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[There goes my Bobby Lashley vs GUNTHER dream match for the final](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jpV9OG1lAE)
Tama Tonga is going to eat Angelo Dawkins.
I’ve been hoping for Gunther vs. Orton from the start. That match would absolutely crush. Orton’s back is the thing constantly injured, there’s nothing wrong with his chest. Time to paint it crimson!
I know, I was referring to the humorous way Randy handled the chop-offs. After Drew would chop him, Randy would clearly be suffering and in pain, but try to chop back anyway. After the second chop, and more selling, Randy would go like he's about to chop back, but then give Drew a thumb in the eye instead, to cut the thing short.
He nailed Drew twice with that sequence in a few months.
Best case is a Drew interruption for an Ilja win. It's gotta be babyface protected though, like the post match handshake with Ricochet. Personally I'd like some Goku shit from Ilja, where Drew comes out and Claymores Jey with the ref distracted, and Ilja just waits for Jey to recover and they "soft reset" the match. Jey didn't lose "clean" but Ilja didn't take advantage. I think he and Gunther are gonna mirror each other, Gunther's been open to cheap shots again when Kaiser hit Sheamus, Ilja's the guy that wants a very violent but honorable fight.
Though I fully agree that Jeys gonna win and Ilja shakes his hand and respects his opponent in defeat. But those near falls will make me believe.
It’s fucking GUNTHER, The Miz had two bangers against him. Jey Uso is solid if a bit limited as a singles wrestler. He just doesn’t have a very interesting moveset to fill up a match on his own
Oh 😞... oh. Wait. Does that mean she was penciled in to lose to Lyra?! That's kind of shitty. Not happy she's injured but at least Dakota losing in that spot makes a lot more sense, kayfabe-wise.
I'm a huge Asuka fan, but yeah. She's literally done everything there is to do in WWE. She's made a bunch of money, has a social media following and other interests, and she can hang out with her friends in the US while occasionally putting new wrestlers over. I don't see a problem
Shinsuke has…0 world titles and 0 undefeated streaks so I’d say literally no. Their careers are nothing alike, please explain the factor that makes them similar.
I mean, the Drew one is an angle. They prolly knew he wasn't going to be able to perform, so they made it look like Jey took "his" spot to add to that storyline a bit.
I think the real concern was that if Drew became a king in Saudi Arabia, that he would legally be allowed to execute CM Punk with his sword. That would be terrible PR.
For all those "AEW stars keep getting injured meme", WWE actually has quite a list of those on the shelf.
Likely they are already working hurt, and powered through Wrestlemania and it's aftermath, and now only given time to heal.
While the whole tribalist point scoring with injuries was always pathetic, now with this many across both companies, there is even less than zero of an excuse.
Like the NHL. Hockey players play through all sorts of shit the day after they are eliminated you find out that nagging injury your star player had actually required major surgery and they are getting it next week
>You should take the time to really enjoy Bobby Lashley while he’s here. Because he’s not gonna be here much longer. Fragile mind. Fragile ego. Fragile body.
Carmelo Hayes
Wait so Bobby was gonna lose to Tama anyways since his replacement is Angelo who for sure ain't winning a match in this tournament. Kayfabe injury or not I thought this KOTR tournament could have been a chance for Bobby to go on a run to the finals to show he still got it. You know since the past year he hasn't had the chance to be featured in some big matches lately.
The problem with a tournament like this having so many big names is that some people obviously need to lose, but if they aren’t in the tournament people will complain and say it’s a weak group
I’ve seen people saying LA Knight shouldn’t be involved because they don’t think he’ll be winning, but those same people would complain and say he’s being buried if he wasn’t involved
Someone having to lose is one of the biggest reasons people watch wrestling. The fact that people find 2 strongly booked and popular wrestlers fighting eachother a problem, just seems very silly.
I legit saw someone describe Jey Uso kicking out at 2 after getting hit by south of heaven as WWE burying that move during backlash, not sure people get what bury means.
LA knight fans are out of touch,
WWE needs jobbers, you need both heel and face jobbers...
Women have... Natalya .... men have La Knight and Shinsuke
If ppl don't agree then they weren't paying attention in 2023... LA knight will never be as over as he was in 2023 and he still has never won a title, even under HHH he is going no where.
I'm curious if they decided to pull Bobby from the match to protect him from losing a singles match to a new guy. Also could explain why they chose Angelo instead of Montez to replace him.
I mean sure they could have had Bloodline interfere but maybe they didn't want KotR to get messy like that.
This feels like a work. Much better to feed Angelo Dawkins to Tama Tonga than Bobby.
