The WarGames went on, but it didn’t end without a bang.
WWE held its final main roster pay-per-view of 2023 on Saturday with one of its most iconic events with a twist, Survivor Series: WarGames.
Five matches took place inside Allstate Arena − the home of WrestleMania 22 − just outside of Chicago on Saturday night, highlighted by the men's and women's WarGames matches.
The matches were full excitement, with the men’s and women’s WarGames matches living up to the billing. The WWE Universe got to see the return of Randy Orton after being out with an injury for 18 months. But the comebacks didn’t end there, as after the event ended, one of the biggest returns in recent memory happened, and it is sure to send shockwaves heading into 2024.
Here is a recap of Saturday night's action:
It’s clobbering time.
it’s been rumored for weeks, but CM Punk shocked the WWE Universe by returning to the company for the first time since 2014.
Allstate Arena went insane seeing its hometown star back in the company as he celebrated with the crowd, as the show went off the air.
The main event of the night began with Finn Bálor and Seth Rollins in the ring, but was notably missing Randy Orton in the cage with all the other teammates.
The two longtime rivals gave a great start to the match, but The Judgment Day got the early advantage with JD McDonagh entering and bringing the kendo sticks into the rings. The momentum shifted with each new entrant, including the crowd getting hyped for Jey Uso and Sami Zayn with “yeet” and “ucey” chants.
But when it came time for Orton to appear to help his disadvantaged squad, there was no star in sight to come to the aid of team Rhodes.
The Judgment Day launched a ruthless assault with Priest launching Rollins into a table, and Rhea Ripley surprisingly came out to deliver the money in the bank contract. But Orton finally appeared and Allstate Arena went into a frenzy.
One-by-one, the “Apex Predator” took out each member of The Judgment Day with all of his vintage moves before the faction went on offense. It was then an all-out frenzy, but Uso and Orton had a stand off after since Uso was the one who put Orton out of action.
But Uso delivered a super kick to Priest, and each star on team Rhodes delivered their own finishing move on every star. Orton capped it off with an RKO off the top of the cage on McDonagh, and Rhodes landed a cross Rhodes on Priest to secure the victory in Orton’s return.
Zoey Stark made it known early she wasn’t going to go down easy in the biggest match of her young career, and Ripley made it an intense match from the get-go.
Ripley displayed her power and strength and Stark attempted to counter each move, but Ripley hardly ceased momentum each time. Stark landed some moves, and the sliding knee looked to be her best chance, but Ripley then did what she does best.
Ripley got out of the Z-60, and executed the Rip Tide to get the win and continue her dominance in the women’s division.
It was a quick adjustment for Dragon Lee to take over in place of Carlito, but the replacement bout was still a fast-paced match with lots of quick turns.
Lee has been one of the best young stars on the roster, and showed his ability against Santos Escobar in a match that had the crowd into it. Lee looked to have the match won off a powerbomb, but Escobar used a destroyer and then delivered the knockout blow to get the win. It wasn’t for much other than the respect gained within LWO, but Escobar’s win could create another plot in the new bad blood with Rey Mysterio.
The Miz tried early and often to play mind games with the champion by going after his left knee, but Gunther didn’t stay down for long, delivering punishing blows to the challenger.
Gunther played into the heel role and got the crowd into it, and controlled a majority of the match while doing so. The Miz delivered some shots to the knee in an attempt to turn the tide, and went for the skull crushing finale, but couldn’t execute. Gunther then went for his signature powerbomb, but The Miz became one of the few to kick out. The Miz got his finisher off, but the champion also kicked out.
The two stars then went back and forth in a fast sequence. Gunther went for a frog splash, but landed awkwardly and didn’t land all of it. Luckily, Gunther was able to use a sharpshooter-like submission to make The Miz tap, retaining the title in a surprisingly great match.
Bayley and Becky Lynch started the match, and both competitors went blow-for-blow, but Dakota Kai made her presence felt outside of the cage by hitting Lynch with a kendo stick and giving it to Bayley. Shotzi was the first newcomer of the match, and brought the chaos by using chairs and a steel trashcan brought into the ring.
