[7.0] "Honestly I think they just have incredible chemistry. Love the tease of balor becoming a face again. Love how match 1 was in Finn's home country and 2 is in punks home field. Really great final match to build for mania for punk. (****)"
[6.0] "honestly felt way longer than it needed to be. It wasn't trash or anything, but it dragged so much. The whole match stayed in second gear and never really picked up. The near falls didn't even feel crazy because there wasn't enough build up. Punk was doing the slow, methodical thing, which can work, but here it just felt kinda boring. And Bálor didn't even go full explosive mode like he usually does. By halfway through, it started feeling repetitive instead of intense. I'd say dullness like 6.5/10. Not horrible, just lowkey forgettable and too long for what it was."
[5.0] "Compared to what this match could've been at any point from 2013-2018, this was just depressing. Botches, long breaks between chains, limited movesets. The story was been deemed entirely pointless, with it not even leading to ending The Judgement Day. Should've had the Belfast one off, Punk just can't go like he used to. Barely good for once a month anymore. Would honestly be a 3 if not for decent sharpshooter spot and thankfully no stretches that looked like end of career Flair."
[8.0] "The obvious winner plus the raw match being slightly better might be hurt things but this was still a very good match. CM Punk is having my favorite title reign in all of wrestling so far just based off his consistency, I do like the chemistry between him & Balor & I popped for the stomp reversal into the sharpshooter. Fun match"
[7.0] "Ultimately a solid match, both men left it all on the mat (Punk took a hell of a beating) but i personally really could not really get into the match because it was the only match on the card that was a runaway forgone conclusion, so that being the case I think it could have done a better job of faking people out and genuinely make them think Balor had any real chance. That's a me thing though, not gonna dock it points for that. ***.5"
[7.0] "I think seven is the perfect ranking for this match, I don't particularly dock championship matches for being predictable as almost every title reign in any company has predictable defenses. And that's perfectly fine considering how solid this match was. The obvious drawback of the match is that CM Punk is absolutely slowing down, but he still puts up good performances when paired with talented wrestlers like Gunther and Finn Balor. The atmosphere and the entrance obviously added to the spectacle of the match, and there were parts where I got inklings of a feeling that Balor could win. Very solid match, maybe stretched slightly too long but that isn't worth complaining about."
[8.0] "Not on the most famous side on this one but for me that match was better than the first one they had on Raw. Off Kayfabe, clearly Finn Balor had zero chances to win at both of those bouts, but that bout here made me believe way more. Punk is really good at that simple old school wrestling style and, for me, is primary essencial for a world title bout to have an slow pace build that prepares you for what it will be the heat moment. They did it well, CM Punk sold pretty well his ribs and Finn Balor didn't lost an step on it. I do still think that Balor can do much more with a different style than that and maybe even Punk with his current physical condition, but alright."
[7.0] "7 - good match between CM Punk and Finn Balor, with a nice chemistry between the two and good storytelling. The ending is still disappointing in my opinion, a DQ with Judgment Day or a victory by Finn for a 3way at Wrestlemania would have been more interesting."
[7.0] "Fun match here, I liked the slow burn build here as well. Pretty obvious that Punk was walking out as champion, but at least we got a good match out of it."
[6.0] "This was perfectly fine. The first half was pretty dull but the second half had some decent enough work. Both guys are well past their prime so are very much going through the motions, but both are skilled enough to have a good enough match. This felt like a TV match rather than a world title match, but I didn't think it was bad. ***1/4"
[7.0] "Very very good and my favourite match of the event however I did prefer their previous match. Still, this was well worked and I was invested throughout."
[7.0] "I liked their first match more, because there they showed a good wrestling in a very slow way. Irish atmosphere was a much better than in Chicago, and dynamic was also better month ago. That was just a good match almost without big interest. They can do better."
[4.0] "Beides eigentlich hervorragende Wrestler, die keinem noch etwas beweisen müssen. Allerdings genau deswegen bin ich enttäuscht von dem Kampf, weil man halt viel besseres gewohnt ist von den beiden. Irgendwie konnte mich der fight nicht so abholen. Ist auch vielleicht jammern auf hohem Niveau."
[8.0] "Despite this match having a outcome already known before it was still very entertaining. I'd love to see Finn get the ic title at mania in a triple threat with penta and dom."
