Reviews

The John Report: WWE Crown Jewel 2024 Review

By John Canton • Published 2nd November 2024

WWE Crown Jewel Review 2024 tjrwrestling

It’s WWE Crown Jewel featuring Cody Rhodes facing Gunther, Nia Jax against Liv Morgan, the reunited original Bloodline in action, and more.

There are seven matches scheduled for Crown Jewel. That’s more than the five matches at each of Bad Blood and Bash in Berlin, but it’s equal to the seven matches at SummerSlam. I guess that means WWE views this event as a bigger deal, so they put more matches on it. As I wrote in the Crown Jewel preview, I think seven matches (or at least six) is what they should do moving forward. With that said, this is one of the strongest years for WWE PLE’s ever, so keeping it at five matches for most shows is fine with me too.

This is the sixth time WWE is using the Crown Jewel name for PLE. The first WWE Crown Jewel PLE in 2018 was headlined by DX’s Shawn Michaels & Triple H beating the Brothers of Destruction duo of The Undertaker & Kane. It was not a good match that also saw Triple H tear his pectoral muscle, but they all got paid very well, so I guess that’s what matters sometimes.

There was a two-hour Crown Jewel Countdown Show on WWE’s YouTube channel, but I don’t review those. Let’s get to the main show.

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WWE Crown Jewel
From Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Saturday, November 2, 2024

It was a packed house at Crown Jewel. They showed some sights outside of the building as well as the full arena.

The WWE Crown Jewel Championship belt was shown being handled by a few guys in suits.

There were some arrivals shown of the Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and the World Heavyweight Champion Gunther. They also showed WWE Women’s Champion Nia Jax walking with Tiffany Stratton and the Women’s World Champion was joined by Dominik Mysterio and Raquel Rodriguez. Randy Orton was also shown walking around the building and so was Kevin Owens, who was wearing a “Cowboy” Bob Orton shirt.

A video package aired previewing the show. That was excellent as usual.

There was an impressive pyro display to welcome us to the show. The commentary team is Michael Cole and Corey Graves. There was the Arabic commentary team at ringside as well.

Solo Sikoa led his version of The Bloodline for the first match of the show. It’s going to be Solo with Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga while Tonga Loa will be at ringside. Good call because Loa is the least impressive wrestler in the group.

Roman Reigns was up next joined by Jimmy Uso for his entrance. There were a lot of “OTC” chants for Reigns. Jey Uso was up next on his own doing his exciting arm-swinging entrance. A lot of “Yeet” chants as well.

The Bloodline – Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu & Tama Tonga (w/Tonga Loa) vs. Roman Reigns, Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso

This is Roman’s second match since his two WrestleMania main event matches back in April. It was about 20 minutes into the show when they rang the bell. It’s not a major complaint, but I do think WWE could ring the bell for the first match a bit sooner.

Jey started against Tama and Jey was in control early on with a jumping kick to the head. Jimmy tagged in as the Usos did the classic tag team elbow and double elbow drop. Fatu (which is the real last name of The Usos and Solo) tagged in with some punches for cousin Jimmy. Jey made a blind tag leading to a jumping kick on Fatu. The Usos took turns kicking Fatu followed by a double uppercut punch. The Usos clotheslined Tama out of the ring while brother Solo ducked out of the ring to the floor. The fans chanted for Roman while Jey had Tama trapped in an armbar. Reigns extended his hand, so Jey tagged in Jimmy instead. Graves said that was Jey reminding Roman that Roman doesn’t call the shots. While Jimmy was talking to his partner, Tama hit a chop block to Jimmy. Fatu was aggressive against Jimmy with strikes along with a running hip attack against the turnbuckle. Solo worked over Jimmy with photos while Fatu shouted: “I love you, Solo.” Tama tagged in, took way too long going for a splash and Jey got the tag from his brother. Jey hit a punch combo on Tama and running hip attack (a popular family move) for two. Jey sent Tama into the ropes, so Fatu tagged in and Fatu hit a popup Samoan Drop. Solo headbutted Jey, who became the face in peril. Fatu was back in with an uppercut on Jey. Fatu squeezed Jey’s traps for a bit and then Tama tagged in with a senton splash onto Jey. Solo tagged in, Jey tried to fight back and Solo decked Jey with an uppercut punch. Tama was back in, Jey hit him with a jawbreaker and Jey hit Tama with a clothesline.

