WWE United States Championship
Shinsuke Nakamura (c) defeated Rusev
5.5/10
- Rusev is on the offensive early, and big "Rusev day" chants break out.
- I'm not sure what about Nakamura just did Cole thought was an inverted DDT, but that's what he called it. It was a backstabber.
- We have some good back and forth action, but sometimes Rusev seems like he's waiting to get hit.
- He lands a spinning heel kick and misses a Machka Kick, but after series of reversals gets a 2 for a head kick.
- Nakamura gets a wheel kick and a sliding knee of his own for two. That should be his finisher.
- Rusev catches Nakamura off the top rope with a Machka Kick, but Nakamura kicks out.
- Nakamura gets to the bottom rope on an Accolade attempt, and scores a second rope Kinshasa. He sets up for another one and is put in the Accolade.
- Shinsuke CockKnocker-mara is back!!! He gets the win.
- These two did a good job of making me not know who would win in a match that shouldn't have really mattered.
Hulk Hogan
- Hogan is out for the first time in three and a half years.
- He says it's great to be back in front of everyone.
- Okay.
World Cup Opening Round
Rey Mysterio defeated Randy Orton
5/10
- They run through the list of accolades of each wrestler.
- Orton catches Mysterio with a great dropkick.
- Mysterio finds a home for a great seated senton and a wheelbarrow bulldog.
- Mysterio gets the win in pretty short order with a sneaky pin.
- Randy Orton RKOs Mysterio and slides him outside of the ring. Mysterio gets wheelbarrowed into the announce table.
WWE World Cup Opening Round
The Miz defeated Jeff Hardy
5/10
- Miz cuts a promo backstage and says he has a breeze to the finals. Jeff Hardy cuts a lame promo about overcoming demons.
- Hardy and Miz with some good action early. Hardy gets out of a Skull Crushing Finale, and the two guys play the hits.
- I can't imagine that Whisper in the Wind is a fun bump to take at Hardy's stage of his career.
- A cannonball dropkick leads to Hardy walking the barricade before a clothesline.
- Miz gets caught using the ropes on a pin, but gets the Skull Crushing Finale and a pin anyway.
WWE World Cup Opening Round
Seth Rollins defeated Bobby Lashley (w/ Lio Rush)
5.5/10
- The fact that WWE flew Lio Rush over shows how important they see him to Lashley's act.
- "Step up enziguri. Drink. Lashley gets some air on Rollins with an insane side slam spinebuster
- Why does Cole keep calling backstabbers and reverse STOs Inverted DDTs?!
- Rollins leapfrogs and avoids a spear, and Lashley gets posted. Very cool spot.
- Out of nowhere and abruptly, Rollins sneaks out of a Dominator and gets a Stomp for the win.
- Wow.
WWE World Cup Opening Round
Dolph Ziggler (w/ Drew McIntyre) defeated Kurt Angle
5.75/10
- More generic promos.
- Angle hits a few German suplexes, and gets elbowed off the apron as he teases one from there.
- Ziggler applies a sleeper and hits a jumping DDT after another series of suplexes.
- An Olympic Slam hits and Angle gets two. Drew selling that he was about to run in displayed a real sense of urgency.
- Angle applies an Ankle lock, and gets posted in the ring. A Zig Zag wins it for Ziggler.
- That's a big feather in Ziggler's cap.
WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championships
The Bar (w/ The Big Show) defeated New Day (w/ Xavier Woods)
5.5/10
- New Day are riding a giant mechanical magic carpet.
- Kofi Kingston front flips out of a monkey flip, which leads to Xavier playing his trombone.
- Cesaro scores a nice gutwrench suplex.
- Cole is calling moves wrong all the time on this show. A back kick is called Trouble In Paradise.
- Kofi gets worked over and finally tags Big E, who gets his hot tag suplexes, but eats knees on a splash.
- A big uranage hits on Sheamus, then New Day get their double team Mushroom stomp and AIR KINGSTON.
- Big Show KO punches Big E, Sheamus Brogue Kicks him for the win.
WWE World Cup Semifinals
The Miz defeated Rey Mysterio
6/10
- Miz got kicked in the throat and can barely talk.
- Miz throws Rey outside of the ring, but Rey rolls through. The latter turns the tide and gets his baseball slide splash.
- There's a great counter into an Alley Oop for Miz. Best spot of the match. He also slides Mysterio out face first to the floor.
- A strike trade leads to a nice Mysterio springboard cross body. It's amazing how much better he is than 8 years ago.
- A wheelbarrow snake eyes sets up Miz's Skull Crushing Finale, but Rey kicks out.
- Miz eats a 619, but gets the knees up on a Frog Splash and pins Mysterio!
- Match of the night so far.
WWE World Cup Semifinals
Dolph Ziggler (w/ Drew McIntyre) defeated Seth Rollins
6.5/10
- Seth Rollins is in control early, but gets distracted bowing up to Drew and ends up getting DDT'd.