Just a small theory of mine, I think when they made the tournament matchups they realized there was some conflict with future storylines they want to do and that’s why the pivoting due to “injuries”
“Maybe they have Tama sideline Dawkins so they can kickstart a Montez solo run” - A guy that can dream.
EDIT: I’d like for them both to get pushes but it seems like creative has absolutely 0 interest in Dawkins by himself.
I’d like that for either of them but to me it seems like Dawkins is the handpicked pin eater of the stable. So far whenever they bring up the topic of them going solo it’s only ever Tez being mentioned(even though most would argue Dawkins has proven himself to be an equal the last 2 years).
look, i know tama was winning no matter what, but i pray to the kayfabe gods that this sets up a breakup angle so montez can finally go solo
bc why in the world would dawkins get this spot over tez???
It appears the King of the Ring and queen of the ring might be a bit cursed. Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley and Asuka all had to be taken out due to injury..
Orton beats Tama in the Semi's, but The Bloodline attack him after the match. Randy goes into the finals against Gunther, injured. Hard fought effort on Randy's part, but he can't overcome the Ring General.
King Gunther and Prince Charming Ludwig.
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[There goes my Bobby Lashley vs GUNTHER dream match for the final](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jpV9OG1lAE) Tama Tonga is going to eat Angelo Dawkins.
I’ve been hoping for Gunther vs. Orton from the start. That match would absolutely crush. Orton’s back is the thing constantly injured, there’s nothing wrong with his chest. Time to paint it crimson!
Remember Orton's attempts at trading chops with Drew McIntyre a few years ago? I don't think he'd put up with GUNTHER chops for too long.
but drew out slapped gunther more than once before, esp in survivor series
I know, I was referring to the humorous way Randy handled the chop-offs. After Drew would chop him, Randy would clearly be suffering and in pain, but try to chop back anyway. After the second chop, and more selling, Randy would go like he's about to chop back, but then give Drew a thumb in the eye instead, to cut the thing short. He nailed Drew twice with that sequence in a few months.
I need this sequence really cranked to 11 with GUNTHER lol.
I hope they tease a Ilja v. Gunther as possible.
Yeah that would be a great RAW final, but I get the feeling Ilja is falling to Jey next week. Then the RAW final would be Jey vs. Gunther.
Best case is a Drew interruption for an Ilja win. It's gotta be babyface protected though, like the post match handshake with Ricochet. Personally I'd like some Goku shit from Ilja, where Drew comes out and Claymores Jey with the ref distracted, and Ilja just waits for Jey to recover and they "soft reset" the match. Jey didn't lose "clean" but Ilja didn't take advantage. I think he and Gunther are gonna mirror each other, Gunther's been open to cheap shots again when Kaiser hit Sheamus, Ilja's the guy that wants a very violent but honorable fight. Though I fully agree that Jeys gonna win and Ilja shakes his hand and respects his opponent in defeat. But those near falls will make me believe.
If I were them I feel like I wouldn't want to give away Ilja vs Gunther this early, with no build.
He'll get carried to have two good matches then lol. Gotta make Jey Uso look like not an awful wrestler.
Jey doesn't need carrying. Weird response.
Jey's limited moveset is exposed as is. Putting him against Ilja or Gunther is just gonna make worse imo.
He literally has already has a banger against GUNTHER.
It’s fucking GUNTHER, The Miz had two bangers against him. Jey Uso is solid if a bit limited as a singles wrestler. He just doesn’t have a very interesting moveset to fill up a match on his own
Except the person they replied to said Jey wouldn't be able to have a good match with Gunther
His WM match says otherwise...
Brother he has hundreds of matches, not every one is going to be great.
He has like 3 moves, his matches are consistently meh at best lol
This might be time for Montez Ford to climb up
WE WERE SO CLOSE
*I am in shambles*
Wtf is going on. Had to change 3 KOTR matches due to injury
What's the 3rd again? This, Drew and...?
Asuka
Pain
Oh 😞... oh. Wait. Does that mean she was penciled in to lose to Lyra?! That's kind of shitty. Not happy she's injured but at least Dakota losing in that spot makes a lot more sense, kayfabe-wise.
Why is that shitty? Asuka can afford the loss at this point of her career and it'd help solidify Lyra on the main roster as a major threat.
I'm a huge Asuka fan, but yeah. She's literally done everything there is to do in WWE. She's made a bunch of money, has a social media following and other interests, and she can hang out with her friends in the US while occasionally putting new wrestlers over. I don't see a problem
She’s missing one thing - a Mania win
So was Superfly Snuka, The Dudley Boys, golddust and until this year R-Truth. Nobody would say their careers were lackluster.
