Battling a rough bout with the hiccups, Chris and Spaceman Frank return with their thoughts on the WWE’s New Era (post-draft) in terms of how it’s doing so far, where it can go and why the “Broken” Matt Hardy gimmick may be the greatest thing going.
Tag Archives: Dolph Ziggler
Spaceman Frank’s WWE Extreme Rules 2016 Predictions
by Frank Lucci
It’s the time of the year where WWE gets as extreme as the PG rating will allow, and the company is trying to carry some momentum into the critical Summer season.
The second Pay-Per-View of May, Extreme Rules is wedged between Payback and Money in the Bank (which has essentially become the Royal Rumble of the Summer). Throw an NXT TakeOver special into the mix and it would have been understandable for the WWE to sit on their laurels and phone it in for Extreme Rules (TakeOver won’t be happening until June 8). However, the influx of new talent has made the WWE and Raw in particular much better since WrestleMania. While there have been some hiccups, Extreme Rules has the potential to be a very good show.
Kickoff: Dolph Ziggler vs. Baron Corbin (No Disqualification Match)
At Payback, Ziggler managed to get the sneaky pin on The Lone Wolf, but all signs point to Corbin getting the win here. While falling short in their previous pre-show match, Corbin has been very aggressive since his debut and needs a decisive win to help put him over with casual fans who missed his NXT work and his ‘Mania victory in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
Ziggler can make anybody look like a million bucks, but after doing the favors for Corbin he can hopefully go back to being main event cannon fodder.
The New Day (c) vs. The Vaudevillians (WWE Tag Team Championships Match)
The New Day remains one of the most entertaining elements of WWE, but they’ve lost a step since becoming full-blown babyfaces. For one thing, losing at ‘Mania to a faction that no longer exists and not having a match at the following Pay-Per-View doesn’t help. Secondly, not being squirrely jerks anymore means they can’t fully commit to being the perfect trolls we fell in love with.
While The Vaudevillians are doing far better than most expected on the main roster, they’re potentially tag team filler while Enzo Amore recovers from his scary concussion at Payback. The New Day retains in a good match.
Kalisto (c) vs. Rusev (United States Championship Match)
With Ryback seemingly on his way to being “future endeavored,” Kalisto has found a new massive monster trying to capture his title.
The better half of the Lucha Dragons has become the master of making something out of nothing, as his U.S. championship run has consisted of him pulling off great matches with little build. He pushed Ryback to new heights with his downright amazing moves and Rusev’s own freak athleticism has me almost thinking this could be the sleeper hit of the night (if only we could get a real effort from the WWE to promote the U.S. title again like last year).
Kalisto gets the win: 50% based on Rusev being a recent lame duck and 50% is me holding out for Sin Cara to betray Kalisto and challenge for the title before he sinks too far into the Jannetty realm.
The Usos vs. The Club (Tornado Tag Team Match)
First off: THE CLUB??? THAT’S THE BEST WWE CAN DO??? A million different options and the WWE decide to make Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson sound like they go to AJ Styles’ basement and drink mojitos while playing Team Fortress 2.
Since their debut, the two have been losing a disturbing amount to Roman Reigns (which is understandable given that he’s champ) and The Usos (who have not done shit all year) all well acting as pawns to the larger Styles/Reigns feud. That being said, they have been putting on good matches (albeit mostly reruns) and I see them winning at Extreme Rules to add more intrigue to the main event.
Charlotte (c) vs. Natalya (Women’s Championship Submission Match – Ric Flair is banned from ringside)
After the frankly downright embarrassing ending to their Payback match, these two women are facing off again with the added stipulation that Charlotte’s father Ric Flair is banned from ringside (presumably Nattie’s uncle Bret Hart does not need to be banned from ringside since he openly didn’t want to be at Payback and therefore wouldn’t be caught dead at ringside for the rematch).
It’s easy to forget that this is the third PPV match between the two (if you count Roadblock) and WWE has made some questionable moves such as Ric saying he doesn’t think his daughter can win without him (watch out Titus we got a new father of the year here) and THE FUCKING SCREWJOB FINISH IN 2016. I will scream if Charles “Little Naitch” Robinson is again the referee for this match. Charlotte wins because we all know her versus Sasha Banks is going to happen.
