At WWE Payback, Seth Rollins was ready for Samoa Joe to target his banged-up knee and surprised his foe with a sound game plan to counter it. And while he won the rematch on Raw, The Kingslayer did not escape unscathed.
The bout stemmed from a five-alarm backstage brawl between Joe and Rollins earlier in the show, and the two picked up right where they left off once the bell rang, though Joe claimed the advantage when he trapped The Architect’s leg in the ropes and booted him right in the bum knee.
Joe maintained his advantage to the point that Rollins accidentally exposed the turnbuckle while grasping for the pad, and The Samoan Submission Machine capitalized by whipping The Kingslayer into the steel. When the ref paused the action to replace the cover, Joe decided he’d rather brutalize Rollins further than defeat him outright: Despite the ref's warning, Joe rammed his opponent into the buckle again to the tune of a disqualification, then locked The Architect in the Coquina Clutch to remind Rollins that the punishment ends when he, and only he, decides.