WWE Battleground 2017: Live results, analysis, grades

WWE Battleground 2017 live results along with instant analysis and grades for every match from Philadelphia, PA on Sunday, July 23

WWE Battleground 2017 is the last remaining speed-bump until SummerSlam. While that may make it seem inconsequential, the SmackDown Live brand pay-per-view is far from it. What happens on Sunday, July 23 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA could have major implications for the next “Big 4” show on the WWE calendar. Thus, no fan should be sleeping on WWE Battleground and what it offers.

In the main even, Jinder Mahal will again defend his WWE World Championship against Randy Orton. This time, however, it’ll be in the return of the Punjabi Prison match. There’s a chance this could get hokey at times, but it should at least be a talking point coming out of WWE Battleground.

There’s plenty more to like about the card on Sunday, though. AJ Styles will defend the United States Championship against Kevin Owens in what should be a great clash. John Cene will also make his return to PPV wrestling as he takes on Rusev in a…Flag Match? Regardless of what that is, it’s always a welcome sight to have Cena back in the fold.

That’s not all that WWE Battleground has to offer either. New Day, Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn and even Mike Kanellis will all be in action in Philly on Sunday night. Yes, there are some re-runs of some matches. And there is also a massive show looming in the not-too-distant future. With all that said, this should still be a great show.

To make sure that you’re not missing out on any of the action, be sure to keep up below as we’ll be tracking all of the results and providing instant analysis and grades for each match at WWE Battleground once the Kickoff Show begins at 7:00 p.m. ET.

Results, analysis, grades

Kickoff Match: Aiden English def. Tye Dillinger

SmackDown Live Tag Team Championship Match: New Day def. The Usos (c)

The Usos had their Tag Team Championships on the line, and didn’t look to give them away early. They isolated Xavier Woods for most of the match, and frankly dominated most of the action. It wasn’t until late in the match when New Day opened up some of their own tricks that things finally took a turn in their favor. After derailing a tag team combo, they were able to hit their own with Kofi nailing Trouble in Paradise and Woods hitting a springboard elbow for the win and to be come new SmackDown Live tag champs.

Overall, a fine match with a nice story that featured some good wrestling. Nothing special, but quite solid.

Grade: B-

Shinsuke Nakamura def. Baron Corbin via DQ (Low Blow)

Continuing bad blood that started at MITB, these two didn’t have a great deal of chemistry, but they were physical and it resulted in a fine match. Though Corbin tried to use his power early, The King of Strong Style wouldn’t be denied. In the end, it looked like he was about to hit an Exploder Suplex to set up the Kinshasa. However, Corbin then uncorked a low blow to get intentionally disqualified. After the match, he attacked Nakamura with the MITB briefcase.

Grade: C-

SmackDown Live Women’s Championship No. 1 Contender Match: Natalya def. Charlotte, Lana, Tamina and Becky Lynch

Natalya has always been a bit vanilla to me, but her work as a heel has been much better than much else that she’s done. As such, it was a great moment to see her take out Charlotte, who the crowd was clearly behind, to get the win. Now she’ll move on to face Naomi at SummerSlam.

This match was fine, but again was nothing all that memorable or spectacular.

Grade: C

United States Championship Match: Kevin Owens def. AJ Styles (c)

Looking to regain his title that he lost at a house show in Madison Square Garden, Kevin Owens fought this match like a man possessed. Despite AJ Styles throwing everything possible at him, he had an answer and always added his own bit of fervor to the mix. In the end, he wouldn’t be denied what the New Face of America felt he deserved.

As you’d expect, these two are still great together and told a fine story.

Grade: B+

Flag Match: John Cena def. Rusev

Why did this match happen? Why did John Cena have to make Rusev look like an unworthy foe for much of the match? Who did this match benefit? If there are valid answers to these questions, please tell me.

Grade: Sad Panda

Sami Zayn def. Mike Kanellis

Admittedly, I’m pretty jaded by this point in the show. Even the good matches have felt mostly meaningless. This, without question, is included in that. We just saw this match five days ago. Why do I care at all about this? Regardless, at least Sami Zayn got the win.

Grade: D+

Punjabi Prison Match for WWE World Championship: Jinder Mahal (c) def. Randy Orton

This match was every bit of the mess that you would expect for it to be. It was hard to see in the beginning and the pace was crawling for the early parts of the match. When they got to the outside — after the Singh Bros. helped the champ and Orton had to play catch-up — it was even more gimmicky as they both tried to use weapons to get the upper hand. However, it wasn’t until The Great Khali returned in a huge surprise to throw Orton off the prison structure, allowing Mahal to win that the match ended.

Make no mistake, no one is going to call this match a classic. However, it was at leasts somewhat salvaged by the Khali surprise.

Grade: C

Next: Best WWE star from each state

Again, we all know that Battleground isn’t the same as the coming SummerSlam. However, it could and should be a nice pallet-setter so that we’re ready to go headfirst into a big show like SummerSlam in a few weeks.