WWE Hell in a Cell 2018 Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights
Sunday night was hell for the Superstars of WWE as the sports entertainment juggernaut presented Hell in a Cell from San Antonio's AT&T Center, a show headlined by a Universal Championship defense by Roman Reigns, who battled Braun Strowman inside the show's unforgiving namesake structure.
Reigns' teammates in The Shield would look to add to the group's already golden resume as intercontinental champion Seth Rollins teamed with Dean Ambrose to challenge Raw tag team champions Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre in one of Raw's marquee bouts.
On the SmackDown side of things, WWE champion AJ Styles put his historic run as champion on the line in one of the night's most emotional matches, defending against Samoa Joe. Emotions were also high in the SmackDown Women's Championship match in which friends-turned-enemies waged war as Charlotte Flair defended against Becky Lynch.
Who emerged from the event with gold around their waist? How might it affect the company's creative plans going forward?
Find out now with this recap of the September 16 pay-per-view extravaganza.
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day vs. Rusev Day
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Rusev and Aiden English set aside earlier issues to defeat The Bar's Sheamus and Cesaro and earn a shot at New Day's SmackDown Tag Team Championships during Sunday's Hell in a Cell Kickoff Show.
The champions engaged English in a verbal spar prior to the bout but were all business once the bell rang.
Kofi Kingston showed great athleticism early but soon found himself isolated from tag team partner Big E as Xavier Woods cheered on from the arena floor. A hot tag to Big E allowed the champions to mount a comeback that included a series of overhead suplexes and a big splash to English.
The action broke down, with Big E soaring through the middle rope with his trademark spear and wiping Rusev out at ringside. English, the legal man, delivered a senton over the top rope, laying Big E out.
With The Bulgarian Brute still incapacitated at ringside, New Day delivered a double-team for a near-fall.
Both challengers at ringside, Kingston soared over the top rope and right into a Machka Kick. English wiped out Big E for the second time in the match, and the challengers set out to put Kingston away.
A brief moment of miscommunication, though, cost the heels the titles at one point as Kingston was just able to kick out of a frog splash from The Artiste. Kofi survived an Accolade by English, dodged a charging Rusev and finished the former off with Trouble in Paradise for the successful title defense.
Result
New Day defeated Rusev Day
Grade
B-
Analysis
A hot, action-packed match that was somewhat disappointing if only because the rushed nature of the bout kept it from ever achieving the quality of each team's television performances of late.
The momentary miscommunication between the challengers should figure into the ballad of Rusev Day as all is apparently not well between English and Rusev. Whether it necessitates an immediate breakup or the storyline is played out even longer remains to be seen.
The question, at least for the tag team division, is which team steps up to challenge New Day next? We know The Bar will challenge for the titles in Australia, but does it win them there, or do Kingston, Big E and Woods continue reminding fans why they are (arguably) the best team of this generation?
Either way, it would have been nice to see the two teams have more time to put together the show-stealer they certainly are capable of.
Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton
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The Hell in a Cell descended from the rafters of the AT&T Center as the diabolic Randy Orton battled the enigmatic Jeff Hardy in the night's opening match, the culmination of one of the most heated rivalries in all of WWE.
Hardy took the fight to Orton right from the bell and set out to retrieve a table from underneath the ring. Orton capitalized on a brief opening and delivered a clothesline that leveled The Charismatic Enigma. Hardy recovered, delivered a dropkick into the table that sent it into the ribs of his opponent and used a ladder to further exploit the injury.
The Viper grabbed a steel chair and blasted his opponent with it, regaining control of the bout, though briefly.
Hardy delivered a mule kick and corner dropkick to the chest that earned him a two-count as commentator Corey Graves questioned whether Orton was too confident entering the match. Both men feeling the effects of the brutality of the match, Hardy regained his composure and delivered Whisper in the Wind for another near-fall.
On the outside, Hardy set up a ladder V-style for a vicious suplex. The Viper countered, though, and sent Hardy face-first into it. His midsection in pain, Hardy was just barely able to shoot his shoulder off the mat and avoid defeat.
Sensing he was finally in control of the match and his opponent, Orton delivered spine-crushing chair shots about the back of his opponent. From there, he removed Hardy's steel-studded belt and used it to whip the exposed skin of the former WWE and world heavyweight champion.