Iyo Sky was the first new person in Damage CTRL and was able to even the score, flying all over the ring. The advantage in the match continued to change with each new person entering the ring, which included an impressive elbow drop from Kairi Sane with the help of Sky. Sky also had the move of the match by going up to the top of the cage, putting a trash can on her and taking out all the other stars with a daring leap.
Damage CTRL pulled out all of the objects to take out the other side, but the tide changed with Flair going off the top of the cage to take out Damage CTRL. It continued with a power bomb from Lynch and Flair on Sane, and team Belair got all the momentum at the end, with Belair neutralizing Asuka's mist with a fire extinguisher. The finishing touch was Lynch on Bayley, and team Belair prevailed to pick up the major win over the women's group.
Survivor Series is Saturday, Nov. 25 at 8 p.m. ET. The kickoff show will begin at 7 p.m. ET.
The event can be streamed on Peacock, but you must have their premium or premium-plus subscription to watch. Internationally, it will be available on WWE Network.
Matches not in order of schedule
Created by Dusty Rhodes in 1987, WarGames is one of the most unique matches in WWE in that it involves two rings side-by-side, and has become a staple in the company since its introduction into NXT in 2017.
The two rings are surrounded by a roofless steel cage, and are contested by two or three teams. The match begins with one competitor from each team starting in the ring. After five minutes, another competitor from one team enters the match to give a brief 2-on-1 advantage. Three minutes afterward, a competitor from the disadvantaged team enters to even the odds. Teams then alternate entrants until all competitors are in the match.
A team wins by pinning or submitting any member of the other team.
After 18 months, the “Viper” will finally return.
Randy Orton will make his WWE return at Survivor Series as part of the team taking on The Judgment Day in the men’s WarGames match. Cody Rhodes announced Orton’s return during “Monday Night Raw” this week.
The decorated star was sidelined in May 2022 after he suffered a legitimate back injury in the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship match against The Usos on “Smackdown.” The injury resulted in Orton missing SummerSlam 2022 and Saturday will be the first time he will appear for WWE this year.
As the WWE universe has learned with Gunther, the mat is sacred, and that mantra is what “The Ring General” wants to display at Survivor Series: WarGames.
The longest reigning Intercontinental Champion in WWE history will put his title on the line in Chicago on Saturday against someone who is quite familiar with it: eight-time champion The Miz.
On screen, Gunther has made it a point to show no respect for The Miz, saying he’s just an entertainer, not a wrestler. The entertainer aspect of The Miz is something Gunther sees as a growing problem in WWE, he said, adding the roster is “full of those people.”
“I think one of the negative side effects over time was that people take themselves a little bit too serious, and that's not what it's about. It's not about the individual person,” he said. “It's about the sport itself, the sport itself being healthy. And yet, in this case, maybe I'm the only one that actually cares about that. So it's on me to defend those values a little bit against somebody like The Miz, who puts himself in the forefront.
“That's the reason why my reign was necessary; to set things straight a little bit."
Read more about Gunther’s thoughts on The Miz, Roman Reigns and his viral coat grabhere.
With WWE holding another pay-per-view in the Chicago-area, fans have wondered: will CM Punk return?
The former WWE Champion was a major signing for All Elite Wrestling in 2021, but was fired by the company with cause on Sept. 2 after Punk was involved in a backstage altercation following the “All In” pay-per-view in London.
Since then, there’s been major speculation about Punk rejoining WWE for the first time since 2014, with fans looking for any hints of a possible return. There was also belief that Punk was going to be the fifth member of Rhodes’ team in the WarGames match before Orton was announced as the final member of the group.
Several outlets have reported that Punk isn’t expected to be at Survivor Series nor sign with WWE in the immediate future, but the company has had major surprises in recent years, including Rhodes’ return in 2022, so it can’t be entirely ruled out until Survivor Series is over.
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