Mae Young Classic Two: Round One Standouts and Best Matches

This past Friday I uploaded a blog post looking back at round one of the second ever Mae Young Classic. We touched on the lessons learned and honest thoughts from the first set of shows and in that post, I mentioned I wanted to discuss separately the standout competitors and matches and that is exactly what I have for you today. I’m going to be diving into some of the best matches of round one and the women who really made an impact and impressed! This is something I’m going to be doing possibly for each stage of the tournament but with a long intro done let’s jump right into today’s blog post!

Standout Competitors:

·         Jinny

One of my personal favorite matches (which I will get into later) of round one came from NXT UK superstars Toni Storm and Jinny. With both women looking to make an impact and lead the UK Women’s division I was excited to see what these two very different, but equally amazingly talented superstars brought to the table in the MYC. While both women stood out it was Jinny I was massively impressed by. I’ve personally only seen a handful of her matches prior to this but she brought so much character, personality, and fight and while Storm may be technically stronger and have the strength advantage Jinny fought for her place and left fans excited to see more from her in the future. After this performance, there is no denying she will be a huge part of the UK shows.

·         Kacy Catanzaro

While Kacy Catanzaro’s round one match wasn’t a personal favourite of mine her performance was certainly one of the most impressive and standout! Making her WWE Network debut this was the first time WWE fans had seen for former Ninja Warrior US competitor compete inside a WWE ring meaning no one really knew what to expect including her opponent. Far smaller than the women she was facing (Reina Gonzalez) the odds seemed massively against Catanzaro but showcasing her phenomenal athleticism, skill, and determination she was the pocket rocket underdog who had fans loud and up on their feet and I know I for one am super excited to see more from this newcomer in the coming weeks, months, and years!

·         Killer Kelly

Up next is another NXT UK Competitor in Killer Kelly. Again, I wasn’t all too familiar with Kelly’s work prior to the MYC but after her round one bout against Meiko Satamora I can honestly say that this is a woman to watch! This was by far one of the best matches if not the best match of round one and Killer Kelly cemented a huge name for herself. She, of course, remains a woman fans need to learn more about and see more of but this is a woman most certainly capable of being a future champion and the list of dream opponents is now very long!

Taynara Conti

Taynara Conti is a second tie MYC competitor but if I’m being totally honest, I don’t remember her performance in round one what so ever. The second time around, however, things could not be more different. Everything from her entrance music, facial expressions, attitude, and wrestling was on point. She was fierce, intimidating, and a total all round performer. Being so young and early into her career, Conti is an exciting asset to the NXT roster and I’m super excited to see her step forward and given more of a spotlight.

Lacey Lane

The last name I want to talk about is another newcomer in Lacey Lane. This is a woman WWE fans haven’t seen much of at all, making her Full Sail debut in round one of this tournament. Now, she may have had a few slip-ups and moments that didn’t go to plan but Lacey showed to be an exciting performer with bags of potential, plenty more to show and a unique and captivating look. This is yet another woman I strongly believe has loads to offer the women’s division and the MYC has so far proven to be a perfect way to introduce her to the WWE universe.

Standout Matches

·         Mia Yim vs Allysin Kay

Looking online and having discussions, a match that has gone down as the favourite for many was Mia Yim vs Allysin Kay. Now, this was a bout always sure to impress and go down as one of the best of the first round and possibly of the entire tournament. Not only do the two women know each other very well in the ring but both are massively experienced and very popular amongst Wrestling fans. In an ideal world, I would have loved to have seen both these women advance but Mia did totally earn her victory in a match that felt as though it could have been apart of a PPV. There was amazing chemistry between Kim and Kay, the fans were completely invested, and this one of the bouts that you genuinely couldn’t tell who would walk out the victor. So much skill, history, and talent here, of course, this makes the list today!

·         Jinny vs Toni Storm

Two more women with an amazing history, Jinny and Toni Storm were no stranger to one another are facing off multiple times over on the UK indie scene. Leading the way for the NXT UK division both women will be bringing a lot to the table and this round one matchup proved exactly that. The pair could not have been any more different from one another, but their striking differences made for an impressive, character filled, and strong wrestling match that truly went down as one of my personal favourites.

·      

     Killer Kelly vs Meiko Satomura

       And finally, my personal favourite round one match and a bout that I feel could have been the match that featured in the finals at the Evolution PPV was Killer Kelly vs Meiko Satomura. This was simply brilliant. I’m so glad these two women were given a lengthy time slot and were effectively able to showcase their amazing skill and wrestling ability. While they both brought character, this wasn’t an over the top, dramatic, and theatrical match but a professional wrestling match that will go down as a highlight of the year. We had the veteran in Satomura and the rising star in Killer Kelly but the two matched so well here and their chemistry was solid only making things even better. This is the one match I’ve gone back and re-watched and I’m confident will be the overall favourite of the entire tournament for many!

And those were my personal standout matches and performers of round one! There were so many other matches and competitors I wanted to talk about, but it would have made this blog post far too long! Note that the likes of Mercedes Martinez, Ashley Rayne ad Rachel Evers were amongst those to also standout massively and work as part of some of the best matches of the first round! As always, I would love to know what you thought so feel free to leave a comment below telling me what your favourite match and standout competitors have been so far!

Recent Blog Posts

MAE YOUNG CLASSIC 2018 ROUND 1: HONEST THOUGHTS AND LESSONS LEARNED

FIVE DREAM MAIN ROSTER OPPONENTS FOR : RICOCHET

SUPERSTARS NOUGHTIES KIDS GREW UP LOVING (PART ONE)

WWE LEGENDS WE WANT TO SEE IN NXT

WHY ALEXA BLISS SHOULD JOIN POPULAR RAW FACTION