"Randy Orton is systematically destroying Jeff Hardy," Graves commented as Orton trapped Hardy in a ladder and executed his trademark stomp.
Orton took a break from the savagery, applying an old-school headlock as the fans came alive for the popular face-painted babyface. Hardy fought his way out, delivered an inverted atomic drop and delivered a double leg drop to the midsection.
The third-generation heel grounded Hardy and retrieved a screwdriver from a toolbox. He stuck his finger in the piercing of Hardy, then used the tool to inflict torturous pain and punishment to his opponent, twisting and pulling on the extended earlobe of Hardy.
A low blow stopped the sickening display of stomach-turning violence.
Hardy used the belt to dish out a taste of Orton's own medicine. His back full of welts, Orton fought through the pain and delivered a draping DDT. Primed, Orton teased the RKO on a recovering Hardy. The Enigma countered and delivered the Twist of Fate. A chair draped across Orton, Hardy delivered the Swanton Bomb.
"How?!" Graves asked as Orton managed to kick out. The cameras caught a nasty wound on the left thigh of Orton as Hardy grabbed a ladder and table from ringside, determined to put his opponent away. Hardy delivered another Twist of Fate and unloaded with a series of rights and lefts that left the heel sprawled on the table.
Hardy climbed the ladder, held on to the ceiling of the cell and launched himself off with a splash that ended with him crashing through the table. The referee frantically called for medics as Orton demanded he count the fall, which he did. Medics applied a neck brace to Hardy as Orton stood on the ropes, triumphant and satisfied with the condition Hardy found himself in.
Result
Orton defeated Hardy
Grade
A
Analysis
The violence and sheer brutality of this one lived up to the tone of the feud and lived up to what fans expect from the cell gimmick.
Did Hardy jump off the top of the cell as many expected?
No, but he did not have to. The chair and ladder shots were vicious. The sight of Orton ripping and tearing and twisting at the ear of Hardy was sickening. The finish was dangerous and fresh. Everything about the match was exactly what it had to be.
It was the perfect way to kick off the show and featured a depravity that the Superstars later in the show will be hard-pressed to match.
In a day and age when too many complain about Hell in a Cell no longer carrying the aura of danger and violence it once did, Hardy and Orton brought both to kick off this show.
SmackDown Women's Championship Match: Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch
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Charlotte Flair entered Sunday's show with an 18-2 record in singles championship defenses over the course of her sparkling career. To get to 19, she would have to defeat her former best friend, a determined and dangerous Becky Lynch.
The crowd in San Antonio was split 90-10 percent in favor of The Lass Kicker.
Counters, reversals and mat wrestling dominated the early moments of the match before the champion targeted the leg of her opponent. Lynch fought out and sidestepped a corner charge, sending Charlotte shoulder-first into the ring post.
Lynch seized control, taking the fight to the champion. Lynch targeted the arm, setting her up for the Dis-Arm-Her. Charlotte fought back and scaled the ropes for a moonsault attempt. She missed, and Lynch applied an armbar, expertly seizing on a dazed champion.
The Queen used her power advantage to fight out of it and deliver a powerbomb for a count of two as the commentary team touted her resilience.
An exchange of strikes broke out, and Lynch delivered a reverse hammerlock DDT.
Lynch tried for the missile dropkick, but her opponent countered and applied the Boston Crab. Lynch made the ropes, though, and sent Flair back and neck-first into the corner. The champion prone, the challenger again wrapped the injured arm of her opponent around the post.
A rollup attempt was countered by Lynch, who applied the Dis-Arm-Her to a pop. Flair rolled to the arena floor, breaking the hold. Back inside, Charlotte tried for the spear, but Lynch countered and pinned her to win the SmackDown Women's Championship.
Result
Lynch defeated Flair to win the title
Grade
A
Analysis
Lynch just straight up beat Charlotte to win the title, giving the fans the outcome they had wanted since SummerSlam. She systematically picked the champion apart and countered one of her trademark moves to win the match. It was brilliant booking that immediately adds credibility to Lynch and keeps the rivalry alive.
