{"id":94417,"date":"2021-06-19T17:27:10","date_gmt":"2021-06-19T21:27:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=94417"},"modified":"2021-06-19T17:27:10","modified_gmt":"2021-06-19T21:27:10","slug":"roman-reigns-rey-mysterio-hell-in-a-cell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/06\/19\/roman-reigns-rey-mysterio-hell-in-a-cell\/","title":{"rendered":"Roman Reigns and Rey Mysterio Make Hell in a Cell History"},"content":{"rendered":"

June 18\u2019s broadcast of Friday Night SmackDown<\/strong> was a palate priming amuse bouche for Sunday, June 20\u2019s Hell in a Cell <\/em><\/strong>pay-per-view event. After Roman Reigns<\/strong>\u2019s violent attack on Dominic Mysterio<\/strong> during his and father Rey Mysterio\u2019s<\/strong> match for the SmackDown Tag Team titles against The Usos<\/strong>, Rey challenged Reigns to pay for his savagery in a Hell in a Cell Match. Rey\u2019s social media posts throughout the ensuing week played up his agitation to seek retribution on Reigns, and in the hours leading up to the broadcast, it was revealed that the father\u2019s thirst for vengeance could not wait until Sunday\u2019s pay-per-view event. “The King of Mystery” wanted the match, inside the cell, for the Universal Championship, on Friday Night SmackDown.<\/p>\n

\"Roman<\/p>\n

Roman Reigns vs. Rey Mysterio – Hell in a Cell<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Anticipation built throughout the broadcast as the red cage descended lower and lower whilst the show went on. When the main event commenced, Rey Mysterio came out on the offensive, hitting Roman Reigns hard with the various props at his disposal inside the red cell. He used tables, chairs, and a heavy iron tool chest against Reigns. In the opening minutes of the match, the Universal Champion seemed hesitant to hurt the legendary luchador. However, the Tribal Chief\u2019s mercy only extended so far, and he tapped into his formidable ferocity to lock Mysterio into a standing, side variation of the guillotine for a win via submission. He locked it in again after the sounding of the bell just for a show of dominance and went on a verbal tirade of vitriol at Mysterio… But made sure to include a \u201cHappy Father\u2019s Day\u201d tiding as well.<\/p>\n

Special counsel Paul Heyman <\/strong>entered the ring to hold up Reigns\u2019s hand in victory, but so did a surprise addition to the proceedings: Reigns\u2019s cousin Jimmy Uso <\/strong>joined him in victory as well, in a move that could be seen as Jimmy\u2019s acknowledgment of his cousin as the head of their family. It seemingly brings the recent tension between Jimmy, who wants brother Jey <\/strong>to focus on their path to the tag team titles, and Reigns, who has utilized Jey as his enforcer for the past year, to a close, and also closes the circle on the last time they were in a red cell together.<\/p>\n

Hell in a Cell, One Year Earlier – Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso<\/strong><\/h3>\n

At 2020\u2019s Hell in a Cell event, Jey just wouldn\u2019t say die in his and Roman\u2019s \u201cI Quit\u201d Match, so Reigns tapped into some emotional blackmail and also tapped out Jey\u2019s twin, Jimmy, to force his cousin\u2019s compliance. It has been a bone of contention with Reigns and Jimmy since the latter\u2019s return. The match ended with Reigns retaining his belt, and yet another twist in the Tribal Chief storyline: is Jimmy really all in with cousin or is there a double-cross around the corner?<\/p>\n

Aside from the excellent character work of all parties involved, and the engrossing in-ring psychology utilized by Roman Reigns and Rey Mysterio, the match was a first in many ways. It was Mysterio\u2019s first Hell in a Cell match, though he has been with World Wrestling Entertainment<\/strong> since 2002. Also, it was the first Hell in a Cell match staged and broadcast on Friday Night Smackdown. The fact that the pay-per-view worthy match aired on the blue brand rather than Monday Night Raw<\/strong>, <\/em>the traditional home for WWE\u2019s edgiest content and hottest main roster stars, could represent an unspoken anointing of the Fox show over the troubled three hour USA production as WWE\u2019s \u201cA\u201d show. \u00a0The match also joins some notable Hell in a Cell firsts.<\/p>\n

\"Kane<\/p>\n

Shane Michaels vs. The Undertaker<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The vicious bout between The Undertaker<\/strong> and “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels<\/strong><\/a> was not quite the first of its kind in the history of pro wrestling, but it was the first Word Wrestling Federation match to feature the steel cage model with an enclosed roof and padlocked door. The modification makes for a more psychologically intense enclosure. The match itself was a stand-out. It was Glenn Jacobs<\/strong>\u2019s first appearance as Kane<\/strong>, The Undertaker\u2019s half-brother, which would go on to become one of the defining characters of the Attitude Era.<\/p>\n

The match also changed pro wrestling history in an unforeseen way. The October 1997 Badd Blood: In Your House <\/em><\/strong>bout between Michaels and The Undertaker was to decide who would challenge then-WWF Champion Bret Hart <\/strong>for his title at Survivor Series<\/em><\/strong> that November. Michaels was the chosen victor of the inaugural Hell in a Cell Match, winning the Survivor Series<\/em> opportunity, and faced the Hitman at Survivor Series ’97<\/em> in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The rest is history.<\/p>\n

Undertaker vs. CM Punk<\/strong><\/h3>\n

“The Dead Man” made Hell in a Cell history once again, against the “Straight Edge Savior,” in the first Hell in a Cell Match in which a title changed hands in the cage. By this time, 2009, Hell in a Cell Matches had become known as something of a specialty of The Undertaker\u2019s. His most legendary showing in the medium could be said to be the Hell in a Cell Match at 1998\u2019s King of the Ring<\/em><\/strong>, against Mick Foley <\/strong><\/a>under his Mankind <\/strong>persona.<\/p>\n

The violence was yet another of Foley\u2019s carefully designed operas of bloodshed, and famously did not stop even after The Undertaker threw Foley from the top of the wire structure. The WWE had largely moved away from such decadent, hardcore extremes by the time Undertaker faced CM Punk<\/strong>. Punk lost his World Heavyweight Championship title to The Undertaker, in the man from Death Valley\u2019s second home: the locked cage.<\/p>\n