Roman Reigns tagged in for the first time after 13 minutes and he was against Solo. Reigns and Solo exchanged punches while the fans were chanting “yay/boo” for them. Solo headbutted Reigns, but Reigns came back with two clotheslines along with a leaping clothesline. Reigns hit a uranage slam on Solo. Reigns charged for a punch, Solo caught him, Reigns broke free and Reigns hit a Superman Punch. Reigns charged, Solo blocked him with a kick and Solo hit a Samoan Spike for two because Jimmy made the save. Jimmy superkicked Tama and when he tried a superkick on Fatu, he no sold it, so Fatu superkicked Jimmy. Fatu gave Jimmy a lifting DDT. Jey superkicked Fatu out of the ring. Jey hit a superkick on Solo. Jey tried a suicide dive on Fatu, but Fatu avoided that and hit a superkick to knock Jey down. Reigns pulled Tama into the ring so that Tama hit the referee. Fatu went into the ring with a headbutt on Reigns along with a jumping flying elbow. Fatu hit a moonsault on Reigns. Fatu hit a suicide dive on both Usos on the floor. Solo hit Reigns with the Samoan Spike two times in a row. Solo pinned Reigns for the win at 16:41.

Winners by pinfall: Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu & Tama Tonga

Analysis: ***1/2 It was a pretty good tag team match that was like an old school, slower-paced match. The referee bump was done to allow Jacob Fatu to look dominant by taking out all of his opponents while Solo Sikoa benefitted from that and finished off Reigns with his finishing move. I thought it would be Jimmy Uso taking the pin here, so that was a bit of a surprise. As usual, Jacob Fatu stood out in the match as the best performer who can do so much when he’s in the ring. I expected Solo’s group to win here although I didn’t think it would be as clean as it was. Anyway, I’ll pick Roman’s team to win at WarGames.

After the match, Solo Sikoa stood tall over Roman Reigns while wearing the Ula Fala around the neck. Reigns reached up to try to grab it, but Solo’s group stomped on Reigns to keep him down. Jimmy tried to help, but he was attacked by The Bloodline as well. Solo’s group pulled Reigns out of the ring. Jey tried to save Reigns, so the Bloodline foursome focused their attack on Jey. They put Jey against the turnbuckle. Here comes Sami Zayn and the fans popped huge for him while singing Zayn’s song.

Sami Zayn stood in front of Jey while Solo tried to reason with Zayn. Solo put his arms out as if he wanted Zayn to embrace him. The fans were chanting “Sami Uso” for Zayn. Zayn teased hugging Solo and instead, he hit an Exploder Suplex. Zayn tried to fight the rest of The Bloodline, so then Reigns, Jimmy and Jey all got back up. The Bloodline was sent out of the ring except for Solo, who was surrounded by Reigns, Jey, Sami and Jimmy. Reigns charged at Solo going for a Superman Punch, but Zayn also charged with a Helluva Kick and Solo moved, so Zayn hit Reigns with the kick. Solo left the ring and laughed about it. Jimmy got in Zayn’s face while Jey tried to calm Jimmy down. Reigns was down in the ring selling the attack. Zayn left the ring while Reigns and The Usos were in the ring trying to figure out what happened.

Analysis: It was an accidental kick by Zayn that knocked Reigns down there. This is obviously leading to WarGames in four weeks, but it’s going to lead to a story about whether this original version of The Bloodline can work together. I think they can and they will, but it will take time to tell the story over the next month. I liked seeing that reunion even though it didn’t end up well for Reigns and his group.

A commercial aired for WrestleMania 41 tickets that are on sale now.