Chris Jericho vs. Dean Ambrose (First-Ever Asylum Match)
Strait out of WCW it’s the debut of the Asylum Match! This twisted match (that can only be won by pinfall or submission) features weapons lined all along the top of the cage, giving it a unique flavor beyond typical vanilla cage matches. The problem is that a) this is the PG era and b) Jericho is unlikely to take big bumps this late in his career. Add in WWE’s desperate attempt to show how “ka-raaay-zee” Dean Ambrose is and this will be a well worked match that is instantly forgettable.
The Miz (c) vs. Sami Zayn vs. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens (Fatal Four-Way Intercontinental Championship Match)
While many are disappointed the Owens vs. Zayn feud is not getting a true Extreme Rules continuation, the addition of Cesaro and The Miz has been done very well. Merging the two separate feuds makes sure this will get the proper time on the PPV and lead to a stellar match.
Everyone has played their parts well and special mention goes to The Miz for being the perfect smarmy Hollywood champion (along with his equally perfect real-life wife Maryse) who has shown his ability to hang with three of the biggest indy darlings in the WWE.
The only wrinkle in the buildup is the WWE insisting that we see these four go at it over and over again – meaning this actual match between the four already feels like it has been going on for several months rather than weeks. This is a toss up, so I will say The Miz retains due to some type of Maryse related shenanigans.
Roman Reigns (c) vs. AJ Styles (Extreme Rules Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)
Since Payback the WWE has continued to play it smart with these two. Styles has been pushed into acting more aggressive and gelling with Gallows and Anderson, but only after several beatdowns from Reigns and The Usos. This is essentially the match we should have gotten at Payback, seeing as that one eventually became a “No DQ” anyway.
Styles is more of a natural underdog here, but if The Club takes out The Usos earlier I see a situation where he is given a chance to go full heel but refuses, leading to his defeat once again. Seeing this, The Club then turns on their friend for being weak – instantly making Styles the white-meat babyface the company desperately needs.
As for Finn Balor, it seems like talk of him jumping to the main roster has cooled, so I doubt he will be much of a factor here. On top of that, Balor is scheduled to face Samoa Joe inside a steel cage at the next NXT TakeOver event (making his arrival at Extreme Rules even more unlikely).
With Reigns vs. John Cena rumored for SummerSlam and Styles a prime candidate for a Money in the Bank win I see Reigns keeping his championship in a big brawl.
Spaceman Frank’s Survivor Series 2015 Predictions
By Frank Lucci
Survivor Series was once one of only four Pay-Per-View events the WWE (then WWF) put on per year. With the unique elimination tag team setup, Survivor Series became a must-see Thanksgiving event.
However, with Money in the Bank supplanting Survivor Series in importance the event has struggled to live up to it’s own reputation.
With last year’s Team Cena vs Team Authority main event (and the debut of Sting) helping breathe life into the PPV, this year’s edition of Survivor Series seeks to up the ante with a celebration of The Undertaker’s 25 year career and the crowning of a WWE World Heavyweight Champion after Seth Rollins’ knee had enough of wrestling Kane and promptly self-destructed.
But with WWE’s uneven booking, even these high-profile events have felt fairly lackluster and the mid and lower card matches faring even worse. With that in mind, here are Spaceman Frank’s Survivor Series 2015 predictions.
Traditional Survivor Series 5 on 5 Tag Team Elimination Match (Who the Fuck Knows vs. Are We Supposed to Even Care?)
The WWE has announced a traditional Survivor Series match for this event but has given zero clues as to who will be involved, thus making this a clear time waster for a PPV.
If I had to wager a guess I would say this will be a face versus heel match that means fuck all but will be entertaining with the right talent involved.
My dream scenario is The New Day (who appear to be not defending their Tag Team Titles on the show) teaming with Sheamus (again, who has nothing going on despite being Mr. Money in the Bank) and King Barrett taking on Cesaro, Neville, The Dudley Boyz and Ryback. Regardless of who are on these teams, considering how little build this match has gotten expect the faces to win.
