Hello again everyone, and welcome back to my recap of the WWE social media show, The Bump! Stopping by today’s show will be NXT tag team MSK, NXT Women’s Superstars Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez, as well as WWE Hall of Fame members Christian and Mark Henry. Now that we’re all caught up on what’s going down, let’s take a look at The Bump!
Kayla Braxton starts off the show by introducing us to her co-hosts, Matt Camp, Evan T. Mack, and Ryan Poppolla, and they begin by congratulating former 24/7 Champion Rob Gronkowski on his super bowl win. The crew shares their thoughts on Bow Wow’s recent WWE related tweets, and goes into talking about a few of their favorite moments from the most recent episodes of Raw and Smackdown. They also talk about the upcoming NXT Vengeance Day event, and that’s gonna be really good. Speaking of NXT, Ryan hypes the current Dusty Rhodes Tag Team tournaments, and says tonights matches will be “a lot of fun”. Kayla then brings the first guests on the show, MSK.
MSK
Nash Carter and Wes Lee join the show for the first time, and Kayla welcomes them on. Kayla wonders how the adjustment period has gone for them, and Nash talks about training at the performance center. Wes speaks about the culture in WWE, saying it feels like “family”. Matt chimes in, and asks how it was to go from singing to on tv so fast. Wes explains that it feels “awesome”, and Ryan wants to know what message MSK wants to send. Nash says “you are watching dreams come true”, and Wes tells him they “really want to make this happen”. Evan joins the conversation, and talks about how MSK came together before WWE. Nash recalls wrestling against Lee in the past, and then sheds some light on the decision to be a team. Wes thinks the two were “always going to be rivals” and that they have “brotherly competitiveness”. Evan jumps back in, and asks about how it would be to reunite with Meiko Satomura. Nash exclaims that it would be “awesome” and Wes calls her “an inspiration”. Matt begins to recap the Dusty Classic, and asks how it is to be in the ring with new people. Wes calls the experience “exciting” and says that now is a good time to see where they stand against fresh talent. Matt then wonders what past matches they have watched to prepare, and Wes talks about former Dusty Classic matches, saying they “changed my perspective on wrestling”. Matt then wonders who inspires MSK, and Nash tells him they are inspired by “John Cena”. Kayla asks what keeps them going as a team, and Wes explains that “we have fun and do the things we do”, and Wes adds that they “catch people off guard”. Evan mentions that he thinks they are like “create a players”, and talks about their match against Legado Del Fantasma. Wes tells him they are “looking at this one a little differently”, and Nash mentions that LDF are “more aggressive” than other teams. Matt makes a few Nash themed jokes, and Nash Carter tells him he “brings a different twist to the name Nash”. Kayla wishes both the best, and sends them on their way.
After MSK leave, the crew updates the viewers on the Dusty Cup brackets, and continues to hype the upcoming NXT Vengeance Day event. After that, Kayla brings on the next guest, Mercedes Martinez.
Mercedes Martinez
Mercedes opens up by talking about her journey to WWE, and her first official year with WWE. Mercedes tells the crew about how tough it’s been to deal with the Covid situation, and says “it’s been a wild ride so far”. Matt takes Mercedes back to last year’s Royal Rumble, where she was initially going to be “an alternate”. She calls the match “exciting and nerve racking, and a chance to show my talent”. Ryan asks about how “refreshing” it is to face off against Io Shirai, and Martinez talks about how they never met outside of NXT. Mercedes calls the matchup “very refreshing and a challenge is there”. Matt wants to know about her trainer, and Mercedes speaks about what her trainer taught her, saying she learned “hard knocks” from him. Ryan takes Mercedes back to her Mae Young Classic match with Meiko Satomura, and Martinez gets wide eyed, saying “she hits hard”. Ryan wants to know about her memories in a past wrestling world, and Martinez calls herself “the forefront of their women’s division”. Kayla then welcomes in Toni Storm. Storm asks how Martinez black eye is, and Mercedes says “don’t worry”. Kayla wants to know how Toni is doing so well now, and she explains why she is “going to become the champion Sunday”. Martinez starts to go off on Toni, and tells her to “watch the best do what she does”. Matt questions Mercedes on a possible receipt for Storm, and Martinez tells her she “is gonna get my best shot soon”. Kayla runs a few clips of a PROGRESS event from a few years ago, and Storm bickers with Martinez about the result of the match. Martinez tells her “the past doesn’t matter”, and the future is that she “will hold the title” after this Sunday. Matt asks how this match will be different from Storm vs Shirai at Evolution, and Storm tells him “it will be quite obvious” on Sunday. Ryan begins to ask something he’s “afraid to know”, and Toni calls Martinez “dead weight”. Martinez and Storm begin to argue again, and Ryan apologizes for asking. Ryan goes into discussions about what may give Toni an advantage Sunday, and Toni tells Mercedes “it is what it is”. Matt mentions that there is obvious tension between the two, and wonders who they would rather pin on Sunday. Mercedes says she would like to pin Toni, and Toni hardly answers the question. Storm calls herself “the best” and Mercedes states that she is “the future NXT Women’s Champion”. Before they go, Kayla asks for some final words, and Toni tells Mercedes she will give her “another black eye”. Mercedes says Toni hasn’t seen anything yet, and to “get some rest”, before Kayla sends them on their way.
After the segment ends, Kayla quickly brings in the next guest, Mark Henry, who is here to celebrate Black History Month.
