Bully Ray Critiques Thunder Rosa & Deonna Purrazzo's AEW Collision Match
Deonna Purrazzo and Thunder Rosa's aggressive Texas Bullrope match has extensively applauded since its airing on the August 10 episode of "AEW Collision", particularly for its grittiness. In a recent episode of "Busted Open," Bully Ray expressed his own thoughts, and while he agreed partially with co-host Mark Henry's lavish praise, several critiques prevented him from offering his full approval.
"I think the effort was there, without a doubt. There were some shining moments. I think, execution-wise, [it] could have been a little tighter," Ray said. "...Obviously, I love the women's willingness to bleed. I love the physicality when they each brought it, but I saw a lack of physicality at times."
One of Ray's key gripes with the match was a perceived misuse of the Texas Bullrope stipulation. The original win conditions of a Texas Bullrope match state that a wrestler must touch all four corners whilst tied to their opponent, which Ray felt AEW ignored.
"What makes the finish of a submission match unique is that you can only win the match with a submission! What makes the finish of an "I Quit" match unique? You can only win by someone saying 'I quit!' There are no pinfalls." Ray explained. "So, I wish — not just AEW, but any wrestling company that does a Texas Bullrope Match — would stick to the original stipulation of the [drag], because now, all I'm getting is a pinfall in a Texas Bullrope match...You've taken everything unique about this gimmick match, and you've thrown it out the window. All it is a glorified No DQ weapons match, where the girls are tied to a bull rope."
Ray also found an issue with the pinfall finish itself. He emphasized the prolonged nature of the finish, which, as of late, has recently become a common criticism of AEW matches.
"Thunder Rosa gives Deonna Purrazzo a bulldog through the table. Is that not strong enough to pin her with? Like, that should be your finish!" Ray concluded. "Like ... that should be the agent saying, 'Ladies, the table is your finish. Once you do the bulldog through the table, boom, there's your 1, 2, 3.'"