B/R Belts: Top WWE, AEW Performances for the Week of October 3

On the heels of WWE's Extreme Rules pay-per-view, the company presented a week of television that saw several top stars show off and show out. From Big E and Bianca Belair to Seth Rollins and Charlotte Flair, the cream of the crop turned in inspiring performances that had them in contention for top B/R belts this week.

But they were not alone.

All Elite Wrestling continued its steady ascent to the top of the wrestling industry with its own handful of performances worthy of recognition.

Who shone brightest under the black-and-gold banner, and did they unseat any of the reigning champions from WWE?

Find out now with this recap of the best performances of the week.

Before we get to the performers who defined the week that was in WWE and AEW, these are the B/R belts at stake and what they represent.

         

The Steamboat Championship

Named after consummate good guy Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, this belt is awarded to the top babyface of the week.

         

The Piper Championship

When he was bad, he was oh-so good. Named for the late "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, this belt is awarded to the best heel of the week.

           

Hitman Hart Championship

Arguably the best to ever do it, Bret "Hitman" Hart is defined by his in-ring excellence. This belt is awarded to the best men's wrestler of the week.

       

Stratus Championship

A revolutionary performer who bridged the gap between generations of female performers, Trish Stratus is the namesake of this belt, presented to the best women's wrestler of the week.

       

Dusty Championship

The legendary Dusty Rhodes had the gift of gab and the ability to captivate an audience with his words. This belt goes to the star(s) responsible for the best promo of the week.

      

Gooker Championship

Pro wrestling has a long and dubious history of WTF moments. This belt is awarded to the stars, match or moment that had you asking, "huh?!"

          

5-Star Championship

This title is awarded to the best match of the week.

Last week's winner: CM Punk

        

Big E regained the Steamboat Championship from CM Punk on the strength of his performance Monday on Raw, but his path back to the gold started Sunday at Extreme Rules, where he cut a fiery babyface promo that set up his WWE Championship defense against Bobby Lashley at the top of the flagship show the following night.

From there, Big E proved a fighting champion, not only defending against Lashley at the top of Monday's show but also restarting their battle inside a steel cage later in the night. Benefitting from his New Day teammates wiping out the interfering Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander at ringside, the champ was able to deliver the Big Ending from the top rope and exorcise the demon that was The All Mighty.

When Drew McIntyre stepped up to issue a challenge, Big E took it in stride, showing no fear as he nodded in the prospective No. 1 contender's direction, a fighting champion unfazed by his plethora of challengers.

Any questions surrounding Big E and his ability to be an effective champion have been answered early on. Hopefully, booking supports him moving forward because he has the energy, drive, in-ring ability and fan support to be one of the better babyface champions the company has produced in a long time.

Last week's winner: Seth Rollins

         

The Drip God secured the Piper Championship for the second consecutive week for his work as a dastardly and vile heel unashamed to target another man's family.

Rollins dodged the returning Edge on Friday like a true coward, making sure he was nowhere near his Hall of Fame rival. Where he was, though, was worse.

The former universal and WWE champion was in Asheville, North Carolina, home to The Rated R Superstar, wife Beth Phoenix and their two daughters. Taunting the babyface from outside his front door, Rollins entered his rival's home.

He ate from Edge's refrigerator, criticized his daughters' artwork and laid on his furniture, all while his foe watched helplessly from hundreds of miles away.

Rollins was at his over-the-top best, a true heel unafraid to look like a jackass while being menacing enough to pose a threat. He has built up that equity with fans to the point that they know he isn't above targeting a rival's loved one or sinking to the deepest depths to make their lives a living hell.

He did it here, sending Edge into a panic and intensifying a rivalry that feels destined to conclude in a high-profile gimmick match, presumably in Saudi Arabia at Crown Jewel later in October.

Last week's winner: Bryan Danielson

         

Remember that time wrestling fans convinced themselves that there was a better wrestler in the world than Bryan Danielson? Pepperidge Farm remembers.

Danielson has spent his first two matches in All Elite Wrestling reminding fans why he is not only the best technician in the industry but also the best overall professional wrestler. He started a week ago with a 5-star classic (hardly his first, Meltz) against Kenny Omega and continued with a show-stealer against Nick Jackson of The Young Bucks.

An expert striker as well as mat technician and submission specialist, Danielson is a storyteller between the ropes, the likes of which we may never see again. 

He is an extraordinary wrestler, and he is seemingly relishing reminding people that behind the YES! Movement, the hugging it out with Kane, The Planet's Champion and the SmackDown general manager, the same guy who took pleasure in kicking his opponents' heads in during his stints in Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerilla and other indy promotions is still here.

