The 2023 Survivor Series was the 37th annual Survivor Series professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event aired on pay-per-view (PPV) and the WWE Network and took place on November 25, 2023 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. The event saw CM Punk return to WWE after nearly ten years.
Production
Background
First held in 1987, Survivor Series is one of World Wrestling Entertainment's annual "Big Five" events, alongside Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, Money in the Bank, and SummerSlam. The event had traditionally included Survivor Series Matches which involved teams of four or five competitors facing off in an elimination tag team match. However, in 2022, the event became centered around the WarGames match, which carried on to the 2023 edition.
On July 7, 2023, WWE announced that the 37th Survivor Series event would take place on November 25 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. The Allstate Arena, formerly known as the Rosemont Horizon, had previously hosted the 1989 and 2019 editions of Survivor Series.
Storylines
On the November 10 episode of SmackDown, the Latino World Order (LWO) gathered to discuss Rey Mysterio losing the United States Championship at Crown Jewel to Logan Paul, who utilised brass knuckles to win the match. Carlito would blame Santos Escobar for the loss due to Escobar leaving the brass knuckles on the apron. Escobar would then leave in disbelief. Later that night, Escobar would betray and attack Mysterio. The following week, Escobar declared he was wrong about Mysterio. Escobar would then attack other LWO members Cruz Del Toro and Joaquin Wilde before Carlito made the save. It was later announced that Carlito would face Escobar at Survivor Series. However, on the Smackdown before Survivor Series, Carlito was injured in a brawl with Escobar. As a result, Dragon Lee, who had aided Carlito, took his place at Survivor Series.
At Crown Jewel on November 4, Zoey Stark took part in a Fatal Five Way Match for the Women's World Championship, which was won by reigning champion Rhea Ripley. On the November 6 episode of Raw, Stark won a battle royal, earning a championship match against Ripley at Survivor Series.
On the October 30 episode of Raw, Intercontinental Champion Gunther was scheduled to appear on The Miz's talk show, Miz TV. However, Gunther's Imperium stablemates Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci appeared, declaring that Gunther would not come out. Following a back and forth between The Miz and the two Imperium members, Gunther appeared, saying The Miz was more of an entertainer than a wrestler. The Miz responded by taking credit for making the Intercontinental Championship prestigious. A fight would break out between The Miz and Imperium, with Gunther gaining the upper hand. Later that night, The Miz requested a title match with Gunther. However, Raw General Manager Adam Pearce revealed that others also wanted a title match, which meant The Miz would have to earn his. The following week, The Miz won a Fatal Four Way Match against Bronson Reed, Ricochet, and Ivar, earning himself an Intercontinental Championship match with Gunther at Survivor Series.
At SummerSlam on August 5, Bianca Belair retained her WWE Women's Championship against Asuka and Charlotte Flair in a Triple Threat Match. However, after the match, IYO SKY cashed in her Money in the Bank contract to win the title from Belair. Following this, SKY and her Damage CTRL partners Bayley and Dakota Kai would begin feuding with Asuka and Flair, while also putting Belair out with an injury. After successful defences against Asuka and Flair, thanks to help from Bayley and Kai, SKY retained her title against a returning Belair at Crown Jewel on November 4, with interference from Kairi Sane, who made her first appearance for WWE since 2020. On the November 10 episode of SmackDown, SKY, Bayley, and Kai welcomed Sane into Damage CTRL. The four were then interrupted by Belair, Flair, and Asuka, setting up a Six Woman Tag Team Match for later in the night. However, the match ended in a no contest after Asuka betrayed Belair and Flair to reunite with Sane and join Damage CTRL. Shotzi attempted to come to the aid of Belair and Flair but was unsuccessful. The following week, Damage CTRL challenged Belair, Flair, and Shotzi to a WarGames Match, which was accepted. SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis would give Belair, Flair, and Shotzi until the end of the night to find a partner. Later that night, it was revealed that their partner would be Becky Lynch. Additionally, it was announced that a fan vote would determine which team would receive the WarGames advantage.
In the months leading up to Survivor Series, Seth Rollins, Sami Zayn, Cody Rhodes, and Jey Uso were all involved in various feuds with The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, Damian Priest, and Dominik Mysterio) and their ally JD McDonagh, who later became an official member of the group. On the November 6 episode of Raw, a brawl broke out between all eight men, which lead to Raw General Manager Adam Pearce announcing that Rollins, Zayn, Rhodes, and Uso would face The Judgment Day and McDonagh in a WarGames Match at Survivor Series. The following week, Drew McIntyre, who had been talking with Judgment Day member Rhea Ripley, assisted Bálor and Priest in retaining their Raw and SmackDown Tag Team Championships in a rematch against Rhodes and Uso. The next week, McIntyre announced he would be on The Judgment Day's WarGames team. Later that night, McIntyre defeated Uso to win the advantage for his team. After, it was revealed that a returning Randy Orton would join Rollins, Zayn, Rhodes, and Uso as the fifth member of their team.
Match Preview
| Santos Escobar vs. Dragon Lee | Preview |
| Rhea Ripley vs. Zoey Stark | Preview |
| Gunther vs. The Miz | Preview |
| Women's WarGames match | Preview |
| Men's WarGames match | Preview |
Results
- Numbers in parentheses indicate the length of the match.
- (c) refers to the champion(s) heading into the match.
- Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Shotzi & Bianca Belair defeated Damage CTRL (Asuka, IYO SKY, Bayley & Kairi Sane) (w/Dakota Kai) in the Women's WarGames match (33:36)
- Gunther (c) defeated The Miz to retain the WWE Intercontinental Championship (12:20)
- Santos Escobar defeated Dragon Lee (8:20)
- Rhea Ripley (c) defeated Zoey Stark to retain the Women's World Championship (9:15)
- Cody Rhodes, Jey Uso, Sami Zayn, Seth Rollins & Randy Orton defeated Drew McIntyre & The Judgment Day (Damian Priest, Finn Bálor, Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh) in the Men's WarGames match (34:22)
Other on-screen talent
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See also
External links
| Survivor Series 2023 previews |
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Santos Escobar v Dragon Lee • Rhea Ripley v Zoey Stark • Gunther v The Miz • Women's WarGames Match • Men's WarGames Match |
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