WWE Armageddon: Who Saw That Coming?!

I would be lying if I said I thought Armageddon would be anything other than a filler of a PPV, but what a shock it turned out to be. I think most people who made predictions before the PPV will be happy to hold their hands up, myself included, and say we got it wrong. The WWE has pleasantly surprised those people who thought that thought they were becoming predictable, and in what style.

Vladimir Kozlov and Matt Hardy started off the night, and although I had a feeling Vlad would come away with win I was impressed with both of their performances. The writers weren’t ready to let someone pin Kozlov just yet but Matt Hardy made him fight for his win. Vladimir showcasing his new Chokeslam crossed with a Spinebuster finisher again for the pin, and possibly putting himself in line for another title shot.

Another predictable result in the final of the IC title tournament, but another good performance by both wrestlers. CM Punk was the favorite for the win after losing his tag title, and after a well fought match Punk delivered a GTS that looked to have done some damage to Rey’s face. He will now probably face William Regal at the Royal Rumble in Detroit, and more than likely come away with the win.

Then we saw the continuation of this weird storyline between JBL and Shawn Michaels. Michaels admitting to the crowd that he needs money and will be working for JBL, which was greeted with chants of “Sell out” from the crowd. Not sure where this storyline is going but there we go.

I was not expecting a lot from the Finlay vs. Mark Henry match but again they both performed well, it turned out to be a good match, and for the first time in the night the result did not go the way I expected. Not that it was a particularly important match but most would have thought Mark Henry would own Finlay and easily take the win. But with a little help from Hornswoggle the fighting Irishman proved why the Belfast Brawl is his match.

Then the highlight of the night for me, Santino Marella and the Glamazon crash the Santa’s little helpers’ party, only for the Boogeyman and Goldust to shoo him away, then joined by Jesse, Festus and others sing “We wish you a merry Christmas” …priceless.

Back to the matches and Batista faced Randy Orton. Although not a number one contenders match you would imagine the winner of this would go on to face the World Champion at the Royal Rumble, so a lot was at steak. Rhodes and Manu joined Orton at ringside but after some interference (at which point the referee should have called for the bell) were sent back to the locker room.

After a taxing match Randy Orton stalked Batista only to have a move backfire on him and get Batista takes the victory. I couldn’t imagine Batista taking the victory as Randy seemed next in line for a title shot but I can’t say I was disappointed. By this point a lot of my predictions were well out the window and thing were looking promising for what was to come.

Next up was the match I was dreading most of the night, but again I was pleasantly surprised. Another thrown together match involving a multitude of dives didn’t seem to have promise, but good performances by most of the ladies capped by Michelle McCool delivering her new AJ Styles like maneuver produced another strong match to add to the card.

Khali’s Kiss Cam then took centre stage and in typical fashion the ‘Punjabi Playboy’ was not treated to a kiss from Santa’s little helpers, rather Santa’s scantily dressed grandma in the form of Mae Young. More classic footage produced by the WWE.

Not a lot can be said about the result of the Cena vs. Jericho match; good performances, predictable result. John Cena comes away with the win after kicking out of a Codebreaker and making Jericho tap to the STFU, need I say more.

Then came the match we had long been waiting for, or should I say the result. Jeff Hardy wins his first WWE Championship after delivering a Swanton to Edge and knocking HHH out the ring allowing him to get the cover. Some fantastic moments in the match including Jeff being speared through an announce table and an electric chair superplex involving all three competitors.

I was jumping around like a schoolgirl after this match (I'm not ashamed to admit it), and feeling utterly shocked that such a good PPV had come out of nowhere.

I don’t think many people would have predicted that WWE would produce such a good event out of nowhere, arguably one of the best of the year. A fantastic card overall, some shocking but enjoyable results, great backstage action, and Jeff Hardy winning his first title, what more could you ask for?

This has left me on a high going into the New Year and begging to see what happens in the road to Wrestlemania. What did you all think of Armageddon?