WWE Crown Jewel 2018 Retro Review: Every Match Rated and Revisited

WWE Crown Jewel 2018 took place on Friday, November 2, 2018, at King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Around 16,000 fans attended. Because of the time difference, the main card started at 7:00 p.m. local time, which was noon on the US East Coast. It was the first Crown Jewel, and WWE's second event in Saudi Arabia after the Greatest Royal Rumble in Jeddah that April, both part of a 10-year deal with Saudi Arabia's General Sports Authority.

The show mattered for reasons that went well beyond wrestling. It had a vacant world title, an eight-man tournament to find the "best in the world", and Shawn Michaels' first match in eight years. It also arrived under a cloud of criticism that very few WWE shows have faced. With Crown Jewel 2026 close, we went back to where the event began, and watched it match by match.

The build

• The world political backdrop: In October 2018, journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. WWE faced heavy criticism, including from US politicians of both parties, but kept the event on the calendar.
• Missing stars: John Cena and Daniel Bryan both reportedly refused to work the show. Bobby Lashley replaced Cena in the World Cup, and Bryan's WWE Championship match with AJ Styles was moved to the October 30 SmackDown. Samoa Joe, who attacked Styles on SmackDown that week, took Bryan's place.
• A vacant Universal Championship: Roman Reigns had beaten Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam, and their story continued at Hell in a Cell when Lesnar interfered in Reigns vs. Braun Strowman, which ended in a no contest. Reigns then gave up the title after announcing that his leukemia had returned. That left Lesnar vs. Strowman for the empty title.
• The WWE World Cup: Four Raw wrestlers and four SmackDown wrestlers in a one-night bracket. Kurt Angle earned his place by winning a battle royal.
• D-Generation X reunited: After Super Show-Down in October, Triple H and Shawn Michaels reformed DX and challenged The Undertaker and Kane. It would be the first time the two teams had ever met.
• Also on the card: The Bar and The New Day in a SmackDown Tag Team Championship rematch, and Shinsuke Nakamura defending the United States Championship against Rusev on the Kickoff.
• A returning host: Hulk Hogan, whose WWE contract was ended in 2015 over a recording of racist remarks, was put back in the WWE Hall of Fame in July 2018. On October 31, WWE named him the host of Crown Jewel.

Match by match

Kickoff: United States Championship – Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

The Kickoff panel of Jonathan Coachman, David Otunga and Booker T handed over to the only pre-show match, with Nakamura defending the US title. Rusev hit his Machka Kick early and twice got Nakamura in the Accolade, his camel clutch submission. On the second one, CBS Sports noted that Rusev let go of the hold to lock it in tighter, and that gave Nakamura his opening. Nakamura escaped with a low blow and finished Rusev with the Kinshasa to keep the title in 9:30.

For us, this was a fair way to open the day. These two knew each other well, and the match had a clear shape: Rusev had the power and the hold, Nakamura had the strikes and the cheap shot. Rusev had the crowd behind him when he had the hold locked in, and the finish took that away in a second.

The problem is that nothing here felt important. Nakamura as a heel champion had very few strong rivals on SmackDown, and this match did not change that. The low blow finish is a lazy choice in our view, because it leaves the challenger with an excuse and the champion with little credit. It is the kind of finish you see on a weekly show, not at the start of a major event.

Still, the work was clean and the time was about right. If you are watching the full event, it is a decent warm-up, and Rusev's Accolade spots got the crowd going. Our rating: ★★½

World Cup quarter-final: Rey Mysterio vs. Randy Orton

The main card opened with the first World Cup match, and it was short at 5:30. Orton went after Mysterio's ribs and midsection, with stomps and a throw over the top rope that sent Rey chest-first. At one point Orton tried to take off Mysterio's mask, a classic heel tactic. When Mysterio went for the 619, Orton caught him and turned it into his hanging DDT off the middle rope. Then, as Orton set up the RKO, Mysterio countered into a roll-up and pinned him. After the bell, Orton hit the RKO anyway and threw Mysterio onto the announce table.

We think this match did its job, but only just. The idea was smart: Orton could not beat Mysterio fairly, so he made sure Rey would go into the next round hurt. That gave the semi-final a story. The post-match attack was the most memorable part, and fans booed Orton for it, which showed the crowd was paying attention.

