The New Day (C) vs. Cesaro and Sheamus – Smackdown Tag Team Championship
There really hasn’t been much of a story behind this tag team title feud from what I can garner. What I can say, however, is that these two tag teams should put on a great match if they get the time (which they probably won’t). It goes without saying that The New Day have been on fire in 2018, and have done a great job carrying the tag team division of Smackdown on their backs. Sheamus and Cesaro remain an awesome tag team two years after their formation, and they are a quality team that you can always expect the goods from. Combine the teamwork of both teams, and we have a solid bout on our hands. Cesaro and Sheamus are definitely going to be Smackdown Tag Champs someday, but I don’t think they pull the trigger this week.
Winner: The New day
The IIconics vs. Asuka and Naomi
I’ll be honest in that I haven’t been paying much attention to this feud that seems to have been lasting forever. They’ve been building this with a series of endless singles matches between the two teams. All I know is that team Austrailia should win because they are in…well, Austrailia. Kind of weird how far Asuka’s fallen tho.
Winner: The IIconics
Becky Lynch (C) vs. Charlotte Flair – Smackdown Women’s Championship
Be honest. Isn’t evil Becky the hottest thing you’ve ever seen? Seriously, Becky is on the run of her career right now. It’s so funny that Becky is supposed to be the heel here, but the crowd is visibly cheering for Becky and rooting against Charlotte. Then again, I can hardly blame them. This is one of those situations where the heel is just so good at being evil that you can’t help but cheer their sheer evilness. There is no way that Charlotte should have any chance of beating Becky this Saturday simply because of the role that she is on. Charlotte is an elite performer and a 7 time Champion, but this is Becky’s time and it’s time to give her the long run that she’s earned for so long.
Winner: Becky Lynch
Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz – Winner Gets WWE Title Shot
It seems like this feud between Daniel Bryan and The Miz has been grossly one-sided in favor of the latter. Think about it. The Miz has defeated Bryan at Summerslam, he and his wife defeated Daniel and his wife at Hell In A Cell, and he almost always has the last laugh in any segment that they are involved in. I’m really curious to see which direction they go in here, because I’ve been hearing rumors that a fatal four-way match between AJ, Joe, Miz and Bryan may be in the works. If that’s the case, then this match would end indecisively. This match is by far the toughest to predict on the card, and while Bryan has gotten the shorter end of the stick in this feud, I believe that The Miz will win again here. The reason why I’m picking Miz is that I believe this is building up to a long-term feud over the WWE Title with Daniel Bryan.
Daniel will pick up a big win sooner or later, but I believed that they would get a redemption win at Hell In A Cell and they didn’t. I’m going with my gut here and I’m gonna say The Miz once again cheats to win.
Winner: The Miz
AJ Styles (C) vs. Samoa Joe – WWE Championship (No DQ, No Countout)
I wanna say that I’m excited about this match, but AJ’s WWE Title defenses on PPV this year have been sketchy at best. He pinned the wrong guy in the handicap match at the Rumble. His Backlash rematch against Shinsuke Nakamura ended with a No Contest despite it being No DQ. His match at Greatest Royal Rumble ended as a Double Countout. His match against Joe at Summerslam ended by DQ, and his rematch at Hell In A Cell ended with him winning, but not after replay showed him tapping out beforehand. So, it goes without saying that a precedent has been set for ugly finishes for AJ Styles on PPV this year. I’m going to tell you all something you all should already know for yourselves. Samoa Joe should leave Austraila as WWE Champion. This isn’t even up for debate.
I can’t say that I’m disappointed in this feud between two of TNA’s stalwarts, but I’m also unhappy that the feud has taken away focus from the WWE Title. All of the talking and both Joe and AJ not being on TV for weeks on end and few face to face interactions between the two have also taken the wind out of the feud’s sails a bit. Now, they can make up for it by tearing it up and having a match that’s worthy of the WWE Championship despite the fact that we all know they won’t be the main event. If AJ and Joe can go out there and just tear each other apart and work hard, I can forgive the past month of Joe repeatedly pseudo-stalking AJ’s family. Joe should win, but I think WWE is just far too cowardly to pull the trigger. I honestly believe that if WWE wanted Joe to be champion, they would have put it on him already. Every time I’ve picked AJ’s opponent to beat him, he’s won. So maybe if I pick AJ to retain, there will be a reverse-jinx and Joe will win. So that’s what I’ll do. I win either way.
