WWE Battleground 2017: Biggest winners and losers

Wow, that was a terrible pay per view. WWE Battleground 2017 was hands down one of the worst WWE events of the year, and I would go so far as to say that it was in fact, the single worst pay per view of 2017.

There were a number of terrible finishes to matches, a number of questionable booking decisions, and very very little good wrestling on offer. The best part is probably that there is going to be a new feud for the WWE Title.

What started off as a great night with The New Day getting one over on The Usos in the first match to become new WWE Smackdown Live Tag Team Champions quickly went downhill and ended with The Great Khali, of all people, making a return to help Jinder Mahal retain the WWE Championship against Randy Orton in the Punjabi Prison match.

WWE Battleground 2017 did absolutely nothing for a majority of the roster and they ended up in worse positions than before the event while a few men and women were able to enhance their reputations. So, without any further ado, here are the biggest winners and losers from WWE Battleground 2017:

---

Loser #4) Tye Dillinger

Poor Tye

Almost everyone - including me - expected Tye Dillinger to pick up an easy victory over Aiden English in the Kickoff Show match for WWE Battleground 2017. After all, he's an up and coming star who's over with the fans while English is a dead talent leftover from a dead tag team.

Instead, the former member of The Vaudevillians pulled up off an amazing upset to pick up the victory. It's a terrible step in the wrong direction for Dillinger who looked ready for a big feud before this disaster.

According to our Featured Columnist Billi Bhatti, Tye has some backstage heat now, and that's the reason why he lost.

Winner #3) Sami Zayn

Yay, Sami won!

Wait, Winner #3? Not Winner #4? Well, that's because the show was so bad that I could only come up with three legitimate winners. So, starting off the winners' list is Mr Sami Zayn.

The Underdog from the Underground got himself a rare pay per view victory when he defeated Mike Kanellis on the latter's pay per view debut. Most people expected that Zayn would fall short against Mike and his wife Maria Kanellis' shenanigans but we were pleasantly surprised in the end.

Good for you, Sami.

Loser #3) Rusev

If only Rusev had a chance of winning here

You gotta feel for Rusev. After the Superstar Shakeup, there were vignettes of him demanding a WWE Championship opportunity and perhaps even getting one until those plans were abruptly brought to an end without any explanation.

Now, returning against John Cena in a Flag match at WWE Battleground 2017, there was no way things were going to work out for The Bulgarian Brute. He put on a good show but the ridiculous stipulation combined with the loss ensures that Ru-Ru is left without any momentum to speak of going into WWE Summerslam 2017.

Winner #2) Natalya

Natalya finally getting some love

While I'm still a little upset that Charlotte Flair didn't get the victory in the Fatal Five-way Elimination match to determine the #1 Contender for the WWE Smackdown Live Women's Championship, the fact that Natalya got the win makes it an easier pill to swallow.

The Neidhart heiress is one of the most technically proficient women on the entire WWE roster and she deserves a shot at the gold. Especially considering how bad Naomi has been as a champion.

If Natalya can build on this to pick up the win at WWE Summerslam 2017 and become the new WWE Smackdown Live Women's Champion, there is a juicy feud against Charlotte waiting to happen.

Loser #2) Shinsuke Nakamura

Where's the badass Shinsuke gone?

If you didn't know who Shinsuke Nakamura was before his main roster debut and you saw him work on Smackdown Live, would you be convinced that he's one of the finest professional wrestlers on the planet? No, you wouldn't.

That's because the WWE has been constantly messing up his booking to make him one of, if not the most underutilised superstar roster. The man is a legitimate badass and has been made to look like a chump in most of his matches.

The latest bout against Baron Corbin is yet another example. He might have won due to a DQ but the post-match beat down means it's one step forward and two steps back for The King of Strong Style yet again.

Winner #1) The New Day

Oh, my God, Xavier Woods is so good!

The New Day and The Usos put on the match of the night to open WWE Battleground 2017 and the trio of Xavier Woods, Big E, and Kofi Kingston became the first tag team to hold both the WWE Raw Tag Team Championships and the WWE Smackdown Live Tag Team Championships.

A special shout out to Woods who was just phenomenal during this match. Easily the MVP in a contest where all four men put on a really really really good show. I can't stress how good this was and it's great to see the tag team division regaining some of its past glory.

Loser #1) AJ Styles and Kevin Owens

Wtf just happened?

Ugh, this match was so frustrating. It seemed like the two were on the cusp of putting on the best match of the night when the screwy finish just derailed the whole thing.

The ref was knocked out for no apparent reason as nothing of note happened when he was done. And, when he was back up they did a weird roll-up/submission finish where AJ apparently had his shoulders on the mat and lost the title.

It was a terribly booked and terribly executed end to a fine match and has left two amazing competitors in a bad place. We can only hope for a WWE Summerslam 2017 rematch to settle the score once and for all without any shenanigans.

---

Send us news tips at [email protected]