AJ Styles vs. John Cena vs. Dean Ambrose (No Mercy)
Taken from Match Review: AJ IS STILL THE FACE THAT RUNS THE PLACE! And he managed to keep the title around his waist in this fun opener for SmackDown Live’ biggest prize. There were several moments where we thought his reign was coming a short close. Cena used a German Suplex on his opponents at the same time in an exciting moment, but Styles pulled out all his best moves to down both men. His Double DDT on both Ambrose and Cena was jaw dropping. When a Triple Threat Match is done right, nothing can truly top it. This match was a clear example of that fact. Styles tap-out in the middle of this match made us believe the match was truly over, but it thankfully kept going. Ambrose was his usual wild self and Cena pulled out all the stops, which made us and the crowd more invested as everything wore on. The simple ending where Styles destroyed Cena with a chair was sort of a letdown, but it didn’t bring down the quality of this bout too much. Styles retained his title in a great PPV opener.
The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler (No Mercy)
Taken from Match Review: The added stipulation of Ziggler’s career being on the line had us heavily invested in how this one would go down. And to no one’s surprise, this match turned out to be the best part of their heated series of encounters. Ziggler put everything on the line during this matchup, which had us on the edge of our set as Miz looked to end his career several times. Miz’s leg work made his Figure-Four Leglock attempt even more of a nail-biting affair when he punished Ziggler with it. The intense back and forth action that took place over the course of this IC Championship match was incredible to see. The final moments of this match brought the live crowd 9and us of course) to our feet. Ziggler used all manner of devastating Superkicks to finish his former male cheerleader stablemates and the IC Champion. Miz showed up to put on a great match during his entertaining title reign, which is exactly what he did. Ziggler’s IC Champion once again and it occurred during one of the better title matches of the evening. This one was full of great action and pure unbridled emotion.
#DIY vs. The Revival (NXT TakeOver: Toronto)
The purest form of tag team wrestling is exemplified by the the 2nd NXT TakeOver meeting between #DIY and The Revival. When this one was announced as a 2-out-of-3 Falls match, the stakes got that much higher. And what we got here was an emotional roller coaster of a match. Gargano’s initial comeback sequence made sure that the early portions of this match got us even more excited for what came next. The Revival landed a brutal Shatter Machine to get the 1st pin, but Ciampa’s suplexing rage helped weaken one of The Revival’s members enough to catch a well-placed finisher. All the action that transpired before #DIY finally won the NXT Tag Team Championship was a crowd pleaser. Gargano blocked out all the leg pain he endured and helped submit The Revival alongside his best friend. #DIY made us all proud when they prevailed here.
Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks (Nov. 28th Raw)
Out of all the rematches that Charlotte and Sasha Banks got embroiled in for 2016, their Nov. 28th Raw match is definitely our favorite. With a hot crowd behind them and relaxed rules granted to them for this title match, both women went out and put on an intense battle for supremacy. Both women attempted to destroy each other as they battled on the ring apron, Banks got planted with a Natural Selection on the outside, Charlotte got battered with kendo stick shots and some other big moves were landed by each lady on the outside. The hardcore brawling that took place all over the arena finally came to a close when Sasha locked in a 10-times more painful rendition of her Banks Statement with Charlotte locked in between the crowd railing. Banks prevailed over the Queen of Raw’s Women’s Division in one of the best 2016 brawls.
AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose (TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs)
Taken from Match Review: SURPRISE SURPRISE SURPRISE! The main event delivered (to the shock of no one, we might add) and closed this lackluster show on a high note. AJ and Ambrose fought tooth and nail in a pretty satisfying TLC match for the WWE World Championship. Let’s break down the match’s wildest moments – Ambrose using a garbage can to humiliate AJ, Ambrose elbow dropping AJ through an announce table, AJ crashing through Ambrose with a table-assisted Springboard 450 Splash and Ellsworth turning his back on Ambrose. Ellsworth’s shocking heel turn came after he caused Ambrose to crash land through two tables. These moments and the rest of such a high octane match all equaled up into a great TLC bout. Ambrose and AJ have put on a series of thrilling bouts, but this one is their finest performance. AJ showed us all once again why he adopted the nickname “Phenomenal.” This was a pretty dope car crash match.
