10/21 WWE in Hammond, Ind.: Rollins vs. Owens, Sasha vs. Charlotte, Reigns vs. Rusev, plus Bayley, New Day, Braun

WWE RAW HOUSE SHOW
OCTOBER 21, 2016
HAMMOND, IND.
REPORT BY NICHOLAS CANNELLA, PWTORCH CORRESPONDENT

WWE returned to Hammond tonight for the first time in over two years and it featured the Superstars of the Raw Brand. It was originally advertised to be a Double Main Event featuring Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins vs. Sami Zayn for the Universal Title and Roman Reigns vs. Rusev for the U.S Title. The lineup card was updated over the past two weeks to Rollins vs. Owens one-on-one, Reigns vs. Rusev, New Day vs. Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson for the Raw Tag Team Titles  (this was changed during the show and added Enzo & Cass making it a three-way) and Sasha vs. Charlotte for the Raw Woman’s Title.

 (1) Sami Zayn & Cesaro & Darren Young (w/Mr. Backlund) & Golden Truth defeated Titus O’Neil & Curtis Axel & Jinder Mahal & The Shining Stars in a 10 Man Tag Match. Zayn pinned Mahal after hitting a Helluva Kick. Good opening match with lots of action.

(2) Neville defeated Bo Dallas. Neville wins via Red Arrow. Another good match up with several Maneuvers . 

(3) Braun Strowman defeated Sin Cara. Quick match and Sin Cara did get some offensive moves in, however Braun wins with The Yokosuka Cutter.

(4) Sasha Banks defeated Charlotte Flair to retain the Raw Woman’s Championship. Sasha picked up the win via submission with the Bank Statement.  Very good back and fourth match as always by both ladies.

(5) Roman Reigns defeated Rusev (w/Lana) to retain the U.S Championship. Rusev had Reigns stunned and went for a roll up but Reigns kicked out and hit a Spear for the win.  Lana was ejected mid-match as she was trying to get involved. Afterward, Roman celebrated and raised his U.S Title in each corner. Roman had a mixed crowd reaction but was still pretty over while Rusev received much heat.

 (6) Bayley & Alicia Fox defeated Dana Brooke & Nia Jax. Bayley pinned Dana with a roll up. Before the match, Nia Jax picked on Byron Saxon and took off his shoes and beat him with them, in which Bayley came to break it up as she made her ring entrance.

 (7) The New Day (Xavier Woods & Big E. W/Kofi) defeated Gallows & Anderson and Enzo & Big Cass to retain the Raw Tag Titles in a Triple Threat Match. New Day gets the win with the Midnight Hour finisher on Gallows. Before the match, New Day came out to lots of “New Day Rocks” chants and did their usual gimmick playing the trombone and talking on the mic. Enzo & Cass also came out to a big pop and had the crowd hyped up as they made their entrance.  Gallows & Anderson had lots of heat while they spoke on the mic and throughout the contest.

(8) Seth Rollins defeated WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens via DQ. Rollins almost picked up the win but Owens hit him with a microphone to get disqualified.  Right after, Owens said he was going to beat Rollins inside “Hell In A Cell” and was down talking Seth as he repeatedly kept stomping on him. Eventually Owens went for a Pop Up Power Bomb but Rollins countered it into a Pedigree to send the crowd home happy. Rollins grabbed the mic afterward and told the crowd that he will be the next Universal Champion to a big pop! Awesome match to end the night.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Overall great show with a hot crowd all night and the Civic Center was almost full.

BIGGEST POPS:
Rollins (top babyface of the night)
New Day
Enzo & Cass
Reigns
Zayn
Owens (mixed reaction)
Sasha
Bayley and Alicia
Neville
Golden Truth

MOST HEEL HEAT:
Rusev
Gallows & Anderson
Owens (mixed reaction)
Charlotte
Bo Dallas
Strowman

NOW CHECK OUT THE PREVIOUS WWE LIVE EVENT REPORT: 10/17 WWE in Laramie, Wy. Report: Smackdown show including Orton vs. Wyatt, Styles vs. Ambrose, Hawkins vs. Kane, Ziggler vs. Breeze