Here’s our final review of WWE Fastlane 2016!
Kalisto (c) (with Sin Cara) vs. Alberto Del Rio (with Sheamus, King Barrett and Rusev) (Two out of Three Falls) (WWE United States Championship)
Reactions: Rio and Kalisto have gotten to put on some decent matches for the US Championship these past few months. This Two out of Three Falls matchup truly gave us a rematch that fulfilled the lofty expectations we expected from both Luchadors. This contest was easily steps above their previous matches. Rio always seems to go a bit harder and play a bit dirtier when he’s matched up with a fellow Mexican wrestler. A lot of the match took place on the outside, which led to exciting moments such as Rio using his double foot stomp to Kalisto on the arena floor. Kalisto’s amazing high-flying arsenal came into play several times here and that’s what made this title match even more of a fun affair. The finish was also fun to witness as Kalisto deviated from his finisher with a cool counter that was followed up by a quick pin. If this is the end of their feud, then this match was the perfect one to end it on. This was a solid and enjoyable start to the show.
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks vs. Team B.A.D. (Naomi and Tamina)
Reactions: It’s been a while since we’ve seen the Divas properly start of a PPV. Banks and Becky are the perfect ladies to rely on to get the crowd hype due to their NXT background. This tag match was your standard Divas contest, but it was lot more interesting since all four women work a lot harder than their “all looks, no ability” counterparts. Team B.A.D.’s teamwork was smart and worked well for a few moments, plus the rough partnership between Banks and Becky played a role in how this match transpired. Once Sasha got going, this match got a tad bit more exciting. Overall, this was a fine effort from all four ladies. It wasn’t super exhilarating, but it was still fine for what it was.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
Kevin Owens (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler (WWE Intercontinental Championship)
Reactions: “AND THAT’S WHY I’M THE CHAMP!” That quote rung true after an awesome match between Owens and Ziggler. Ziggler’s home crowd cheered ferociously for their guy, but there were just as many cheers for KO. This made the atmosphere surrounding this title match all the more interesting. Owens constant berating of Ziggler was hilarious as always, which also added to this great contest. Ziggler brought everything to the table against Owens (he even went back to his day of amateur wrestling). The back and forth action got even better during a crazy exchange of Superkicks between both men. There was never a dull moment during this matchup as both competitors fought tooth and nail for an appreciate crowd. As expected, Owens and Ziggler put on a clinic. Owens Pop-Up Powerbomb looked even more devastating than it usually did, which made the finish much more impactful to witness. If these guys wanna go at it again, we’re down to watch it unfold. Great match!
Rating: 3 & a Half out of 5 Stars
Ryback, Big Show and Kane vs. The Wyatt Family (Luke Harper, Erick Rowan and Braun Strowman) (with Bray Wyatt)
Reactions: We’re gonna do a checkup on this match later to get a gauge on the total weight of every man involved in this clash of the titans. This wasn’t an expectedly slow affair, which was a blessing in disguise. Ryback moved as swiftly as he usually does, plus Show and Kane put on some fun sprints when it was time for them to go for broke. Harper was the MVP for his team (unsurprisingly), but his family cult mates held up their end just fine. Show shockingly put on the best moments of the match, as he threw Harper over his head to the outside and landed a vicious spear to Strowman. All in all though, this was the type of 6-man tag you’d usually see in the main event of RAW. It was decent enough, but far from spectacular.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
Charlotte (c) (with Ric Flair) vs. Brie Bella (WWE Divas Championship)
Reactions: Brie paid some respects to her now retired husband Daniel Bryan by wearing his furry WrestleMania 30 boots. That was a nice nod and there were several more cool nods to follow throughout the match. Charlotte and Brie played up their heated rivalry by mocking each other’s respective taunts. The match itself started fine enough, but some awkward exchanges during the middle portion brought it down a little. Once those boring moments finally came to a close, Brie and Charlotte picked up the pace a bit and the action improved. Brie did a great job of calling back to the moveset of her sister and husband and Charlotte was on fire as usual. This title match unfolded in a manner that should come as a surprise to no one – Charlotte got the submission victory. So how was the match overall? We’re feeling a bit “meh…” on the match rating scale with this one.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho
Reactions: GOOD LORD! Was this match amazing or what? Styles and Jericho not only topped their previous matches, but they managed to bring the crowd’s excitement level to its maximum. Styles proved himself once more and threw out the most unique moves in his repertoire. Jericho scouted his high-flying opponent well though and saw Y2J counter Styles during a plancha and Springboard Forearm attempt. Jericho got even more physical with Styles and seemingly went back to his evil days as the Undisputed Champion from 2001-2002. As the match entered into its middle and ending stages, AJ and Y2J turned up the intensity and truly got things underway. AJ hit his Stylin’ DDT and Pele, while Jericho locked in his Walls of Jericho and brought back his Lionsault. We came out of our seats when Styles crashed Jericho to the mat with his Styles Clash (which Y2J kicked out of). The finish came when Styles locked in his incredibly painful looking Calf Crusher. Styles and Jericho’s back and forth feud over the past few weeks culminated with this amazing tie-breaker of a match. As AJ’s theme says – THEY DON’T WANT NONE!
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Curtis Axel (with the Social Outcasts) vs. R-Truth
Reactions: This was a completely random match that seemed more like a time filler than something worthwhile. The Social Outcasts provided some good slapstick humor though. R-Truth did his usual stuff and Axel pulled off as much moves as he could with such a short run time. This was more of an angle than an actual competitive matchup. Goldust came out and tried to provide some aid to the man he wanted as a tag team partner. However, it backfired and led to Axel rolling up Truth for the quick win. This belonged on RAW, not a PPV. It was what it was – a moment used to further the storyline between Truth and Goldust. Nothing more, nothing less. Skip it.
Rating: 1 out of 5 Stars
Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar (Triple threat match to determine the #1 contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 32)
Reactions: The mayor of Suplex City made this triple threat match all the more entertaining. Lesnar went on an insane mean streak and suplexed his opponents all over the place. The opening moments of this main event were amazing. Lesnar made his dominance known and had the crowd chanting “SUPLEX CITY!” Reigns and Ambrose teamed up of course and played up their past stable unity by Powerbombing Lesnar through two announce tables. Both former Shield mates went toe to toe in some quick but fun exchanges while Lesnar lay incapacitated outside the ring. We lost our minds when Lesnar hopped back into the ring and German Suplexed Reigns while Ambrose was stuck in a Samoan Drop position. There were several moments where we though someone besides Reigns was going to grab the victory. The best moment by far has to be when Reigns speared Lesnar, Lesnar locked in his Kimura Lock and Ambrose went to town on them both with a steel chair. But even after all that lovely madness, Reigns emerged the winner (what a shocker, huh?). While the result was far from a surprise, the match itself was simply excellent.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Match of the Night
Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar!
Final Verdict
We didn’t expect much from the 2016 installment of WWE Fastlane. But we were left with our jaws on the floor by the time this event came to a close. Easily the finest bouts on this show were between AJ Styles/Chris Jericho and the main event between Brock Lesnar Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose. The championship grudge matches that included Alberto Del Rio/Kalisto and Kevin Owens/Dolph Ziggler were also exceptional encounters. The rest of this card can be skipped (if you wanna elicit a few giggles, check out The New Day/Edge & Christian segment). Fastlane 2016 featured four commendable matches, which makes it worth seeing in our eyes. Hopefully WrestleMania 32 tops this middle-of-the-road to ‘Mania PPV. Make sure you see the first two matches we mentioned.
Final Score: 3 & a Half out of 5 Stars
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WWE Fastlane 2016: Reactions & Review