WWE PPV Review: Night Of Champions 2012

Here are my thought's on the WWE's 6th annual Night Of Champions PPV:

Pre-Show match: Battle Royal to determine the #1 Contender for the United States Championship:

The Pre-show battle royal was fast paced and it was good to see so many talents that we rarely see anymore (McIntyre, McGuillicutty), but their participation in this match would be bittersweet.  I predicted Tyson Kidd would walk out the victor here and I wasn't even close.  As things continued, it became pretty obvious that Zack Ryder was going to pull the upset victory here.  The finish was very Royal Rumble-esque and I'm happy Ryder won.  He deserves it.  The kid has bust his ass for over a year now, establishing himself as one of the WWE's most popular acts, even though he is rarely on television.  This should be commended and it seems as if maybe he's finally getting a chance to shine.

Zack Ryder wins the Battle Royal after 5:45 by last eliminating Tensai(Predictions 0 for 1)

Match Rating: **3/4

Z! True Underdog Story

Match 1:: Intercontinental Championship match: The Miz(c) vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Sin Cara

First off, it was pretty awesome to have JBL back on commentary.  I very much enjoyed his run as a commentator around 2007, so he was a welcome edition to the show for me.  This match was a good start for the show, even if things got a bit confusing from time to time.  I have to say that I was pretty impressed with Sin Cara, given the fact that I thought he was going to be the match's downfall.  He was a pleasant surprise and his interaction with Rey Mysterio was a great tease for a future match.  The slow burn and eventual implosion of the Rhodes/Miz alliance was awesome and the action was pretty fast and furious with loads of memorable spots.  This was the sort of thing you usually see on an indy card, so it was a nice change of pace.  The IC title used to symbolize great ring work and excitement, it now has built that reputation again.  Against the greatest odds of the night, The Miz retains his championship after hitting Cody Rhodes with the SCF even though he was blinded just prior by Sin Cara.  This finish was one of the most unique I've ever seen and one of the best of the year.  Solid opener.

The Miz def. Sin Cara, Cody Rhodes & Rey Mysterio after 12:05 via. pinfall following a Skull Crushing Finale on Cody Rhodes(Predictions 1 for 2)

Match Rating: ***

The Miz, still unsure of who he pinned, celebrates as his 50+ day reign continues

 

 

 

Match 2:: WWE Tag Team Championship match: Kofi Kingston & R-Truth(c) vs. Team Friendship

As everyone should have assumed, this was easily the most fun match of the night.  The saga of Daniel Bryan and Kane shows how both have great ability to make the best out of every situation they've been put in and they now reap the rewards as the unlikely duo has battled their way to Tag Team championship gold.  The accidental victory came after Bryan shoved Kane off the turnbuckle onto a prone Kofi Kingston.  I thought the finish was brilliant and the post match "I am the Tag Team Champions!", bit was hilarious.  Kingston (who was sporting some awesome Boston Bruins inspired ring gear) by the way, was his usual amazing self and I really hope this loss means he'll be returning to singles competition because he is just too damn good to be thrown into another meaningless tag team.  Seeing him in some battles with Antonio Cesaro or Miz for a secondary belt would turn in great results.

Daniel Bryan & Kane def. Kofi Kingston & R-Truth after 8:23 via. pinfall following an accidental pin by Kane on Kofi Kingston (Predictions 2 for 3)

Match Rating: **1/2

The WWE's new "odd couple" continues further into bizarro land with their big win

 

Match 3:: United States Championship match: Antonio Cesaro(c) w/Aksana vs. Zack Ryder

This was a fantastic match.  This may come as a surprise to many a Zack Ryder naysayer, but not to me.  I fully understand how capable Ryder is as a performer and I hope others who do not, will give this match a watch to go along with his great performance at last December's TLC PPV.  Cesaro also did a great job and was finally able to showcase his wide range of abilities.  He has grown leaps and bounds as a character over the past few months and he has the potential to be one of the top main event heels.  I see this occurring sooner than later.  Ryder should be commended for his ability to work a crowd.  Boston is not an easy city to gain favor with (just ask hometown hero, John Cena) and Ryder was able to earn full support from the audience even though his character is silly and a bit stale at this point.  It seems he's taken strides to be taken more seriously and after tonight, I'm dubbing him one of the MVPs of the midcard right now.  He really could be a role player if they continue to let him grow.  Great work was done to re-establish the US title as a worthwhile prize again.  Loved this match.

