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 Main Events

Speaking of lackluster feud development, how about that Jinder Mahal vs. Shinsuke Nakamura feud? This is the WWE Championship match. The two don't even look like they are really feuding. This is terrible. The WWE should have put a lot more work into Nakamura.

Let me go back to another Summerslam title change. In 2004, Randy Orton defeated Chris Benoit for his first World title. I was a big Orton fan back then. I watched that PPV and was glad he won. Thing is, looking back, the feud development was not that great. Most would also say that Orton's reign flopped. There are many reasons why it was not better, including Triple H still being the centerpiece back then. Point is, many might argue Orton was not ready to be Champion back then. Keep in mind, however, that he did have a good run with the Intercontinental Championship prior to his bigger push. He also had a memorable feud with Mick Foley that included a great match that some might say helped him to break out.

What does Shinsuke Nakamura have to say for himself? Let's ignore NXT. Too much attention is often put on the WWE's developmental brand, which the general audience does not even watch. What has Nakamura done since coming to the main roster? No title reigns. His PPV performances and booking have not been that spectacular. He just doesn't look like a big deal. You can say his match with Cena a few weeks ago was supposed to be where he broke out. Even ignoring the terrible botch in that match and whose fault it was, it just didn't feel like that match accomplished what it was supposed to do. And there is a chance this guy might actually win the title this Sunday? It would be an even worse decision than Randy Orton in 2004.

Speaking of bad decisions when it comes to title wins, the alternative to Nakamura winning the title is Jinder Mahal retaining the title. I have seen fans get upset with the WWE having Mahal lose cleanly recently, and I'm not even talking Indian fans or Canadians. Why shouldn't Jinder Mahal lose cleanly to faces that are above him? He's a heel. He's a non-monster heel. There is no excuse not to have him lose now and then, especially cleanly. If that hurts his appeal and WWE Network subscriptions with certain demographics, so be it. It would have to happen eventually. That makes these kind of pushes even more questionable. They won't be sustained. And what happens then? The WWE is going to hope that the Mahal fans might get interested in something else, but when the whole product is so terrible and stars are not built and featured right, the WWE is still underachieving. And while the WWE is so busy pleasing these demographics, they are making bad decisions that turn away other fans.

This match is pretty much about appealing to Japanese and Indian fans. Who will win? Jinder Mahal to sell tickets for an Indian tour? Or Shinsuke Nakamura to help his merchandise sales? That seems to be the WWE's driving mentality these days. It sure isn't proper feud development and building stars properly. Jinder Mahal should retain the title. It could be by DQ or something like that.

Four big men will go at it for the Universal Championship. There was a time when smarks hated big men getting pushed so much. I don't see too many complaints for this feud. These fans love Samoa Joe and Braun Strowman, especially when he's killing Roman Reigns. And this is just a ripe situation for Brock Lesnar to drop the title. There is a good chance he will leave. Multi-man match, which means he does not have to be pinned. Which of the three challengers should get it?

Let me start with Braun Strowman. Since Summerslam last year, five men have won their first top title in the WWE. Finn Balor and Kevin Owens won the Universal Championship. AJ Styles, Bray Wyatt, and Jinder Mahal won the WWE Championship. The WWE definitely needs to slow down. The only reason for Strowman to win the title would be to drop it to Reigns, which might make storyline sense. Reigns has gotten knocked around by Strowman for a while now. Not only can Reigns finally get a decisive win against him, but he might win the title in the process.

Samoa Joe is another guy that stands a chance to win his first top title in the WWE. I am not counting NXT. Once again, I will say the WWE needs to slow down. This guy just debuted a few months ago. I have heard the rumors that certain people in the WWE want Samoa Joe to get the title. Smarks would love it. It was one thing for AJ Styles to win the WWE Championship in his first year on the main roster, but not every smark favorite needs to do that. Samoa Joe could do it at Summerslam, as well as Nakamura. Bobby Roode might be rushed to a title reign when he debuts. It is all disgusting.

As I have pointed out before, Roman Reigns has not held a top title in over a year. All he has had is a midcard title run. Also take into account his PPV losing streak. Even before Wrestlemania, his year was not that great. He lost twice at the Royal Rumble, once to Kevin Owens and then losing the Royal Rumble. This guy does not look like a centerpiece at all. If you are going to hype him like he is the centerpiece, it would make sense to push him as the centerpiece. If not, move on to someone else. If this weak treatment is not working in shutting up his haters, many of whom seem ignorant to the fact that he hasn't been pushed that hard in the last few months and for most of the past year, then stop doing it.