Dolph Ziggler vs. Tyler Breeze (with Summer Rae)
A natural pair of rivals, this match will hopefully serve as an impressive PPV debut for Breeze, who could use a win after losing to Ambrose in the Deadly Games 2: Electric Boogaloo tournament. Hopefully WWE writers have learned from NXT that an aggressive Breeze is the best Breeze and have Prince Pretty take it to Dolph and pick up the win. With Summer Rae having feuded with Ziggler in the past (and seeing his junk) it makes sense for her to help get Breeze a win that kick starts a feud that goes smoother than Ziggler vs Rusev did.
Charlotte (c) vs. Paige (Divas Championship Match)
First off, this match has been overshadowed by the controversial segment that finished the go-home edition of Raw where Reid Flair’s untimely death was brought up. While I personally have nothing against bringing a wrestler’s personal life into a storyline if they and their family is fine with it, this does not look like the case here. Both Ric Flair and Reid’s mother have said they were not aware Reid’s death would be put into the story, which is a major oversight of Charlotte and the WWE’s part.
It should also be noted however that Charlotte has been very vocal in different interviews and WWE programming that it was Reid that convinced her to try pro wrestling and considers her career a tribute to her late brother; so perhaps it should be less shocking to fans that he was mentioned on Raw. Jim Ross pointed out on his website this has lead to people talking about Reid Flair and not Charlotte versus Paige.
As for the actual match between the two, I see Paige upsetting the champ and winning the belt. Although Charlotte has been wrestling very well since coming to the main roster, she seems to be uncomfortable with the title and spotlight on her and may need to spend more time as challenger than champion.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament
Roman Reigns vs. Alberto Del Rio w/ Zeb Colter (Semifinal)
Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose (Semifinal)
Rather than predict the two semifinal matches separately I’ve decided to lump them together because the outcomes seem fairly obvious.
Long story short: Reigns looks destined to be champ and Del Rio already has the Gob Bluth “I’ve made a huge mistake” look in his eyes. Reigns wins and hopefully nukes Mexamerica out of existence.
As for Owens vs. Ambrose (which should be match of the night), as tempting as it is to say Owens gets the sneaky win for a heel vs. face final; it’s extremely unlikely. Owens already has the Intercontinental Championship and can serve as the de facto top heel of the company – but only if there is no heel turn to end the night. Which brings us to…
Roman Reigns vs. Dean Ambrose (Tournament Final for Deadly Game 2: Electric Boogaloo)
It seems clear from the moment the WWE revealed the bracket for the tournament this match would be destined for the final.
Hell, if not for Kalisto’s upset win over Ryback most would still have a perfect bracket.
That being said, who walks out champ is a much murkier outcome.
Will Vince insist that Reigns, tall, dark and handsome as he is, walks out as a babyface champ? Will the WWE realize that nobody is going to pick Reigns over Ambrose (considering Reigns was literally handed the belt by Triple H before the tournament started while Ambrose has served as Reign’s second banana since the summer and makes for a much more interesting underdog babyface story)? Will Ambrose turn heel? Will Reigns turn heel? Will Paul Heyman show up regardless of winner and declare that Brock Lesnar will challenge for the title? Will John Cena burst through the wall like the Kool-Aid Man to remind everyone that you can’t be the man until you beat the man? Will Big Show ruin everything like he always does? Will Triple H just say “Fuck it” and declare himself champ? Will the WWE go back to the well and have a legend show up to save the day? Is that legend Rick Steiner?? BY GAWD MAGGLE WHO KNOWS!!!
…But seriously it is probably going to be Reigns and we will have to accept that.
The Brothers of Destruction (The Undertaker and Kane) vs. Two Members of The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman)
What could have been all of the Wyatt Family taking on two legendary figures and two guys who get instant credibility by standing with them somehow got turned into a normal tag match.
This is better how?
With ‘Taker and Kane’s combined 98 years of age having to take on Wyatt and the big-ass strongman this figures to be a “methodical” (i.e. slow) match. The crowd will be into it because The Undertaker is actually wrestling on two PPV’s in a row, but what was a easy layup for WWE creative has been fucked up by a combination of lazy writing and the fact that FOR FUCK’S SAKE IT’S SURVIVOR SERIES PEOPLE EXPECT A TEAM ELIMINATION MATCH.
