After the chaos of the Royal Rumble, WWE and especially Roman Reigns needed a big showing at Fast Lane. What can be seen as just a filler PPV actually had a great amount at stake for WWE, a mis-step and their WrestleMania main event goes up in smoke.
The whole event was built around Reigns-Bryan and the confrontation between Triple H and Sting with very little else of note going on. Even the clash between John Cena and Rusev was given a surprisingly lacklustre build-up, and you could be mistaken for thinking WWE just wanted to move past this PPV as quickly as possible.
Fans were assured of a clear outcome and a WrestleMania main event by the end of the show - let's see if they got what they were promised.
Seth Rollins, Kane and Big Show vs Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan
Erick Rowan was booked as the face in peril. Yes, that Erick Rowan and not Dolph Ziggler, the obvious choice for a reason. The first half of the match was perilously dull with Big Show spending an age working over Rowan's leg, and it really is remarkable that after 20 years in the business, Big Show still doesn't know how to work a match.
The action picked up when Ryback got the hot tag and obliterated everybody in sight, but there was literally nothing else of note in the match. Kane, for some reason, got the win after a Big Show punch and the monstrosity was over.
What to Read Next
Neither Rollins or Ziggler were showcased in the match and most of the focus was on Show and Kane, which also didn't make any sense. Randy Orton returned after the match (and not during to give the faces the win) and RKO'd everybody in sight to absolutely no crowd reaction, which was sadly a sign of things to come.
Winners: Seth Rollins, Kane and Big Show
Stardust vs Goldust
The whole point of this match was to set up a WrestleMania bout between these two, which would be all well and good if the match they put on at Fast Lane wasn't so bad.
These two can work just as well as anybody on the roster but you wouldn't think it, as the match is slow and rushed as Goldust gets the roll-up for the win. On a positive note, Cody Rhodes continues to excel with whatever gimmick WWE gives him.
Winner: Goldust
WWE Tag Team Championship: The Usos vs Tyson Kidd and Cesaro
Everybody knew Tyson Kidd could go in the ring, but nobody thought WWE would give him a second chance, especially after he was relegated to NXT. However, here he is, a tag champion again.
The crowd are still killing things by being absolutely silent, but these four men put on a good show and it's a welcome change from The Usos wrestling Stardust and Goldust. The chemistry isn't quite 100% there, but there's clearly potential for these two teams to have a couple of classics. Kidd gets the win and the belts with his beautiful fisherman neckbreaker.
Winners: Tyson Kidd and Cesaro
At the end of the hour, it was time for the confrontation between Triple H and Sting. The segments building up to this have been great and Triple H has performed well, but it's so obvious he's the wrong guy. WWE's Sting is The Undertaker, and that should have been the match.
There wasn't a great deal to see here. The sledgehammer vs baseball bat thing was nice, but it was strangely flat. Sting hit a Scorpion Death Drop on H and did that wretched 'pointing at the WrestleMania sign' spot. Was hoping for something a bit more spicy from these two.
WWE Divas Championship: Nikki Bella vs Paige
Paige's stiff kicks were the clear highpoint of this match as Nikki was lazy and clumsy and has regressed badly over the last month or so after some progress. There was no storyline and no psychology, so it was nothing.
Nikki wins via roll-up (for the second time tonight) in what was an awful, senseless finish and we'll probably get a 20-woman battle royal for the title at 'Mania.
Winner: Nikki Bella
WWE Intercontinental Championship: Bad News Barrett vs Dean Ambrose
As has been widely observed, this was a Smackdown main event with a Smackdown main event finish - no doubt about it. By this point in the night, WWE really needed to come up with something good - instead they delivered a total dud with another awful finish. Both men are compelling enough and Dean Ambrose looked awesome as always, but what's the point?
The booking in WWE over the last year has decimated so many characters and it doesn't look like changing as Barrett looked like a coward by running away - a move that would have worked with most heels but doesn't seem to fit his character - and Ambrose was again made to look stupid by getting himself disqualified.
Having him run off with the belt was a nice touch and made it look like something worth fighting over, but it was too little, too late.
Winner: Bad News Barrett
WWE United States Championship: Rusev vs John Cena
As Vince McMahon still thinks it's 1985, he probably thought it was the greatest match ever, and whilst it wasn't that, it was a damn good duel. The crowd were still completely limp, but Rusev still looked strong as he beat the hell out of Cena to great effect. Rusev is a natural, and his progress over the last year has been startling.
The problems in this match came with the finish - such is WWE in 2014/15 - as the drama was ruined by the inability to let Cena fall clean. The Accolade shouldn't have been broken until WrestleMania at the earliest, and the low blow finish was groanworthy (more the fact that it was on this card than anything), but at least we'll get it again at WrestleMania - hopefully with a clean finish where Rusev comes out on top.
Winner: Rusev
Roman Reigns vs Daniel Bryan
The stage was set for Roman Reigns to finally deliver a performance that warranted his inclusion in the WrestleMania main event against Brock Lesnar, and in many ways, he couldn't have had a better opponent than Daniel Bryan. He could show off his power, strength, agility and athleticism and win over the smarks with a performance everybody doubted he was capable of. And he did just about all of that.
Reigns is the guy they want, but he will always be haunted by the Royal Rumble nightmare - just like Cena still is for his astronomical push - and how he overcomes that will be the biggest question going forward.
As for the match, it had an intensity unlike any other match on the night as both men just put on a pure wrestling display and Daniel Bryan was the guy from the indies again, even if he's going to have no neck by this time next year.
The flat crowd was horrendously bad, but this was by far the best match of Reigns's career and he showed variety in his move-set whilst looking smooth and at the same time, vicious. The result will always be debatable, but this was a hell of a wrestling match and we have our WrestleMania main event.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Verdict: WWE set out with one goal in mind and that was to make Roman Reigns look great - so in that sense Fastlane succeeded, but three-quarters of this PPV flat out sucked.
So many stupid, screwy finishes can kill an event dead, but it was rescued by the two hard-hitting bouts at the end. Reigns may well bomb against Brock, given that neither man knows how to call a 30-minute match, but he showed why WWE has faith in him. Suddenly, the idea of Roman Reigns main eventing WrestleMania 31 doesn't sound so horrid.
Sam Moore is a culture writer from the UK, writing mainly about film, TV and music for the likes of The Guardian, GQ, The Independent and many more. He is currently working on a book about the making of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy.