I do feel like a title change will happen. I would say it should be Roman Reigns. I am not a fan of the guy. But if you are going to push him as the centerpiece, he needs to get back on track. They are just damaging him, even if it is unintentional. There are some fans, usually kids, who will buy into the hype, even if the booking does not match the hype. But there are a lot of other fans that will hear the WWE talk about how great Roman Reigns is, see Reigns put himself over, see other wrestlers put him over, and then see the guy just lose every big match he has had in the last few months and not hold a top title in over a year. What are they going to say? That this guy is overrated. I wouldn't be too surprised if the WWE gives the title to someone else in the match and Reigns wins it down the line, but the WWE should just stop the poor booking now and put the title back on him.

Roman Reigns: The Worst Centerpiece In Decades?

Roman Reigns is supposed to be the guy. He is supposed to be the centerpiece. This is supposed to be the top full-time star of the entire company. When I look at how he has been pushed in the last year, he doesn't look like it.

The WWE spent some time grooming him. You can say negative fan reactions led to his push being stalled. It took him a while to finally win the WWE Championship. Even then, it only lasted a few minutes. His next reign, coming after fans were a little more on his side, only lasted a few weeks. And then his third reign only lasted a few months. He has not regained a top title since that third reign. All he has had is a run with the United States Championship. Not only has he not held a top title since last year, he has not even won a PPV match since Wrestlemania. I ask you, is this how you push a centerpiece?

You can bring up John Cena taking time away from the title and having losing streaks. Thing is, a lot of that has come in recent years, when Cena has now become a part-timer and is no longer the centerpiece. He is not even the centerpiece of Smackdown. And even if you go back to when Cena had these dry periods years ago, it came after Cena had already gotten a number of title reigns and some lengthy title reigns that really defined him. What has been the defining title reign for Roman Reigns? He hasn't had it. And I don't need to say too much about Triple H and Austin during their respective runs at the top. They were certainly pushed better than Reigns.

The WWE can have Roman Reigns go out there and give these promos where he still talks like he's the guy. Commentators can even make it sound like he is the guy. In Vince McMahon's mind, Roman Reigns may even still be the guy. I don't read minds. I read actions. I read how these workers are pushed in relation to each other and over time. And the WWE might be fooling themselves. They have not put the work into Roman Reigns recently. There are some fans that will eat up hype very easily and buy into Roman Reigns just because the WWE tells them to. But there are a lot of fans out there that are going to see that this guy has not been a top Champion in over a year and has not won a big match in months. To make matters worse, he has not really been the star of any great storylines. John Cena was a major focus in many storylines over the years, like the Nexus angle. Roman Reigns and his off-and-on feud with Braun Strowman is not really a creative storyline. Even his Wrestlemania feud with The Undertaker was pretty pathetic. It was so pathetic, I cannot believe that is how The Undertaker's career will end. They are just really failing to present Roman Reigns as a proper centerpiece.

You can say part of the reason for having Roman Reigns not hold the title and lose so much in the last few months is to appease his haters. They don't seem appeased. I see fans talking about this guy like he is overpushed. He hasn't held a top title in over a year. He hasn't won a PPV match in months. He is not even a part of a storyline where he is shoved down your throat. The WWE should not be wasting time trying to please these fans.

If not Roman Reigns, then who? Who is the centerpiece of Raw? Who is being pushed like the centerpiece should? Not Brock Lesnar. He is not around enough to be considered the centerpiece. None of the full-time guys look like the centerpiece. Seth Rollins had a big win against Triple H at Wrestlemania, but he has fizzled out rather easily. No one man looks like the top guy. It is just a juggling act.

Let me bring up Smackdown. Who is the centerpiece there? Once again, I would say no one. John Cena is a part-timer. Randy Orton had a big Wrestlemania win and has been losing at every PPV since. Certainly not Nakamura or Jinder Mahal. No, I have not forgotten AJ Styles. He has gotten a decent push since coming to Smackdown, but if he was the centerpiece, he would not be out of the WWE Championship picture so easily. You can talk about elevating the United States title all you want, but I doubt AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens stands a good chance to close Summerslam. Granted, no Smackdown match seems to stand a chance to close Summerslam. Smackdown does not have a centerpiece.

During the diva era, you would have these dark ages, usually when you had no centerpiece around. Without one person the WWE was interested to build around, they just made do with what they had and went all over the place. In a way, stars were born during dark ages. Lita and Trish were created during the first dark age. AJ Lee was a product of the second dark age.