- We don't see enough spinning back elbows in wrestling, and Ziggler throws a nice one.
- A series of six failed pin attempts and reversals ultimately leads to a Rollins Ripcord Knee that almost gets the win.
- A stiff suicide dive from Rollins takes out both Ziggler and McIntyre. Back in the ring, he misses a springboard and walks into a FameAsser.
- Rollins gets countered on the Superplex Falcon Arrow into a great Zig Zag, but kicks out.
- Rollins takes out McIntyre, and Ziggler distracts the ref feigning an ankle injury, allowing Drew to push Rollins off the top rope. Superkick on Rollins gets the win!
- This show has finally picked up.
WWE Championship
AJ Styles (c) defeated Samoa Joe
5.75/10
- Styles misses a moonsault off the apron, but ends up posting Joe.
- Joe comes back pretty quickly with a violent dive that has them both wipe out into the announce table.
- Joe comes back with a big kick to the ear, and a high velocity powerslam. In between, Styles hit a beauty of a moonsault reverse DDT.
- Joe sells a Calf Crusher really well, especially when the camera is on him. He gets to the ropes, but Styles' arm is split open.
- Joe has the Coquina Clutch on, and Styles attacks the bad leg of Joe, which forces a break.
- Styles gets a Phenomenal Forearm for the victory.
- Assuming he doesn't defend and lose the title on next week's Smackdown Live, AJ Style will pass the one year mark with the WWE title.
WWE Universal Championship
Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) defeated Braun Strowman to become champion
SQUASH
- Baron Corbin is out to make the title presentation, and Heyman cuts a little promo.
- Corbin cracks Strowman with the Universal Championship.
- F5, kickout.
- F5, kickout
- Hell of a way to establish Braun as a babyface. That makes the McIntyre trajectory interesting.
- F5, kickout.
- A fourth F5 happens over the top rope. Lesnar
- A rare WWE Universal Championship match where the title can be won by countout. Glad that came into play.
- F5, pin.
- Welp. That's it
- It is such a WWE thing to do to have Brock Lesnar win the title, and his next PPV match be set as a non-title match.
- Just deflated after that. Such a backwards-moving step. The top champ spot on Raw has been one of the most curiously booked things since the Rollins injury.
WWE World Cup Finals
Shane McMahon defeated Dolph Ziggler
5/10
- Drew McIntyre gets booted from ringside.
- Miz's leg gives out on him immediately and commentary goes silent. The match hasn't actually started here. Can't get fired for losing if the match doesn't start.
- Miz isn't being allowed to compete. He's livid that he can't wrestle.
- Shane McMahon won't allow this to be a forfeit and wants to wrestle. Wrestle in the jacket, please.
- Shane lands a big flying back elbow.
- Baron Corbin gets thrown out. The distraction leads to a Zig Zag for two.
- Shane gets a floatover jumping DDT straight out of the WWF Attitude on Playstation 1 CAW moveset.
- Dolph Ziggler and WWE production helped Shane McMahon land that Coast to Coast. He wins.
- Shane McMahon wins the match
- What a stupid fucking card lol. They are so totally defending that damn world cup at Survivor Series.
DX defeated Brothers of Destruction
4.75/10
- I am so not used to bald Shawn Michaels. He hits a neckbreaker for his first move back.
- Undertaker tags in and Shawn Michaels faces off with him. Triple H tags in and gets worked over for a while.
- Michaels comes back in and gets his elbow and the kip up. A double suplex from DX lands, and it's ugly. The flying elbow drop isn't though.
- Taker hits Snake Eyes and A big boot, but gets superkicked. Outside the ring, Triple H and Undertaker have a shitty, sloppy spot into the barricade.
- This match is sloppy as hell. Shawn Michaels hasn't wrestled in eight and a half years, and is the best performer in it.
- Triple H gets chokeslammed through a table. We're gonna see what 2018 Shawn Michaels is made of. Chris Amann is checking on Triple H at ringside and HBK is all alone.
- Michaels does a moonsault to the outside on Kane and Taker and lands flat on his face!
- Triple H is back up and gets the hot tag and a spinebuster on Taker. His Pedigree attempt is foiled, as is a Taker Tombstone attempt. Pedigree hits!
- Kane is thrown out of the ring, allowing Taker to recuperate and apply Hell's Gate. HBK superkicks Kane onto Hell's Gate.
- Triple H is battling a pec injury right now.
- Superkick and Pedigree get the win for DX.
- If graded on a curve, this would have been much better. But no.
Rating guide
10- Perfect, 9- MOTY Territory, 8- Excellent, 7- Great, 6- Good, 5- Average to above average, 4- Slightly below average, 3 or below: Poor
Each match starts at a 5 and slides up and down based on entertainment, execution, time, environment, reaction and stakes. The ratings are in no way an indication of a "star rating," which is a completely different system. A standard, non-offensive "TV match" lands at a 5.The gap between 5.75-6 is generally the largest, with anything reaching 6 being recommended viewing.
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