What’s up Diva fans and welcome to this week’s WWE Superstars Redux. We’ve had a couple of solid Divas matches on WWE’s international/internet show as of late and we’ve got another one this week in the form of Layla vs Tamina Snuka. Layla has a point to prove after losing to Tamina numerous times in recent weeks, whilst Tamina is looking to assert herself as worthy of a potential Wrestlemania spot. Will Tamina leave Layla lying yet again or will it be third time lucky for Ms El?
The annoying energetic music of Layla plays through the arena first, and out comes the lively Londoner, who is looking lovely in lilac. Not sure what the weird hood thing is on Layla’s head but she’s swirling it around loving life, so as long as she’s happy, ey?! Out next is the intense Tamina, who either talks to herself or talks trash to the crowd on the way to ring. I imagine it’s the latter. Layla’s smiley look has turned to a focused one as she definitely knows what is at stake here – she desperately wants another shot at the Divas Title and a third loss to Tamina would ruin any chance of that.
The bell sounds and Tamina immediately gets the better of her British foe as overpowers Layla with a strong collar and elbow tie-up. What do you do if you get bested in strength? That’s right, you annoy your opponent by shimmying! Layla lulls Tamina into a false sense of security with her dance moves and Layla manages to level her Polynesian adversary with a drop toe hold. The last ever Women’s Champion then goes for an Oklahoma Roll but Tamina is too close to the ropes to start a count. Undeterred, Layla booty botches Tamina before stupidly turning her back to her opponent, and Tamina takes advantage with a knee to the gut.
The self proclaimed Chaotic Exotic then locks up with Layla again and she thrusts her to the floor with authority. Layla then counters with a few boots to the face before trying to get a pinfall with a sunset flip. Tamina’s leg strength comes into play as she avoids Layla’s pin attempt before dropping a knee over the back of Lay’s head. Matt Striker then compares Tamina to J-Lo which then makes me compare what comes out of Matt’s mouth with horse manure – what is he talking about?! Tamina misses an elbow before Layla lands a flurry of kicks. The Little English Muffin then tries to irish whip Tamina, but the daughter of Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka is just too powerful.
Layla and Tamina Snuka then channel Roadrunner and Coyote as Layla avoids Tamina’s onslaught… until Tamina knocks her down with a shoulder tackle. Tamina tries to whip Layla once more, yet this time, the former Divas Champion uses her veteran instincts as opposed to her agility to dispose of Tamina outside. Following a sweet baseball slide dropkick, it looks Layla is in control, yet out of nowhere, Tamina whacks Layla in the throat with a punch – very innovative.
Tamina continues to wear down Layla’s neck area with a series of knee drops as Matt Striker puts over the way that Tamina targeted Layla’s throat. Following a two count, Tamina whips Layla into the turnbuckle three times before stomping on her chest, winding the former Divas Champion. The Pacific Princess then locks in a vice-like chinlock that she manages to keep locked in for a lengthy period. However, Layla is not down and out yet, and she manages to make a comeback. Tamina collides with a couple of Layla’s kicks and although she kicks out, she could be in trouble! She temporarily gains control once more but Layla’s adrenaline is still pumping and she hits her Lots of Layla crossbody! Matt Striker calls the name of the move wrong and it seems like Layla could have hit it wrong as Tamina simply rolls through and hoists up her Floridian foe. Tamina is thinking Samoan Drop yet Layla out-thinks her and executes a sunset flip, and it’s enough to surprise Tamina and get the win!
Thoughts: Whilst some elements of this match intrigued me, I definitely felt like it was lacking something to make it more exciting as opposed to just competent. I loved the uniqueness of Tamina’s throat punch and the way that Matt Striker described it so excellently, yet Tamina’s offence after that move was uninspiring and didn’t reflect the potential game-changing move that she had just hit. It would have made much more sense for her to choke Layla and hang her up on the ropes, or perhaps drop her throat first on the top turnbuckle or outside barricade, yet all we got instead was a boring chinlock and a few irish whips, the latter of which wouldn’t hurt Layla’s throat at all.
All in all, the match was just okay to me. I wish I could have liked it more yet unfortunately, it was just mediocre to me. I still feel that Tamina needs more training as she chemistry is off with most of the girls that she faces and when it comes to Layla, I just want her to turn heel as soon as possible. Her face persona is seriously lacking and when you have to resort to twirling a hood around to get noticed, you know you’re clutching at straws. (I’m looking at you too Alicia Fox!) However, after seeing what transpired on Smackdown, it looks like there is going to be a follow-up on these two as well as the Divas Champion Kaitlyn, so I’ll take all the positives I can from this match and hope that they translate them come Wrestlemania. Only time will tell! And with that, stay tuned, Jack will be back!
