WWE Main Event Review - May 10, 2016

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

​Big Cass def. Curtis Axel

Cass came off significantly more confident in his pre-match promo here than he did on Raw this past week, which was interesting. He was much more calm and collected and didn't seem to stumble over his words. It was almost weird that he was talking normally (compared to Enzo Amore's style of promo), but if that's where he's most comfortable, I'll take it. The back-and-forth on the mic beforehand was fun albeit a little long, and the match was a fun squash. I'm not sure Cass is capable of contesting longer matches at this point, so brief bouts such as this one are perfect for him to showcase his skills without risking exposing his in-ring weakness.

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Apollo Crews def. Stardust

This was the same match from Superstars this week, and truth be told, I enjoyed that match slightly more. The crowd wasn't as engaged in this encounter, but it might have been because Stardust focused on the injured midsection of Crews this time around, so the pace was slightly slower than what fans are used to. They told a solid story, but Crews thrives in matches where he can show off his explosive offense.

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Baron Corbin def. Zack Ryder

Similar to Crews vs. Stardust, this match went longer than it should have. I'm fine with Corbin having competitive matches with guys like Dolph Ziggler who are higher up on the card (even that's pushing it), but Ryder shouldn't be made to look like an equal to a potential monster heel such as Corbin. I love The Long Island Iced Z, but he doesn't have any immediate direction at the moment; Corbin does. At the end of the day, though, I can't complain about Corbin stacking up another victory.


Overall Show

This edition of Main Event was all about what WWE is calling the "New Era," and it was funny that the NXT upstarts defeated wrestlers who largely haven't been relevant in five years or so. All three matches were well-wrestled, and while I had minor gripes with the last two bouts, each of them had something to offer, and the new talent went over strong as they should have.