The Good, The Bad and The NXT
Friday 22 June 2018 14:52, UK
The most unpredictable event of the year has been and gone and there is a new Raw Women's Champion and a Mr. Money in the Bank.
Only time will tell when it comes to how much this will change the face of WWE, but heading into Extreme Rules, there are definitely going to be a few changes.
Both NXT Takeover: Chicago and Money in the Bank took place this weekend and there were a number of stars who were able to stand out when it counted the most.
Good week
Dolph Ziggler (RAW)
The Showoff returned to Monday Night Raw a few months ago and has been trying to push the fact that he and Drew McIntyre are the "IT Team" ever since.
This hasn't worked out well for the pair who didn't even feature on the Money in the Bank card, but they managed to turn things around the following night on Raw.
Seth Rollins issued an open challenge for the Intercontinental Championship and it was Dolph Ziggler who answered it and managed to take the title from arguably the most consistent performer in WWE right now.
This win can only mean that big things are expected for Ziggler and McIntyre in the future, finally.
Rusev (SmackDown)
Rusev has been overlooked so much on the SmackDown brand over the past few weeks that many of the WWE Universe believed that he was just making up the numbers in the gauntlet match on Tuesday night, but incredibly it was The Bulgarian Brute who was able to come out on top.
Rusev made The Miz tap to The Accolade to become the new number one contender for the WWE Championship, a match that he is set to be part of at Extreme Rules next month.
With both Aiden English and Lana in his corner, could Rusev finally lift the biggest Championship in WWE?
Tommaso Ciampa (NXT)
What a difference a week makes, Tommaso Ciampa may need a few weeks to recover after his vicious match with Johnny Gargano, one that is being called the most brutal of the PG Era, but it was The Sicilian Psychopath who came out on top when it mattered the most.
Ciampa took a lot of abuse from his former friend and at one point was being stretchered out of the arena, but in the end, it was Gargano's need for retribution that cost him when Ciampa took advantage of an opening and delivered a DDT on the bare wood of the ring for the victory.
It is highly unlikely that this is the end of this feud, but it will be an interesting build towards the rubber match at Takeover: Brooklyn in August.
Bad Week
Ronda Rousey (RAW)
Ronda Rousey had the opportunity to become Raw Women's Champion in the palm of her hand on Sunday night before Alexa Bliss cashed in her Money in the Bank contract and ruined her singles match debut.
Rousey was unable to control her anger on Monday Night as well when she attacked both Bliss and Kurt Angle after he tried to split the two women up in the opening segment.
This brief loss of control forced the Raw General Manager to suspend the former UFC Champion for 30 days, which means that she will now miss Extreme Rules as a result.
Big Cass (SmackDown)
Big Cass was forced to tap to Daniel Bryan in what was definitely the final match of their feud at Money in the Bank on Sunday Night before it was revealed on Tuesday afternoon that the company had come to terms with the release of the seven-foot star just three months after he returned from a knee injury.
Cass was known to have a lot of heat backstage but his release came from out of nowhere, just when he was finally starting to look natural in his heel persona.
Lars Sullivan (NXT)
Lars Sullivan had the chance to walk out of Chicago with The NXT Championship this weekend since only Aleister Black stood in his way, but "The Freak" was unable to find an answer to Black's incredible Black Mass kicks and suffered his first pinfall defeat in NXT.
Not only that, but Sullivan was the most talked about NXT star for all the wrong reasons the following day after he was part of an amusing error in his match with Black, one that the duo didn't manage to hide very well.
Since he came up empty-handed in his hunt for NXT Championship gold, it is unknown what the future now holds for the master of The Freak Accident or where his place is on NXT moving forward.
