Bash in Berlin

Bash in Berlin was a 2024 professional wrestling event produced by the American company WWE. It took place on Saturday, August 31, 2024, at the Uber Arena in Berlin, Germany and featured wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event aired via pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming, marking WWE's first PPV and livestreaming event to be held in Germany.

Bash in Berlin
Promotional poster featuring Gunther
Promotion	WWE
Brand(s)	Raw SmackDown
Date	August 31, 2024
City	Berlin, Germany
Venue	Uber Arena
Attendance	13,149
WWE Network event chronology
← Previous SummerSlam Next → NXT No Mercy
WWE in Europe chronology
← Previous Clash at the Castle: Scotland Next → Clash in Paris

Five matches were contested at the event. In the main event, which was the main match from Raw which was also an interbrand match, Gunther defeated SmackDown's Randy Orton by technical submission to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. In the opening match, which was SmackDown's main match, Cody Rhodes defeated Kevin Owens to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Production

Background

The event was held at Uber Arena in Berlin, Germany

On October 25, 2023, the American professional wrestling promotion WWE announced that it would hold its first-ever pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event in Germany called Bash in Berlin. The event was scheduled for Saturday, August 31, 2024, in Berlin at the Uber Arena (at the time of the event's announcement still known as Mercedes-Benz Arena) and featured wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event aired on traditional PPV worldwide and was available to livestream on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network in most international markets. It was also announced that the August 30 episode of Friday Night SmackDown would air live locally from the same venue, which was the first time for the program to broadcast from Germany. Tickets went on sale on November 30, 2023.^[1] An additional five nights of WWE Live shows in Europe preceding Friday's SmackDown were also scheduled as part of the "Road to Bash in Berlin" tour, concluding with Bash in Berlin itself.^[2] The official theme song of the event was "Ratatata" by Babymetal and Electric Callboy.^[3]

Storylines

The card included five matches that resulted from scripted storylines. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands, while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television programs, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown.^[4][5]

At King and Queen of the Ring in May, Raw's Gunther defeated SmackDown's Randy Orton in the final of the King of the Ring tournament, which earned him a match for Raw's World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam in August. During the King of the Ring final, however, Orton's shoulder was not fully on the mat when the referee counted the pin.^[6] After the show, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque noted the mistake and said the referee's decision was final but that there would likely be a rematch between the two.^[7] At SummerSlam, Gunther won the World Heavyweight Championship,^[8] and during his speech on the following Raw, he was interrupted by Orton, who noted that because of that mistake in the King of the Ring final, that ultimately allowed Gunther to become champion. He then said that he wanted his rematch at Bash in Berlin so he could take the World Heavyweight Championship from Gunther, who accepted the challenge. It was later stipulated that if Orton won the championship, he would be transferred to Raw with Gunther transferred to SmackDown.^[9]

At SummerSlam, Cody Rhodes retained the Undisputed WWE Championship against Solo Sikoa in a Bloodline Rules match, which included aid from Kevin Owens in fending off other members of The Bloodline (Jacob Fatu, Tama Tonga, and Tonga Loa).^[8] On the following episode of SmackDown, as Rhodes was about to say who he wanted to defend the title against at Bash in Berlin, he was interrupted by The Bloodline (Sikoa and The Tongans), as Sikoa wanted a rematch. Rhodes declined, stating that Sikoa did not deserve it, and as The Bloodline were about to enter the ring and attack Rhodes, Owens again came to his aid. After The Bloodline retreated, Rhodes said that due to all the times Owens had helped Rhodes in fending off The Bloodline, he felt that Owens deserved an opportunity and wanted to defend the title against Owens, who felt that he had not earned it due to his win/loss record. Rhodes then left to go talk to SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis to have the match approved, and despite Owens's objection, the match was made official.^[10]

At SummerSlam, Liv Morgan defeated Rhea Ripley to retain the Women's World Championship after seemingly accidental interference from Ripley's on-screen love interest and Judgment Day stablemate, "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio. After the match, however, Mysterio betrayed Ripley and kissed Morgan, ending their partnership. Later that night, fellow Judgment Day member Damian Priest lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Gunther after being betrayed by fellow stablemate Finn Bálor.^[8] On the following episode of Raw, Bálor excommunicated Priest and Ripley from the group, with it subsequently consisting of himself, Mysterio, Morgan, JD McDonagh, and Carlito. Later that night, Priest was attacked by Bálor during his match against McDonagh before Ripley came out to save him.^[9] The following week, a mixed tag team match between the team of Priest and Ripley, who would take on the name The Terror Twins, and Judgment Day's Mysterio and Morgan was made official for Bash in Berlin.^[11]

At SummerSlam, Drew McIntyre defeated CM Punk in a match that featured Seth "Freakin" Rollins as the special guest referee. Weeks prior to the event, McIntyre had stolen Punk's bracelet that had his wife (AJ Lee) and dog's (Larry) names on it. During the match at SummerSlam, Punk retrieved the bracelet but accidentally dropped it. Rollins picked it up to get it out of the way and Punk attacked Rollins as he thought Rollins was sabotaging him, which ultimately cost Punk the match, after which, McIntyre stole the bracelet again.^[8] On the August 12 episode of Raw, the two brawled which ended with Punk whipping McIntyre with a belt.^[11] On the following episode, Punk announced that Raw General Manager Adam Pearce approved a Strap match at Bash in Berlin between him and McIntyre, who came out and accepted the challenge.^[12]