The new champion refusing Charlotte's handshake attempt after the match stayed true to the new character, putting to rest any speculation that Lynch may be portrayed as a tweener going forward.
A strong match, an unexpected finish and an overall package that catapults the story forward helped make this the second, consecutive quality segment to start this show.
Raw Tag Team Championship Match
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Just two weeks after winning the Raw Tag Team Championships, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre were faced with the unenviable task of defending against intercontinental champion Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose in the first of Raw's offerings on the Hell in a Cell card.
The two teams sized each other up early before Ambrose entered the match and went forehead-to-forehead with McIntyre. It was a poor decision because it landed The Lunatic Fringe on the receiving end of an assault at the hands of the champions while Rollins attempted to rally a comeback from the ring apron.
Rollins received the tag, delivered a spin kick to Ziggler and set out for a suicide dive. McIntyre tripped him up, though, providing a distraction that allowed The Show-Off to score a spike DDT that turned the advantage back to the champions.
McIntyre wore Rollins down, working the shoulder, neck and head of his opponent. A jawbreaker was hardly enough to create separation, and The Architect found himself at the mercy of Ziggler. In a perfectly timed spot, Rollins cleared McIntyre out of the ring and tried for a tag, but the Scot pulled Ambrose off the ring apron.
The Lunatic Fringe still paid dividends, breaking up a pin attempt.
Rollins finally made the tag, but the official did not see it, thanks to a well-timed distraction from Ziggler.
Ambrose finally tagged in, and the action broke down, the fight spilling to the arena floor. With Ziggler reeling after being thrown into the guardrail, Ambrose was perched up top but flew right into the waiting arms of McIntyre, who sent him head- and neck-first into the corner.
Rollins took off across the ring for a suicide dive but landed in the arms of Ziggler and McIntyre. Ambrose followed, knocking everyone down.
Back in the ring, near-falls dominated the action as both teams came within one count of emerging victoriously.
Rollins scored a rollup on McIntyre, a superkick and a frog splash to the spine for another breathtaking near-fall. Ziggler saved McIntyre from a double superplex, then dodged a diving Rollins at ringside. The heels set Ambrose up for a double-team maneuver, but The Lunatic Fringe fought out.
Rollins tried the superplex into a Falcon Arrow, but McIntyre exploded into the ring with the Claymore Kick, allowing a barely functioning Ziggler to score the win and successfully retain his title.
Result
McIntyre and Ziggler defeated Rollins and Ambrose to retain
Grade
A+
Analysis
The best match of an already spectacular show.
The near-falls, the sequencing and the finish were outstanding and had a lethargic crowd eating out of the palms of the performers down the stretch.
Ziggler and McIntyre retaining was the right outcome because it resisted the predictable outcome of The Shield holding all the gold and also ensured they retained their credibility. Too many losses would unravel everything WWE Creative has accomplished with the heels, so the win was necessary.
It also keeps the feud between The Shield, Ziggler, McIntyre and Braun Strowman rolling along as WWE Creative obviously attempts to bring faction warfare to the flagship show, making it that much more valuable to the long-term booking plans of the much-maligned writing team.
WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe
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Samoa Joe used the raw emotions of AJ Styles against him early in the WWE Championship match Sunday night.
Joe methodically wore down Styles, using his quick-strike ability to punish the champion. In a moment of dominance, Joe kicked Styles to the floor and followed up, almost nonchalantly, with a suicide dive that sent Styles bumping off the commentary tables.
Joe's size and strength advantage kept him in control of the match, his ferocity and determination overwhelming the champion until a well-timed sidestep sent Joe into the turnbuckle and allowed Styles to create his first separation of the match.
A series of strikes and a nasty back fist helped Styles mount an onslaught and score a near-fall.
Styles tried for a springboard moonsault, but Joe got the knees up. A powerbomb and STF followed as the challenger sought to become the first man to beat Styles in a championship bout since last November.
Joe unloaded with head-butts in the corner, wearing Styles down further and further with every passing minute. A sick forearm left the champion reeling. Again, The Phenomenal One sidestepped Joe and sent him into the corner.
Styles fought back and delivered a springboard 450 splash for a two-count. He followed up with an attempt at the Styles Clash, but Joe countered, delivered a slingshot and leveled the champion with a lariat clothesline that turned him inside out.
