WWE Crown Jewel 2023 Retro Review: Every Match Rated and Revisited

WWE Crown Jewel 2023 took place on Saturday, November 4, 2023, at the Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as part of Riyadh Season. It was the fifth Crown Jewel, the tenth WWE event under its ten-year partnership with Saudi Arabia, and the second Crown Jewel held in this arena after 2021. Because of the time difference, it started at 8:00 p.m. local time, which was 1:00 p.m. on the US East Coast.

On paper, this was one of the strongest Crown Jewel cards. It had three world title matches, John Cena on what was being sold as one of his last big nights, Logan Paul going after his first WWE title, and LA Knight, one of the most popular wrestlers of 2023, getting his first world title shot against Roman Reigns. It was also the first Crown Jewel streamed on Disney+, Binge in Australia and Abema in Japan. Below, we go through the night match by match. The results only come out as you read, and the full table is at the end.

The build

• Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre: on the October 9 Raw, McIntyre confronted Rollins after his Fastlane defence. Rollins thought the match was that night, but McIntyre said he wanted a healthy Rollins and picked Crown Jewel instead.
• Women's World Championship: Nia Jax returned on September 11 and attacked both Rhea Ripley and Raquel Rodriguez. Weeks of brawls with Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark followed, and Adam Pearce made a fatal five-way on October 16.
• John Cena vs. Solo Sikoa: on October 20, Cena admitted he had not won a televised singles match since April 2018, hinted at retirement and called out anyone. Sikoa answered, and the match was made official a week later.
• Rey Mysterio vs. Logan Paul: after a boxing win on October 14, Paul challenged Mysterio for the United States Championship, reminding him of their WrestleMania 38 tag match.
• IYO SKY vs. Bianca Belair: Belair had been out since IYO and Bayley hurt her knee with chairs in August. She returned in October to save Charlotte Flair and earned a title rematch.
• Cody Rhodes vs. Damian Priest: Rhodes had been fighting The Judgment Day for months. After Priest and Finn Bálor took the tag titles back from Rhodes and Jey Uso, Priest challenged Rhodes to a singles match.
• Roman Reigns vs. LA Knight: Reigns came back on October 13 after a break following SummerSlam. Cena introduced Knight as a challenger, Knight beat Sikoa that night, and the title match was announced on October 20.
• Kickoff: Sami Zayn, now on Raw without Kevin Owens, vowed to keep fighting The Judgment Day alone and was given JD McDonagh.

Match by match

Kickoff: Sami Zayn vs. JD McDonagh

The pre-show panel of Megan Morant, Matt Camp and Peter Rosenberg handed over to a rubber match: Michael Cole pointed out on commentary that each man had already beaten the other once. Bleacher Report noted a big ovation for Zayn's entrance, and WWE.com and CBS Sports both described the crowd behind him throughout.

Zayn hit a lariat for an early near fall, and McDonagh answered with a Spanish Fly for a near fall of his own. When he went up for a moonsault, Zayn met him with a big boot. Zayn then put together a corner exploder suplex, the Helluva Kick and the Blue Thunder Bomb for the win. Bleacher Report pointed out a rough moment where McDonagh took a bad bump into the bottom rope, and the middle of the match slowed down after it.

For us, this was a perfectly good pre-show opener and not much more. Zayn is one of the easiest wrestlers in the world to cheer, and the Riyadh crowd treated him that way. McDonagh worked hard as the smaller, sneaky heel, and the Spanish Fly was a strong near fall. The problem is that nothing here felt important. McDonagh was the fourth man in The Judgment Day, and a win over him did not mean much for Zayn. The real value of this match was that it kept Zayn in front of the crowd before his bigger role later in the night, which we will get to. The slow patch in the middle also hurt it. As a warm-up it did its job. Our rating: ★★½

Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre

WWE opened the main card with a world title match, which tells you how much faith it had in these two. Bleacher Report noted the crowd singing along to Rollins' entrance music after several minutes of video packages. According to CBS Sports, the crowd leaned towards McIntyre early, and he used his size advantage, chopping Rollins and throwing him around. The chop exchange was one of the early highlights.

Rollins was wrestling with a known back injury, and the match was built around it. When Rollins went for a suicide dive, McIntyre caught him and hit an overhead belly-to-back suplex on the floor. McIntyre added a Future Shock DDT, a spinebuster into the steel steps and a side slam onto the apron, according to CBS Sports. Rollins came back with quick bursts of offence, including a flying knee. Both men kicked out of each other's big moves: McIntyre survived a Pedigree, and Rollins survived a Claymore after dodging a Phoenix Splash attempt. The finish came when McIntyre went for a second Claymore, Rollins caught him with a superkick, and then hit the Pedigree and the Stomp to retain.

