Five Point Recap: “Payback 2017”

Another one in the books. The build to “Payback 2017” was a mixed one to say the least with a lot of people thinking it wasn’t the most important card in the world due to the Superstar Shakeup changing so many things around. For those of you who didn’t have the three hours to watch the show, Wrestling Rumors has you covered with a quick five point recap.

1. Braun Strowman pinned Roman Reigns clean with the running powerslam. Reigns wrestled the match with several injuries and came in heavily bandaged. After the match, Strowman attacked Reigns with the stairs, causing Reigns to spit up a lot of blood. Strowman attempted to attack Reigns again on “Raw Talk” but only broke an ambulance door.

Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman: WWE Payback 2017 (WWE Network Exclusive)

2. Two titles changes hands as Alexa Bliss won the Raw Women’s Title from Bayley and Chris Jericho defeated Kevin Owens for the US Title. This win also sent Jericho over to “Smackdown Live”. In theory Owens is still on the blue show, though you can almost guarantee a rematch for the title coming very soon, perhaps even this week.

3. The House of Horrors match was a two part event which started in a house near the arena where Bray Wyatt waited for Randy Orton. Once Orton arrived he kicked the door in but was stalked by Wyatt, who eventually shoved a refrigerator onto him. The house featured several rooms, many of which had various evil looking dolls hanging from the ceiling. Both then came to the arena for a short brawl, which saw Jinder Mahal and the Singh Brothers interfere to cost Orton the match, which Wyatt won via Sister Abigail.

Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt - House of Horrors Match: WWE Payback 2017 (WWE Network Exclusive)

4. Seth Rollins handed Samoa Joe his first pinfall loss in WWE by reversing the Koquina Clutch into a cradle for the win. Samoa Joe destroyed Rollins’ knee for the better part of fifteen minutes before Rollins started his comeback. The match was mostly one sided until the last few minutes, including Rollins’ win.

5. The Hardys retained the Raw Tag Team Titles against Cesaro and Sheamus tonight but things weren’t done when the match ended. After the match, Cesaro and Sheamus shook the champs’ hands before turning on them and delivering one heck of a beating. This seems to set up a rematch at “Extreme Rules 2017” in June.

The Hardy Boyz vs. Cesaro & Sheamus - Raw Tag Title Match: WWE Payback 2017 (WWE Network Exclusive)

Opinion: You can’t say the show was uneventful and it was a lot more fun than I was expecting. The post match events between Reigns and Strowman made the match far stronger and made Strowman look even more like a monster than he already did and that’s a very positive sign going forward. The rest of the major points were positive as well, making this show a surprising hit.

What was your favorite part of “Payback 2017”? What would you have changed? Let us know in the comments below.