Survivor Series: WarGames was the 36th annual
Survivor Series
Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the sec ...
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast.
Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
and
livestreaming
Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...
event
Event may refer to:
Gatherings of people
* Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion
* Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest
* Event management, the organization of eve ...
produced by
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's
Raw
Raw is an adjective usually describing:
* Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made
* Raw food, uncooked food
Raw or RAW may also refer to:
Computing and electronics
* .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
and
SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes simulc ...
brand divisions. The event took place on Saturday, November 26, 2022, at the
TD Garden
TD Garden is a multi-purpose arena in Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after its sponsor, TD Bank, a subsidiary of the Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Ontario. It opened in 1995 as a replacement for the original Boston Garden and has been k ...
in
Boston, Massachusetts. It was the fourth Survivor Series to be held in Boston after the
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
(at the original
Boston Garden
The Boston Garden was an arena in Boston, Massachusetts. Designed by boxing promoter Tex Rickard, who also built the third iteration of New York's Madison Square Garden, it opened on November 17, 1928, as "Boston Madison Square Garden" (late ...
),
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
, and
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
events. It was also the first Survivor Series to take place on a Saturday and the first since the
1994 event to not take place on a Sunday. This was also the last WWE PPV to take place before
Stephanie McMahon
Stephanie McMahon Levesque (born Stephanie Marie McMahon; ; September 24, 1976) is an American businesswoman and retired professional wrestler. She is the current chairwoman and co-chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the world's largest profe ...
announced her resignation as co-CEO and Chairwoman of WWE and
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the w ...
was voted as Executive Chairman.
Unlike the Survivor Series events from 2016 to 2021, the 2022 event was not themed around Raw versus SmackDown for brand supremacy. Instead, it was based around the
WarGames match
WarGames is a specialized steel cage match in professional wrestling. The match usually involves two teams of either four, five, or more wrestlers locked inside a steel cage that encompasses two rings placed side by side. The cage may or may not ...
, a
gimmick match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
first used in
Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett. Founded in 1931, the promot ...
and then
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
, the assets of which WWE acquired in 2001. From 2017 to 2021, it was used by WWE's
developmental brand
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...
,
NXT
NXT may refer to:
Professional wrestling
* ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010
** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory
* ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...
, and held at the brand's annual
WarGames event. Survivor Series was in turn branded as "Survivor Series: WarGames", marking WWE's first main roster event to feature the match, as well as ending NXT's WarGames event. Due to hosting the WarGames matches, this was the first Survivor Series since the
2002 event to not feature a traditional
Survivor Series match
The Survivor Series match is a professional wrestling tag team elimination match held in WWE. The match typically sees two teams pitted against each other and members of the teams are eliminated one-by-one until one entire team is eliminated. Membe ...
, or any type of elimination match, and only the third event to not include one, after the
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
and 2002 events.
Five matches were contested at the event, including two WarGames matches. In the main event, which was the main match from SmackDown,
The Bloodline (
Roman Reigns
Leati Joseph "Joe" Anoa'i (born May 25, 1985) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and former American football, football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WW ...
,
Solo Sikoa
Joseph Yokozuna Fatu (born March 18, 1993) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE. He currently performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Solo Sikoa where he is a member of The Bloodline and a former NXT North American Ch ...
,
Sami Zayn
Rami Sebei ( ar, رامي سبعي; born July 12, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sami Zayn, and is a member of The Bloodline.
Prior to join ...
, and
The Usos
The Usos (born August 22, 1985) are an American professional wrestling tag team composed of twin brothers Joshua Samuel Fatu and Jonathan Solofa Fatu, who are known professionally by their respective ring names Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso. They are ...
(Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)) defeated
The Brawling Brutes
The Brawling Brutes is a professional wrestling stable consisting of Sheamus, who serves as its leader, Ridge Holland, Butch, and Drew McIntyre. They currently perform in WWE on the SmackDown brand.
Concept
the first concept of the Brutes wa ...
(
Sheamus
Stephen Farrelly (born 28 January 1978) is an Irish professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sheamus.
Prior to joining WWE, he wrestled on the European indep ...
