With less than a week until Summerslam, one of WWE's 'Big 3' yearly pay per views along with Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania, there's been a lot of buzz around my small cadre of wrestling fan friends about the possible results. Part of the fun of being a wrestling fan is definitely speculating on what's going to happen, and if the rather play-it-safe WWE creative team are going to shock us all and go for something a bit risque and surprising (like, let's be fair, they did at Wrestlemania with the whole Seth Rollins thing). So here's my take.
DOLPH ZIGGLER vs. RUSEV
This one's a no-brainer for me, Ziggler's got it in the bag. With Rusev being cleanly defeated by four people now (John Cena, Cesaro, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns, not to mention a post match submission from Jack Swagger of all people the other week on Smackdown), the unbeatable Bulgarian brute thing is long gone and forgotten. This, coupled with the hero's return Ziggler got on Raw last night following a brutal looking kayfabe injury at the hands of Rusev, all points to a typical underdog win from the plucky little guy, complete with USA chants from the crowd. Everyone loves an underdog. Prediction: Dolph Ziggler.
RANDY ORTON vs. SHEAMUS
Could go either way. Orton's been getting solid wins lately with his budding alliance with Cena and Cesaro, whereas Sheamus has been on the receiving end quite often. I'd like Orton to pull it off, simply because he's a great act with a great move-set and is super over right now, but also the match could be used to make Sheamus look strong before an imminent Money in the Bank cash-in. But then again, Randy beat Rollins at Wrestlemania, and he went on the cash-in and win on the same night. Prediction: Randy Orton.
CESARO vs. KEVIN OWENS
I love both of these guys at the minute, Cesaro's popularity is skyrocketing thanks to his rejuvenation in the Tag Team division and his two incredible matches against John Cena on Raw a couple of months back, and despite WWE not knowing how to write a heel character (more on that another time), when Owens does stop being a coward and actually fights, he's brutal, entertaining and does things a man of his size should not be able to do (Swanton Bombs for instance). I think the best thing to do would be to have Owens stop Cesaro in his tracks, put a halt to his recent meteoric rise and also gain Owens a much needed win, because after his initial streak he's been left to rot over the last few weeks, but I honestly think Cesaro will win and the fans will love it. Prediction: Cesaro.
BAD NEWS BARRETT and STARDUST vs. NEVILLE and STEPHEN AMELL
Let's be honest, they aren't going to get a celebrity involved, team him up with a heavily pushed new babyface sensation and not have them win. As much as I love Barrett (at least before he became a comedy pantomime villain) and Cody Rhodes, there's too much at stake for the WWE from a business standpoint for this to end any other way, unless they plan on bringing Amell back again at the next PPV. I just hope the other three guys can make him look good. Prediction: Neville and Stephen Amell.
THE WYATT FAMILY vs. THE SHIELD
Because that is essentially what this is. This is far too hard to call. On one hand, I love Dean Ambrose, and so does the crowd. His wacky, unpredictable (yet strangely predictable, off-the-ropes clothesline, punch-chop-punch-chop, suicide dive, Dirty Deeds, win) style of fighting is very entertaining and his attitude and look are awesome, but Roman Reigns is a massive, boring, plodding lump in an ill-fitting costume. On the other hand, I love Bray Wyatt. He's charismatic, there's nobody who can use a mic like him right now, and he's strangely athletic for such a big guy. But Luke Harper is pointless and dull. Ambrose and Reigns have been pretty dominant lately, so I think I'm siding towards Wyatt and Harper, a solid heel win for the only solid heel in WWE right now. Prediction: The Wyatt Family.
PCB vs. TEAM BELLA vs. TEAM B.A.D.
Here's one I couldn't care less about. In their efforts to revitalise the Divas' division and make it less about pretty costumes and bitchiness and more about actual talent, the WWE brought three of their best young Divas over from NXT, which was just what they needed. Then they made three groups of three with the current main Divas, and proceeded to have the three teams fight each other in different combinations, so instead of having nine decent picks to keep things interesting, they've essentially turned nine women into three entities. Plus, two of the teams are still all about looking pretty and cat fighting. I'd like for Paige, Charlotte and Becky Lynch to win, but I can see it going to Team Bella to reassert Nikki's dominance, and I'm pretty okay with that. Prediction: Team Bella.
TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH: THE PRIME TIME PLAYERS vs. THE NEW DAY vs. THE LUCHA DRAGONS vs. LOS MATADORES
I would absolutely love The Lucha Dragons to take this. Kalisto and Sin Cara are by far my favourite guys in the Tag Team division right now. But in all honesty, the spotlight has been squarely on the champions PTP and former champs The New Day throughout the run up to this. I pretty much can't imagine any other outcome than the title being retained, but if it isn't, it's going to The New Day. Prediction: The Prime Time Players.
INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE MATCH: RYBACK vs. THE BIG SHOW vs. THE MIZ
I think, with Ryback not being made to vacate the title while absent with injury for the last few weeks, he's going to be in for keeping it. Plus, it's his first title win, and both the other guys are former World Champions. Of course, there's been a lot of talk about how The Miz can't possibly win, so maybe that's an assfull of smoke that WWE's been blowing at us. Prediction: Ryback
US TITLE/WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE WINNER TAKES ALL: JOHN CENA vs. SETH ROLLINS
When left to fight it out without interruptions, John Cena and Seth Rollins are two of, if not the two best wrestlers in the WWE right now. They consistently put on the best shows on the nights that they perform, and are probably have the best attendance records in the company. So I think this is going to go down one of two ways; Either Scenario A: Neither wrestler, in my eyes, is ready to drop their title, Rollins is just coming into his own as a fighting champion and Cena has rejuvenated a stagnating US title thanks to his weekly open challenge on Raw. So the fight rages on, Cena gets the upper hand, and then Kane and/or Joey Mercury and Jamie Noble make their return and make the save, attacking Cena and disqualifying Seth, but keeping both belts intact. Or, Scenario B: Seth Rollins wins cleanly, but is stopped by a cash-in attempt from Sheamus, who beats him preferably for the US title, as he's just not World Champion material if I'm honest. There's nothing to be gained from one guy having both titles in my opinion. Prediction: Cena wins by DQ
BROCK LESNAR vs. THE UNDERTAKER
At first I was sure of the outcome of this fight. The Undertaker wins, clawing back victory from the one man who managed to best him before his retirement in his home state at Wrestlemania next year, after defeating Kane one last time, or Sting for the first time. But then I got to thinking no, maybe they'll make Lesnar the man that 'Taker just can't beat, furthering his rampage and making him look even stronger before a younger talent can finally step up and take him down, making them look even stronger in the process: the ultimate job. Both outcomes intrigue me, but in all seriousness the kid inside me just wants to see old Mean Mark get one over on The Beast before hanging up his coffin and retiring. Prediction: Undertaker
~TiD
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