There was an interview shown with World Heavyweight Champion Gunther talking to Raw announcer Joe Tessitore. I’m not going to recap this, but it was the usual confidence by Gunther.

Cody Rhodes was also interviewed by Cathy Kelley. Cody talked about how he’s been in there with Gunther twice in the Royal Rumble and it has gone his way, so he’s confident. There was a bit more after that with Cody believing he’s going to win.

WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships: Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill vs. Meta-Four – Lash Legend & Jakara Jackson vs. Damage CTRL – Iyo Sky & Kairi Sane vs. Chelsea Green & Piper Niven

This match has two women in the ring while the other six women are on the apron. The first fall wins.

Belair hit a suplex on Sky to start the match strong for the champions. Belair went for a moonsault, but Sky avoided it. Sky did an impressive backflip followed by a running dropkick. Green tagged herself in, so Sky punched Green. Belair hit a spinebuster on Green followed by a handspring moonsault for two. Jade tagged in leading to the champions tossing Green onto Niven. Jade did a press slam to Green, so Lash tagged in and slammed Green. The fans chanted “NXT” as Jackson tagged in for a senton splash off of Lash’s shoulders for two. Lash was back in with a suplex on Green. Lash splashes Green against the turnbuckle. Jackson hit a hard chop on Green, so Sane tagged in and Sane hit a jumping forearm on Jackson. Sane sent Green out of the ring and Sane ran the ropes leading to a Spear on Jackson. Sky tagged in, she was lifted to the top and there was a slip so Sky slammed Jackson down. Sky jumped off the top rope with a missile dropkick on Jackson. Niven tagged in with a cross body block on Sky. Niven caught a charging Sane and hit a sitout Powerbomb. Belair was in illegally with a blockbuster and then Lash hit Belair with a pump kick. Jade faced off with Lash as the two powerhouses exchanged strikes. Jade superkicked Lash and Jade avoided a kick leading to Jade hitting a jumping kick. Niven jumped off the ropes with a cross body block on Lash and Jade. Green was the only woman in the ring, she teased a leap on the others and was too scared to do it. Sane jumped off the top with an Insane Elbow on Green and Niven on the floor. Sky hit a top rope moonsault onto Niven and Green on the floor. Lash had Jackson on her shoulders and Jackson hit a cross body block on the others on the floor. Belair clotheslined Lash over the top to the floor. I have no idea who is legal, but it was a lot of chaotic action.

Jade was in the ring with Green, so I guess they were legal. Jade hit Jaded on Green, but Sky and Sane broke up the pin. Belair was back in with a forearm. Sane hit a spinning back fist followed by Sky hitting a bridging German Suplex on Belair. Sky launched Sane into the air so Sky hit a top rope elbow. Jackson hit a missile dropkick. Lash launched Sky into the air and Jackson hit a Powerbomb. Niven with a Michinoku Driver on Lash and Green hit a Codebreaker on Jackson. Niven hit a senton splash. Niven tagged in as the legal woman against Jade. Jade slammed Green and Niven splashed her partner. Niven went up the turnbuckle for some reason, Jade had Niven on her shoulders and Belair tagged in for the classic Doomsday Device (top rope clothesline) for the pinfall win at 12:01.

Winners by pinfall: Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill

Analysis: *** It was an entertaining match with a lot of chaos because there were several minutes there where I had no idea who the legal women were. There was a lot of illegal action in the match. I’m not a big fan of that in other companies, so I’m going to mention it here as well. There were some creative spots throughout the match while Lash Legend & Jakara Jackson fared well as an NXT tag team. The Green & Niven team had a flurry of offense as well. I thought Sky & Sane did a nice job as well. The finish was a bit strange since Niven climbed up the turnbuckle just so Jade could put her on her shoulders, but it didn’t make logical sense for Niven to climb the turnbuckles. I expected the champions to retain, so I’m not surprised by that result.

A commercial aired for NXT this Wednesday, November 6th in Philly from the ECW Arena. It’s a Wednesday show because of the US Presidential Election on Tuesday.

