Cena Vs. Reigns

The big news for Raw this week was John Cena showing up. Not only that, but it seems they are already laying down the seeds for a feud between Cena and Roman Reigns.

Is it the right time for this? Obviously, it is the previous era's centerpiece vs. the new centerpiece. And I am not even talking about the time of year, such as whether or not they should save this for Wrestlemania. John Cena was WWE Champion just a couple months ago this year. Roman Reigns has not won a major title in over a year. Roman Reigns is on a terrible PPV losing streak. John Cena has been winning his last few PPV matches. Overall, John Cena has a good PPV record for 2017. Roman Reigns does not. Roman Reigns just does not look good for this feud.

Right now, Roman Reigns is really just all hype. They are still treating him like he is some top dog, but the booking just doesn't support it. He just lost at Summerslam, being the one Lesnar pinned to retain the title. Since they are not currently continuing the feud with Braun Strowman, it is safe to say Strowman won that feud with Reigns. I have said this before, some people might still buy into Roman Reigns just because of that hype, but the booking might leave some people saying he just sucks. The WWE just has not been doing a good job with him as centerpiece. And if they are not going to start doing it, it is just annoying to continue to hype this guy up like they do.

What about Cena? Should he have stayed on Smackdown? Personally, I still say he should have gotten a feud with Jinder Mahal. But Smackdown should be fine without him. There are a couple disgruntled people on Smackdown that deserve to be used better that may get it with John Cena no longer around. And the WWE can pull talent up from NXT. Smackdown will be fine.

Previewing The Summerslam 2017 Undercard Matches

A complaint I see from many fans recently is that the WWE was giving away too much of Summerslam this past week. They have had some matches that are supposed to also happen at the PPV. With the poor way a lot of the Summerslam matches have been developed, I am not too surprised that the WWE would try to shake things up in the final week before the PPV. That includes what happened to Baron Corbin on Smackdown.

New Day defend the Smackdown Tag Team Championships against The Usos. Nothing much to say here. New Day retain.

The Raw Tag Team Championships will be decided between Sheamus & Cesaro and the reunion of The Shield. Not only are the tag titles on the line, but there is a story here. I like that. I was just saying yesterday that some title feuds don't need a special story, while others can really use it. New Day vs. The Usos didn't need a special story. Just make it about the tag titles, let their gimmicks work, and then let them wrestle. With this Raw feud, there was potential for a story. Some might even say the story was necessary. Rollins betrayed The Shield years ago and Rollins and Ambrose had a heated feud. Could these two really come back together so easily? Should they win the tag titles? Some fans are already talking about the possibility of Ambrose turning on Seth. Too soon for that. Neither Rollins nor Ambrose have won a PPV match in a while, so I say they get the tag titles at Summerslam.

Akira Tozawa defends the Cruiserweight Championship against Neville. This was supposed to be Neville defending the title, but things got switched around when the WWE had the title match on Raw this week and allowed the title change. This was one of those matches that fans were scratching their heads about. This was a pretty dull feud. A lot of things about the cruiserweight division has been boring. If nothing else, having the unexpected title change shook things up. I would not be surprised at all if Neville wins it back at Summerslam. The WWE has shown they love this guy this year. They put a hold on tossing the title to random cruiserweights for his benefit. He has had a long reign. But he could very well become the first man to hold the title twice. Even though short reigns like this are rare, I will say Tozawa's reign does end.

Staying on Raw, Big Show vs. Cass. Enzo will be in a shark cage above the ring. They just did this with Jericho earlier in the year. I would say it is too soon to pull this trick out again. Prior to this year, it wasn't exactly used often in the WWE. Looking at parts of Cass's promo on Raw this week, he looks like he could be the next Edge. But he is missing something. I am not talking about his wrestling ability, even though that has not been that exciting. His promos just lack a certain intensity Edge had. And Big Show is tied into this situation. The WWE is already running a bit of an injury angle to make it look like Big Show is beatable. He should be losing this match. What will Enzo do? I think it would be for the best if he just turns heel and goes back with Cass. What else is there for Enzo to do?

Staying on the theme of Summerslam matches coming early, Bray Wyatt defeated Finn Balor on Raw this week. What happens at Summerslam? Demon Balor. This feud has been pretty dull, until this week. It started, then it got killed off. If they had done it smoothly, the match on Raw this week probably would have happened at the last Raw PPV. The WWE could then do a slower build to Balor going to his dark side to face Bray Wyatt. Things have definitely been rushed. But the WWE probably needed to do it. Balor wins here. Have to keep this gimmick looking strong.

Randy Orton vs. Rusev. This is one of those dry feuds. Not too interesting. I feel it could have been built up so much better. Even though signs point to Rusev possibly winning, I will say Orton wins. I will say why in a moment.

AJ Styles defends the United States Championship against Kevin Owens. Shane McMahon will ref. Is that really necessary? Well, it is what they are going with. These two have been feuding for a long time now. It should end here. AJ Styles retains.

Lastly, John Cena faces Baron Corbin. But the big news is that Baron Corbin cashed in the briefcase on Smackdown this week and lost. That's the end of that. This was one of those things that fans felt was wasted this week before Summerslam. Is Corbin in the doghouse? Is he suspended? No news of a suspension. And even if the WWE is not high on him, they could have still jobbed him out at Summerslam or a later date.

I was against Baron Corbin getting the briefcase in the first place. Needless to say, the WWE did not do that great of a job building him up since getting the briefcase. His feud development in the last month has been terrible. His feud against Shinsuke Nakamura should still be going on. This feud with Cena just lacked a great story. It just felt like both guys could have been doing something better. John Cena did have a small hand in Corbin failing to cash in, but the feud is still not that special. Pretty lackluster.

Who wins? I will say Baron Corbin. Unless he did do something wrong, he should get the win. John Cena has not done that well at Summerslam in recent years. Baron Corbin might even destroy Cena after the match to send him on his next hiatus. The reason I said Orton beats Rusev is because I do not see both Orton and Cena losing to midcard heels in the same night. If one of them has to bite the bullet, I will say it is Cena. Orton has not won a PPV match since Wrestlemania. Cena beat Rusev just last month.

Shinsuke Nakamura Vs. John Cena

Some people like to complain about everything. Yes, they sometimes make a good point in their complaints. Some of the time, however, you just have to let some things go. I see a lot of complaints with Shinsuke Nakamura vs. John Cena to decide who faces Jinder Mahal at Summerslam for the WWE Championship.

First, a lot of fans are unhappy that the WWE is wasting this match so soon. This is a dream match for a lot of wrestling fans, and the WWE is hyping it as such. I don't see a problem with it. The WWE still needs to draw in viewers. I will say, however, that thinking this match will draw great numbers is a stretch. Nakamura has not really broken out at all. Could the WWE have spent a little more time developing him so that his first singles match against John Cena might look a little more impressive? It might have been nice. At the very least, it is a fresh main event.

Going by what I just said about Nakamura not breaking out yet, I would say that could be a reason to complain. He did not exactly look like a winner at his last PPV match against Baron Corbin. He didn't lose, but he didn't get a decisive victory. And yet, this is the guy one win away from challenging for the WWE Championship at one of the biggest WWE PPVs of the year. Speaking in terms of momentum, I would not say he deserves to be in this spot. Either just give Cena the title shot or create some other situation for him to win it. I would even say his match against Rusev recently could  have been for a title shot. Remember, Rusev was complaining about wanting a title shot a while ago. That angle was dropped too easily. Nakamura just needs more time and to be developed better. Don't rush him.

Fans are also dreading John Cena beating Nakamura. It does not have to be a burial. Kevin Owens didn't exactly die after he lost his feud to John Cena. In fact, I have seen some fans complain recently about Kevin Owens getting so many needless title reigns. Yes, there is a history of Cena beating people and those people being demoted. But most of those situations are feuds in which the other person was just being built up to put over Cena. They only look great because the WWE wanted them to look great to serve a purpose. Once they were done serving that purpose, demoted. That is not going to happen here. Cena is no longer the centerpiece. And Nakamura has not exactly been developed well to be worth beating and burying. His stock is going up. Even if he loses, the WWE will still push him.

I am more worried about Nakamura winning. He shouldn't. He just debuted on the main roster a couple months ago. He has not been that impressive. Whether the majority of the blame goes to the WWE or him, it is just the way it is. Throwing him into a big push is just unnecessary. He should still be feuding with Baron Corbin. You can say there is no way he wins this match, but the WWE has done things like this in recent years. Some said that there was no way Finn Balor would defeat Roman Reigns last year to go to Summerslam to compete for the Universal Championship. He did. Some said that there was no way Finn Balor would be booked to beat Seth Rollins. He did. Then you have Jinder Mahal. No one could believe the reports when they first came out that he was going to get a title shot. He did. Many did not believe he would actually win the title. He did. Fans want the WWE to push new guys, but I think a lot of these same fans might admit the WWE is getting carried away. Even though it seems like it will not happen, there is still a real chance Shinsuke Nakamura wins this match, or it ends in a way in which both Cena and Nakamura go to face Mahal at Summerslam.

Regardless, I will go with Cena winning. He will face Jinder Mahal. Nakamura will still have options. This one loss won't kill him. I am sure Cena will be putting him over sooner or later.

Previewing The Battleground 2017 Men's Matches

It is sometimes amazing how the WWE can hype a crappy kickoff match like it is something special on their website. Tye Dillinger faces Aiden English. I don't care. Dillinger wins.

