WWE Melbourne & Sydney live results: Reigns vs. Strowman
The Raw roster continued its tour of Australia with shows in Melbourne and Sydney over the past two days. Here’s a rundown of the events:
Results from Melbourne —
Submitted by reader Damien Evans
– Kurt Angle came out to a massive pop and did a quick welcome promo.
– Jason Jordan won a battle royal to earn a shot at the Intercontinental title later in the night
The Miztourage worked well together, as did Heath Slater and Rhyno. It was a decent battle royal, with it ending when Jordan double clotheslined Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas over the top rope.
– WWE Cruiserweight Champion Neville defeated Akira Tozawa and Enzo Amore to retain his title
Amore took a bump immediately that put him out of the ring for most of the match, allowing Neville and Tozawa to work most of it. They had a solid match and both got a decent bit of offense in.
Once Amore came back, he teamed with Neville to work over Tozawa and got him down. Neville then threw Amore out of the ring and got the pin on Tozawa.
– The Hardys defeated Cesaro & Sheamus
This was probably the match of the night, with both teams coming out looking good. After some long back and forth, Matt hit a Twist of Fate and Jeff followed with the Swanton to get the win.
– Finn Balor defeated Bray Wyatt
They had a match that didn’t work well at all. Both wrestlers are very good, but they didn’t seem to gel together in the ring well. The most memorable thing was Wyatt throwing some crotch chops towards the crowd in response to a “Husky Harris” chant.
Balor did a good babyface promo after the win.
– Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss defeated Emma, Sasha Banks, Mickie James, and Nia Jax to retain her title
James and Emma got a lot of offense in, but Bliss ended up retaining in a fairly messy match.
– Jason Jordan defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz by DQ
Miz spent a few minutes begging off well, but the action was pretty average once it got going. The Miztourage returned to cause the disqualification after they had been sent to the back. They tripled teamed Jordan, then Dean Ambrose and R-Truth ran down for the save.
Angle came back out and made a six-man tag match between them.
– Jason Jordan, Dean Ambrose & R-Truth defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz & The Miztourage
They had a surprisingly good match considering how it was put together. R-Truth actually took a lot of it for his team and looked good, then Ambrose hit the Dirty Deeds on Miz for the pin.
– Roman Reigns defeated Braun Strowman
This had an interesting structure to it. Reigns would try to bring weapons in, but Strowman would put them away as he preferred to beat him barehanded. It was a good back-and-forth match, with Strowman having the upper hand for most of the match until Reigns made a comeback.
Reigns hit a series of Superman punches and speared Strowman through a table in the corner to get the victory.
Results from Sydney —
Submitted by reader Ivan Oetomo
– Jason Jordan won a battle royal to earn a shot at the Intercontinental title later in the night
This also included Dean Ambrose, Apollo Crews, Titus O’Neil, Goldust, R-Truth, Bo Dallas, Curtis Axel, Elias, Rhyno, and Heath Slater. Ambrose got a great reaction from the crowd when he made his entrance.
Jordan, Ambrose, Dallas, and Axel were the final four. The Miztourage threw Jordan to the outside of the ring through the second rope, then they ganged up on Ambrose and eliminated him. But Jordan snuck back into the ring and eliminated both Dallas and Axel simultaneously.
– WWE Cruiserweight Champion Neville defeated Akira Tozawa and Enzo Amore to retain his title
Amore got a good reaction from the crowd and cut a short promo. Neville tossed him out of the ring from the get go — and that’s where he spent most of the match. Neville and Tozawa did most of the work. Amore struggled to get back into the ring, only to be tossed out again by Neville.
Neville and Tozawa did more work until Amore managed to get in and hit Neville with chops and punches. Amore threw Neville out of the ring and focused on Tozawa. He hit some kind of DDT, but Neville was able to get back in, throw Amore out, and steal the pin on Tozawa.
– The Hardys defeated Cesaro & Sheamus
This was nothing out of the ordinary. There was one funny moment when the audience chanted “wear your sunscreen” at Sheamus. For the finish, Jeff hit him with Poetry in Motion and the Swanton. The crowd loved the ending sequence.
– Finn Balor defeated Bray Wyatt
They had an okay match, with it being back and forth and nothing special. Wyatt jumped Balor early before the bell was rung, but Balor came back and hit a dropkick and Coup de Grace for the win.
Balor grabbed the mic and told the crowd that the Irish and the Australians are alike. He pointed at the “Qudos Bank Arena” sign and said: “That sign may say Qudos Bank Arena, but tonight this is the Balor Club.”
– Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss defeated Emma, Sasha Banks, Nia Jax, and Mickie James to retain her title
Bliss spent most of this outside of the ring. She didn’t do much at all. Banks, James, Jax, and Emma took turns working on one another. Emma had a good reaction from the crowd in her home country. Bliss went back into the ring and rolled her up to steal the win, with Emma claiming Bliss held her shorts while she was rolled up.
– Jason Jordan defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz by DQ
The Miztourage accompanied Miz to the ring. The wrestling itself was okay, but Miz really knows how to work a crowd. There was a chant of “where’s Maryse?” after everyone noticed that she wasn’t there, which Miz responded to by saying that she would never step foot into a city like Sydney. That got the biggest heat of the night.
Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel were sent to the back after repeatedly trying to interfere. Jordan got the momentum and hit some suplexes, then Dallas and Axel ran back out to attack him. The ref called for the bell, but the Miztourage kept attacking Jordan until Dean Ambrose and R-Truth ran in for the save. That led to Kurt Angle coming out and making a six-man tag.
– Jason Jordan, Dean Ambrose & R-Truth defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz & The Miztourage
Ambrose got the pin with Dirty Deeds.
– Roman Reigns defeated Braun Strowman in a street fight
There was a 70-30 split in favor of Reigns among the audience. Strowman dominated the first part of the match, including using the steel steps on Reigns for a bit. A turning point was Reigns hitting a Samoan drop on a table. He followed with two or three Superman punches, a spear, and another spear through a table in the corner to get the win.