After the match, McIntyre walked straight to the back. Then Damian Priest ran out to cash in his Money in the Bank contract on a hurt Rollins. Before he could, Sami Zayn came through the crowd, sent Priest face-first into the ring post and ran off through the crowd with the briefcase. It was a smart, fun moment.

We think this is the match that makes Crown Jewel 2023 worth watching. It was hard-hitting and well paced, and the back injury gave it a simple story everyone could follow. McIntyre looked like a real threat, and the near falls felt close. Bleacher Report noted Rollins tripping on his large jacket and McIntyre nearly slipping on one suplex, but those small slips did not hurt the match. Our only complaint is the placement. A match this good would have been a better climax than an opener. Our rating: ★★★★

Women's World Championship fatal five-way

Rhea Ripley defended against Nia Jax, Raquel Rodriguez, Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark. Bleacher Report reported that Ripley had a special entrance with an augmented reality graphic, though it also felt the entrance ran long. It suited her: she was one of the most over wrestlers in WWE at the time.

The match was chaotic in the way most five-ways are. Jax left the ring early, then fought her way back in and hit Ripley with a leg drop. Baszler had the most memorable spot: she trapped Ripley and Rodriguez in ankle locks with her legs while choking Jax, holding three opponents at once. Stark broke it up, took a Tower of Doom superplex, and later hit a springboard dive and a K-360 for a very close near fall. Rodriguez hit a Texana Bomb on Jax, and later tried to pin Baszler. Ripley broke that up with an avalanche Riptide on Stark from the middle rope, sending Stark crashing onto Rodriguez and Baszler. Ripley then pinned Baszler to retain.

For us, this was fine, busy and forgettable. There were plenty of big moves and a couple of clever spots, especially Baszler's triple hold and the finishing Riptide. But the match had no real story. Five women were thrown together after weeks of brawls, and once the bell rang it was mostly a list of high spots. Jax was the most interesting part of the build after her return, but she did not get much of a moment here. Ripley winning was the expected result, and the finish at least made her look strong. Eleven minutes was about the right length. We would not tell anyone to skip it, but we would not tell anyone to go back for it either. Our rating: ★★★

John Cena vs. Solo Sikoa

The build had Cena hinting at retirement, so this carried a farewell feel. CBS Sports reported that the crowd sang along with Cena's entrance music and chanted "you still got it" during his offence. Bleacher Report noted that Sikoa still got a good reaction, wore new gear, and looked huge next to Cena.

Cena's plan was clear: he went after Sikoa's right arm to stop the Samoan Spike. A headbutt from Sikoa turned the match, and Sikoa controlled most of it from there. Sikoa hit a spinning heel kick for a near fall and went for the Spike on a weakened Cena, but Cena escaped and hit his familiar comeback, including the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Sikoa escaped the Attitude Adjustment and hit a Samoan Drop and a running hip attack in the corner for another near fall. Cena locked in the STF, but Sikoa got out. Then Sikoa hit a Samoan Spike, then two more, and Cena kept getting up. Sikoa kept hitting Spikes until he could pin him. Afterward, the crowd gave Cena a standing ovation as he walked to the back, visibly emotional.

Reviews were split here. CBS Sports gave it an A, while Bleacher Report gave it a C and said the pace dragged. We are closer to Bleacher Report. The idea behind the match was good: Cena could not win the big one any more, and Sikoa was the monster who proved it. The run of Spikes at the end was a strong visual. But for most of its sixteen minutes, the match was slow and one-sided. Sikoa's control segments felt long to us, and Cena's comebacks never built real momentum. For us, the story was better than the wrestling. The emotional exit was the best part, and it only works if you already care about Cena. Taken as a match, this was the weakest thing on the main card. Our rating: ★★½

Rey Mysterio vs. Logan Paul

Logan Paul's entrance was one of the talking points of the night. CBS Sports and Bleacher Report both reported that he arrived in a dune buggy, and WWE.com said he paid tribute to legends including The Ultimate Warrior and Bruno Sammartino. Bleacher Report thought Mysterio looked nervous on his way out.

