Greatest Royal Rumble results: John Cena tops Triple H to open show

The Greatest Royal Rumble kicked off with a bang Friday afternoon, pitting two wrestling legends against each other in the opening match in what may stand as the biggest international event in WWE history.

In the end, John Cena broke a rare big-match losing streak to pin his boss Triple H after a trio of Attitude Adjustments, earning a chorus of cheers from a completely game King Abdullah International Stadium in the process.

H, as is his tradition, walked out to Motorhead and glared down the fans and cameras before spewing a mist of bottled water into the desert air. Cena countered a gauntlet of children dressed in identical lime green “Never Give Up” shirts. The match kicked off with a long feeling-out process and a traditional test of strength, which was ... unusual for two men who have met, in some way or another, 123 times inside the squared circle.

The action ramped up soonafter as the two threatened with finishers before H could turn the tide by unveiling an unstoppable counter to Cena’s five-knuckle shuffle — standing up. The WWE exec then hit Cena with his own signature “you can’t see me” taunt, then later countered Cena’s flying nothing with a kinda-sorta spinebuster to earn a pair of near-falls.

But Cena was able to overcome the odds and shift the momentum, eventually hoisting H up for an Attitude Adjustment that earned a 2.9-count. Another attempt at the finisher led to a Triple H counter and a Pedigree, but another late kickout kept this match rolling. Cena locked H in his STF submission only to be countered by a crossface, but the 16-time champion showed off his absurd strength by lifting his foe from the canvas to deliver the AA. One slingshot and another AA later, it was lights out for Triple H.

Should I watch this match later?: Sure. It’s Cena and Triple H stealing each other’s moves and engaging in a Hogan-Warrior test of strength early on. It’s got an extremely house show ending, but at least the journey there is fun.