They say it isn’t how you start a night, it’s how you finish. And so it went when Cesaro, who began Raw with a hard-fought win over Sheamus, and Rusev, who was humiliated by Roman Reigns, underwent a mutual reverse of fortune in an impromptu U.S. Title Match set up by Raw and SmackDown General Managers Mick Foley and Daniel Bryan during their much hyped sit-down over the Orton-Lesnar invasions of the previous week.

Cesaro seemed primed to claim his second win of the evening and make good on the championship match Foley had promised him, but some well-timed interference and an injury to the official saved Rusev’s hide. First, the zebra got taken out in a scrum when Sheamus tried to break up the match, so he missed the three-count of a Cesaro Neutralizer. Then, with the official still reeling, Rusev thumbed The King of Swing in the eye and sent him stumbling straight into a kick from Sheamus. A final kick from The Super Athlete spelled Cesaro’s doom, though Roman Reigns sprinted to the ring for the final Spear of the night. In other words, Rusev survived one title defense, but the next one is always around the corner.

As competition intensifies between Raw and SmackDown Live GMs, Cesaro and Rusev make their voices heard.