Hopefully the Wyatt’s win because we have yet to see Strowman do much besides stand around and Bray simply can’t keep getting pinned by every babyface on the roster. Plus if Taker (and also Kane) are truly retiring soon, then they owe it to the WWE to actually put over somebody who works for the company full time. If they can’t be bothered to find two worthy wrestlers to team with, then they can lay down for two wrestlers who can use their rub.
Manopera! Episode 5: Harry Potter Does Not Suck & The Return of the Deadly Game Tournament
Chris and Frank discuss the WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament, missed booking opportunities for The Undertaker and Bray Wyatt, Rhonda Rousey vs. Holly Holm and speculate WrestleMania 32.
WWE Money In The Bank Predictions
What was once thought to be just another ladder match has transformed into not only its own Pay-Per-View, but one of the most exciting storylines the WWE has ever come up with.
While its unclear whether the chase to the cash-in or the winner of the match itself creates the most buzz and anticipation, this years Money in the Bank will be full of surprises.
Here are our predictions for the event.
Kickoff: R-Truth vs. King Barrett – The two have been crossing paths over the past few months with no real angle even during the Intercontinental Championship hunt. Seeing as this is a Kickoff match for the sake of a Kickoff match, (which Truth has been doing a lot of lately) we’re expecting a Truth win with no repercussions for the 2015 King of the Ring winner.
WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day (c) vs. The Prime Time Players – It’s about time The Prime Time Players started getting a push and their chemistry with The New Day has proven to be pretty lucrative for both teams. The Players are going to come close, but The New Day are on their way to becoming a great heel stable and need the heat. It would only make sense for them to drop the titles at a bigger event. With SummerSlam several months away, it seems that The New Day will retain for the time being.
Intercontinental Championship Match: Ryback (c) vs. The Big Show – The Big Show is now just a stepping stone for young talent. “The Big Guy” has proven night after night that he can handle Show’s mass and still want seconds. Ryback is going to go over clean without even breaking a sweat.
Divas Championship Match: Nikki Bella (c) vs. Paige – While we feel that Naomi should be champ, she isn’t. Paige and Bella are going to put on another impressive bout, but we’ve seen this one before and we’re pretty sure we know how it ends. After a hard fought battle, Bella is going to either cheat or come back in order to retain her coveted championship.
Champion vs. Champion: United States Champion John Cena vs. NXT Champion Kevin Owens – As impressive as their first match was, this one may not be able to live up to the bar Cena and Owens have set for themselves. Owens going over clean in their first outing was amazing in itself. Unfortunately for the fresh faced NXT monster, he is in a feud with Cena, which means it will indefinitely go to a rubber match. Very few (if any) Superstars beat Cena twice in a row and for those reasons alone Mr. Hustle, Loyalty, Respect is a lock to win round two.
Money In The Bank Contract Ladder Match: Neville vs. Sheamus vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Kane vs. Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler – As always, the Money In The Bank Contract match is always fun to watch and even more fun to predict. Neville and Kingston are going to give us some of the highest high spots we’ve seen an a long time, but these two are not going to win (although we would be shocked if Neville was the dark horse victor). Kane and Sheamus are always there to provide the necessary carnage, but it’s a long shot for them also. That leaves Ziggler, Reigns and Orton; who have been built as possible candidates to hold the contract for a guaranteed WWE Championship match anytime, anywhere for an entire year. Ziggler is more likely to wind up feuding with Rusev upon his return, but still has a chance (although slim) while Reigns and Orton are pretty evenly matched as far as their winning odds. Reigns is being highlighted, which gives us reason to believe WWE is going to have Orton win the contract.
WWE Championship Ladder Match: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Dean Ambrose – These two are going to pull all the stops in another clinic that will end in similar fashion – and with good reason (have you seen these guys work?). Ambrose is going to come close, but former champion Brock Lesnar is rumored to make an appearance the following night on Raw – and The Beast Incarnate wants nothing more than to decimate Rollins upon regaining the title he never lost. We feel that Lesnar is going to lay waste to both men and leave, with Rollins somehow pulling off the win in the aftermath.