Antonio Cesaro def. Zack Ryder after 6:32 via. pinfall following The Neutralizer (Predictions 3 for 4)

Match Rating: ***1/4

The Technically sound Cesaro is just what the doctor ordered for the US title

 

Match 4: Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler w/Vickie Guerrero

Another amazing match from Orton and Ziggler.  Their chemistry is above any other feud right now aside from Cena and Punk.  In the past month, Ziggler and Orton are 1 and 1 in singles competition against each other, so this was the inevitable rubber match.  That being said, I had no doubt in my mind that Ziggler would take this one.  I was wrong.  His road to the top of the card has been one of the bumpiest ever, but at least he still looked strong in defeat.  Also, he still has the MITB briefcase in his possession so it doesn't really hurt him too severely.  The action was everything you could want out of a match involving these two and I think this is their finest performance together.  Things got even more intense when the action spilled outside the ring, resulting in one of the most brutal DDTs I've ever seen.  Ziggler managing to still battle on after a bump like that makes him look like a worthy challenger for a superstar the caliber of Orton and it's these little things that matter most.  Win or lose.  Terrific match.

 

Randy Orton def. Dolph Ziggler after 17:58 via. pinfall following an RKO (Predictions 4 for 5)

Match Rating: ****

Still the WWE's Apex Predator

 

 

Match 5:: Divas Championship match: Layla(c) vs. Kaitlyn Eve Torres

So apparently Kaitlyn has been injured which sucks after all that has been done to build her over the past month.  The good that came out of it far outweighs the bad though.  Eve's "snake in the grass" act with both Kaitlyn and Layla, has made her character more intriguing than both combined.  And it resulted in what was not the greatest divas match of all time, but easily one of the best of the year.  That was mostly due to Eve shouldering much of the load.  Layla has tarnished what little prestige the divas title has built over the past year with her lackluster run as champion and I believe Eve is the best candidate for the belt right now.  She has mainstream status with her recent victory on NBC's Stars Earn Stripes and appearances on talk shows like G4's Attack of the Show.  She has also become one of the cornerstones of the division and by far the most well rounded (looks, charisma, crossover appeal, ring work) diva in the company right now.  A very solid 6 minute match and the Divas title has more hope than it has in a while with Eve as it's champion.

Eve Torres def. Layla after 6:29 via. pinfall following The Heart Breaker (Predictions 4 for 6)

Match Rating: **3/4

Eve: "You complete me."

 

Match 6:: World Heavyweight Championship match: Sheamus(c) vs. Alberto Del Rio

I have a few complaints with this match.  I don't see the point of the whole "banning the Brogue Kick" angle if they were going to just re-instate the maneuver here.  Another major gripe is that this is now the third consecutive loss for Del Rio and the match itself did not match the quality of their bout last month.  Any interest I had in this feud has now been fully drained.  There wasn't anything particularly memorable about the entire thing minus Otunga's involvement which doesn't do much for either competitor here.  Meh.  Barely passable world title match by my standards.  Sheamus wins.  Del Rio no longer looks like a serious contender which means we all lose.

