WWE stars delivered a great match at Clash At The Castle. Fans may have some bones to pick with the booking, but this main event fired on all cylinders. From the moment McIntyre's throwback entrance music hit to the closing moments of the live event, the bout and everything that came after was thoroughly entertaining.
The psychology behind McIntyre Vs. Reigns were in-ring storytelling at its finest. Roman seemed almost unsure of himself during the opening moments of the fight and was legitimately rattled as the announced crowd of 62,296 constantly and loudly vocalized for the challenger. Michael Cole and Corey Graves hit all the critical beats early on, making it clear to the audience that the champion's structure had been widdled to nothing since SummerSlam. There was no Paul Heyman to deliver advice, no Usos to offer physical , no Sami Zayn to lighten the mood. It was just Roman Reigns against Drew McIntyre, who had an entire nation chanting his name behind him.
It'd be easy to write this match off as another "LOL, Roman Wins" moment, but that wouldn't be doing it justice. Especially not after fans were clamoring for something fresh for Reigns to do after a seemingly endless number of fights between himself and Brock Lesnar. McIntyre was elevated well during the build to Clash At The Castle, so much so that his winning didn't seem out of the question. The pacing was excellent, and by the time the match reached its apex, the crowd was biting on everything, hook, line, and sinker. Reigns winning didn't feel like an inevitable outcome, which added a ton of weight to the late-match kickouts.
Solo Sikoa's Inclusion Was Perfect
The story of this match was Reigns with no against McIntyre, who had the United Kingdom's collective wind in his sails. It only takes one man to turn the tide of a match, though, and when Solo Sikoa broke up what appeared to be the winning count for Drew, the Clash At The Castle crowd lost their minds. It was a perfectly executed debut, down to the first camera shot of Sikoa as he gazed down at the referee he'd just pulled from the ring.
It might not be quite a five-star instant classic, but it was an entertaining and spirited match. With another failed cash-in attempt by Austin Theory, Karrion Kross at ringside, and an appearance from Tyson Fury, this main event could have felt like an overbooked mess. Reigns and McIntyre were given ample time to make all of this work, though, and none of these spots felt forced or shoehorned in. WWE managed to keep the belts on Reigns while also not pulling the rug out from under McIntyre. That's tough to do, and it'll be interesting to see what's on tap next for The Tribal Chief after barely making it out of Clash At The Castle with the unified title.