6 Ups And 5 Downs From WWE Crown Jewel 2023
A title change, a shock return, another typical Bloodline main event. Good enough overall.
WWE’s Saudi Arabia shows have evolved over time from glorified house shows, to WrestleMania-level spectacles, to meaningful PLEs where major storyline developments take place.
Saturday’s Crown Jewel provided fans with a title change, a surprise return, an attempted career-defining moment, a stellar world title match and another world title match that could have been lifted move-for-move from any PLE main event from the past three years.
Fans who love Roman Reigns and think the Bloodline saga is the greatest thing ever will not even blink at his latest title defense against LA Knight. It was the same thing they’ve seen and loved for three-plus years. But if you’re longing for even the slightest change to the formula, you were left groaning at the TV.
Logan Paul shocked the world with a little help, while Drew McIntyre couldn’t get the job done on his own. Sami Zayn had a great night against the Judgment Day, while Damian Priest had a horrible evening. The women’s title matches produced mixed results, but overall everyone looked good in their roles.
Lastly, a word about Miz TV: It’s not getting either an Up or a Down here. On its face, the segment was dire, with Miz dropping Grayson Waller in the first battle of reality TV stars-turned-WWE superstars. However, if this first salvo ends with Waller finally vanquishing Miz and taking his place as the new-and-improved loudmouth host in WWE, then this would get a pass.
Let’s get to it…