Climbing the ladder of relevance, Mike Kanellis vs. Sami Zayn. This is just a rematch. Nothing too special. But this is another match I just don't care about. The gimmick Mike and Maria have might have some potential, but boring feuds against a midcard jobber like Zayn won't bring that out. I will say Mike Kanellis wins.

Baron Corbin faces Shinsuke Nakamura. The fact that Corbin has the briefcase means nothing. The WWE has a history of having the person with the briefcase lose a lot. On the other hand, the WWE has a recent history of overpushing people they are grooming to be main-eventers, like Jinder Mahal. But I don't think that happens at the expense of Nakamura this Sunday. He wins.

New Day get another title shot against The Usos. The tag divisions are just so terrible on both shows. There probably won't be a Twitter movement to turn things around. The WWE might as well let New Day win the titles. If The Usos do retain, who is left to take the titles off them? They could go back to Tyler Breeze and Fandango. They have been gaining momentum. But New Day will likely get a reign before them.

Kevin Owens tries to win back the United States Championship from AJ Styles. No reason for Styles to drop the title so soon. That is, no GOOD reason to do it. The WWE might do it if they want a lame excuse to prolong this feud. Just end it either here or Summerslam. Create some fresh feuds with these midcarders many people, including myself, don't care about.

John Cena takes on Rusev in a Flag match. I'll give them credit for a gimmick match. But these two? Again? They feuded with each other before. The rivalry just isn't fresh. I am going to tell you what I would have done with both guys a little later. As for this match, Cena wins.

And inside the Punjabi Prison, Jinder Mahal defends the WWE Championship once again against Randy Orton. This feud should have been over already. And it just wasn't heated enough to deserve this gimmick match. Some people are speculating The Great Khali will return to help Mahal. We'll see. If nothing else, this match should give Jinder Mahal further credibility. He should be retaining.

How would I have done things with the last two matches I just talked about? Switch the opponents around. Jinder Mahal could have been entering a feud against John Cena. It could have been the same pro-USA feud you have in Rusev/Cena. Meanwhile, Rusev feuds with Orton. That is a fresh feud. These two have never feuded. Rusev was wanting a title match a couple months ago. Just have Randy Orton go out there after losing to Jinder Mahal at the previous Smackdown PPV and start talking about wanting another shot. Instead of getting it, however, Rusev shows up to continue his angle of wanting a title shot. Those two then feud. If the WWE wanted to put a title opportunity on the line, fine. It would have taken things in a fresh direction and not messed up the storylines that were going on too much.

Has Smackdown Lost Its Edge?

Despite rarely beating Raw in the ratings since the brand split came back last year, Smackdown has been the preferred brand for most vocal wrestling fans. These fans praised the writing and the booking, as well as the talent on the roster. Recently, however, I see more fans asking what went wrong with Smackdown. They don't think it is as great as it used to be. They might still think it is better than Raw most weeks, but it feels lacking to them. Has Smackdown lost what made it so great?

Let me start with the overall roster. Obviously, there were some big moves last month. Smackdown lost three of their top men to Raw. You saw all three of those top men in the Raw main event this week. I am talking about Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, and Miz. All Smackdown really gained was Kevin Owens. You can include Chris Jericho, but he isn't even around right now. I said Smackdown had gotten the short end of the stick in those trades. Obviously, there is more to it than just the talent.

How is the talent being utilized? How about the writing and booking? In that regard, Smackdown was always overrated. Just because it was better than Raw did not mean it was really that amazing. Some bad things still happened over there. How the women's division was being handled is one example. I would also throw in how Wyatt/Orton ended up being handled. Some people expected Jack Swagger to be utilized better when he went to Smackdown. That did not work out. Let me just look at a few specific things that fans ate up last year that are not as great right now for Smackdown.

First, John Cena. Yes, smarks have hated him for a number of years. Many still do. For the most part, Smackdown used him in a way that appealed to smarks. He went to Smackdown with his feud against AJ Styles still going. The fact that he lost to Styles a few times just made smarks extremely glad. AJ Styles was also ripping him in many promos. Even though Cena did get a title reign, it was short. After that short title reign, Cena entered a feud with Miz, who once again ripped him a little bit on the mic. And fans ate that up, once again. With Cena not around right now, fans can't get excited over him jobbing cleanly to guys like Nakamura or getting ripped on the mic by someone like Kevin Owens.

Part of the problem definitely seems to be that smarks don't have that person they hate that they can get excited to see get beaten up or humiliated. That is one of the reasons many of these fans love Braun Strowman. He's been destroying Roman Reigns. If the WWE had Roman Reigns job cleanly more often and had those storylines where other wrestlers ripped him on the mic, smarks would eat it up and talk about how "amazing" it all is. I have seen it before. I hate these kind of storylines, but smarks love them. And the lack of a target makes it hard to create these storylines to please them on Smackdown.

Look at AJ Styles. He is someone wrestling fans respected for a long time now. But he seemed like a real A+ player on Smackdown as a heel. Has he lost his edge as a face? He had that heated feud with John Cena. He then went on to another heated feud with Shane McMahon. Currently, his feud with Kevin Owens lacks that heat. Everyone said he was like a pit bull during his heel run, and that is why he was able to be successful. What happens when you turn him face? Can he be as appealing? Or does he get boring to some fans?

I do not think a face turn has to ruin someone's edgy character. Look at "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. As a face, this guy still raised hell and was one of the best centerpieces of all time. Look at The Rock. As a face, this guy still owned people on the mic like no other and has transcended wrestling. I am not saying AJ Styles is like those two. But he does not have to be boring as a face. Wrestling fans will continue to love him, but the lack of edge might bore certain other fans.

I would say Smackdown has lost some of its edge. The reality-based storylines that excited so many fans are not there right now. John Cena, someone smarks could enjoy being a symbolic punching bag, is not there right now. AJ Styles has lost his heated character. It was always going to be difficult to sustain what Smackdown was doing for the last few months since the brand split came back. Is it that smarks are too demanding and can be unreasonable? Probably. Nevertheless, Smackdown is coming back down to Earth and it remains to be seen how the writers will respond.

Wrestlemania 33 Preview: Part 3

Today goes to the Smackdown matches. I will talk about Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt on Friday.

Let me start with the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. It is not Smackdown exclusive, but I will include it here. Big Show is in this. His match with Shaq is not happening. That is sad for Big Show and too bad for the WWE. This match would have been a draw. Even if the actual match was terrible, the hype would get mainstream attention, especially during NBA season, and it would draw. The WWE really has no great feuds likely to draw big this year. As for who wins this, it should be either Braun Strowman or Luke Harper. Both these guys had a lot of interest on them this Wrestlemania season. Many fans might see it as a little disappointing that neither are doing anything more important, I will say Braun Strowman wins.

Dean Ambrose defends the Intercontinental Championship against Baron Corbin. An actual singles match for the Intercontinental Championship at Wrestlemania? I never thought I would see that again. I am not surprised to see Corbin getting this push, and I expect him to win. But I just feel it should have been Dolph Ziggler in the position Dean Ambrose is currently in. Ziggler had so much momentum when he won the title a few months ago. The WWE ruined that for no good reason and Ziggler is stuck with mediocrity for Wrestlemania. They ruined him. I am not saying it was intentional. They had planted the seeds for a heel turn since his WWE Championship feud with Dean Ambrose, but they should not have gone through with it. Fans have just not reacted to it very well. It should be Ziggler dropping the title to Baron Corbin. Free up Dean Ambrose for a better feud.

John Cena and Nikki Bella take on Miz and Maryse. Before I talk about what this match means for some of the performers, there is speculation that Cena might propose to Nikki after they win. I never thought this would be something I would preview for a match. It would be a huge Wrestlemania moment, but I will just leave that alone. If it happens, it happens.

What does this feud mean for Nikki Bella? This is a periphery angle. It is on the periphery of the title scene. The WWE created all their successful stars during the diva era through the periphery. The only woman during the previous era to get very over without proper periphery angles was Mickie James, and that was not because the WWE wanted it. But I would say this push is once again showing why so many women became stars in the periphery back in the day. Nikki Bella is looking good. She is getting a rub from one of the top stars in the company. She is knocking men around, even if they are jobbers. She is guaranteed a spot on the Wrestlemania card that is not on the pre-show. All these elaborate segments. Big Wrestlemania moment. This is how you push a woman as something special. I wish Mickie James had gotten these type of pushes back in the day, or even now.

Compare it to the mess that is the Smackdown Women's Championship match. It's Alexa Bliss vs. everyone. Naomi just returned. There might still be more women in this match. No one has gotten proper development here. It is just a cluster. This match is on the pre-show and it deserves to be on the pre-show. That is not an insult to these women. That is an insult towards how the WWE has handled the title picture here. No one should feel bad for Nikki Bella not being in this match. She is in a better place.

Does she deserve it? I think so. The WWE put a lot of work into her to make her into a star. She is not absolutely terrible in the ring. She is more over than some fans seem to want to admit. And since the WWE needs more women properly pushed as stars that can get over beyond just the wrestling fans, they should push her well.

What does this feud mean for John Cena? I will say that I feel Cena deserves better than this. When you think of all the big feuds they could have had this Wrestlemania season, Cena vs. The Undertaker was one. Or Cena could have continued his feud with AJ Styles to some sort of gimmick match at Wrestlemania. Or turn Ambrose heel and have him feud with Cena. I already said Dolph Ziggler should be in the spot Ambrose is in. Or a feud with Miz that isn't also about the women in their corner. John Cena will likely win this match, but I feel the feud is better for Nikki Bella than John Cena.