WWE Elimination Chamber Predictions
After a brief hiatus, WWE is bringing back the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view exclusively on the WWE Network this Sunday.
Four out of the five championships will be defended with two being inside the dreaded Elimination Chamber for which the event is named.
For some, the stakes can’t be any higher. For others, the rewards will be vast. For all, there will be no mercy.
Here are our predictions for the event.
Neville vs. Bo Dallas: What started as Dallas trolling Neville’s slump has evolved into a grudge match rekindling their NXT rivalry. Expect a nice exchange between the two before Dallas pulls an underhanded tactic to squeak out a win in hopefully the first of a series of matches on the big stage.
Tag Team Championships Elimination Chamber Match – The New Day (c) vs. Cesaro and Tyson Kidd vs. The Ascension vs. Los Matadores vs. The Lucha Dragons vs. The Prime Time Players: For the first time the Tag Team Championships will be defended inside the Elimination Chamber. Given the circumstance, this is going to be both fun to watch and a bit confusing when determining the grounds for elimination. Having said that, there are going to be plenty of high spots involving The New Day’s Kofi Kingston, The Lucha Dragons and Cesaro and Kidd. When you give young talent with unique styles an enclosed cage you are creating a recipe for beautiful, violent art and we can’t wait. However; we feel that The New Day is going to end up retaining with another slight of hand from the groups wild card Xavier Woods. One question remains: does one member have to be pinned or submitted for a team’s elimination or do both members have to be eliminated individually? We’ll know for sure come Sunday.
Non-Title Champion vs. Champion Match – United States Champion John Cena vs. NXT Champion Kevin Owens: This is something the WWE should cherish. Since making his NXT debut roughly three months ago, Owens has not only dominated but completely changed the WWE landscape in that short time. Cena has also greatly invigorated the United States title as well, making it feel as important as it should be with his weekly open challenges while giving the rub to young talent waiting to shine. Though it would not be the worst thing in the world for Cena to win, Owens is something special and should be treated as a commodity. If WWE wants to continue building the NXT Champion as a monster they should have him go over the Cenation Leader. Win Owens, win.
Triple Threat Divas Championship Match – Nikki Bella(c) vs. Naomi vs. Paige: Naomi has been gunning for the Divas Championship for quite some time now and Bella has held on long enough. Paige is the wild card in the match with her eyes set on not only a third title reign but revenge on Naomi as well. The two’s history has been budding for several months as Paige was originally set to take on Bella at Elimination Chamber, only to be taken out of action by the former Funkadactyl. Sunday night will not be her night, as Naomi will finally rise above the ashes and taste gold for the first time in her career.
Elimination Chamber Match for the vacant Intercontinental Championship – R-Truth vs. Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. King Barrett vs. Ryback vs. Rusev: When Daniel Bryan vacated the Intercontinental title due to injury last month, he may have given Elimination Chamber a small blessing in disguise. While he is unable to compete, a new champion will be crowned. One of the best features of the Elimination Chamber is the unpredictable feeling of when a competitor will be unleashed from the pod and who will be eliminated by whom. This match will have all that and more due to how even the odds are for every WWE Superstar involved. While the momentum is on Barrett’s shoulders, he needs something more than the Intercontinental title as he’s held it enough to show he’s ready for the main event. Due to an unforeseen injury on Smackdown, Rusev may not be in the match and there are talks of him being replaced with Bray Wyatt if he is not able to compete. If Rusev is in, he’s taking home the gold. If he’s out and is in fact replaced by Wyatt, then the Eater of Worlds will leave the arena 10 pounds heavier.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match – Seth Rollins (c) vs. Dean Ambrose: This is one of the more intense rivalries WWE has built up in a while. These two were brothers in The Shield before Rollins did the unthinkable and turned on his fellow man for corporate greed. A little more than a year later, the self-proclaimed “Future of WWE” is sitting atop the food chain as WWE Champion with Triple H’s Pedigree finisher at his disposal. The Lunatic Fringe on the other hand, is fighting in the trenches day in and day out against anyone and everyone just to get his hands on Rollins. This Sunday he finally gets another shot at his former ally in what could be their best match to date. Ambrose is not going to win, but he’s going to put on a clinic trying.
