Universal Champion Damien Priest and Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura kicked off Survivor Series 2021. I went into this match with my heart firmly set on Priest winning. I must also confess that I miss his Archer of Infamy entrance. While Damien is working some impressive joint manipulation, Rick Boogs is on the outside rifting on his guitar trying to invigorate Nakamura. It worked momentarily. As Priest regains control, Boogs strikes some chords once again irritating the Universal champ and giving control back to Shinsuke. Priest counters with a spinning heel kick to the guts of his opponent. This match went back and forth with several close 3 counts. However, the match would end in a disqualification for Priest when he used the guitar of Rick Boogs as a weapon. So far it is Raw 0 and SmackDown 1.
The first match of the evening is another champion verses champion. It is Becky Lynch squaring up against Charlotte Flair. I was going to test my theory that I can predict who will win based on the competitors in ring gear but this one was too close to call. Charlotte came to the ring in solid black with devil horns on her shoulders. Becky Lynch comes to the ring wearing devil red latex gear with matching knee high boots. This is going to be a "hellish" match. A beautifully vicious contest with each women releasing their frustrations to the point that neither could sustain an offense. The highlight of the match for me was when Lynch locked in Flair's signature figure four leg lock. Charlotte countered into the figure eight until she was forced to break the hold when Becky reached the ropes. Turn around is fair play as moments later, Charlotte would have Becky in an arm bar. Make no mistake, this was a FIGHT from bell to bell. In the end, Becky Lynch "steals" the win as she pins Charlotte Flair while holding onto the ropes. The score is now Raw 1 and SmackDown 1.
The men's 5-on-5 Elimination Tag Team match is next. The Raw line-up consists of team captain Bobby Lashley, Austin Theory, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins. Their SmackDown opponents are King Woods, Jeff Hardy, Sheamus, Happy Corbin and Drew McIntyre. I am personally rooting for team SmackDown. Kevin Owens fought to start this match but he didn't fight. As soon as the bell rings, he rolls out under the bottom rope and walks up the ramp allowing himself to be counted out. The second person to be eliminated is Happy Corbin compliments of Finn Balor. With a nasty spear followed by the Hurt Lock, Lashley sends King Woods back to the locker room. This lead to the inevitable match up of Bobby Lashley and Drew McIntyre showcasing their disdain for each other. Both athletes take their anger outside the ring and over the barricade resulting in a double count out. Finn Balor will be hitting the showers next as he is taken out by Sheamus. The Celtic Warrior would only survive for a couple more minutes as he is the next to be sent up the ramp by Austin Theory. We are now down to Raw's Austin Theory and Seth Rollins verses SmackDown's Jeff Hardy. The veteran Hardy quickly takes out Theory leaving Jeff to face Seth Rollins one on one. Rollins secures the win for team Raw and the title of sole survivor. It is now Raw 2 and SmackDown 1.
Next is the 25 man Battle Royal. I have a couple of favorites in this bout. I would be happy with one of the Viking Raiders, Babatunde, aka, Commander Azeez, Jinder Mahal or Shanky picking up the win. Since you can only be eliminated by going over the top rope and both feet touching the floor, AJ Styles smartly goes under the bottom rope to remain fresh by staying out of the chaos. With more than half of the competitors out of the ring, Styles finally joins the battle. However, he is inadvertently eliminated by his tag partner Omos. Omos continued to dominate all the way to a win. Don't know how I feel about this. What I do know is that Raw is in the lead 3 to 1.
The Usos are now set to face RK-Bro in a tag team match. Before the contest begins, it is important to highlight a great accomplishment. Tonight, Randy Orton sets the record for the most pay-per-view matches in WWE history. Orton would continue to pad his future hall of fame video package when he hits the RKO on Jey Uso who tried to take him out with an Uso Splash to pick up the win. Raw is up 4 to 1.
Before we get to the main event of the evening, the women are up in their 5-on-5 elimination match. Raw consists of captain Bianca Belair, Carmella, Zelina "Red Rooster" Vega, Liv Morgan and Rhea Ripley. Team SmackDown is captained by Sasha Banks. She is joined by Natalya, Shayna Baszler, Toni Storm and Shotzi Blackheart. The first women to be eliminated is Carmella. Quite some time later, Zelina Vega would be sent back to the locker room followed by Toni Storm. Liv Morgan would be the fourth athlete eliminated. Rhea Ripley is now out compliments of Shayna Baszler. This contest moved very fast once Vega was taken out eventually leaving Bianca Belair to duke it out against Shotzi Blackheart. Belair would end up winning earning her the title of sole survivor. Congrats to Raw for being the brand with the most wins at 5 to 1.
Now for the main event of Roman Reigns verses Big E. Traditional lock up to start the match. Roman would take control and go for the first pinfall. Reigns would continue to dominate the match when E went for a big splash only to miss. This allowed for the Tribal Chief to hit his challenger with a drive by. The assault continues back in the ring. The WWE Universe tried to encourage Ettore but Roman let loose a couple of boots to the face before going for yet another pin. This beat down reminds me of when Bobby Lashley just man handled Kofi Kingston at Money in the Bank 2021. Big E does get in a couple of moments of offense, including a stretch muffler on his opponent. But time and time again, Roman regains control. Despite a powerful spear in the center of the ring, E somehow preserves himself. He even hits the Big Ending but Reigns grabs the ropes which halted the 3 count. The Universal champion, Roman Reigns, would hit one final spear to pick up the win. He has now been the champ for 448 days and the final score of the evening is Raw 5 and SmackDown 2.
This was the last WWE pay-per-view of 2021. It was decent. It was also nice to see Vince McMahon make a cameo. As much as I would have loved to see Brock Lesner, I appreciated the lack of surprises because I have a feeling the company is going to ring in 2022 with a bang via their January 1 pay-per-view. Until then.......
#BringBackBraun