The Royal Rumble is coming on February 1st in Indianapolis. Tickets are on sale on November 13th with the pre-sale and the regular on sale date is November 15th. It’s probably going to be the last one-night Royal Rumble PLE.

The WWE Experience was shown in Riyadh, which is a tourist attraction for fans in Saudi Arabia.

A video package aired about the Seth Rollins-Bronson Reed match. Reed knew he had to create a path to the top so he hit Rollins with the Tsunami splash six times. Rollins got payback by costing Reed his Last Man Standing match with Bronson Reed. This is their first singles match since Reed’s attack a few months ago.

Seth “Freakin” Rollins vs. “Big” Bronson Reed

Rollins entered the ring first with the fans singing his song as usual. When Reed was making his entrance, Rollins went after him and they fought on the ramp. The fight on the ramp saw them exchange strikes. They went fighting toward the ringside area. Rollins kicked Reed down on the floor followed by Rollins hitting a suicide dive on Reed on the floor. Reed bodyslammed Rollins in the timekeeper’s area. Reed sent Rollins into the steel steps. They went into the ring and the bell rang to start the match.

Reed was in control with a splash against the turnbuckle. Reed went up top and hit a Tsunami splash. Reed tried another Tsunami splash off the top, but Rollins moved. Rollins hit The Stomp for two. They were exchanging strikes again, Rollins went for a sunset flip and the big man Reed sat on Rollins. Reed chopped Rollins a few times. Reed punched Rollins in the ribs as the fans chanted for Rollins. Reed collapsed on Rollins when Seth tried a body slam. Reed hit Rollins with shoulder tackles to the ribs a few times. Rollins got a knee up to block a charging attack. Reed tried a Powerbomb, but Rollins flipped over leading to a DDT. Rollins hit Reed with multiple clotheslines to stagger Reed, who was still standing. Rollins went to the top rope, Reed knocked down Rollins there and Rollins bit Reed’s hand. Rollins headbutted Reed to knock him down. Rollins jumped off the top with a Frog Splash for just a one count. Reed hit a running body attack to knock Rollins down and Reed hit a Powerbomb for two. Reed hit a Death Valley Driver slam for two. Reed set up Rollins on the top rope for a superplex and Reed connected with the superplex for a two count.

Rollins told Reed he should have finished him when he had the chance and Rollins slapped Reed in the face. Reed hit a clothesline. Reed went up top, but Rollins rolled away. Reed hit a senton splash. Reed went up top again, so Rollins rolled out of the ring to the floor. Reed tried to hit Rollins with the steel steps, but Rollins tripped Reed, who went crashing into the steps. Rollins gave Reed The Stomp on the steel steps. Reed crawled back into the ring so Rollins hit The Stomp again. Rollins went up top and jumped off the top with a Super Stomp on Reed for the three count. It went 12:20.

Winner by pinfall: Seth “Freakin” Rollins

Analysis: ***1/2 I liked the match quite a bit with Reed looking like a tough monster to beat, so Rollins had to go to the next level by hitting a Super Stomp for the win. That puts over Reed as a tough guy to beat because it took a special, rare move for Rollins to win the match. Reed lost, but he looked impressive in defeat and I think WWE is booking him the right way. Rollins remains one of the best workers in WWE who has had fewer matches this year, yet he continues to be great. I like Reed a lot and want to see more from him.

Seth Rollins celebrated the win while Reed was bleeding from above his eyebrow. I’m not sure what bump caused that. While Rollins had his arm raised on the floor, Reed was back on his feet in the ring. Reed stared at Rollins while Rollins looked amazed that Reed was back on his feet. Rollins told Reed he knew where to find him.

Analysis: That makes me think a rematch is coming and I think Reed will win that. Just a hunch.

The MLB World Series Champions Los Angeles Dodgers championship parade was shown so Cole promoted the WWE title belts for sports teams like the Dodgers.

The Women’s Crown Jewel Championship was shown and it’s being handled by four guys in suits. A video aired setting up the Liv Morgan-Nia Jax match.

