Monday 17 September 2018 15:24, UK
Three men fell from the Cell, a title changed hands and a main event completely split opinion at WWE’s latest Box Office event.
Hell In A Cell played out on Sunday night, with seven main-card matches lighting up the AT&T Center in San Antonio to a response which was largely positive.
The verdict was very much mixed about the closing stages of the event, which saw Brock Lesnar make an unexpected return to kick the door off the Cell and render both Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns unable to continue.
Prior to that, however, the matches had been met with almost universal approval. We take a look at the key incidents from a roller-coaster ride in Texas…
Arise, the new Queen of SmackDown
Becky Lynch is the new SmackDown women's champion, and that perhaps was not a shock; the predictions among Sky Sports viewers could not have been closer, with Charlotte Flair edging it on 51 per cent.
It will be interesting to see what happens next - whether the two continue their nicely-boiling feud or if Lynch faces a new challenger. Asuka, for example, could badly use a title program.
Sunday night was perhaps the beginning of a long-term storyline arc for Flair which sees her win the Royal Rumble and challenge Ronda Rousey at WrestleMania.
It should perhaps also be noted that, if WWE do a champion-against-champion match at Survivor Series, then that eliminates the prospect of that dream Flair/Rousey match taking place before it has been given time to build.
Did we see the best match of 2018 on this card?
In-ring quality was high throughout Hell In A Cell, with the Jeff Hardy-Randy Orton clash having a slow viciousness to it, AJ Styles and Samoa Joe building to a psychological crescendo and Flair and Lynch producing a match which was perfectly paced.
But they were all in the shadow of the battle for the Raw tag-team titles between champions Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose.
Ambrose displayed excellent fire - and was rapid on his feet too - and McIntyre married his enormous power with a rarely-seen poise and athleticism.
The stars were Ziggler and Rollins, who even fell off the Cell later in the night to double underline their status as the event's MVPs.
Ronda Rousey stepped up her game
The Raw women's champion needed a big night here and she delivered, showing some nice new variation in her offense and - more crucially - demonstrating a good level of selling.
That particular skill is one which is often described as the business' most difficult to master and while Rousey is not there yet, this event proved she is on the right track.
This match showed there can be some flexibility to how Rousey is booked - she can offer more than simply being a dominant destroyer.
With Alexa Bliss' rematch clause used - and the former champ moving on to an Evolution battle with Trish Stratus - it means Rousey's schedule is clear. Will we see Nikki Bella step up to challenge her?
Jeff Hardy delivered on his promise
Prior to the event, Hardy vowed to give the fans something to remember in this match and arguably he gave them several.
The stomach-churning 'screwdriver' incident will live long in the memory, as will the fall from the ceiling of the cage through the table, which ended the match.
Randy Orton showed great heel characteristics to insist on pinning Hardy when he was hurt and it can be said with some certainty that he is very much back as a key WWE player.
What happens now for Hardy remains in the balance. While he was almost certainly not injured during this match, he is working through some injuries, and a break could greatly benefit him.
Where does this event leave the Universal title?
The non-finish of the main event generated more questions than answers. Does than count as Braun Strowman's briefcase cash-in? Is Brock Lesnar coming back in on a more permanent basis? Is Roman Reigns still going to be seen as the company's top man going forward?
Tonight's Raw should make all of those things a little bit clearer but the waters regarding Lesnar are likely to be once again somewhat muddied.
The feeling was his SummerSlam defeat to Reigns would lead to him riding off into the UFC sunset and while that still may be the case, is he going to fit in some WWE work in the meantime?
And is the plan once again to have Lesnar walk into a UFC world heavyweight match with the WWE Universal title on his shoulder?
