WWE Survivor Series 2017 Results: Braun Strowman Stands Tall and Top Takeaways
Another Survivor Series is in the books, and one of the notable highlights was how WWE used the four-hour running time to deliver more wrestling.
There was no time-wasting; no dumb skits or random interludes, other than the video packages hyping the fights. Each match ran 15 minutes or more.
Survivor Series felt more like a wrestling show and less like a sports entertainment event. It was such a welcome, refreshing change of pace. Overall, it was a great showing by WWE as it heads into WrestleMania season.
Here are some key takeaways from Sunday evening.
The New Day and The Shield Take It Slow
1 of 7
It feels odd to say, considering the participants in this opening match, but The New Day vs. The Shield did not deliver on its considerably high expectations.
The match got off to a slow start and never really picked up. The only guy who upped his intensity was Big E. He had all the major highlight spots, from the double Midnight Hour to the suicide dive through the ropes. He's performing the dive more safely these days by swinging his legs to the side after almost breaking his neck doing the move last year.
What about Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, though? They seemed to be coasting Sunday night. Do they feel repressed by The Shield? Are they resentful about opening the show? Whatever went wrong, fans have seen much better out of both men.
Asuka Makes the Save
2 of 7
The Survivor Series women's match was an interesting, if weirdly booked, affair.
The two purest babyfaces on both teams, Becky Lynch and Bayley, were eliminated first. Then Nia Jax was counted out. And the two unlikeliest Superstars got their moves in—Alicia Fox was great on offense and Tamina Snuka pulled out her late father Jimmy's Superfly Splash to pin Bayley.
But the undisputed star was Asuka, who won the match for Team Raw with two submissions in a row.
When the Japanese first debuted on Raw, she fought two competitive matches against Emma, which is no way to build a dominant Superstar. Hopefully, Sunday night will begin a more positive booking for The Empress of Tomorrow.
Baron Corbin Upsets The Miz
3 of 7
This was a surprise, but it was a welcome one. The Miz was the obvious choice to win this match, if only because he had so much ringside help in the form of Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas.
Baron Corbin managed to not only take out the outside interference but also The Miz with a well-timed End of Days. After the match, The Lone Wolf cut a short-but-sweet heel promo that got the crowd booing.
It seemed extremely unfair when Corbin lost his Money in the Bank briefcase in the summer. In hindsight, though, it was the right call. He wasn't ready to hold the world title then.
He still isn't ready, but he's getting closer. Matches such as this will help him build momentum, so when he does win, it'll be believable and built to last.
The Usos and The Bar Deliver as Always
4 of 7
The workhorses of the division squared off in a fight that had no hype and no narrative build—a match that was buried deep in the middle of the show. But they still delivered.
The old saying is "styles make fights," and The Usos' high-flying antics and The Bar's grapple-centric approach made this an entertaining contest under non-ideal circumstances.
There are some Superstars who can be best described as "streaky"—they only turn up the heat during the big matches for the big moments. But Cesaro, Sheamus and The Usos always give it their all, and they deserve better.
Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair Follow the Script
5 of 7
There was nothing that particularly stood out about this match.
Because she's so diminutive, Alexa Bliss thrives on psychological warfare to get the upper hand over her opponent.
However, with Charlotte Flair on the opposite brand, there was no opportunity or build for that sort of head game. Instead, it was a straight-up contest, and Bliss didn't have a chance.
Since the two women are on opposite brands, there won't be any need for a follow-up moving on.
AJ Styles Raises The Beast's Bar
6 of 7
AJ Styles didn't pick up the victory, but he did put up an amazing fight and told a great story in the ring.
The match began with Lesnar being dominant, but Styles slowly started getting his shots in.
He began by working Lesnar's legs—chopping the giant down to size. And by the time he put The Beast Incarnate in the Calf Crusher, he could have made his opponent tap, which would have been believable.
That didn't happen, of course. But it's a testament to Styles that he made this match look as competitive and hard fought as he did.
Both men left the ring looking strong, and Lesnar had his best one-on-one confrontation of the year.
Triple H Tries to Steal the Show and Fails
7 of 7
There's so much to unpack here, but here are some specific takeaways:
- Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn had a perfect run-in that was both dramatic and strangely comedic. The image of Shane McMahon and Randy Orton fighting off guys from their own brand was priceless.
- Jason Jordan didn't get involved, which he probably should have done. Even a shot of him helping his dad, post-Triple H's Pedigree, would have been good enough.
- Braun Strowman continues to improve. That Powerslam looks more and more impactful every time he delivers it; he twists his body mid-air to give it some extra oomph.
- Triple H had a strange moment at the end of the match, when he deliberately hogged the spotlight for himself and acted like a glory boy. It's a common criticism he gets from the smarks, and he leaned into it on Sunday.
- Strowman stood tall at the show's end. The crowd has really gotten behind The Monster Among Men. So long as Lesnar is holding the Universal title hostage to a part-time schedule, the show cannot move forward narratively. But once The Beast Incarnate drops the title, Strowman needs to be right in the middle of the hunt for it. He's earned it.
.jpg?w=600 "WWE Raw Results & Grades 🔠")
