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This was the most anticipated bout of the night and despite the humongous expectations it carried, it certainly lived upto all of it. Cena, his arm heavily taped up to cover for the elbow injury he has been carrying, is known to perform well on the big stage and tonight was no different. But he was far from the crowd favourite. That was Daniel Bryan ladies & gentlemen!
In one of the most heartwarming moments ever, as Daniel Bryan made his way to the ring, his smile implied what it meant to him that the WWE universe had catapulted him to the main-event of the biggest WWE event of the summer. In a match that has been months in the making, both men traded their best shots and gave everything they had for the vociferous crowd. Daniel Bryan, expectedly, was superb, setting the pace of the match to a level that only he can carry and Cena was never a step behind.
When the ending did come with Bryan pinning Cena out of nowhere, it almost seemed unplanned and shocking as it was done through a flying knee. But keeping with the tone of the match and the fact that both men had exhausted their set of moves, it was perfect. And the majorly partisan crowd embraced the title change, but it wasn’t for long. That’s a different story altogether though.
Anytime Brock Lesnar is involved in the proceedings, things have to get exciting. He is not your regular or even a good athlete. He is a great athlete who on a given night can be one of the best performers in the world. And there is CM Punk. Smart and tenacious, but at the end of the day, a thoroughbred wrestler. When both of them were paired up, I was already salivating and last night’s match proved me right and showed what wrestling should be in today’s day and age of increased exposure and competition from other combat sports.
In one of the most physical matches of all time, both men pulled out all stops and gave us an edge-of-the-seat thriller which lived up to it’s billing of being a duel between ‘The Best’ vs ‘The Beast’. Lesnar started off the match, imposing his will over Punk and ragdolling him all over the ring and the announce tables with ease. Punk wouldn’t be denied though, as he kept getting the monster down with stiff kicks, knees and aerial moves. The match itself was a perfect combination of amazing wrestling moves and relatable MMA holds. The sequence wherein both guys reversed each others’ holds was a delight for all of the MMA aficionados, such as myself and brought a sense of legitimacy to the proceedings.
By the time Paul Heyman got involved, he was able to do the impossible and generate more heat towards the match. But that didn’t take away from the finishing sequence at all and even though Lesnar had his hand raised in victory, the WWE universe knew they were the real winners having been a part of such an epic match.