WWE Extreme Rules Predictions
With Wrestlemania season over, Extreme Rules is always a fun way to start WWE’s Pay Per View calendar off with a bang.
With nearly every match being given a stipulation, the odds are never always in favor of one or the other due to the added elements of chaos.
Here are our predictions for this year’s event.
WWE Tag Team Championships Match: Cesaro and Tyson Kidd w/Natalya (c) vs. The New Day – The match will be about 15 minutes of high-flying hard-hitting action, but The New Day will remain fodder for Cesaro and Kidd. Expect some sort of heel tactics from both sides third party, but nothing too serious.
Kiss Me Arse Match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus – As much as we would rather see the match without this stipulation, someone’s going to join a certain club (albeit a less prestigious one than Vince McMahon’s). While the match itself is going to be excellent, the end result will be the opposite for Ziggler. Sheamus is being booked as a monster right now and it would be completely pointless to have him lose any momentum since returning roughly a month ago.
Chicago Street Fight: Dean Ambrose vs. Luke Harper – The Windy City is going to get hit with a hurricane and a tornado with this one. Ambrose and Harper will wage a war that will have the Chicago crowd on their feet with insane spots people usually only see on the indy circuit. Expect several raucous “This is Awesome” chants to form throughout the brawl with Ambrose walking away victorious.
Intercontinental Championship Match: Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Bad News Barrett – While the match is still on as of WWE.com, it may not happen due to a recent injury Bryan suffered during the recent UK tour. Should it take place, we are expecting Bryan to retain. However; we would not be surprised if a last minute booking decision sees Barrett reclaiming his lost gold.
Last Man Standing Match: Roman Reigns vs. The Big Show – It is almost too obvious that Reigns is going to win. We expect a spear through a table or stage to hand Show the big loss.
Russian Chain Match for the United States Championship: John Cena (c) vs. Rusev – Cena is helping bring prestige back to the first WWE title he ever held. Rusev’s character would not be damaged by another loss to the Cenation Leader as he is holding his own in the ring and on the mic. Cena will retain and that’s fine for us. Just keep him away from the main event.
Divas Championship Match: Nikki Bella (c) vs. Naomi – We really enjoy Naomi’s new found intensity but we don’t think it will be enough to get the gold. It would be nice to see her dethrone Nikki Bella (and she will dominate the match), but sister Brie Bella is going to get involved in one way or another, costing Naomi her title opportunity.
Steel Cage Match (With the RKO Banned) for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Randy Orton – Due to the recent omission of Rollin’s “Curb Stomp,” it feels like both of the competitors finishers are banned. Regardless, a steel cage is a steel cage; and it’s going to be a slobberknocker. With Kane as the gate keeper, expect a plethora of shenanigans from The Authority. Orton will come close, but he is not going to win as Rollins begins a (hopefully) lengthy title run.
WWE Royal Rumble 2015 Predictions
Another WWE calendar has come and gone and it’s time to start ‘Mania season off with a bang at this years Royal Rumble installment. 30 men will enter, one man will leave with a Wrestlemania opportunity upon his victory in the rumble match but for the heck of it, here is what we’d like to think would happen in the 2015 Royal Rumble event.
Kickoff Match: The New Day vs. Cesaro, Tyson Kidd and Adam Rose – Even though the unlikely trio of Cesaro, Kidd and Rose have had their way with The New Day over the past few weeks, Despite Cesaro and Kidd being a newly formed team, The New Day is the stable that WWE is pushing so for that reason alone they will be the victors with an entertaining match to boot.
The New Age Outlaws vs.The Ascension – As is above will be so below. The Outlaws are a classic tag team frozen in time. They have and always will be incredible to watch. Again, The Ascension is the team receiving the push so it is more than likely that the overall decision will be for Konnor and Viktor rather than The Outlaws – who are well established and have nothing left to prove.
Tag Team Championship Match: The Usos (c) vs.The Miz and Mizdow – The Miz and Mizdow will invoke their re-match clause against The Usos, but it will do them no good as the obvious dissent in The Miz and Mizdows team is consistantly growing while The Usos brotherly bond remains consistent. Chances are that The Usos will retain their championships over some sort of “Miz” communication.
