Ladies and Gentlemen, back by popular demand, the Browning Review is back.
Today, I review the first RAW pay-per-view in seven years, Clash of Champions. Clash of Champions took place on September 25, 2016 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. Clash of Champions had eight matches on the card and all of RAW’s championships were defended.
During the pre-show match, Nia Jax defeated Alicia Fox. Alicia got some offense in but Nia flattens her with the Samoan Drop. Yes, your typical run-of-the-mill squash match with Nia Jax. I like the fact that they are building up Nia as a monster heel like they were doing in NXT. Nia being built up as a monster will make her eventual loss a huge deal. I won’t give this match a grade since it was a squash.
Lets’ get into the main show:
In the opening match, The New Day retain the WWE RAW Tag Team Championship against Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows in an okay match. Gallows and Anderson started off aggressive, taking out Big E and Xavier Woods. However, the match would end in a rather lame fashion when Xavier Woods clocks Anderson with Francesca, the trombone.
Then, Big E and Kofi Kingston floors Anderson with the Midnight Hour for the win.
In my opinion, as much I love the New Day, I personally wanted the championships to go to Anderson & Gallows as I am a fan of those two. I am sad to say that Anderson & Gallows’ luster is gone. Unlike Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles, who were also signed around the same time, Gallows and Anderson have lost time and time again. If it was up to me, Styles, Anderson & Gallows should all have been drafted to SmackDown and dominating the blue brand with all three men holding titles but that’s just the fantasy booker in me. I wouldn’t be surprised if New Day breaks the record for the longest tag title reign in WWE history.
Grade: C
TJ Perkins def. Brian Kendrick to retain the Cruiserweight Championship in a good match. The crowd was sitting on their hands for this one. Perkins and Kendrick wrestled a solid, back-and-forth match. Perkins would make Kendrick tap with the Kneebar.
Post-match, Kendrick and Perkins would shake hands, only for Kendrick to head butt him.
In my opinion, I feel that it would have helped Perkins if they showcased him on the RAW before Clash of Champions because the crowd seemed to have no idea who he was. I like the video game style entrance for Perkins but this is just the nerd in me.
The ring ropes were changed to purple for this match. I like that the Cruiserweights are establishing their own identity on the red brand. Due to us being spoiled by the top-of-the-line quality matches we’ve seen in the Cruiserweight Classic, this was a bit of a letdown.
Grade: B
Cesaro and Sheamus fought to a no-contest in Match #7 of the Best of 7 series. Cesaro and Sheamus wrestled a great match but was marred by a bad finish. The finish would be Cesaro and Sheamus would fight outside the ring and would clothesline Sheamus over the barricade. The two take a nasty tumble on the floor in the crowd. The referees would intervene and check on the two, which leads to them stopping the match to the dismay of the fans.
In my opinion, I can see this going three ways, Cesaro and Sheamus just wrestle another match on RAW to finally settle the feud. Cesaro and Sheamus can have one more match inside at the Hell in a Cell PPV. The third option, which may be out of left field could be the series going to a draw and Sheamus and Cesaro getting a tag title shot.
The New Day needs challengers so I guess it makes sense. This storyline has been cold but with this finish, I’m interested to see what they’ll do next.
Grade: B
Chris Jericho def. Sami Zayn with the Codebreaker in a good match that was sloppy in some spots. Zayn and Jericho had an okay match but it just didn’t stand out to me.
As much as I would have liked Sami Zayn to win, even Jericho needs a win every once in a blue moon. Considering what happened at the show’s conclusion, I can see why this decision was made. Chris Jericho, next to New Day is one of the most entertaining characters on RAW.
However, his matches like New Day’s are secondary and this match was no exception.
Grade: B-
Charlotte (w/Dana Brooke) def. Sasha Banks and Bayley to retain the WWE RAW Women’s Championship in a solid match. There were some awesome spots in the match like Charlotte’s moonsault on both Sasha and Bayley, which was a thing of beauty.
During the match, Dana Brooke would take advantage of the “No DQ” rule in the match at would intervene to the point where it would become tiresome.The finish would be Charlotte giving Bayley a big boot, which would bump Sasha out of the ring, Charlotte would then, give Bayley another big boot to get the victory.
These three ladies have had many matches together and are going to have many more matches together in the years to come but this was one of their weaker matches because of Dana Brooke’s constant interference and the finish falling flat. I know Charlotte has been using the big boot as a finisher lately but it looks sloppy.
Hell in a Cell is in Sasha Banks’ hometown of Boston, Massachusetts next month and if there was a time to give the title back to Sasha, that would be the time. I would love to see Sasha and Charlotte compete for the RAW Women’s Championship in the first ever Women’s Hell in a Cell match. I’ll save the reasons why for a separate article.
Grade: B
Roman Reigns def. Rusev to win his first United States Championship in a slow match that built up to be a solid encounter.
During the match, Lana would get thrown out by the referee after pulling him out of the ring after Reigns speared Rusev. The finish would be Reigns fighting out of The Accolade but Rusev would rake his eyes. Rusev would taunt Reigns, only to spear Rusev a second time for the win.
Every member of The Shield has now held the United States Championship and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The good news for all you Roman Reigns haters is that Roman is not the World Champion on either roster.
The question is, where do both men go from here since Roman is champion?
Grade: B
Kevin Owens def. Seth Rollins to retain the WWE Universal Champion in a great match that like the majority of this card by a bad finish. Owens and Rollins had a back and forth match as they threw everything at each other. Rollins would be nursing his ribs throughout the bout.
During the match, Owens would lay Rollins on the Spanish announce table. Owens would climb up the German announce table and would run off it to perform the Senton but misses. Rollins would gain the advantage but Chris Jericho would interfere. After Jericho’s interference, a ref bump and a Pop Up Powerbomb, Owens would defeat Seth Rollins.
Grade: B
In my opinion, I know heels cheat but this match was way overbooked. At Backlash, AJ Styles cheated but all there was a needed was the finishing move and a low blow. If the purpose was to set up Jericho vs. Rollins at the next pay-per-view, then it worked. With this booking, you can build up Owens/Rollins II at Survivor Series and have something else main event the show like the first Women’s Hell in a Cell match? Okay, I’m done peddling that.
Overall, I felt that Night of Champions was underwhelming compared to Backlash. Clash of Champions just felt like a slightly better episode of RAW. Unlike Backlash, where every finish had a satisfying result, Clash of Champions had some results that were head scratchers like the no contest in the Best of 7 series. Even the crowd was sitting on their hands for most of the show.
I give Clash of Champions a C+ overall as it had great wrestling but questionable finishes. Clash of Champions certainly wasn’t golden. I just hope it doesn’t feel like I’m in hell when Raw airs it’s next PPV next month.
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