WWE Clash of Champions 2019 final rating: Hell awaits The Architect
A lot was at stake at WWE Clash of Champions 2019, and after a night in which every championship in the WWE was on the line, plenty has changed and will continue to change moving forward.
WWE Clash of Champions 2019 was bound to shake things up given how many championship matches were on the line, and it didn’t disappoint with several new champions and key developments taking shape with the next pay-per-view being Hell in a Cell in a few weeks.
The main card kicked off with the Raw Tag Team Championship match pitting champions Seth Rollins and Braun Strowman against Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode.
This wound up being a solid match from start to finish, but the finish was really well-done when Strowman shoulder-tackled Roode inadvertently into Rollins before Ziggler took Strowman to the outside, just in time for Roode to hit Rollins with a Glorious DDT to get the win and capture the tag team titles.
It was all about the SmackDown Women’s Championship next when Bayley defended her title against Charlotte Flair in the Queen City, no less.
This would wind up being easily the weakest match of the night in terms of match quality, and it was a short match as well, but the finish helps Bayley’s new heel character out when her exposing the bottom turnbuckle led to Charlotte hitting it and Bayley getting the quick pin shortly after to retain her title.
The New Day defended the SmackDown Tag Team Championship against The Revival next, and the blue brand tag team title encounter would outdo its red brand predecessor.
This was a stellar match with a lot of great moments, but the craftiness of The Revival paid off in the end when after taking Big E out of the picture, Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder focused on the already-injured Xavier Woods before making him tap out to crown The Revival as new champions.
The Women’s Tag Team Championship was on the line next when Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross defended against Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville, Fire and Desire.
This wasn’t an outstanding match by any means, but it was definitely a good showing by all four women. The finish in which Cross pinned Rose was satisfying as well given how Rose had been image-shaming Cross lately.
It was a solid win for Cross and Bliss keeping their titles in hand.
Shinsuke Nakamura defended the Intercontinental Championship against The Miz up next, and for a match with no hype whatsoever, this way exceeded expectations.
In what could be argued as the match of the night up to this point in the show, these two put on an impressive battle that eventually ended with The King of Strong Style benefiting from interference by Sami Zayn and hitting The Miz with a Kinsasha to retain his title.
Arguably the most anticipated match of the night took place next when Becky Lynch defended the Raw Women’s Championship against Sasha Banks.
Undoubtedly, this match wound up being the best of the night, and for good reason. These women put on a tremendous showing and did just about everything you could have hoped for, although one key moment in the match turned the tide and led to a rather confusing ending.
Banks tried to use a steel chair on Lynch, but The Man wound up with the chair and took a swing at Banks, only to hit the referee instead. The two then brawled all throughout the arena before making their way back to the ring, but even with the ref knocked out, the match ended in a disqualification and Lynch kept her title by default.
Controversial ending aside, this was a great match, and this definitely isn’t the last we’ll see from these two.
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Kofi Kingston defended the WWE Championship against Randy Orton next, and despite what you thought of their SummerSlam encounter, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t think this match was better.
It wasn’t necessarily great, but it was very well-done and even with a slower tempo at times, they both still had standout moments along the way.
The finish was impressive when Kofi hit Orton with a Trouble in Paradise and got the clean win over The Viper.
The biggest grudge match on the card followed when Roman Reigns took on Eric Rowan after finally finding out Rowan was behind the recent attacks.
In what has to be considered Rowan’s biggest singles match in the WWE to date, both he and Reigns knocked it out of the park.
This was a very good, physical match as it was expected to be, but the finish was what got everyone talking in this no disqualification battle.
Just when it looked like The Big Dog had Rowan right where he wanted him, an attempted spear on the ramp was intercepted by a big boot courtesy of the shocking return of Luke Harper.
The Bludgeon Brothers were back on the same page, and that paved the way for Rowan to get the win over Reigns in what has to be his biggest singles victory in the WWE. There is still much to be determined with this feud.
It was then main event time when Rollins and Strowman competed in their second match of the night, this time with Rollins’ Universal Championship on the line.
This match took a little while to get going, but it picked up and created some dramatic moments. Rollins hit Strowman with three stomps, but The Monster Among Men kicked out of them all.
However, Rollins dug deep into his bag of tricks and hit Strowman with a pedigree followed by another stomp to retain his title.
After the match, The Fiend showed up and attacked Rollins, signaling his intentions for a Universal Championship match at Hell in a Cell next month.
Overall, this was a stellar pay-per-view offering that definitely exceeded what most fans thought it would be. Every match was at least pretty good, outside of the Bayley vs. Charlotte match, but even with that match feeling more like a random Raw match, the finish was still fitting.
Outside of that, there are plenty of takeaways from this show.
Both tag team titles changed hands, The Man and The Boss are all but headed for a Hell in a Cell rematch, Harper’s return has completely changed the dynamic of the Rowan vs. Reigns feud, and The Fiend vs. The Architect looks imminent for Hell in a Cell. Not to mention, with Kofi pinning Orton clean, who will step up and challenge him next for the WWE Championship?
There are plenty of things to be optimistic and excited about in the coming weeks, and Clash of Champions helped create some of that buzz with a stellar showing.
dark. Next. WWE Clash of Champions 2019 results, highlights, and grades