Women’s War Games Match: Team Belair VS Team Damage Control
Survivor Series kicked off with the Women’s War Games match. Dakota Kai and Bianca Belair started the match for their respective teams and every member of each team came into the ring until Becky Lynch’s arrival started the match. This match had some interesting moments, Nikki Cross and Iyo Sky both jumped off the cage at one point and there was some nicely done spots with the trashcans however, there was also quite a few sloppy mistakes which was a shame. For me, Dakota Kai was the MVP of this match, she really is the king of War Games! Also, I was really impressed with Mia Yim in this match, I feel like this was a breakout performance. After Bianca Belair K.O.D’ Bayley onto the cage, Becky Lynch jumped from the top of the cage onto both Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky through the table to get the win. Everyone put in a lot of effort but in terms of War Games, this wasn’t the greatest.
Grade: B-
AJ Styles VS Finn Balor
After a segment between Roman Reigns and Jey Uso, Finn Balor came out for his match with AJ Styles. Both men looked to get on top early on and on the outside of the ring, the Judgement Day and the O.C were brawling before they disappeared into the crowd. This allowed AJ Styles and Finn to fight one-on-one and this was great. The transitions were excellent but that shouldn’t be a surprise given the fact that the two are veterans of the sport. Late on in the match, AJ Styles locked in the calf-crusher and Balor looked like he was going to tap before he slammed AJ’s head on the mat. In the end though, Balor couldn’t turn it around as AJ Styles wrecked him with the Phenomenal Forearm to get the win. It’s nice to see AJ Styles getting a Premium Live Event victory and you could tell both men put everything into this.
Grade: B+
SmackDown Women’s Championship: Ronda Rousey VS Shotzi
The third match of the night saw Ronda Rousey put her SmackDown Women’s Championship on the line against the “ballsy badass” Shotzi. Shotzi attempted to get offense in, but Rousey dominated most of this match. Shotzi did hit a DDT onto the ring apron but unfortunately, it didn’t look very good. The former Blackheart even hit a dive onto Rousey, Baszler and some “fans” in the crowd but it didn’t make much difference. Rousey managed to get Shotzi into the ring before she locked in the armbar for the victory. This match wasn’t great, Ronda Rousey did a rubbish job at making Shotzi look like a genuine challenger. Also, Shotzi didn’t help herself by tapping out after being in the armbar for about 2 seconds. It was an opportunity to create a new star in Shotzi but if anything, this made Shotzi look worse than ever.
Grade: D
United States Championship: Seth “Freakin” Rollins VS Bobby Lashley VS Austin Theory
The United States Championship was then on the line as Seth “Freakin” Rollins put his belt on the line against rivals Bobby Lashley and Austin Theory. The really interesting part about this whole feud has been the fact that they all dislike one another and none of the competitors in this match are clear faces. At one point, Seth Rollins kept hitting suicide dives onto his challengers before he hit a dive onto them that I have never seen before. Also, Seth Rollins hit this awesome looking frog splash to keep the match going before Bobby Lashley locked in the hurt lock on both men. When both Lashley and Theory were down, Seth Rollins jumped off of Theory’s back and stomped Lashley for an incredibly cool looking spot. In the end, Seth Rollins hit the superplex and as he was about to hit the falcon arrow, he got speared by Bobby Lashley and as he went down, Theory fell on top of Seth and got the victory to reclaim the United States Championship. This was excellent. Bobby Lashley did all his spots well and he should definitely go on to face Roman Reigns at some point. Also, Seth Rollins may have lost his title but in the end, this match showcased why Seth “Freakin” Rollins is the best wrestler in the world. Theory also winning is great, it shows that him losing the briefcase wasn’t a bad thing and he is now holding the number 1 title on Raw. When he won the title for the first time, it was given to show everyone that he is Vince’s guy. Now, Theory is the face of Monday Night Raw and it makes sense.
Grade: B+
Men’s War Games Match: The Brawling Brutes, Drew McIntyre and Kevin Owens VS The Bloodline
The final match of the night saw the men’s war games match were the Brawling Brutes teamed up with Drew McIntyre and Kevin Owens to take on the Bloodline. Jey Uso and Butch started the match for their respective teams and after Ridge Holland came into the match, Jimmy Uso wanted to come out to help his brother. However, Roman stopped him and told Sami to go to the ring and help out Jey. Sami did this and after 18 minutes, Roman Reigns came out last meaning the War Games match could officially begin. Multiple guys went through tables and both teams were on top at different points. Near the end of the match, Jey Uso accidentally super kicked Sami Zayn before Jimmy Uso told them to just carry on. In the end, Kevin Owens hit the Stunner onto Roman Reigns before he hit a pop-up powerbomb and as he was about to get the pinfall victory over the Tribal Chief, Sami Zayn caught the referee’s hand before he could count 3. KO then shouted at Sami Zayn “this is your family” whilst holding up a beaten Roman Reigns before Sami Zayn hit his former brother with a low blow. He then wrecked KO with the Helluva kick and Owens’ lifeless body fell onto Sami and this was both an awesome and a sad visual. Sami then left Owens in the spot for Jey Uso to hit the splash meaning the Bloodline win War Games! After the match, Roman Reigns hugged Sami Zayn but arguably more importantly, so did Jey Uso. The show then ended with a shot of all 5 bloodline members standing tall, united as 1 unstoppable faction. This was brilliant. I thought the match itself was solid, but the storytelling was brilliant. Kevin Owens is famous for turning on his best friends, yet it was the other way round this time. Having Sami take out Owens was awesome, particularly when you could tell that Sami was upset whilst doing it. Also, Kevin Owens had Roman Reigns beat again so he definitely has the right to challenge Roman Reigns down the line. Add in the facts that KO never attacked Sami in this match and Jey Uso got the pinfall victory, overall, you have another iconic moment featuring the Bloodline. This is why they should have all the gold.
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