Report: One of WWE Fastlane's Title Matches Had a Botched Finish

Connor Casey

03/23/2021 10:33 am EDT

Fans who watched Sunday's Fastlane pay-per-view undoubtedly noticed something was off during the final moments of the Big E vs. Apollo Crews match for the Intercontinental Championship. The finish saw Crews roll up E via a Small Package, only for the champ to shift his weight and cover Crews. The referee counted to three right as E attempted a bridge to signify at least one of his shoulders was up, but by that point it was unclear who had pinned who.

Crews immediately jumped to his feet and started beating down the champ for several minutes. The commentary team then tried to save the finish by saying E was still the champion and that Crews was reacting to getting pinned.

According to Dave Meltzer via a new Wrestling Observer Radio this week, the finish was indeed a botch. However, E was reportedly still supposed to retain, so Crews' post-match attack was simply a quick recovery.

Though Crews has completely reinvented his persona since turning heel, his luck at capturing the Intercontinental Championship has been disastrous. He's 0-6 in title matches since jumping to the Blue Brand last October and his matches with E have resulted in a double pin, a three-minute loss, a disqualification, a triple threat loss (involving Sami Zayn) and now this Fastlane match.

No word yet on what E will be doing with the IC title at WrestleMania 37, though those plans will likely be announced soon.

Check out the updated card for WrestleMania below:

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