Battleground PPV Reax

-- Mike Omansky, PWTorch corespondent (5.0): Best Match: Wyatt-Reigns, Cena-Owens toss-up. Worst Match: Lesnar-Rollins. Lesnar-Rollins was solid until The Undertaker interference that essentially negated the match. I understand the set-up (Lesnar-Undertaker re-match), but don't think this was handled the right the way. This was a TV ending, not a pay-per-view or special-event ending... Wyatt-Reigns was very well done, and with the right finish this time out. Cena-Owens always delivers - the question is what's next for Owens after Cena's clean win.

-- Derrick in Utah, PWTorch reader (7.5): Every match on the show met or exceeded my expectations. The physicality of the in-ring wrestling was snugger than usual. I appreciate the fact that we were given sound, competitive, wrestling matches not bogged down by stipulations and excessive bells and whistles. I felt like every match had something at stake and the outcome was important for the participants.

I thought the show ended on a high note with a cliffhanger that did not need description from the announce team. It may not fit into the traditional heel/face dynamic, but the story of Taker wanting retribution for losing to Brock and having Paul Heymen emphasize the defeat for the last 18 months is logical. If there is one pitfall for Battleground it is the fact that Seth Rollins gained nothing in the form of credibility after his match with Lesnar.

-- Jose Llamas, PWTorch reader: Like all PPVs, or whatever you want to call these Sunday shows now, I wanted to like this show. As a near life-long wrestling fan it is hard for me to truly enjoy what the WWE produces now. Reason being every time I start to get invested in a cool storyline or feud that starts off really well, the Creative team or I guess Vince McMahon (since he is the final word on all Creative) pulls the rug from under me. Going into the event, I thought it would be a fantastic time to take care of three or four important pieces of business for the company.

(1) Put a spotlight on the Divas by way of having a nice match using the recently called-up NXT trio in an effective manner. (2) Creating a new star on the heel side, by putting over Kevin Owens in a manner where he could get as much heat as he could. (3) Set up a big feud-ending match between Brock Lesnar and some form of The Authority at Summerslam. They were able to get #1 done, but failed miserably on #2 and #3, in my opinion.

One thing that disappointed me about Cena-Owens from the beginning was the lack of cheating and "cheap" victories for Owens. If done right, Owens could have really gotten some major heat on himself, but because WWE produced this rivalry by opening their feud with a clean win by Owens they backed themselves into a corner of Cena having to come back with a win. Not only that, but at the same time they cooled off any heat Owens might have had with many casual fans who might not have been familiar with Owens. The final match was almost a given they would have a long entertaining match with Cena going over.

This PPV should have been named Hotshot instead of Battleground. I fail to understand how bringing the Undertaker in to confront Lesnar lined with the current main event storyline. Yes, Brock broke Taker's streak and Taker would want revenge, but would he really wait for a B-Level PPV more than a year later to get it? While simultaneously assisting Rollins in keeping his title? How will they explain this coincidence? Right now it looks like WWE traded storyline continuity and long-term success for a cheap pop and a day or two of buzz.

Did you watch the Battleground PPV? We're looking for your Reax, 0-10 Score, and Best/Worst match to pwtorch@gmail.com.

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