Everything Styles attempted, Joe countered or cut off. A nasty enzuigiri kick earned him another near-fall.
Styles tried for the Phenomenal Forearm, but Joe grabbed him in the Coquina Clutch. A desperate Styles looked for the ropes, but Styles countered and scored the win in a finish reminiscent of Bret Hart vs. Roddy Piper from WrestleMania VIII.
Result
Styles defeated Joe to retain the WWE title
Grade
B+
Analysis
Joe and the commentary team played up the fact that Styles tapped while in the midst of pinning his challenger, suggesting that will be the emphasis for the continuation of the rivalry.
The match was good, hard-hitting and ultra-competitive, but it felt like it was missing some of the heat that accompanied their SummerSlam match last month. Perhaps that has to do with the fact that it was put in the unenviable position of following the outstanding tag team match. Maybe the storyline hasn't hit with as many people as WWE Creative had hoped.
Whatever the case may be, the match was definitely hurt by the crowd not necessarily buying into the action, particularly down the stretch, where the finish could have been better appreciated.
Hopefully the Superstars have a hell of a finish to their program in store for fans in Australia, when they meet one more time with the WWE title up for grabs at WWE Super Show-Down.
Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella vs. The Miz and Maryse
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After Maryse figured prominently into the conclusion of the SummerSlam match between Daniel Bryan and The Miz, Brie Bella exploded back onto the scene, setting up a mixed tag team match that was one of SmackDown's premier offerings Sunday night at Hell in a Cell.
Bryan survived a cheap shot from Miz early and took the fight to The Hollywood A-Lister.
Every time Maryse entered the match to square off with Bella, she stalled and tagged her husband back in, robbing fans of the moment the popular twin went Brie Mode on the French Canadian.
All it did was provide Bryan with more opportunities to unload on Miz.
He delivered a headscissors from the top rope and trapped Miz in the YES! Lock, but Maryse broke it up. Bryan continued to unload on Miz, delivering a series of uppercuts and a corner dropkick. A missed second dropkick attempt allowed Miz to seize control, first with a headlock, then with a neckbreaker.
Bryan fought back and tried for a head-butt from the top rope, but Miz rolled out of the way, leaving both Superstars in need of a tag.
Bryan made the tag to Brie, who demanded the referee order Maryse into the match. No longer willing to be contained, Brie delivering a barrage of rights and lefts. Outside the ring, Bella unloaded on Maryse, sending her face-first into the announce table.
Back inside the squared circle, Brie delivered a dropkick that scored a near-fall before joining Bryan and teeing off on the most must-see couple in WWE.
With Bryan and Miz fighting at ringside, Maryse countered a Bella rollup in an extremely sloppy spot and scored the win.
Result
Maryse and Miz defeated Bryan and Bella
Grade
B
Analysis
This may have been the worst match on the show, but even then, it was an entertaining romp that continues the Bryan-Miz rivalry, which will hopefully culminate in a more serious and higher-profile bout sooner than later.
Bella's explosion in the closing moments of the match was excellent. She held nothing back as she unloaded on Miz and Maryse and the crowd responded accordingly. Unfortunately for her and Maryse, their exchange was sloppy and diminished the finish a bit.
Neither of the women are the most polished workers, nor were they ever, but it was particularly ugly given how much momentum the match had built for itself down the stretch.
Raw Women's Championship Match: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss
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The health of Raw women's champion Ronda Rousey was the question ahead of her title defense Sunday night. After weeks spent nursing ribs that were damaged when she was sent into the ring steps by opponent Alexa Bliss, fans had the chance to see how she operated at less than 100 percent.
Bliss was accompanied to the ring by Alicia Fox and Mickie James; Rousey was seconded by Natalya.
Rousey dominated the action early, predictably so, as she ragdolled Bliss with a judo throw. That domination subsided when, after wiping out James and Fox at ringside, Rousey fell prey to a neck snap on the top rope. From there, Bliss targeted the aforementioned ribs.
Every bit of offense was focused on the midsection of her opponent, which took certain aspects of Rousey's game away.