The Women’s Crown Jewel Championship was in the ring while Nia Jax was there with the WWE Women’s Champion and Liv Morgan was there with the Women’s World Championship. Mike Rome, who is normally the NXT ring announcer, was in the ring for the championship introductions.

WWE Women’s Crown Jewel Championship: Liv Morgan vs. Nia Jax

It’s a heel vs. heel match so the crowd has nobody to root for unless there’s a Tiffany Stratton appearance. This is what WWE used to do for Survivor Series when the two brand champions faced off except now they have a championship, which will also be a championship ring.

Jax was in control early with a headbutt along with an elbow drop. Jax hit a running splash. Liv got some offense by staggering Jax against the turnbuckle and then kicked the knee. Liv hit an impressive Tornado DDT for a two count. Jax hit a Samoan Drop for two. Jax charged at Liv, who moved, so Jax went crashing with her right shoulder hitting the turnbuckle. Liv tried to capitalize, but Jax caught her and Jax hit a Samoan Drop off the middle turnbuckle for two. Jax went for a move off the turnbuckle again, but Liv managed to counter it with a sunset flip Powerbomb. Both women were down in the ring, so Tiffany Stratton ran down to the ring with her Women’s Money in the Bank briefcase. Nia Jax went over to Stratton wondering what she was doing and Stratton claimed she was going to cash in on Liv, so there was no cash in attempt. Jax told Stratton it was not the time. Liv charged at Jax, who hit her with a forearm. Jax told Stratton to get out of there and the fans booed that. Jax hit a Samoan Drop again, but Liv turned it into a crucifix pin attempt. Stratton teased cashing in the Women’s Money in the Bank briefcase again, but she didn’t do it while Jax hit a powerslam on Liv. Stratton wanted to cash in, but Raquel Rodriguez showed up to stop that. Jax went after Raquel, who did a necksnap across the top rope and the referee did nothing about that as Liv jumped off the turnbuckle with a Codebreaker. Jax splashed Liv and Raquel onto Stratton, who was on the floor. Dominik Mysterio was ringside as well. Jax splashed Liv against the ropes and Jax hit a leg drop. Dominik sent the briefcase into the ring, so Raquel kicked Jax while Jax was on the turnbuckle and Dominik was distracting the referee, who was getting the briefcase out of the ring. Liv capitalized with the Oblivion on Jax for the pinfall win at 8:14.

Winner by pinfall and Women’s Crown Jewel Champion: Liv Morgan

Analysis: **1/2 It was just an average match that was kept under ten minutes. A cheap win for Liv Morgan thanks to Raquel getting involved while Dominik used the briefcase to occupy the referee. It was a tough match to get through because they are both heels, so there was nobody for the fans to root for. I’m not surprised by the result even though I picked Jax to win. Liv has two people to help her get heap wins, so they went that route for the finish. In my preview I predicted that Tiffany Stratton would not successfully cash in, so I got that right. I think they need to build it up more and have Stratton cash in on Jax after Jax attacks her to turn Stratton babyface.

Triple H was in the ring with Liv Morgan and he presented her with the Women’s Crown Jewel Championship. Liv held up her two titles. There was a pyro display by the entrance. Liv posed with her two titles.

Analysis: The Crown Jewel Championship will stay in Saudi Arabia and Morgan will receive a ring for it similar to a Super Bowl ring. I guess it’s a bit more valuable than the Bragging Rights trophy from back in the day.

A commercial aired for Saturday Night’s Main Event from Long Island on December 14th and it will air on NBC. That will be fun.

There was a video package about the Kevin Owens-Randy Orton match that was caused by Owens turning heel on Orton and Cody Rhodes recently.

Kevin Owens is a trolling kind of heel because he’s wearing a “Cowboy” Bob Orton shirt and we know Bob is Randy’s dad. The fans were loudly singing Randy Orton’s “Voices” theme song for Orton’s entrance. Good job by the crowd singing the song. It’s cool to see that.