The weakness is time. Two of the most famous wrestlers of their era, on a show built around a "best in the world" tournament, got less than six minutes. There was no room for the back-and-forth these two are capable of, and the roll-up finish, while a good fit for Mysterio, made the match feel like a TV episode rather than a big-event bout. Orton's work on the ribs was effective, but it never built to anything before the finish arrived.

For a first-round tournament match, it is watchable and has a clear purpose. As a match on its own, it is forgettable. Our rating: ★★

World Cup quarter-final: The Miz vs. Jeff Hardy

The second quarter-final went 7:05. Hardy controlled much of the match, and he hit the Whisper in the Wind, his spinning dive off the top turnbuckle. The Miz put on a figure-four leglock, which Hardy turned into a near fall. Sports Illustrated also noted that a Hardy kick to the throat left Miz with a raspy voice, a detail that came back later in the night. The finish came when Hardy went for the Twist of Fate and Miz countered it into the Skull Crushing Finale for the win.

Reviews at the time were split on this one. Bleacher Report liked it as a fast match that gave Miz a rare clean win over a popular fan favourite. CBS Sports was cooler on it. For us, it sits in the middle. The pace was good, and Hardy's offence got reactions, but like the opener it was over before it could build any real drama.

We do like the finish. Countering a Twist of Fate into a Skull Crushing Finale is a neat, clean way to put Miz over, and it fit the tournament idea that Miz was a smart, sneaky competitor who could beat bigger names. We think a clean win also mattered for Miz, whose character usually needed help to win.

What holds it back is that it feels like a sketch of a better match. Hardy had little to do beyond his usual sequence, and the figure-four went nowhere. It is fine filler in a tournament, and nothing more. Our rating: ★★

World Cup quarter-final: Seth Rollins vs. Bobby Lashley

This was Raw's first quarter-final, and Lashley was here only because John Cena had pulled out. Lio Rush came out with Lashley and acted as his hype man on the microphone, which got a reaction before the bell. Rollins came in selling an injury from an earlier attack by Dean Ambrose, and he flew early with two suicide dives to the floor. Lashley's power got a strong response from the crowd, and he hit an inverted DDT. When Lashley charged for the spear, Rollins leapt over him and hit the Stomp for the win. The match went 5:30.

We think this one did more with its time than the first two. Rollins is very good at fast, high-energy sprints, and the suicide dives gave the match a burst of action straight away. Lashley worked well as the powerhouse, and Lio Rush's mic work added colour. The finish, with Rollins avoiding the spear and turning it into the Stomp, was clean and made sense.

Still, Lashley was a replacement in a match that the crowd had no reason to believe he could win. With Rollins one of the top names on Raw, the result never felt in doubt to us. That takes away a lot of the tension in a short match.

Five and a half minutes is again far too little for a tournament meant to find the best wrestler in the world. It is a fun sprint, and that is about all. Our rating: ★★

World Cup quarter-final: Dolph Ziggler vs. Kurt Angle

Ziggler came out with Drew McIntyre, who watched from ringside. Angle had said before the show that he could still be the best in the world for one night, and many fans picked him to win the whole thing. This was the longest of the quarter-finals at 8:10. Angle hit three suplexes in a row for a near fall and answered a Ziggler sleeper hold with more suplexes. Ziggler got a near fall with a DDT, and Angle nearly won with the Angle Slam. Angle then locked in the ankle lock. Ziggler escaped, sent Angle shoulder-first into the ring post, and hit the Zig Zag to win.

For us, this was the best of the four quarter-finals, mostly because it had a few minutes more to breathe. There was a proper back-and-forth, with real near falls and a crowd that cared about the result. Angle's signature moves still got big reactions, and the ankle lock felt like it could end the match.

But the age showed. Bleacher Report said Angle looked slow and showed his age, and we agree. His movements were not as sharp as they once were. Ziggler did a lot of the work in making Angle's offence look good, and that is to his credit.

The ring post spot leading into the Zig Zag was a sensible finish that protected Angle while giving Ziggler a clean win. It is a decent match that would have been better with more time and a younger Angle. Our rating: ★★½

SmackDown Tag Team Championship: The Bar vs. The New Day

The Bar, Cesaro and Sheamus, came out with Big Show in their corner. The New Day, Big E and Kofi Kingston with Xavier Woods, made the most talked-about entrance of the night: they rode to the ring on a huge mechanical magic carpet. CBS Sports reported a big ovation for it. In the match, New Day looked to have it won when Kofi and Big E took Sheamus down for a pin, but Cesaro broke it up. Later, Sheamus pushed Big E into Big Show on the apron. With the referee looking the other way, Big Show knocked Big E out with a punch, and Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick to retain the titles in 10:30.

