WWE SmackDown was a historical and exhilarating card for many reasons. Highlighting those reasons was the 3 Stages of Hell main event. This is a best two-out-of-three match, consisting of consecutive matches with changed stipulations. Cody Rhodes had the daunting task of defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against the larger Drew McIntyre in the first 3 Stages of Hell match to ever be on SmackDown.
Rhodes was in control for most of this relatively short stage, but that didn’t matter. McIntyre removed a turnbuckle pad, which, in turn, distracted the referee long enough for him to deliver a low-blow to the defending champion. This was swiftly followed by a Claymore, securing the first-stage victory for the challenger.
McIntyre and Rhodes didn’t take long to make their way through the crowd after the bell concluded the opening stage. The brawl ended with McIntyre on a table and Rhodes jumping off an entrance ramp. With the eyeball test, it was about a ten- to fifteen-foot drop. The Scottish Psychopath was hurt, but managed to kick out.
Rhodes maintained control. McIntyre and he worked their way closer to the ring, where The American Nightmare hit his Crossroad finisher on McIntyre through the announce table. The fall occurred right there on the rubble, leading to the final stage.
Rhodes tried to ride the momentum from winning stage two, but the strength of McIntyre quickly put him back in the fight. The defending champ also kicked out after taking a superplex from the top of the cage early on.
The finish felt near when Rhodes hit his finisher for a second time, but McIntyre kicked out in the most dramatic false finish of the evening. Moments later, the third and fourth Crossroads were hit. The champ got overly zealous, going for a fifth. This was reversed into a Claymore, leading to another tense false finish.
A Cody Cutter off the top of the stage still wasn’t enough to keep McIntyre down. Rhodes tried to escape the cage, but was pulled down by the recovered challenger. Jacob Fatu then made a surprise appearance.
Following the finish with McIntyre, Rhodes and Fatu started their own brawl. This led to McIntyre escaping the cage and stealing the Undisputed WWE Championship.
The King is dethroned, and Fatu has returned to put his face in the championship picture. With the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania ever-approaching, what could WWE have in store for the hottest period of the wrestling calendar?
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