Paige and Natalya vs. The Bella Twins – While Paige claims she doesn’t need any assistance, Natalya begs to differ. While the two have proven their worth against Nikki Bella and her Divas Championship, Nattie’s hubby Tyson Kidd proves to be the wild card in this feud; often costing the woman he assists her match by hogging the spotlight. in short: there are too many variables for The Bellas to win than there are to lose.
The 2015 Royal Rumble Match – This is the meat and potatoes of the event. While it will be fun to see who enters in what order (and whatever surprises WWE has in store), our final four will see Daniel Bryan, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and either Bray Wyatt, Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Rusev or Ryback. As far as the actual winner is concerned, it is a three way tie between Reigns, Bryan, and Ambrose. Ambrose is of course the wild card and the least likely of the three to win, but it would be nice to see the WWE take a chance on the unstable young wolf. Bryan would be the safest bet to get the storybook ending he deserved last year as he seemingly has not skipped a beat in his injury related absence, but we feel like WWE will stick with what the dirt sheets have claimed to be “the original plan” and will decide Reigns your 2015 Royal Rumble winner.
Triple Threat WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match: Brock Lesnar (c) vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins – Thank God Rollins is in this match because nobody wanted to see Lesnar vs. Cena for the third consecutive time. Not only does the inclusion of Rollins benefit the match from being another predictable “John Cena overcomes the odds story” but it also enhances the match itself with a wacky scenario: not only does Lesnar not have to get beat to lose his championship but Rollins can immediately cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase after the match itself if he chooses. If we were betting men we would say Cena wins (again), but we would not be surprised if Rollins or Lesnar walks out with gold around their waist.
WWE TLC 2014 Thoughts
As usual, WWE ended 2014 with a bang. Unfortunately, that bang was in the form of an exploding TV that cost Dean Ambrose his TLC match against Bray Wyatt.
Ambrose gave Wyatt the beating of his life, elbow dropping his opponent through a table from a ladder multiple times before finding a TV under the ring. The TV was not only plugged in, but it also gave Ambrose the idea to go for the biggest ladder he could carry. He then dropped the big elbow off that giant ladder onto Wyatt through the Spanish announcer’s table.
Dragging Wyatt into the ring, Ambrose readied to finish him off with the TV, but it was plugged in and prevented the blow. Then it exploded after Ambrose tried again. Wyatt then hit Sister Abigail and that was all she wrote.
Two things can be said of this. One: who leaves a TV under the ring? And two: there is no way any of us are to believe someone can be that stupid.
The Kickoff match was well done with Goldust and Stardust really delivering their offense and executing their heel tactics beautifully. They get better every night. The New Day predictably got the win, but the match was solid. Hats off to these teams for getting the crowd pumped up.
Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper put on the match of the night in an excellent Ladder match with Ziggler stealing the show and the Intercontinental Championship in his home city.
The Miz and Damien Mizdow had a decent encounter with the Uso’s for the Tag Team Championship with a logical DQ finish. The inclusion of Jimmy Uso’s real life wife Naomi into the storyline is interesting and will add real life situations into play if done right. Mizdow is slowly becoming a fan favorite with his antics and will hopefully get his shining moment down the road.
The Divas Championship match was also a decent match with a logical conclusion of Brie Bella’s interference and Nikki Bella taking advantage of a referee’s blind spot with a foreign object.
The Steel Stairs match between Big Show and Erick Rowan was much better than expected with good use of the stairs. This was a tough match to work but the two superstars did a great job with what they had.
Kane and Ryback’s Chairs match on the other hand, was pretty boring and predictable. Ryback was dominant, lots of chair shots and way too long.
Jack Swagger and Rusev’s United States Championship encounter also was very predictable. It’s clear that there are big plans for Rusev, but the “foreign oppressor vs. patriot” angle is getting old. We need to see more layers to the Rusev character.
Last but not least, John Cena once again overcame the odds and defeated Seth Rollins in a Tables match – securing his number one contender spot to face Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship yet again.
You didn’t have to watch WWE programming since SummerSlam to figure that out.
It is nice to see Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury playing the parts of Rollin’s lackey’s perfectly. These guys were the best part of the match.
