As good as the contest was, and how okay the all-too-brief story was heading into it, Io Shirai Vs Sasha Banks felt like a special request by Triple H to his Father-In-Law. Mainly because it almost certainly was. And this habit rush-releasing undercooked "classics" in search of the next big hit was about to get worse.
Faced with the dilemma of a Keith Lee double-strapped after defeating Adam Cole, he simply surrendered the belt. Tough sh*t when he lost his remaining one to Karrion Kross eh? Tough sh*t for him when he gets injured and they book an insane 60 Minute Iron Man Fatal Four Way that didn't have a f*cking finish. Tough sh*t for us when we had to wait for a singles match to settle it. Tough sh*t for the wrestlers gutting it out in triple threat qualifiers just to make it into a multi-man ladder match. Tough for everybody, because the booking's so sh*t.
A brand that had earned more generous appraisal may have been given a pass for this particularly dispiriting bit of matchmaking, if only because of the timing of Kross' injury. 2020 NXT wasn't that brand, and moreover, the knock only brought into focus another issue plaguing the show...
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for nearly 10 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years.
As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 65,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast.
He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has provided in-person coverage of some of the biggest pay-per-views and Premium Live Events in wrestling history, including WrestleMania, Survivor Series, All In & Double Or Nothing in destinations such as New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live.