Lastly, AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon. This is another match that really does not need to happen. AJ Styles should be doing better than this. And Shane McMahon does not need to be wrestling every year. Yes, welcome back. You've been gone a long time. That doesn't mean you need to wrestle every Wrestlemania. Whether it is the WWE wanting Shane to wrestle because they think it would draw or it is an ego thing for Shane wanting to go out there and sacrifice his body for cheers and respect, just ease it down. Save it for special occasions, which will hopefully not be forced.

And that is what this feud is, forced. Someone has issues with an authority figure, so they have a match. Stephanie McMahon has had issues with Charlotte, Sasha Banks, and Bayley in recent years. No matches ever came of it. You can run down the list of times a wrestler and authority figure have had issues and not wrestled each other. The WWE tried to force this feud through clumsy booking to make it seem like AJ Styles had a heated reason to want to destroy Shane McMahon. Yeah, some nice segments here and there, but it was still forced and not organic. Ignoring the botched battle royal result, AJ Styles wins a match to get a title shot at Wrestlemania, but then the WWE makes him put it on the line against Orton? How often does this happen? Usually, they just make a triple threat or some other situation where both guys get title shots. You would think that is what face authority figures would do. No, the WWE went with clumsy booking to sell this feud. The development has not been smooth.

What should AJ Styles be doing? As I said, he could still be feuding with Cena. And maybe it should have been for the WWE Championship. I have said before that I don't think Orton/Wyatt needs to be for the title. Why not send one of the best feuds of the last few months to Wrestlemania? Or they could have done Styles vs. The Undertaker.  Even Styles vs. Luke Harper might have been good, since it would have given Harper something meaningful and would have been a very good match. There were options.

Who wins? AJ Styles has still yet to win at Wrestlemania. He should have won last year. This should be the year. Shane McMahon does not need the win. As for match quality, Shane McMahon does have a history of going big in big matches. Let's just hope he doesn't injure himself.

Previewing The 2017 Elimination Chamber Men's Matches

First match to talk about will be Dolph Ziggler vs. both Apollo Crews and Kalisto. This might be another instance of the WWE trying to get too fancy with a feud. This match could easily have been just Ziggler vs. Crews. It might not be too interesting, but this PPV is featuring an Elimination Chamber match. That is the big selling point right there.

Or is the WWE planning something more with this match? The odds are against the heel. They could pull a swerve and have Apollo Crews turn heel and help Ziggler win. Ziggler is no stranger to having some muscle at his side. You can also say this heel turn for him has been a bit forced or that he might be trying too hard. Maybe the WWE will give him a sidekick to help him. As for Crews, he hasn't really done anything important in the longest while. A heel turn might at least give him a chance to show a different personality, which might help him.

Who wins this? There are a lot of possibilities and a lot of things to consider. I just brought up the heel turn option. Ziggler is the one being pushed, so he should win. At the same time, two faces would look bad if they lost this match without major shenanigans, although Apollo Crews and Kalisto aren't exactly too important. I will say Ziggler wins.

Randy Orton faces Luke Harper. Forgetting the Royal Rumble win for Orton, this match was just the logical step in the storyline Orton has with Bray Wyatt. Randy Orton drives away Bray's top disciple, then the path is cleared for Orton to turn on Bray. Randy Orton seriously did not need that Royal Rumble win.

Who wins this? I don't see Luke Harper in line to get a huge push moving forward. If he was, I might say he wins this. Since that is not the case, Orton wins.

American Alpha defend the tag titles against The Usos, The Ascension, The Vaudevillains, Breezango, and Heath Slater & Rhyno. Did I miss anyone? The tag division is probably something else I should try to take time out to talk about in this hectic Wrestlemania season. A lot has been going on in the last few weeks, including title changes. Is the WWE making good booking decisions? Are they developing teams properly? Well, there are a bunch of jobbers in this match. The WWE might have done better by just building a feud between American Alpha and The Usos.

I think this match might just come down to those two teams. One of them will win. The title reign of American Alpha is still young, so they should retain here. However, the WWE has had some questionable title changes in the last few months. It's not just with the Cruiserweight Championship. It would be nice to let more of these title reigns develop more. No need for reigns of doom, but a few months and successful title defenses would be nice. I will say American Alpha retain.

And the main event will be John Cena defending the WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber against Bray Wyatt, AJ Styles, Miz, Dean Ambrose, and Baron Corbin. There is a lot I would have liked to have said about this match, including running down each of these guys, but I've already talked about a lot today and I'll just save time by talking about three guys. Keep in mind, the winner of this match likely faces the Royal Rumble winner, Randy Orton, unless some huge swerve happens.

If you're going by what Dave Meltzer's sources are telling him, Bray Wyatt is winning the title and facing Randy Orton. I can just end it right here and go make a sandwich. Whether the WWE does it or not, this is a terrible booking decision. It is amazing how the WWE could take what was my favorite storyline going on at one time and ruin it by just trying to do too much. I thought the way they had Randy Orton just join The Wyatts was bad enough, but this was just not a feud that needed to involve Randy Orton winning the Royal Rumble and Bray Wyatt winning the WWE Championship. I am not against Bray Wyatt finally winning a top title, but now is not the time for it.

Look at the incumbent. Look at the guy holding the title heading into the PPV. That would be John Cena. He just won the title a few short weeks ago. I wouldn't be too shocked if he lost it so soon. Moreover, Cena retaining would mean Randy Orton vs. John Cena. They just faced each other in a singles match this week. These two have never faced each other in a singles match at Wrestlemania, but I think a lot of fans can live with not seeing it. Going in this direction would also put the Orton/Wyatt angle in an interesting position. What happens there?

The last name I will bring up is AJ Styles. He held the title prior to Cena. A feud and match between Randy Orton and AJ Styles would be fresh and something I have seen some fans interested in. The main problem here is that it would ruin the Orton/Wyatt feud. I can have an easier time imagining Orton vs. Cena with Bray Wyatt hovering in the background than Orton vs. Styles with Bray Wyatt hovering in the background.

Who wins this? Because of all the crappy possibilities, I am not even going to take this seriously. I'll say Jinder Mahal beats up Baron Corbin before the match, takes his spot, and wins the title. Randy Orton just should not have won the Royal Rumble. I am a fan of Randy Orton. I don't own a lot of wrestling merchandise, but Randy Orton is one of the guys I have bought merchandise of. But it is just hard to get excited for this push for him when so many epic feuds could have been built with someone else winning the Royal Rumble. I would rather see John Cena vs. The Undertaker at Wrestlemania for the title. The feud between Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton just didn't need all this.

Randy Orton Wins 2017 Royal Rumble

I had said that this year's Royal Rumble was more unpredictable than the last few years. And Randy Orton  winning the Royal Rumble match was not something I even brought up. Yes, I saw the rumors and betting sites saying he was the likely winner. But how is something worth predicting when you are going by what sources are supposedly saying?

A lot of fans are just happy that it was not Roman Reigns, who was the big surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble. This was a really disappointing Rumble match in terms of surprise appearances. A lot of fans are also unhappy about how the match was booked overall. This will definitely not go down as one of the best Royal Rumbles.

How about Orton winning his second Royal Rumble? I am a Randy Orton fan, but even I am not too thrilled about this. I was just more excited to see other individuals get the big push that felt like they deserved it more. There were some part-timers that looked like they could use this win to create a great title feud for Wrestlemania. I am thinking about Goldberg and The Undertaker. This is one year where a part-timer main-eventing Wrestlemania might have been okay. Miz had been developing some momentum in the last few months. Winning the Royal Rumble would have been huge for him. He has his credibility back. Randy Orton just did not need it or deserve it.

There are two feud possibilities for Orton at Wrestlemania. The obvious one is him feuding against the new WWE Champion, John Cena. These two have gone at it multiple times over the years in title matches. They have never faced each other in a singles match at Wrestlemania. But how many people really care about this feud? Even though these two have been the top two guys of the company for a decade now, this isn't like Austin vs. The Rock. A lot of fans could have watched those two feud forever.

The other option is the continuation of the feud Orton has going on right now, and dirtsheets have penciled in as what will happen. Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt for the WWE Championship. Wyatt wins the title at Elimination Chamber. This is another option that is just not good. I was a fan of this feud at one time. That feels like a long time ago. At a time with so many sour storylines and bringing up real-life situations, this was a feud that just played off of both men's gimmicks. But then the WWE got too fancy and tried to do too much. They took a feud that could have lasted just 2 to 4 months and turned it into a storyline that will last half a year or longer. This feud doesn't deserve to be main-eventing Wrestlemania, and it likely won't. Even though these two main-evented a Smackdown PPV a few months ago, they shouldn't have. This is an upper-midcard feud.

And that is what Randy Orton winning the Royal Rumble feels like. It feels like an upper-midcarder won it. It feels the same way as when Sheamus won it years ago. When you have so many other guys with more momentum to them than Randy Orton, his win last night just doesn't feel as big. I just don't know if they can create something as epic for Randy Orton as they could have with certain other guys. As I said, his rivalry with Cena isn't as epic as Austin/Rock, and his feud with Bray Wyatt has turned into an example of the WWE trying to do too much.

As of right now, I am not too excited for this year's Wrestlemania. There is still a lot of time for feuds to fall into place, but the WWE killed a lot of epic possibilities already. And some of the other likely matches don't feel that epic. I wonder if the WWE will realize this and panic and try something big.

