AJ Styles comes to the ring without The O.C., the announcer explaining that he left them in the U.S. because he figured if he was going to be champion, he needed to stand on his own two feet. As he does at home, Seth Rollins enters to a massive singalong of his theme song. The announcers mention that it’s the first time in four years that Styles is having a singles match with gold on the line, which seems nuts.
Once the bell rings, Rollins encourages the fans to start singing again, which draws a smirk from Styles. AJ gets off to a fast start, catching Seth off guard, but Rollins quickly composes himself and regains the center of the ring.
They run the ropes to a stalemate, but Rollins hits a Sling Blade and follows with a running knee off the apron when Styles ducks out to the floor. Seth’s attempt at a quick cover is good only for one.
AJ lifts Seth up and drives him back into a corner, then snap mares him back out and drops a knee. Kicks to the back come next, with Styles staying in control with a chinlock. Rollins battles to his feet but gets lit up by corner chops.
In the corner again, Styles gets forced headfirst into the turnbuckle before being hurled across the ring to the opposite buckles. A chop almost knocks AJ off the top rope to the floor, but Seth grabs him and forces him to wriggle away.
The two men trade strikes until Styles is able to explode backward and suplex Rollins into the turnbuckles. AJ’s trademark barrage of mixed strikes sets up a sliding forearm, and he’s soon getting his first near fall of the bout.
A back flip into a reverse DDT by Styles forces Rollins to kick out again at two. Seth responds with a buckle bomb, then has to jump a long way from the top to hit a splash that gets him a two count.
Styles is able to counter into a neckbreaker for another near fall. He wants a Styles Clash off the second rope as well, but Rollins counters by flipping his foe back down to the canvas, taking him to the opposite corner for mounted punches.
After Styles briefly frees himself, Rollins hustles back up for an inverted superplex, holding on to drive AJ back down for another two. Cameras zoom in to show abrasions on Rollins’ lower back.
He heads up top again, pausing before trying a corkscrew splash that Styles avoids. AJ tries to come right back with a tornado DDT but ends up on the apron instead. The two men battle to try to suplex each other and Styles is able to yank Rollins out with him and slam him back first on the apron. Seth is sprawled out on the floor, but he recovers in the ring in time to catch Styles in the face on a Phenomenal Forearm attempt.
Rollins goes for and hits a suicide dive to the floor but sells damage to his left knee on the landing. Styles tries to capitalize, catching Rollins in the Calf Crusher. Seth looks like he’s in agony, hands behind his head at times, but he grabs AJ’s neck long enough to force a break.
Styles hits a right hand but is caught in return by a clothesline that leaves both men down. They rise at almost the same time and just start hammering each other with strikes, including a series of kicks by Rollins. An enzuigiri lands but a Pele kick doesn’t, giving Seth an opening for a superkick.
Rollins Stomps Styles’ hand and looks for a Pedigree; AJ can’t get the Styles Clash. So he hits a Pedigree instead and gets a very close near fall.
Another superkick crashes home, but Rollins’ knee buckles as he advances to try for a Stomp. Seth is at least able to counter a Calf Crusher attempt to hit a Pedigree, and the Stomp comes next to get the three count and make Rollins the first ever World Heavyweight Champion.
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