Team Raw: Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre, Randy Orton and Ricochet; Team SmackDown: Roman Reigns, King Corbin, Shorty G, Mustafa Ali and Braun Strowman; Team NXT: Tommaso Ciampa, Walter, Damian Priest, Matt Riddle and Keith Lee
The question of Kevin Owens' brand loyalty hung over Team Raw from the start of the match as captain Seth Rollins openly asked whether his teammate was devoted to the flagship or NXT after he joined Team Ciampa at WarGames.
Braun Strowman, Rollins and Tommaso Ciampa started for their respective teams, but The Architect quickly rethought things after being rocked by a dropkick at the hands of The Monster Among Men.
Walter and Drew McIntyre entered the match for a hoss-heavy showdown with Strowman. Walter and McIntyre unloaded on each other with a wicked exchange of chops. The NXT UK champion dropped The Scottish Psychopath with a German suplex, then uncorked a dropkick on Strowman.
However, the Claymore Kick by McIntyre caught Walter flush in the face and led to The Ring General's departure, much to the dismay of the fans. Walter eliminated.
Damian Priest entered the match next and unleashed a furious combo on McIntyre. A blind tag to Shorty G allowed the former Olympian to catch the NXT man off guard with a top-rope moonsault. Ricochet entered for Raw and paired off with G for a lightning-quick exchange that culminated in a rolling German suplex by the SmackDown star.
Matt Riddle entered the match and engaged fellow former amateur wrestler Shorty G in some mat work before segueing into an ankle lock. G countered into an ankle lock of his own and their back-and-forth ended with a stalemate.
Ciampa entered for NXT and immediately paired off with G. When they took each other down, Owens tagged in for Raw and delivered a picture-perfect frog splash to the SmackDown competitor, sending him packing. Shorty G eliminated.
King Corbin tagged himself in, much to the chagrin of Roman Reigns, and quickly found himself on the receiving end of a beatdown at the hands of Owens. KO dropped him with a stunner on the floor, rolled into the ring and was quickly downed and pinned by Ciampa. Owens eliminated.
Randy Orton slithered into the ring but Ciampa caught him. The Blackheart tried for a draping DDT but The Viper countered. From there, he delivered a big side suplex, dropping Ciampa spine-first on the ring apron. Orton delivered his trademark stomp, working over the limbs of his opponent in search of another elimination.
Ciampa tagged Priest but still ate an RKO. Priest looked to take advantage with The Reckoning but ate another RKO as Orton rolled. Priest eliminated. Riddle entered the match for NXT and rolled Orton up for a shocking pinfall. Orton eliminated. A vengeful Viper dropped The Original Bro with yet another RKO and Corbin took advantage for an easy elimination. Riddle eliminated.
Strowman and Keith Lee entered for their respective teams, coming face-to-face in a showdown of hosses. McIntyre interrupted the encounter and paid for it. The Monster Among Men took off around the ring, waylaying anyone in his path with a series of shoulder blocks. A second go-round saw him eat a big crossbody from Lee.
The referee started his count and McIntyre blasted Strowman with a Claymore. Lee made it back in, and McIntyre answered the count, but Strowman didn't. Strowman eliminated.
Ricochet fired up, wiping Reigns out at ringside. He climbed the ropes for his 630 splash but landed on his feet when Lee rolled out of the way. Corbin seized the opening and dropped Ricochet with End of Days for the fall. Ricochet eliminated.
Hometown hero Ali entered for the first time, squaring off with Rollins and Ciampa. He took the former NXT champion out and dropped The Beastslayer with a tornado DDT. Ali exploded through the ropes, wiping the opposition out at ringside.
Corbin took exception to the babyface tagging himself in, halting his momentum. As Ali rolled back into the ring, he fell prey to the stomp from Rollins, who sent him to the locker room. Ali eliminated.
McIntyre dropped Ciampa with an inverted Alabama Slam back in the ring and set up for the Claymore, but Reigns came from out of nowhere and blasted him with a spear for the fall. McIntyre eliminated.
Rollins took the fight to Reigns to a chorus of boos from the Chicago fans, but he was rocked by a big uppercut from The Big Dog. A Drive-By continued his suffering. Back inside, Reigns delivered the Superman Punch to Ciampa.
Fed up with Corbin's nonsense, Reigns dropped the King of the Ring with a spear and watched as Ciampa pinned him. Corbin eliminated.
Raw's Rollins, SmackDown's Reigns and NXT's Ciampa and Lee remained. The Blackheart fought against the united front the former Shield members presented. The Big Dog and The Architect proved too much for the NXT stars, though.
They sent Ciampa to the floor and cleared off the announce table. They set Ciampa up for a powerbomb but Lee bowled over Reigns and Rollins for the save.
Reigns sent Lee into the ring post while Ciampa and Rollins squared off in the ring. The NXT star delivered Project Ciampa but could not put The Beastslayer away.
A Superman Punch by Reigns gave way to the stomp by Rollins as the longtime friends saw off Ciampa. Ciampa eliminated.
Chants of "Oh, bask in his glory" filled the arena as Lee entered the ring to face off against The Shield's alumni. A crossbody wiped Reigns and Rollins out, much to the delight of the fans.
Rollins uncorked two straight kicks to Lee and delivered a frog splash, but the NXT competitor fought out at two.
Lee caught Rollins, delivered a big jackhammer and pinned the former universal champion to a thunderous ovation. Rollins eliminated.
Two straight Superman Punches gave way to a very close two-count from referee John Cone that may have been a botch, as called out by commentator Corey Graves. Reigns set up for the spear as Lee fought to his feet. The big man caught The Big Dog mid-spear and dropped him with a spirit bomb for a near-fall.
A top-rope moonsault missed and Reigns delivered the spear for the win.
Team SmackDown defeated Team Raw and Team NXT
What started as a tremendously messy match gave way to a last third that was simply fantastic. Everything from Rollins and Reigns teaming up against Ciampa and Lee onward was absolutely superb.
From the fans' unwavering desire to see Rollins beaten to a gutsy performance by Ciampa and a breakout performance by Lee, whose star is as bright as anyone's after this weekend, the last 10 minutes or so earned this one its grade.
It was fun to see Shorty G and Riddle spar, Ali looked like a star for a moment and Corbin was at his insufferable best. And one cannot forget about McIntyre, who looked like a beast ready to be unleashed on the flagship.
Never before has a Reigns-Lee match been more appealing after the final exchange and the show of respect from The Big Dog. Hopefully, those two Superstars cross paths down the road because theirs is an encounter worth watching again.
There was one enormous negative, though.
The treatment of Walter, who has been unbeaten for the last year, was unforgivable and illogical. Any aura the leader of Imperium built for himself among WWE fans was erased with a single Claymore Kick. On a night when WWE has done just about everything right in relation to the NXT brand and its young stars, it botched its booking of The Ring General to such a degree that the Chicago audience was more than vocal in its displeasure.
Both he and the NXT UK brand deserved better.