Mysterio started fast with a headscissors takedown. Paul answered with a rolling senton into a springboard moonsault for two, which Bleacher Report singled out as a good-looking sequence. When Mysterio tried a moonsault, Paul caught him with a powerslam and a Buckshot Lariat, and later hit a moonsault fallaway slam for a near fall. Mysterio fought back with a sunset bomb and a Code Red. Then the finish began. A member of Paul's entourage passed him brass knuckles, but Mysterio kicked them away. Santos Escobar, Mysterio's partner in the Latino World Order, ran out and chased Paul's helper, but he left the brass knuckles on the ring apron. Paul grabbed them. Mysterio hit the 619, and as he came off the ropes for a springboard splash, Paul punched him with the knuckles and pinned him to win his first WWE title.

We think this was a good match with a cheap ending, and the ending was the point. Paul was more limited than he was later in his WWE run, and some parts were kept simple to work around that. But he did things very few part-timers can do, and Mysterio made him look good. The brass knuckles finish is a lazy wrestling trope, but it did two jobs: it made Paul an easy heel champion to boo, and it planted a seed with Escobar's mistake. As CBS Sports pointed out, that was a careful step in Escobar's slow turn. For a celebrity match, this was well above what we expected. Our rating: ★★★

IYO SKY vs. Bianca Belair

Belair was back after about three months out with the knee injury IYO and Bayley gave her. She started strong, using her power for quick near falls, including an alley-oop powerbomb and a German suplex. IYO answered with an Orihara moonsault and a springboard dropkick. Bleacher Report singled out a dragon screw as a highlight, and noted that Belair's knee was already a target.

Bayley came out to ringside to help IYO, and her involvement led to a messy run of action at ringside. Belair hit the Glam Slam, but Bayley distracted referee Jessika Carr. Belair then went for a Kiss of Death near the announce table, and WWE.com noted that she came close to being counted out at one point. Then came the surprise: Kairi Sane made her return to WWE, hit Belair with a spinning back elbow, and set up IYO's Over the Moonsault for the win. After the match, IYO and Sane attacked Belair together, and Sane hit the Insane Elbow, while Bayley watched from ringside looking confused.

The return is what everyone remembers. Bleacher Report's closing thoughts said hardcore fans were more excited about Sane than about Paul's title win, and that sounds right to us. The look on Bayley's face also started a new story inside Damage CTRL. The match itself was a different matter. CBS Sports gave it an A, but Bleacher Report said the crowd seemed tired for long stretches, and for us the run-in finish took away from what had been a solid contest. Belair had been built as the hero coming back for revenge, and she lost without a clean answer. A good moment, but a frustrating match. Our rating: ★★½

Cody Rhodes vs. Damian Priest

Priest's entrance had a nice touch of continuity. According to Bleacher Report, he came out with only his tag team title belts, because Sami Zayn still had his Money in the Bank briefcase. CBS Sports reported the crowd chanting "Where's your briefcase?" at him, which was a fun moment of the fans following the night's story.

Priest attacked before the bell, and Rhodes kept shaking out his leg, selling an ankle injury The Judgment Day had given him. Rhodes hit a Disaster Kick for two, and CBS Sports reported a suicide dive by Rhodes. Priest answered with a lariat and the Reckoning on the announce table. When Priest tried another Reckoning, Rhodes reversed it into a Cross Rhodes. Then The Judgment Day got involved. Finn Bálor and JD McDonagh distracted the referee, and Priest hit the South of Heaven chokeslam for two. Dominik Mysterio walked out with a steel chair, but Jey Uso ran in, superkicked Dominik, Bálor and McDonagh, and chased them off with the chair. Rhodes then hit the Cody Cutter, the Bionic Elbow, a nod to his late father Dusty Rhodes, and three Cross Rhodes for the win.

For us, this was a solid match that never quite became a big one. Priest is good at this kind of physical brawl, and the Reckoning on the table was the best spot. But the middle of the show was already full of run-ins, and this added another one. Jey's save was a crowd-pleaser, yet it made the finish feel like part of an ongoing TV feud rather than a big event result. CBS Sports also felt the ankle injury had no real effect on the match, and we agree. Rhodes winning clean in the end was correct. It just did not stand out. Our rating: ★★★

Main event: Roman Reigns vs. LA Knight

Reigns came out with Paul Heyman. Bleacher Report reported that the video package and entrances took about fifteen minutes. Reports differ on the crowd: CBS Sports described fans waving "YEAH!" signs for Knight, with Reigns telling them to quiet down, while Bleacher Report heard strong Reigns chants during the introductions.

