WWE Survivor Series 2018: Analysing and grading each match

By Gary Cassidy
Modified Nov 19, 2018 17:16 GMT
Survivor Series was a must-see!
Survivor Series was a must-see!

Survivor Series, the one time of year when RAW and SmackDown Superstars do battle, traditionally, in the name of brand supremacy. Although thankfully this year's card didn't go quite as far down that route as last year.

The one thing you could definitely say before this event was that it would be unpredictable - particularly given how many spanners were thrown in the works in the build up to the event - from Roman Reigns' emotional hiatus to Becky Lynch's major concussion forcing her out of the event, and even a new WWE Champion being crowned, things were all change right up until the last minute.

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So, would The Man, The Guy or The Phenomenal One be missed? Well, let's take a look and grade every match from start to finish.

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Tag Team Survivor Series Elimination Match

The
The "biggest" match of the night kicked off the card

Match: So, it's maybe no surprise that this match ended up on the pre-show. Of the three Survivor Series Elimination Matches, it was the one with the least build, despite having the most Superstars.

The Usos, New Day, SAnity, The Good Brothers & The Colons - Team SmackDown - faced off against The Revival, Bobby Roode & Chad Gable, Lucha House Party, The Ascension & The B-Team - Team Raw. While it started off quite messy, as most matches with so much talent crammed in do, it eventually ended up to be quite fun once we had some of that talent removed.

So, the Colons were first to be eliminated by The Revival, before the Good Brothers evened it up by ousting the B-Team. Gable and Roode would then dispatch of SAnitY before the New Day hit a leveller by saying goodbye to the Ascension. Lucha House Party then removed the Good Brothers from the occasion before falling to the Usos.

This, though, is where it got interesting. The chaos became more controlled, but no less chaotic, as Big E took it to the outside when he went through the ropes to take Wilder down outside the ring. Roode would catapult his own teammate onto everyone outside the ring before Gable German suplexed Jey Uso from the top rope onto everyone.

The New Day would eliminated Roode and Gable only to fall to the Revival's Shatter Machine - but they would lose to the Usos in the end with a touching tribute to Rman Reigns as Uso did the fist pump gesture before hitting his splash for the win.

Verdict: I mean, if nothing else, this match exists as a fun way to get everyone on the card. It didn't start off well, but the end - well, wow. Some of the best spots you'll see all year happened in this match, and it was incredibly enjoyable.

Grade: B

Women's Survivor Series Elimination Match

How the match was originally set to be
How the match was originally set to be

Match: After Charlotte had initially been the fifth woman on Team SmackDown, she withdrew from the team to replace Becky Lynch in the later match against Ronda Rousey, but this match went through a few more changes.

Alexa Bliss would name Sasha Banks and Bayley as replacements for Ruby Riott and Natalya, with Mandy Rose taking Charlotte's place on the blue team.

The main talking point of this match was WWE positioning Nia Jax as the ultimate heel following the Becky Lynch incident, with deafening jeers filling the building at the mere sight of the former RAW Women's Champion.

Tamina eliminated Naomi before being eliminated herself by Carmella, with Mandy Rose eliminating Mickie James. Bayley eliminated Carmella before Rose fell to Banks - and then we got the coolest spot in the match.

Sonya Deville absorbed a Bayley-to-Belly on the outside, that would see the pair end up counted out and RAW holding a two-on-one advantage. before both she and Bayley were counted out; Raw held a 2-to-1 advantage. Nia Jax would, shockingly, level things up - turning on her partner, with Banks tapping out to Asuka. Nia Jax, though, would emerge victorious after three leg drops to Asuka.

Verdict: An okay match. Nia Jax became a star purely by being a heel that has real heat with the WWE Universe. Hearing cheers every time someone takes a hit is a lost art - and that made this match really special.

Grade: C+

Seth Rollins vs Shinsuke Nakamura

Rollins and Nakamura didn't disappoint
Rollins and Nakamura didn't disappoint

Match: The battle of the midcarders is usually the most underrated match on the card - and Seth Rollins vs Shinsuke Nakamura would hold that hype perfectly.

The match may have been a slow starter, but these two men definitely grew into the match and showed incredible chemistry with an obscenely physical match and some incredible false finishes.

Three suicide dives from Rollins and a superplex into a Falcon Arrow would heat this match up, with a missed frog splash from the Architect giving Nakamura a variation of his Kinsasha and a near fall to make this one all the more exciting.

The finish was nicely done as both men would miss their finishers, before Rollins hit the Stomp for the win.

Verdict: This one had all the promise of a cracker, but the fact that it was a completely clean match was a surprising. A great match and you'd be excited if these two were to have a rematch.

Grade: B+

Authors of Pain vs The Bar

This was a clash of giants in more ways than one
This was a clash of giants in more ways than one

Match: It's hard to talk about what happened inside the ring when so much outside the ring took place. Bizarrely, Enzo Amore would appear in the crowd. Amore was released in January and attempted, badly, to hijack the show before being removed by security.

