The fact this match garnered "This is awesome" chants from the crowd speaks for itself. While a simple arm drag or drop kick will garner those cheers from the crowd at any given independent wrestling show, it's a rarity to hear at WWE shows. These two put together a great match, just like everyone expected, but they left plenty of room for things to continue and for a rematch. The finish saw Punk roll the Yes Lock into a pin, but right after the ref counted three, Punk started tapping out. Sounds like Bryan has cause for a rematch, and to that, the fans will surely respond, "Yes! Yes! Yes!" The absence of AJ's presence was also an intriguing development to this story, which is another indication of them continuing to work together. But as great as the action in the ring was, the highlight was seeing Punk use Bryan's classic "I have till five" quote with the referee.
WWE Over the Limit pay-per-view exceeded expectations
Result: CM Punk retained the WWE Championship
Ryback vs. Camacho
Another unannounced cool-down match between the WWE Championship match and main event, this was a typical Ryback squash. Don't quote me on it, but it may have also be Camacho's singles debut in WWE. Not much else to say. This was exactly what you would expect it to be.
Result: Ryback d. Camacho
John Cena vs. John Laurinaitis
This will be the match that gets the most heat from the Internet crowd, hands down. The booking was predictable, with Big Show interfering, turning heel and helping Laurinaitis win. That said, I enjoyed this match. I liked the comedy in the beginning and I thought they did a good job putting it together. I take issue with this being the main event, an honor that should have gone to Punk and Cena rather than this match. This pretty much ensures that we'll now get Cena battling Big Show, and it will be interesting to see if this turn can bring renewed interest to Show's career, as he's floundered recently in his feud with Rhodes. While many will rip this match to shreds, I enjoyed it. I just would have liked it much better as a semi-main event than the show closer.
Result: John Laurinaitis d. John Cena
Match Rundown
Christian won a battle royale
Kofi Kingston and R-Truth d. Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger
Layla d. Beth Phoenix
Sheamus d. Randy Orton, Chris Jericho and Alberto Del Rio
Brodus Clay d. The Miz
Christian d. Cody Rhodes
CM Punk d. Daniel Bryan
Ryback d. Camacho
My Take
Over the Limit surpassed expectations in many ways. This could have easily become a throwaway pay-per-view to fill a hole between WrestleMania and SummerSlam, but instead, it was a well-rounded show that featured a number of quality matches. The storytelling was simple, and predictable in many ways, but it worked. While this show would have been easy to pass, fans should be regretful if they did.
Ring Posts’ Adam Testa has teamed up with My 1-2-3 Cents and All American Pro Wrestling to bring you From the Rafters Radio, a weekly pro wrestling talk radio show airing on Monster Radio 1150 AM in Southern Illinois and streaming worldwide on wggh.net.
