It’s been more than 16 years since WWE last held a Saturday Night’s Main Event card on NBC, though the heyday for the brand took place a lot longer ago than that. Holding a new edition of SNME in the same building it first took place 39 years ago, Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, is a nice touch, and while yours truly hasn’t been away from Slam Wrestling for decades, there’s something special about returning to recap the action for this particular show after an extended absence. Like the title to Lita’s most famous entrance theme, it just feels right.
The intro to the show describes it as “a retro feel with new age superstars,” and there’s plenty of that vibe in the opening montage. Hey there’s the throwback WWE logo as well, though it seems to be missing a letter. Can’t for the life of me figure out what that might be, though maybe it’ll become obvious as the show goes on.
Joe Tessitore is joined by Jesse “The Body” Ventura, who reminds us that it’s been nearly 40 years since he’s been in WWE. That’s longer than many of our readers have been alive, one would think. Ventura certainly hasn’t lost his knack for playing the heel announcer, but he’s not the only big name helping to bring this to life as Pat McAfee joins Michael Cole at the ringside announce position.
Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn
Zayn is always best when he’s trying to overcome physical disadvantages with sheer determination and heart, and taking it right to McIntyre works well to kick off the in-ring aspect of this broadcast. That’s not going to carry him through a whole match with the Scottish Warrior, naturally, but it leads him to his fair share of crowd-pleasing near falls, including one from the No. 1 “this should probably be a finisher” maneuver in wrestling, the Blue Thunder Bomb. Alas, the Claymore is always just a beat away, and it’s enough to ensure McIntyre’s undefeated one-on-one record against Zayn remains intact.
Winner: Drew McIntyre by pinfall
A spin through the crowd shows us Tito Santana, Jimmy Hart and Rich Hering are in attendance tonight. The video package before the upcoming women’s title match is also throwback-fueled in terms of graphics and presentation.
Iyo Sky vs. Liv Morgan (c) – Women’s World Championship Match
Cole and McAfee put over the idea that Morgan is in the running for 2024 Wrestler of the Year. They’re probably talking Slammy for the brand, but a case could be made for her earning that honor on a wider scale. She’s certainly come into her own as a heel champion, finding that second gear she never seemed to hit while wearing gold as a face. A results graphic in the bottom-right corner of the screen to tell us what happened earlier is welcome, even though there’s only been one match prior to this. Sky loses her footing on a springboard move but Morgan is fluid enough to turn it into a near fall without any hesitation. Morgan counters the Over the Moonsault with double boots to the face and hits Oblivion to retain, though a replay of one of Sky’s knees to the face makes Cole wonder if the blood from Morgan’s nose means it’s broken.
Winner … and still Women’s World Champion: Liv Morgan by pinfall
As Morgan makes her way back up the aisle, she’s confronted by Rhea Ripley for a brief staredown. McAfee tears into the tale of the tape for the Triple Threat world championship match that’s up next with gusto. Also, big shout to the person behind the announce table with a Philippines flag, respect.
Finn Balor vs. Damian Priest vs. Gunther (c) – World Heavyweight Championship Match
Almost forgot about the local angle for New Yorker Priest, so maybe? It’s just hard to see him winning here when he has to deal with both the champ and Balor. Cole mentions how rare it for titles to actually change hands on Saturday Night’s Main Event — it’s only happened twice ever prior to tonight. Gunther gets to do a bit of the “remember be?” thing when the two challengers are occupied with each other after a commercial break, but this match doesn’t feature too many times when one combatant is out of commission on the floor. Gunther looks plenty strong as a champ after he powerbombs Priest on the steel steps before wrecking Balor with a shotgun dropkick and powerbomb combo to retain.
Winner … and still World Heavyweight Champion: Gunther by pinfall
Ventura says she loves Morgan for taking the shot to the head and still winning and says Dominik knows how to pick women. The Body also says wrestling is even bigger today than when the first Saturday Night’s Main Event aired, which is of course true by many measures.
Chelsea Green vs. Michin – Women’s United States Championship Tournament Final
Would be awesome to see either of these wrestlers wearing gold, and it’s also very cool to hear Cole mention that they were both champions in TNA. Piper Niven wastes no time lending a hand on the outside with the referee (also wearing throwback gear tonight, it should be said) distracted by Green. Chelsea also is great at looking more incredulous than anyone else on a two count. She doesn’t have that problem for long, as another timely intervention from Niven allows her to flip forward off the top rope and connect on the Unpretty Her and become the first ever Women’s United States Champion.
Winner … and new Women’s United States Champion: Chelsea Green by pinfall
Koko B. Ware and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine in the house as well. Plus Ventura joins Cole and McAfee at the announce table and immediately reminds them he paved the way.
Kevin Owens vs. Cody Rhodes (c) – Undisputed WWE Championship Match
It’s been seven years since KO held a world championship in WWE, so could this be the night he changes it? The guess is WWE wants to kick off the Netflix era of Raw with Cody still wearing the gold, but we’ll see. It probably won’t be this exact gold anyway — WWE has brought back the winged eagle title belt for tonight. Owens delivers a message to Randy Orton by stealing some of his offense as he lays into Rhodes by the announce table. We get side-by-side ads here too, which we darn well should for the main event. It’s not called Saturday Night’s Commercial Break, amirite? Owens hits a Swanton Bomb for a near fall as Rhodes starts selling the damage to his left ankle that’s been part of this program. The announce table is cleared off by Owens, a move that backfires badly when Cody hits an RKO on top of it. A top rope Cody Cutter follows in the ring but KO kicks out at two. Ventura thinks Charles Robinson counted too slow after Owens’ fisherman buster, so he’s probably pleased to see the ref take a bump right after that. Owens isn’t happy though, because his Stunner finds no ref to count the pinfall, and the new ref arrives too late to get past two. The second ref also takes a bump, which is something you don’t see every day, which allows Rhodes to use some darker tactics than usual: a Cross Rhodes on a steel chair. Robinson barely makes it back to his feet to count the three, and Cody remains your champion.
Winner … and still Undisputed WWE Champion: Cody Rhodes by pinfall
No titles changed hands, which is on brand for Saturday Night’s Main Event, but the retro trappings were fun, Ventura sounded like he hasn’t missed a beat and WWE kept things moving. Hard to be mad about that.