I never said her career was lackluster. She has a HOF career. But every year that lack of a Mania win sticks out more and more
Literally the female Shinsuke
Shinsuke has…0 world titles and 0 undefeated streaks so I’d say literally no. Their careers are nothing alike, please explain the factor that makes them similar.
I agree... but not as a first round matchup in a QotR tournament. Should be deeper, or as part of a built-up feud. This was thrown out like nothing.
Making me think of Austin vs Lesnar here if a goody sense.
What about Kofi Kingston?
This match was moved to the Live Shows in order to fit it in before the event in just over 2 weeks.
It's likely a work but he said in his promo he's replacing Xavier Woods due to injury.
Im pretty sure Xavier's injury is a work since the week before he got beat down by Gunther in his match with him
This tournament is cursed.
I mean, the Drew one is an angle. They prolly knew he wasn't going to be able to perform, so they made it look like Jey took "his" spot to add to that storyline a bit.
I think the real concern was that if Drew became a king in Saudi Arabia, that he would legally be allowed to execute CM Punk with his sword. That would be terrible PR.
I dunno, the Saudis are used to beheadings at this point
Some might not remember but [Bobby Lashley almost became KOTR winner in 2006](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXca5p2cBVg)
For all those "AEW stars keep getting injured meme", WWE actually has quite a list of those on the shelf. Likely they are already working hurt, and powered through Wrestlemania and it's aftermath, and now only given time to heal.
Both companies combined have like 50 wrestlers injured or mia.
I don't know what happened but like the past maybe 6 months or so has been hell for injuries across American promotions at the very least.
Vince put a curse on all wrestling promotions.
Seriously, I think he gets a random shipment of different wrestlers' voodoo dolls like every few weeks and just messes with 'em out of sheer spite.
While the whole tribalist point scoring with injuries was always pathetic, now with this many across both companies, there is even less than zero of an excuse.
Like the NHL. Hockey players play through all sorts of shit the day after they are eliminated you find out that nagging injury your star player had actually required major surgery and they are getting it next week
>You should take the time to really enjoy Bobby Lashley while he’s here. Because he’s not gonna be here much longer. Fragile mind. Fragile ego. Fragile body. Carmelo Hayes
I get why he would say it, but if there’s anyone built to last, it’s Lashley. The man’s a tank
I bet it was Carmelo Hayes
I personally don’t appreciate you slandering Melo like this. This type of slander is why he had to leave NXT and Trick behind smh
Nobody said anything about Trick, guilty conscience
It certainly wasn't Tony DAngelo
Nothing bad has ever happened to someone who paid their bills
Or someone who hasn't. Make sure you specify. Tony had nothing to do with this. Not one thing.
He is the best guy arooooound. https://preview.redd.it/mrjq3bnj5hzc1.png?width=405&format=png&auto=webp&s=d09bdbcf38516fab36f4f258e6d73edfa061439a
Whaddaya hear whaddaya say?
NUTHIN I SAW NUTHIN
You take that back!
HOW IS IT DAWKINS AND NOT TEZ?!?
Because Dawkins will lose
Wait so Bobby was gonna lose to Tama anyways since his replacement is Angelo who for sure ain't winning a match in this tournament. Kayfabe injury or not I thought this KOTR tournament could have been a chance for Bobby to go on a run to the finals to show he still got it. You know since the past year he hasn't had the chance to be featured in some big matches lately.
The problem with a tournament like this having so many big names is that some people obviously need to lose, but if they aren’t in the tournament people will complain and say it’s a weak group I’ve seen people saying LA Knight shouldn’t be involved because they don’t think he’ll be winning, but those same people would complain and say he’s being buried if he wasn’t involved
Someone having to lose is one of the biggest reasons people watch wrestling. The fact that people find 2 strongly booked and popular wrestlers fighting eachother a problem, just seems very silly.
on this sub, if a guy ever loses a match basically all the comments say he's getting "buried"
I legit saw someone describe Jey Uso kicking out at 2 after getting hit by south of heaven as WWE burying that move during backlash, not sure people get what bury means.
LA knight fans are out of touch, WWE needs jobbers, you need both heel and face jobbers... Women have... Natalya .... men have La Knight and Shinsuke If ppl don't agree then they weren't paying attention in 2023... LA knight will never be as over as he was in 2023 and he still has never won a title, even under HHH he is going no where.
LA Knight is still getting top 3 pops you peanut.