,
Ridge Holland, and
Butch),
Drew McIntyre
Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June 1985) is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre.
McIntyre is a two-time WWE Champion, one-time WWE Int ...
, and
Kevin Owens
Kevin Steen (born May 7, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Kevin Owens.
Steen began his career in 2000, at the age of 16. Prior to joining WWE in l ...
in the men's WarGames match, while in the women's WarGames match, which was the opening bout and was the main match from Raw, Team Belair (
Bianca Belair
Bianca Blair Crawford (born Bianca Nicole Blair; April 9, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and a fitness and figure competitor. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Bianca Belair, and ...
,
Alexa Bliss
Alexis Cabrera (née Kaufman; born August 9, 1991) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Alexa Bliss. In 2013, Bliss signed a contract with WWE and was ass ...
,
Asuka
Asuka may refer to:
People
* Asuka (name), a list of people
* Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler
* Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan
Places In Japan
* , an area in Yamato Province (now ...
,
Mia Yim
Stephanie Hym Lee (née Bell; born April 16, 1989) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name "Michin" Mia Yim. She is a member of The O.C.. She is also known for her tim ...
, and
Becky Lynch
Rebecca Quin (born 30 January 1987) is an Irish professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE under the ring name Becky Lynch where she performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand. Lynch is one of WWE's most recognizable and ...
) defeated Team Bayley (
Damage CTRL
Damage Control (stylized as Damage CTRL) is a villainous professional wrestling stable composed of leader Bayley, Dakota Kai, & Iyo Sky currently performing in WWE on the Raw brand. Kai and Sky are the current WWE Women's Tag Team Champions ...
(
Bayley,
Dakota Kai
Cheree Georgina Crowley (born 6 May 1988) is a New Zealand-born professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Dakota Kai. She is a member of Damage CTRL and is one half of the cur ...
, and
Iyo Sky
is a Japanese professional wrestler signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Iyo Sky (stylized in all caps). She is a member of Damage CTRL and former two-time WWE Women's Tag Team Champions with fellow stablemate ...
),
Nikki Cross
Nicola Glencross (born 21 April 1989) is a Scottish professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Nikki Cross. She is a one-time WWE Raw Women's Champion, three-time WWE Women's Tag Team ...
, and
Rhea Ripley
Demi Bennett (born 11 October 1996) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Rhea Ripley and is a member of The Judgment Day. She was also the inaugural N ...
).
Survivor Series: WarGames was the highest-grossing Survivor Series of all time, as well as the highest-grossing gate for WWE in Boston. It was also the most-viewed Survivor Series. WWE reported that the event was a complete sellout, with a disputed attendance of 15,609. The event also received critical acclaim, with high praise directed towards the WarGames matches for their storytelling and long-term booking, while also praising
AJ Styles
Allen Neal Jones (born June 2, 1977), better known by his ring name AJ Styles (also stylized as A.J. Styles), is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Regarded as one of the best ...
vs.
Finn Bálor
Fergal Devitt (born 25 July 1981) is an Irish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Finn Bálor (), and is a member of The Judgment Day.
Devitt is widely known for his ten ...
, and the
United States Championship triple threat match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
.
Dave Meltzer
David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1959) is an American journalist who reports on professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
Since 1983, he has been the publisher and editor of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON''). He has als ...
of the ''
Wrestling Observer Newsletter
The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four We ...
'' would go on to rate a majority of the matches three-and-three-quarters stars or higher, with only the
SmackDown Women's Championship
The WWE SmackDown Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the SmackDown brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main rost ...
match receiving a negative response.
Production
Background
Survivor Series
Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the sec ...
is an annual
gimmick
A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...
event
Event may refer to:
Gatherings of people
* Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion
* Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest
* Event management, the organization of eve ...
, produced every November by
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
since 1987. The second longest running
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast.
Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
(PPV) event in history (behind WWE's
WrestleMania
WrestleMania is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event held annually between mid-March and mid-April by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Since premiering in 1985, 37 editions followed, mos ...
), it is one of the promotion's five biggest events of the year, along with WrestleMania,
SummerSlam
SummerSlam is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's secon ...