Previewing The Royal Rumble 2017 Undercard Matches

I talked about Raw's women's matches yesterday. Smackdown has since added a women's tag match, but it is really just filler, lumping together the various feuds they are developing there, so I'm not going to go back to talk about that. Today is about the men's matches at the Royal Rumble, outside of the actual Royal Rumble match. I will get to that on Friday.

Sheamus & Cesaro defend the Raw Tag Team Titles against Gallows & Anderson. And the WWE is highlighting that there will be two refs for this match. There are just times when the WWE tries to get too fancy. It is nice that they are trying to develop a storyline for a title feud that goes beyond just the titles, but this is a pretty dumb story. It is based on a story of clumsy officiating. You had an awkward ending to a match a few weeks ago between these two teams, and that has led to this rematch with two refs. The awkward ending you had to Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker at Summerslam a few years ago was one thing. But the WWE needs to realize that they didn't strike gold with angles like this.

If you can ignore the ref drama, there are two teams fighting for the tag titles. Sheamus and Cesaro just really got the reign started. Anderson & Gallows still don't feel like they deserve a title run. I will say the titles stay with Cesaro and Sheamus.

Not everyone that gets a title reign is being groomed to be a star. Some people are given title reigns so they can drop the belt to the person the WWE intends to be a star. Some people are given title reigns just for the sake of filler, such as when a star is injured and the WWE is just killing time until they return. When I look at the cruiserweight division, I don't think the WWE is trying to make stars at all. None of the three men that have held the title so far look like stars. It looks like the WWE is just going through the motions with everyone. I won't say too much about that here. Maybe another day.

The Cruiserweight Championship will be on the line between Rich Swann and Neville. Neville turned heel and is getting the best push he has gotten on the main roster. He was on the main roster before the cruiserweight division returned. He has had his ups and downs, including an injury and coming back to not much of a response from the fans. But he is at least refreshed by this heel turn. Given what I just said about the WWE not developing stars in this division, I don't think they will have a problem taking the title off Rich Swann and putting it on Neville. But will it happen here? I will say the title change happens.



Onto the World Championship matches. For Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens, the match will be No DQ. Oh, and Chris Jericho will be locked in a shark cage above the ring. Here is the WWE just going too goofy again. I'm surprised they are not forcing Chris Jericho to also dress up as La Luchadora. Why not? He wore a mask a couple months ago to screw Seth Rollins. I am sure they can work the angle in there somehow. The WWE definitely should do more to make the atmosphere more fun, but there are just some ideas that are really stupid. They can ruin a storyline or hurt the performers themselves. There was a serious, strong storyline with Seth Rollins for a while, and that was good. But then the WWE couldn't sustain it and Seth started acting goofy at points, losing his edge. That storyline between Seth Rollins and Triple H, which I will talk about another day, has definitely lost value. As for individuals not working out when they get a goofy angle, remember Gallows & Anderson trying to be comedians? That flopped.


Chris Jericho being locked in a cage is bad enough. And then suspending it above the ring? I know this kind of thing is not unheard of, but it still seems dumb. Why not just say Jericho will get fired if he gets involved in any way? He has a title now. Why not say he will be stripped of the title? Why not say Kevin Owens will be stripped of HIS title if Chris Jericho even thinks about getting involved? Face it, Jericho is still likely to find a way to get involved anyway. They just wanted to come up with a goofy angle for this feud. In some cases, it could be a distraction.




If people watching this Sunday can direct their attention a few feet below Chris Jericho, they might see a match going on for Raw's top title. I cannot picture Kevin Owens heading into Wrestlemania as Universal Champion. I can picture him facing Chris Jericho for the United States Championship, which will be a feud featuring their friendship finally coming to an end. For that to happen, Owens must lose the Universal Championship. Losing it to Reigns at the Royal Rumble just makes sense. They can have their rematch next month, where Jericho will inadvertently screw Owens and set their feud up. Roman Reigns then moves on to a bigger opponent for Wrestlemania.

John Cena faces AJ Styles for the WWE Championship. Cena needs one more World title win to tie Ric Flair's record. He has had multiple opportunities to do it over the last few years. It is going to happen sooner or later.

Before considering the match, look at the feud between AJ Styles and John Cena. It has been the same complaining and self-righteousness you have seen a lot over the years with John Cena. It caused some buzz when CM Punk did it. It didn't draw, but it created buzz with smarks. And smarks are once again eating this stuff up. They have done it multiple times now. It isn't fresh anymore. It isn't entertaining. It isn't helping the WWE's numbers. If anything, I am getting to the point where I am ready to say that all this is laziness on the part of the WWE. They cannot come up with entertaining storylines, so they just look at smarks and base their promos and storylines off of what they want to hear. And they keep rehashing the same thing. There might be a different variation here and there, but it is all pretty much the same thing. There is a reason the Nexus angle led to a better ratings bump than the summer angle of CM Punk dropping pipebombs and walking out on the company. The Nexus angle did not even lead to any of the members becoming as big a star as CM Punk ended up, ignoring Daniel Bryan, who was kicked out of the group early. The Nexus angle was pure kayfabe, rookies going crazy and trying to take over. CM Punk's angle was based on reality, his issues with not being pushed better. AJ Styles is definitely following in the path of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, another guy that got a big push involving real issues of the company not wanting to push him better. But the whole storyline just doesn't work as well here. AJ Styles has not been held back like other guys have been for years in the WWE. John Cena has not been pushed as annoyingly as he has in the past. A lot of these promos with Styles and Cena is just beating a dead horse. They are not really saying anything new to spark interest.

As for the match, the outcome might not matter. Smackdown has already announced an Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship. I don't think John Cena will have to wait much longer for his next title run. But I think AJ Styles will retain at the Royal Rumble. Cena can then win it inside the Elimination Chamber.

Who Should Be Smackdown's Centerpiece?

Last time, I talked about Raw and the centerpiece picture there. You can argue for either Roman Reigns or Seth Rollins being centerpiece over there. What about Smackdown?

You can start by immediately crossing John Cena off the list. He has been the centerpiece of the entire company for a long time. There are a few reasons why he should not, and will not, be the centerpiece of Smackdown. First, he's a part-timer. In terms of title reigns, 2016 was a dead year for Cena. He was injured. He took time off for projects outside the WWE. It seems all he did was put over AJ Styles last year. Besides his part-time status, he is also old. He will be 40 this year. Without even going into his issues connecting with fans over the years, he just does not look like someone you would push as the centerpiece.

He looks like he can really fit that role Shawn Michaels had in his last few years with the WWE. Shawn Michaels still won titles and had some big matches, but he was more of a "special attraction" kind of guy. Other guys were really featured as the centerpiece, whether you want to talk about Triple H or John Cena. John Cena will still be pushed and win titles, but he won't be featured as annoyingly as he has been in previous years. Hopefully, that can lessen some of the complaining. It gets old after a while. Of course, smarks will still complain if he beats AJ Styles for the title.

How about AJ Styles? Should he be centerpiece? Well, John Cena isn't the only one turning 40 in 2017. Brock Lesnar is also reaching the milestone. And Gail Kim. Besides those three, AJ Styles will also be 40. If I brought it up for Cena, I have to bring this issue up for Styles. He doesn't look 40, but he is. He stays relatively healthy, despite his injury issue last month. But with the style he likes to wrestle, you have to wonder how many years he really has.

I am not saying AJ Styles doesn't deserve to be pushed as a main-eventer. He can still be pushed as an A-tier talent. But this is about whom the WWE should groom to be the true central focus of Smackdown. I don't think that's AJ Styles. Aside from his age, the WWE has not done a good job developing him to be a star for the wider audience. They have just put him out there as a great wrestler that has been doing this for a long time and are resting on that. Wrestling fans may be eating it up, but if AJ Styles had been pushed better, maybe he would be helping Smackdown better.

Let me stay on the age issue for a moment. I remember fans complaining when wrestling promotions would rely on old talent. I have seen fans say WCW failed because they started to rely on old talent and didn't groom new stars. When Hulk Hogan, one of the people blamed for WCW's demise, went to TNA, I saw the same complaints again. 40 isn't ancient, but a wrestler at this age is certainly not a youngster anymore. Are we entering another era where older talents are going to be relied on to be top stars? Is that what some wrestling fans want, as long as these old wrestlers know how to wrestle? I don't think so, but the WWE does have to do a better job grooming younger guys.

How about Dean Ambrose? Here's someone that's not yet close to 40. He is a former member of The Shield. His two friends are the top choices to be centerpiece of Raw. Is Dean Ambrose the Smackdown equivalent? He looks like it, but he doesn't really seem that great of a choice. As I have said before, The Shield looked amazing as a group, but none of these guys have achieved their full potential on their own. Dean Ambrose is just one of those guys. Again, I am not saying he should not be a main-eventer, but it just looks like his overness isn't where it should be. A lot of smarks prefer AJ Styles over him. He might have a unique personality that will help him stand out more, something that Styles does not have. Overall, he doesn't look like he should be the centerpiece.

I would say Smackdown should just go without a centerpiece for now. Split the spotlight between the likes of John Cena, Dean Ambrose, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt, Miz, Dolph Ziggler, and so on. In other words, continue doing what they have been doing. Despite the praise Smackdown gets from smarks, it still has issues. They are efficient, more than Raw is, but they still have to work on their overall atmosphere. Is this a show that wants to please wrestling fans? Is this a show aiming for the wider audience. I don't see a clear identity. They need to build around what they want to be. After that, they can worry about building stars and a centerpiece. Right now, they are really just going with guys that were established for years. All those men I mentioned were getting major pushes even before 2016. In the case of AJ Styles, it came in promotions all over the world. Despite all that praise, can Smackdown make stars and go beyond just pleasing smarks?