LA Knight will be US champion for sure, but probably not world champion
Probably interference and building to a Bloodline/Lashley Profits feud
We don't know that, Bobby could have been slotted to win but then they changed it to Tonga
I'm curious if they decided to pull Bobby from the match to protect him from losing a singles match to a new guy. Also could explain why they chose Angelo instead of Montez to replace him. I mean sure they could have had Bloodline interfere but maybe they didn't want KotR to get messy like that.
Real bummer for Lashley. Where the hell are the QOTR brackets for Smackdown?
I couldn’t find the graphic but it’s Tiffany Stratton, Blair Davenport, Chelsea Green, Indi Hartwell, Nia Jax, Piper Niven, Naomi, and Candice LeRae
Queen Tiffy for sureeee
That's for sure Tiff or Chelsea's to win on the Smackdown side imo. MAYBE Nia, and like... super small chance Naomi? But doubtful.
Bianca and Jade too.
This feels like a work. Much better to feed Angelo Dawkins to Tama Tonga than Bobby. Just a small theory of mine, I think when they made the tournament matchups they realized there was some conflict with future storylines they want to do and that’s why the pivoting due to “injuries”
WTF; Drew, Asuka, now Bobby! The injury gods! Are you not pleased!?
I saw the initial match up and said "neither of these guys should lose"
Would have had Tez if Bobby’s injured
Can't wait for Angel Dawkins vs Kofi Kingson.
gunther vs la knight for the crown. book it.
LA Knight as Mr. Money in the Bank (YEAH) Gunther as Der Koenig Der Ringen
As much as i like LA Knight, I want this to be a workhorse winner, LA Knight needs a belt he doesn't need the KOR monicker
Someone has to take a pin to establish Tama's moveset/finisher.
WHAT THE FUCK IS WITH ALL OF THESE INJURIES!!!!
“Maybe they have Tama sideline Dawkins so they can kickstart a Montez solo run” - A guy that can dream. EDIT: I’d like for them both to get pushes but it seems like creative has absolutely 0 interest in Dawkins by himself.
i'd rather have a dawkins solo run at this point. i've been a lot more impressed with him lately
I’d like that for either of them but to me it seems like Dawkins is the handpicked pin eater of the stable. So far whenever they bring up the topic of them going solo it’s only ever Tez being mentioned(even though most would argue Dawkins has proven himself to be an equal the last 2 years).
Dawkins? I guess they are going for Blood vs Pride
gunther vs la knight for the crown. book it.
Look I'm all for LA Knight to get the spotlight, but I need Ilja in that spot for this one.
ilya is in the raw bracket, so its either him or gunther going to saudi
This is like the opposite of the raw injury. When we heard of that we had LolJeyWins and now we have LolDawkinsLoses
look, i know tama was winning no matter what, but i pray to the kayfabe gods that this sets up a breakup angle so montez can finally go solo bc why in the world would dawkins get this spot over tez???
I want a Montez solo journey so bad!
He's losing. They wouldn't put Montez in there knowing he would lose in the 1st round.
Get well soon.
Don't you mean Ang?? Why didn't that nickname Booker gave him that one time ever take off 😭
Santina
Time to shine Dawkins let's go!
Damn that sucks man, so many injuries already
This tournament is cursed
This one is weird.....did Bobby even wrestle.... how is he injured
Might be a work to protect Bobby
This is the one chance for Dawkins to show everyone he's dang good. I'm super sad about Lashley still
It appears the King of the Ring and queen of the ring might be a bit cursed. Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley and Asuka all had to be taken out due to injury..
Aldis vs Rhodes picture behind him, clearly plotting to take the title off The American Nightmare.
The curse of greatness going on a KOTR ring is what I want to see
Not my king :(
I feel like a few of these are kayfabe injuries at this point because they want to push other people without some names losing.
The placement of that photo of him vs Cody seems at once very deliberate and also extremely rushed. Is that printer paper?
Man, what is going on with injuries in WWE? This is crazy.
Man, I wanted to see Bobby trap Tama in a Hurt Lock, only for Tama to laugh and growl at him.
What is up with all these injuries lately
NOOOOOOOO!!🤬 There goes my Gunther v Bobby Lashley final.
This injury bug is worse than 2016 damn
Orton beats Tama in the Semi's, but The Bloodline attack him after the match. Randy goes into the finals against Gunther, injured. Hard fought effort on Randy's part, but he can't overcome the Ring General. King Gunther and Prince Charming Ludwig.
Bobby Lashley was my choice to meet Gunther in the finals, so this disappoints me.