Randy Orton And Kevin Owens Have A Chaotic Brawl

Randy Orton was posing on the turnbuckle when Kevin Owens attacked him with a steel chair to the back of the knee. Owens sent Orton out of the ring. Owens wanted to put Orton through the commentary table, but Orton fought back and Orton even did an eye poke. Orton gave Owens a belly-to-back suplex on the commentary table. Orton sent Owens into the ring post. When Orton went into the ring, Owens hit him with a chair again. Owens tried to hit Orton in the back with a chair, but referee Eddie Orengo pulled the chair away. Orton gave Eddie a Stunner! Great bump by Eddie there. Orton hit Owens with the chair. The WWE Officials Jamie Noble, Kenny Dykstra and Shawn Daivari tried to stop the action. Owens punched Noble. Orton and Owens fought in the ring some more and Orton hit a draping DDT on Owens. It was obvious there would be no match. Orton sent Daivari into the ring post as well.

The Raw GM Adam Pearce and Smackdown GM Nick Aldis went into the ring to try to calm Orton down. Orton didn’t want to hear it so he dropped Pearce with an RKO! That drew big pop. Aldis tried to calm both guys. Owens went over the barricade into the crowd, so Orton followed Owens there. Orton was punching Owens, but Owens got the top of a road case and Owens hit Orton in the head with it. Owens hit Orton with the road case lid three times on Orton, who got his hands up. The fans were chanting “Let’s Go Randy” for Orton, who was lying on a table. Owens went up to a railing that was by the crowd and Owens jumped off the railing to drive Owens through a table. The fans were chanting “this is awesome” for the craziness. The camera cut away while both guys were down.

Analysis: There was no match, so no rating. I think it was great as an angle because it put over how crazy Owens is as a heel while Orton did his best to fight back. They also attacked innocent people since Owens hit a Stunner on a referee while Orton hit an RKO on GM Pearce and Owens punched Jamie Noble as well. I really liked how it was done with both guys bringing the intensity and it feels like a very personal feud. The ending with Owens putting Orton through the table will make people want to see Orton get revenge, so that’s the right way to book it. There will be another match between them perhaps at Survivor Series and I think making it a stipulation match is a good idea.

There was a commercial for two-day SummerSlam on August 2 & 3, 2025 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

A commercial aired for WWE live shows. They have cut back significantly on live events, so it’s basically just Raw and Smackdown tapings to start the year.

The US Title match was next. There was no video package, but there were highlights of LA Knight hitting a BFT on Andrade and Carmelo Hayes, so that led them into this match.

United States Championship: LA Knight vs. Andrade vs. Carmelo Hayes

The first pinfall or submission wins. No countouts and no disqualifications in a WWE triple threat match. The fans were strongly behind Knight. Andrade is a face too, but he doesn’t get much of a reaction.

Melo and Andrade exchanged strikes while Knight watched. Knight got involved with a punch combo while the fans chanted “yeah” for the punches. Melo and Andrade hit a double superkick to knock Knight out of the ring. Melo hit a springboard clothesline to knock Andrade out of the ring. Knight tripped up Melo leading to Knight slamming Melo’s head (more like hands) onto the hood of the commentary table. Knight hit a slingshot shoulder tackle on Andrade and Knight sent Melo into the ring on top of Andrade. Melo went to the middle rope and Andrade hit an inverted Spanish Fly slam. Knight grabbed Andrade, but Andrade came back with a leaping forearm. Andrade hit double knees on Melo against the turnbuckle and Andrade sent Knight out of the ring. Andrade looked like he would attack Melo, but instead, Andrade hit a perfect moonsault onto Knight on the floor. Melo hit a somersault dive over the top onto Andrade on the floor. Melo went after Knight, who tried BFT and Melo used his hands to block. Andrade hit a spinning back elbow on Knight. Melo hit the First 48 double knees followed by a Cutter and Melo covered both guys for a two count. That was a good flurry of action. Andrade avoided a Tornado DDT and Andrade hit a Canadian Destroyer on Melo. Andrade went up top leading to the double moonsault spot that saw him hit Knight with the moonsault while Melo avoided it. Melo went up top with Andrade and it was a Spanish Fly slam by Andrade for a two count. Knight jumped off the top rope with a top rope elbow drop on both guys at the same time for a two count. They went for a spot on the turnbuckle, Knight slipped a bit and then Knight suplexed Andrade off the top. Melo capitalized wit the Nothing But Net leg drop to the back of Knight’s head for a two count because Andrade made the save. Great nearfall. Andrade went for a move on the turnbuckle, but Melo got out of it. Melo went for a facebuster on Andrade, Knight hit a BFT on Melo for the pinfall win. It went 9:14.

