Here’s our final review of WWE Battleground 2016!
The Usos (Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso) vs. Breezango (Tyler Breeze and Fandango) (Kickoff Match)
Reactions: WWE’s Kickoff Matches are never much of anything to really speak off, but this match was different from the norm. The Usos tend to put on great matches on the regular, plus Breezango has turned into a fun duo worth following. Both these teams engaged in a matchup that never slowed to a crawl. Fast action, close near-falls and a hot crowd made this better than expected. The midpoint of this Kickoff Match really kicked it into high gear. The Usos looked good here and so did Breezango. Breezango is finally coming into their own and it was cool to see them get the much needed win here. This was a pretty fun sprint.
Rating: 2 & a Half out of 5 Stars
Sasha Banks & Bayley vs. Charlotte & Dana Brooke
Reactions: WE WERE RIGHT! IT WAS BAYLEY ALL ALONG! The hot crowd we mentioned from before stayed hot with the surprise arrival of the women’s wrestler known for awesome hugs. This high-spirited tag team match was full of action. Charlotte and Brooke started off the match in a very intense way, but Banks and Bayley managed to fend off their opposers well. Banks and Bayley’s hot tag offense was incredible to see in the very same match. Charlotte’s Big Boot/Natural Selection combo was a pretty cool moment from the heel team. Both teams went tooth and nail with each other and gave us a fun tag team encounter. Banks and Bayley won and gave us a future look at the planned Women’s Championship match at SummerSlam 2016.
Rating: 2 & a Half out of 5 Stars
The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) vs. The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Erick Rowan and Braun Strowman) (Six-Man Tag Team Match)
Reactions: The Wyatt Family looked like the creepiest, well-oiled machine we know them to be here. They played on Woods’ fear of Bray and took advantage by beating the crap out of Kofi and Big E. Both of those New Day members (especially Big E) put in a ton of work and did their best to fend off their creepy adversaries. Things truly ramped up when Big E got the hot tag. Plenty of entertaining madness followed as Rowan got speared through the middle rope and when Big E caught a mean uppercut from Bray that pushed him into a Side Slam from Rowan. WWE’s six-man tag’s tend to have a lot of fire and passion within them, which was definitely the case here. Woods finally overcame his fears and got in some nice offense on Bray. But it was to no avail as Bray laid him out with a Sister Abigail. This was a solid match with a nice backstory, which means it kept us enthralled until the very end.
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Rusev (c) (with Lana) vs. Zack Ryder (WWE United States Championship)
Reactions: This US Championship match felt less like a PPV match and more like a RAW midcard match with an extra 10 minutes tacked onto it. While it was decent enough, there was nothing here that was outright amazing and extra memorable. Ryder’s entrance attire and patriotic ring gear were cool, so we have to give this match that at least. Rusev is back to his dominating self (the one we grew to love before he lost to Cena at ‘Mania 31), which is a character trait he tapped into here. Ryder’s outside missile dropkick was a cool moment to see, but it didn’t pay off for him. Rusev tapped Ryder out and put this title feud to bed. The Mojo Rawley appearance was a nice little surprise to see at the end of this all. This was OK, but we’re now ready to see Rusev face off with more dangerous challengers.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens
Reactions: Sami Zayn has the honor of saying he fought in two matches where the crowd chanted “FIGHT FOREVER!” Zayn and Owens’ blood has resulted in some truly awesome matches. This stood out as their best encounter on the main WWE roster. Zayn actually went on a Suplex City rampage throughout as he dished out Exploders and Half-Nelson Suplexes. Owens was no slouch though as he landed nice Superkicks and more dominating maneuvers. The turning point of this match truly came when Zayn took a high risk by landing awkwardly on the outside with an Arabian Moonsault Press. Zayn’s now injured shoulder took a lot of damage, but he still did the unthinkable by landing a Brainbuster on Owens to the ring apron. This match continued to excel over the the matches before it with some jaw dropping back an forth offense. Finishing moves were doled out, but the end truly came after two Helluva Kicks. Zayn overcame his biggest foe in one of the best matches of the evening.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Becky Lynch vs. Natalya
