R-Truth vs. Alberto Del Rio
WWE
January 29th (Taped: January 28th)
Huntington Center (Toledo, Ohio)
Truth and Del Rio had good matches on Main Event last week against other opponents (Damien Sandown and Sin Cara, respectively). This week on Main Event they have decent match versus one another.
Truth hit a nice plancha in the early-goings while Del Rio took a nice bump through the middle rope to the floor to setup the commercial break. Del Rio might be overdoing it with the pouting routine he is does after his opponent kicks out late in the match. He is pulling it out at least twice a match and it is this whole big ordeal of contorted facial expressions and dramatic body language. It is sort of reaching mid-90-s Otani level of whining. Buck up already.
I did enjoy the fact that Del Rio transitioned out his second such temper tantrum in this match by turning his head towards the WrestleMania sign as if entranced by it and lifting his fist in the air, as if the sign gave him the strength to fight on. Truth landed a kick after this that got a pretty good near fall reaction, particularly for a Main Event match.
Both this week and last, Del Rio used a top rope stomp with his opponent hung in the tree of woe as his finish rather than the arm bar. I look forward to watching Batista attempt to take that move at the Elimination Chamber show.
TV Match | Watchable | Quality
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3MB vs. Big E. Langston & the Usos
WWE
January 29th (Taped: January 28th)
Huntington Center (Toledo, Ohio)
Another fine (if not forgettable) six-man tag tag from the WWE who continues to make fine use of this particular match format after not making it a big part of their booking arsenal for many years. Not a whole lot to say about this one (which is why it shares space with another match from the 1/29 edition of Main Event), but I did want to briefly mention one of the highlights of the match.
At one point all of the 3MB members are tossed out of the ring. The Usos start jumping up and down to signal their impending dives. Big E. joins in and I figure he is just messing around and won’t join in on the dive. However, he starts running with the Usos and spears McIntyre through the ropes, spilling to the floor in the process. The Usos did their normal over the top rope dives. Langston’s spear was sort of a tope on training wheels but really cool looking. Now that he knows he can do it, I hope he adds a real tope to his offense. Either one though would be a nice addition and compliment to his power offense.
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