Winner by pinfall: LA Knight

Analysis: ***3/4 This match was excellent. It was fast-paced action from the moment the bell rang and it never really slowed down that much. There were multiple times in the match where it felt like anybody could win, so that’s what made it an exciting match. I thought Knight was going to retain because he has held the title for three months and has yet to really have a meaningful feud. Andrade and Melo are both guys who could hold the US Title In the future (especially Melo), but it just didn’t seem the right time now. I think if they had five more matches it would have helped, but it was still a fun match for the time they were given.

The announcers talked about Survivor Series: WarGames coming on November 30th from Vancouver. It is four weeks away.

This Monday on Raw from Riyadh (taped on Sunday):

* Seth Rollins vs. Damian Priest vs. Dominik Mysterio vs. Sheamus for a shot at the World Heavyweight Championship.

It was time for the main event match between Cody Rhodes and Gunther. A video package aired to set it up.

The World Heavyweight Champion GUNTHER was up first with the fans booing him. Gunther was looking ready as usual.

The Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes got a huge ovation while the crowd was loudly singing the “Kingdom” song. The “WHOA-OH” part of the song was very loud as well. Ring announcer Mike Rome did the championship introductions while the Men’s Crown Jewel Championship was in the ring for the introductions.

WWE Men’s Crown Jewel Championship: Cody Rhodes vs. GUNTHER

The crowd was going crazy with “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants while there was a feeling out process with some basic mat wrestling to start the match. Cody was in control with an armbar on the mat. Gunther hit a shoulder tackle followed by a side headlock. Gunther went for a sleeper hold, but Cody slipped out of it with an armdrag. Cody went for his punching combo, but Gunther stopped that with a hard chop to the chest. Cody hit a running forearm to the head. Gunther did a leapfrog, so Cody punched him in the head. Cody clotheslined Gunther three times in a row to knock Gunther out of the ring. Cody hit a springboard Disaster Kick to knock Gunther down on the apron. Gunther was back in the ring going for a sleeper, but Cody got out of that. Cody tried a suicide dive and Gunther blocked it by sending Cody into the apron. Gunther gave Cody a body slam on the floor. Back in the ring, Cody went for a body slam, Gunther got out of that and Gunther splashed Cody on the lower back. Cody delivered some punches, so Gunther came back with another body slam. Gunther sent Cody into the turnbuckle and Cody got a boot up. Gunther landed on top of Cody during a body slam attempt. The fans were chanting “Ole, Ole, Ole” again while holding up their phones for some light. Gunther chopped Cody in the back to knock him down against the ropes. The fans were doing the wave. Gunther punched Cody a bunch of times so Cody rolled out of the ring to regroup. The show was past the three-hour mark at this point.

Gunther remained in control with chops, but Cody was able to come back with a body slam. Cody hit a front suplex. Gunther got back up quickly with a body slam. Gunther went up top, Cody met him there and Cody hit a superplex. Cody hit a running forearm along with a powerslam. Cody hit his punch combo leading to the bionic elbow so the fans chanted “Dusty” for that. Cody jumped off the ropes with a Cody Cutter for two. Cody held Gunther against the ropes and delivered a kick to the gut. Cody jumped off the ropes again, but Gunther caught him leading to a Boston Crab. Gunther applied a Sleeper, Cody got to the ropes to break and Gunther hit a German Suplex. Gunther applied the Sleeper hold again. Cody finally was able to break free and Cody hit a Cross Rhodes, but Cody was too hurt to make a cover. After both guys were down selling, Gunther got back up and hit a running dropkick that sent Cody into the turnbuckle. Gunther hit a Powerbomb for two. Gunther was shocked that it was only a two count as the match reached the 20-minute point.

