Shane McMahon is out first with some things to say regarding what he will do when he gets charge of Raw after beating Undertaker at Mania. He hits a sweet note with the Chicago crowd by mentioning backstage politics. Then, out of nowhere, the gong hits. UNDERTAKER? Nah, just Vince trolling. It gets a ton of heat too so hey. However, it also garners a CM Punk chant. None the less, Vince ends up trying to get Shane thrown out by security, but Shane fights them off and leaves on his own accord with his music playing.
1) Kevin Owens vs. Neville
You just can't go wrong with a Big Kev/Neville match. So, this was a great hot first match to start the show off with. I've come to love that Owens & Neville never have the same match despite having a limited time slot on these TV meetings they've had during the past year. They always throw in something different to take your breath away just like they did here as Owens busted out his step up moonsault from the top rope while Neville hit a sick shooting star press off the top turnbuckle. They traded german suplexes which ruled because Neville bumps perfectly for everything. Neville hits the red arrow for a false finish. He starts heading back to the top rope again only for Kev to roll him up and use the tights to keep him down for three.
Match rating - ***1/4
After the match, Owens isn't done and decides to beat down Neville some more. He sets him up for the powerbomb on the ring apron when SAMI ZAYN'S MUSIC HITS! HOLY SHIT! Zayn runs down and we've got a fight bah gawd! Owens ends up retreating as Zayn helps up Neville and amps up the crowd. Looks like Owens has found his WrestleMania opponent in the form of a decade long rival/tag team partner. Everything about this was perfect.
2) Summer Rae vs. Brie Bella
This is short lived and pretty uneventful aside from a cool opening sequence. I can't even tell if that was meant to unfold like it looked though, so there's that. The most notable thing about this was the end where Lana came down to HELP Summer Rae beat Brie by causing a distraction. What is going on?
Match rating - *3/4
3) Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, Rusev, & Wade Barrett
Four on one elimination match put together courtesy of Stephanie to spite Dolph. It doesn't go nearly as long as you'd expect. Dolph gets beatdown, has a few nice hope spots, makes a comeback which allows him to pin Barrett. It's only moments later before he's pinned by Sheamus to end his comeback.
Match rating - **
4) Sasha Banks & Becky Lynch vs. Naomi & Tamina
This is always a good match. Sasha, Becky, & Naomi are three of the best in the division and Tamina can hold her own. It's fun here while it lasts. Charlotte is on commentary and Ric is with her. Sasha locks Tamina in the bank statement after a few minutes of action which forces her to tap out. Charlotte spoils Sasha & Becky's celebration post match by attacking them and leaving with a smile on her face. All three women meet at WrestleMania with the Divas Title on the line.
Match rating - **
5) AJ Styles & Chris Jericho vs. The New Day - WWE Tag Team Title Match
Best Y2AJ match yet. It's really everything you could ask for from a match between these two teams with a hot crowd to boot. Styles & Jericho hit a pair of slingshot crossbody blocks to the floor which sends us to commercial. We come back to Jericho being isolated which builds to the AJ hot tag. The crowd gets lit for this as he nails Kofi with the springboard inverted DDT for a near fall. AJ springboards and gets caught IN MID AIR BY BIG E! Big ending? No! KOFI DIVES OFF THE TOP ROPE! DOUBLE TEAM! They do that thing where Kofi plants AJ's head in the mat as Big E hits the big ending. 1..2...JERICHO PUSHES KOFI ON THE PILE TO BREAK IT UP! Jericho works over Kofi and gets him in place for LIONSAULT! AJ makes the blind tag and SPRINGBOARD 450 SPLASH! FUCK! 1...2..BIG E PULLS KOFI OUT OF THE RING! I gasped! More awesome stuff comes with Jericho locking Kofi in the Walls of Jericho in the center of the ring. Great callback to last week as this is the move that Jericho tapped Kofi out to. He fights for the ropes, Xavier is pushing them towards him, but AJ superman punches him on the floor. BIG E WITH A SPEAR TO AJ INTO THE BARRICADE OUT OF NOWHERE! E runs back up to the apron making the tag to Kofi behind Jericho's back. Big E hits the ropes and goes for a spear, JERICHO CATCHES HIM AND TURNS HIM INTO THE WALLS OF JERICHO! Big E is able to escape and plants Jericho with the big ending. New Day retains after a great tag match.
Match rating - ***3/4
After the match, Y2AJ gets a standing ovation following New Day's exit. Out of nowhere, Jericho hits the code breaker on Styles. Fucking hell. Shoulda saw that coming, but Jericho pulls it off so well. Good portrayal of hatred here with AJ crawling back up to Jericho only to get planted with another codebreaker. Welp, looks like we get one final battle between these two at Mania and Y2AJ went out with a blaze of glory so I can't complain.
6) Kalisto vs. Tyler Breeze
Random match, but a fun one. The crowd reacts well to both men. Breeze gets a nice pop for a move off the top rope. I can't remember what exactly it was, but hey, you can't win em all. The US Champ puts Breeze away after a decent little exhibition. Harmless match to cool down after that hot tag title match and huge AJ/Jericho angle.
Match rating - **1/4
7) Ryback vs. Curtis Axel
RYBAXEL COLLIDES :( It's a sad day for me. I thought my boys would be together forever, but now it's officially over. Some dumb Social Outcast shenanigans ruled the early going here with them making grunting noises together, it was kinda beautiful. Ryback wins this, obviously.
Match rating - *3/4
8) Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt
It feels like these two build chemistry further and further each time they step in the ring. It was no different during this match as it got heated and hard hitting very quickly. Some nice exchanges and counters. Even a close fall or two. All that would be scrapped soon, though because the rest of the Wyatt Family surrounded the ring. You know what's next. They attack Ambrose which calls for the bell.
Match rating - **1/2
Them Wyatt boys take out Dean and feed him to Bray. Sister Abigail on the #1 Contender which leads to Triple H coming down. AWESOME RANDOM STAREDOWN BETWEEN WYATT & HHH. But then Wyatt leaves and Triple H decides to unleash hell on Ambrose again. He goes out to clean off the announce table and comes back in to DIRTY DEEDS! Ambrose poses with the WWE Title to close out the show.
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