,
Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after the Royal Rumble match, a modified battle roya ...
, and
Money in the Bank, referred to as the "Big Five".
Announced on October 25, 2021, the 36th Survivor Series was scheduled to occur on Saturday, November 26, 2022, at the
TD Garden
TD Garden is a multi-purpose arena in Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after its sponsor, TD Bank, a subsidiary of the Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Ontario. It opened in 1995 as a replacement for the original Boston Garden and has been k ...
in
Boston, Massachusetts, marking the first Survivor Series to be held on a Saturday. In addition to airing on traditional PPV, it was available to
livestream
Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...
on
Peacock
Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...
in the United States and the
WWE Network
WWE Network is a subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and digital television network owned by the American entertainment company WWE. It primarily distributes original professional wrestling events, films, television and ...
in international markets.
Tickets went on sale on August 26, 2022, with premium hospitality packages also available.
The event is traditionally characterized by having
Survivor Series match
The Survivor Series match is a professional wrestling tag team elimination match held in WWE. The match typically sees two teams pitted against each other and members of the teams are eliminated one-by-one until one entire team is eliminated. Membe ...
es, which are
tag team elimination match
Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder ma ...
es that typically features teams of four or five wrestlers against each other.
On September 19, 2022, however, WWE executive
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969), better known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler currently serving as the chief content officer for WWE. He is widely regarded as on ...
announced that instead of Survivor Series matches, the 2022 event would feature two
WarGames match
WarGames is a specialized steel cage match in professional wrestling. The match usually involves two teams of either four, five, or more wrestlers locked inside a steel cage that encompasses two rings placed side by side. The cage may or may not ...
es, one each for the men and women that would be 5-versus-5, marking the first time for a main roster WWE event to feature the match. The 2022 event was in turn renamed as Survivor Series: WarGames. WWE's
developmental brand
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...
NXT
NXT may refer to:
Professional wrestling
* ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010
** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory
* ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...
previously held an annual
WarGames event from 2017 to 2021. With the WarGames match moving to the main roster for Survivor Series, this subsequently ended NXT's WarGames event, which was replaced by
Deadline
Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to:
* Time limit, a narrow field of time by which an objective must be accomplished
Arts, entertainment, and media Comics
* Deadline (DC Comics), a fictional villain
* ''Deadline'' (magazine), a British ...
.
After WWE reintroduced the
brand split in July 2016, Survivor Series centered around competition between wrestlers from
Raw
Raw is an adjective usually describing:
* Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made
* Raw food, uncooked food
Raw or RAW may also refer to:
Computing and electronics
* .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
and
SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes simulc ...
for brand supremacy (NXT was also involved in 2019 but removed in 2020).
In addition to traditional Survivor Series matches between the brands, the champions of each brand faced off in non-title matches.
Along with the announcement that the 2022 event would feature the WarGames match, Triple H also confirmed that the 2022 event would not be based on the brand supremacy concept.
In an interview with ''The Ringer'' in regard to the changes for the 2022 Survivor Series, Triple H stated:
Storylines
The event included matches that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed
heroes
Heroes or Héroes may refer to:
* Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good
Film
* ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama
* ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film
Gaming
* ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...
,
villains
A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...
, or
less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands,
while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, ''
Monday Night Raw
''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show fe ...
'' and ''
Friday Night SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes sim ...
.''
After
Bianca Belair
Bianca Blair Crawford (born Bianca Nicole Blair; April 9, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and a fitness and figure competitor. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Bianca Belair, and ...
retained the
Raw Women's Championship
The WWE Raw Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main roster, along ...
against
Becky Lynch
Rebecca Quin (born 30 January 1987) is an Irish professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE under the ring name Becky Lynch where she performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand. Lynch is one of WWE's most recognizable and ...
at
SummerSlam
SummerSlam is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's secon ...
, Belair was confronted by a returning
Bayley, accompanied by
Dakota Kai
Cheree Georgina Crowley (born 6 May 1988) is a New Zealand-born professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Dakota Kai. She is a member of Damage CTRL and is one half of the cur ...
and
Iyo Sky
is a Japanese professional wrestler signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Iyo Sky (stylized in all caps). She is a member of Damage CTRL and former two-time WWE Women's Tag Team Champions with fellow stablemate ...
