The Raw brand put out a massive effort this past Sunday with their WWE No Mercy 2017 PPV.
If anything else, WWE No Mercy 2017 was not your average WWE PPV. The card was stacked with matches that were worthy of WrestleMania next spring. Perhaps the No Mercy card was eclipsed by the two huge matches of Braun Strowman vs. Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns vs. John Cena. But the other matches held their own in spite of the overshadowing of the main events.
For example, the Fatal Five Way match definitely surprised fans in terms of how much action was packed into the match. The Raw Women’s Division seemed a little scatterbrained at the start of 2017, but with the addition of Alexa Bliss, things look to heat up as the Goddess continues to reign supreme. With Asuka’s upcoming debut at TLC, things will look to reach a boiling point in the Women’s Division. Nia Jax continued to be impressive with her ring work, while fans saw a tease of a future feud that could be rekindled with Sasha Banks and Bayley.
The Cruiserweight Division looks to be on the brink of a rebellion thanks to Enzo Amore’s win over Neville. The reactions of fellow cruiserweights including former WWE Superstar Austin Aries raised eyebrows of fans and piqued their interest as to what’s really going down when it comes to the Realest Guy in the Room. Fans also saw Strowman’s quest for the Universal Championship come to a screeching halt at the hands of Lesnar and the torch was undoubtedly passed from Cena to Reigns in a battle to run the yard.
Despite all of those big moments, one match really stood out on its own, to which it is much needed and well deserved. That is the Raw Tag Team Championship match between The Bar vs. Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. The Tag Team division has seen its ups and down through the course of the year, but its shots of rejuvenation have been well worth it.
The Bar, which consists of Sheamus and Cesaro, has been consistent with their work since the team’s inception. Who knew that their feud last year would turn into one of the more successful tag teams of 2017? The Bar would end The New Day’s historic title reign, and held the Raw Tag Team Championships twice. They have made work of not only The New Day, but The Hardy Boyz as well. While the saying ‘good friends make better enemies’ is true, perhaps the former enemies make a great tag team as well. Sheamus and Cesaro both needed each other at a time when both were lost in the shuffle. The team was well worth the investment.
Then, you have Rollins and Ambrose. From their Shield days to their fallout in 2014, Rollins and Ambrose have been brothers and they have been bitter enemies. Fate would have them cross paths on Raw and the brothers have ended up on the same side once more. Both men were going nowhere fast prior to them teaming up. Fans already know what Rollins and Ambrose are capable of when paired together. It was a reunion fans wanted to see and got in addition to them winning the Raw Tag Team Championships at SummerSlam.
And since SummerSlam, the Tag Team division has been duking it out every week on Raw. However there was definitely unfinished business between The Bar and Rollins and Ambrose that had to be tended to. There was no better way than to culminate that at No Mercy this past Sunday.
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This match was outstanding in terms of telling the story and a hard fought battle. There were hard hitting moments, and big moves that made fans want even more from the workhorse duos. Not only was it a hard fought battle, but this match turned into a war fast.
It was a quest of who wanted the championships more and the price each man was willing to pay. Cesaro ended up with two of his teeth going up in his upper jaw thanks to a freak landing on the turnbuckle.
The match was a slow burn, with a steady build before all men were pulling out their best efforts. The Bar was able to take advantage of every mistake Rollins and Ambrose made during the match. However, the tenacity of the former Shield mates prevailed in retaliation.
Whatever The Bar was throwing at them, Rollins and Ambrose responded right back. That tenacity is what ended up frustrating the former champions, as they went to extremes to try to take back the championships. The White Noise/powerbomb combination was the best moment of the match.
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The fakeout that Ambrose did at the end of the match to avoid the Brogue Kick was genius as he was able to outsmart Sheamus to garner the victory. This match is surely a Match of the Year candidate with major kudos to all men involved. The Tag Team Division has flourished this year and matches like this one uphold that.