What Do You Make Of John Cena?

When John Cena feuded against The Rock a few years ago, one of the talking points was Cena hating that The Rock just left the WWE. Was Cena truly upset about it? Or were the two of them just trying to cause a little drama? Whatever the case may be, Cena has become a part-timer, himself. Is he a hypocrite? Has he seen things a different way? Whatever it is, he isn't around that much.

When Cena came to Smackdown, that was supposedly a plus for the show. Cena is supposed to be this huge draw for the last decade. People talk about him drawing at house shows. They can pull up numbers for that. But do they pull up numbers for fans that have just gotten sick of Cena and stopped watching or coming to events? Is it a net gain or net loss when it comes to John Cena?

Of course, part of the problem has been how the WWE has chosen to use John Cena. There have been nights where he could have been used on the televised portion of Smackdown and the WWE chose not to. They have not hidden the fact that Cena is not there every night. Cena used to give these self-righteous promos about being there every night. It wasn't true when he said it then, and if he tries to say that kind of thing again, he's definitely a liar.

In terms of viewership, Smackdown has just been underachieving. With or without Cena, they have not been beating Raw. In fact, some of their recent viewership numbers are in the same area you had earlier this year, when they weren't even live. All things considered, I think that is a sign of underachieving.

In terms of feuds, what can you say about the lack of Cena? With the brand split back, there are two ways the WWE could handle limited rosters. One way is to have long feuds involving the same people. The other way is to rotate guys that would normally not get certain pushes. Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens is an example of a long feud. If the WWE had chosen to bring in someone like Cesaro to feud with Kevin Owens, that would be an example of rotating guys to make fresh feuds. The WWE is obviously going with long feuds, not rotating guys properly. If Cena was around, that would be another guy to be used in the main-event scene, which is something Smackdown needs, especially if they are not going to rotate fresh talent. It looks like Dean Ambrose is moving away from AJ Styles, which is a good thing. James Ellsworth is another story. But there are so many other guys on the roster that could be used better.

You also have to keep in mind the number of faces. Cena is not around. Randy Orton is playing a heel, whether that is a long-term thing or not. Someone like Dolph Ziggler could be elevated, but the WWE might not be interested. Dean Ambrose, who seems to be the real face that runs the place right now, has already been feuding with AJ Styles for too long. Some call him stale. Some point out him getting booed. Some say he should turn heel. Well, they can't do that right now. Who would they push as top face? AJ Styles? Just because smarks like him? That might ruin a lot of feuds the WWE has planned going forward.

So, what do you make of John Cena? Is he someone the WWE needs right now? He won't fix the ratings issue, but he will make life easier in terms of depth and refreshing some feuds. The WWE put themselves in this predicament. If they utilized the entire roster more efficiently, there would not be a discussion about Cena needing to come back. Let him make all the Hefty commercials he wants.

If Cena still remains a part-timer, which is likely, how should the WWE treat him? Should he be paid the same as The Rock and Brock Lesnar, guys that are expected to create a buzz when they show up? John Cena isn't that kind of part-timer. He isn't special like that. Maybe if he took a few years off, then came back to be a part-timer. If anything, and I'm sure the WWE won't do it, I would pay Cena less. Restructure his contract to be more friendly to the company. Sports stars do it all the time. If Cena cares about the company so much, he would put aside his individual monetary gain and help the company to properly afford other talent. With Cena getting all these gigs outside the WWE, it isn't like he needs to put the WWE on the spot financially.

Final No Mercy 2016 Preview

Jack Swagger jumped ship to Smackdown and finds himself in a feud with Baron Corbin. This will be the pre-show match for No Mercy. Both of these guys have potential, but Corbin really needs to look a little better in his rookie year. Let him win this.

The tag titles will be defended when Heath Slater & Rhyno face The Usos. Normally, I would say that the person or team that just won a title will obviously retain so soon after the win. But the smart thing to do would be to give the titles to The Usos. Giving the titles to Slater & Rhyno was not a mistake. That angle involving Heath Slater was the best thing going for a while. It deserved the tag titles. But the WWE should not make the same mistake here that they have made with New Day. A lot of teams that had momentum and could have used the tag titles for their own credibility and to create fresher feuds were passed up so New Day can still hold the titles. Heath Slater had his moment. Rhyno is over 40 and got to make history in the wrestling business one more time. The Usos were stale as faces for a while, but have been refreshed since turning heel. There is also the fact that American Alpha is a project the WWE is working on and a feud between them and The Usos might just be a better title feud. It's not like Slater & Rhyno just won the titles and are dropping them immediately. Not even counting house shows, they had a successful title defense on Smackdown against The Ascension. It would be no tragedy if The Usos won, especially while they still had the freshness.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Miz has everyone guessing. I have seen speculation and rumors for every possibility. Some say this feud is obviously building up to Ziggler getting his moment and winning the Intercontinental Championship. Some say Ziggler is really leaving the WWE. Some say he is just taking a break and will be repackaged when he returns. Remember when there was all this speculation and excitement for CM Punk when he got his big push? Would he win the title? Would he leave the WWE with it? That was for the WWE Championship. This is for the Intercontinental Championship. I still feel it is a waste to spend all this emotion just for a midcard title Ziggler has held multiple times. He's not breaking the glass ceiling here. But this has still become a very heated feud. Many fans might say that this is classic booking. You build a heel up to look terrible, the face gets his revenge, and everyone is happy. I would rather see Ziggler lose. I don't hate Ziggler. I don't love Miz. But I just feel Ziggler winning would be kind of dull, and for the same reason I just gave. This is just a midcard version of what they did with CM Punk. It is not as exciting. The WWE has tried to make it heated with these big segments, all the emotion, and everything else, but I just don't care for it as much as others. I would have Miz retain. The WWE, however, might have Ziggler win.

Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt has been one of the more enjoyable feuds for me. That is obviously not the popular smark opinion. Them fans love them some complainin'! If you are a smark and love those "Reality Era" storylines that feature all that complaining and drama based off real events, that's you. Don't mean to offend anyone, but I even joke about myself sometimes, so people should know I am not just being a jerk. I have seen some fans irritated by this feud because it doesn't make sense. They are trying too hard to read into the segments. Why does it need to make sense? The Hardys have been having success these last few months off of a gimmick leading to matches that don't always make sense. Some fans want Bray Wyatt to bring up the history he and Randy Orton have. Orton had punted Bray Wyatt back when he was still Husky Harris. Those fans seem to want this feud to just be Wyatt complaining about Orton doing that to him. I am glad the writers have not gone in that direction. Just feed off of Bray's gimmick. I love that they are having Orton play the same games. Is it possible to still have an intriguing storyline that is not tied to some real-life drama? Here's one that has been doing a pretty good job. As for who wins, Randy Orton has still not won a PPV match in a year. Bray Wyatt has also not had the best win-loss record this year, but he has been on the winning side of some PPV matches. Let Orton finally win a PPV match here. Either way, the feud might likely continue. And smarks might finally see the storyline turn more real and Bray mention getting that punt years ago. Until then, it has been my favorite current storyline.

The WWE Championship will be on the line when AJ Styles defends against John Cena and Dean Ambrose. This feud seems pretty routine. There have been some heated promos. You've seen that a lot these days. I already pointed out that these kind of storylines and segments just don't do it for me. Cena has stuff to do outside the WWE. I hear Ambrose is taking time off to make another movie for the WWE. AJ Styles just won the title a few weeks ago. No need to take it off him so soon. Just to keep talking about this match a little more, who takes the pin? A lot of people are saying Ambrose is just in the match to get pinned. It just seems like this feud will not end with AJ Styles looking so good against Cena. I would say Ambrose does take the pin, leaving Styles/Cena to eventually continue their feud. Cena might be the guy to win the title from Styles at Wrestlemania next year.

AJ Styles Vs. Dean Ambrose Vs. John Cena

AJ Styles won the WWE Championship at Backlash. It wasn't completely clean, but that doesn't really matter. I still say they should have waited. They kind of made it feel rushed. In any case, Dean Ambrose has a rematch coming.

There is more to the story than just that. John Cena came back on Smackdown this week to confront AJ Styles and throw his hat into the ring for the title. John Cena had "disappeared" after losing cleanly to AJ at Summerslam. Cena was never really gone. He showed up here and there, including working house shows. The WWE just tried to sell an angle by having Cena not be around. It gave AJ the free path to feud with Ambrose and get the title. Again, not how I would have handled things, but there you have it. AJ Styles has two faces chasing after him.

Dean Ambrose and John Cena are no strangers to chasing after the same target. A few years ago, both had their eyes set on Seth Rollins. That didn't lead to a triple-threat match. Dean Ambrose won the right to face Rollins first. Cena eventually still got Rollins. That was a heated feud back then, even before Cena was inserted.

I don't feel the title feud between AJ Styles and Dean Ambrose was as heated as Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose. And simply tossing back in John Cena doesn't make it that heated, but the WWE gave it a good try on Smackdown this week with that promo involving the three men. There were some exchanges last night that are the kind of stuff smarks will eat up. The WWE has just been relying on that kind of thing too much recently. Certain fans may always love hearing it, but if it is only this self-righteous chatter with nothing big coming of it, the wider audience won't care as much. The WWE has a lot of work to do to draw in those fans and keep them.