[2.0] "A match with no intrigue and no doubt in its outcome. just a match for a person in their hometown to fill the gap towards mania. boring, plodding and slow. par far the course for this event and most wwe ples. completely forgettable the second it was over."
[5.0] "Balor targeting the abdomen was the best part of a match in which very little of substance otherwise happened. This went insanely long for a match with so few highlights; any tension dissipated and even the excitement of the Chicago crowd dwindled throughout. The action did pick-up towards the end with the CDG kickout and GTS to the outside, but that doesn't negate the fact that a lot of the contest was completely skippable. The good moments served to balance out the bad, but this was distinctly average overall."
[6.0] "Average match. Punk and balor fought nicely, but it wasn't a pure wrestling one. Balor's psychology was so poor in this match. He didn't take enough moments to sell massive moves, even not the first gts. It lacks a lot unfortunately. (***)"
[8.0] "Really liked this one. Punk and Balor put in a slightly worse performance from their TV match a few weeks ago, but this was still very good. My favourite spot in the match was when Punk reversed Finn's stomp attempt to a Sharpshooter, simply perfectly executed. CM Punk's entrance to Sirius was very cinematic as well."
[5.0] "Ultimately pointless and with an obvious winner. The psychology of Finn targeting Punk's abdomen was good but apart from that there isn't really anything else of note here. Just felt like an excuse to have a Punk match in Chicago which makes sense but god this could've been anything else."
[8.0] "This was my favorite match of the night. Not as good as their match in Ireland, primarily due to the atmosphere and the fact that Roman wasn't in the picture either. The crowd was surprisingly quieter than I expected too. Punks coupe de grace reversal into a sharpshooter was absolutely sick."
[6.0] "Rein objektiv war das in meinen Augen ein gutes Match, leider hat es mich nicht abgeholt. Die Intensität war fein, aber mir hat die Härte gefehlt. Außerdem fand ich's zu lang."
[8.0] "I actually really liked this match. The ending was a bit rushed in my opinion but the slow, methodical body work these guys did was great. I genuinely felt like Baylor had a chance in what was supposed to be the most predictable match of this PLE. Punk had a great entrance that got me engaged from the start. Both guys really put each other through the wringer, with each blow looking just as devastating as the last. Some may call it slow, but this is what wrestling is supposed to be. 8/10"
[8.0] "[3.75*] Excellent match, another one for the Veteran Punker. This wasn't as charming as their RAW match for many reasons - Finn being the temporary babyface in Ireland is just a perfect context that can't be replicated - but it kept the old-school, classic feeling and was technically fantastic too. The thing with this Punk run is: if you like your wrestling fast-paced only, you'll hate the shit out of it. The whole storytelling of all his matches is that he's fucking old and slow and fucked up, but he's also CM Punk, he's smart, he's a veteran and he's the BITW, so he'll find a way to beat you even if your physique humiliates his, which is the exact case of Bron Breakker, AJ Styles and Finn Balor. It's a pretty simple story to follow, but I'm just loving everything about this development. I really liked the struggle here, it wasn't "intense" in terms of pacing but it surely was intense in terms of feeling. It was gritty, gnarly and hard-fought. Hell yeah, really liked this one. Solid Pros TM."
"It's really good. Love the spot of the coup de grâce into a sharpshooter a little sloppy but I enjoy it. Was it predictable yes but it was a good match. Also CM Punk entrance was so god dam good."
[4.0] "A very sloppy match for championship. Two old wrestler in WWE and this is for a championship ? Wow. Wwe. Can you put the young wrestler on the top of the card ? Cm punk was finished. Go to retired man."