, with Lynch standing with Belair.
Lynch then took time off due to an injury, while Bayley's team would dub themselves as
Damage CTRL
Damage Control (stylized as Damage CTRL) is a villainous professional wrestling stable composed of leader Bayley, Dakota Kai, & Iyo Sky currently performing in WWE on the Raw brand. Kai and Sky are the current WWE Women's Tag Team Champions ...
and began feuding with the trio of Belair,
Alexa Bliss
Alexis Cabrera (née Kaufman; born August 9, 1991) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Alexa Bliss. In 2013, Bliss signed a contract with WWE and was ass ...
, and
Asuka
Asuka may refer to:
People
* Asuka (name), a list of people
* Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler
* Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan
Places In Japan
* , an area in Yamato Province (now ...
.
While Belair and Bayley fought over the Raw Women's Championship with Belair retaining in both encounters,
Bliss and Asuka traded the
WWE Women's Tag Team Championship
The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling women's tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is the only women's tag team championship for WWE's main roster, thus is defended across bot ...
with Kai and Sky,
with
Nikki Cross
Nicola Glencross (born 21 April 1989) is a Scottish professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Nikki Cross. She is a one-time WWE Raw Women's Champion, three-time WWE Women's Tag Team ...
costing Bliss and Asuka the titles.
On the November 7 episode of ''Raw'', Belair, Bliss, and Asuka challenged Damage CTRL to a WarGames match at Survivor Series: WarGames, which was accepted. Damage CTRL subsequently recruited Cross to their team.
The following week,
Mia Yim
Stephanie Hym Lee (née Bell; born April 16, 1989) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name "Michin" Mia Yim. She is a member of The O.C.. She is also known for her tim ...
, who had returned to WWE the previous week, joined Belair's team, while
Rhea Ripley
Demi Bennett (born 11 October 1996) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Rhea Ripley and is a member of The Judgment Day. She was also the inaugural N ...
joined Bayley's team.
On the November 21 episode of ''Raw'', Ripley defeated Asuka to give Bayley's team the advantage in the WarGames match,
and on the November 25 episode of ''SmackDown'', a returning Lynch was revealed as the fifth member of Belair's team.
In mid-October,
The Brawling Brutes
The Brawling Brutes is a professional wrestling stable consisting of Sheamus, who serves as its leader, Ridge Holland, Butch, and Drew McIntyre. They currently perform in WWE on the SmackDown brand.
Concept
the first concept of the Brutes wa ...
(
Sheamus
Stephen Farrelly (born 28 January 1978) is an Irish professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sheamus.
Prior to joining WWE, he wrestled on the European indep ...
,
Ridge Holland, and
Butch) began feuding with members of
The Bloodline (
The Usos
The Usos (born August 22, 1985) are an American professional wrestling tag team composed of twin brothers Joshua Samuel Fatu and Jonathan Solofa Fatu, who are known professionally by their respective ring names Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso. They are ...
(Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso),
Solo Sikoa
Joseph Yokozuna Fatu (born March 18, 1993) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE. He currently performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Solo Sikoa where he is a member of The Bloodline and a former NXT North American Ch ...
, and
Sami Zayn
Rami Sebei ( ar, رامي سبعي; born July 12, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sami Zayn, and is a member of The Bloodline.
Prior to join ...
), including an unsuccessful attempt at The Usos'
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship refers to both of the following:
* WWE Raw Tag Team Championship, the men's tag team championship of WWE's Raw brand
*WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship, the men's tag team championship of WWE's SmackDown bran ...
.
On the November 11 episode of ''SmackDown'', the two teams brawled, which also involved Bloodline leader,
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion
The Undisputed WWE Universal Championship exists when one wrestler holds both of the following titles simultaneously:
* WWE Championship, the men's world championship of WWE's Raw brand
* WWE Universal Championship, the men's world championship of ...
Roman Reigns
Leati Joseph "Joe" Anoa'i (born May 25, 1985) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and former American football, football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WW ...
