* Night of Champions was awesome live! Attending any televised
event in person always gives you a much more involved feeling, and NOC
was easily the most exciting show I’ve ever been in attendance for. * The
pre show saw Zack Ryder win a battle Royal to become the number one
contender for the US Title. The crowd practically blew the roof off
during Ryder’s entrance. Also in the battle royal were Brodus Clay,
Santino, the PTP, Justin Gabriel, Drew McIntyre, Michael McGillicutty,
JTG, Tyson Kidd, Tensai, Primo, Epico, Jinder Mahal, and Heath Slater.
Slater being eliminated first was hilarious! Good way to to get the
crowd hot. * The show opened with JBL coming out to fill in
for Jerry Lawler. Great to see JBL back in the booth. The Fatal Four Way
IC Title match was entertaining, but Sin Cara messed up a ton of
pinfall breakups. I was glad the Miz came out on top. This was the
perfect “opening” match to really get the audience excited. * New
tag team champions! The match itself wasn’t much, and Kofi grazed
Dbry’s head with a major botched front flip to the outside. Kane and Dbry
were hilarious afterwards with the celebration, and Kane had our whole
section cracking up with the Gatorade and Disneyland comment backstage!
Daniel Bryan got the loudest ovation of the night during his entrance;
the guy’s popularity is something WWE needs to continue capitalizing on. * Antonio
Cesaro defeated Zack Ryder to retain the title. This was a good match,
and the crowd was loud the whole way through until we knew Cesaro was
going to win. Ryder needs the strap back and the push needs to start up
again. Cesaro is a really good wrestler, but they need to dump this
gimmick and let him showcase more of wrestling ability. * Randy
Orton defeated Dolph Ziggler in an incredible match. The crowd wasn’t
super hot for this one all the way through but they definitely enjoyed
it. These two continue to be magic in the ring together. Dolph is on his
way to being one of the top guys in the company. He’s worked damn hard
and earned it with the performances that he’s given in his career. * Eve
replaced Kaitlyn (due to her ankle being clipped by a mystery assailant
backstage) and defeated Layla to become the New Divas Champion. Everybody
got up and went to the bathroom or bought food during this match. It was
seven minutes of boredom and no one cared. It was a decent match with
Eve dominating throughout, but no one got excited for it. * Booker
T announced the brogue kick was reinstated just before the bell rang.
Sheamus defeated Del Rio after using it. I almost thought Ziggler would
cash in here on a vulnerable Sheamus with that beat up arm, but he
didn’t. I’m so over this Del Rio/Sheamus feud. It’s time for something
new for both of them, but I’d bet my left arm WWE will probably shove
them down our throats AGAIN at HIAC. *Can you say main
event magic? Without the awful finish for Cena/Punk, the match would’ve
been five stars. It wasn’t the quickest paced match, but the ending
sequence and the near falls timed together perfectly for a dramatic
series. I was legitimately on the edge of my seat and didn’t realize all
the shoulders were down for the pin until after when I saw the ref
talking to the announcer. It was a bit of a dead giveaway that the title
was about to be taken from Cena. The crowd actually cheered more for
Cena and booed Punk. I guess Punk wearing Yankee pinstripes and Cena
supporting breast cancer is what put it over the top. Damn you WWE for
trying so hard to control who is cheered and who is booed. I hate
backstage politics. The draw finish really sucks for a ppv, but I know
it was done so the rivalry can go on. CM Punk retains the WWE Title after a Double-pinfall. * From my perspective
of being there live, the show came off as incredible. I just watched it
back on pay per view, and it was just as good the second time around. I
honestly feel like this was one of the best pay per views in 2012. The
Raw analysis will be up tomorrow! Until next time, you’ve been
ThunderStruck!