Chris Jericho defeated Kevin Owens
Two Canadians did battle in San Jose for the WWE United States Championship once again. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens, a feud that has carried much of WWE RAW since October of 2016, put on a great match to kick things off. With Chris Jericho potentially leaving to tour with Fozzy, it was expected that Kevin Owens would retain. Little did we know that WWE would throw a curveball and give the championship back to Jericho.
The match was booked to make Chris Jericho look resilient, have him come back from multiple attacks from Kevin Owens. The best storytelling part was Kevin Owens’ finger. It should not surprise you it was something this simple. That is how he survived at WrestleMania and looked to save him tonight. He got a finger on the rope to break up the Walls of Jericho, but Jericho unleashed hell and slammed the steps on his hand. Soon after, Owens tapped and Jericho was the new champion. That is what is so good about these guys. They know how to intelligently get their story over and focus on the small details to fill it out. My only question is this: Will Jericho hold the title longer than 48 hours?
Neville vs. Austin Aries
Two of the best Cruiserweights did battle at WWE Payback. With the resurgence of Neville in WWE, there needed to be “that” guy that could be challenging his greatness. Austin Aries is a crowd favorite for so many reasons and his in-ring ability is just as good as his mic work. He is a complete player and I thought tonight would have been the right time for him to get the chance to reign supreme over Neville.
The match was pretty good with some pieces to move forward. The feud is far from over, as Aries picked up a DQ win. With WWE investing so much in a dominant Neville, has it hurt trying to get everyone else over in a big way? Tonight, Austin Aries should have won. He should have been the guy that could finally beat the champion at his game. Neville has been so good that he has not had to face much adversity. At the end of their match, I wanted to see more action. I wanted more splash moves and more excitement. They have held them back a bit, but now is the time to give us 100 percent.
