8 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE Raw (10 Mar - Results & Review)

3. Second Best Cage Match Of The Week

WWE Raw CM Punk Seth Rollins
WWE

Let’s face it: CM Punk and Seth Rollins weren’t topping Will Ospreay versus Kyle Fletcher in a free TV match, but that didn’t stop the two from turning in a really good steel cage match to close Raw on Monday night.

The two blatantly ignored the “escape the cage” rules and just tried to cripple the other with bombs, spamming finishers, stealing each other’s finishers, and chopping and punching the other into mush. They taunted each other, opening the door and offering to let the other man leave, only to be flipped off in response.

As the match reached its climax, Rollins stomped Punk without success, while Punk tried to put Rolllins to sleep to no avail. It was as solid a bloodless WWE cage match on television as you’re going to see, with both men making their blows count. It certainly didn’t feel like a blowoff conclusion to a bitter feud (hint: blood helps), but it was much better than the average WWE cage match we get these days.

The finish itself was somewhat clever, with Roman Reigns pulling a gassed Rollins out the open door after he had dropped Punk with a stomp off the second rope. When Seth’s feet hit the floor, he won, despite being dragged out of the cage. That allowed Punk to avoid being pinned, but Rollins – who had the advantage – didn’t willingly take the easy way out. Good stuff.

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Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.