;
Drew McIntyre
Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June 1985) is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre.
McIntyre is a two-time WWE Champion, one-time WWE Int ...
also joined the fray, siding with The Brawling Brutes.
The following week, it was confirmed that The Brawling Brutes would face The Bloodline in a WarGames match at Survivor Series: WarGames. Despite McIntyre's past issues with Sheamus, they made amends and he joined Sheamus' team as he had his own issues with The Bloodline. Later that night, the two teams brawled, after which,
Kevin Owens
Kevin Steen (born May 7, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Kevin Owens.
Steen began his career in 2000, at the age of 16. Prior to joining WWE in l ...
made his return from injury and revealed himself as the fifth member of Sheamus' team with Owens also having previous issues with The Bloodline. On the November 25 episode of ''SmackDown'', McIntyre and Sheamus defeated The Usos to get the advantage in the WarGames match.
On the November 11 episode of ''SmackDown'',
Shotzi
Ashley Louise Urbanski (born March 14, 1992) is an American professional wrestler and singer. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Shotzi (shortened from her previous ring name Shotzi Blac ...
won a
six-pack challenge to earn a
SmackDown Women's Championship
The WWE SmackDown Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the SmackDown brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main rost ...
match against
Ronda Rousey
Ronda Jean Rousey (; born February 1, 1987) is an American professional wrestler, actress, former judoka and mixed martial artist. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand and is the current SmackDown Women’s ...
at Survivor Series: WarGames.
In early October,
The O.C.
''The O.C. '' is an American teen drama television series created by Josh Schwartz that originally aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, running a total of four seaso ...
(
AJ Styles
Allen Neal Jones (born June 2, 1977), better known by his ring name AJ Styles (also stylized as A.J. Styles), is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Regarded as one of the best ...
,
Luke Gallows
Andrew William Hankinson (born December 22, 1983) is an American professional wrestler, who is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Luke Gallows.
Hankinson began his career in 2005 and participated i ...
, and
Karl Anderson
Chad Allegra (born January 20, 1980), better known by the ring name Karl Anderson, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE where he performs on the Raw brand. He also makes appearances for New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), whe ...
) began a rivalry with
The Judgment Day
The Judgment Day is a villainous professional wrestling stable composed of Finn Bálor, Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, and Dominik Mysterio. The stable performs in WWE on the Raw brand. The Judgment Day was founded and previously led by Edge.
Hi ...
(
Finn Bálor
Fergal Devitt (born 25 July 1981) is an Irish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Finn Bálor (), and is a member of The Judgment Day.
Devitt is widely known for his ten ...
,
Damian Priest
Luis Martínez (born September 26, 1982) is an American professional wrestler of Puerto Rican descent. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Damian Priest, and is a member of the stable The Judgme ...
,
Dominik Mysterio
Dominik Gutiérrez (born April 5, 1997) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Dominik Mysterio, and is a member of The Judgment Day. He is a one-time former Sm ...
, and Rhea Ripley), but The O.C. were always at a disadvantage due to Ripley, who cost The O.C. their
six-man tag team match
Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder m ...
against her stablemates at Crown Jewel.
On the November 7 episode of ''Raw'', The O.C. confronted The Judgment Day and introduced the returning Mia Yim as their solution to deal with Ripley.
The following week, a
singles match between Styles and Bálor was scheduled for Survivor Series: WarGames, with their respective stablemates in their corners.
On the November 7 episode of ''Raw'',
Seth "Freakin" Rollins
Colby Daniel Lopez (born May 28, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Seth Rollins (often referred to as Seth "Freakin" Rollins).
Prior to signin ...
held an open challenge for the
United States Championship, which was answered by
Bobby Lashley
Franklin Roberto Lashley (born July 16, 1976) is an American professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and bodybuilder. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. He is an eight-time world champion, having been a two-t ...
, who Rollins controversially won the title from a few weeks prior. The match, however, never commenced as Lashley instead attacked Rollins before the match could begin. After the beat down,
Austin Theory
Austin White (born August 2, 1997) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and Bodybuilding, bodybuilder. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand under the ring ...
ran out and cashed in his
Money in the Bank contract
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...
on a weakened Rollins; however, Rollins retained the title thanks to interference from Lashley.
