5 things WWE Elimination Chamber got right: Brock Lesnar panics; an emotional rollercoaster
WWE Elimination Chamber was hosted by Sami Zayn’s hometown Montreal, Canada this year. The Master Strategist was set to make his fans happy by taking on Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
Two Elimination Chamber matches were also set for the show. The women’s match was booked to determine the next challenger for Bianca Belair’s RAW Women’s Championship. Meanwhile, the men’s match was for the United States Championship.
Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley competed in a grudge match to determine who’s the bigger monster in the company. Beth Phoenix and Edge also teamed up to face Judgment Day’s Rhea Ripley and Finn Balor.
Take a look at the five things WWE Elimination Chamber got right this year.
#5. Asuka became Bianca Belair’s challenger for the RAW Women’s Championship
The women’s Elimination Chamber match kicked off the show on Saturday night. Natalya received a big pop from the crowd as she came out and locked up against Liv Morgan to get the match going.
Raquel Rodriguez joined in, and all three women hit some good moves before Nikki Cross was released from her pod. She went all out at Raquel and the other competitors in hopes of getting a pin.
Carmella joined in next, followed by Asuka, who came last and used her experience to work with other competitors in the contest. Natalya and Asuka locked in a double submission hold to eliminate Liv from the match.
The Empress of Tomorrow beat Natalya down before Carmella came in and got the pin on The Queen of Harts. Carmella and Asuka worked together to take Rodriguez off her feet and pinned her, too, to eliminate her from the match.
Asuka and Carmella were the final two remaining in the match, and the former got the Empress lock to get her opponent to tap out for the win.
The Empress had the momentum heading into the match, and the company did well to give her a big win on Saturday. She will prove to be a good challenger for Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 39. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top in that match.
#4. Brock Lesnar could not overcome Bobby Lashley at WWE Elimination Chamber
Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley competed in the second match at WWE Elimination Chamber. The Beast Incarnate took control of the contest early and hit a big suplex before sending his opponent outside.
Lashley hit a Spear in the ring and then another one but could not put Lesnar away. The former Universal Champion got hold of The All Mighty and hit a couple of F5s before missing a third one.
Lashley caught Lesnar in the Hurt Lock, and Lesnar couldn’t find a way out of it. He hit a low blow to Lashley, and the referee called for the bell to end the match in a disqualification.
Brock hit the referee with an F5 after the match and sent Lashley through the announcer’s desk with another one of his finishers. He then hit another F5 to a referee on the wreckage before exiting the arena.
The match was chaotic and protected both men from a clean finish. The main focus was on who would face Bray Wyatt after Elimination Chamber, and Lesnar got himself out of that situation without picking a clean loss.
#3. Edge and Beth Phoenix defeated The Judgment Day to make a statement
Edge and Beth Phoenix faced Finn Balor and Rhea Ripley in a non-title grudge match at WWE Elimination Chamber. Edge and Finn kicked off the match and exchanged a few moves before the women tagged in.
Dominik was at ringside for the contest and ran many distractions to help Mami and Finn throughout the contest. The Glamazon hit some power moves to show that she’s still got it and kept her opponents on the back foot.
Edge and Phoenix locked their opponents in submission holds, and Dominik climbed the ring apron to distract the referee and allow Ripley to break the holds. Rhea and Beth hit double powerbombs on the men in the ring before The Eradicator tried for the con-chair-to on Phoenix.
The Hall of Famer slipped out and sent Ripley into the steel steps before connecting with a Glam Slam outside the ring. Back inside, Edge took down Balor before getting the Spear and a Shatter Machine with Phoenix for the win.
The match was better than expected, as Beth and Edge worked extremely well together. WWE will likely use this match to build towards a final singles match between Edge and Balor at WrestleMania 39.
#2. Austin Theory retained his United States Championship after interference from Logan Paul
Seth Rollins and Johnny Gargano kicked off the men’s Elimination Chamber match. They had a good exchange before United States Champion Austin Theory was released from his pod.
Theory was red-hot, and threw both men around to showcase his skills. Gargano and Rollins worked together against The Unproven One before Damian Priest got in and hit Gargano with the Broken Arrow.
Bronson Reed came in and showcased his superior strength right away. He hit a few big slams and stayed on top to impress the crowd. Montez Ford came in with some good high-flying moves that made the match much more enjoyable.
Ford hit a splash from the top of the chamber in one of the most stunning moves inside the Elimination Chamber. All competitors hit Reed with their finishers before Ford sent him away with a Frog Splash. Priest got the Razor’s Edge on Gargano to eliminate him before Ford took out The Archer of Infamy with a Blockbuster.
Rollins caught Ford with a stomp, and Theory took advantage to pin the former tag team champion and eliminated him. The Visionary looked to be in control of the match before Logan Paul broke into the Elimination Chamber.
He hit Rollins with a clothesline before getting the Stomp on him and watched Theory hit the A-Town Down for the win inside Elimination Chamber.
The match was enjoyable, and it was good to see Austin Theory retain his title. Fans will wait to see whether John Cena returns to challenge him at WrestleMania 39. Meanwhile, the match between Rollins and Paul is now set in stone for The Show of Shows.
#1. Sami Zayn and Roman Reigns to fans on an emotional rollercoaster to end WWE Elimination Chamber
Sami Zayn came out to a monstrous pop from his home crowd as he geared up to face the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion, Roman Reigns. The two men locked up, and Reigns took control of the contest for some time.
The Master Strategist came back with a big counter and got some strikes that took the champion down. He hit a Sunset Flip Powerbomb for a near fall before getting an Exploder in. Sami went on a roll with another Exploder, followed by a Superman punch and a Helluva Kick but could not put the champion away.
The match ticked on as Sami continued to get some good moves in. The referee went down, and he got a Helluva Kick, but no one was around to make the count. Jimmy Uso came into the ring and took Zayn out, but The Master Strategist kicked out of the pin.
Zayn kicked out of a Spear to stun the entire WWE Universe before the referee went down once more. Paul Heyman handed Reigns a steel chair before Jey Uso came in. Roman looked to make Jey hit Sami with the chair, but he hesitated.
Zayn got back up and hit a Spear, nailing Jey by mistake. Reigns beat down Zayn with the steel chair before getting a Spear for the win.
Kevin Owens came out after the match and went after Jimmy and the Tribal Chief. He sent the former through the announcers’ desk with a powerbomb. Paul Heyman took a Stunner from The Prizefighter, but Owens let Zayn take out Roman Reigns before Elimination Chamber went off the air.
The match was electric and full of emotions. The entire crowd was behind Sami Zayn, who gave it his all in the ring.
WWE needs to stop putting referees down in matches involving Reigns, though. Overall, it was nearly perfectly done and builds towards a future match between The Usos and the team of Zayn and Owens.