5 – Rusev vs Ziggler

Among their last three matches, this was Rusev and Ziggler’s best. Their developing chemistry made the contest very smooth and fluid. As always, Ziggler thrived as the underdog. The Show-off knows how to properly sell (sometimes oversell) both a single attack and a continuous abuse. Rusev, on the other hand, thrives as a monster, which is exactly what he looked like avenging the loss of his girlfriend. Such combinations are almost a guaranteed success, if only they had a better storyline.

Highlight of the match :

Rusev’s stiff side kick

4 – New Day vs The Dudleys – Tag Titles

As good as these two teams are in the ring, it was entertainment value that put him here. Yes, the match was very well-wrestled and involved a couple of high spots. However, how the characters of the two teams interacted was what caught the eye. On one side, you had the old school all-serious Dudley Boyz. On the other, you have the careless over-the-top New Day. A clash of such contrasting styles with sufficient amount of quality will always make for great television. Moments like Kofi ending a grappling series with a slap to the back of D-Von’s head (and the look on D-Von’s face afterwards) is what made this match very fun to watch.

Highlight of the match :

Bubba Ray superplexes Big E.

3 – Seth Rollins vs Sting – WWE WHC

Was the match slow ? Definitely. It didn’t even start slow and build up to a high pace phase ; There wasn’t any. (Whether the match was ended early because of Sting’s injury is another story). And that is totally understandable considering Sting’s age. Also, the slow pace didn’t hurt the match at all. It was more story-focused match. The hero, in Sting of course, dominates the villain until the villain use crooked ways to gain control (putting Sting through a table). The hero still fights through (real and storyline) struggles, and it actually pays off as he regains dominance, but the villain wins the contest in a tricky way. Everything throughout the match fitted both’s personalities perfectly. Sting putting his body on the line time and time again added even more value to the match. Despite the unfortunate injury Sting had, this match, for all that we know, was perfectly executed.

Highlight of the match :

Sting’s cross-body.

2 – 6 Man Tag

Many people will refer to this as “nothing special”, but not me. I’m a big fan of artistically chaotic fights, and this was one. These two teams, families or whatever you will call them mesh together better than any other in WWE, and by far. This allows them to use any combination of moves or people anywhere in the arena and being sure that it will work perfectly. And that happens quite often. The story here was told very well also. Braun Strowman was the biggest roadblock between the good guys and victory. He was a monster who could, for quite some time, handle both Ambrose and Reigns. After a multiple trials, they could take the beast down, which was a big moment. One mistake, a strange one, made all these efforts worthless and costed them the victory. I for one, wouldn’t mind this feud continuing two more months and culminating in a Survivor Series match.

Highlight of the match :

Harper’s suicide dive followed by a swanton from Bray.

1 – Seth Rollins vs John Cena – US Title

Going into this match, I was really worried that WWE will repeat their mistake from the Cena-Owens series and make this almost a carbon copy of Cena and Rollins’ last match. Thankfully, they didn’t. This was a fundamentally different match in the sense that it was a back and forth contest, rather than a one-sided contest like the one we’ve seen at Summerslam. Of course, this meant that Rollins could shine less, but it’s okay, since it also meant that Cena could shine more, which he did. The match consisted of a multitude of great spots. Rollins in-ring character work was excellent as usual. Him moving the crowd waves with his finger was a memorable display. Unless WWE plagues it with too many Cena wins, which they usually do, this will be a feud that WWE can return to any time with a complete confidence that it will be a success.

Highlight of the match :

Cena Hurricana driving Rollins into the corner.