10 Things We Learned From WWE Newcastle Live
A hot crowd, heel antics galore, and a particularly funny incident with security.
Whenever WWE rolls into Newcastle, you know the sort of crowd to expect: a loud, largely traditional crowd keen on booing the heels and cheering the faces, with a slightly less vocal smark contingent. Last weekend's show followed this stereotype for the most part, but a very split crowd during the main event between AJ Styles and Dean Ambrose suggests that the times could be slightly changing. The Phenomenal One's appeal seems enough to partially transcend the face/heel dynamic.
Elsewhere, we saw a mixed bag of a card featuring matches as diverse as Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz, Curt Hawkins vs. Jack Swagger, Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss, and the Hype Bros vs. The Ascension.
Of course, this wasn't a night for serious storyline progression or five-star classics, but sometimes information can be gleaned by looking at the results - especially in terms of superstar momentum and potential future storylines. Here are ten things we learned.
10. Ziggler Vs. Miz Is A Tailor-Made Opener
The show began with Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship, and while the match was nowhere near as explosive as their fantastic PPV battles over the past few months, both men showed why their feud has been held in such high regard.
The pair share undeniable chemistry, and Maryse is always on hand to add to Miz's heel shenanigans at the right moments - and, moreover, the rivalry seems almost tailor-made to open a house show. Ziggler has enough popularity and exuberance to immediately get the crowd out of their seats, while The Miz is the archetypal live heel, jaw-jacking at the crowd, flagrantly wasting time, and drawing the ire of just about everybody in the building.