WWE Roablock was nothing more than a speedbump or yield sign on the road to WrestleMania 2016. With several matches that only made sense for a house show (Sami Zayn vs. Stardust anyone?), this WWE special did not disappoint as far as entertainment value goes. While several matches had absolutely nothing to do with current (and possibly future) storylines, there were some that are quite relevant to current storylines and more importantly, that made sense beyond WWE Roadblock.
NXT Tag Team Championship Match: The Revival (c) vs. Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady
Why they keep doing this match with the same result is beyond me. The Revival is a great tag team for NXT, but they are not main roster talent in their current incarnation. Enzo and Cassidy are main event level talent that keeps being relegated to NXT (which is not a negative) yet hasn’t had an opportunity to be champs during their stay. These 2 teams have continually had better and better matches, I’ll give them that, but what is the point of pitting them against each other if The Revival keeps winning because they’re an NXT mainstay for the forseeable future and Enzo and Cassidy keep losing because they are expected to debut on the main roster at a To Be Determined date.
WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day (c) vs. League of Nations (Sheamus & King Barrett)
I gotta say, on every show I watch lately The New Day make up my favorite part, without a doubt. Just like Booty O’s, they make sure my WWE experience ain’t booty. Same goes for WWE Roadblock. These guys are funny and entertaining. Agree with their style of humor or not, agree with them being champs or not, but who else, what other team in the WWE have what it takes to carry the tag team division. Definitely not The League of Nations. You want proof? Watch this match. Representing the League is a former WWE Champion and a very talented wrestler that’s about to be let go and yet they did not look like a team (I wonder why…) and were out of their league (pun intended). The New Day won but I will say it was a good, entertaining match. So give The League of Nations an E for Effort but they really need to lock down what type of stable they are and who should represent them in the tag team division, because this mix and match does not work for them and only takes their credibility down further with each showing.
Brock Lesnar w/Paul Heyman vs. Luke Harper w/Bray Wyatt
In this match each wrestler played the role they’ve been playing for a long time now. Brock Lesnar was a beast and Bray Wyatt showed great presence while ultimately not being a real factor in this match (or in the WWE overall). This match became a handicap match with Luke Harper joining in to help Brock Lesnar look as menacing as possible while not having Bray Wyatt looking weak (again) against yet another main event player. This match basically helps close the book, if the WWE wants to, on this semi storyline they’ve been building since the Royal Rumble.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match: Triple H (c) vs. Dean Ambrose
This is the match that made WWE Roadblock in a “special event” as its result could potentially have direct implications on the main event of WrestleMania 2016. This match was a masterpiece, showing that Triple H still has it and proving to any naysayers that Dean Ambrose has what it takes to be a main event player. From the back and forth action to Dean Ambroses’ strategy to focus on the legs of the King of Kings to Triple H just being the beast we’ve always know him to be in the ring, this match did not disappoint. While Triple H managed to keep his title and win cleanly, we did get to see what Dean Ambrose can do. Most importantly we saw that what he can do is get teh 1-2-3 against The Game. How this affects the WresteMania 2016 picture is unknown, but we should find out in the next couple of weeks.
Now will this match be enough to prove to Vince McMahon that he should use Dean Ambrose like a main event level talent, as he was showcased here? Of course not. But that has more to do with Vince McMahon making up his mind (or Kevin Dunn making it for him) and showing his age by being unwilling to change it no matter how strong the evidence is saying that he should. However, a match like this, a 25 minute clinic like this one can be what turns the tide of the most powerful decision maker in the WWE universe, the fans. Dean Ambrose has already been embraced as the babyface we want but WWE won’t give us. Now he just might turn into the babyface we force the WWE to use.
Let me know what you thought of WWE Roadblock in the comment section or reach out on Twitter and Instagram @TheGuyBlog.
