Let’s get to it.

Unsanctioned Match

Drew McIntyre vs. Jacob Fatu

For the life of me, why do they use the word ‘unsanctioned’? “No Holds Barred or “Street Fight”. That simple.

It does have the potential to upstage the card on night 1, which they might need if the main event doesn’t tickle the fans fancy. It does make for a good story, Drew’s gotta do Highlander, and Jacob is a main eventer in waiting. The Scotsman got the title before as a compensation of sorts, and maybe he won’t be a heel when he returns. 

Winner: Jacob Fatu

The Vision and IShowSpeed vs. The Usos and LA Knight

The celebrity match. It’s bound to be pretty solid. Not a show stealer exactly, but it’ll get fans warmed up for the rest of the night. Plus with Logan Paul in there, high spots!

Winners: The Usos and LA Knight

Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar

Ah yes, is Suplex City about to get demolished, or at least get wrecked good? I recall 11 years ago the beating Roman Reigns took, who kept coming back for more. Now this doesn’t need to be a repeat of Goldberg destroying him, but Lesnar should take the ‘L’ since he’s been built up as a force who can take this one.

Winner: Oba Femi

Finn Balor vs. Dominik Mysterio

Three years ago, we saw the Demon last. Edge insisted on giving Balor the ‘W’ but Vinnie Mac wasn’t having it. 

We likely won’t, but shouldn’t we get a moment involving Balor, Priest, and Ripley? Maybe Balor gets Dominik’s betrayal rubbed in his face only for him to remind them they turned the prodigal son into a bastard. I wish Rey Mysterio would – just once – confront one of them.

Whoever wins, the Demon needs to look like a force.

Winner: Finn Balor

Women’s Intercontinental Championship

Becky Lynch vs AJ Lee (C)

They took Bayley off the card last year for her benefit. Becky needs to be the one to lose. Also, you might’ve heard the rumors on a certain pale looking British lady about to make a comeback. How fitting would it be if AJ lost her title to Paige.

I’d say this will be a solid one, and AJ needs a big win in Vegas. Also, Becky could use a change in character.

Winner: AJ Lee

Women’s Tag Team Championships

Fatal Four Way match

The Bellas (maybe) vs. Bayley and Lyra Valkyria vs. Charlotte and Alexa Bliss vs. The Irresistible Forces (C)

Perhaps they should’ve made a Gauntlet match to squeeze a few more women on the card, but hey, I’m not running this show.

Their plan with Charlotte and Alexa must be a feud, which might have happened sooner if they didn’t catch on as a team. With her having missed last year for Becky’s benefit, it’s Bayley’s time.

Will they ever sign Izzy? 

Winner: Bayley and Lyra

Intercontinental Championship

Ladder Match

Je’Von Evans vs. Dragon Lee vs. JD McDonagh vs. Rusev vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Penta (C)

Gee, six guys and some ladders, I’m sure this won’t be too exciting. 

How much more abuse can Rey take? There’s enough talent in the ring to send the fans home happy, and the chance for a Mexican Destroyer to end them all, well…

Winner: Je’Von Evans

United States Championship

Trick Williams vs. Sami Zayn (C)

Do we smell a double turn? You might call bulls***, but they knew what they were doing having Sami win. Trick Williams is headed for a turn, and Zayn needs a refresh bad.

Winner: Trick Williams

Women’s World Championship

Liv Morgan vs. Stephanie Vaquer (C)

Balor being kicked out means the Judgment Day’s golden age members are almost gone. Is Liv next? With how pitched this rivalry has been, it could steal the show. Plus, if Liv takes the ‘L’, it’ll likely be to botched interference from Raquel and/or Roxanne. 

As much as Morgan deserves the win, they’ve been pushing Stephanie hard. Coin flip.

Winner: Liv Morgan

WWE Women’s Championship

Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill (C)

I don’t wanna be “that guy”, but as much as Jade should lose it, Ripley winning it might not be a good move. She’s been pushed hard, and if they’re not careful, the fans will turn on her because, well they would. 

Winner: Rhea Ripley

WWE Championship

Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (C)

We’re here now. 

Is it really WCW in 2000 bad? Well, maybe, but in time history will be the judge.