Fighting back, Rousey attempted a superplex, but Bliss countered out, hung her up in the Tree of Woe and delivered a dropkick to the midsection. Bliss pulled Rousey to the corner and wrapped her midsection around the ring post. When James and Fox got involved again, Natalya wiped them out at ringside.
A double cross body block left both women down.
Rousey got back to her feet and delivered a tilt-a-whirl powerbomb but was unable to follow up. Both women up, she unloaded with short rights to the body of her opponent. A blind charge into the corner, though, earned her a kick to the ribs. Rousey recovered and locked in the armbar for the quick submission win.
Result
Rousey defeated Bliss
Grade
B
Analysis
This was so much better than it had any right to be.
The storytelling took precedent, but the in-ring work was leaps and bounds beyond what should have been expected. Rousey did a solid job of selling her injured ribs, and there was just enough from Natalya, Fox and James to add to the match without overpowering it.
From a logic perspective, it begs the question why Rousey would suddenly struggle so much with Bliss after destroying her at SummerSlam. Injury or no injury. Yes, WWE did not want to kill Bliss' heat with another squash, but it is difficult to explain Rousey's sudden struggle to put away Little Miss Bliss.
Hell in a Cell for the Universal Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman
8 of 8
The yearlong rivalry between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman wrote its latest chapter inside Hell in a Cell Sunday night, with Reigns' Universal Championship up for grabs.
Reigns answered a taunt by Strowman with a hard right hand right out of the gate, unloading on The Monster Among Men with a series of corner clotheslines. Strowman recovered quickly, though, and sent Reigns into the ring post. From there, he sent Reigns face-first into the cell, leaving the champion writhing in pain.
Strowman delivered a nasty shoulder tackle that sent Reigns crashing back into the unforgiving steel of the structure.
Reigns' answer to the onslaught? A kendo stick that he immediately broke over the massive arms of his opponent. A steel chair was next up, the latest equalizer utilized by The Big Dog. Strowman caught it and tossed it aside but could not avoid running shoulder-first into the post.
Reigns delivered a Superman Punch that merely staggered Strowman. A second? Same result. The third, though, saw Reigns caught in the grasp of Strowman and planted with a nasty chokeslam. A potentially botched count from guest referee Mick Foley left Strowman seething.
Both men were reeling, their bodies beaten and frustration setting in.
Reigns sprinted around the ring and right into the steel steps that had been hoisted by Strowman in a demonstration of strength. Strowman took the steps into the ring and used them as a weapon, driving them into the ribs of the champion.
Now with a table at his disposal, Strowman set it up in an ominous sight.
Reigns, though, delivered a series of Superman Punches and a spear through that same table. It only kept Strowman down for two.
Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler made their presences felt, followed shortly thereafter by Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. The four fought around ringside before Ziggler and Rollins climbed to the top of the cell and waged war some 30 feet above the ground.
After a back and forth, Rollins and Ziggler fought on the side of the cage. After the appropriate amount of cage shots, they fell through the announce tables, giving fans the high spot they love.
Brock Lesnar's music played, and The Beast Incarnate marched to the ring, kicked the door in and proceeded to beat the ever-loving hell out of Reigns and Strowman. He used pieces of the table to punish the Superstars involved, then casually walked out, leaving the main event to end in a no-contest.
Result
Reigns and Strowman fought to a no-contest
Grade
A
Analysis
Let's address the elephant in the room: Yes, the finish sucked. The fact that there isn't a finish in a Hell in a Cell match is counterproductive to the match type itself. The Hell in a Cell was originally conceived to bring a fitting conclusion to the company's top rivalries, and booking a non-finish is about as lazy and stupid a finish as imaginable.
With that said, the match has also always been a spectacle.
From Kane's debut in the original to Foley's many dangerous bumps to the bloody warfare between Batista and Triple H at Vengeance 2005, it is a match of major storyline developments. The arrival of Lesnar and the brawling of The Shield, Ziggler and McIntyre fits the mold.
Add to it the high-impact offense one expects from Reigns vs. Strowman and you have exactly what this show—and the top of the Raw card—needed for this to be a success.
Even if management should be ashamed for booking that outcome in front of a crowd that had been very receptive to the rest of the broadcast.
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