[7.0] "Best match of the night but also pretty heatless because everyone knew Finn wasn't beating Punk so this is up there with Brock Vs Hardcore Holly from Rumble 04 in that the outcome was so predictable no one could really get excited for it. Thankfully Balor was up for this and wanted to show people he deserves to be in the main event spots. Unfortunately his booking over the last year or so made it very difficult to believe he would be main eventing Wrestlemania so the crowd for the most part were pretty quiet. Balor remains such an underappreciated worker. Its a shame his main roster world title push lasted all of about 5 minutes because outside of his two NXT runs he has been completely underused by WWE for years. Punk on the other hand has quite clearly lost a step. He still has the ability to have good matches but its quite clear he is slowing down to an almost a crawl at some points here. By the 10 minute mark he was gassed. But him and Balor had good chemistry even if the match never really got out of being a really good tv main event match instead of PPV world title match. But the outcome was predicable"
[7.0] "Really enjoyed this match... I had the luck of being available to watch the event right before this match, and that was perfect, it was what I wanted, and that was great, it didn't reach the greatness of their RAW match for me, but it was pretty cool too. Punk's entrance with the famous Sirius song was a very cool reference to the legendary Chicago Bulls team, and it felt huge and special, which was the point, after watching that entrance everyone was immediately locked in for the match. The bout was excellent, it was rock solid, they didn't blow anyone's mind with something spectacular, the match does not transcend that super well worked level, but at the same time it's very fun structure, so you just can't complain. Punk and Balor didn't rely on nearfalls and breathtaking moments, it was a competition between two smart veterans, and that's nice - {***1/2}"
[9.0] "It's a bit below their match from the 19/01/2026 episode of Raw in Belfast, and their truly was no way Punk was losing in Chicago on the road to WWE WrestleMania 42 (2026), but it was still a great match between both men with really good in ring and psychology between each other, the crowd was into it, and it still teases something for Balor's eventual face turn away from the Judgement Day."
[4.0] "Ich finde das regelrecht erstaunlich, wie langweilig und ereignisarm ein PPV-Level Match mit zwei sehr guten Wrestlern sein kann. Es war jetzt wirklich nicht schlecht, aber ich glaube, ich würde das nicht mal als gut bezeichnen"
[7.0] "This is up there with their match on Raw in Belfast. Possibly the best match of the night either this or the women's chamber. Punk was obviously going to win with the Roman match lingering. I'm hoping we get Finn vs Dominik at Mania with the demon. ***.75"
[8.0] "Old man punk sells exhaustion really well, and this match with Finn told a really nice story. Finn losing but maintaining his babyface dignity was a great choice. Main complaint is that the winner was hilariously obvious, and they didn't make it seem as if Finn could win during the match"
"Very good match I loved it the entrances were awesome and nice tribute to Jordan and Larry. It should have ended in a betrayal from dom but this match was still great anyway."
[8.0] "Best match of the night for me, as Punk and Balor put together a hard-hitting back and forth match. While there was no way Balor was winning here, he and Punk still had a good match. Extra point goes towards the rating for the Bulls inspired entrance for Punk."
[8.0] "Both matches between Punk and Balor this year were great. Obviously the result is predictable with Roman Reigns looming but damn I love their chemistry. Old Man Punk is great as a scrappy gunslinger who'll just drag you into the deep waters and outlast you. Also the Coup De Grace into the sharpshooter counter spot was fucking bonkers."
[7.0] "From the second this thing was announced, you knew the finish. We've all seen this movie before, the same challenger getting his tenth title shot. But Finn Balor in Chicago against CM Punk? Come on. In that building, in that city, with that opponent? There was no suspense about the outcome. Both guys worked their tails off trying to make you believe. They laid it in. There was physicality. They didn't phone it in just because everybody and their grandmother knew who was going over. And the Chicago crowd, being a Chicago crowd for CM Punk, was hot enough to at least create the illusion that maybe, just maybe, something crazy could happen. That's professionalism. That's two veterans understanding their job. The match itself? Good, solid, honest wrestling. They hit each other, they sold, they built to a finish. But when the result is that predictable, you're fighting uphill from the start. Drama in wrestling comes from doubt. And there wasn't much doubt here, just good execution of a foregone conclusion."
[4.0] "Pointless rematch. It was also worse than their first match on Raw. Punk moves around like he has concrete shoes and still can't breathe after 10 minutes. There was no suspense because everyone knew Punk wasn't losing. A match with no reason to exist or care."
