WWE Mae Young Classic Review - September 5, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Tegan Nox def. Zatara in a First-Round Match

​Michael Cole referred to Nox as his dark horse to win the whole thing and he might have been right on the money because she is a star on the rise. She got in all of her signature spots here and had the crowd behind her the entire time. It's a shame an injury kept her out of last year's Mae Young Classic, but she should have a hell of a showing in this year's tourney. It isn't hard to see why her and Dakota Kai have teamed up in the past because they are so similar.

Rhea Ripley def. MJ Jenkins in a First-Round Match

Ripley was one of the unknowns from last year's Mae Young Classic that impressed me the most, and since then, she has done a great job of reinventing herself and creating a character fans can invest in. Jenkins had a fine showing (I'm somewhat familiar with her from the few matches I saw her during her IMPACT tenure), but Ripley was the real standout. I wouldn't be surprised to see her go far this year.

Lacey Lane def. Vanessa Kraven in a First-Round Match​

It's crazy to think Lane is relatively new to the business and has little experience because she showed signs of potential in this match and didn't come across like a rookie. There's plenty of room for improvement, of course, but she's off to a solid start. Meanwhile, Kraven had size on her side, but she didn't do much to win me over otherwise. This was a fun David vs. Goliath-esque outing with the right woman winning.

Meiko Satomura def. Killer Kelly in a First-Round Match

Satomura will be the Kairi Sane/Kota Ibushi of this year's tournament where it's obvious she's going far, but she still had an excellent first match against an equally talented competitor. Kelly had her time to shine on multiple occasions and looked credible in defeat. Satomura lived up to the hype with her performance here and I'm excited to see what else she'll bring to table when facing other opponents.

Overall Show

The First-Round matches of the Mae Young Classic will be designed to introduce us to the women more so than give us great matchups, so these first few episodes are key. That said, Satomura and Kelly delivered an above-average main event and closed out the night on a high note. Not only were the other three matches well-wrestled, I also enjoyed the commentary from Cole, Beth Phoenix and Renee Young, who are a vast improvement over Jim Ross and Lita from last year.