That is a good thing for fans of the sport of professional wrestling and a bad thing for everyone looking to compare themselves to the standard-bearer.

Last week's winner: Ruby Soho

            

Bianca Belair may not have ended the week with the SmackDown Women's Championship, but she competed in two pay-per-view-quality matches in a five-day span, was the first woman drafted to Raw and continued to silence the doubters who questioned whether she could succeed at the top of the women's division.

The EST improves and evolves with every in-ring outing, silencing the critics who thought she may have won the Royal Rumble too soon or been pushed to the WrestleMania main event too quickly. She has embraced the challenge of leading an entire division, and her growth as a performer was on full display this week.

She wrestled two contrasting matches, against two strikingly different competitors, but never shrank in the moment. She went toe-to-toe with Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks and proved to be on their level, nearly taking the title from Big Match Becks before Banks' stunning return.

On SmackDown, she probably would have beaten Banks (again) had it not been for Lynch's involvement. 

A dynamic performer whose connection with the crowd is evident and whose place atop the women's division, regardless of whether it is on Mondays or Fridays, is undisputed, Belair is rapidly proving that EST is more than just a nickname.

Last week's winner: CM Punk

        

MJF was close to regaining the Piper Championship from Rollins but will have to settle for the Dusty Championship for a promo that was superb, intense and, at one point, uncomfortable.

As he has done several times since losing to Chris Jericho at All Out, the scarf-wearing brat from Long Island took things to a whole other level of nastiness as he addressed Darby Allin on Wednesday on Dynamite.

Before that, he recognized himself as one of the four young pillars of AEW. The most important one, obviously. When Allin took exception to that and interrupted his foe, MJF took shots at Allin's personal life, verbally attacking his status as straight edge and forcing the former TNT champion to relive the death of his uncle.

What elevated the promo, though, was what MJF didn't say.

When Allin dared him to keep trying to toy with his psyche, MJF walked away, dismayed that his mind games and cutting remarks did not have an effect on Allin. The bully didn't get the reaction he wanted to from his victim, so he ran away with his tail between his legs.

It was a great verbal performance from the best young heel in the business and the jumping-off point for a feud that will likely engulf Dynamite for weeks to come.

Last week's winner: Doudrop vs. Eva Marie...again

        

There were a few candidates for this week's Gooker Championship (InDex's honeymoon, anyone?) but it was the legendary Arn Anderson who secured the bag with the most surreal promo in recent memory.

Moments after Cody Rhodes and "Big Shotty" Lee Johnson defeated Dante Martin and Matt Sydal, a dismayed Anderson took exception to Rhodes' softness and proceeded to earn social media notoriety with a little storytime, saying:

"A man jerks your door open and says, 'Out of the car. I'm taking your car.' You can, 'Take it. Just don't hurt me.' You know what I do? I pull out the Glock, put it to his forehead and spill his brains all over the concrete. I'm Arn Anderson and all that implies, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna coach a loser!"

The sentiment was certainly there: Anderson doesn't want to deal with any soft losers, and lately, Rhodes has been just that. The internet jumped all over the promo, with some praising it and others making easy one-liners about it, but no one outright dismissed it.

It felt true to Anderson's persona and came across naturally, evidence of an effective verbal performance. Whether the subject matter was the best option is another story, but there is no denying that as those lines left Anderson's mouth Wednesday night, more than one person uttered "WTF?!"

Last week's winner: Kenny Omega vs. Bryan Danielson 

                 

In a week of strong wrestling from both WWE and AEW, the SmackDown Women's Championship match between Bianca Belair and Becky Lynch at Extreme Rules earns the nod for best of the week.

That it was one of the highest-profile matches on a pay-per-view helped elevate it just beyond Danielson vs. Jackson from AEW Rampage and Damian Priest vs. Sheamus vs. Jeff Hardy from the same Extreme Rules PPV event.

Belair and Lynch had a dramatic match that saw The EST forced to fight from underneath as she chased her dreams of regaining the title that was stolen from her a month earlier at SummerSlam. Lynch, the overconfident heel, looked frazzled and shaken as she realized that the performer she had spent weeks underestimating was her equal.

The storytelling was strong, the action just as good and the fans in Columbus, Ohio, hung on every near-fall. The only downside? The finish, which saw Sasha Banks explode back on to the scene but also ruin a match that was good enough to deserve a definitive ending.

It was that finish that kept Belair and Banks from winning the title undisputedly.