WWE Hell in a Cell 2015: Ranking Every Match from the Show

Carl Gac

Courtesy of WWE.com

This past Sunday, we saw WWE present Hell in a Cell. Check out how we ranked every match from the show worst to first.

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It was a night of final chapters, as Michael Cole proudly stated as the show started. It was a night when months, and in some cases years, long feuds came to a head. It was the night when WWE seemingly pressed the reset button and the focus will now slowly turn towards WrestleMania season. There’s a long way to go till we get to the Granddaddy of them all but we are now heading in that direction, before you know it we’ll be (im)patiently waiting for the show to start from Texas.

The show featured a lot of matches we’d seen, at least once, before. That didn’t make it a bad show by any means, it will be interesting to see where the combatants head coming out of this show. Tonight’s Raw will be an interesting one for sure.

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We saw every title defended, but only one change hands. We saw an amazing return from a man who left the company under a cloud. We saw one of the most brutal matches ever held inside the Hell in a Cell, i think it was a match that saw at least one spot i never remember seeing in WWE before. We saw a lot, some was good, some was bad, some was amazing. But how would we rank the matches we saw?

Click below to find out.

Next: No. 7

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7. WWE Tag Team Championship Match
New Day (c) vs. The Dudley Boyz

This had to be the night that The New Day got their comeuppance and finally lost their Tag Team Tiles didn’t it? Apparently not.

The Dudley Boyz had basically won the belts on two previous occasions, only to see Xavier Woods cause disqualifications. This time it wouldn’t happen though as Bubba and D-Von had taken him out of action and he wasn’t present. Seeing Kofi and Big E come out without their third Unicorn was slightly strange, it left them missing a bit of their usual greatness (And what is all this Unicorn rubbish?)

The Dudleys will undoubtedly get their tenth title reign, it just wasn’t meant to happen on this night. We saw the usual match we’ve come accustomed to between these teams, minus the greatness of Xavier playing the ringside trombone. The heels had the beating of their opponents, a hot tag occurred, we thought they’d hit the 3D but Kofi got the Trouble in Paradise for the win.

That was it, nothing different really to what we’ve seen before, you can bet your bottom dollar there’ll be another match between them soon. New Day are one of the most over things in WWE and are so entertaining, you just get the feeling that when the Dudleys finally get their win and take the Tag Team Championship, the moment will have passed.

Next: No. 6

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6.WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Kevin Owens (c) vs. Ryback

How do you make people switch off to one of the best talents you’ve got in the company? You put him in a match with Ryback!

Kevin Owens is one of the hottest things that WWE have currently on the main roster but in this feud with former Intercontinental Champion Ryback he’s wasted. Ryback is pushed as if he’s a beast but comes across as a Goldberg tribute act at times (for this writer at least). This match was was nothing spectacular, it was solid, that’s about the best you can describe it. Owens has torn the house down with the likes of Cesaro in recent months but that man can’t get anywhere near the pay per view let alone a championship match.

Anyway back to the match. Ryback performed all manner of power moves, most of which were a staple for the big stars of the 1980’s. Most of those moves were met with either silence or boos from the crowd. Owens was his usual hard-hitting, trash talking, ass kicking self and got the win after a big pop up power bomb. He heads forwards with his gold intact and hopefully leaves Ryback in his rear view mirror.

Next: No. 5

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5. WWE United States Championship Match
John Cena (c) had issued an open challenge, it was answered in epic fashion.

During the day a lot of different names were rumoured to be in town, from Daniel Bryan to James Storm to Samoa Joe. It turned out to be none of those men, it turned out to be a man who few expected it to be. It’s well-known that Cena was leaving the WWE for a while following this weekend so you knew that whoever was going to face him would probably beat him for the belt.

When Zeb Colter rolled out on his scooter i had terrible visions it was going to be Jack Swagger that was going to rescue us from the United States Champion Cena. That couldn’t have been further from the actual man it was. When Zeb announced that it was time for “people from different countries to come together” a million names flashed through my head. When Alberto Del Rio strutted from behind the big screen the building erupted, he’s not been seen here since being fired after a backstage altercation over a year ago.

Cena looked very surprised at Del Rio being his challenger, these men had met before and they’d always been tough matches. Right from the second he came out though he looked like he wanted to get this over and done with, ironically it didn’t take him long to lose the gold. Del Rio is one of the greats to come out of Mexico, he’s too good not to be in WWE.

