Fastlane is over and the only PPV left in the season is WrestleMania. The PPV was nothing special, but there were some good moments in the program. We did get a couple surprises throughout the show and that was to be expected because prior to the PPV, the card didn’t really have anything that stood out. As I reflect on the show, I have to say, and this feels like a broken record, but the show was too long. A PPV of this caliber should’ve been fairly short. The show was nearly four hours long and it really shouldn’t have last over three. When we see these long shows, we tend to forget bigger spots and smaller details of a match that make these shows special. With that being said, the next PPV will be a marathon, but it always is. WrestleMania 34’s main portion of the PPV lasted just over five hours last year, so expect more of the same this year. Going into Fastlane, many people called it the most pointless PPV of the year, but was it? Here are the results of the show and my reaction to the matches.

- Men’s Tag Team Match

The New Day vs. Rusev and Shinsuke Nakamura (with Lana)

This was the first and only match on the pre-show card. There were supposed to be two matches, but the Andrade and Rey Mysterio match was scrapped and made into a rematch of the US Championship Fatal 4-Way match on Tuesday. The New Day, excluding Kofi Kingston, against Rusev and Nakamura was the perfect match for a kickoff show. A classic heel vs. face tag team match featuring four talent superstars with the face prevailing is about good as you can get when it comes to starting a show. The match was nothing spectacular, but it did its job. It didn’t have to be spectacular, because honestly a good portion of the viewers were likely not tuned in at that moment. There was nothing on the line in this one and there wasn’t a storyline that pertained to these wrestlers, but that was totally fine. These four guys showed up later in the main portion of the PPV, but it wasn’t for a match. I’m interested to see if they try to make something of this in the near future.

GRADE: 7/10

- Men’s Tag Team Match – SmackDown Tag Team Championship

The Usos (C) vs. The Miz and Shane McMahon

Like a mentioned in the prediction article, this was indeed one of the most predictable parts of the show. It was obvious that Miz and McMahon were going to lose and somehow, they would split up. I predicted that Shane would turn on The Miz and that is exactly what happened. As far as the match goes, it wasn’t a show-stealer, but they did a good job. The Usos are about as good as a tag team gets and The Miz and Shane are great competitors as well. The biggest takeaway from the segment was obviously the Shane McMahon heel turn, but the match had some decent spots. One thing that I don’t understand about this whole angle is the fact that they’re making The Miz out to be a big loser. Anybody who keeps up with wrestling obviously knows that he is one of the best workers in the whole company, but then again, I understand it is entertainment. The WrestleMania match between these two should be entertaining, but at the moment, I think I’m more interested in the SmackDown Tag Team title scenario with rumors about The Usos leaving.

GRADE: 7.4/10

- Women’s Singles Match – SmackDown Women’s Championship

Asuka (C) vs. Mandy Rose (with Sonya Deville)

The women’s matches were probably the worst on the card last night and this match was no exception. Mandy Rose is just not ready to be in the title picture. There wasn’t enough of a build for her and Asuka was visible working to Mandy’s level, which I expected. The match wasn’t horrible, but I think they could’ve done a better job with this one prior to the PPV. Asuka is such a good performer, but she isn’t getting the respect she deserves. There is limited time from now until WrestleMania, so I don t think they’re going to waste time with a single person storyline for Asuka. Look for a multi-woman match at WrestleMania for the title. There was a rift between Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville last night which is signaling that they may split up pretty soon, so expect to see Deville involved at WrestleMania.

GRADE: 6.2/10

- Men’s 1-on-2 Handicap Match

Kofi Kingston vs. The Bar

So, the Kofi Kingston storyline is in full swing and it is apparent that they are setting him up for something special. He met with Mr. McMahon in his office and Kofi was granted entry into what he thought was the WWE Championship match, but it turned out to be a handicap match against The Bar. The Bar obviously took him to the wood shed, as JR would say, and the fans were very aggravated, rightly so. While we question the tactics of the creative department, they actually know what they are doing. Throwing Kofi into a match that he wasn’t prepared for and having him lose in horrible fashion is setting up something great for him. It is the ultimate angle for a feel-good story that could be the most memorable moment of WrestleMania 35. I understand what they are trying to do and I totally think it will work. This storyline is one that I’m fully invested in and I hope they do the right thing and make Kofi Kingston a WWE Champion. The grade is for the full segment and the things surrounding the storyline rather than the quality of the match.

GRADE: 8.8/10

- Triple Threat Men’s Tag Team Match – RAW Tag Team Championship

The Revival (C) vs. Aleister Black and Ricochet vs. Chad Gable and Bobby Roode

This match featured some of the most underrated talent in the whole WWE and it was interesting from start to finish. The tag team division has been wasted on RAW and it was refreshing to see a quality match. I knew going into the match that there would be one of two outcomes. Either The Revival retaining their titles or the call-ups Aleister Black and Ricochet would become the new champs. The Revival retained, but if they are staying, I hope they bring better competition over to RAW after WrestleMania. The Revival deserves better and the fans deserve batter. Don’t get me wrong the other two teams are great, but Black and Ricochet are better as singles competitors and the team of Gable and Roode will become a monotonous matchup for them.