Sheamus def Alberto Del Rio after 13:56 via. pinfall following The Brogue Kick (Predictions 4 for 7)

Match Rating: ***1/4

If this dull feud is finally over, then we'll all have a reason to celebrate

CM Punk has arrived in a heelisly brilliant New York Yankees inspired Pinstriped attire, signaling it is now time for our

MAIN EVENT

 

Match 7:: WWE Championship match: CM Punk(c) w/Paul Heyman vs. John Cena

OK.  I'm going to try an attempt to do this match justice in very few words.  This was one of the best WWE Championship battles of all time.  Make no mistake about it.  I have been watching wrestling for nearly 20 years and have a healthy obsession with watching tape after tape until I've seen every match in the wrestling gallery.  My fiancee loves to call me a "wrestling wiki".  Given the absolute level of maximum wrestling nerdage I have reached, I say with full confidence that I place this match amongst some of my favorite matches.  That magical unexplainable chemistry that Cena and Punk possess rivals greats like Rock/Austin, Triple H/Foley, Hogan/Andre, Flair/Steamboat, Angle/Benoit and Hart/Michaels.  Their battles just reach another level.  A level reserved for the best of the best. 

You can't tell me anything about this match to make me dislike it (I even thought CM Punk's failed attempt at a moonsault only added to the drama).  I hung on the edge of my seat for damn near every minute and fully lost myself in my attempt to "suspend my disbelief" and for one night only, I was 15 again.  The match had everything you'd want in a Wrestlemania main event with loads of near falls, big time drama and the gasp worthy execution of rare moves (like Punk breaking out a Rock Bottom on Cena and Cena's dive to the outside).  This match is where technical brilliance, masterful storytelling and unbelievable atmosphere all meet to form a rollercoaster ride that ends at the height of wrestling nirvana.  And while all their matches have reached some level of greatness, whether it was from an in-ring or character driven perspective, this match is the first to match the transcendent allure of their legendary match at last year's Money In The Bank.  Was it better than that match?  No, but it came damn close.

The crowd was electric and how ironic that it's in Cena's hometown of Boston, MA given that what could go down as the feud of the decade began in Punk's hometown of Chicago, IL.  It's amazing how things have come full circle for both men.  Punk is fresh of his 300th day as champion, but has not main evented any PPVs this year until now.  Cena is fresh off the most confusing year of his career.  Both men desperately NEED this win to re-establish both their legacies and right to claim that they are the best.  That being said, don't listen to the smarks who scoff at the finish and whine every time we get one that's indecisive.  No man could afford to lose this match.  The finish gave us the biggest thrill of the night with the initial thought that Cena had won, only to find out that the match would be ruled a draw, resulting in Punk retaining his title.  Perfect finish for me.  Neither man looks weak and it's the perfect way to continue the feud while keeping the momentum fresh.

We now are pretty much guaranteed that things will culminate in an epic match at Hell In A Cell next month and I can't wait.  I had said before that Taker/HHH was the year's finest work from an atmosphere/storytelling perspective and that Bryan/Punk from OTL was the WWE's best from an in-ring perspective.  This match had the best of both.  It was an unforgettable match that in my opinion, was one of the year's finest thus far.  If you want to know why I say CM Punk is the gold standard right now and why I often call Cena the best big match performer in the world, I give you Exhibit A.  Go give this instant classic a watch.

This match was declared a DRAW after 26:49 when John Cena hit a top rope German Suplex on CM Punk that resulted in a double pinfall (Predictions 5 for 8)

Match Rating: ****3/4 (amazing)

Punk's greatest win of his 300+ day reign has now cemented his status as my personal favorite WWE Champion of all time

Final Thoughts

This was one of the most enjoyable PPVs I've seen this year.  Considering how many great shows the WWE has given us, that's saying a lot.  There were a handful of good matches like Cesaro/Ryder, Miz/Mysterio/Cara/Rhodes and Eve/Layla.  Dolph Ziggler and Randy Orton tore the house down with their exciting back and forth bout, but this night belongs to CM Punk and John Cena.  Both men continue to bring the best out of each other and have given us the greatest WWE PPV main event in over a year.  That alone makes this show a highlight and one of the year's most gratifying.

Overall PPV Score: 8/10

PPV Awards

Match of the Night: CM Punk vs. John Cena
Performer of the Night: CM Punk and John Cena
Moment of the Night: Randy Orton hits Dolph Ziggler with a DDT off of the barricade
Segment of the Night: Kane soaks AJ, Daniel Bryan & Dr. Shelby with Gatorade
Surprise of the Night:  John Cena wins and then has the result overturned