We think this was the most dependable match of the first half. This was a rematch, and you could see how well the two teams knew each other in how smoothly the match moved. The double-team moves were sharp, the near fall where Cesaro saved the titles was well timed, and the crowd stayed with it.

The magic carpet is a good example of what this show did well: a big, fun piece of production built for a one-off event. It was silly, but it was the right kind of silly, and it suited New Day perfectly.

The finish is the weak point. A Big Show punch behind the referee's back is a cheap way to end a good match, and it left New Day with nothing to show for a strong performance. Big Show's role felt like a reason to add another known name rather than part of a real story. Even so, this is one of the few matches on the card we would tell people to watch. Our rating: ★★★

World Cup semi-final: The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio

This was the SmackDown side of the bracket, and both men came in hurt. Mysterio was still selling the ribs after Orton's attack, and Miz was still nursing the throat from Hardy's kick. At 11:15, it was the first World Cup match that got real time. Mysterio kicked at Miz's legs and hit the 619. Mysterio even kicked out of the Skull Crushing Finale, according to CBS Sports. In the end, when Mysterio went to the top rope for his splash, Miz got his knees up into the injured ribs and rolled Rey up for the win.

For us, this was a step up, and it shows what the tournament could have been if every match had this kind of time. The story was simple and worked well: two damaged men, each with a weak spot, and Miz finding Mysterio's. The earlier quarter-finals suddenly had a purpose, because Orton's attack paid off here.

Mysterio was the clear crowd favourite, and his kick-out from the Skull Crushing Finale was a strong moment that made the fans believe he could reach the final. Miz, as he often does, played the smart opponent who wins by finding an edge.

It is not a classic. The middle section is a little flat, and the knees-up finish is one we have seen many times. But it is a solid, logical match, and one of the better pieces of storytelling on the card. Our rating: ★★½

World Cup semi-final: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler again had Drew McIntyre in his corner. Bleacher Report and CBS Sports both note that McIntyre was a factor from the start, with an early distraction to help Ziggler. The two traded roll-up near falls, and Rollins hit a suicide dive to the floor. During Ziggler's control, the crowd chanted "Let's go Rollins". Ziggler hit a Famouser for a near fall, then turned a superplex attempt into a Zig Zag for another. The finish came when Rollins went up top: McIntyre pushed him off the top rope while the referee was distracted, and Ziggler hit a superkick to win in 13:05. After the match, Rollins cut a promo saying he was still the best in the world.

This is the match of the night for us, and it is not close until the WWE title match. It was the longest World Cup match, and both men used every minute. Rollins and Ziggler are two of the most reliable performers WWE had in this era, and they built near fall on near fall with real speed and timing. The Famouser and the Zig Zag counter both felt like they could end it.

The crowd was also at its best here, which matters. The "Let's go Rollins" chants showed fans were invested in the outcome, not just watching moves.

The McIntyre push is the only thing we would change. It made sense for the heel side and set up a Ziggler vs. Miz final, but it took the end of a great match away from the wrestlers. Bleacher Report gave it an A. We are a little more careful than that, but it is the one match from this show that holds up fully today. Our rating: ★★★½

WWE Championship: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Samoa Joe was a late replacement for Daniel Bryan, after attacking Styles on SmackDown that week. Joe controlled the early part and went after Styles' knee. One of the biggest spots of the match saw Joe hit a suicide dive that sent Styles crashing into the commentary desk, hurting his ribs and back. Styles fought back by attacking Joe's leg and locking in the Calf Crusher, but Joe reached the ropes. Joe then caught Styles in the Coquina Clutch, his choke hold. Styles escaped, climbed to the top rope and hit the Phenomenal Forearm to keep the title in 11:15.

For us, this is the second-best match on the show. Styles and Joe always had good physical chemistry, and their strikes looked heavy. The leg work on both sides gave the match a clear thread, and the Coquina Clutch near the end created real tension, because it looked like it could end the match.

The problem is that it felt like what it was: a replacement match. Bleacher Report called it a placeholder, and that is fair. CBS Sports found the opening slow, and on our rewatch that early section did not hold the room.