Previewing The Sumerslam 2016 Undercard Matches

Cesaro and Sheamus are going to have a "Best of Seven" series, the first match happening at Summerslam. These two have already faced each other multiple times. This is a boring feud that did not need to be extended this long. I would have expected this feud to end at Summerslam and both men to move on to other things. This was not even a feud that felt heated enough to need a gimmick to it, like I have said about certain other feuds, like Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn. There is a feud where a "Best of Seven" might have been more appealing. In any case, who wins this Sunday? Doesn't matter. I will say Sheamus. Let Cesaro have to come from behind. This is flavored filler for a few weeks, I'll give the WWE that.

Enzo & Cass take on Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens. I am not going to call the heels by their team name. These kind of teams never last long and there is no point getting hooked. Enzo & Cass are a hot act and I will say they win here. The heels have the momentum heading into Sunday. I will also say that the feud continues past Summerslam. There is more potential for good promos here than with Cesaro vs.Sheamus, one of the things that makes extended feuds more bearable and even enjoyable.

New Day defend the tag titles against The Club. No Big E in this match. New Day already has the record, so the WWE might as well take the titles off them. I just don't think Anderson & Gallows look that great right now. I have talked about it before. Are they destructive badasses, which helped groups like The Shield be successful? Or are they a new kind of DX? I see some fans a little unhappy with how they are now being featured. Other fans like the humor. Either way, most wrestling fans would probably like them getting the titles, and they probably will.

Miz defends the Intercontinental Championship against Apollo Crews. I just don't feel like Crews has really broken out yet. He probably will win the Intercontinental Championship one day, which won't help him break out, but I will say Miz retains here. Make it a journey for Apollo Crews. Maybe that will help fans buy into him more.

Outside of the title feud between Dean Ambrose and Dolph Ziggler, Smackdown's big feud is AJ Styles vs. John Cena. And it has been pretty routine. It feels like a weaker version of Cena vs. CM Punk. Styles is following in the path of workers like Punk and Daniel Bryan. But those two workers just had pushes that helped them to break out, whether the WWE wanted it or not. AJ Styles just feels like a guy that has gone with the flow of wherever the WWE had taken him this year. Although they have treated him pretty well, Styles does not look like an A+ player. As for who wins this match, AJ seems likely to win. Cena destroyed him on Smackdown this week. Besides that, Cena will eventually take time off again. Will Styles be the one to write him off eventually? If that is the case, maybe they will let Cena win at Summerslam and let AJ Styles look even more impressive down the line against Cena when they do give him time off. For now, I will stick with AJ Styles winning at Summerslam.

Raw's big match, outside of Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor, is Roman Reigns vs. Rusev for the United States Championship. It has even gotten the main-event slot the last two weeks. Is that because the WWE still wants Roman Reigns as the centerpiece? Or do they just realize the third hour is doing poorly most of the time and will stick their #2 feud there? Whatever the case, Roman Reigns is still being pushed better than some fans might have expected.

He might even be getting pushed better than some fans actually want. I see some fans talking about how it would send a terrible message if they let him win the United States Championship. What do some fans want? Reigns fired? He served his time for what he did. He did not win back the WWE Championship. He is not in the main event of Summerslam. William Regal screwed up when he got suspended in 2008, but they still gave him a run with the Intercontinental Championship a few months later. Some fans are just not being fair. Yes, a lot of fans hate Roman Reigns, but that doesn't mean the WWE needs to punish him even more than they have.

Back to the feud with Rusev, the WWE had them go at it on Raw this week. That match will probably be better than PPV match this Sunday. And they had Reigns win on Raw. Does that mean he loses at Summerslam? It might. Prior to this week, it just seemed like giving him a midcard title run might be likely. Cena gained some points with smarks last year when he was depushed and defending the United States Champion. A depush has eased the hatred towards Reigns in the past. It just made sense that a depush and a solid run with the U.S. title would do him some good.

The other story the WWE might want to tell is that Roman Reigns is having the worst year of his life. Remember when Cena lost to The Rock at Wrestlemania and the year he had that followed? The WWE sold it like Cena needed to redeem himself, and he obviously did it when he beat The Rock one year later for the WWE Championship. Roman Reigns lost the WWE Championship. He got suspended, something the WWE acknowledged even in kayfabe, and has been moving downwards ever since. Failing to win the title this Sunday would just further drive that point. Will they keep holding him down for a whole year? Or just until Wrestlemania next year where he might regain the the top title, likely the Universal Championship, and be the top guy again? The WWE might hope fans are sympathetic towards Reigns and it helps him get over better. Tricky plan, but the WWE might try something like that.

Which way will the WWE go? Solid midcard push? Or the redemption story? Going by how they let Reigns win the non-title match on Monday, I will say he loses to Rusev and they go with some kind of redemption story. Whether it lasts a year, a couple months, or a few weeks, the WWE might want to try the sympathy route. Let fans believe he is being punished and try to make him earn his spot back. Might not work, but they still might try it.

AJ Styles Vs. John Cena For Summerslam 2016

AJ Styles and John Cena have already traded some wins. That was before The Club was separated from AJ a few weeks ago. Not surprisingly, these two will go at it again at Summerslam this month.

How has the feud been going? It just seems like the typical feud you would expect between John Cena and a smark favorite. AJ Styles is attacking Cena's character. Cena is countering with talk about how much he loves being in the WWE. Nothing too fresh here.

If AJ was even more edgy and real, he would look like CM Punk. He's following in the line of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. You can say he went through his "Daniel Bryan" phase earlier in the year when he was a face. The WWE just looked like they were trying too hard to sell this guy as popular. They put him on some list of loudest fan reactions for his Royal Rumble debut. Part of his feud with Chris Jericho turned into Jericho being upset fans were chanting for AJ. Was the WWE aiming to start some movement? And then he turned heel and got two sidekicks. Typical storyline with John Cena now going on. This is his "CM Punk" phase.

The WWE has really not done a good job pushing AJ Styles in his first year. Look at his first two completed storylines. He starts with a feud with Chris Jericho. It started at the end of January and went to the start of April. That is a little more than two months. In that span, they had a face vs. face rivalry, started to team together, got a shot at the tag titles, failed to win, broke up, Jericho turned heel, and then had their final singles match to end the feud. All that in two months. This is the kind of story that should have been given more time than that to mature. If this was a basic feud about AJ Styles earning Chris Jericho's respect, yeah, no need to drag it on. But the WWE added more to it and could have really done more with the story.

AJ's next storyline involved The Club. He spent weeks not wanting to embrace the heel side. I saw fans eating it up, but the climax of the story was garbage. He sends them away one week, then just fully turns heel and brings them back to his side to start the feud with Cena. There was potential there, but the WWE has not taken advantage of it. And now The Club is taken away from AJ. The only thing they ever did during this time, their whole reason for existence, was just to beat up John Cena. The whole things just lasted another few months. Given the hype this group has, the WWE could have done so much more than what they did. They did not get enough out of the stable.

AJ Styles has been in the WWE for less than a year and he already seems to have been given several things to do that could have lasted so much longer than they have. The WWE is just going through the motions with him. They need to do a better job building his identity. Don't try to make him the next CM Punk or Daniel Bryan. Bryan did it organically and Punk is better on the mic. Moreover, stop relying on stuff he did outside the WWE. The WWE is just botching it, anyway. And that is what I would say this is, a botch. They are not screwing the guy. Wrestling fans may be eating up a lot of what the WWE is doing with him, but I don't see a guy that has broken out at the level of CM Punk or Daniel Bryan. I do see a guy they are trying to break out at that level.

What about John Cena? He's doing his usual act. I remember fans saying that Smackdown got the short end of the stick in the draft two weeks ago. Smackdown got John Cena. I have seen even fans that dislike John Cena talk about him like he's a draw. When John Cena returned a few months ago, I remember the ratings report from one of the wrestling news sites crediting Cena's return as one of the reasons for respectable numbers that night for Raw. People think Cena is a draw. Well, here's his chance to prove it. Help Smackdown.

It's not like he has to carry Smackdown. It's live now and away from a night that features football. It will see better numbers than it previously did. Randy Orton, the #2 guy for so long, is also on this show. This is his chance to prove his worth. I have seen some fans talk about how much of a star AJ Styles is. I mentioned the WWE hyping his popularity. Okay, he gets to help Smackdown. All three of these guys are involved in top feuds, without even mentioning Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE Championship. I don't see how Smackdown got the short end of the stick. It is a two-hour show, after all. How crowded do you want the roster to be with top guys?

How has Smackdown been doing in the ratings? Since getting more viewers than Raw that first week it went live two weeks ago, it has not won the ratings war. But it has been averaging over 2.7 million viewers these past two episodes. That is a big improvement from previous weeks before going live and an improvement from this time last year. The WWE just has to keep having big stuff happen on Smackdown. I wouldn't be surprised to see it get more viewers than Raw again, especially during football season.

Previewing The Shield Triple Threat At Battleground 2016 & Brief Brand Split Thoughts

Wrestling fans have been dreaming about a triple threat between the former members of The Shield for years now. They are getting it at Battleground. Dean Ambrose is the WWE Champion. Both Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins have held the title a few times already. Some fans are upset that this big match is happening on such a minor PPV. Regardless of the brand split, regardless of injuries, regardless of suspensions, and regardless of whatever else, I would not be surprised to see this match again in the future. Until then, let's look at Battleground.

Let me start with Seth Rollins. A year ago, I would say that Seth Rollins had not broken out on his own. He was a weasel. He has looked better since his return this year. I don't mean his physique. I mean his character. He seems more like his own guy and more like a true top star. He doesn't have an A+ connection with the fans, and I wouldn't say he has surpassed the likes of Edge and CM Punk, but he is better than he was a year ago. Even if he is going back to be allies with Stephanie McMahon, I think his character won't be damaged too much by that. If only he would drop the Pedigree as his finisher. He isn't Triple H's son. Triple H didn't train him. A guy as talented as Rollins should be able to come up with some finisher the WWE would allow.

