WWE Survivor Series 2018: Analyzing each match on the card

Survivor Series 2018 promised to be a personal and action-packed pay per view for the pas t few weeks and it did not disappoint. There was everything which a wrestling fan could ask for - from brutality to surprise character changes. One of the most interesting things to stand out will be the dominance which WWE Raw had over the SmackDown Live brand and this is something which will have Shane McMahon seething with fury over.

There will certainly be a lot for the SmackDown Live roster to think about when it comes to the way the night unfolded. The blue brand was completely and utterly overwhelmed by the red brand and this will make it very difficult for any member of their roster to really stand out as an A grade performer. The superiority of the RAW brand was so significant that it made SmackDown Live look like a group of amateurs from NXT rather than a seasoned roster who have a lot of talent.

It remains to be seen how this will affect the blue brand going forward and there are many mixed opinions on whether WWE should have booked RAW in such a dominant fashion. Of course, this could also be a part of a deeper story line which involves Shane McMahon turning into a heel authority figure together with Daniel Bryan and Paige but this remains to be seen. Tuesday night will definitely be an interesting one and it is likely that a few heads will be on the chopping block.

Before that however, this article seeks to take a deeper look at the matches and the results of WWE's final major pay per view event for this year before The Royal Rumble next year. While some matches were terrific, there were those that were less impressive and this article seeks to take a more in depth look at each result.

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#1 Tag Team Survivor Series Elimination Match (Kickoff Show) -- The Usos, New Day, SAnity, The Good Brothers & The Colons (SmackDown) def. The Revival, Bobby Roode & Chad Gable, Lucha House Party, The Ascension & The B-Team (Raw)

This match started off rather slowly and could even be accused of being a bit boring in the beginning. However that changed once there were only four members left on each side.

The Revival combined with Roode and Gable for Raw against the combination of New Day and The Usos in what turned into an exciting and action-packed ending to the match.

After trading blows and signature moves, the finish came when Jimmy Uso laid a splash on Dawson for the pin after he honored Roman Reigns by cocking his fists in mid-air reminiscent of Roman's action before delivering a Superman Punch.

Order of elimination:

Colons (Revival), B-Team (Good Bros.), SAnitY (Roode/Gable), Ascension (New Day), Good Bros. (Lucha House Party), Lucha House Party (Usos), Roode/Gable (New Day), New Day (Revival), Revival (Usos)

Grade: B

#2 Women's Elimination Match -- Nia Jax, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Mickie James, & Tamina Snuka (Raw) def. Asuka, Carmella, Naomi, Sonya Deville & TBD (SmackDown)

Nia Jax was the standout performer of this match and also received the most reaction from the crowd. One reason was due to her heel turn on Raw a few weeks ago, but the main reason would be due to her being the reason that Becky Lynch was unable to compete at Survivor Series.

WWE did well to draw a lot of attention and heat on Jax and she played the role of the arrogant heel to perfection in this match. She accepted the boos and negative reactions from the crowd and there was a clear level of interest from the audience whenever Jax was in the ring.

Banks and Bayley were named late replacements by Alexa Bliss before the match began, taking the place of Natalya and Ruby Riott. After Jax turned on Banks, a trio of leg drops and a Samoan drop was all it took for her to put Asuka down for the count and win the match for her team.

Order of elimination:

Naomi (Snuka), Snuka (Carmella), James (Rose), Carmella (Bayley), Rose (Banks), Bayley/Deville (double countout), Banks (Asuka), Asuka (Jax).

Grade: B

#3 Seth Rollins (Raw, intercontinental) def. Shinsuke Nakamura (SD, United States) via pinfall

This match was quite an interesting match especially since there was a lot of hype leading up to the match ever since it was announced that the two superstars would face each other at Survivor Series 2018.

The two provided a solid match which was filled with signature moves and near finishes, and it was clear that these two have tremendous chemistry together in the ring. The WWE Universe was also behind both stars in this match and WWE should definitely give some serious though to developing some sort of story line or feud between these two.

In the end it would be Rollins who would hit Nakamura with The Stomp in order to pick up the win after both stars had initially missed hitting their finisher. The match could have just as easily gone Nakamura's way and another match between these two would make for great viewing.

Grade: A

#4 Men's Elimination Match -- Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre, Finn Balor & Bobby Lashley (Raw) def. The Miz, Shane McMahon, Rey Mysterio, Jeff Hardy & Samoa Joe (SmackDown)

Four straight eliminations by Strowman proved to be the difference between the two sides as RAW picked up the win in dominant fashion. The match itself did not have too much to get excited about. Shane McMahon, as expected, got up to some daredevil antics in the form of an elbow off the top rope through the announce table on Strowman as well a coast-to-coast on Ziggler while The Miz held him down.

There was plenty of in-fighting between the RAW team and this made their victory somewhat surprising. Balor turned on McIntyre during the match only to be pinned by Mysterio and Strowman had clear issues with most of the team even before the match began.

The end of the match saw Corbin attacking Strowman from behind and laying him out in the middle of the ring, which was somewhat of a disappointing segment.

Order of elimination:

Samoa Joe (McIntyre), Balor (Mysterio), Ziggler (McMahon), Hardy (Strowman), Mysterio (Strowman), Miz (Strowman), McMahon (Strowman)

Grade: B

#5 Ronda Rousey (Raw women's champion) def. Charlotte Flair (SmackDown) via disqualification

This dream match had a disappointing end in the form of a sudden DQ finish. However, it completely refreshed Charlotte Flair's character and showed a brutal side to her in the form of a merciless attack on her after the match.

Rousey was battered and bruised in a hostile attack by Flair which included chair shots and a beating with a kendo stick. Perhaps one of the biggest moments which stuck out was the reaction which the crowd had to the entire segment. The crowd was visibly behind Flair and chants of "Thank you Charlotte!" erupted throughout the arena.

It will be interesting to see where Becky Lynch will fit into the entire mix once she is cleared to compete and what action Rousey will take following this brutal assault. Everything pointed towards a match between the two at WrestleMania 35 next year but one has to feel that their paths will cross before then in some way.

Grade: A

#6 Heavyweight Champions -- Brock Lesnar (Raw, universal) def. Daniel Bryan (SmackDown, WWE) via pinfall

When Daniel Bryan beat AJ Styles on SmackDown Live to set up a match between himself and Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series it was clear that the WWE had big plans for this match and they sure did deliver.

This was easily one of Lesnar's best matches since his return to the WWE and his performance during the match really helped elevate Daniel Bryan's credibility as a genuine champion. He sold the match perfectly and even teased tapping out to the Yes Lock before he eventually powered out of it and laid out Daniel Bryan with a F5 to win the match.

Bryan's late surge during the match also portrayed him in a favorable light despite losing the match and his performance during this match is one which will cement him as a true competitor and fighting champion. AJ Styles will be looking to have his rematch with Bryan but based on this match it looks likely that Bryan is in for an extended run with the title.

Grade: A

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