[6.0] "Pretty good match for the world title. The first one between Punk and Balor in Belfast was better. Punk being the hometown hero took his sweet time with his 90's Bulls inspired entrance which I thought was cool. They had a nice back and forth, both guys got all of their spots in. You can tell Punk was gassed after a little while and they had to keep things at a slower pace. As a consequence, they never really took this match to the next level to make it feel special and went on longer than it needed to. Nobody believed Balor was going to win, but he was still competitive throughout. The finish was a bit flat, Punk struggled to get Balor up to hit that last GTS. Punk retains as he can now put all of his focus on building his match with Roman at WrestleMania. 6.5/10"
[8.0] "Uhm... not a bad match. But this is obviously filler, right? We all knew the results. You can only sell a dream until a point, after that it becomes a joke or a failure. For Balor, its too late. Horribly sad how his main event career ended after just one injury in 2016. Anyway, the match itself was nothing more than their previous bout in Belfast, maybe besides the crowd's symbolic cheering and the larger stadium, and probably that somewhat overused barricade spot. Good match though, no complains. No hype, expected, safe and sanitized. Balor turning face at the end may be a signal towards his match against Tom & Nick in WM?"
[10.0] "Smart wrestlers are the ones who know how to pick the right pace for every match, the slowness of the match and its start and the way it began and how they really made it feel like a Big Fight! The heavy use of "counters" is logical and smart given that it's a "rematch""
"[8.0] Another really good Punk/Balor bout. They had plenty of time to tell a logical, naturally flowing match and they hit all of the high notes without everything devolving into a predictable spot fest. The mouth blood was a really great touch, assuming it was planned (and even if it wasn't, really.) It's the kind of traditional, no-B.S., one-on-one, personality-driven wrestling match we're getting less and less from the WWE these days. It's solid stuff, through and through."
[9.0] "This could very well be the match of the year. Alongside that cool as fuck entrance from Punk, we get Finn telling a great story in the ring. Just from his offence, we can tell he was really trying to get one back at Punk for beating him in his hometown. This was like McIntyre vs Zayn at the Rumble but done better, there were points I was really on the edge of my seat, the biggest highlight being Punk's insane reversal of the Coupe De Grace into a Sharpshooter, that had me doing the POG face for two straight minutes. The only the things that prevent it from being a 10 is one move from Balor near the start where it looks like he fell from the middle rope when he was delivering a knee. But other than that I thought this was a great match and the motivation, whilst predictable, was a good way to make Punk's title reign stronger and have him defend it ready for Wrestlemania. These two showed great chemistry, smooth action and a great show of respect at the end."
[3.0] "This match was an absolute letdown. CM Punk vs Finn Bálor at Elimination Chamber 2026 felt like two guys going through the motions instead of delivering the war we were promised. Sloppy counters, mistimed spots, and some heat from the crowd. Punk looked gassed by the 8-minute mark, while Bálor's "heel work" consisted of lazy eye-pokes and the same Coup de Grâce setup we've seen 400 times. The finish came out of nowhere with a weak GTS that didn't even look convincing. 20 minutes of my life I'll never get back. Easily the one of the worst Punk singles match since his return. 1.5 stars. Avoid."
[8.0] "[4 Stars] Punk's entrance was way too cool then in the ring they managed crazy the unties the counter of the coup de grace in Sharpshooter in my veins."
"Punk looked so gassed in this match He didn't look good since 2021 and it is kinda incredible job from him hiding that he is getting older but this wasn't good"
[8.0] "A very fun professional wrestling match with no interferences, with no outside drama, just two very good in-ring wrestlers having a ball. This was the only good thing about this show, as CM Punk, who walked out to the Chicago Bulls entrance repping his hometown with amazing attire, had home-field advantage. Finn Bálor was looking to become a 2x WWE World Champion as he is trying to erase his past and finally be a World Champion again. The in-ring psycholgy of this match was great, there was a lot of chain-wrestling, Finn Bálor weaken CM Punk by attacking the chest and ribs, like stiff like that is why I love wrestling he was trying to weaken his oppenent trying to get him down so he can try to get the win. CM Punk was fighting back, it was gritty, old-school & bad-ass. Finn Bálor had a great performance in this match. He was clicking on every cylinder. You can tell he was having a very fun time. Finn Bálor found an opening where he delivered the Coup de Grâce, but CM Punk kicked out. Finn Bálor delivered a shotgun dropkick on the outside, where CM Punk went through the barricade. This was excellent stuff. But with the closing moments, CM Punk hit a G.T.S. in which Finn Bálor, with a high IQ move, rolled out of the ring, but with 2nd time the charm, CM Punk hit the G.T.S. as he retained his WWE World Heavyweight Title. Amazing Match, the only bright spot from this awful show. Finn Bálor seemingly confirmed his babyface turn as he paid respect to CM Punk by shaking his hand. Now that the Prince is back to being a good guy, CM Punk can focus on the big task at hand with Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 42. The build starts now."
