Chairs Match
Two rivals get a chance to hit each other with steel to settle a beef that goes back to before the brand split.
The Road to TLC
The Lone Wolf’s really only had a handful of feuds since he was a surprise entrant, and winner, of the 2016 Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 32. Baron Corbin traded wins with Dolph Ziggler right up to the draft in July, at which point he started a program with Kalisto.
Their issues spun out of a three-way battle to determine a #1 contender for Miz’s Intercontinental title (won by the since forgotten Apollo Crews)...
... which led to a series of backstage assaults that gave some of us Heidenreich flashbacks. Those were eventually used to explain the time the former United States champion would need to rehab an unspecified back injury.
While the luchador healed up, Corbin killed time winning a program against Jack Swagger. When Kalisto did return, SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan immediately gave him a shot at his nemesis. And true to form, Baron attacked his opponent before the match even started. But this time, Kalisto displayed some ruthless aggression of his own. Denied a chance to earn a win, when the Lone Wolf tweaked his knee slipping off the apron, the smaller man went to work, targeting Corbin’s damaged joint to the point it appeared he might be headed for some injury time off.
We didn’t see him for a little while, but Corbin was just biding his time. When Kalisto was facing the-Cruiserweight champion Brian Kendrick with a chance to bring the whole sub-205 pound division to Tuesday nights, Baron attacked them both... starting with his SmackDown roster-mate to ensure that Kalisto & Bryan lost.
An infuriated GM booked this chairs match for Sunday, Dec. 4, and we’ll see if Kalisto can get some revenge, or if Corbin can cross another "little kid" off his list of annoyances.
What's at stake?
Beyond bragging rights in a long feud, either man’s hopes of moving into any kind of title picture should probably hinge on winning at TLC.
Actually, you could see Creative writing Corbin into the Intercontinental championship scene as soon as there’s a babyface holding the belt, regardless of what he’s doing at the time. Kalisto’s best chance at getting a strap back around his waist may have gone out the window when the Cruisers stayed on Raw.
So, maybe the outcome doesn’t matter much? Oh well, that’s kind of always true in sports entertainment. At least in this case, we’ll get to see guys swing chairs at each other.
Who will land the last blow? Find out Sunday night on WWE Network - and right here at cSs!