GRADE: 8.2/10

- Men’s Fatal 4-Way – United States Championship

Samoa Joe (C) vs. R-Truth (with Carmella) vs. Andrade (with Zelina Vega) vs. Rey Mysterio

This match was a total surprise to everyone. It wasn’t on the card prior to the PPV and I’m glad they did this. It was a rematch of the SmackDown Fatal 4-Way on Tuesday night and it had the same outcome, but it was a quality match. Basically everybody involved in the match was made relevant and it created potentially more upcoming matches in the near future. Samoa Joe showed everyone why he is the champion and going into WrestleMania, he will be a force to be reckoned with. The likely opponent for Joe will be John Cena and I can’t wait for that matchup, if it happens.

GRADE: 8.5/10

- Women’s Tag Team Match – WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship

Boss ‘N’ Hug Connection (C) vs. Nia Jax and Tamina

I wasn’t really invested in this match, but they did a decent job with it. It was the first Women’s Tag Team title defense and the team of Bayley and Sasha Banks prevailed. This was to be expected, but hopefully they figure out a way to make these titles more interesting. At the moment, it is being overshadowed by other things, but my early impression is that the women’s tag team division will be wasted, much like the men’s division. I hope that isn’t the case, but we shall see. It was cool to see Beth Phoenix get involved and it looks like she and Natalya will be teaming up for WrestleMania, which I am excited for. Moving forward I’m not sure what the matchups will look like, but I hope the new titles don’t get lost in the shuffle.

GRADE: 7.4/10

- Men’s Triple Threat – WWE Championship

Daniel Bryan (C) vs. Kevin Owens vs. Mustafa Ali

Mustafa Ali getting added to the match was a good twist, but the fans really wanted to see Kofi Kingston in the match. The crowd wasn’t into it for the most part, although it was arguably the best match of the night. It is difficult for competitors to effectively get everyone involved in a Triple Threat, but these guys did it masterfully. I was really excited to see Kevin Owens fighting for the title, but Mustafa Ali created intrigue as well. It appears that the push we are seeing from Kofi Kingston at the moment was supposed to be Ali’s, which I think I would’ve been on board for also. I don’t think there would’ve been as much excitement, but Daniel Bryan and Ali would put on an excellent 1-on-1 match at WrestleMania. We could still see him involved in the match, but I think he will take the seat for at least a couple months. The same goes for Owens also, but I’m interested to see how the WWE title picture unfolds in the coming weeks.

GRADE: 9/10

- Women’s Singles Match

Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch (DQ)

I may be a little harsh with the assessment of this contest, but it was bad. This was a predictable outcome, but I expected so much more out of this segment. Obviously, Becky Lynch competing with an injured knee was not going to look pretty, but nothing was interesting about this match as it was happening. Charlotte just went after her hurt leg and a few minutes later, Ronda Rousey runs down the ramp and hits Becky Lynch one time, thus causing a DQ. I expected Ronda to do a lot more and I was extremely disappointed that she did not attack Charlotte also. She had a heel turn in the middle of the week, but she isn’t going to acknowledge her other opponent in their next match? It makes no sense at the moment. Or heck, why didn’t Charlotte do anything? She just stood there. Becky is now in the match, but she is only in because Ronda chose to put her in it? The approach to this feud is questionable to say the least. They watered down Becky Lynch at Royal Rumble when she tapped to Asuka, and in my opinion, the match last night made her ascension to the main event even less credible. I wasn’t expecting a great match, but I expected the segment to be a lot better than it was. WrestleMania should be way more interesting, but there were so many other ways they could’ve went about this.

GRADE: 5/10

- 6-Man Tag Team Match

The Shield vs. Drew McIntyre, Baron Corbin, and Bobby Lashley

*MATCH OF THE NIGHT*

This was rightfully placed and the end of the show. The match was nearly perfect and the outcome was one that the fans wanted to see. The in-ring return of Roman Reigns was a wonderful sight to see and the reunion of The Shield was a cool moment that we didn’t know if we would ever see again. It had great back-and-forth action and it caused just the right amount of destruction. The only thing bad about the match that I noticed was towards the end, the refs weren’t counting when the competitors were outside of the ring. I understand why they did it, but the product should have been as realistic as possible. Only giving the countdown when heels have the momentum isn’t the right way to call a match. I also thought we might see another Dean Ambrose heel turn, but we didn’t get that last night and that’s fine. The match was great and I’m interested to see what they have planned for WrestleMania. It is becoming more and more apparent that Dean Ambrose appears to be leaving the WWE in April. Is this the last time we will see The Shield in action? My personally assumption is no, but it could be. They are addressing the WWE Universe tonight on RAW, so we will find out some things pretty soon.

GRADE: 9.5/10

Yacs

Fastlane 2019 Results and Reaction