Knight started well with a swinging neckbreaker, a baseball slide dropkick and a slingshot shoulder tackle. Reigns hit an Uranage, but Knight caught a Superman Punch and countered with a fireman's carry neckbreaker. Reigns moved away from an elbow drop and hit a Superman Punch for a near fall, before Knight came back with a superplex and his elbow drop for two. Then The Bloodline took over. Solo Sikoa distracted the referee while Jimmy Uso pulled Reigns out of the ring. Knight kicked out of a Spear, then reversed a guillotine choke into the Blunt Force Trauma. It looked like the win, but Jimmy secretly put Reigns' foot on the bottom rope. Knight slammed Jimmy and Reigns into the announce table and suplexed Jimmy onto it. Reigns then speared Knight through the barricade, threw him back in and hit one more Spear to retain.

We think Knight did everything he could. This was his first world title match, and he looked comfortable in the spot. The near fall after the Blunt Force Trauma was the best moment of the match. But the story was one fans had seen many times in the Reigns era: the challenger gets close, The Bloodline gets involved, Reigns wins. CBS Sports called the interference stale, and Bleacher Report noted the referee had stopped enforcing the rules. We agree with both. Reigns retaining was the obvious result, and the finish did nothing to make it feel less obvious. A decent main event, but a flat way to end the night. Our rating: ★★★

Beyond the matches

Miz TV with Ibrahim Al Hajjaj. The only non-match segment on the main card came between Cena vs. Sikoa and the United States title match. The Miz hosted Saudi actor and comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj, who had starred in the 2022 Saudi wrestling comedy Sattar. Grayson Waller interrupted and tried to turn it into the Grayson Waller Effect. WWE.com reported that Waller hit Al Hajjaj in the stomach. After a scuffle, Miz hit the Skull Crushing Finale on Waller, and Al Hajjaj finished him with a People's Elbow. Bleacher Report noted Waller got a cheer before the boos. For us, this was a harmless local celebrity spot. It gave the crowd a break and a home-grown star, but it added nothing to the show beyond that.

Sami Zayn steals the briefcase. The best piece of storytelling on the night was not a match. Zayn's ambush of Damian Priest after the opener, running off through the crowd with the Money in the Bank briefcase, paid off later when Priest walked out without it and the crowd chanted about it. It made Zayn's quiet kickoff win part of a bigger story.

Kairi Sane's return. Sane's surprise comeback during the Women's Championship match was the night's big surprise. Bayley's confused reaction afterward hinted that Damage CTRL was about to change.

Backstage and production. CBS Sports reported a backstage moment where Rhea Ripley gave McIntyre a knowing look after he turned down The Judgment Day's help, a small hint of where his story was going. On the production side, Bleacher Report noted a gap of over twenty minutes between the kickoff match and the opener, and about fifteen minutes of video package and entrances before the main event. Long gaps like these are part of why the show felt slow to us. English commentary came from Michael Cole and Wade Barrett, with Byron Saxton as ring announcer.

The verdict: does it hold up today?

Crown Jewel 2023 is a show with one great match and a lot of interference. Rollins vs. McIntyre holds up very well and is worth your time even now. Logan Paul's title win and Kairi Sane's return are worth seeing as moments. The rest is mostly fine wrestling with finishes that relied on outside help: brass knuckles, a returning ally, a Judgment Day run-in and a Bloodline run-in, all in the second half of the card. For us, that pattern is why a good-looking card felt flat. If you only have time for one match, watch the opener.

• Best match: Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre
• Worst match: John Cena vs. Solo Sikoa
• Overall: 2.5 out of 5

Full results and our ratings

What happened next

• Drew McIntyre turned heel on the November 13 Raw, his first heel turn since 2020, by costing Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship. He then joined The Judgment Day's side for WarGames at Survivor Series.
• On the November 10 SmackDown, Santos Escobar turned on Rey Mysterio and hurt his left knee with the steel steps, turning the brass knuckles mistake into a full betrayal.
• Kairi Sane's return led to a Damage CTRL reunion with Asuka, which set up a women's WarGames match against Bianca Belair's team.
• On November 17, Paul Heyman claimed Cena would not come back to WWE because of Sikoa's win. The same night, LA Knight beat Jimmy Uso.
• Despite several well-reviewed matches, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter named Crown Jewel 2023 the Worst Major Wrestling Show of the year. Coming soon: Crown Jewel 2026.

More Crown Jewel retro reviews

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

• Crown Jewel 2018: ★½ (1.5 out of 5), the first one, and the World Cup
• 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 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.