As reported earlier, WWE suffered a major roadblock heading into the TLC PPV. It prevented the Raw brand from retaining the original match card of the PPV event. Now, the flagship brand was not the only one who suffered from problems. The same consequences affected the Smackdown brand, as well.
The blue brand was on a tour of Southern America with its entire roster for the past few days. In the middle of it, AJ Styles suffered from a stomach issue and hence was sent back to his home state of Georgia. Later, he was forced to perform at the TLC PPV.
Also, Kevin Owens, the best heel superstar on the roster had to fly back to his home country of Canada since he had to deal with some family problems. As a result, the crowd missed performances from these two incredible superstars. But, this forced something much better in store for the fans in Chile.
Nadie juega el juego como El REY ??@TripleH derrota a @RusevBUL en #WWESantiago ?? pic.twitter.com/GhNqPVvt1L
— WWE Español (@wweespanol) October 22, 2017
#TripleH beat #Rusev at #SDLives recent Live Event.
Do you remember when Rusev was unseated for about a year!? pic.twitter.com/Cp8VnnfgTu
— WRESTLE WRAP UP (@WrestleWrapUp) October 23, 2017
None other than Triple H returned to in-ring competition giving a treat to the fans. The much-anticipated in-ring comeback for him happened on short notice. WWE announced only a day ago that The Game would be in action during the show and there was no finalisation, whatsoever about his opponent until the show aired.
Well…@TripleH rocks!??. #TripleH #NewDAy @TrueKofi @XavierWoodsPhD @WWEBigE pic.twitter.com/gL9ep5bA9I
— Amélie Sabatini (@SabatiniAmelie) October 22, 2017
I can rest in peace!!!! #WWESantiago #SmackdownLive #TripleH pic.twitter.com/6NCOtFDMuj
— Stephany Manqui Jara (@Teffy_Mj) October 22, 2017
Despite Baron Corbin demanding a spot against The Cerebral Assassin, Rusev got the opportunity to lock horns against the 14-time world champion. These two entertained the crowd with a great matchup before Triple H finally hit his pendant move, pedigree on the Bulgarian Brute to pick up the win. Rusev sold the move quite well to the delight of the fans.
While the match got concluded, the head honcho of NXT joined The New Day to dance with their theme song. It was a lifetime experience for the fans, as they got to witness Triple H shaking his booty with the Unicorns. You can check glimpses of this match given in this article which marked the first-ever for The Game since Wrestlemania 33.