Mark Henry
Mark opens up by talking about his shiny teeth, and what Black History Month means to him. Mark speaks on some words he shared with Kofi Kingston at Wrestlemania 35, and talks about “shedding tears” win Kofi won. Mark mentions that he was “in a state of shock”, and Evan puts up a picture from Twitter. In the picture, all of the black athletes in WWE are standing together. Mark speaks about how different things are now, compared to how they used to be, and talks about what we see today being “a part of his mission”. Ryan thanks Henry for bringing Bianca Belair to WWE, and Mark tells him he “had a flashy feeling, like one of my children did something well”, when Belair won the rumble match. Matt goes into discussing the response from the win, and Mark tells him “they can feel the real-ness within her”, and “people respect her”. Kayla thanks Mark for bringing her to the company again, and asks for his thoughts about a new Nation of Domination forming. Henry tells her “the time was right back then”, but The Hurt Business is “a better version of it”. Ryan wonders how it was for Mark to join the Nation, and Henry talks about learning from Ron Simmons and D’lo Brown. Henry tells the crew he hopes to see the group in the hall of fame soon, and Matt asks what Henry learned from Ron Simmons. Henry speaks on some advice Ron gave him, and gives a peak into the philosophy behind the Nation. Evan asks about Night Of Champions 2011, where Henry won the World Heavyweight Championship from Randy Orton. Evan talks about the moment, and Henry brings up the feeling he had watching the match back. Mark tells the viewers about a few things he would have changed, and Evan asks what went through Henry’s mind after the match. Mark speaks about being “a good champion and fighting champion” and “leaving the business better than he came in it”. Ryan gives his two cents on Henry’s hall of pain, and Mark talks about getting over with the fans. Mark goes into speaking about the presentation of the character, and how he gives the production team so much credit for helping the character come off the way we saw it. Kayla questions Mark on helping the company still, and he calls himself “a captain of the WWE locker room”. Kayla thanks Mark for joining the show today, and the crew moves on with the rest of the show.
Once Henry moves on, the viewers are taken back to a brief interview from last week, where NXT UK Superstar Sam Gradwell spoke about the brand. Also last week, UK recording artist Millie B joined the show, and plugged her music.
After the show moves back into this week, the crew takes a look at next weeks guest, Seth Rollins, and brings on the last guest for this week, Christian.
Christian
Christian makes his way onto the show, and Kayla wants to hear how’s it’s been for Christian to return. Christian calls it “a long process”, and talks about how seeing Edge return last year “made me think about it”. Christian continues, and says seeing the reaction Edge got “really put a bug in my ear”. Christian also talks about making changes to get back into shape, and how he didn’t want his career to end with being punted by Orton “in a 10 second match”. Ryan talks about reacting to Christian returning at the Royal Rumble, and Christian tells him he “found out at 7:30 on Friday night” about being in the match. Christian talks about being “surprisingly calm” beforehand, and how he is “afraid to watch it back”. Evan wonders how the locker room treated him during the day, and Christin tells Evan that “as far as they knew I was there to support Edge”. Matt takes Christian back to the moment where Christian hugged Edge, calling it a “spur of the moment” situation. Kayla brings up a funny comment Christian made, and Christian talks about eating cookies after the match, as well as a glass of whiskey. Kayla mentions that she found herself “marveling” at Christians abilities, and he tells her he felt “rusty”. Christian talks about a text he got from Lance Storm, and how Storm thought Christian “looked like he never missed a step”. Matt goes into discussing the win Edge had at the Royal Rumble, and what it may mean to Christian as a friend. Christian talks about how Edge returned, and got hurt again, then came back to win the Rumble, calling it “insane”. Ryan finally asks how long Christian will be back for, and Christian tells him it’s “TBD”. Matt talks hypotheticals, and goes into a possible Edge and Christian reunion tour. Christian tells him they have definitely spoken about it, and he would “love to team with Edge again”. Matt takes Christian back to his last match in 2014, where Christian won a match to determine the number one contender to the Intercontinental Championship. Matt wonders if Christian would like to challenge current champion Big E, and Christian speaks on all the possibilities of working with E. Ryan rewinds things to 2011, where Christian won the World Heavyweight Championship. Christian talks about wondering if he would ever get to the top of the mountain, and called the moment “a culmination of everything”. Kayla rejoins the conversation, and wonders about the rivalry between Edge and Randy Orton. Christian says Orton “doesn’t even know how good he is”, and mentions that Edge moving on “will be good” for Edge. Matt brings up Christians transition form in ring performer to analyst, and Christian talks about “analyzing everything I watch”, and how “that part of me never went away”. Evan throws things back to the days when Christian had an opera themed entrance song, and Christian shares a story on how it all came together. Christian thinks the music was “the worst he had ever heard at first”, but realized that it’s “so bad it’s great”. Ryan then comes come into present times, and talks about the parallels in the careers of Christian and Edge. Christian tells him “these things only happen in movies”, and he can’t explain how both of their careers happened. Kayla thanks Christian for joining the show, and Christian throws a little shade at Matt Camp, before exiting stage left.
When the interview wraps up, the crew plugs the new Razor Ramon inspired Intercontinental Championship belt, and gives the upcoming Vengeance Day event more hype. Kayla thanks everyone for joining, and the show fades to black.
That’s all for this weeks edition of The Bump! Thanks for stopping by, and be sure join me right here next week, for an all new edition of The Bump Recap!