You can say that the entire company is in a dark age now that they have not had in decades. They have no overall centerpiece. They have no centerpiece on either brand. Why does having a centerpiece matter? Because it makes it easier to be efficient. Once you have one guy you know is your top star, you can just build around him. Ideally, everything else would just fall into place. When you do not have that, then you might just go all over the place and do stupid things. I would say that is exactly what is going on. You have terrible feud development on both brands. Some good workers are just being pushed too fast. A lot of workers feel like they are underachieving. Ratings are obviously poor. Fan reactions are often mediocre or worse. The WWE needs to be more efficient. They need to once again show that they know what they want and know how to go about trying to get it. The WWE is just doing dumb things I never would have expected them to do.

Samoa Joe Vs. Roman Reigns: Who Faces Lesnar At Summerslam?

What do Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns have in common? Both are on Raw. Both are Samoan. Both are in a match tonight to decide who faces Brock Lesnar at Summerslam for the Universal Championship. And both lost their respective matches at Great Balls Of Fire.

And yet, here we are. Wins and losses obviously do not matter. I have seen some fans say that it would make more sense for Bray Wyatt to get the title shot, or at least an opportunity to win the title shot. He didn't lose at the last PPV. What about Finn Balor? He surrendered the title due to injury and never got his rematch. And yet, this is the match they are going with.

I am not going to pretend to be excited for this match or either man potentially facing Brock Lesnar. Samoa Joe had a solid showing against Lesnar. Some say he looked impressive. Don't forget that Lesnar was protected in that match to some degree. And Roman Reigns has been in the ring with Lesnar before. He has not beaten him. You know it is coming sooner or later. But Roman Reigns has not won a PPV match since Wrestlemania. Unless this booking is to imply The Undertaker put a curse on him, it might make it hard for some fans to buy into Roman Reigns right now.

But what is likely to happen is that Braun Strowman comes out for revenge against Roman Reigns tonight. Instead of this leading to Strowman/Reigns and Lesnar/Joe for Summerslam, the same matches you just had at the last PPV, all four guys will fight at Summerslam for the title. Strowman was obviously being built for a match with Lesnar. Some fans might argue Joe deserves another match. Roman Reigns obviously needs something to do, even with his PPV losing streak. Fatal fourway just makes sense.

Previewing The Great Balls Of Fire 2017 Main Event Matches

If Brock Lesnar was not gracing us with his presence, Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman would be the main event of this PPV. This is an Ambulance match. This feud has been going on and off all year. It got started at the Royal Rumble in January when Strowman cost Roman Reigns the Universal Championship. It took a break for Reigns to face The Undertaker. It took another break when Strowman was injured. This should be where it ends.

If the WWE still wants Strowman to face Lesnar, you might think that they let him win this match to get momentum. That is not necessary. AJ Styles lost to Chris Jericho at Wrestlemania last year and went on to become #1 contender for the WWE Championship. A PPV loss would not hurt Braun Strowman. Moreover, this being a gimmick match might give some room for a finish that still keeps Strowman strong in a loss. Remember when he had that Dumpster match with Kalisto? Strowman lost that match. Did it matter? No. Reigns, who has not won a PPV match in a while, is likely winning here.

Brock Lesnar finally defends the Universal Championship. Samoa Joe was obviously not meant to have this push a couple weeks ago. He still had unfinished business with Seth Rollins. Due to injuries back then, this is the title feud we are getting.

How has the WWE done in developing this guy that the mainstream casual audience just saw debut a couple months ago? Wrestling fans know who Joe is. But a lot of people don't. And he has not had the greatest few months prior to this push. He debuted before Wrestlemania and didn't even get on the card. He lost to Seth Rollins. All of a sudden, big push against Brock Lesnar for Raw's top title.

Not surprisingly, they have booked him as a beast. They have to if they want people to buy into this match. Some fans are loving it. It is not hard to please these kind of fans. It's just booking. It helps that Lesnar has also looked weak to put over Joe. I am not saying Samoa Joe does not have a "tough guy" presence, but how the WWE has presented him has really helped.