The build towards Night 1’s main event, yeah, it’s been mostly a miss, but I can’t help but feel the haters wouldn’t be so down on it if it happened say, in ‘23 or ‘24. Yes, it was a case of creative not reading the room and needlessly turning Randy Orton heel. The less said about Pat McAfee, the better.

There is the Jelly Roll question. If he’s around, how will it go down?

Cody finished the story two years ago. The haters now couldn’t care less. 

Winner: Randy Orton

World Heavyweight Championship

Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk (C)

The match that will close Night 2, will it be a 5 star classic? Maybe. Both of these guys can deliver, but if Reigns wins, what then?

Roman keeps “returning” so much. He’s gotta be on TV enough to make the gold mean something, assuming they’re leaning towards Oba Femi or maybe Gunther dethroning him at SummerSlam. Either way, we’re looking at a potential classic.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Here’s some final thoughts.

All these calls for Vince McMahon to return and save the business, where was this sentiment four years ago? When boneheaded mistakes like the 2019 Hell in a Cell main event were still lingering in our heads? What about the torn up scripts? Aborted plots? Just before he resigned the first time a Smackdown only had 13 MINUTES of wrestling on a 2 hour show. 

TKO don’t care much about the fans, but neither did Vince. 

The IWC can’t see past the high ticket prices and the ESPN deal, but of course, let’s bring Vince back, and forget he only put women’s wrestling in the spotlight because Triple H made him. Vince says the ring is sacred, but he clearly didn’t think his marriage is, or that one shouldn’t pass women around like they’re candy.

I won’t even talk about NXT.

Order some pizzas and enjoy it. It only comes around once a year.

Don’t mess with the X.

The post The X-Factor: Predictions for WrestleMania 42 appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Lyra and Bayley both failed to qualify for the Elimination Chamber match. The team has also not won a match together on television since the October 13th 2025 edition of RAW.

On February 20th 2026, both Lyra and Bayley vented to RAW General Manager Adam Pearce in posts via Twitter/X…

Bayley: “Soooooooooooooooo Nia and Lash get ANOTHER tag title shot…… Andddddddddd Lyra and I are yet to have ONE against RHIYO………. @ScrapDaddyAP ARE YOU DOING YOUR JOB OR DO I HAVE TO DO IT FOR YOU?!?!?!?!!!!!!!”

Lyra: “Why do you neglect us Scrapfather @ScrapDaddyAP”

answer her Scrapfather @ScrapDaddyAP https://t.co/YbyppF1Rh5

— LYRA VALKYRIA (@Real_Valkyria) February 21, 2026

The post Report: A shift could be coming to Lyra Valkyria’s WWE character appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Interviewer: “How’s it been having this new era of RAW on Netflix? I’m sure that especially you, Lara, people back home can—before, it was like, ‘Oh, you need to get this and maybe stay up,’ but now they can watch and catch up whenever they want on Netflix.”

Lyra: “Oh my god, yeah. I have countless memories of trying to stay awake. Staying awake for RAW was so normal to me. Trying to stay up for the pay-per-view, and then the main event would happen—you’re so excited for it, but at the same time you’re like, ‘Oh my god, I’ve been up for three hours and I want to finish it.’ Now it’s a whole new era. It’s a whole new game. We’ve got more viewers than ever. It’s just such an exciting time to be a part of WWE. I’ve got more friends texting me than ever: ‘Oh my god, I saw you on Netflix!’ It’s just been great.”

The post Lyra Valkyria says she has “countless memories” of trying to stay awake for WWE RAW appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

“I’ll always consider myself a work in progress but I feel like I do focus a lot on the in-ring, it’s my pride and joy. It’s my everything, and it’s the biggest controllable. But, I’ve absolutely loved getting into the ring and taking a microphone and I’ve really gotten to show a lot more of who I am on the mic since coming to Monday Night Raw, honestly in the last few months since Mania. I feel like I have a lot more to say and a lot more to show and I always did. It’s cool now to get that chance so I can just say that there’s a whole lot more to come and show.” (quote courtesy Skylar Russell)

The post How Lyra Valkyria feels about having more microphone time in WWE since debuting on the RAW roster appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Former WWE personality Jonathan Coachman was critical of Lyra’s promo work from the segment with the following message via Twitter/X…

“I don’t believe a thing Lyra says on the mic. I am begging WWE to start working with some of these talents on delivering promos. It has to go both ways and Bayley and Becky are light years ahead of Lyra. There are levels on the mic and if you are going to he on Raw you have to be at the highest level.”