[8.0] "A slow and methodical brawl built around an injury angle featuring my favourite wrestler of all time: this was designed with me in mind. Think I marginally preferred the Raw match, the Irish crowd were a little hotter, but the work Punk and Balor are doing here is fab, smart, and made every move matter."
[8.0] "Did not reach the heights of their raw match, but this was one of the most professional and adult-minded wrestling matches I have seen this year."
[9.0] "Very glad that CM Punk is having this kind of impressive run he's on - not long left you would think in his career and he's smashing it every match he has, and this was no different with Finn Balor - who's hopefully about to go on a run of his own"
[9.0] "Really enjoyed this match, thought it did a great job of selling Finn as an actual contender in the match itself, and enjoyed the storytelling with Finn clearly looking to the back at one point to call out Judgement Day, but deciding against it and taking the match clean here. Hopefully we can *actually* get the face turn this time. Also thought the match had some really solid ring work, solid execution, and a good narrative with the ab work from Finn."
[8.0] "Most predictable matchup on the card. The in ring work throughout the match was good like everyone expected. Crowd was super hot for CM Punk. They had good moments like Punk breaking out the sharp shooter. Overall just as their first match was an enjoyable match to watch but a very predictable one"
[6.0] "I have higher expectations for a title match at a PLE than for a RAW main event match, even if it takes place in Belfast. Punk stirs up hometown emotions quite well with the Bulls Entrance title Sirius by the Alan Parsons Project, while he seems to run out of steam from time to time in the match itself. It's rare to see two opponents gasping for air in opposite corners of the ring. The match in Northern Ireland was more compact and therefore seemed more rounded than this one. This is solid entertainment with a very clear outcome, but in my opinion, the match at RAW was more relaxed, sleeker, and therefore better conceived."
[8.0] "Das hier fand ich noch besser als im Januar bei RAW und es wurde mein Match of the Night. Das war auch nicht der Judgment Day Finn denn er kam ja mit einem anderen Theme zum Ring. Ich gebe hier ein Match Rating von (***3/4)."
[9.0] "i enjoyed this match loads, while it's not as great as their raw match it's a very good un flashy fight between two of the best workers in the business. Punk continues to be one of the best storytellers and sellers in the business and hopefully this match keeps Finn in the title scene"
[7.0] "This was a proper pro wrestling match that maybe deserved a better crowd and 100% deserved a better build as at no point did anyone believe Balor had a chance of winning, building Balor up for months before and having him interact several times not just with Punk but Roman too would've done a world of good. About as good as I expect a men's WWE match to be nowadays to be fair"
[6.0] "This was the only match that I was excited to see before the show, even with the obvious winner. This by and large lived up to expectations while being a bit slow at times. The lack of build AGAIN didn't help and at no point did I feel like Punk was in jeopardy here and I would argue that the commentary team did everything they possibly could to convince me that this was a forgone conclusion here. They were worthless from a selling perspective. I enjoyed the Coup De Grace into a sharpshooter and the finish was alright. But this felt like a Raw match. Finn losing cleanly was a relief but also probably an indication that the Judgement day melodrama is set to roll on into next year. Fun times. 6/10"
[6.0] "The last meeting of the 2 on RAW was brilliant and a solid 8/10. my expectations are very high. The story is clear from the promos. Finn is the sympathetic Face trying to get the title. Will Punk play a heel in chicago? I doubt it. Gonna be a weird dynamic. Punk looks worse than some 50+ wrestlers we have in Mexico. Crowd sounds horrible, like they are not mic'd up properly. Entrances take WAY too long. They do not look like they belong in the same age bracket. Cole: "Punk understands that father time is undefeated". Balor is doing really cool stuff here. Punk feels a few steps behind. The commentary teams seems on aware that they are basically the same age. This is much weaker than expected. Lots of move - wait - momentum change. Punk looks horrible at the end of that match."
[9.0] "While it was never believable that Finn Balor was going to win, this was a very good title match and it's good to see no shenanigans in a title match and just a good clean 20 minute bout. Finn Balor shaking Punks hand at the end suggests a face turn but who knows."