The match started slowly but Del Rio got the better with some vicious looking kicks. Cena attempted to get into the match but Alberto wore him down with submissions and Cena struggled to get in the match. The writing was on the wall from the opening bell, Del Rio was in charge and he wasn’t leaving without that belt.

Big John got into it, hitting punches and his patented Five Knuckle Shuffle, looked to be setting up the Attitude Adjustment when Del Rio hit the Back Stabber and a violent looking kick to get the three count. A clean pin. On John Cena. It’s rare that happens and they must have BIG plans for Del Rio now he’s back.

That was a weird match to watch. It was reasonably short, Cena didn’t get a lot of offense in, he lost clean. I’m waiting for the storyline reason that Cena is gone, there has to be a reason behind his performance.

Seeing Del Rio shake hands with Zeb Colter, the Ringside Rascal, after the match leaves more questions than it answers. The company has been rumored to want Del Rio back for a while now, they have their man and he has gold around his waist, this could be an interesting few months for him. How much would we love to see Del Rio vs Seth Rollins for the WWE title?

Next: No. 4

WWE.com

4. WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match
Seth Rollins (c) vs. Kane

The whole premise of all this was the split personalities of Kane. It’s been entertaining seeing him be the yes-man suit-wearer in one moment, to then be the masked monster the next. Rollins is the perfect cowardly heel, having said that though the majority of his title reign has been forgettable. Kane has been the man who was meant to protect Rollins but slowly became his worst enemy, finally becoming the masked Demon again at Night of Champions.

This was a match that pretty much went as you expected. Rollins played hit and run at times, Kane showed why he’s one of the best big men to ever set foot in the ring. Rollins is the future of WWE and Kane will soon be a Hall of Famer. This was another match that saw them all over the ringside area.

Kane took Rollins outside the ring and cleared the Spanish announce table very early on. He would eventually be power bombed onto the table that did not break. Rollins took his beating well and the pair of them put on a very good match. Rollins literally has it all. He can brawl, he can wrestle, he can fly with the best of them. This was a great combination of all those elements.

Rollins is so good in this spot. He has the perfect character and facial expressions to pull this off. He got the win with a pedigree after a choke slam reversal.

As per the pre-match stipulation, Kane lost his job as Director of Operations with the loss.

Next: No. 3

WWE.com

3. Hell in a Cell Match
Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns

A match that seemed to be in the pipeline for so long, it took up so much time on WWE tv it needed to delivery inside the Cell.

Wyatt came out alone, none of the Wyatt Family with him (don’t worry though folks they’ll pop up later). It was strange seeing him walk out on his own but this man really can take the mantle and become the man to take The Undertakers spot. Reigns is the man who the bosses would have you believe could have been the WWE Champion, i still don’t think he’s ready. The Cell would be make or break for both men.

The early going was back and forth until Wyatt came into contact with both the Cell and the steps. Mistakes from Reigns saw Wyatt take control with the aid of a Kendo stick, a chair and the Cell. Reigns took some brutal looking shots with the Kendo stick, at times it’s hard to watch that kind of attack. Reigns got back in it with the help of not one but two kendo sticks, this match was proving to be the war we expected. After seeing so many versions of this match it was good to see them come up with some unique spots. Using the cell to hold weapons is something we’ve not seen much before.

We finally saw a table dragged out from under the ring by Reigns, then another. As is usual the man who got the table out was the first to go through it. Wyatt looked to be in control before getting power bombed through the table. Reigns got a two count then managed to spear Bray through a table at ringside, that looked nasty.

After a handful of blocks and near falls the end was upon us. Wyatt was driven into the two kendo sticks positioned in the corner then was hit with the Spear for Reigns to get the three. He wins this feud and will look to use it as a springboard in the next few months.

Was this match good? Yes.

Did it need to be in the Cell? No.

Was the finish a bit far-fetched? Yes.

Am I glad this feud is over? Oh hell yes!

Wyatt reappeared later in the night, I think we’re about to see a lot more from him.

Next: No. 2

WWE.com

2. WWE Divas Championship Match
Charlotte (c) vs. Nikki Bella

Well this was a turn up for the books. I really didn’t expect this match to be as good as it was but looking back I don’t know why i’m so surprised. It had all the makings of something good and it definitely produced the goods.

