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Seth Rollins Beats Shinsuke Nakamura via Stomp to Win WWE Survivor Series Match
November 19, 2018
In a first-ever match, intercontinental champion Seth Rollins defeated United States champion Shinsuke Nakamura at Survivor Series on Sunday.
Both Nakamura and Rollins successfully countered one another's finishing moves near the end of the match. Nakamura's missed Kinshasa proved to be fatal, though. That allowed Rollins to hit his Stomp for the win to give Raw a 2-0 advantage.
The bout between Nakamura and Rollins was a dream match for many wrestling fans, although there wasn't much build to their encounter because of the fact that they are on separate brands.
Even so, the anticipation for the clash was palpable given their collective accomplishments and in-ring ability.
Leading up to Survivor Series, Rollins was primarily focused on his former Shield brother, Dean Ambrose.
Ambrose turned on The Architect after the pair beat Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre for the Raw tag team titles on the same night Roman Reigns announced he has leukemia.
Rollins demanded answers from The Lunatic Fringe, but he was primarily met with brutal attacks rather than an explanation.
Ambrose finally spoke Monday and expressed his belief that The Shield held him back and made him weak.
He also burned his Shield vest, which likely put Rollins in a fragile state of mind entering his meeting with Nakamura.
While The King of Strong Style has held the United States title for over four months, his reign has been far less memorable than Rollins' run with the IC strap.
Nakamura has tussled with the likes of Jeff Hardy and Rusev, but he has had few sustained feuds, and his television time on SmackDown has been sporadic.
The Japanese Superstar did gain some momentum at Crown Jewel when he beat Rusev on the pre-show to retain the U.S. title and keep the dream match with Rollins alive.
Nakamura also attempted to play some mind games with Rollins on the go-home episode of SmackDown prior to Survivor Series by watching video of Ambrose's betrayal and claiming he planned to break The Architect's face just like The Lunatic broke his heart.
Although Rollins had the thought of Ambrose hanging over him, he still managed to prevail on Sunday, and the win figures to give him a great deal of momentum as he prepares for what has the makings of a long-term feud with his former Shield teammate.
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