WWE Hell In A Cell 2017 Match Ratings, Analysis, Breakdown From Sean Ross Sapp

Kickoff show

• Tye Dillinger gets himself added to tonight's United States Title match in a cute segment with Daniel Bryan backstage.
• Promos from Charlotte Flair, Aiden English and Baron Corbin. Corbin's is really, really bad.

Shelton Benajmin & Chad Gable defeated Hype Bros
4.75/10

• Benjamin shows off some heel tendencies, as does Gable. This is interesting considering how Gable is such a natural babyface.
• Mojo scores a sweet tilt a whirl slam, which Corey Graves credits to him spending more time at the PC recently. That's a great touch.
• Gable misses a moonsault, hits an insane overhead belly to belly on Mojo, then hits the moonsault. 
• I don't know what Gable and Benjamin went for out of the corner, but it looked clunky. 
• Ryder is made to look like a real dope. He jumps over his partner to ask why the move didn't work out. Isn't he supposed to be the vet?
• Benjamin and Gable win with their cool finish.

Hell in A Cell
Smackdown Tag Team Championships
Usos defeated New Day (c) (w/ Kofi Kingston) to become Smackdown Tag Team Champions
9.25/10

• Both Big E and Jey Uso  hit YOLO dives after swinging canes. These teams set the tone early and are perfect together.
• Xavier Woods has a bunch of strategically placed weapons. He's thriving in this match.
• There's a psychotic spot ringside where Big E uranages an Uso off the apron into a lungblower from Woods. I probably wouldn't have done that with a torn up, braced knee, but it looked cool.
• New Day trap Jimmy Uso in the cage corner with kendo sticks. This is incredibly innovative.
• Woods acrobatically avoids a kendo stick shot. Everyone is on their game!
• There's a Doomsday Device-esque suicide dive into the cage! You have to see this to believe it!
• Usos shackle Xavier to the ringpost and cane him. This match has it all.
• Big E irish whipped an Uso by his beard, then Gores them into one another against the cage.
• A handcuffed Xavier Woods makes the save after a Double Uce. They beat his ass with a cane, but he fights back!
• Best tag team feud of the last 15 years in WWE maybe. Unless I'm missing something.

Randy Orton defeated Rusev
5.75/10

• 1980s fans would love this match.
• Orton takes a tumble into the barrier, eats a fallaway slam, lands a powerslam of his own.
• It's not a bad match by any means, and has a good crowd reaction, but this is very much a death slot placement on the card. Not exactly fair to these two, but someone had to be in it. These two overcame this and had a good one.
• RKO for the win.
• Fair. I'd have rather Rusev won. There's a lot more upside with him.

WWE United States Championship 
Baron Corbin defeated AJ Styles (c) and Tye Dillinger to become WWE United States Champion
5.25/10

• Tye Dillinger has fit himself in this feud very well. 
• Corbin's offense is really good early. He crotches Dillinger on the ropes and attacks, then sends Styles sailing with a huge choke toss. Through the first six or seven minutes it's a showcase for Corbin.
• AJ Styles' strike combo is perfect.
• Can't pretend I expected Rusev/Orton to be better than this U.S. Title Match
• Can't wait until we get all the doofy "TYE ISN'T OVER, HIS CHANT IS" takes
• Corbin prevents a submission from AJ on Tye, and Phillips seems mad that he would do such a thing. 
• Corbin has some really incredible moves — like a super chokeslam backbreaker — but it just doesn't connect. 
• Baron Corbin wins, and even takes a half hour to get up the ramp

Smackdown Women's Championship
Charlotte defeated Natalya (c) via DQ, no title change
5.5/10

• I'm usually all against gloating. It doesn't make psychological sense. At the time Natalya did it, Charlotte had offered her no real challenge. She went to the well a couple of more times, though.
• Natalya works Charlotte's leg over really well. We get a sitdown powerbomb mixed in, too. 
• There's this issue with psychology vs. realism when Charlotte lands big boots and moonsaults with an injured leg, then sells it. Why'd she do it?
• Natalya beats Charlotte's ass with a chair for the DQ.
• Man, that finish was ill-advised. 
• I'd imagine Charlotte wins the title at Starrcade.

Fashion Files

• We get a new Fashion Files. I guess these guys have jurisdiction, sending peoples to jail and stuff. The Ascension want to be their friends. 
• No cameo by Entourage. Heh.
• NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NOT PULP FASHION NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

WWE Championship
Jinder Mahal (c) (w/ Singh Bros.) defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to retain the WWE Championship
5.5/10

• Byron bringing up Nakamura's UFC offer was good commentary. 
• It looks like we're seeing motivated Nakamura early on. 
• Jinder is noticeably smaller. Not a bad thing though.
• This match isn't good. Par for the course for Jinder Mahal matches. As is the Singh Brother interference. 
• Imagine running this PPV and not putting the one match that storyline makes sense for Hell in a Cell in it.
• Jinder Mahal gets the ropes after a Kinsasha. Nakamura misses another and hits the corner. Jinder hits the Khallas and wins.
• He memorized his finishing move this time.
• Not terrible by any stretch. One of Mahal's better matches, but I wouldn't call it good. 

Bobby Roode defeated Dolph Ziggler
4.5/10

• Dolph Ziggler comes out and his music scratches and enters to silence. I'm just wondering why WWE cues their music up on vinyl in 2017.
• This is a Bobby Roode match and a 2017 Dolph Ziggler match. They're technically sound, there's a cool Blockbuster. A big DDT from Ziggler, too.
• There's a botch that ends up not being too bad, but commentary screwed it up. Ziggler went for a Fameasser but ended up bulldogging Roode. It looked good, really. 
• A rolling prawn pin reverses four times. Roode wins, then Ziggler attacks again. Okay, man. Sure.

Hell in a Cell Falls Count Anywhere
Kevin Owens defeated Shane McMahon
7.5/10

• That was the longest video package I've ever seen.Maybe show some of Shane training with Phil Nurse in that ten minute video package.
• Shane's clotheslines off barriers are bad. 
• Kevin Owens almost hit a cameraman with Shane McMahon twice!
• Shane bumps hilariously late after a short arm clothesline. 
• Someone needs to smarten the kids up. Laughing at KO wasn't good. 
• Everyone on the WWE 2K games has the floatover DDT, but Shane McMahon is the only person to use it.
• Shane McMahon is 47 years old whiffing on shooting star presses. 
• Shane reverses a pop-up powerbomb into a sweet triangle armbar. He eats stairs from an Owens powerbomb. 
• WOW! Owens cannonballs through a table! That was fantastic! 
• Shane McMahon is validating every video game that allowed you to hit someone with a table.
• Shaen McMahon hits a coast to coast, but Owens gets his foot on the ropes. How do rope breaks count? Foolish on all parts. Corey Graves calls it out appropriately. 
• Bolt cutters get the two outside…barely. Kevin then kills Shane with a gross DDT. 
• The table is straight up made out of a pad. It's going down. Kevin Owens goes to the barrier, but looks up at the cell. What an iconic camera shot we got for a fraction of a second. Owens gets to the top and can't do it!
• This is the most horrifying thing I've ever watched. Like what I think live executions would have been like. A pop up powerbomb on the top of the cell.
• Thankful for the much safer 16 foot drop. 26 is too much. Shane moves KO to another table….and moves a piece of paper. Ha! 
• Shane jumps off the cage…..and Sami Zayn saves Kevin Owens and moves him! This is incredible!!! Owens gets the win. This is some outstanding storytelling.