The following week, Lashley said he would continue to target Rollins until he won back the championship, and later that night, Theory attacked Rollins after the latter's title defense.
On the November 21 episode, it was announced that Rollins would defend the United States Championship against Lashley and Theory in a
triple threat match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
at Survivor Series: WarGames.
Event
Preliminary matches
The women's WarGames match opened the show, which saw Team Belair (Bianca Belair, Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Mia Yim, and Becky Lynch) facing Team Bayley (Damage CTRL (Bayley, Dakota Kai, and Iyo Sky), Nikki Cross, and Rhea Ripley). Belair and Kai started the match. As Team Bayley had the WarGames advantage, Sky entered next, followed by Asuka, Cross, and Bliss. Cross performed a Cross Body off the cage onto everyone else. The rest of the entry order went Bayley, Yim, Ripley, then finally Lynch. After WarGames officially began, Lynch performed a Diving Lep Drop on Sky, who was stuck in a trash can. Ripley performed Riptide on Lynch for a nearfall. Asuka spat green mist in Ripley's face. Bayley performed the Rose Plant on Lynch onto the metal plate connecting the two rings. Sky performed a Moonsault off the top of the cage onto everyone. In the end, Belair performed the Kiss of Death on Bayley into the cage and moments later, Lynch performed a Double Diving Leg Drop from the top of the cage on Kai and Sky through a table and pinned Kai to win the match for Team Belair.
Backstage, Jey Uso, who had never trusted or liked Sami Zayn, spoke with Roman Reigns regarding Zayn's loyalty to The Bloodline, as Jey overheard Zayn conversing with Kevin Owens on ''SmackDown'' the night before where Owens told Zayn to turn on The Bloodline; however, Zayn seemingly feigned ignorance and lied about the encounter when Jey confronted Zayn. Reigns then stated that he would take care of it and then instructed Paul Heyman to call Zayn to meet with Reigns.
Next, AJ Styles (accompanied by The O.C. (Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson)) faced Finn Bálor (accompanied The Judgment Day (Damian Priest and Dominik Mysterio)). A brawl ensued at ringside between Gallows, Anderson, Mysterio, and Priest and the four fought into the crowd. In the closing moments, Styles performed a Phenomenal Forearm on Bálor to win the match.
After that, Ronda Rousey (accompanied by
Shayna Baszler
Shayna Andrea Baszler ( ; born August 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, kickboxer and former mixed martial artist. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand. Baszler is a former two-time and longest ...
) defended the SmackDown Women's Championship against Shotzi. During the match, Shotzi performed a crossbody onto Rousey and Baszler into the crowd. Back in the ring, Rousey performed Piper's Pit on Shotzi and forced Shotzi to tap out to a cross armbar to retain the title.
In another backstage segment, Sami Zayn met with Roman Reigns, who questioned why Zayn lied to Jey Uso about conversing with Kevin Owens. Zayn claimed that he did not want to put too much pressure on Jey as Jey had a match on ''SmackDown'' that night and maintained that his loyalty was with The Bloodline. Reigns seemingly accepted that Zayn was telling the truth.
In the penultimate match, Seth "Freakin" Rollins defended the United States Championship against Bobby Lashley and Austin Theory in a triple threat match. Rollins performed a Pedigree on Lashley for a nearfall. Lashley applied the Hurt Lock on both Rollins and Theory simultaneously, however, Rollins and Theory escaped. With Theory in position for a Curb Stomp, Rollins stepped over Theory for leverage and performed a Curb Stomp on Lashley instead. In the end, as Rollins attempted a Falcon Arrow on Theory, Lashley performed a Spear on Rollins, and Theory fell into a pin onto Rollins to win the title for a second time.
Before the main event in a final backstage segment, Jey Uso asked Roman Reigns if Sami Zayn had lied to Reigns as well. Reigns claimed that he looked Zayn in the eyes and saw what he needed to see.
