On Saturday, January 24th, WWE returned to the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, for its big event, “Saturday Night’s Main Event XLIII.” The main event of the show saw Sami Zayn, Damian Priest, Randy Orton, and Trick Williams do battle for a shot at Drew McIntyre’s Undisputed WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble next weekend.
We also saw AJ Styles have what could have been his final meeting with his long-time rival from New Japan and in the WWE, Shinsuke Nakamura. Also, Rhiyo’s Rhea Ripley & Iyo Sky put their WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship on the line against The Judgement Day’s Liv Morgan & Roxanne Perez. We were also scheduled to see a match between Cody Rhodes and Jacob Fatu kick off the event, but a brawl between the two men took place before the match could begin. So, what were the top three moments of the event?
3. All Hell Breaks Loose Between Cody Rhodes & Jacob Fatu, Drew McIntyre Stands Tall
The show opened with what was originally supposed to be a singles match between Cody Rhodes and Jacob Fatu. This has become a rivalry that got very personal, very fast. This was a rivalry too that wasn’t started too long ago. Fatu made his return to the ring on the January 9th edition of SmackDown, inadvertently costing Rhodes his title and helping Drew McIntyre to win it.
Fatu attacked McIntyre but turned his attention to Rhodes, which allowed McIntyre to fall out of the cage door, giving him the win. After that, Rhodes and Fatu begin having what has turned into a bit of a “blood feud.” These two men simply don’t like each other, and that was on full display on the most recent edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Fatu made his entrance to the ring to kick off the show, looking to compete in his first match since August of last year. As Cody was about to enter the ring, Fatu began the fight. The two went at it all over the ring and the arena. However, the mood changed when Drew McIntyre entered the fray, taking out both Fatu and Rhodes. Could this be the Undisputed WWE Championship WrestleMania match?
2. Sami Zayn Punches His Ticket to the Royal Rumble
The main event of the most recent edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event saw Sami Zayn, Damian Priest, Randy Orton, and Trick Williams battle for a shot at Drew McIntyre’s Undisputed WWE Championship on Saturday at the Royal Rumble. Each man earned their shot in this match by defeating their opponent in the #1 Contender’s Tournament.
Zayn got past Ilja Dragunov, Priest defeated Solo Sikoa, Williams defeated Matt Cardona, and Randy Orton defeated The Miz to punch their ticket to the four-way match at Saturday Night’s Main Event. All four men showed up and showed out in this for the prestigious opportunity that awaits them in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday when WWE kicks off their Road to WrestleMania at the Royal Rumble.
At one point or another, it looked as if each of these guys was going to win this one. Williams has looked fantastic since his call-up, which is a testament to WWE’s good handling of him, as of late. In the end, Zayn found the wherewithal to hit a Helluva Kick on Priest to pin him and win the match. The match is official, on Saturday at the Royal Rumble, Drew McIntyre will defend the Undisputed WWE Championship against Sami Zayn.
1. AJ Styles Ends His Chapter Against Shinsuke Nakamura
In perhaps the biggest match of the night, we saw AJ Styles wrestle what could have been one of his final matches against long-time rival, Shinsuke Nakamura. Styles will be taking on Gunther next Saturday at the Royal Rumble in a match where, if Styles loses, his career is over. If this is truly almost the end, Styles didn’t want to go out without having one more banger with arguably his biggest rival, Nakamura.
The two have met multiple times before this one, including back at WrestleMania 34 in 2018, where Nakamura would turn heel on Styles following Styles’ victory over him. Every time these two step in the ring together, magic happens. At Saturday Night’s Main Event, we saw more magic made between the two men who re-wrote history in New Japan and in the WWE.
Styles made his entrance, paying homage to his career in New Japan, wearing his infamous mask. This was the perfect ending to one of professional wrestling’s greatest rivalries. Styles hit a Kinshasa of his own on Nakamura, which was a really cool moment. In the end, Styles hit a Phenomenal Forearm, followed up with a Styles Clash on Nakamura for the three-count. This was the perfect ending to a near-perfect story.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next time
– Scott Mitchell
You can follow me on X (Twitter) and Instagram @Scott44Mitchell
