Torrential rain and flooding didn’t stop fans from attending World Wrestling Entertainment’s live event Friday night at the BB&T Center in Sunrise.

The main event saw WWE champion John Cena successfully defending the gold against Ryback in a tables match. The battle ended when the champ sent the dangerous challenger crashing through the table with his Attitude Adjustment finisher.

Daniel Bryan’s surging popularity was evident as the “Yes!” man teamed with Randy Orton and The Miz against the Shield’s Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. Each of the participants worked hard to give the South Florida members of the WWE Universe a show. The six-man match ended in the Shield losing by disqualification. The contest got under way after the trio interrupted a match between Curt Hawkins and Ted DiBiase, destroying both.

The card was loaded with new and emerging talent. The unique Bray Wyatt had an impressive victory against R-Truth with other members of the Wyatt family at ringside. Bo Dallas, champion of WWE’s developmental territory NXT, defeated South African star Leo Kruger, also from NXT.

Zack Ryder defeated Antonio Cesaro and then beat Brad Maddox shortly after. The festivities kicked off with Brodus Clay and Tensai (with the Funkadactyls Naomi and Cameron) getting the best of the Rhodes Scholars’ Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow.

Live Event Notes:

The crowd was energetic throughout with Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and John Cena getting the biggest reactions.

It was nice to see Zack Ryder get not one but two wins in the same night. I could be wrong, but feel the leader of the “Zack Pack” had more victories Friday night than he’s had all year.

Lots of great young members of WWE’s roster were featured. The Shield continues to impress. Their match with Bryan, Orton and Miz was the match of the night. Bryan has never been better in every way, and the fans are really digging him. I’m looking forward to seeing him evolve over the summer. To say Bray Wyatt is a different character is an understatement. He and the rest of the family look like something right out of a horror movie. With that said, I can’t wait to see them debut on Raw. They’re coming.

Brad Maddox should never do a Vickie Guerrero impersonation again.

A difference between televised shows and live events is the superstars have more freedom to have fun. You could see Orton having a good time with the audience and even starting the “Yes!” chants.

I love how the arena played Fandango’s music as fans left. Although it disappointed me that the flamboyant superstar wasn’t there in person. At least the WWE Universe had a Fandangoing opportunity before the night was over.

It was good seeing DiBiase in action after so much time off television. He and Hawkins had a decent match until The Shield appeared. Here’s hoping to see DiBiase back on Raw and SmackDown sooner than later.

John Cena and Ryback presented a memorable confrontation to close the show. It was a nice preview for their “Three Stages of Hell” series at the Payback pay-per-view on Sunday, June 16.

The Miz signed autographs and posed for photos with South Florida WWE Be a STAR honoree Eli Bloom pre-show. Bloom, 9, of Kendall was the grand prize winner of a WWE Be a STAR contest in conjunction with the Miami Herald. Be a STAR is WWE’s anti-bullying initiative - Show Tolerance and Respect.

• There is no set date for WWE visiting the BB&T Center again, but the company is returning to the American Airlines Arena in Miami on Sunday, Oct. 27 for the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view.

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