On the other side of that, I have seen fans say that Lesnar looks like a wussy. Some have used more colorful language than that. That is obviously a side effect of how the WWE has booked this feud. But could this hurt some of Lesnar's luster? I think it is possible to create a feud without one side having to look weak for the benefit of the other. Just have Lesnar and Joe spend a few weeks attacking anyone but each other. Joe can go after Heyman, like he has. Joe can also wrestle regularly and pick up wins against top guys, like he has. Lesnar can come in and F5 someone that tries to confront him, like Big Show. Joe and Lesnar can then have a face off, but not actually get physical yet. On the last Raw before the PPV, they finally brawl and have to be pulled apart or brawl to the back, leaving no clear winner to the fight. This way, Lesnar does not have to look too weak.

Should Samoa Joe win? I am not talking about whether he is likely to win. Does he deserve to win the title from Brock Lesnar here? No. All those fans in love with how he looks need to realize it is mainly thanks to booking. If I felt like Samoa Joe was really breaking into his own here as something special, I would say he does deserve to be the guy that beats Brock Lesnar. Unlike the last time Lesnar lost the title, there is no briefcase that is going to come into play here to save him from taking the pin or submission himself. The guy that ends this title reign might just get a big rub. Samoa Joe does not look like he deserves that.

Will Joe win? Probably not. This is not a main PPV. This is Lesnar's first title defense. Samoa Joe was just filling in for Strowman. Signs just point to Lesnar retaining.

Last thing to consider, the story of this match. Some fans are dreading that Samoa Joe will get squashed. Considering that Lesnar has helped Joe look strong in this feud, I don't think it will be the worst thing in the world. This should not be a match where Samoa Joe dominates for 99% of the match and Lesnar hits a desperation F5 for the win. That would just kill Lesnar's mystique. He's not exactly a grand draw for the WWE, but if they make him look that bad in this match, he just becomes like Ronda Rousey. He just won't be that big of a deal anymore. The match should last about 5 minutes. Let Joe look good to start out, but then have Lesnar bounce back with his usual stuff and win it.  

Previewing The Extreme Rules 2017 Main Event

Let's start by talking about the elephant that's not in the room. That would be Brock Lesnar, the Universal Champion. I had high hopes when Lesnar won the WWE Championship a few years ago. That did not work out like I would have hoped. Lesnar winning the title again was not something I was too eager for. Right now, moreover, the WWE has the brand split back and in full force. That limits their overall roster for Raw. If that isn't bad enough, it only takes one bad injury to really mess things up. That is what the WWE got when Braun Strowman got injured. Life would just be a little bit easier if the top titleholder of the brand was someone that can show up regularly to help take up some time with feuds revolving around the title. This just seems like the dumbest situation for the WWE to have given Lesnar Raw's top title.

I noticed someone point out on a message board recently that there has been only one successful title defense of a World Championship in the WWE all year. That would be Kevin Owens retaining the Universal Championship against Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble. Hard to be believe, but true. We are now in the sixth month of the year and the belts have been going all over the place all year. We will have to wait a few more weeks for another successful title defense of a World Championship. That will likely be Jinder Mahal. Who would ever have believed that?

With no Universal Champion around, the main event is a 5-way Extreme Rules match for the #1 contendership. Samoa Joe vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor vs. Bray Wyatt. As I have brought up before, this match is in response to Braun Strowman getting injured. The WWE essentially combined Joe/Rollins and Balor/Wyatt, then tossed in Reigns.

I am still not impressed with the match type. Triple threat matches are no disqualification by default. Imagine if the WWE hyped a triple threat match as a "No DQ" triple threat match. Redundant. This multi-man match is already no disqualification. How "extreme" will it really get? And just in terms of drawing interest with a unique match type, this match isn't that unique. Could they have made it a ladder match? Too similar to Money in the Bank? I think this PPV would be an okay place for a ladder match. Elimination Tables Match? I'm sure there were things that were more interesting.

As for the winner, I see some wanting Roman Reigns to win just so the WWE can get Reigns vs. Lesnar out of the way. It doesn't work like that. Even if they wanted Reigns to win this and face Lesnar now, that will not stop them from doing a rematch down the road. But I don't think Reigns wins here.

Rumors are saying Finn Balor and I'm going Finn Balor. It just seems fitting for the guy that never lost the title to get the first title shot. Does that ruin the feud between Balor and Wyatt? Considering their gimmicks, that could have been an interesting feud. But the WWE can always get back to it after Balor/Lesnar.

On Braun Strowman's Injury

Another injury to talk about. This time, it's Braun Strowman. It seems his injury is legit and he could miss up to two months.

Braun Strowman was getting a monster push for the last few months. Some fans have said he was the best part of Raw, although ratings haven't exactly been rising these last few weeks. But was all that work to build him to put over Roman Reigns? Or Brock Lesnar?