[5.0] "Mal ehrlich, es gab einfach 0, 0 Chance, das Fin Balor dieses Match gewinnt. Und dafür war es auch noch zu lang und fühlte sich noch länger an. Die Action im Ring war schon recht gut, wenn auch stellenweise sehr langsam. In Summe fand ich es aber auch nur okay"
[8.0] "This match may solely have been a pretext for Punk to have a match in Chicago, but they sure made the most out of it. Punk gets a hero's welcome, iconic Bulls theme and all, and you can tell he's having the time of his life. As for the match, it's methodically paced and the psychology is excellent; Finn working the body, wearing down the aging champion, is perfect. Punk gets his mouth busted up a bit, it gets pretty stiff towards the end, there's a cool Coup de grâce counter right into a Sharpshooter, some nice roll-ups, and while the outcome was never in doubt, they managed to make it exciting enough for it to be compelling. ***3/4"
[6.0] "Am Anfang plätschert das Match so vor sich hin. Irgendwann gibt es dann den Go to Sleep, der in einen Small package gekontert wird. Von da an gibt es ein paar nette Aktionen und jeder kann seinen Finisher zeigen, aber ohne Erfolg. Punk beginnt zu bluten und es gibt eine Aktion durch die Barrikade. Punk kann durch den GTS wie erwartbar gewinnen. Das Match ist dann doch nochmal gut geworden. (***)"
[9.0] "Excellent title match Snug and gritty Loved the sharpshooter counter A perfect catapult for balor to go after the ic title. Iconic entrance for punk here . Match of the night for sure . I think it could've used more near falls to sell the idea that fin had any chance in winning"
[6.0] "Punk/Balor was below expectations. It was slow even though Punk offered things. Mention at the Coup de Grace counter in sharpshooter which is great. Balor loses clean which is not good because it was an opportunity to bring the JD to betray Balor."
[9.0] "I thought that this match was very good. Finn Balor and CM Punk meshed well together. It's always awesome to see Finn Balor show that he belongs in the main event and it was also a great match from CM Punk's side. The Coup de Gras reversal into a Sharpshooter was neat, too."
[8.0] "I thought this was excellent and the best thing on the show by some distance. The way CM Punk and Finn Balor work is an increasing outlier in WWE, They wear their influences on their sleeve and its the kind of match that you specifically get from their generation. Great sense of struggle, physicality, grit. The match escalated naturally and organically until the emphatic finish. I loved this and i think this is CM Punk's best in ring stretch since the beginning of his AEW stint."
[5.0] "Hilarious that this dude got the all star mega hype entrance, his WIFE got a belt, his best friend debuted, and he ALSO got the win. While Finn jobs out cleanly, not even furthering any kind of major story in the process. LOL Why is there so little hatred in this company? Why are there so few blood feuds? Why does everyone love and fucking respect each other? Anyway, this match was fine. Not bad, not good, with the most predictable outcome of the card."
[5.0] "[**3/4] At this point, stop giving Balor title matches if you're gonna fake us like this. Balor loses again. Completely standard match, expectations weren't too high on this so i wasn't disappointed at the quality, of course the outcome sucks but I mean, no way Punk was losing. Punk is 47, and not in prime condition in terms of ring work and cardio, and it shows in this match. Balor was good."
[6.0] "I do not get the hype around these two guys sharing the ring. Both this and their match last month were totally fine but nothing special and I blame that squarely on CM Punk. Punk as a talker is still one of the best right now and so he still maintains a lot of star power but between the ropes his latest run has been very lackluster. He's clumsy, windy and a shell of what he was even as recently as his AEW run. Finn Balor however still has gas in the tank but seems like he's got restrictor plates on whenever he wrestles Punk. The match was just going through the motions and really only picked up in intensity in the final stretch but it was too little too late for me. Balor was never going to win despite showing no sign of slowing down so it'll probably be back to the mid card for him and we'll get a mediocre Punk and Reigns match in the main event. yay"
[7.0] "Match of the night, Punk has been WWE's MVP. This easily could've gone another 5 minutes, and it should have, I don't know why we're doing 25+ minutes of chamber entrances, when it makes matches like these shorter. The pacing was slow in the beginning but absolutely picked up in the end. I just wished this was more unpredictable, we all knew Punk was winning here."
"[[9/10]] Absolute banger. This was promised to be a clean face v face match where two icons git it their all for twenty. hard hitting, intense, and I fuckin loved every second of this. edge-of-your-seat viewing."
