Devastating Maneuver: WWE Fastlane 2016 Review

WWE Fastlane 2016 Review

February 21, 2016

Cleveland, OH

Pre-Show: Kalisto (c) vs. Albert Del Rio 2 out of 3 falls for the WWE United States Championship:

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I liked Mauro Ranallo being on commentary here. Good to showcase him on a live show. Hopefully he gets onto a full PPV one of these days soon, because his voice on Smackdown has been incredibly refreshing. As for the match itself, it wasn't too bad. They get the first fall out the way quick with Del Rio whacking Kalisto with a chair, getting the DQ. Quickly after that, Del Rio took the second fall on a wounded Kalisto following the chair attack from the previous DQ fall. Kalisto won, and he should have, but it's disappointed that it had to be by rolling up Del Rio. Entertaining match. Good for a kick-off show.

Winner: Kalisto via pinfall
Rating: **3/4


Becky Lynch & Sasha Banks vs. Naomi & Tamina:

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I thought that this match was very good. Sasha and Becky are so far ahead of most divas on the roster, as far as talent goes, that it's ridiculous. I missed Sasha and Becky teaming in NXT, but I've noticed that they have great chemistry together. Becky plays the babyface in peril well and Sasha getting the hot tag was great. I'd like to see more of them together, but I think that we're heading toward a triple threat for the Divas title at Mania with these two and Charlotte. Which I'm perfectly fine with.

Winner: Becky Lynch & Sasha Banks via submission
Rating: ***1/2


Kevin Owens (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE Intercontinental Championship:

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I have no idea what's going on with Ziggler's hair here. And his attire looks like a rushed CAW made in a WWE video game. The match itself I thought was pretty good. Ziggler got some offense in here and there, but it was mostly the Kevin Owens show. The right decision in my opinion. It was funny to me how Owens was more over with the crowd than the hometown boy Dolph. After the show, Owens tweeted about AJ Styles, so that could be a direction for him going into Wrestlemania. The thought of that it pretty exciting in my opinion.

Winner: Kevin Owens via pinfall
Rating: ***1/2


Big Show, Kane, & Ryback vs. The Wyatts (minus the Wyatt):

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It wasn't a bad match. It was actually fairly entertaining for the most part. I'm not big on Ryback. I think he's really sloppy in the ring and it look like he dropped Harper on his shoulder on the Shellshock spot. Hopefully Harper is alright. He's a very underrated worker. This match was suprisingly fast paced given it a match full of big men. I expected the Wyatts to win this one to make Strowman look strong, since he's apparently Vince's new project. He didn't eat the pin though obviously.

Winner: Big Show, Kane, & Ryback via pinfall
Rating: **1/2


Charlotte (c) vs. Brie Danielson:

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This match was a lot better than it had any right being. It's no secret that Brie isn't great in the ring. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't great. But it was solid for what it was, and that is basically just a filler feud for Charlotte between the Rumble and Wrestlemania. There was some thought that Brie might get a short reign because she's on her way out soon, but I never thought that was all that realistic. The end with Charlotte powering out of Brie's submission and apply the Figure 8 was a little sloppy.

Winner: Charlotte via pinfall
Rating: ***


AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho:

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Good match, but they seemed to be a little out of synch tonight. Mostly noticibly, the Jericho being out of position and sloppy a lot of the time. AJ was good, but that wasn't enough. Don't get me wrong, it was entertaining, they were just capable of so much more. I also HATED them having someone kick out of the Styles Clash already. That move should be protected more than almost any move in wrestling. It should be something MAYBE only kicked out of in a match at a big event like Wrestlemania. Kicking out of the Styles Clash should be a huge deal. They've ruined that possible spot now. After the kickout Styles locks on the Calf Killer to win the match. After the match Jericho teases a heel turn, but ultimately gives his respect and shakes hands with AJ. Good match, not great. Hopefully they can both move on the different things for Mania.

Winner: AJ Styles via submission
Rating: ***1/4



Edge and Christian's Cutting Edge Peep Show featuring The New Day:

I thought something interesting might happen here. Maybe Enzo & Cass debut. Maybe Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks show up to confront the New Day following up on their "twitter feud". Okay, I didn't really expect that last thing to actually happen, but I really thought this would be Enzo & Cass' main roster debut to challenge New Day at Wrestlemania. Instead, we get an apparent New Day face turn and possible match with the League of Nations at Mania. Not really excited for that, if that's the direction they're going. Also, this segment was basically just to hype the new Edge and Christian Show on the WWE Network. I'm hoping after the show debuts I never have to see that commercial about Mick Foley burning his scrotum again. Waste of a segment in my opinion. Would have rather just seen a match here. But it's whatever.


Curtis Axel vs. R-Truth:

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An unannounced match that shouldn't have been on a PPV. Would much rather have had Kalisto and Del Rio on the main show than this. Nothing here other than Goldust continuing to try to get R-Truth to be his tag team partner. I think they had some extra time on the show and took this match originally booked for Superstars and stuck it on the show. This comedy match following the comedy segment before it just did not work well. Honestly, I only half watched this match while I got ready for my overnight shift at work. That's how interested I was in this.

Winner: Curtis Axel
Rating: *


Roman Reigns vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar Triple Threat for the #1 Contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania:

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Was anybody really surprised? I see people being so angry about this. This was extremely predictable. I know some people bought into Ambrose possibly winning, but to me there was never any doubt. I think all the Ambrose and Lesnar stuff leading up to tonight was setting up those two at Wrestlemania. I agree that Ambrose/Triple H and Reigns/Lesnar would probably be better for Mania, but it was obvious that this is the year that there were doing the big Wrestlemania moment for Reigns. Good match though. I know people are upset about the outcome, but the match was entertaining. The finish felt a little rushed, but I think it worked. I'm just hoping it doesn't lead to an Ambrose turn, because I don't think the crowd would take to that at all.

Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall
Rating: ***3/4