Dominik Mysterio RETAINS Intercontinental Title After DEFEATING Penta & Rusev At WWE SNME!
In a night brimming with high-stakes drama, WWE’s Saturday Night’s Main Event lit up the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on November 1, 2025. The event, streamed live on Peacock, drew a roaring crowd eager for championship clashes. Among the marquee bouts, Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio defended his gold in a chaotic Triple Threat against Penta El Zero Miedo and the returning Rusev. Mysterio, the “Dirty Dom,” entered his 195th day as champion, his reign a testament to cunning survival tactics.
The buildup to this showdown had simmered for months across Raw episodes. Rusev, the Bulgarian Brute formerly known as Miro in AEW, sought redemption after a string of near-misses. Penta, the masked luchador sensation, brought his high-flying flair and “Cero Miedo” mantra, clashing with Mysterio’s Judgment Day antics. Last week’s Raw saw Rusev and Penta brawl for a No. 1 contender spot, only for Finn Bálor’s interference to force this triple threat. No disqualifications added fuel, promising unbridled mayhem.
As the second hour kicked off, the arena pulsed with energy. Commentators Michael Cole and Wade Barrett hyped Mysterio’s dual belts—the WWE Intercontinental and AAA Mega Championship—strapped proudly to his waist. Barrett quipped about Dom’s surprising win streak, while Cole marveled at his evolution from underdog to despised heel. The crowd’s mixed boos and ironic cheers set the tone, a nod to Mysterio’s polarizing persona that thrives on controversy.
The bell rang, and chaos erupted instantly. Rusev and Penta, united in disdain for the champion, swarmed Mysterio like wolves. Rusev hoisted Dom for a spine-rattling overhead belly-to-belly suplex, crashing him onto the mat. Penta followed with a slingshot hurricanrana, sending Mysterio tumbling over the ropes to the floor. The Salt Lake City faithful chanted “Cero Miedo” as Penta and Rusev traded blows, their alliance fraying quickly in the no-DQ frenzy.
Mysterio, ever the opportunist, slithered back in with a steel chair swiped from under the ring. In a classic heel move, he tossed it to Rusev, feigning a setup for disqualification. But Cole reminded viewers: no DQs meant no mercy. Rusev, catching on, cracked the chair across Penta’s back with a thunderous thud. Mysterio smirked from the apron, only for Rusev to turn and level him with a chair shot that echoed like gunfire.
The match devolved into a brutal ballet of brawling. Penta retaliated with a fear-inducing Fear Factor onto the chair, folding Rusev in half for a near fall. Mysterio dodged a charging Rusev, who speared the ring post instead, staggering in pain. Seizing the moment, Dom attempted his signature 619, but Rusev caught him mid-spin and locked in the Accolade. The camel clutch wrenched Mysterio’s neck, drawing “Tap! Tap!” chants from the bloodthirsty crowd.
Penta, the equalizer, exploded back in with a vicious superkick to Rusev’s jaw, breaking the hold just as Mysterio’s hand hovered near submission. The luchador’s agility shone as he nailed a Mexican Destroyer on Rusev, followed by a picture-perfect moonsault onto Mysterio outside. Penta’s high-risk style electrified the arena, his mask gleaming under the spotlights as fans waved signs proclaiming him the future.
Rusev, fueled by rage, rose like a phoenix. He intercepted Penta mid-air with a devastating Machka Kick, the impact reverberating through the building. Dragging Penta to the center, Rusev cinched the Accolade once more, this time on the masked challenger. Penta writhed, inches from tapping, when a deceptive clang pierced the air—the ring bell tolling falsely. Rusev released, convinced of victory, only to realize the ruse.
Mysterio stood at ringside, hammer in hand, having struck the bell himself. The champion’s devious grin betrayed no remorse as Rusev exploded in fury, charging after him. Dom lured the brute into the steel steps with a baseball slide, the collision leaving Rusev dazed and bleeding from the forehead. Back in the ring, Penta, freed from torment, grabbed the hammer from a retreating Mysterio, swinging wildly in vengeance.
In a stroke of luck—or destiny—Penta’s hammer missed its mark, glancing off the ropes and smashing into Rusev’s temple as he re-entered. The accidental blow dropped the Bulgarian like a felled oak. Mysterio, sensing his window, hurled Penta shoulder-first into the ring post, the crack audible over the gasps. With Rusev prone and Penta reeling, Dom ascended the turnbuckle, channeling his Hall of Fame lineage.
The frog splash connected flawlessly, Mysterio’s body crashing onto Rusev’s chest with pinpoint precision. The referee’s hand slapped the mat: one, two, three! At 13:01, the bell rang legitimately this time, crowning Mysterio the victor. He clutched both titles aloft, posing mockingly as Judgment Day’s music blared. The crowd’s boos rained down, yet a smattering of cheers acknowledged the crafty performance.
Post-match, Penta confronted Mysterio on the ramp, only for Bálor to emerge from the shadows with a low blow. Rusev, stirring, vowed revenge in a backstage promo, his accent thick with bitterness. “This ends at Survivor Series,” he growled, hinting at escalating feuds. Analysts buzzed online, praising the match’s pacing despite its brevity, with Wade Barrett calling it “vintage Dom—win ugly, rule dirty.”
This retention cements Mysterio’s 2025 dominance, his WrestleMania 41 triumph now a distant memory amid seven successful defenses. Fans speculate on Penta’s WWE future, perhaps a full-time signing, while Rusev’s AEW ties add intrigue. As SNME faded with CM Punk’s World Title win elsewhere on the card, one truth lingered: in WWE’s unforgiving arena, cunning trumps power every time.
