10 Ways WWE Screwed Up At Battleground 2017
4. The Flag Match
Rusev might have had the worst bout of his career last night, and the same goes for John Cena. Their Flag Match was an absolute stinker completely lacking in heat or drama, and it produced a predictable outcome, with Cena overcoming the supposed “foreign menace.” It lasted over 20 minutes, but the crowd didn’t come alive until the last 10-20 seconds, and if WWE have even a shred of self awareness left, they should regret booking it.
The flag stipulation should have been left in the 1980s. It's an antiquated trope that never results in exciting action, and only exists to serve one of wrestling’s most outdated storylines - USA vs. the world. They’re supposed to generate easy, nationalistic heat, but last night proves the stipulation is useless in 2017. Philadelphia were dead throughout, and as a result, Cena gains little in victory.
This was legitimately one of the worst WWE matches of the past 10 years. Not only did it kill the crowd, but the flag teases were poorly executed, and Cena and Rusev wrestled as if they were working a house show bout. A legitimate zero-star match, the duo are lucky that the House Of Horrors exists, otherwise this would stand as the year’s worst.