"Another great match between two great wrestlers, although not as good as the previous match between these two. Not much to say about the match in general, but did like the pacing and almost felt that Balor could win at several points. Overall, a very well-wrestled match, and good storytelling throughout. Rating: 8/10."
[9.0] "A triumph from the moment Sirius hit. Balor brought an intensity to this match that's been missing in his work for a few years and his work on Punk's ribs was pretty good. A gritty war of attrition between two veterans that lived up to their fist encounter."
[8.0] "Great homecoming for Punk. Balor looked good in the match despite there being no chance that he could win. Punk was the ultimate babyface with a great entrance. The sharpshooter spot was quite memorable. They did a clean match with no interference made it far better."
[7.0] "Somewhat underwhelming to me but still a very good match. It definitely lacked drama though because nobody in their right mind expected Punk to lose here. The finish was something you don't often see in WWE matches so it felt a little weird with Punk just beating Finn on the ground, hitting the GTS and winning but since it's something different, I don't mind it"
[8.0] "A really good match, a little slow at times, but it was impactful, physical and an absolute brawl. Punk was obviously going to win but some points in the match really had me wondering if WWE has going to pull the trigger on Bálor. Sets up a future feud between Dom & Finn, as well as adding another defense to Punk headed into Mania."
[7.0] "The match was solid in the first half and picked its pace up in the second and delivered a really good match that full of tension that made me believe that Finn Balor might actually win. I enjoyed watching Balor looking out to the ramp questioning if he should ask judgment day for help, was a nice step towards a less heel Balor and was futhering the end of his involvement in judgment day."
[8.0] "This is the only match from the show that I've watched and man, it was wonderfully worked. Punk's grizzled veteran style of matches this year have all been extremely enjoyable and this is another one to add to that list. I hope Balor one day gets that push to finally win the world title, but for now, Punk's work is so great that him being the champ is perfect."
[7.0] "It started somewhat slow, but picked up the action nicely towards the end. For a second it made me believe that Finn could actually do it. A better ending could have really elevated this match, hopefully this is indication that Finn will be elevated to a permanent spot on the top of the card."
[7.0] "A good match, but not a great one. It is a serviceable world title match with some good moments, but nothing that truly stood out, and no point where the match truly got going. I guess I thought the coup de grace counter into a sharpshooter was pretty cool, but that is really all I could say for highlights. The lack of any judgement day involvement hurt this match more than anything, which is weird considering it is the opposite most of the time. The Judgement Day getting involved here would have at least added some intrigue. Instead, we just got a pretty good world title with not that much flavor to it."
[6.0] "I hate what they've done to Finn Balor. Why put him in spots where you know he has to lose? And to present him like this, where he keeps talking about how everyone doubts him and he's gonna prove us wrong. Then he goes out and loses everytime. Just let him win or stop doing this. And I swear to mufn GOD if they try to turn him face with this I'll lose it. This dude looks like a bitch, loses after hyping himself up and then shakes Punk's hand. Fuck that, hit this mfer with 1916 or don't shake his hand at all. Beyond all that, the match they had was good. They are both great wrestlers, makes sense."
[6.0] "A good match, solid work, but it never clicked. A really nice try from both of them, but the pace didn't help the fight and the fact that Punk seemed genuinely exhausted by the end of the match didn't help either. After the fantastic performance they showed in Belfast, I expected more from this fight"
[9.0] "Thoroughly enjoyed this. The presentation was fantastic, especially for CM Punk. Phenomenal entrance. For the match itself, I thought it was stellar. Just really felt like a great and gritty wrestling match. I thought the match could've gone a tad bit longer and had a more climactic finish, but otherwise great stuff. Two months in, Punk is my wrestler of the year."
[8.0] "Grizzled Punk and Finn working the ribs. What a great match. A real gritty feel, which are most of Punk's matches this year to be fair. These two have great chemistry, and showed it once again tonight. Loved the sharpshooter spot as well. Just a great match. 4.25/5."
[7.0] "Solid match right here! Felt more like a RAW Main Event than a PPV Title match but with Reigns lined up for Wrestlemania, I guess they didn't wanna take any risks. Good stuff either way, especially the entrances and post match moments were memorable!"
[6.0] "Solid match here between Punk and Balor. The result not being in any doubt hurt this match. This was a good hometown hero fan-service match, perhaps better suited for TV compared to here where it takes up a slot on a 4-match PLE. But when the bell rung, it was a good bout."