Cody got some offense going with uppercuts and forearms. Cody hit a belly-to-back suplex. Cody charged the ropes, so Gunther hit a clothesline. Cody hit Cross Rhodes for a second time for a two count because Gunther got the left shoulder up. Cody went for Cross Rhodes again, but Gunther countered with a snapmare and Gunther hit a chop. Cody went for a super Cody Cutter off the top rope, but Gunther caught him going for a Sleeper again. Cody flipped over and covered Gunther for the pinfall win. If Gunther let go he would have been able to kick out, but since he didn’t kick out, Cody pinned Gunther to win. It went 23:03. Graves correctly mentioned it was Bret Hart match finish.

Winner by pinfall and Men’s WWE Crown Jewel Championship: Cody Rhodes

Analysis: **** I thought it was a very good match but perhaps not as the Gunther-Randy Orton matches from this year. It’s still a four-star main event match, which is obviously a great match. I’m just saying it wasn’t as epic as some of the matches that both guys have had this year. The crowd seemed interested in what was going on, but they were also doing their own thing with the excessive “Ole” chants, doing the wave and things like that. Sometimes when a crowd does that they aren’t that into the match even though it was loud. The Bret Hart finish was the same ending as the Bret Hart-Roddy Match from WrestleMania 8. I think it worked in this spot because it was a way for Cody to win while also keeping Gunther strong since he lost with a counter move rather than taking a finishing move. It protects Gunther a bit. I picked Gunther here, so I got that wrong, but I certainly don’t mind Cody winning.

After showing some replays, Gunther looked Cody in the eyes and they shook hands. The fans applauded that.

Cody Rhodes was handed the Men’s Crown Jewel Championship by Triple H along with two men and two women. Cody raised his two titles in the air. There was an impressive pyro display as well.

Liv Morgan went into the ring, so she posed with Triple H and Cody Rhodes along with the people from the Saudi Arabian team that put on the show. There was another pyro display. Cody and Liv posed with their titles. They also shook hands.

The runtime of Crown Jewel was 3 hours, 18 minutes on WWE Network/Peacock. There was a Crown Jewel post-show after that. I’m not going to recap that.

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Five Stars of the Show

Cody Rhodes
Gunther
Kevin Owens/Randy Orton
LA Knight, Carmelo Hayes & Andrade
The Bloodline six-man tag team match

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Final Thoughts

I’m going 7. 25 out of 10 for this show.

It was a very good show for the most part, but it was a level below the top shows of the year. That doesn’t mean it’s bad. It means that this year has been amazing for PLE shows. Some of those PLE shows have had epic matches and this one was lacking that although I did like the Cody Rhodes-Gunther match and the Knight-Andrade-Hayes match.

The Kevin Owens-Randy Orton segment wasn’t a match, but I thought it was an excellent angle. That was one of the best parts of the show because I think the brawl was very believable and also builds up more matches for them.

Other matches like the Bloodline six-man tag were fun along with that angle that followed. The Rollins-Reed match was good too. I liked the women’s tag team match as well.

I understand WWE gets paid a lot of money by the Saudi Arabian group to host this show, but I really don’t care that much about the Crown Jewel Championships just because they look very expensive. I know WWE wants us to care, but as WWE fans we know that they don’t mean as much as the WWE titles that have a lot more history and prestige.

Here are my rankings of WWE PLE’s in 2024 so far:

WrestleMania 40 – 8.5 (out of 10)

SummerSlam – 8.5

Backlash France – 8

Bash In Berlin – 8

Clash at the Castle – 8

Money in the Bank – 7.75

Royal Rumble – 7.75

King And Queen Of The Ring – 7.75

Bad Blood – 7.5

Elimination Chamber – 7.5

Crown Jewel – 7.25