Reactions: Natalya’s a jerk and we love it. She showcased her new mean streak here in the best ways possible: by working over Becky’s injured knee and taunting her at every opportunity. Becky was her usual fired up self as he dropped Natalya with stiff elbow shots and suplexes. This match mainly focused on Natalya focusing all her attention on Becky’s leg, which wasn’t too thrilling to watch. Becky’s comeback offense was fun to watch and both women struggling to lock in their submissions at different intervals was kind of interesting at points. But overall, this was an average Women’s match. At least Natalya got a big win.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
The Miz (c) (with Maryse) vs. Darren Young (with Bob Backlund) (WWE Intercontinental Championship)
Reactions: This Darren Young run isn’t doing anything for us since he’s still so bland in the ring. Having an opponent like The Miz doesn’t really help matter much, either. This was just a passable match that the crowd (and us included) weren’t too enamored with. Darren’s fiery comeback offense looked impressive, at least. We truly didn’t care that much until Bob Backlund went nuts outside the ring. This IC Championship bout ended under some disappointing means, which brought down this match’s quality factor even more. It looks like this might be settled in the future, but after watching this match we’re not sure we want to see that again. A blah match with a blah ending.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
John Cena, Enzo Amore and Big Cass vs. The Club (AJ Styles, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows) (Six-Man Tag Team Match)
Reactions: Both these talented combinations of Superstars have been great on the mic and in the ring during their beef. And the culmination of such a great feud came to a fine close here with this awesome six-man tag. Enzo’s opening monologue (plus Cass’s soccer mom digs at AJ) started things off on a very high note. The match itself stayed intense at all times. Enzo fought tooth and nail against his much larger opponents, AJ was cockier than ever, Cena went nuts during his comeback and The Club went harder than ever. The most hectic point of this bout occurred when everyone exchanged their signature holds. Cena ended up catching Enzo and throwing him into Gallows’ arms, plus AJ mistakenly laid out Gallows with a Phenomenal Elbow. Things got even more hectic when Cena ate a Spinebuster outside the ring. When the ref lost control, we lost our minds because it improved more and more. AJ got bested by a top rope AA from Cena to end this big multi-man matchup. Now we can’t wait for the eventual SummerSlam rematch between both men. Make sure you check this marquee matchup out, folks.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins (Triple Threat Match for the WWE Championship)
Reactions: The atmosphere surrounding this main event was filled with fan fervor. The three former members of The Shield headed out to engage in war, plus both brand’s representation watched and cheered on their roster members. This triple threat match was a solid close to a decent PPV. All three men harkened back to the stablemate days by using the familiar offense they were once known for. Reigns got torn to shred by the fans who resented him, which made those moments where he got beat down more fun to witness. Ambrose fought like a madman, Rollins intelligently picked his spots and Reigns relied on his unmatched power to cut down his opponents. We have to give this match props for bringing up some nods to the past, like the moment when Rollins used a steel chair to crack Ambrose and Rollins in the back. The closing sequence was packed with fast action and heart stopping near falls. Reigns made sure to put Rollins down with his finishing moves, but Ambrose did the same to Reigns to take the big victory. Ambrose’s victory, the high stakes of the match and the match itself all equaled up into a solid finish to Battleground 2016.
Rating: 3 & a Half out of 5 Stars
Match of the Night
Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens!
Final Verdict
WWE Battleground 2016 was an event that had a lot on the line when it came to which brand would get the biggest wins and titles. The hot Washington, D.C. crowd added that extra element of hype to a B-Level PPV. The matches you need to see if you missed them the first time around are the main event, the big six-man tag and Zayn vs. Owens. That aforementioned match stood above everything else on the card due to how amazing it turned out to be. The rest of the card was average to good, plus Orton’s verbal stab at Lesnar made his segment with Y2J hilarious to see. WWE Battleground 2016 was a good show, but not exactly a great one.
Final Score: 3 out of 5 Stars
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