3/29 Kester's WWE Superstars Live Coverage Review: Heath Slater vs. Alex Riley and Justin Gabriel vs. Tyson Kidd

By Ryan Kester

Superstars on WWE.com
Taped 3/26/12 in Atlanta, Georgia.

1. Heath Slater defeated Alex Riley in 5:17. The two traded control several times in the early going. Riley eventually connected with an arm flip neckbreaker in a cool spot. Slater quickly battled back and went to work on Riley's neck.

Slater locked in a rest hold and Riley reached for the crowd as he tried to power out. Slater cut him off and managed to maintain control. Slater caught Riley with a jumping neckbreaker for a near fall.

Slater missed with a corner splash and Riley began to work through his offense. Riley hit the A-Bomb but Slater was able to kick out. Slater followed up with a flying neckbreaker to pick up the pinfall victory… [C]

Ryan's Rant: This was an interesting match from the perspective that both of these wrestlers can go in the ring, but they are hampered by their current gimmicks. Riley is too old and too babyface for the "Varsity Villain" moniker and attire, and the "One Man Southern Rock Band" has failed to connect with an audience. Thus, the match was well-wrestled, but the live crowd could not have cared less.

A video package aired covering Chris Jericho and CM Punk's feud, complete with references to Jericho's early career and a tie-in to the "End of the World" videos from January… [C]

The video package from Raw aired hyping the Hell in a Cell match between The Undertaker and Triple H with Shawn Michaels as the special guest referee… [C]

The video from "Extra" that set up Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos vs. Beth Phoenix and Eve aired… [C]

A video package hyping John Cena vs. The Rock aired… [C]

2. Justin Gabriel defeated Tyson Kidd in 4:37. The two worked a chain-and-break style in the early going. The fight spilled to the floor and Kidd hit a Side-Russian legsweep that caused both men's heads to bounce off of the barricade.

Back in the ring, Kidd hit a slingshot missile dropkick for a near fall. Kidd quickly followed with a neckbreaker for another near fall.

Gabriel charged Kidd and hit a running STO to gain control. Kidd attempted to fight back with a flurry of kicks and jumped for a huracarana, but Gabriel dropped into a seated powerbomb for a near fall of his own.

Gabriel attempted a springboard moonsault but Kidd rolled out of the way. Kidd attempted a sharpshooter, but Gabriel was able to kick him off. A few moments later, Gabriel reversed another slingshot attempt from Kidd into another powerbomb. Gabriel held onto Kidd and shifted his weight forward to get the 1-2-3.

Kidd and Gabriel shook hands to close the show.

Ryan's Rant: Very fun match that saw a lot of high spots and good reversals. They really went from first to fourth in a matter of seconds and when the pinfall occurred I was left wanting more. WWE is wasting some great wrestlers that could easily light up a crowd on the main shows if they received just a little creative attention. Overall, this was what one should expect from a WrestleMania-week WWE online show. A couple of solid matches with every video package you potentially missed in one convenient location. If you're already caught up on the shows this is an easy skip, but I would recommend seeking out the Kidd vs. Gabriel match if you want to be reminded what these guys are capable of producing.

If you have any questions or comments or just wish to chat with a fellow wrestling fan about whatever, then feel free to email me at ryan.kester@gmail.com or follow me on Twitter at @TheRyanKester.