None of the other associated women being allowed at ringside made a massive difference to this match. We’ve seen so many outside influences dominate this whole Divas Revolution it was good to see a one on one championship match. Nikki is the record holder, Charlotte is one of the best women wrestlers in the world and the pair of them put on a great match.

A back and forth encounter that saw them brawl at ringside in the early going, Nikki looked to have the best of it but couldn’t get the pin. Nikki has come so far since she started out in WWE, she looked equal to Charlotte throughout the match.

Nikki had the better of it, some sweet looking submissions had Charlotte in trouble. Nikki dominated the match but just couldn’t put Charlotte away. The highlights of the match had to be the Alabama Slam on to the ring apron on the Champion by the Challenger, and the reversal into a DDT from the top rope by Charlotte. Throw in the awfully harsh looking chops and this was a tough match for both women.

Charlotte got the win the same way she did when she won the title in the last match between them, locking in the Figure Four, then bridging it into the Figure Eight, we’ve seen that move so many time but you can’t help but be impressed by it. Seeing Nikki emphatically tap out at the end was the perfect finish.

Charlotte needed that win, if she’d lost the whole Divas Revolution may as well never have been mentioned. The likes of Charlotte are the future of women’s wrestling for WWE, they need to be given the chance to shine at any and every opportunity.

Paige managed to shine in the post match as well. Doing her best to push Becky Lynch into the background as she helped Charlotte celebrate, there’s a lot more to come from those three women.

Next: No. 1

WWE.com

1. Hell in a Cell Match
Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker

Well, how do you describe this match? Epic. Brutal. Bloody.

This was the perfect way to end this feud. Inside Hell in a Cell nothing could stop these men from destroying each other. First there was the end of the Streak. Then there was the controversy in the rematch. Then there was something completely different. This was an all out war between two men who have been on each other’s backs for well over a year.

The pair of them looked equal in the early going, until Lesnar got the better of Taker outside the ring. That didn’t last long though and Taker ended up busting Lesnar open on the ring post, in a similar way that Brock was at WrestleMania. It’s such a rare occurrence that we now see blood in WWE that when you do see it then it really means something. Lesnar was a bloody mess for the rest of the match, that didn’t stop this being a ridiculously good match.

Lesnar took control with a steel chair, it’s not like he needed the weapon though. The use of the doctor in the match, to check on the cut on the top of Brock’s head kind of gave this the feeling of it being a real fight, something akin to his matches in UFC. Taker also ended up busted open and the two men worked each other over trying to make the cuts worse.

Lesnar started the trip to Suplex City and Taker was on the rocks, Lesnar is legitimately the best man at throwing the German in WWE. Lesnar hit the F-5 and covered Taker, i expected this to be the end but Taker kicked out at 2. The he did it again….

From there we had shots with the ring steps, more suplexes, an absolute war. Seeing Lesnar power out of the Hells Gate submission and then pounding Taker was fantastic. Then the match took a turn i’d never seen in WWE before. Lesnar ripped off the canvas to expose the boards underneath. It was a bad idea though as he ate a choke slam on the boards as well as a Tombstone Piledriver, but the Beast kicked out at 2. At this point this match is an awesome spectacle.

The end was coming though. Lesnar hit a massive low blow, similar to the one Taker hit at SummerSlam, then an F-5 on the exposed boards to get the three count and the win. This was a battle and it was the perfect way to end this feud.

The night didn’t end there for Undertaker though. As he was recovering in the ring the Wyatt Family made their way out and took him away on their shoulders. Similar happened last night on Raw to Kane so you can safely say we’ll probably see The Brothers of Destruction joining forces against them soon. Brock goes forward to who knows where, there’s probably some form of heavyweight title match heading his way soon.

We’ve seen more of Taker in the last few months than we have in the last few years. You could safely say this is the start of his impending retirement at next years WrestleMania.

Next: WWE Hell in a Cell 2015 Review

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Carl Gac

Carl has been a massive wrestling fan since the mid 90's. A fan of WWE and TNA but mainly a lover of the indies and British Wrestling. Be sure to follow Carl on twitter to see his views on all things going on in the wrestling world.