What can you say about Roman Reigns? His suspension is recently up. Fans were throwing a party for it on Twitter. But don't expect him to get a positive response this Sunday. More importantly than his crowd reaction, is his time at the top over already? He wasn't the top draft pick for either Shane or Stephanie. I don't think you should read too much into that. I have seen someone shake his head at Natalya being picked before Cesaro, Sheamus, and certain others. I wouldn't expect her to be featured too much better than those guys. Moreover, the recent drug issues with Brock Lesnar and the WWE's reaction to it might indicate that they won't take away the centerpiece spot from Reigns. A guy they treat even more godly than Reigns is getting negative attention for the same kind of thing and they are still promoting him and look like they will feature him as well as they did before. Drafting a part-timer? Was it worth it? Anyway, I just do not think this is the end of Roman Reigns at the top.

Dean Ambrose is holding the title and had two title defenses in one week prior to Battleground. Is that a sign that it is time for him to lose? He seems to just be a transitional champion. His title reign has been better than Daniel Bryan's infamous first run with the WWE Championship. If the WWE had given him this kind of run Dean Ambrose is getting now, I don't think fans would have gotten so upset back then. They could have gotten away with not promoting him up to pushing him as an A player.

Which of these three guys wins this Sunday? The brand split does not need to be that big of a factor. The WWE has not laid down any solid rules when it comes to the World Championship situation and they may not even know what they want. If they want one title defended on both shows, they can hand it to anyone. If they want two titles, just give the title to anyone in the match, then do something to decide who the other Champion would be. None of these men absolutely needs to win the title to help the title situation. At certain times during the previous brand split era, there were sometimes some messy title situations where it just seemed obvious the WWE only had one option. This is not one of those situations. This should come down to feud development. What is the best booking decision for the WWE to run with the main title feud that they want? I would say they want to run with Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins, two guys that happen to be on the same brand. But they won't just hand the title back to Roman Reigns. It has nothing to do with the suspension. Part of the fun is making it a struggle to overcome your foe. Rollins can win it at Battleground and drop it at Summerslam or after that.

Onto the brand split. A lot of things happened this week in regard to that, but I was too busy talking about Battleground to say anything on that. I'll just bring up a few topics.

First, you have the decision to have General Managers under Shane and Stephanie. Is it necessary? I think it is a good move. Take advantage of some popular/legendary non-wrestlers associated with the WWE. It also makes this feel like a real sports organization. Sports teams have a hierarchy. You have your owner(s). He will have his executives around him, including GMs. You have a head coach and his coaching staff. And then you have players, including possible team captains and those players that are leaders even without an official title. I like what the WWE has chosen to do.

Shane McMahon picked Daniel Bryan. Good choice. If not him, I would have gone with Sting. Both of them were never utilized to their full potential in the WWE, and injuries suffered last year really hurt their careers. But they can still be useful in non-wrestling matters. Daniel Bryan is getting something big to do. Hopefully, Sting might one day get a brief run as GM.

Stephanie McMahon picked Mick Foley. Interesting choice. A heel picks a lovable face. It can have some interesting storyline value down the line. It is more likely you see tension between these two before you see serious tension between Shane and Daniel Bryan.

Overall, I see fans complaining that Smackdown got the short end of the stick in the draft. I don't see it like that. I brought up that Raw is at a disadvantage because it has to go head-to-head against Monday Night Football soon. Being live and being its own brand on a night with no football, Smackdown is going to see an improvement from what it was getting in the ratings the last few years. It had a higher viewership than Raw this week. I don't think it will be the last time that happens before the year ends.

I wouldn't have even given Smackdown John Cena. I understand it has some storyline value with how AJ Styles is also there, without The Club. If that wasn't an issue, keep Cena on Raw and send Cesaro or Sami Zayn to Smackdown. Ratings aside, some fans bring up how Cena doesn't regularly work house shows anymore. Who will draw for Smackdown? They will just have to create stars on Smackdown. They might take a hit until then, but the brand split should be an opportunity to build new stars, anyway.

All things considered, I do not think the Smackdown roster is that terrible when it comes to what the WWE needs to do to draw. They have some level of star power and can make stars out of guys that may be loved by wrestling fans, but still need some work to break out. AJ Styles falls in that category, whether smarks want to admit it or not. Don't forget that the WWE will also bring back some workers from the past. Jinder Mahal could be the face of Smackdown and it would still draw more viewers than it has in the last few years. I don't see anything wrong if the WWE wanted to buff up Raw a bit with the draft. They could have shafted Smackdown even worse than they did.

Previewing The Battleground 2016 Undercard

Recently, the WWE has shown that they will go with certain things that wrestling fans might appreciate, but the general audience may not be able to. For the most part, I don't think they should do that. The feud between Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn is a rare exception I am willing to make. They just have a heated rivalry and a chemistry. You pretty much have to add another chapter to their story on the main roster. The brawls and interactions can get that general audience interested.

Problem is, this match for Battleground seems like a disappointment. I said that Natalya vs. Becky Lynch might have deserved some kind of stipulation, and I will say the same thing for Owens vs. Zayn. How can it not have a stipulation? They are treating this like it is the final battle between the two. It won't be, but how can you not add to the match to make it feel like a bigger deal? Last Man Standing? I Quit? You don't need the Extreme Rules PPV to have these matches. As for the winner, I feel this can go either way, but I will say Sami Zayn.

The brand split may have messed up The Wyatts. Nevertheless, they still have New Day at Battleground. Tag titles are not on the line. People complained last year when the WWE did not have Nikki Bella defend the title at some PPVs, saying they just wanted to have her walk her way to the record for longest run with the Diva's Championship. I don't see anyone complaining about New Day not having to defend the titles here. I'm sure they are out there, I just don't see them. As for this feud, I think it has been rather disappointing so far. There is a storyline with some potential. But the fact that the tag titles are wasted here and the WWE arguably failed to beat TNA at their own game with that segment recently just hurts my interest in it. It annoys me more than it entertains me. Bray Wyatt needs wins more at this point than New Day, especially when their tag titles are not on the line. Wyatts win.

Darren Young gets a title shot against The Miz. These two were drafted to different shows. It seems this feud will end at Battleground. You might say that Miz obviously retains to keep the Intercontinental Championship on Smackdown, but the WWE could have Darren Young and Zack Ryder win their respective matches, switching what shows the United States and Intercontinental Championships are on. Not likely. Miz retains, but what happens to Darren's push after? I am not going to say he started at the top, but this push pretty much started as high as anyone would have expected him to go. Will he be pushed properly in the midcard? Or become a jobber? That would be a waste of Bob Backlund. Will Backlund even last the year in the WWE?

Rusev defends the United States Championship against Zack Ryder. I already said it is unlikely the two midcard titles switch shows by having two lower-midcarders win them on the same night. And Ryder won't beat Rusev just to bring the title over to Smackdown. I can picture Ryder losing this and going back after The Miz and the Intercontinental Championship.

John Cena and Enzo & Cass vs. The Club. AJ Styles will not have his buddies much longer due to the draft. But this match will still happen. Either Anderson and Gallows will likely eat the pin in this match. Face team wins.

What happens to the feud between Cena and Styles after that? Now the playing field is cleared up. Enzo & Cass are not on Smackdown with Cena and Styles. Anderson and Gallows aren't there, either. It will just be Cena vs. Styles. That might make Summerslam their final encounter.

Split Cena And Reigns?

The draft is approaching. This is the most important Smackdown has been in a long time. As I have said before, I am not going to do any mock draft. Just not into it and it seems pointless. But there is at least one more issue I want to bring up concerning the brand split.

John Cena has been the centerpiece of the company for about a decade. Roman Reigns is the new centerpiece. That is, unless the suspension ends up being the last straw and they do end his run at the top. For the sake of discussion, let's sat he is still the guy. Can Cena and Reigns work on the same brand? Would it be smart to split them?

It is possible to have a former centerpiece on a brand with a current centerpiece. Shawn Michaels came out of retirement and spent the rest of his career on the Raw roster. He was there during Triple H's run as centerpiece and the first few years of Cena's run at the top. He has some title runs and big pushes here and there, but he was never really in the way of the other guy the WWE would rather be the top star.

It just might be time for Cena to enter that stage of his career. He isn't over 40 yet, but he is banged up, stale, seems to be slowly finding more stuff to do outside the WWE, and there are lot of younger guys that can be pushed better in his spot. There is one major difference between Shawn Michaels back then and John Cena now. Cena is close to tying and breaking Ric Flair's record for most major World Championships. Shawn Michaels never came that close to it and was fine not dominating the title scene. Cena might be different. How can you come that close to it and not break it? While Roman Reigns dominates the title matters on one brand, John Cena can continue to get title reigns on the other brand.

If Roman Reigns and John Cena do stay on the same brand, likely Raw, might they get in each other's way? If Cena isn't really willing to take the kind of role Shawn Michaels did just yet, then you might have a Raw that is going to be dominated by two guys smarks aren't that fond of. Raw might become painful for those fans.

There is a plus to having Cena and Reigns on one brand. That means the other brand can be free of them. Someone like Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, or AJ Styles can be the centerpiece of Smackdown. Throw in a few more bodies and you have a Smackdown Six. Someone like Cesaro might stand a better chance of winning a World Championship on this show, and actually get a decent run with the title. People can have a legitimate alternative to a show dominated by Cena and Reigns, beyond just NXT.

