but it was rather bland as a contest.
Winner: Ivelisse & Diamante
Rating: 2.5/5
Kilynn King vs Tesha Price
Kilynn King used this match as a showcase for her talents, which is exactly what it needed to be.
Winner: Kilynn King
Rating: 2.5/5
AEW Wednesday Night Dynamite
Britt Baker vs Nyla Rose
I didn't expect much from this match, as on paper, it wasn't one of the better options for the AEW Women's Championship tournament. However, I was pleasantly surprised with just how entertaining and hard fought this contest was. Nyla Rose used her strength to her advantage, whilst Britt Baker was the wily and slimy heel that we know she can be. Rose won the match with a Beast Bomb, securing her place in the finals.
Winner: Nyla Rose
Rating: 3/5
WWE NXT
Io Shirai vs Zoey Starks
Although Zoey Starks did not win this match, this was certainly a match that made fans sit up and take notice. Io Shirai is quite simply the best performer in NXT, therefore it was little surprise to see Shirai guide Starks to a quality match. Starks hit multiple moves on Shirai to look a force, but Shirai was ultimately successful following a Moonsault. Overall, this was a fantastic match.
Winner: Io Shirai
Rating: 3.5/5
Kacy Catanzaro vs Xia Li
Xia Li was the dominant winner in this match, which is exactly what needed to happen. The official called for the bell to really drive home how much of a badass Li is, but the Spin Kick post match was just fabulous!
Winner: Xia Li
Rating: 3/5
WWE NXT UK
Xia Brookside vs Nina Samuels
The loser of this match would become the Personal Assistant for the winner for a period of a month, therefore this was a match with real stakes. Unfortunately, the action in the ring did not match the stipulation, with both women putting on a mediocre display. Xia Brookside won with a Rollup, but in all honesty, I didn't have much reason to care.
Winner: Xia Brookside
Rating: 2/5
Aoife Valkyrie vs Lana Austin
Another women's match on NXT UK, and another mediocre offering. The finish to this match was at least better than the aforementioned offering, with Aoife Valkyrie hitting a Peripeteia Flying Axe Kick for the victory. NXT UK's women's division feels stuck in limbo at the moment, which is a real shame.
Winner: Aoife Valkyrie
Rating: 2.5/5
WWE Friday Night SmackDown
Liv Morgan vs Tamina
Can someone please remind me why Tamina is being pushed? She offers absolutely no entertainment value, with this particular match coming off very poorly. Certainly one to avoid.
Winner: Tamina
Rating: 1/5
MATCH OF THE WEEK:
Io Shirai vs Zoey Starks
This is the perfect example of how to use your Women's Champion to build up the challengers within the division. Both women worked hard to put on a solid match, with Zoey Starks really benefitting from going toe to toe with Io Shirai.
WOMAN OF THE WEEK:
Xia Li
I cannot believe I am going to say this, but Xia Li is a real reason to tune into NXT. She is now a badass, and this week she put the rest of NXT's women's division on notice.
PROSPECT OF THE WEEK:
Taya Valkyrie
Taya Valkyrie is now a WWE superstar, and hopefully she is utilised well within NXT to put over the younger talent, whilst getting her acclimitised to the WWE style. The recent class of recruitments to the Performance Center show real promise, and I cannot wait to see how successful they are.
So there you have it, the breakdown for the week in women's wrestling. What were some of your favorite and least favorite moments from these women? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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