WWE Survivor Series 2015 Results: Biggest Stars of the Night
The WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view has always provided chances for wrestlers to stand out among the crowd and make names for themselves. After all, only the strong survive.
The 2015 edition emphasized this more than ever, as the company was left without franchise player John Cena, top champion Seth Rollins, its most popular Divas attraction, The Bella Twins, and more.
At one point, it seemed as though the event would even be missing its namesake gimmick match, as WWE put zero effort into promoting the actual Survivor Series match itself by not announcing a single participant well enough in advance!
A tournament was set to crown a new WWE world heavyweight champion, and 10 men would fight on two teams to, with only one outlasting the others in the end.
There was a lot of potential to usher in a new era with younger stars, or else firmly cement The Undertaker's legacy as something that could never be replicated again, using the focus on his 25th anniversary match against The Wyatt Family.
Even when it comes to the Divas Championship match, the women fighting for the prize have been overshadowed by the memory of someone who has passed on and the controversy surrounding his involvement in the feud.
Did Charlotte or Paige put on such a good show that fans will move on from talking about Reid Flair, instead raining praise upon them for reigniting a spark in the embers of the Divas Revolution?
When a champion goes down, it's up to the rest of the roster to step up, so who proved they were up to the challenge?
With The Brothers of Destruction nearing the end of their careers, was it time for them to step aside and let the new breed take over, or did they prove that they still had gas left in the tank?
Who fought against the odds to lead his team to victory in five-on-five war?
Considering factors such as wins and losses, storyline importance, performance quality, how integral each wrestler was going into the next edition of Monday Night Raw and his overall position on the WWE hierarchy beforehand, it's time for us to break down what happened at Survivor Series and review the biggest stars of the night.
Honorable Mention: Elimination Match Survivors
1 of 6
Normally, there is a sole survivor who stands out among the rest to really solidify some kind of push at Survivor Series.
For this year's event, however, WWE opted to forego that and keep nearly every babyface still on their teams at the end of the two matches.
The negative thing about that is that nobody really got a lot amount of focus on them, so none will have a lot of momentum going forward, as they were all sharing the spotlight.
The positive, though, is that many different people got a tiny bit of a boost in credibility.
When was the last time Jey Uso was featured over Jimmy Uso, other than at this event? Kalisto continued to look stronger than ever as a survivor, as did Ryback, who hasn't had the best couple of months after losing the Intercontinental Championship.
The Dudley Boyz and Titus O'Neil also went from not having a match on the card to being winners in the pre-show, which is much better than nothing.
Although none of these guys will suddenly be at the top of the roster by the next pay-per-view, these are still feathers in their caps on a show that had mostly losers and few winners.
5. Goldust
2 of 6
At one point, the pre-show was advertised as not having any kind of a match, so it was not only a good surprise to see a Survivor Series Elimination match take place at the kickoff, but also to see this man make his return.
Goldust is one of the most interesting characters that the company has ever had, and recent years have seen some of the best matches he's ever had. His ring skills have improved, and he proved yet again here that he could still go.
2015 was not a good year for The Bizarre One, having a terrible match with Stardust at Fastlane and following it up with an injury, but this was the total opposite of the spectrum.
Not only did Goldust perform very well, but he was also booked as the focal point of the match, outshining nine other competitors and getting the most amount of pinfalls.
Even someone like Neville, who has been lighting up the midcard scene, was taken out of the match for some reason, while Goldust took charge and eliminated two of his opposition, Viktor and The Miz.
It will be interesting to see how WWE utilizes him going forward, but this is a great start.
4. Dean Ambrose
3 of 6
Coming in second place is nothing to be ashamed of, especially when even the winner of the tournament doesn't leave with the title.
Dean Ambrose had two very good performances tonight in which he defeated the current intercontinental champion and then came very close to defeating the man who would be the next to hold the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
WWE may not feel Ambrose is ready to hold the top prize, but with performances like this, it's hard to imagine that viewpoint persisting much longer.
Sooner or later, it will be Ambrose's time. Survivor Series just wasn't it.
3. The Brothers of Destruction
4 of 6
All one had to do was look at any of the posters for this year's event, and it was blatantly obvious who one of the biggest stars was.
Quite literally, this edition of Survivor Series was marketed as the 25th anniversary of The Undertaker above and beyond anything else, and if it weren't for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament, nothing would have taken the front seat before him.
To his credit, Kane shouldn't be forgotten, either. The Undertaker alone is a special sighting seen only a few times a year, but to see both of The Brothers of Destruction team up is even rarer.
The build to the match against The Wyatt Family was nowhere near as epic as it could have been, had a few more people been added into the match, yet it was still the second-best selling point of the event.
For a while, it appeared The Undertaker was getting too old and that his body had broken down, with an imminent retirement looming. 2015 has been kind to The Deadman, and this match was another example of how much more he still has left in the tank.
The Phenom and The Demon decisively defeated The New Face of Fear and his minions, re-establishing that nobody does the dark side better.
2. Roman Reigns
5 of 6
As good a night as the others might have had, almost nobody compared to the person who not only won the main event, but in the process won a tournament to become the new WWE world heavyweight champion.
That's the top prize in the company, and going through all of the other competitors to win it means that Roman Reigns is indeed at the top of the food chain right now.
Everything pointed to Reigns' being ranked at the top of this list. If only things had stayed that way.
There's clearly a story in place for Reigns to work his way back into the top spot and become the champion again, so despite losing the title, it's more important that he initially won it.
Don't forget that Reigns also defeated the United States champion earlier on in the evening in a very decent match, and that he only lost his championship to two Brogue Kicks that came out of nowhere in a sneak attack.
Reigns leaves Survivor Series without the title but looking stronger than ever.
1. Sheamus
6 of 6
Simply put, Sheamus is the new WWE world heavyweight champion, and as such left the event with the title in hand.
His Money in the Bank cash-in will undoubtedly be the biggest story going into Monday Night Raw, and he will be the focal point of the roster going forward until Roman Reigns gets his revenge, winning it back.
Sheamus went from being the last person on his Survivor Series team and up against three others to being the new priority for The Authority.
Although the WWE Universe knows that Sheamus has to be looked at as a cheat and not on par with Reigns, due to the way he won the belt, the history books are still going to look back on Survivor Series 2015 with this as the crowning moment of the night.
What do you think about this list? Are there people missing whom you feel should be included? Is the order out of whack?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.
.jpg?w=600 "Raw Results and Grades 🔠")