[8.0] "A good, intense match that was a cut above their previous one. BUT it's a shame they didn't involve Dominik at all, who is clearly facing Finn at Mania. Punk had a good run overall, but he has a huge final boss ahead of him that will be difficult to get through."
[7.0] "Good match with a supremely lame ending. A sudden slow ass GTS to end the match after that amount of buildup. I did love the old school feel of this match though. Felt like this match could happen in any era of WWE. Good stuff but man that ending mixed in with no Judgment Day drama really hurt it. [***.5]"
[6.0] "Finn works Punk's ribs in this one. However, his finish is kicked out of by Punk. There are a couple of other cool moments, like a dropkick through the barricade and an anaconda vice spot that was pretty dramatic. The stomp into sharpshooter spot looked awkward unfortunately. This match didn't overstay its welcome but it came close to it. Decent match by two decent wrestlers."
[4.0] "Just like the match before it on this card this match was also another definition of a Meh/Below Average matchup and thus match was really sluggish and boring especially early on in the match even at some points they were just... Standing there doing nothing or bland chain wreslting with no value although luckily the end saved this from being a 3/10 as it really picked up with a close fall and a cool spot on the outside but then just out of the blue CM punk hits a GTS and wins... Just like that and it feels just out of nowhere and not in a good way as it just felt rushed and abrupt and knocked it down to a 4 for me."
[6.0] "The crowd was into the match, and it did have good moments but it struggled with what every match on this card so far has suffered with which is that it was predictable. With the story between Punk and Reigns, they were never going to give the title to Balor. Also I find it funny how they kept mentioning that Balor is the young guy where Punk is the old veteran, then they are three years apart. Other tbh an that it was fine but nothing amazing."
[9.0] "This match was amazing. Their Raw match was good, but this was 3x better. Both are such really good wrestlers and they put on a really good professional wrestler match. They went back and forth with great moves, sequences, counters, strikes, and more. That reversal of Finns finisher into a submission was fucking incredible, just amazing on so many levels."
[4.0] "Meh. Their match on Raw was the embodiment of the definition "good, " where they squeezed the maximum out of their chemistry and reversals, while the match was slightly empty emotionally and narratively. Since then, Balor interfered in Punk and Styles' match, and since then they've had several segments with each other that raised the stakes. I didn't believe that Balor would return to his rough NXT veteran version, in which he delivered high-class performances both with O'Reilly and with Kross, but I expected at least some intensity. In the end, I got a lifeless match where the only good moment was the Coup de Grace reversal into a sharpshooter, and where the final stretch looked like the beginning of something truly interesting, but it quickly turned out to be the end, and Punk simply finished Balor with his GTS, even though it seemed like the match would go on for at least five more minutes. I'm not used to criticizing Punk's matches this harshly, but this is his worst singles match in WWE. What a disappointment (**)."
[6.0] "I liked it, but CM Punk seems tired all the time now. Finn Balor gave him a good match, but Punk was already blown up 5 minutes into the match. It was a bit risky putting Punk out there when he's been so injury prone in recent years, but I guess it served its purpose on the card for a main event championship match."
[8.0] "I appreciate the simplicity & realism of this match in comparison to a lot of modern bouts but as well as the sharpshooter attempts eventually paying off through an unexpected route into the submission. Unfortunately, matches like this are potentially elevated or held back by the story going in and the unpredictability of the outcome and on those two fronts, this wasn't the strongest. 4*"
[6.0] "Good enough - Slow starting, decently put together middle - seemingly rushed ending. Could've easily had this go on for another 5 minutes. Half of this match was just worked head stomps, a little blood from punk. And of course, the rusty AJ Lee predictable comes out at the end."
[8.0] "A huge step up from the last two matches. CM Punk and Finn Balor both had a great performance. Definitely the best match on the show so far. Hopefully the men's elimination chamber will also be good. Punk retaining was a good decision, and hopefully Balor's push will keep going. 8/10"
[7.0] "The fight is good, it is good, but there's no story from Judgment Day whatsoever. It's not a game, why is that a downside to this fight? They started to get going later. Okay, the handshake is also something, but I was hoping for a push in the story. The fight itself could have been an 8, but I'll give it a 7/10, but I'll think about it."