Main event
The main event was the men's WarGames match, which saw The Bloodline (Roman Reigns, The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso), Solo Sikoa, and Sami Zayn) (accompanied by Paul Heyman) facing The Brawling Brutes (Sheamus, Ridge Holland, and Butch), Drew McIntyre, and Kevin Owens. Butch and Jey started the match. The Brutes had the WarGames advantage as Holland entered next. As Jimmy attempted to enter, Reigns stopped him and picked Zayn to enter instead to test his loyalty to The Bloodline. The remainder of the entry order went McIntyre, Jimmy, Owens, Sikoa, Sheamus, and finally Reigns. All of The Brutes hit The Bloodline with ten Beats of the Bodhran. As Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick, Reigns performed a Spear on Shemaus, but Butch broke the pin. Jey missed Butch with a superkick and accidentally hit Zayn instead. The Usos performed a 1D off the top rope on Butch, but Holland broke the pin. Reigns drove Holland through a cornered table with a spear. Sikoa put McIntyre through a table with a Spinning Solo. In the climax, Owens performed a pop-up powerbomb and a stunner on Reigns, but Zayn stopped the referee from counting the three. A conflicted Zayn then performed a low blow on Owens followed by a Helluva Kick before catching Owens and shoving him to the mat. Zayn then allowed Jey to perform a Flying Uce on Owens to win the match for The Bloodline. Jey finally accepted Zayn as part of The Bloodline and the team celebrated as Reigns looked pleased with Zayn's actions.
Reception
Commercial
During the Survivor Series: WarGames post-event press conference, Triple H revealed that the event was the highest-grossing Survivor Series of all time and was the most viewed. He also said the event was a complete sellout,
and was the highest-grossing gate for WWE in Boston.
According to WWE, the event sold 15,609 tickets. However, the company have often been reported to inflate their attendance figures; for example, they include WWE personnel in their numbers. The event's set up was for 13,042 paid seats, with 40 tickets still available just hours before the event.
According to Triple H, they kept opening up more seats until they reached max capacity with the staging configuration.
Critical
The event received critical acclaim. Praise was directed to the WarGames matches for their storytelling and long-term booking, Styles vs. Balor, and the US Title Triple Threat match, while Rousey vs. Shotzi received a mixed-to-negative response. Dave Meltzer of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' would rate the WarGames matches 4 stars (women's) and 4-and-a-quarter stars (men's), the US Title match 4-and-a-quarter stars, Styles vs. Balor three-and-three-quarters stars, and Rousey vs. Shotzi one star.
Aftermath
Survivor Series: WarGames would be the final WWE PPV in which
Stephanie McMahon
Stephanie McMahon Levesque (born Stephanie Marie McMahon; ; September 24, 1976) is an American businesswoman and retired professional wrestler. She is the current chairwoman and co-chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the world's largest profe ...
served as Chairwoman of WWE, as she announced her resignation as co-CEO and Chairwoman on January 10, 2023. Nick Khan was still named as CEO, and
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the w ...
, who announced his retirement on July 22, was voted as Executive Chairman of the board.
Raw
On the following episode of ''Raw'', The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso), Sami Zayn, and Solo Sikoa celebrated The Bloodline's victory, but Kevin Owens interrupted and told Zayn that their friendship was done. Owens then challenged Jey to a match for the main event, which Jey accepted and Owens won.
The following week, The Usos were originally scheduled to defend the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship against
Matt Riddle
Matthew Fredrick Riddle (born January 14, 1986, in Allentown, Pennsylvania) is an American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand, but is currently inactive due t ...
and
Elias
Elias is the Greek equivalent of Elijah ( he, אֵלִיָּהוּ ''ʾĒlīyyāhū''; Syriac: ܐܠܝܐ ''Eliyā''; Arabic: الیاس Ilyās/Elyās), a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC, mentioned in several holy ...
, but Elias was attacked by Sikoa before the show, and was replaced by Owens. The Usos won, but after the match, a brawl between Riddle, Owens, and The Bloodline broke out, which ended when Owens ran off The Usos and Zayn. However, Sikoa viciously attacked Riddle, who left the arena on a stretcher.
This was done to write Riddle off television, as he failed another drug test.
