AJ Styles vs. Jinder Mahal, WWE Championship match, WWE Clash of Champions 2017 winner, video highlights and analysis

Modified Dec 18, 2017 08:38 GMT

Jinder Mahal knocked Styles down with an elbow and began to pander to the crowd. However, the Georgia native went after Mahal's hamstring and put him on his back. The Indo-Canadian Superstar then tossed Styles onto the ropes, sending him crashing outside. He was buffeted with chants of "steroids", a perceived slight at his new physique.

As the action slowed down, Mahal nailed Styles with a vertical suplex on the announce table before putting him in a chinlock. The Modern Day Maharaja has been criticised for his in-ring work, and he was largely below par in Boston. His attempts to work on Styles' ribs were greeted with apathy from the crowd. The Modern Day Maharaja surprised the fans by pulling off some new moves from his repertoire.

The former TNA man then went on the offensive after he intercepted a forearm from the second rope with a dropkick. Mahal then blocked a Phenomenal Forearm before hitting a gut checker for two. He climbed onto the top rope and looked for the ten punches, but Styles flattened him with an electric chair.

The next big spot was an Ushigaroshi; after which, it was evident that Mahal had been cut on the cheek. Styles reversed an attempted vertical suplex into a belly-to-belly for a two count. This was followed by a Samoan drop from Mahal who then proceeded to tease the Khallas, only to eat a Pele Kick for his troubles.

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Styles then yanked Mahal off the top rope and hit a 450 splash, but all the work to the rib delayed him from making the cover. Just as he reached over for the Maharaja, the Singh Brothers distracted Styles, who proceeded to hit them with a Phenomenal Forearm. Sunil Singh was also the recipient of a Styles Clash.

Upon his re-entry into the ring, Styles was greeted with a Khallas, but he managed to kick out a two. Mahal looked to hit the Styles Clash, but it was reversed and the WWE Champion managed to lock in a calf crusher in the ensuing scramble. Even though he struggled valiantly, the Modern Day Maharaja had no choice but to submit.