We have arrived at that point of the year where WWE tends to struggle; Monday Night Football has kicked off in the US, less people are tuning in and we’ve likely got the pink Susan Koman ropes coming to aesthetically clash with everything about Hell in a Cell. Could Night of Champions give us reason to be cheerful? Here is an overview of the show.

Match #1 – Ryback (C) v Kevin Owens

Opening the show with this IC title match was smart as the crowd seemed into Ryback and popped HUGE for Owens; I believe he may have received the evening’s best reaction.

The match itself was a fun one and exactly what an opener should be as it got fans excited for the evening. Also, in terms of Ryback’s singles matches this was certainly one of his better performances – a personal highlight being Owens telling Ryback to shut up after the Big Guy complained to the ref about his shoulder.

The ending of the match was clever too as Owens used heel tactics in the form of an eye rake in order to claim the belt, keeping Ryback strong in the process. Hopefully Owens is allowed to run with a prize-fighter gimmick à la his NXT title run because the dude is a top talent.

Match #2 – Dolph Ziggler v Rusev

Frist of all, Rusev is so huge, sometimes you forget but then catch a glimpse of his barrel-like physique and realise. The Bulgarian Brute clashed with Ziggler who bumped like a boss, almost overselling much of Rusev’s offence. Despite the great bumping Dolph seemed kind-of off the pace in this one as a fair few strikes looked to miss by a distance.

The ending was peculiar as Summer Rae threw a shoe at Rusev by accident, distracting her man to allow Ziggler to hit the zig-zag for the victory. Both wrestlers are capable of better and I hope they are building to a double-turn and are re-aligning Rusev and Lana – who can really tell where this bizarre plotline is heading though. One final note, Dolph Ziggler, state of your fucking tights mate.

Match #3 – New Day (C) v Dudley Boyz

Matches are always easier to watch when you love both sides of the coin; New Day are arguably the best thing in WWE right now and the Dudley Boyz give you a nostalgia boner.

This clash was another fun one as the 2 teams blend very well together – I really enjoyed Big E’s apron splash to Bubba, Xavier’s Rocky theme as Kofi landed some punches and D-Von running wild towards the end. Woods saved the title reign by breaking up the sure pin after Kofi fell victim to the 3D.

Post-match Xavier got the table treatment as New Day turned heel on their ‘save the tables’ campaign. This rivalry clearly is just heating up and I look forward to the aftermath of this one but whatever the future holds I will undoubtedly be distracted by D-Von’s forehead – blading has destroyed it. Poor guy.

Match #4 – Nikki Bella (C) v Charlotte

Before I get into this one I need to say that I enjoyed their previous Raw match other than the ridiculous screwy finish. This PPV match however, I just could not get invested in.

The story was clear and easy to follow as Nikki worked the leg to slow down Charlotte and prevent her from using the figure 4/8, which Charlotte sold incredibly well. However, this story meant the match was really rather slow and unexciting. Nikki used endless half crabs, submission holds and strikes to the knee as well as a trio of suplexes in the ropes. (Suplex City bitch!)

All of the leg battering was quickly obsolete as Charlotte slapped on the submission finisher with the greatest of ease and Bella tapped. The longest Diva’s championship reign finally ends as Charlotte, Ric, gypsy-pirate looking Lynch and an unenthusiastic Paige (heel turn inbound) celebrated in the ring.

Match #5 – The Wyatt Family v Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Chris Jericho

Whilst waiting for the much anticipate reveal for the 3rd man a fan rushed the ring and was subsequently dragged away. This prompted Wyatt to hilariously quip whether he was the surprise partner – I laughed hard. Turns out the actual mystery man was Jericho, who was a fun surprise but he has faced the Wyatts before now; hey, at least it wasn’t Erick Rowan!

Action here was a clusterfuck of explosiveness and energy; I personally really got into this one as both sides proved their worth. Strowman was centre of attention and was well booked as he was not overexposed and was the Wyatt member who scored the win on Jericho with his 2 finisher combo which was a great visual in spite of the setup being awkward and clunky.

Veteran Jericho costing his partners the spoils was interesting because I would be all for a Jericho v Ambrose feud. Overall, creative did a sterling job with the Wyatt family here and hopefully things continue on this current road. Thumbs up from me.

Match #6 – Seth Rollins (C) v John Cena

White Gold Crossfit Jesus returned in a stellar bout between the pair who share more chemistry than a high school science lab; Cena and Rollins mix like fish and chips, it is a delight.

Throughout the contest Rollins appeared to be 1-step ahead of Cena, nailing many quick paced high flying moves (his frog splash prompting Eddie chants from the crowd was wonderful) as well as some powerful slams such as the superplex/suplex combination – he didn’t even fall for Cena’s 5-knuckle-shuffle setup! Whether you agree with the winner or not, ending the match with a single finisher landing was a nice surprise as many of Cena’s matches have left his AA and his rival’s finishing move looking weak.

Maybe another rematch is on the cards, which I’d be all for it as a Raw main event, and on top of that, we get more US open challenges now which virtually guarantees a top-notch fight every Monday night. The 5-time US champion looked delighted to reclaim his belt, and even though he kinda no-sold the beating he just took he celebrated like any gleeful winner should.

Match #7 – Seth Rollins (C) v Sting

Following the previous match Cena nailed Rollins with an AA to the floor as the cowardly bastard tried to escape. Smart booking here as it sold Sting as more of a threat to the world title before entering to a sea of cheers from the WWE universe.

The former WCW champion started hot as he attacked Rollins left, right and centre – dominating the worn-down heel until he crashed backwards through the Spanish announce table, monitors an all, allowing Seth to finally gain the upper hand. This was a hideous bump for anyone, but at 56, taking a fall like this was crazy and stupid. Later he would recover and land a top rope dive before Rollins again reclaimed control with some innovative moves.

Then the contest turned sour. Following a buckle-bomb Sting appeared hurt and subsequently collapsed as he ducked a clothesline. Seth brilliantly gloated as doctors attended to the Stinger; he was allowed to continue in a seemingly rushed finish where Rollins craftily reversed a scorpion death lock into a roll-up.

Credit to Sting, the match was great and he didn’t wrestle in his t-shirt like a big indie geek (as he did on Raw). Unfortunately the dace-off will probably be remembered mainly for the legit injury to the aged challenger, but when you take mad bumps at his 56 years old the risk is significantly heightened.

Closing the show, Sheamus rushed the ring and brogue kicked Rollins’ head off. But just as the resilient champ looked set for his third match of the night the Big Red Machine, Kane, entered and chokeslammed both wrestlers and gave a tombstone piledriver to Seth – standing tall as the lights went out.

Overall the show was pretty good as most matches were fun collisions, titles changed hands and storylines were moved forward successfully. I’m not overly hyped for Rollins versus Kane but he pulled of a stellar match with Daniel Bryan last year so here’s hoping for another entertaining Hell in a Cell war. Hopefully Sting is well and can shake-off the injury – the wrestling legend needs at least 1 win in his WWE tenure.