Also on ''Raw'', Becky Lynch celebrated her team's victory and cut a promo from the crowd. Bayley distracted Lynch, which led to Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky brawling with Lynch, which spilled out throughout the arena.
The following week, two triple threat matches with Raw Women's Championship implications took place. Bayley won the first, while Alexa Bliss won the second after interference from Sky and Kai.
On the December 12 episode, Bliss defeated Bayley to become the number one contender for Bianca Belair's Raw Women's Championship.
The match was scheduled for the January 2, 2023 episode,
where Bliss lost via
disqualification when she attacked the referee after being possessed by
Bray Wyatt
Windham Lawrence Rotunda (born May 23, 1987) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown brand under the ring name Bray Wyatt.
Rotunda is ...
, allowing Belair to retain. After the match, Bliss viciously attacked Belair, ending with Bliss performing two DDTs on Belair onto the steel steps, turning heel in the process.
A rematch between the two for the title was later scheduled for the
Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after the Royal Rumble match, a modified battle roya ...
.
Mia Yim faced Rhea Ripley, but the match ended in a no-contest when The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, Damian Priest, and Dominik Mysterio) and The O.C. (AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson) interfered. This led to an eight-person mixed tag team match where Judgment Day defeated The O.C. when Ripley pinned Yim. This ultimately ended the rivalry between the two teams.
However, on the January 9, 2023 episode of ''Raw'', The Judgment Day (Bálor and Priest) eliminated The O.C. (Gallows and Anderson) en route to winning a
gauntlet match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
to become the number one contenders for the
Raw Tag Team Championship
The WWE Raw Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two male tag team championships for WWE's main roster, ...
.
The title match was later scheduled for "Raw is XXX" on January 23.
New United States Champion Austin Theory came out to address his win. Seth "Freakin" Rollins interrupted to congratulate Theory and challenged him to a rematch for the title, but Theory refused, stating he would fight on his own time.
The following week, after Rollins and Bobby Lashley brawled, a match between Lashley and Rollins to determine the number one contender for the U.S. title was scheduled for the December 12 episode,
where Rollins won. Following the match, Lashley attacked a referee, resulting in him being fired by WWE official
Adam Pearce
Adam John Pearce (born June 24, 1978) is an American professional wrestling executive and former professional wrestler. He is currently employed by WWE as Director of Live Events, producer, trainer, coach, and on-screen authority figure. He is ...
;
however, Pearce later took to social media to reverse his decision but said there would be ramifications for Lashley's actions. Rollins' United States Championship match was also confirmed for the January 2, 2023 episode,
but Rollins failed to win the title.
After returning on the January 9 episode,
Lashley won a six-man elimination match to become the new number one contender for the U.S. title. The match was also scheduled for "Raw is XXX".
SmackDown
On the following episode of ''SmackDown'', Sami Zayn credited The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) for securing their team's win; however, The Usos said it was because of Zayn. Sheamus interrupted, leading to a match between Zayn and Sheamus. During the match, a brawl between The Brawling Brutes (Ridge Holland and Butch) and The Bloodline (The Usos and Solo Sikoa) occurred at ringside, which allowed Jey to interfere in the match and give Zayn the win.
The following week, The Usos successfully retained the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship against Sheamus and Butch after interference from Zayn and Sikoa. Afterwards, it was announced that Roman Reigns would return on the December 16 episode of ''SmackDown''.
There, it was revealed that Reigns and Zayn would face Kevin Owens and a partner of his choosing on the December 30 episode of ''SmackDown'' with Owens choosing
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American part-time professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper. He is currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied w ...
as his partner, marking Cena's first televised match since
SummerSlam in 2021, as well as his only match in 2022.
On the December 30 episode, Owens and Cena defeated Reigns and Zayn when Owens pinned Zayn. The following week, Owens challenged Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble, which was made official.
On the December 9 episode of ''SmackDown'', Shayna Baszler and SmackDown Women's Champion Ronda Rousey attacked Shotzi in the parking lot.
It was then reported that Shotzi suffered a broken hand, and would be out of action for six weeks.
Results
References
External links
*
{{WWEPPV, Survivor Series
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...
2022 WWE Network events
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