The action that was sanctioned was almost as bizarre as Drake Maverick would soil himself when confronted by The Big Show. AOP used the distraction to pick up the win, though, on Sheamus.

Verdict: I mean, the less said about this, the better. Mildly entertaining match, and we can just be thankful it didn't go on any longer than it did. For what promised to be an incredibly physical encounter and had all the potential in the world, this felt like a missed chance with WWE trying to go for laughs rather than quality in-ring work.

Grade: D

Buddy Murphy vs Mustafa Ali

A classic encounter
A classic encounter

Match: If the AOP vs The Bar match was good for one thing, it's that it left the crowd deflated enough that the 205 Live showcase would be welcomed with open arms, even by those who aren't familiar with the brand.

For those who are, this one was expected to be great - and it really was. Murphy and Ali are no slouches, and they made the most of the opportunity. This was action packed. Flips aplenty with Murphy's Tope Con Hilo to the floor the highlight. This match, though , even brought the brutality we wanted from the previous encounter, with athleticism in abundance.

An Ali Spanish Fly off the announce table onto the floor and a Murphy sit-out powerbomb would lift the crowd for the finish perfectly - which came when Murphy caught a leaping Ali off the top rope with a knee to the face before hitting Murphy's Law.

Verdict: An instant classic and an incredible advertisement for 205 Live. If you're not watching, you're missing out - and this match got people in their seats, on the edge of them, and off of them in short time! Perfectly positioned on the card, too.

Grade: A

Men's Survivor Series Elimination Match

A monumental encounter?
A monumental encounter?

Match: Well, these matches always seem to follow a similar formula and, with a Monster in Braun Strowman involved, this followed suit. With constant bickering on the red side, the Monster Among Men would prove he didn't need anyone on his side as he eliminated four men on his own, leaving RAW with a three-man advantage before Corbin attacked Strowman.

McIntyre eliminated Joe, with Mysterio eliminating Balor, McMahon wiping out Ziggler and Stromwn rampantly laying out Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio and Miz before finishing it off with Shane.

Shane McMahon stole the show with his now trademark elbow from the top rope through the announce table to Strowman and a Coast-to-Coast on Ziggler while Miz held the Show-Off before a final Coast-To-Coast attempt saw Braun clothesline McMahon mid-jump.

There were turns aplenty here, too, with Balor attacking McIntyre adding to the RAW side's frustrations.

Verdict: Plenty of fun, but not a classic by any means. Had a tough job to live up to after the Cruiserweights but had some great spots, too, if the booking was questionable.

Grade: C

Ronda Rousey vs Charlotte Flair

A WrestleMania main event match came early
A WrestleMania main event match came early

Match: While this match was announced very last minute and in pretty tragic circumstances, there's no doubt there was a lot of hype on the shoulders of these two women.

Both women put on a classic. We've come to expect it from Flair, but with Rousey having less than a week to prepare for this match while still being in the infancy of her professional wrestling career, this was truly impressive.

There was no sign of fatigue in the crowd as they were well and truly up for this - and neither lady disappointed. Rousey sold Flair's moves throughout, even selling moves from earlier in the match to make her opponent look like a star, and with the DQ finish, left everyone wanting more. Flair's heel turn spiced everything up going forward!

Verdict: It's very rare that a DQ finish is perfect for a match - but it was here, and it confirms why the match didn't go on last while also allowing this one some breathing space before we go back to it.

Grade: B+

Brock Lesnar vs Daniel Bryan

Brock Lesnar was pushed to his limit!
Brock Lesnar was pushed to his limit!

Match: Yet again, considering this match wasn't even advertised a week ago, there was a lot of hype going in. With Brock Lesnar's work rate constantly being questioned, many didn't know what to expect, but given this match falls into the "dream match" category for both the WWE Universe and Daniel Bryan, it did not disappoint.

It had everything - brutality, storytelling, and the undivided attention and effort of both men involved. While the dynamics were odd with Bryan as a "heel", this was a classic.

A heel Bryan survived a beatdown to come back at Lesnar via a catalyst of a low blow - precisely how he won the title in the first place - and the crowd lapped it up. Bryan absorbed countless suplexes and an F-5 to push Lesnar to his limits - going from sneaky Miz-esque heel to scrappy underdog in spates.

The finale of this was a classic with Lesnar's knee giving out on an F-5 attempt becoming a Yes Lock where Lesnar seemed to contemplate a tap out. Lesnar hit the F-5 for the win after powering out but, like Rousey, still sold the injuries he'd sustained during the match even after victory.

Verdict: Wow. A true classic. I'd have loved to have seen face Bryan vs heel Lesnar with no grey area, but this was incredible and a fitting main event for the show!

Grade: A

Survivor Series verdict: While there were some low points, and a mixed bag at the start this show just got better and better as it went on from around halfway in. Considering all of the changes the card went through, it surpassed expectation! At least four great matches and I'd happily watch it again.

Grade: A

What did you think of Survivor Series? let us know in the comments.

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Edited by Nishant Jayaram
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