Perhaps for the first time in history, a wife defeated her husband for a WWE championship as Maria Kanellis forced Mike Kanellis to lay down for her shortly after winning the 24/7 Championship.
The night began with a match billed as the first of its kind, a mosh pit mixed tag match. The match itself was structured much like a lumberjack match as the group of wrestlers who have been featured in the 24/7 division as it were, surrounded the ring. Now, one would think given the 24/7 rules that chaos would have ensued, but from bell to bell, those rules were suspended.
RUN, MIKE, RUN!! @RealMikeBennett has captured the #247Title from @RonKillings and is on the MOVE on #RAW! pic.twitter.com/iIdfBq9ieH
— WWE (@WWE) July 30, 2019
However, hence the idea of a mosh pit, the second the bell rang signaling the winner was the second the moshers descended upon the ring. R-Truth, who defeated Drake Maverick to retain the belt, was surrounded and soon found himself under a pile of 20+ wrestlers all looking for the same thing. A count was made, a second bell was rang and the unlikely Mike Kanellis emerged from the bottom of the pile with his first WWE championship in his grasp.
Mike Kanellis was immediately chased through the halls before he found solace in the worst place for a 24/7 champion, the referee’s locker room. And with what would turn out to be the worst person he could share a room with, his wife. Maria Kanellis arrived on the scene and pushed the would-be challengers away before demanding Mike let her in the room. After ensuring she wasn’t just Carmella in disguise, Mike opened the door.
https://twitter.com/RealMikeBennett/status/1156013960195215360
When the segment picked back up later in the episode, Mike was talking about the title and how Maria could be proud of him now. He said that together they were 24/7 champions. Maria seemed to take offense to that and then demanded that Mike “get down on [his] back like [he] always does,” so that her unborn child could have a champion for a parent. Mike tried to fight it, but reluctantly, he did as he was told and laid down so Maria could pin him to become the first pregnant champion in WWE history.
Fully aware of what that meant, Maria strolled through the hallway, title held high, in a way that no other 24/7 champion would dare do. Why? Because she knew she was untouchable. Maria rubbed it in the guys’ faces, including Titus O’Neill, the first-ever 24/7 Champion. Maria goaded him, saying he wouldn’t dare attack a pregnant woman, before she announced to the crowd that she had an OBGYN appointment on Thursday if anyone wanted to try to take the title from her there.
Well, that was a short-lived reign for @RealMikeBennett. @MariaLKanellis is the NEW #247Champion! #RAW pic.twitter.com/ek0cg6LJG0
— WWE (@WWE) July 30, 2019
For a little over a month now, Maria Kanellis has completely emasculated her husband, embarrassing him and belittling him in front of everyone. It all started on Raw, when during a tag team match with Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch, Maria berated Mike for failing to protect her before announcing she was pregnant and insinuating that the baby wasn’t Mike’s because he wasn’t man enough for the job. The following night on 205 Live, Mike Kanellis set out to prove he wasn’t the disappointment his wife accused him of being, but instead, he took the pinfall in a six-man tag team match.
Over the next few weeks, Mike began coming to the ring by himself and grew increasingly erratic, taking his frustrations out on Maverick, who he believed to be the cause of his problems with Maria. All the while on Raw, Maria and Mike Kanellis have been involved in backstage segments where the verbal beat downs have continued each and every week.
FIRST. EVER. PREGNANT. CHAMPION!!!! #momlife #13weekspregnant https://t.co/Qy8cEUxNHd
— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) July 30, 2019
It will be interesting to see how WWE handles the 24/7 Championship now that it’s being held by a pregnant woman. Of course, there are creative ways that Maria could lose the title, but right now, the belt suits her. She even stood up to Braun Strowman, taunting him with her status and how he couldn’t touch her. It seems for now, the 24/7 Championship may have found a bit of a more permanent home.
While casinos like New Zealand’s Spin Palace won’t be taking odds on the 24/7 Championship anytime soon, if one were to bet on Maria’s title reign being a bit of a lengthy one, at least by 24/7 standards, that wouldn’t be a bad wager. The current record for the longest reign belongs to Maverick at 14 days. Maria very well could pass this mark as she continues to be at her heelish best, holding a belt she has no plans on defending anytime soon. After all, who’s going to be able to take a title from a pregnant champ?
Restrain yourself, @BraunStrowman…#RAW @MariaLKanellis pic.twitter.com/s1caMM6ruy
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) July 30, 2019
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.
