Hello everyone. For those of you that didn’t know, I was in the arena last night for the WWE Battleground. I’m here to give you my thoughts on the show from inside the arena and my thoughts about the results and everything else WWE going forward.
-The arena was pretty full. About 40% of the upper deck was full. And there were three sections in the second level that were blocked off. The entire floor and lower bowl was full. 
Dolph Ziggler vs Damien Sandow
-Crowd was definitely into this match and I thought it was a good sign of things to come from the crowd for the night. Ziggler was still over despite being treated like crap by the booking team for the last two months. And the WWE doesn’t think this guy can draw money?
-I along with most of the crowd last night knew that the second Damien Sandow brought up cashing in Money in the Bank that he wasn’t going to do it. He was making it too obvious throughout his opening promo.
-This was a fun match and it is a shame that it had to be on the pre-show, even though you now get that match with the regular PPV purchase as well.
Rob Van Dam vs Alberto del Rio
-Not counting the pre-show, this was probably the smartest pick for the WWE to start the show. While it kind of makes the World Title again seem a little less important, it was the right move by the WWE. The hardcore weapons involved definitely gave the crowd an added interest in the match.
-Rob Van Dam is still over with the crowd. He’s definitely more suited for these types of matches than normal wrestling matches. If I’m the WWE I hope they can keep him around and bring him back. Would I push him to the WWE Title scene? No. But he is great in the World Title type roll.
-As for Alberto del Rio, I’m guessing he moves on to Rey Mysterio. If they don’t have RVD fight at Hell In A Cell, then maybe a quick program with Dolph Ziggler. I don’t think you want Rey Mysterio’s first fight back inside a Cell.
Santino and The Great Khali vs The Real Americans
-At least the right team went over here. I snuck out to the bathroom during this match. The only thing I know is that on the way back, I heard a “Freddy” chant (for the Bills RB Fred Jackson). So the crowd didn’t care too much either.
-The swing by Cesaro was impressive, and I got back just in time for that.
R-Truth vs Curtis Axel
-Curtis Axel is definitely the person who got the smallest reaction of the night. No cheers, no boos. Just nothing. The ship has sailed on Axel.
-That being said, R-Truth wasn’t the guy to take the IC Title off him.
-Everyone was kind of thrown off by the match end. It seemed like it came rather abruptly.
AJ vs Brie Bella
-Rewatching the show, AJ saw my “AJ>Any Total Diva” sign and said “True That.” I didn’t notice it live but saw it on TV. And my week is made.
-AJ is definitely over with the crowd. Whether she is liked or hated (and I think the majority of the crowd liked her), she got more of a reaction than R-Truth or Curtis Axel. If the WWE gave the Total Divas some story to their characters, maybe they would get some reaction too.
Cody Rhodes and Goldust vs Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns
-Without a doubt, the match of the night. It was the match the crowd was most emotionally invested in. And I’m glad it came off that way on TV too. The crowd was into it from beginning to end. In all honesty, this probably should have been the main event of the show. Especially with the outcome of the WWE Title match.
-It is key for the WWE to keep the momentum going with Cody. I don’t know what they could do with Goldust, but Cody needs to stick around in the big picture for the time being. It is very possible he could get a big main event run off of this.
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Kofi Kingston vs Bray Wyatt
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-I liked this match. It was a fun one. Kofi is underrated as a worker in the ring. He just needs a character tweak to add some life and rejuvenate his character.
-Bray Wyatt’s entrance is fun live. It is one of those unique experiences that you can only get from being at the show.
CM Punk vs Ryback
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-When the crowd cares more about booing Paul Heyman than Ryback, I think that is a sign of how much the crowd cares about Ryback. The WWE wasted time with Ryback and pairing him with Paul Heyman can only do so much. Just ask Curtis Axel.
-CM Punk is still over, but it somewhat seems like his reactions are down a bit. I would say he got about the third largest pop of the night after the Rhodes Family win and Daniel Bryan. But I’ve heard it bigger before.
-The match was slow paced, but with Punk’s injuries and Ryback’s slowness in the ring its understandable. It is a match that could have used a stipulation.
-The way Punk won took the crowd by surprise. I didn’t expect it to end like that. The crowd seemed a bit flat for this one. But I think the pace of the match is what killed it.
Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton
-Hope everyone caught this!
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-I can tell you for a fact that the power outage killed the crowd momentum early on in the match. The crowd was hot before the promo and was chanting YES during the video package, but the power outage killed all momentum. The only noticeable things that went out in the arena was the Tron video board and jumbotron in the arena. Nothing else went out inside the arena.
-Once the match moved to the outside of the ring the crowd became more involved. Bryan was the most over wrestler the whole night.
-The ending of the match, if you bought the PPV or were there live, was a complete slap in the face to you. It’s like the WWE took your money and was just burning it up right in front of you. They don’t care at all. These were my free tickets the WWE gave me from the Wrestlemania poll blockage fiasco, but I still felt ripped off.
-When the WWE looks back at what hurt this angle, it’ll be these false finishes that they think will keep the fans interested, but instead it drove them away from the big payoff. Who would shell out $55 for Battleground, get that ending, then honestly come back three weeks later and purchase Hell In A Cell.
-I will say, however, that the Big Show finally snapping was over strong with the crowd initially. They loved it. It was done the right way.
-But the second the crowd realized that the PPV ended that way, they turned on it. There were some “Bullshit” chants and boos when Justin Roberts announced that the show was over.
I’m not going to give this show a grade or rating. Being their live skews that, and I always find being at a show live is fun.
Until Next Time,
Justin C
Follow Me On Twitter @JCWonka