There is also the sense that the WWE Championship, the top title on SmackDown, should have been a bigger deal on a show like this. It was placed between the tournament and the Universal title match, and the story did not feel finished. Still, if you only watch two matches from Crown Jewel 2018, this should be one of them. Our rating: ★★★

Vacant Universal Championship: Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman

Lesnar came out with Paul Heyman. Before the bell even rang, acting Raw General Manager Baron Corbin hit Strowman with the Universal Championship belt. Lesnar then took over completely. He hit three F-5s, and Strowman kicked out of each one. Lesnar threw Strowman over the top rope and hit a fourth F-5 on the floor. Strowman beat the count back in, and Lesnar hit a fifth F-5 to win the vacant title in 3:15. Lesnar became the first two-time Universal Champion. Bleacher Report said the win stunned the fans, and that Michael Cole questioned Corbin on commentary.

We think this is one of the worst-booked title matches of its time. Strowman had spent months being built as an unstoppable monster, and the Universal Championship was empty because of Reigns' illness, which gave WWE a clean chance to crown him. Instead, Strowman had no offence at all. CBS Sports made the same point: with Strowman doing nothing, there was nothing to rate as a match.

The Corbin attack made it worse. A belt shot before the bell meant the result looked decided before anything happened, and the five F-5s then felt like a long way to finish a man who was already down. The kick-outs were meant to make Strowman look tough, but they mostly made Lesnar's finisher look weaker.

In fairness, Lesnar looked strong, and the result set up a clear story for Strowman against Corbin. But on a show with very few strong moments, this was a let-down that killed the crowd's energy. Bleacher Report gave it an F. We are slightly kinder, because it was short and did what it set out to do, but we would not tell anyone to seek it out. Our rating: ★

World Cup final: Shane McMahon vs. Dolph Ziggler

The final was meant to be The Miz against Dolph Ziggler. Drew McIntyre was sent away from ringside before the start, and Sports Illustrated reported that he left reluctantly. Miz then attacked Ziggler before the bell and sent him into the steel steps, but Miz grabbed his own ankle and appeared to be hurt. The referee ruled that Miz could not compete, and Ziggler was about to win by forfeit. Instead, Shane McMahon stepped in to take Miz's place. As the match officially began, Shane attacked Ziggler. Baron Corbin interfered and was thrown out himself. Ziggler hit a Zig Zag for a near fall, but Shane won with the Coast-to-Coast in 2:30 and was crowned the "best in the world". He celebrated with the crowd afterwards.

This is where the show fell apart, in our view. The whole night had been built on full-time wrestlers fighting through a bracket. Ziggler had wrestled two matches, including the best match of the night, and Miz had beaten two former world champions. Then a part-time authority figure who had not wrestled a single round walked in and won the trophy.

CBS Sports described the Miz injury as a segment that looked real at first but was clearly a work. Bleacher Report called the finish senseless. For us, the problem is less the angle itself and more the payoff. It told the audience that every match in the tournament had not mattered.

Shane's in-ring work was what it always was: a big move and a lot of energy. The Coast-to-Coast still looks impressive. But there is no real match here, just a short angle with a strange result. It is one of the moments people still remember from this event, for the wrong reasons. Our rating: ½★

Main event: D-Generation X vs. The Brothers of Destruction

Triple H and Shawn Michaels came out first, and the crowd reacted big to Michaels, who was in a WWE ring for the first time since 2010. Bleacher Report said the first in-ring meeting between Michaels and The Undertaker drew an enormous reaction, and fans chanted "You still got it" when Michaels kipped up. Kane blocked an early Sweet Chin Music and chokeslammed Michaels, and Michaels later floored The Undertaker with a superkick. The Undertaker hit Old School on Michaels and set up a Tombstone on the Arabic announce table, but Triple H stopped it. Kane chokeslammed Triple H through the English announce table, and Michaels went to the top rope for a moonsault to the floor onto both brothers. Triple H later hit a Pedigree on The Undertaker, who answered with Hell's Gate before Kane broke it up. Michaels hit Sweet Chin Music on Kane, then Triple H hit the Pedigree and pinned Kane after 27:45.

It was later confirmed that Triple H tore his pectoral muscle during the match, and CBS Sports noted at the time that he looked legitimately hurt. That helps explain some of what went wrong, but not all of it.