It was also nice to see Roman Reigns back in action as he saved the day for Cena and is moving into a nice feud with Big Show for the time being. Having said that, Reigns returning at the pay-per-view before the Royal Rumble was a mistake as he would have had a much better reaction at the Rumble en-route to victory.
Perhaps WWE is saving that reaction for the return of Daniel Bryan.
WWE TLC 2014 Predictions
Another year has come and gone which means Wrestlemania season is just around the corner. As is tradition, WWE will make sure 2014 goes out with a bang in this year’s installment of their annual TLC pay-per-view. Below are our predictions for the winners of each match.
The New Day vs. Goldust and Stardust (TLC Kickoff)– While the cosmic duo sets its sights on the darkening of The New Day, we at The Bonesaw feel that since The New Day has debuted very recently, it is likely that they will prevail against the brothers Dust. Expect a good back and forth with plenty of tag team twists and turns as both teams have great chemistry with their partners and deliver unique offenses. The one variable is which two members of The New Day will be doing the brawling. Our money’s on Big E and Kofi Kingston due to their more direct confrontations with Gold and Stardust.
Nikki Bella (c) vs. AJ Lee (Divas Championship Match) – A re-match for the championship that should (hopefully) last longer than their Survivor Series encounter. These two young women will make the match as interesting as they can with the time they are given but it a tough call due to the constant flip-flopping of the title. History tells us Lee will regain her championship, but we predict Bella. One thing’s for sure: sister Brie will have some involvement in the outcome.
The Miz and Damien Mizdow (c) vs. The Uso’s (WWE Tag Team Championships Match) – A tag match that will be entertaining due to The Uso’s hybrid style and Mizdow’s hilarious antics. Chances are the champions will retain, but just barely as The Uso’s will outmaneuver the self proclaimed “A-lister” and his goofy “stunt double.”
Luke Harper (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler (Ladder Match for the Intercontinental Championship) – Ladder matches are notorious for death-defying spots and hard hitting action. Harper and Ziggler will put their bodies on the line with an intense showing of instestinal fortitude. The two rising stars will put on a heart-stopping clinic that will culminate in Ziggler winning back his championship.
Rusev (c) vs. Jack Swagger (United States Championship Match) – Aside from their characters being natural enemies, Rusev and Swagger have shown great chemistry in their feud. TLC will be no different when stars, stripes and sickles clash again for the United States championship. The Bonesaw believes Rusev will again conquer the good ol’ U.S. of A. – but would enjoy seeing Swagger knock off the Bulgarian Brute as it would greatly benefit his career.
Ryback vs. Kane (Chairs Match) – The inclusion of a Chairs Match is very unnecessary in any circumstance. The feud of Ryback and Kane is probably a short placeholder that would fare better with a regular match or a no-disqualification stipulation. The match will be decent if it is not given too much time. If we see more than 10 minutes, this could turn into a stinker. It is very likely that Ryback will continue his rampage.
Erick Rowan vs. Big Show (Steel Stairs Match) – Similar to Ryback vs. Kane, this very shoehorned in match with a steel stars stipulation rather than chairs might be decent if given a short length. Fans would much rather see Rowan battle his former tag team partner Harper, but it is what it is. The Big Show is almost a lock to win this one.
Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt (Tables Ladders & Chairs Match) – This match will steal the show. It will be as violent as PG programming will allow and the in-ring psychology will tell a fantastic story. Wyatt will endure the beating of his life, but The Eater of Worlds will defeat the unstable one in order for the feud to continue. The promos alone are too good to stop this freight train now.
John Cena vs. Seth Rollins (Tables Match) – It should be noted that should Cena lose, he also loses his no. 1 contender spot against Brock Lesnar for the WWE title. Not to Rollins, but to an unknown challenger to be announced at a later date. Seeing as Rollins is in possession of the Money in the Bank briefcase, the match is more about a notch on his belt as he will get his championship match whenever and wherever he likes until the next Money in the Bank pay-per-view. It will be a hard fought battle and a great main event, but chances are Cena will find his can of spinach and emerge victorious yet again. Having said that, we really hope Rollins wins.
The Bonesaw 