Of course, the WWE will eventually want to do Roman Reigns vs. John Cena. They will treat it like a dream match, even if some fans don't care about either man involved. You might even have a "passing of the torch" moment. It won't help Reigns, but it is something to expect. Reigns and Cena being on separate brands does not need to stop that. The WWE will likely have inter-brand feuds, especially during Wrestlemania. This feud might even feel bigger if it is the face of Smackdown vs. the face of Raw.

Is the WWE likely to do it? Will the suspension change things? The WWE does not give up on people they want to be top stars easily. They need to really flop or screw themselves to actually lose their spot. Roman Reigns has done enough to lose his spot, but let's wait to see if he actually loses his spot. I think he will stay on Raw to be the top star there. And I will say Cena stays there, as well. The WWE will probably have Shane build Smackdown around younger talent and talent that will get a positive reaction from vocal wrestling fans. With football season coming up, the WWE might feel they need guys they have really invested in to be on Raw to try to limit the damage NFL action will do. With Smackdown being live and being its own brand again, it just doesn't need much to see a rise in ratings from previous years. Raw needs the help.

Cena Vs. Styles Rolls On

Not surprisingly, the feud between John Cena and AJ Styles continues. This week, the WWE teased that both men could possibly be added to the WWE Championship match at Battleground. All they had to do was win their respective matches. They screwed each other and the title match remains a triple threat.

Some fans were hoping for Cena and Styles to be added to the match. I even noticed some people talking on Twitter about adding a sixth man into the match and having an Elimination Chamber match. The WWE has weeks to kill before Battleground. Last night's Raw was just them killing time in an interesting way that might get fans talking. It put interest in both the title feud and Cena/Styles.

As far as The Club goes, this group continues to look very mediocre. Yeah, they distracted Cena to cost him his match and proved they can leave him laying. A lot of people have done that. Anderson and Gallows just don't look that interesting. They look like pure henchmen. The guy they are henchmen for, AJ Styles, also never really broke out big in the WWE. The WWE is treating him like he's already a big deal. The WWE is coasting on what AJ Styles was before the WWE and what The Club was in Japan and wherever else. In the WWE, they just look watered down. Nexus looked better than them. The Shield looked better than them. The Social Outcasts look better than them! Okay, maybe not. Nevertheless, this is a top-tier stable that doesn't look like it. If wrestling fans could forget about their pre-WWE stuff while looking at them now, they might feel the same way.

What could the WWE have done differently? Maybe they shouldn't have bothered teasing that AJ Styles didn't want to fully embrace Anderson and Gallows and go heel. The WWE didn't really handle that angle well. Styles said he wanted to go on his own, then he quickly ends up turning heel and teaming with the other two. There were ways to handle that heel turn that could have made the group seem more impactful. In comparison to what could have been, the storyline was just flat.

The WWE also could have let Anderson and Gallows get the tag titles. The WWE will probably let New Day break the record with the tag titles at this point, but there were so many other teams and angles that could have benefited from the tag titles. The Club is one of them. While New Day goofs around with The Wyatts, the titles could have been used to help The Club look a little more credible. Does New Day really need the titles for what they are doing now? Both Nexus and The Shield destroyed people and held titles. The Club may have attacked some people here and there, but they have not looked as dominant as those two groups. And they also have yet to hold titles. If the WWE can't let them go on a real rampage right now, the least they can do is give them some titles.

Let me do an aside on the feud that crossed paths with Cena/Styles this week. Roman Reigns is obviously not around to help further the title feud. The WWE had Seth Rollins go out there and bring up the drug suspension. That's the kind of thing you would expect from Edge or CM Punk. Rollins seems to be the guy following in their path. Not surprising that they would have him do it. Might help him connect with fans more as that type of character.

But I'm not looking at what Seth Rollins is saying. I'm looking at the WWE having Seth Rollins say it. I don't think the WWE should let that be a part of the storyline. I am not a Roman Reigns fan, but you shouldn't make it even more clear to people that he took drugs. Yes, Reigns handled it professionally and the WWE might lean on that to try to help his character, but this isn't the kind of thing that should be brought up like this. Of course, this is a company that frequently exploits death for the sake of making storylines more edgy, so it is no real shock that they would do this. Moreover, they put themselves in this position by not writing Roman Reigns off in a smoother manner.

Some fans still accuse the WWE of being too kiddie. Is admitting in a storyline that the new face of your company took drugs something directed towards kids? Isn't the WWE afraid kids might Google this stuff and read some other interesting stories of drugs in pro wrestling? This seems more like the Reality Era. The Reality Era and the PG Era just do not mix. The WWE does things at times that fans hate because it seems catered to little kids. The WWE then turns around and does something that seems like it might be too edgy for little kids. This kind of atmosphere is just going to be sour to one group or the other. It isn't having mass appeal and drawing big. Numbers support that. More than likely, the WWE's inability to develop a proper tone that they want is one of the reasons numbers are so bad, along with lack of stars, bad writing, and whatever else.

Final Money In The Bank 2016 Preview

The WWE is hyping up this year's Money in the Bank like it has a few big matches worthy of headlining Wrestlemania. Most of it really is more hype than anything else, but that is what you would expect from a pro wrestling promotion.

Let me start with the Money in the Bank match. Not much more has happened since the last time I talked about this match. They did tease what Dean Ambrose being added to Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns might look like on Raw this week. Many fans have been wanting to see this match for years now. Besides that, it is obvious that the WWE can use the briefcase to develop a new star for the coming brand split. That means it is unlikely Chris Jericho or Alberto Del Rio wins it. Both have held World Championships before and both are not young guys any more.

Taking all that into consideration, who wins? I still think Ambrose would be a good choice. There is a lot of storyline value there. It can help him get to the next level. Everyone is still saying Kevin Owens. I must have missed the dirtsheet report guaranteeing him the win. I don't spend my days reading every item those sites put out. Owens just doesn't feel like he is ready to be a main-eventer yet. If he wins it, he might end up like Sandow or Sheamus. He should just remain as an upper-midcarder right now. I will stick with Ambrose.

No titles are on the line, but the WWE is hyping AJ Styles vs. John Cena as a match 15 years in the making. Really? Where was John Cena 15 years ago? Where was AJ Styles 15 years ago? Neither of them were anything to get too hyped over back then. They talk about this like it is a dream match. Undertaker vs. Sting is a dream match I have seen fans really eager to see for many years. The WWE may never be able to give fans that match now. AJ Styles vs. John Cena? I am sure some fans were looking forward to it, but it isn't one of the top matches I see pop up often. It is the face of TNA going against the face of the WWE. First of all, AJ Styles was never the true face of TNA. He should have been, but TNA never pushed him as the true face. But if fans want to view him as the face, okay. Second, the WWE isn't even giving TNA proper respect. They have been taking a lot of their guys recently, but how often does the WWE actually mention their closest competition? Aren't they afraid fans might Google "AJ Styles" and see TNA pop up? Wrestling fans are viewing it as TNA vs. WWE, but the WWE not embracing the existence of TNA more might be hurting the potential of the feud.

There is the kind of vibe here that you had between CM Punk and John Cena. That is to say, that is what the WWE is going for. AJ Styles is not CM Punk. He might be more amazing in the ring that Punk. But he does not have his mic skills and he has not broken out like Punk eventually did. The WWE is treating AJ Styles like he is already there. They are trying too hard with him. They are trying to add some reality to the story of this feud, but it is really just pandering to smarks. Why should AJ Styles really have an issue with John Cena? Styles just debuted earlier this year. He traded wins with Chris Jericho. He became #1 contender. He has had a few title shots. He is not being held down. He is being pushed too fast. Yes, even without winning the title, I would say he is being pushed too fast. This feud is overrated. The WWE is talking about how great the feud is. They are putting over AJ Styles as something so amazing. But the WWE is just trying to make something happen here that only wrestling fans will appreciate. The wider audience will not be that into it.

Who wins this encounter? Because I am sure these two will be facing each other more down the line. If the WWE wants to cause some shock, leave the crowd with a stunned impression on their face, and have a sea of Internet fans celebrating like Cena's reign of terror is over and AJ Styles is the new face of the company, they will have AJ Styles win. They might also let him win clean. I have seen fans overreact before to Cena losing. Of course, it is likely AJ's buddies help him. Even a cheap win would get many fans excited. I will say AJ Styles wins this encounter.

Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE Championship is also a match the WWE is hyping as worthy of headlining Wrestlemania. It was just last year at Wrestlemania when these two men were involved in the main event, along with Brock Lesnar. It would be easy to say that Reigns vs. Rollins can headline Wrestlemania. They have the credibility. Problem is, neither of these two guys have really broken out and reached their full potential. The issues with Roman Reigns have been talked about for years now. Seth Rollins has also not broken out. Contrary to what smarks might think, and they can make all the noise for Seth Rollins they want, he isn't an A+ player. Yeah, the WWE can put this match as the main event of a Wrestlemania, but they will still be leaning on The Undertaker to draw for them, as well as the hype usually surrounding Wrestlemania and probably once again pretending control of the WWE is on the line somewhere on the card.

Will Seth Rollins regain the title he never really lost? I am sure it will happen one day. But this Sunday? I don't feel like this feud has been built up properly yet. I will say Roman Reigns retains here and the feud continues on. I would be be more surprised to see Rollins win it back now than to see someone cash in this Sunday and win the title.