We want to be fair here. The nostalgia was real, and the live crowd loved the first few minutes. We think Michaels moved better than most people expected after eight years away. But this was four men past their best, in a match that ran close to half an hour. CBS Sports said all four looked to be working at about half speed, and that the match slowed down and looked choreographed. Bleacher Report called it messy and disjointed. We agree with both.

The length is the biggest problem. At 12 minutes this could have been a fun nostalgia piece. At 27:45, with long spells of slow brawling and visible fatigue, it became hard to watch. Chris Jericho later called it "the worst match I have ever seen". We would not go that far, but it is close to the bottom of any big-show main event we can think of. Our rating: ½★

Beyond the matches

Hulk Hogan opens the show. Hogan, reinstated that summer after being fired in 2015, hosted the event and opened it with a short promo. Sports Illustrated said the Riyadh crowd cheered his return and that the promo avoided naming Saudi Arabia. Bleacher Report described it as a grand return in which he welcomed the fans. For us, his presence was the single most awkward choice on a night full of them, given how recently he had been removed from the company. It added nothing to the wrestling.

Turki Al-Sheikh and the missing country name. After the pyro, the public address introduced Turki Al-Sheikh, chairman of the General Sports Authority. Sports Illustrated noted that a "Riyadh" caption appeared only at the start, and that the commentary team of Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Renee Young never named the country on air. That was a clear change from the Greatest Royal Rumble in April, which had included heavy praise for Saudi Arabia. It told you how uncomfortable WWE was with the timing of this show.

The production. The New Day's magic carpet was the standout entrance, and the show used pyro as part of the presentation. An Arabic commentary team of Faisal Almughaisib, Sultan Alharbi and Jude Aldajani also called the show, and Byron Saxton worked as the backstage interviewer. Greg Hamilton was the ring announcer.

A post-match promo. Seth Rollins spoke after his semi-final loss, saying he was still the best in the world. It gave the tournament a bit of personality, but we doubt many viewers remember it.

The crowd. The fans chanted "Let's go Rollins" in the semi-final and "You still got it" for Michaels, and New Day's entrance got a big ovation. On our rewatch, the slower matches lost the room for long stretches, and Bleacher Report said the Lesnar result stunned the fans.

The verdict: does it hold up today?

Mostly no. The first half has a few decent matches, and Rollins vs. Ziggler is a genuinely good one. The Bar vs. The New Day and AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe are both worth your time. But the last three matches sum up everything that went wrong that night: a one-sided title change that wasted Braun Strowman, a tournament that threw away its own competitors, and a nostalgia main event that went far too long with a hurt Triple H. Add the backdrop the show took place against, and it is hard to recommend watching it from start to finish. If you are curious, watch the three good matches and skip the rest.

• Best match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins (World Cup semi-final)
• Worst match: D-Generation X vs. The Brothers of Destruction
• Overall: 1.5 out of 5

Full results and our ratings

What happened next

• Right after the show, WWE announced that new Universal Champion Brock Lesnar would face WWE Champion AJ Styles at Survivor Series.
• Shane McMahon's World Cup win became a running story. Raw wrestlers complained about the result in the build to Survivor Series, and Shane later formed a tag team with The Miz, won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship, then turned on him. They faced each other at WrestleMania 35 and Money in the Bank 2019.
• Braun Strowman went after Baron Corbin, and their feud ran until a tables match in February 2019.
• Crown Jewel 2018 won Worst Major Wrestling Show and Worst Match of the Year (the main event) at the Wrestling Observer awards. It never got a home video release, but it is now available on Netflix in the WWE section.

More Crown Jewel retro reviews

We have gone back through every Crown Jewel. Here is how the others rate, out of 5:

• Crown Jewel 2019: ★★ (2 out of 5), celebrities and the first women's match in Saudi Arabia
• Crown Jewel 2021: ★★★★ (4 out of 5), Hell in a Cell and a loaded card
• Crown Jewel 2022: ★★★½ (3.5 out of 5), Reigns vs. Logan Paul and a Last Woman Standing match
• Crown Jewel 2023: ★★½ (2.5 out of 5), Rollins vs. McIntyre and Reigns vs. LA Knight
• Crown Jewel 2024: ★★½ (2.5 out of 5), the first Crown Jewel Championships
• Crown Jewel 2025: ★★★★ (4 out of 5), the first Crown Jewel outside Saudi Arabia

And for what is coming next, read our Crown Jewel 2026 preview.