WWE Champion Dean Ambrose def. Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins (Triple Threat Match)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The main event of WWE Battleground was two years in the making, one the WWE Universe had been waiting to see ever since Seth Rollins stabbed his Shield brethren Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose in the back. The stakes could not have been higher, with the WWE Championship hanging in the balance less than 24 hours before a New Era of WWE began, with defending champion  Ambrose heading to SmackDown Live and Reigns and Rollins anchoring Monday Night Raw.

Despite the odds being stacked against SmackDown Live and their top draft pick, the determined Ambrose persevered against his former Shield brothers, eventually hitting Reigns with Dirty Deeds to retain his title and take it to Tuesday nights.

Raw Commissioner Stephanie McMahon and her Raw General Manager, Mick Foley, SmackDown Live Commissioner Shane McMahon and his General Manager, Daniel Bryan, all made their way to ringside to get the best view of the match that would shape the future of WWE and determine which brand got control of the WWE Championship.

The three former Shield brothers intensely stared each other down as the bell tolled, signaling the start of the bout WWE fans had been dreaming of. Rollins tried to goad Reigns and Ambrose into bumping fists, as they had for years after they arrived in WWE. Instead, The Big Dog tackled Rollins to the canvas, forcing The Architect to retreat to the arena floor. With Rollins incapacitated on the floor, Reigns and The Lunatic Fringe began trading blows, neither man able to gain the upper hand until Ambrose left his feet to try and take Reigns down. Instead, the WWE Champion bounced off his powerful friend’s chest.

Despite the pestering of Rollins, the persistent Ambrose continued the attack on Reigns until The Architect succeededin neutralizing The Big Dog. With Ambrose weakened from his exchange with the hard-hitting Reigns, Rollins had the perfect opportunity to inflict more damage on Ambrose, and embarrass him with a few slaps to the face. Though the WWE Champion dove onto his former brothers at ringside, an emboldened Rollins soon grabbed him and recklessly hurled Ambrose into the unforgiving steel steps.

The action was fast and furious as they battled around ringside and back into the ring. Ambrose dashed across two commentary tables to launch himself at his challengers, then clobbered Reigns with a diving elbow, only for Rollins to fly back into the ring, crashing into Ambrose with a splash off the ropes.

Despite being the target of both of his former Shield brethren’s attacks, Reigns still had enough in him to clock both of them with Superman Punches. The three battle-worn competitors collapsed to the mat after a particularly hard-hitting exchange, getting a brief respite from the war. However, the break did not last long, as Ambrose and Rollins dove onto a staggered Reigns on the arena floor. Then, in a callback to their days as The Hounds of Justice, The Architect and The Lunatic Fringe powerbombed The Big Dog through the Spanish announcers’ table. However, any fond memories of The Shield were dissipated when Rollins bashed both the WWE Champion and Reigns with a steel chair as he did when he blew up The Shield.

Ambrose and Rollins fought back into the ring and to the top rope, where Rollins superplexed the champion to the canvas, then held on and floated through into a Falcon Arrow, but only got a two-count. They may have made a mistake in leaving Reigns in the remnants of the table, which gave The Big Dog enough time to recover and get his second wind. Reigns jumped right back into the battle and took Ambrose out, but turned around into a Pedigree from The Architect.

Reigns managed to kick out at the last second but  Rollins stayed on the attack, tossing Reigns into the turnbuckles. But The Juggernaut bounced off and connected with a Superman Punch and Spear that would have won him the WWE Championship on any other night. However, the unstable Ambrose slid back into the squared circle and grabbed Reigns, planting him into the canvas with Dirty Deeds to retain his title and bring it to SmackDown Live on Tuesday nights.

As soon as the referee’s hand hit the mat for the third time, Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon raced around the ring rejoicing, while Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley seethed, with sports-entertainment’s top prize having just slipped through their fingers. The party continued in the ring, as the entire SmackDown Live roster joined McMahon, Bryan and their champion, Ambrose, to celebrate SmackDown Live’s supremacy.

Though Ambrose’s victory makes the picture clearer on Tuesday nights, it leaves plenty of questions left to be asked for Monday Night Raw. How will Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley react to not having WWE’s top prize on Raw? Find out by tuning into USA Network at 8/7 C!