WWE Super Showdown results: Triple H, Undertaker continue rivalry; Daniel Bryan becomes No. 1 contender

Brian Fritz

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WWE Super Showdown results: Triple H, Undertaker continue rivalry; Daniel Bryan becomes No. 1 contender image

It took more than six years for Triple H to finally get his revenge against The Undertaker. But when the night was over, it was The Dead Man walking tall while The Game was left laying in the ring at the end of WWE Super Showdown 2018.

The historic event in front of an announced 70,309 fans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia, concluded with the two veteran superstars meeting for the first time since the WrestleMania 28 on April 1, 2012 when The Undertaker defeated Triple H in a match that was dubbed the "end of an era."

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When it was over, the larger-than-life characters hugged along with Shawn Michaels as they walked to the back in a memorable scene.

On this night in Australia, it was two past-their-prime stars slugging it out one more time in what turned out to be at times a slow, plodding main event with both Kane and Michaels interfering in the no-disqualification match. Both men survived each other's finishing moves and it took Triple H using a sledgehammer followed by Shawn Michaels delivering a pair of his patented superkicks followed by a Pedigree by Triple H who scored the win against The Undertaker. 

After the match, all four men seemed to but their differences aside as they hugged and posed in the ring. That was short-lived as the Brothers of Destruction went on the attack that included the Heart Break Kid being put through the announcer's table and leaving both him and his best friend down for the count as the show went off the air.

The big angle is expected to set up a tag team match between the four men at the November 2 Crown Jewel event in Saudi Arabia, marking the end of Michaels' retirement and his return to the ring for the first time since 2010 when he lost to The Undertaker at WrestleMania 26. 

Also announced for Crown Jewel it will be Daniel Bryan challenging AJ Styles for the WWE Championship after Bryan defeated The Miz to become the No. 1 contender. That turned out to be one of the more head-scratching decisions of the night; not that Bryan won but that he did so in just over two minutes using a small package rather than the two having a full-fledged match.

The 10-match WWE Super Showdown 2018 event didn't have a WrestleMania feel to it despite the enormous crowd but it was more than a glorified WWE house show. The best match on the show saw Styles successfully defend the WWE Championship against Samoa Joe in an excellent no count out, no disqualification match. The two went back and forth for nearly 24 minutes in a hard-hitting match that left Styles with a bloody mouth before Joe tapped out to the Calf Crusher submission move.

The feel-good moment of the show came when Melbourne's own Buddy Murphy ended Cedric Alexander's long reign as the WWE Cruiserweight Champion to a huge ovation from the packed building. The "205 Live" stars put on a fantastic athletic display with Murphy somehow kicking out of Alexander's Lumbar Check finishing move and hitting his pump-handle driver finisher for the win.

Elsewhere, The Shield scrapped together a hard-fought win against The Dogs of War in a nearly 20-minute match with action inside and outside the ring. WWE continued to tease that Dean Ambrose could leave The Shield after Roman Reigns accidentally hit him but that wasn't the case as Ambrose stood by his brothers in action. Reigns made up for it when Braun Strowman was about to run over Ambrose but Reigns cut off the monster and sent him crashing through the ringside barricade. Just a minute later, Ambrose connected with his Dirty Deeds finisher on Dolph Ziggler to score the victory.

A returning John Cena (with his fresh, schoolboy-esque haircut) showed off his "sixth move of doom" as he and Bobby Lashley beat Kevin Owens and Elias. After the match, Cena told the crowd that he knows his life is changing but he will never forget where he came from and that WWE will always be his home. He added that doesn’t know what the future holds and is focusing on the “now”. Cena is currently filming a Jackie Chan movie in China as he continues his transition from the ring to the big screen.

Other matches saw Becky Lynch retain the "SmackDown" Women's Championship despite losing to Charlotte Flair via disqualification while Ronda Rousey made Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan simultanously tap out to a double armbar as she and the Bella Twins defeated the Riott Squad. Plus, The New Day beat The Bar to remain the "SmackDown" Tag Team Champions while the hometown IIconics beat Asuka and Naomi. 

WWE has two more big events coming up within the next month, including the first-ever, all-women WWE Evolution event on Oct. 28 followed by the huge Saudi Arabia Crown Jewel show on Nov. 2. Both shows will air live on the WWE Network.

Brian Fritz can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrianFritz and listen to his Between The Ropes podcast on iTunes.

Brian Fritz

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Brian Fritz is a contributor with The Sporting News covering the NBA and NFL who previously worked at BasketballNews. He is a 20-year veteran of sports talk radio in Orlando, Florida, after graduating from the University of Central Florida. He now resides in Durham, North Carolina.