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Welcome to things WWE subtly told us at Hell in a Cell 2020! The PPV was a solid one that lasted just shy of three hours. The pacing of Hell in a Cell was great and the matches were solid too.
Thankfully, all three of the Hell in a Cell matches delivered in a big way and we had two major title changes in the process. Let's jump right into it!
#5 Was RETRIBUTION's Hell in a Cell burial a set up for something bigger?
We wonder what the point of having a faction like RETRIBUTION is when the objective seems to be to bury them. We’re not even at Survivor Series and WWE hasn’t done much to protect RETRIBUTION. The Hurt Business has certainly benefited in a big way from this feud, but there hasn’t been much done with RETRIBUTION just yet.
All we know is that Mustafa Ali is the leader of the group and the other members haven’t been made to look that good. At Hell in a Cell, there was an impromptu co-main event where CEO of the Hurt Business Bobby Lashley issued a challenge to Slapjack. He would have a good showing and defeat Slapjack with relative ease.
Right after that, RETRIBUTION tried saving face at Hell in a Cell but they were all taken out mostly by Bobby Lashley - who has been looking great of late. Mustafa Ali was even chased off, but we can’t help but feel that this is leading to something big for RETRIBUTION. Bobby Lashley hasn’t faced much adversity in a title match but after giving a RETRIBUTION member a title shot, we imagine that Mustafa Ali could win his first title in WWE and that could be the United States Championship. Will RETRIBUTION benefit post-Hell in a Cell?
#4 Otis' worst fears come true at Hell in a Cell 2020
While the opening Universal Championship match between Roman Reigns and Jey Uso was intense, the biggest shocker of the show came for Otis and Tucker. Tucker accompanied his best friend Otis to his match against The Miz, where the Money in the Bank briefcase was on the line at Hell in a Cell.
After John Morrison attempted to distract Otis and help The Miz win, he was caught by the referee and his role at Hell in a Cell was over as he was sent away. Otis was getting ready to finish things, but Tucker struck him and turned on him, allowing The Miz to win and become a two-time Money in the Bank holder.
The fallout of this match at Hell in a Cell will certainly be interesting on both ends. Otis and Tucker are on different brands, so will there be a crossover to have a feud? Also, The Miz holding the MITB briefcase just confirms the rumors that WWE was actively looking to get it off Otis. We don’t see The Miz becoming WWE Champion either, so this could have been a move to protect Otis.
#3 The end of an era at Hell in a Cell
The end of an era at Hell in a Cell. At 380 days, Bayley finally lost the SmackDown Women’s Championship. It was the longest reign in the title’s short lineage, but it was also the most important one. Bayley was essentially the SmackDown Women’s Champion from Money in the Bank 2019, but she had lost it for 4-5 days in between to Charlotte Flair in what turned out to be an extremely pointless move.
Either way, this reign was essentially a reward for years of bad booking as a babyface. She faced Sasha Banks inside Hell in a Cell and as expected, it was the match of the night. It was fantastic from start to finish and the intensity was unmatched.
The two women went to war and Sasha Banks walked out as the new SmackDown Women’s Champion - winning her first of three Hell in a Cell matches and finally securing the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
After Hell in a Cell, Sasha Banks is now a grand slam Women’s Champion - joining the likes of Bayley and Asuka. Now there’s just one big question - will the title curse of Sasha Banks continue after Hell in a Cell 2020?
#2 Roman Reigns takes Jey Uso to hell at Hell in a Cell 2020
Roman Reigns vs Jey Uso 2 at Hell in a Cell was every bit as painful to watch as the first one at Clash of Champions 2020. While the first one was a one-sided beatdown, the second one ended in a similar but more brutal way.
It was dramatic storytelling from start to finish at Hell in a Cell and even the referee kept pressing Jey Uso to quit and threatened to call for the bell - something that Roman Reigns refused to let him do. It led to authority figure Adam Pearce interjecting.
Things took a whole new turn when the injured Jimmy Uso came in and had an extremely dramatic moment where they seemingly embraced. Jimmy Uso told Roman Reigns that whatever it was he was going through, they could go through it together.
This, of course, set up Roman Reigns to lock the guillotine on an injured Jimmy Uso. This was what ultimately prompted Jey Uso to say “I Quit”. Roman Reigns went to the entrance and Paul Heyman’s facial expression while walking behind him told the whole story at Hell in a Cell. This is a very different relationship than the one he shares with Brock Lesnar.
The feud is now over and we’re not sure what the aftermath of it is. There doesn’t seem to be a challenger ready for the Universal Championship, but we like that WWE has used the PPVs so far to highlight Roman Reigns’ new attitude and the extent of his brutality.
Post-match, the Wild Samoans, Afa and Sika (Reigns’ father) were on the ramp and Roman Reigns had a garland put around his neck - signaling that at Hell in a Cell, he became the true Tribal Chief.
#1 Randy Orton's inevitable Hell in a Cell victory
Drew McIntyre vs Randy Orton at Hell in a Cell looked like it was going to be a snoozefest of a main event, but thankfully, we were proven wrong. While the main event certainly took a lot of time to get underway and get that pace, they eventually found it and it turned out to be a great match.
As expected, Randy Orton defeated Drew McIntyre to become a 14-time World Champion, tying Triple H in the process. It's a shame that we never got to see Drew McIntyre as World Champion in front of a crowd, especially since he was getting over big as a babyface right before the COVID-19 pandemic happened.
Either way, Randy Orton winning the WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell always seemed inevitable - especially since there were rumors about WWE wanting to go with Randy Orton vs Edge at WrestleMania 37.
It's going to be interesting to see how things are on RAW and we hope that Randy Orton is able to do justice to the WWE Championship post-Hell in a Cell the same way Drew McIntyre did.
