Another Sunday, another WWE Special event in Elimination Chamber. In a show that has huge ups and seemingly bottomless lows, we were witness to everything that’s good and bad with in ring wrestling work in the WWE. As usual, I’m gonna go match by match here, just giving thoughts of each match and participants. Brace yourselves, we are in for a good one.

Before we get started, I need to point out that the crowd in Corpus Christi was incredibly weak (excluding one very over the top man in a Bruins Jersey). Matches really suffered to this, and the negative was almost highlighted.

Match 1: Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE Tag Team Titles. The New Day (Champions) v. Cesaro & Kidd v. Prime Time Players v. Los Matadores v. The Ascension v. The Lucha Dragons

 

In the first Tag Team Chamber match, we were witness to some history here. What screams during this match was how each team was looking to make a name, and made use of the chamber around them, truly making this unique and new. This is just how these matches should be. Callisto of the Lucha Dragons spent most of the match climbing the cage, eventually going to the highest point and falling on a crowd of opponents (not as exciting as on paper). What’s clear, The New Day is an excellent heel team, truly sneaky, conniving guys to get a win, not to mention that Cesaro and Kidd might be the most technically proficient Tag Team we’ve seen in quite some time. I could watch Cesaro throw uppercuts all day, and Kidd’s unique style and moveset lends to great moments. This is a match to seek out, as who could have imagined Kofi Kingston becoming one of the biggest heels in the company.

Winner: The New Day

 

Match 2: Triple Threat for the Diva’s Title. Nikki Bella (Champion) v. Naomi v. Paige

 

This match was huge for me, as my favorite main roster diva returned in Paige. The moments when we got Paige and Nikki going at it, we got a glimpse of some truly great women’s wrestling. Naomi just dragged this match down. She’s certainly not the worst wrestler on the roster, it’s more to the skill of Nikki and Paige. I love that we are getting to a place where women’s wrestling, in many cases (NXT), is arguably higher quality than the men’s side. I hope we get a Nikki and Paige one on one match in the future, and I anxiously anticipate some of the NXT women getting called up to go toe to toe with these two.

Winner: Nikki Bella

 

Match 3: Kevin Owens (NXT Champion) v. John Cena (US Champion)

 

Holy sweet Christmas. I can’t even put into words how truly incredible this match was. Hands down match of the year as of right now. Kevin Owens explodes onto the main roster with his big time debut here, giving us a display of big man brawling skills a la Stone Cold, while maintaining technically sound and agile, almost like a Kurt Angle or C.M Punk. There’s never a moment where Owens doesn’t look like a seasoned vet, truly showcasing some of the great stuff he developed in Ring of Honor. At one point, Owens teased the package piledriver, his finisher in the indies, and I stood up and started pacing in anticipation. I can’t think of a better way to give die hards a wink and a nod, while giving new fans an awesome move. It goes without saying that you can’t have a match by yourself, and John Cena put in some of the best work of his career. Cena’s really on a roll recently, really giving the finger to all the “smarks” that love to hate him. He went blow for blow with Owens, giving us his usual repertoire while also showing some new spots, making all the false finishes from both sides a true edge of your seats feel. With Owens pulling out the win, he’s arrived, and he’s the future.

Winner: Kevin Owens

 

Match 4: Bo Dallas v. Neville

 

This match struggled, unfairly, to follow the juggernaut that was Owens v. Cena. Bringing a former NXT feud to the main roster, these two have an OK match. Dallas continues to be one of the weirdest characters in wrestling, but still has a fairly bland moveset. He’s certainly skilled, he just needs a little move updating. My biggest issue comes with Neville. Before he left NXT, I really came to see problems in his character, due to his weak mic and promo work. On the main roster, he hasn’t had as much, and what we saw is definitely better, but that cape he comes out with has to go. It make him look like a kid playing dress up. On top of that, all his matches pan out the same, in terms of his offense. He has many of the same issues that Roman Reigns had during his early singles career; he goes through the motions. Neville hits the gut kicks, standing shooting star press,  and inevitable Red Arrow; all high skilled and cool moves to watch, but seeing it over and over can get tiresome. I know he can be one of the best high flyers in the business, which is why my expectations are so high. Neville getting the win slowly pushes him up, while Dallas continues to swim in the lower mid card.

Winner: Neville

 

Match 5: Elimination Chamber for the Vacant Intercontinental Title. Barrett v. Dolph Ziggler v. Sheamus v. Ryback v. Mark Henry v. R-Truth

 

This was my pre-show pick to be the match of the night, and it very well may have been the worst. Between the plexiglass coming off Mark Henry’s chamber and Sheamus being unable to get out, this match had odd moments which only bogged it down. On top of this, none of these guys appeared to be on the same page, and the reason I wanted to see this, Ziggler, was almost a non factor. It felt like this match lasted forever, with at one point Henry stood in the ring, watching the action for no discernible reason, apparently doing his best impression of me. Compared to the other chamber match, this one needed some work. When we finally got to the final two guys, Sheamus and Ryback, it pick up a little, as Sheamus is a great bully, hell, character. With an ending that really shocked me, I’m curious on the future of the IC belt, as I have absolutely no idea how this will pan out.

Winner: Ryback

 

Match 6: Seth Rollins (Champion) v. Dean Ambrose for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

 

It was fairly apparent before the show that this match was at least going to be solid. What we got was just that, very solid. Even though it wasn’t at the level of Owens v. Cena, this didn’t disappoint, really showcasing Ambrose’s odd ring style and Rollins’ heel tendencies. The only issue with this was that the previous match happened, and therefore I struggled initially because the other match drew me out of the show. Eventually, they get me back in, and really blew me away with the screw finish. Seeing Ambrose and Reigns decided it was time to bro out at the end and leave through the crowd together with the belt, I was sold. To quote Dean, “The Champ buys the beers”

Winner: Ambrose by DQ

 

This show wasn’t the best for WWE. While it may have had the match of the year in it, the rest was a slog. All the NXT shows are really putting these specials to shame, whether that’s Triple H being in control of NXT, or those Superstars looking to prove themselves (probably a combination of both). Until Next time, WOOOOOOOOO!

 

By: Brett Israel