I don’t believe a thing Lyra says on the mic. I am begging WWE to start working with some of these talents on delivering promos. It has to go both ways and Bayley and Becky are light years ahead of Lyra. There are levels on the mic and if you are going to he on Raw you have to be…

— The Coach (@Thecoachrules) July 8, 2025

The post Lyra Valkyria’s promo work from RAW criticized by former WWE personality for not being believable appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

“The best people make this look so easy. We go out and make it look effortless, but we always take that risk. I can honestly say that injury was extremely, extremely heartbreaking to see live and I know that the whole locker room is really hoping that Zoey (Stark) will come through this.

I know what it’s like to tear my ACL, but so does Zoey. I haven’t heard officially what the extent of the injury is, but I really, really hope that she is doing okay and can come through it and out the other side even better. It’s going to take a lot of mental toughness, but she’s been through it once. I’m sure she knows what’s ahead of her.”

The post Lyra Valkyria addresses Zoey Stark suffering an injury on WWE RAW appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

This week, Lyra discussed her victory in an interview with Chris Van Vliet. Here are the highlights courtesy of ChrisVanVliet.com…

On winning the Women’s Intercontinental Championship:

The post Lyra Valkyria found out she was winning the WWE women’s Intercontinental title just hours before her match appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

During an interview with My Mom’s Basement, Lyra commented on the situation with Bayley…

“Especially since I’ve come to Raw, I feel like I really had this natural connection with Bayley outside of the ring, and then it kind of just manifested inside the ring; we really, really clicked. So having my Mania moment come at an expense to her was genuinely very upsetting. So Bayley, since I’ve come to Raw has been like a massive help. And she actually is everything that I thought Becky [Lynch] would be. So it’s a very big shame to see her out at the moment.” (quote courtesy of WrestlingNews.co)

The post Lyra Valkyria says the situation with Bayley made her WrestleMania 41 moment “genuinely very upsetting” appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

It’s been said already. What was the point to The Rock triggering John Cena’s turn if he was just gonna disappear from TV altogether? Unless they have something big planned…

…which brings me to Cena himself. We’re happy he finally got #17, but I can’t help but feel disheartened that he did it as a heel. It’s confusing. Why not wait until after? Look at his feuds with Shawn Michaels, CM Punk, The Rock, and Daniel Bryan. They were all fire and all hero vs hero. Punk was technically a heel, but with the pipe bomb, he wasn’t one in Chicago. Yes, the turn in Toronto made for a shocker and now, I just don’t know. When Cena said he’s gonna ruin wrestling, the easy prediction is he’ll forfeit the title, or is he gonna pull an Andre the Giant and hand it to The Rock? He could leave, they create a new title, only for him to return and say “I’m the real champion!”

Ok, next.

Even if she knew, Bayley getting left off the card for the sake of bringing Becky Lynch back? After last year? They gonna turn her again? Are they gonna set up Becky and/or Lyra as the one(s) who jumped her? Like that hasn’t been done lately.

While I’m talking about turns, yes. Bianca Belair. There’s also Dominik Mysterio. Either he kicks Finn Balor out or gets kicked out. There’s also the whole Rey Mysterio thing. Dominik spent a great deal of time and energy showing how much he hates him and no one’s gonna buy Rey as a heel.

And then there’s Paul Heyman.

The case could easily be made he was right to turn on Roman Reigns and Punk. Seth Rollins has come off like a sanctimonious prick. Now it’s official.

I think I know why we feel disappointed. It wasn’t just The Rock not being there. Both of Cody’s title matches against Reigns had their buddies jumping in to assist. The smarks had these predictions with the main events and they didn’t happen, and it isn’t just pro wrestling. 

Here’s where I’ll close. Roman Reigns didn’t make it to 1,317 days. The newly minted champ is now the face of WWE. Now fast forward a year later and the haters are happy Rhodes lost the strap? Saying he was a disappointment? Two years they waited for the American Nightmare to finish his story. It’s not that hard. Make a choice and stick with it.

I’ve written this before tonight’s Raw. Just sayin’.

Don’t mess with the X.

The post The X-Factor: Life after WWE WrestleMania 41 appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.