Winner: AJ Styles
Cedric Alexander (C) vs. Buddy Murphy – Cruiserweight Championship
Buddy Murphy has been working his ass off for 205 Live this year and Cedric has been a solid champion for the Cruiserweight brand. In my personal opinion, I believe that Buddy has earned the right to win the championship because of all the quality matches he’s put on. He has proven himself to be a well-polished heel, and being in Austrailia makes it an even bigger stage (even though their personal location shouldn’t have any bearing on whether or not he wins anyway). I’m hoping that they get a decent time to work with and have a great little spring, but I think the time has come for Buddy to win the title, and I think it’s gonna happen.
Winner: Buddy Murphy
Ronda Rousey and The Bella Twins vs. The Riot Squad
So all of the talk surrounding this match is Nikki Bella turning on Ronda Rousey. I don’t care about this match a lot either, because they only pay-off for this match would be Nikki Bella vs. Ronda Rousey for the RAW Women’s Title, and I wouldn’t be looking forward to that. Ronda has grown a great deal as a WWE superstar and she has shown improvement every time she goes in the ring. On the other hand, The Riot Squad are just….I don’t know. The best way I can describe the Riot Squad is to ask you to describe them. You can’t. They’re not a gimmick. They’re basically a concept. The only thing you associate with Liv Morgan is bright lipstick and ponytails. The only thing you associate with Sarah Logan is the fact that she’s basically a female Viking.
I do think Ronda/Nikki is the direction they are going in, so I think The Riot Squad will capitalize and pick up a huge victory because of it.
Winner: The Riot Squad
John Cena and Bobby Lashley def. Kevin Owens and Elias
This doesn’t really need a lot of anaylsis. John Cena is returning, and that’s all you need to know about who is winning this match. Expect nothing more than about a RAW level tag team bout here. That being said, I really think WWE should take a look at the immense heat Kevin Owens and Elias were able to draw in Seattle this past Monday. I understand that it was cheap heat, but they are still one of WWE’s upper-tier workers and they should be involved in something productive. Get Elias back in the Intercontinental Title scene. Make Kevin Owens a prize-fighter again and not fodder for the main eventers. But for Austraila, they will just be fresh meat for Bobby and John.
Winners: Bobby Lashley and John Cena
The Shield vs. Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre
This feud really doesn’t have much of a personal beef between the two three-man trios, but WWE added a new dimension to the field by mentioning the elephant in the room, being the fact that Dean Ambrose is the only member of The Shield without a title. They’ve been teasing that kind of tension in the Shield, with Dean going as far as to state to both Seth and Roman in their faces that if he wasn’t so generous to take up Corbin on his offer, he could be either Intercontinental or Universal Champion if he had chosen to face either man for their respective title last week. Do I think Dean is going to turn? I think so, but not as of yet. Another thing that hasn’t been talked about enough is how extremely nerfed Braun Strowman has become. What made him a dynamic performer was his individual dominance and the fact that he could run through anybody without any help. Now he’s running with “Dogs of War?” Give me a break.
I think The Shield will win this match because the other team got the upper hand to end RAW last week. But I do think further seeds of dissension will be planted within The Shield after the match because you can’t go with the story that Dean is envious of the titles that Roman and Seth hold without him eventually at least going solo. But for Austraila, they’ll probably give The Shield the win, unless they want to expedite a Dean heel turn sooner than later.
Winner: The Shield
Triple H (w/Shawn Michaels) vs. Undertaker (w/Kane) – “Last Time Ever”
“Last time ever”. Look, it’s basically confirmed that Shawn Michaels will be eventually returning in the ring. We know this based on this feud alone. Sorry, but I’m not exactly peeing my pants to see this match because WWE can’t just let things go. If you say it’s going to be the end of an era, don’t bring it back six years later. Sorry, but looking at Triple H and Shawn Michaels stand in the middle of the ring bald and with no hair just makes me feel old. Triple H and Undertaker can easily go out there and put on a basic back and forth match, but I’m afriad it’s going to be another one of those long, 25+ minute Triple H main event style matches that drags on and on.
That being said, I believe that Triple H will win here due to Shawn Michaels interfering. That’s just what I think. If Shawn is going to come back and face The Undertaker or be in a tag team match against Kane, I think it has to start with HBK getting involved. I mean, there’s no way you just add in Shawn Michaels and Kane in the match without any intention of them doing something. I think HBK costs Undertaker the match and the two have a rematch at Survivor Series or whatever.
Winner: Triple H
