WWE Clash of Champions 2017 Results: Highlights, Analysis, and Grades

Photo Source: WWE.com

SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match

The Usos (c) vs. New Day vs. Aiden English & Rusev vs. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin

Result: The Usos defeated Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin via pinfall

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

First off, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention how terrific “The Twelve Days of Rusev” was. I’m around music all the time at my day job (uh, as a music teacher), so I know quality when I hear it. And the Shakespeare of Song dropping references to breaking boards and keys to the city means quality with a capital Q. Even CFO$ had to recognize the skills:

Then the match started, and right off the bat it was bonkers as would be expected. Within about 90 seconds, bodies had been strewn everywhere, guys were flying to the outside, and dudes were getting thrown halfway across the ring. The rules of the match practically encouraged the chaos, with one member of each team being in the ring at all times.

But after the initial fracas, things slowed down to a crawl. I’m all for a change of pace in a match to spice things up, but this was really slow. It’s no fault of the superstars in the ring – it’s just that the match seemed designed to prevent that slow down, so it was much more noticeable.

Lots of good things in the back half made up for that slow middle. The respect shown between the Usos and New Day before things devolved into a war was great. Shelton Benjamin had an amazing run demonstrating his power and ring smarts. Rusev and English had the crowd eating out of the palm of their hands.

But the star here may have been Chad Gable, despite being the superstar to get pinned. Not many people can get Rusev and Big E up for a suplex, let alone the Chaos Theory rolling German variety. Still, Gable went for it, nailed it, and damn near pulled out a win. The Usos proved their superiority, though, winning a hard fought battle.