April 27 (UPI) -- The Universal Championship rematch between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns ended in controversy Friday at WWE's Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia.
Lesnar defended his title against Reigns in a Steel Cage Match three weeks after he left The Big Dog a bloody mess at WrestleMania 34.
Reigns, inside the steel cage, fared better this time and took the fight to The Beast by utilizing his surroundings and the cage to deal damage to Lesnar. Paul Heyman, the advocate of Lesnar who accompanied his client to the ring, also got involved in the match by slamming the cage door in Reigns' face and by inserting a steel chair into the ring.
Reigns took advantage of the chair, however, and used it to beat down Lesnar. Reigns then followed up the assault with his fifth Spear of the match which sent himself and Lesnar crashing through the steel cage wall onto the floor.
As both men attempted to recover from the fall, the referees scrambled to make a decision as to who won the match. Lesnar, as per the rules of a Steel Cage Match, landed on the floor first and thus was declared the winner. The loss was a hard one for Reigns who was close to putting Lesnar down and ending his yearlong title reign.
In the first-ever 50-man Royal Rumble Match, Daniel Bryan entered the brawl first alongside Dolph Ziggler. Bryan would go on to to last until the very end of the contest, breaking the record for longest time spent inside a Royal Rumble Match.
The bout featured a number of WWE veterans and legends returning to compete including Mark Henry, Leprechaun Hornswoggle, Kurt Angle, Rey Mysterio, The Great Khali, Shane McMahon and Chris Jericho.
Highlights included Bryan and Angle battling each other inside the ring, McMahon teaming up with Bryan to attack their longtime rival Kevin Owens, Jericho also confronting Owens and getting revenge by placing him into the Walls of Jericho, and Braun Strowman throwing McMahon from the top rope onto the announcer's table, among others.
Bryan, Strowman and Big Cass were the final three Superstars left in the match. Bryan was eliminated by Big Cass after almost sending Strowman over the top rope. The Monster Among Men then eliminated Big Cass after a short brawl to gain the victory. Strowman was then presented with a trophy and championship belt by WWE chairman and CEO Vince McMahon.
CONGRATULATIONS to @BraunStrowman on making history as the WINNER of the first-ever Greatest Royal Rumble Match! #WWEGRR pic.twitter.com/X3gEmMqNRl
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) April 27, 2018
The Greatest Royal Rumble event also featured the return of The Undertaker who took on Rusev in a Casket Match.
The match was a brawl-heavy affair with both The Phenom and The Super Athlete trading multiple haymakers throughout. The Undertaker, despite also having to deal with Rusev's personal singer Aiden English, was able to send both men into the casket for the victory following a Chokeslam and a Tombstone Piledriver.
Other moments from the Greatest Royal Rumble included John Cena defeating Triple H; WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander defeating Kalisto to retain his title; Woken Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt defeating Sheamus and Cesaro to become the new Raw Tag Team Champions; U.S. Champion Jeff Hardy defeating Jinder Mahal to retain his title; Smackdown Tag Team Champions The Bludgeon Brothers defeating the Usos to retain their titles; Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins defeating The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe in a Ladder Match to retain his title; and the match between WWE Champion AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura ending in a double count-out.
