Previewing The Clash Of Champions 2016 Undercard Matches

There was a time for a while in the WWE where they just did a poor job building up their PPV cards. They would just put most of their focus on a handful of major matches. Everything else got mediocre development. You would even see random filler matches on these PPVs. The WWE then improved themselves a little bit. But it looks like they might be going back to their old ways with the brand split back. I can hardly believe Clash of Champions is already here, but it is.

Chris Jericho faces Sami Zayn. This is a feud they just threw together in recent weeks. You can say that the injury to Finn Balor shook things up. Chris Jericho cannot continue his tag-team run with Kevin Owens in the manner the WWE might have wanted to. Owens has Seth Rollins, so Jericho is left with Sami Zayn, who had been without direction for a few weeks before that. But this is a feud for Sami Zayn to win. Jericho doesn't need this win. Yes, I said the same kind of thing before Summerslam, where Jericho and Owens beat Enzo & Cass, but I am sure that feud would have continued to give the face team the win later on. I do not think Zayn/Jericho should be an extended feud, so let Zayn win here and move on.

Sheamus vs. Cesaro has been flavored filler. These guys will have the grand finale of their "Best of Seven" series at Clash of Champions. The winner gets a title shot, but it has still been a long feud. Even wrestling fans have been giving this feud mixed reviews. Some love it because these guys can go in the ring. Others hate it because of how stale it is. And I just hate the booking of these matches. Sheamus won 3 straight. The odds were against Cesaro. There was even an injury angle involved. And Cesaro bounces back to win 3 straight. Is Cesaro going to come out to John Cena's theme song this Sunday? The Swiss Cena probably should. That's how this feud is making him look, especially if he wins. I think Sheamus should win this just so he doesn't look pathetic. But I will say the WWE will have Cesaro win.

New Day vs. Anderson & Gallows is another feud that has been going on for a long time. The issue with this feud isn't really staleness. It is just terrible segments and the WWE not knowing what to do with Anderson & Gallows. Are they destructive monsters? Or are they comedians? Destructive monsters that moonlight as comedians? Whatever it is, it hasn't worked out very well. I have talked about them and this feud a lot in recent weeks. The WWE missed their chance to put the titles on these heels when the timing was better. But they will probably win it here. If Jericho/Owens was still a force in the tag division, I would say have New Day retain this Sunday and lose the titles to them. Not going to happen. No other great heel teams on the horizon. Give the titles to Anderson and Gallows. 

The Cruiserweight Championship will be defended at Clash of Champions. TJ Perkins defends against Brian Kendrick. And this just feels like something thrown together. Yes, there was hype for the cruiserweights for months, but this actual match just popped up the week before the PPV. People criticize the WWE for how they handled the debut of the division on Raw this week. Where's TJ Perkins? Where are all the other guys that will be in the division? Where is proper development for the guys that were there? It is like the WWE just tossed them out there to be wrestlers and is not putting in the work to make them stars. The WWE is obviously not planning to sell the PPV on this feud, but the cruiserweight division could have gotten off to a better start. As for the winner of this match, TJ Perkins. Why would they have him lose the title so soon after getting it?

Roman Reigns vs. Rusev for the United States Championship is the only undercard match to get great development. That is because it involves Roman Reigns. This match could be considered one of the top matches for Clash of Champions. It has gotten some main-event focus on Raw. I could have talked about it Friday. But I'll just talk about it here. The only flaw in the development of this feud was Rusev taking some time off. He just got married to Lana a few weeks ago, so I am not going to criticize him for taking time off. I am just saying that there was some time where the feud kind of got lost in the shuffle. That left time for Roman Reigns to be involved in the drama over the Universal Championship. Maybe that added a little to the feud. Rusev ran out last week to screw Roman Reigns out of a match that would have given him another shot at the Universal Championship. Overall, one of the better feuds on the card this Sunday.

Who wins? Rusev seems to have momentum. He attacked Roman Reigns after that cage match this week on Raw. Rollins ran out for the save, mostly to also take out Kevin Owens, not save Roman Reigns. The only way I can picture Reigns losing this match is so he can get involved with Kevin Owens for the Universal Championship after Clash of Champions. A main-eventer like Roman Reigns does not necessarily need a midcard title. He's not at that stage of his career that John Cena was when he won the United States Championship twice last year. And Reigns doesn't feel like one of those former World Champions that gets demoted back to the midcard to win titles there, like Miz. I know it looked like he would get demoted after his suspension and getting pinned cleanly a few times, but the WWE seems to be back to pushing him as a major player. If he does lose to Rusev, it won't be cleanly. And it would have to be in a way that still ends the feud to free him up to face Owens, if they want to go in that direction. I will just say Reigns wins this Sunday.