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Hitesh Kumar Kalhan
Royal Rumble ’17
WWE Title: John Cena vs AJ Styles (c) (23minutes) ****,
Much like SummerSlam ’16 this was an extreme stunts match big move after big move probably to the most ridiculous level I’ve ever seen. But it had an amazing crowd
30 Man Royal Rumble (62minutes) *****,
Probably the best royal rumble match ever there were great stories told through out by Jericho, New Day, Cesaro, The Wyatts & Sheamus. Particularly by Strowman who had an outstanding showman.
When it got to the end and it went to a sequence of Brock dominating to Goldberg dominating to Undertaker dominatong to Roman Reigns dominating it was simply magical, fantastic crowd. One of the best matches ever.
Raw woman’s title: Charlotte (c) vs Bayley (13minutes) ***1/2,
This match told a good underdog vs superior athlete match as Charlotte cockily dominated Bayley with very athletic offence, Bayley made some cool come backs too, the crowd was generally quite off for this match though.
Universal Championship: Shark Cage: Jericho, No Dq: Roman Reigns vs Kevin Owens (c) w/Jericho (25minutes) ****1/2,
A fantastic match, both guys were brutal through out, aggressive and making things very personal they used weapons to destroy each other often in innovative ways, there were also alot of cool antics, crowd was wild at times a bit quiet at others. Great story, Great crowd, Great match.
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Omar Mordecai
I wouldn’t say this card had a good or bad match, rather strong and weak spots throughout the card. With that being said, here is my opinion on the 2017 Royal Rumble. (as scarce as possible)
Strongest Match: Roman Reigns V Kevin Owens (C) (Universal Championship)
Not the Most popular (Due to the inclusion of Reigns) but in my opinion the match of the night. Yes, Styles V Cena Was one hell of a battle, But the Sheer physical and steady pace of these two was captivating to say the least. The one-upmanship and grit made it feel like they were actually fighting for something and in a sense made the universal title feel like it meant something (which honestly hasn’t felt like anything since the night after Summer Slam). With spot after spot, it had a nostalgic feel to it as a lot of us diehard fans lone for the days of old where guys went all out for title matches. From Owens pulling out a superman punch, to the call back to the stone-cold stunner, to that sick frog splash through the table, this match kept my attention from start to finish. With hardly a dull moment, Jericho in the cage was an afterthought (And in my opinion was unnecessary). Including Stroman was a nice touch, as it made him look like a monster while roman stayed strong needing 2 men to defeat him. But in the end, the outcome of the match was a swerve to us smarks and Owens came out looking like he deserved to be the universal champion.
Weakest match: Charlotte (C) V Bayley (Raw Women’s Championship)
This is a spot I know most of my squared circle brethren relegated for the cruiser-weights, but I feel as though Swann & Neville put on a great match overlooked due to the negative stigma around that division. But to me, Bayley is inferior to Charlotte all around, From mic work to in ring skill. The fact Charlotte is a great hand is what kept this match on par in my opinion, and at various times throughout the bought she just looked like she was playing catch up. Don’t get me wrong, Bayley is far from bad as a wrestler but her gimmick along with her seemingly shrinking under the big lights makes her seem like that bingo hall Cinderella all too much. Genetically superior is Charlotte’s gimmick and she certainly looked that way Sunday night. Good thing Is Bayley can only go up from here, and being in a program with a talent like Charlotte will elevate her most definitely.
The Rumble Match: Randy Orton (W) This match here was
This match here was a Hour and 10 Min’s of ups & Downs, finished with a cup full of back-washed booking. Jericho playing the part of the stark Veteran, Mark Henry’s homecoming to a sea of cheers, Stroman going berserker to Sami Zayn’s delivery of a nasty Helluva kick to Stroman in the corner, there was a lot to enjoy. Having WWE listen to the fans and bringing Tye Dillinger in at 10 was one hell of a moment, But not the moment we needed to win us over on this being an incredible rumble. Big show face to face With Stroman was indeed a mark out moment, but in their 1 on 1 exchange you can see the hesitation in Stroman as he went through the sequence that led up to Big shows elimination. Baron Corbin was great in the rumble further showing me why he is indeed worth the push, and his elimination of Stroman made him look like a legit bad ass. Lesnar was in beast mode but ultimately Goldberg had his number yet again, Goldberg was very stiff in the moves he gave which made him look strong in his first royal rumble outing in over a decade. And then there was the undertaker…… underwhelming in my opinion and he shouldn’t have been in the match. They could have picked another way for him to declare his match at Mania and start up the feud with roman reigns (His belly and hair dye made me sad honestly). Speaking of roman reigns, the number 30 spot was wasted and had potential to be someone spectacular but they gave us roman reigns. In the end, Orton winning wasn’t a bad thing because it not only furthers a great story line but we potentially get something we’ve been longing for and that’s bray Wyatt as WWE Champion.
So all and all, I’m giving The 2017 Royal Rumble a 4.0 out of 5. Not due to the rumble itself but the stellar championship matches on the card that held it together.
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Tavon Carson
What I thought about the Rumble:
Hey Rich,
Best Match: Cena/Styles 9 of 10.