At Clash at the Castle: Scotland on June 15, The Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) defeated defending champions Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill and the team of Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark, who they pinned, to win the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship.^[13] Over the next few weeks, Belair and Cargill vowed to regain the title. On the August 2 episode of SmackDown, Belair and Cargill defeated Fyre and Dawn in a rematch by disqualification after interference from Blair Davenport. Since championships do not change hands by disqualification or countout unless otherwise stipulated, Fyre and Dawn retained.^[14] On August 23, SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis announced that Fyre and Dawn would defend the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship against Belair and Cargill at Bash in Berlin.^[15]

Event

Other on-screen personnel

Role:	Name:
English commentators	Michael Cole
	Wade Barrett
Spanish commentators	Marcelo Rodríguez
	Jerry Soto
German commentators	Sebastian Hackl
	Manu Thiele
Ring announcer	Samantha Irvin
	Ludwig Kaiser (Gunther)
Referees	Jessika Carr
	Dan Engler
	Charles Robinson
	Rod Zapata
Interviewers	Cathy Kelley
	Byron Saxton
Pre-show panel	Jackie Redmond
	Big E
	The Miz
Pre-show correspondent	Peter Rosenberg

Preliminary matches

The event began with Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Kevin Owens. Rhodes and Owens started with basic moves. Owens performed a package suplex on Rhodes. Owens performed a rolling senton on Rhodes from the middle rope for a nearfall. Owens performed a fisherman's brainbuster on Rhodes from the top rope for a nearfall. In the climax, Owens attempted an apron powerbomb on Rhodes, but sent Rhodes inside the ring and performed a Stunner for a nearfall. Rhodes performed the Cross Rhodes twice but Owens countered the third attempt into a Stunner for a nearfall. Owens attempted a top-rope senton, but Rhodes got his knees up and performed the Cross Rhodes to retain the title. Afterwards, Rhodes and Owens hugged each other.^[16]

Next, The Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) defended the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship against Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill. In the end, Dawn performed a senton on Belair, but Cargill pulled Belair out of the ring. Dawn attempted a splash on Belair, who moved out of the way and Dawn landed on Fyre. Belair and Cargill then performed the DDT/Wheelbarrow Suplex on Fyre to win the title.^[16]

In the third match, Drew McIntyre faced CM Punk in a strap match. McIntyre attacked Punk before the match began. McIntyre touched three corners when Punk prevented him from touching the fourth. McIntyre attempted a chop but Punk countered with a GTS. As Punk set up a table, McIntyre sent him inside the ring and performed a Claymore Kick. Punk applied the Sharpshooter on McIntyre before touching two corners. McIntyre retrieved Punk's bracelet and performed a Claymore Kick on Punk. He then touched three corners but as he was about to touch the fourth, Punk performed the GTS twice before touching two corners. Punk performed the GTS two more times; the first before touching the third corner, and the second before touching the fourth corner with his wrist containing his bracelet to win the match.^[16]

The penultimate match saw Liv Morgan and "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio face Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest. Near the end of the match, Ripley and Priest performed Razor's Edge powerbombs on Morgan and Mysterio. When Morgan had Ripley pinned, Carlito, JD McDonagh, and Finn Bálor showed up. Bálor performed a Slingblade on Priest and Mysterio performed a 619 and a Frog Splash on Priest for a nearfall. McDonagh distracted Ripley before being taken out alongside the rest of the Judgment Day by Priest. Ripley then performed the Riptide on Morgan to win the match.^[16]

Main event

In the main event, Gunther defended the World Heavyweight Championship against Randy Orton. Orton performed a back bodydrop on Gunther onto the announce table four times. Orton performed a Fallaway Slam on Gunther for a one count. After Gunther took back control, Orton performed a Superplex on Gunther from the middle rope. Gunther countered an RKO attempt into a German Suplex. Gunther followed up with a dropkick and a top-rope splash for a nearfall. Gunther performed a powerbomb on Orton for a nearfall. Orton countered a powerbomb attempt into an RKO for a nearfall. Orton performed a back bodydrop on Gunther onto the ring steps before doing the same through the announce table. Inside the ring, Orton attempted an RKO, but Gunther countered it into a sleeper hold, and Orton eventually passed out, meaning Gunther retained the title. Afterwards, Orton and Gunther shook hands.^[16]

Aftermath

On the following episode of Raw, Women's World Champion Liv Morgan attacked Rhea Ripley and injured her leg, while later that night, Damian Priest and Jey Uso defeated The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor and JD McDonagh).^[17] The following week, it was announced that Morgan would defend the title against Ripley at Bad Blood, while Priest and Bálor also agreed to a match at the event.^[18] It was also announced that the title match would feature "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio suspended above the ring in a shark cage.^[19]

Also on Raw, CM Punk talked about his win over Drew McIntyre and began to focus on winning the World Heavyweight Championship from Gunther. However, he was brutally attacked by McIntyre, who snapped the bracelet and shoved the beads of the bracelet down Punk's throat.^[17] This led to a Hell in a Cell match between Punk and McIntyre at Bad Blood.^[18]

On the September 9 episode of Raw, Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill retained the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship against The Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) in a rematch.^[18]

Results

No.	Results	Stipulations	Times[16]
1	Cody Rhodes (c) defeated Kevin Owens by pinfall	Singles match for the Undisputed WWE Championship[20]	23:16
2	Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill defeated The Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) (c) by pinfall	Tag team match for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship[20]	12:02
3	CM Punk defeated Drew McIntyre by touching the four corners	Strap match[20]	19:15
4	The Terror Twins (Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley) defeated The Judgment Day ("Dirty" Dominik Mysterio and Liv Morgan) by pinfall	Mixed tag team match[20]	14:20
5	Gunther (c) defeated Randy Orton by technical submission	Singles match for the World Heavyweight Championship[20] Had Orton won the championship, he would have been transferred to Raw and Gunther would have been transferred to SmackDown.	34:28
(c)  – the champion(s) heading into the match