“The Tribal Chief” still stands tall, but he had a lot of help on Sunday.
At WWE Money in the Bank, Edge challenged Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship. The first few minutes were quite methodical, as Edge and Reigns felt each other out before “The Tribal Chief” dominated for a while. Edge rallied and got a near fall with a backslide.
"This is what happens when you get in the ring with the Head of the Table!" – @WWERomanReigns ?#MITB pic.twitter.com/gXRyIMpvJR
— WWE on TNT Sports (@wweontnt) July 19, 2021
Both men went down after a double big boot, and Edge took control with a modified inverted DDT. Fueled by the live crowd, Edge fired up with a flurry of offense. The WWE Hall of Famer trapped Reigns in the Crossface, but “The Head of the Table” reached the ropes to break the hold.
This is an absolute SLUGFEST for the #UniversalTitle at WWE #MITB! @WWERomanReigns @EdgeRatedR @HeymanHustle pic.twitter.com/s6nyDi4VkO
— WWE (@WWE) July 19, 2021
Edge nearly hit the Spear, but Reigns countered it into the Guillotine choke. But “The Rated-R Superstar” escaped by dragging himself and Reigns to the floor. The champion went for a Spear of his own, but Edge dodged it, sending Reigns crashing through the barricade. Edge then floored Reigns with a Spear through another barricade. He then carried Reigns back to the ring, but Reigns kicked out of the pin. Reigns then fired back with a desperate Superman Punch, and Edge accidentally knocked down the referee on his way down.
This could have been DISASTROUS for @EdgeRatedR!#MITB #UniversalTitle @WWERomanReigns @HeymanHustle pic.twitter.com/Aurx2DsyyY
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) July 19, 2021
With the referee down, Reigns took a steel bar from a chair and approached Edge. He tried to lock in the bar-assisted Crossface Edge has made famous in recent weeks, but the challenger blocked it. “The Rated-R Superstar” then locked in the hold, but The Usos came to the ring, hoping to save Reigns. The Mysterios attacked The Usos to even the odds, leaving Reigns and Edge on their own. Still trapped in the Crossface, Reigns was on the verge of passing out, but Seth Rollins kicked Edge in the head to break the hold.
WHAT IS GOING ON?!?
(via @WWE) pic.twitter.com/ztZ302C7iL
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) July 19, 2021
Reigns then got back to his feet, but Edge dropped him with a Spear for a near fall. Rollins returned to the ring to distract Edge, and Reigns capitalized by hitting Edge with the Spear to win the match.
"IF IT WASN'T FOR ME, HE'D BE CHAMP!"@WWERollins making it known to @WWERomanReigns… #MITB pic.twitter.com/sqmszdcjvc
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) July 19, 2021
Rollins attacked Edge after the bout and stared down Reigns. Edge beat down Rollins and brawled with him in the crowd. Reigns asked for a microphone and said the whole world can acknowledge him now. John Cena’s music hit, and the legend came to the stage. He ran to the ring and confronted Reigns.
IT'S BEEN TOO LONG IS DAMN RIGHT.@JohnCena is HERE AT #MITB!!! pic.twitter.com/lieZcdQ3Zr
— WWE (@WWE) July 19, 2021