Before looking down the road, what is lost right now? Braun Strowman is someone I would consider an upper-midcarder. Yes, he was main-eventing a bit in recent weeks, but he doesn't feel like a long-term main-eventer, so I call him an upper-midcarder. Whatever you want to call him, I don't think his loss for a few months would hurt the depth too badly. Raw has a ton of guys they can push as main-eventers, and raiding Smackdown of some of their stars last month helped. They have Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, Miz, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor, and a few other guys that can be promoted to a bigger push rather easily, like Sheamus or one of The Hardys. It probably won't even come to pushing Sheamus as a top heel prior to Strowman coming back. This is not an emergency situation right now.

Now, look down the road. A collision between Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman just seemed likely. It can still happen down the line, but what does Lesnar do for his first title defense in a few months? Strowman will likely not be back in time for it to make it a proper feud. This seems like a bigger issue than the main-event depth losing Strowman. It is too soon for Reigns to once again go against Lesnar. The WWE would save that for a bigger PPV. Of course, since this is a throwaway PPV, the WWE might just get lazy with it and do whatever. Pick any of the other guys I recently mentioned and toss them against Lesnar. Dean Ambrose? Finn Balor? Bray Wyatt and Lesnar have unfinished business. Still a few options to go with and lots of time to plan. It will be interesting to see what the WWE chooses to do.

Aside from Lesnar, you have to wonder what Roman Reigns will do. He was feuding with Strowman right now. That feud was certainly not over. Maybe the WWE should have just had him stay away for a little while longer and come back to start a fresh feud. Instead, the WWE had Reigns and Strowman go at it again on Raw this week. Strowman should probably not try to work through the injury for a hardcore-style match that this feud was obviously leading to, likely an Ambulance Match. You have to wonder if all the stunts they are having him do might be a little responsible for his injury issues. In any case, Roman Reigns is in an even worse position than Brock Lesnar. The WWE has less time to react for him before the next Raw PPV he will likely be performing at.

Previewing The Payback 2017 Main Event Matches

I would consider Seth Rollins vs. Samoa Joe one of the main matches of Payback. It is an extension of that big feud you had between Rollins and Triple H. That feud had its ups and downs. Samoa Joe being inserted looked like it would revitalize the feud. Of course, the injury to Seth Rollins happened. All that is in the past, but this feud still remains.

It just feels like this feud isn't as great as it could have been. It might have been better if Triple H was still around to help it. It just feels too routine right now. Samoa Joe lacks a major feel that he should be having.

Who wins this match? I can see Seth Rollins win this in a cheap fashion, like a roll up. Samoa Joe then destroys him after. They can always run with the injury angle. That keeps the feud going for a few more weeks.

Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns continue their feud. And these last few weeks have been pretty intense. Braun Strowman has been made to look like a monster. On the one hand, I can understand if the WWE wants to be a little more edgy. On the other hand, they have to be careful of not looking crass. Moreover, they have to be careful not to look stupid.

Braun Strowman flipping the ambulance a few weeks ago was a spectacle. Many fans ate that up. It helps that they hate Roman Reigns. It just reminded me of a certain angle TNA did with Mickie James during her last run there. That was Wrestlecrap to many fans. Isn't this the same kind of thing?

If that wasn't Wrestlecrap, maybe this week is. That whole Dumpster Match between Strowman and Kalisto was garbage. The way Strowman lost was trash. Wasting so much time just for the anti-climactic short fall off the stage was junk. How many more words can I come up with to fit this Dumpster Match? It just was poorly done. It wasn't botched. What they planned was just not good. The WWE's PG attempt to do something that would have gone over better in the Attitude Era just flopped.

And after all that, how can Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman have a regular match at Payback? This feud is obviously not ending here. But are they making Strowman look strong just for Reigns? Or for Lesnar down the line? Either way, I can see this match ending without a winner. Both of them might get counted out. They might take each other out outside the ring. They might brawl to the back. In the end, this feud will continue to a gimmick match.

House of Horrors. Randy Orton faces Bray Wyatt in a match that will finally end this elaborate feud that has gone on for months. I was a fan of this feud when it first started. But then it felt like they just tried to do too much. Involving the WWE Championship was one of those things they did not need to do. Since they did, I felt Bray Wyatt should have retained it against Orton. That didn't happen. Okay, I would have said that Bray Wyatt should win it back.

Problem is, the title isn't even on the line in this match. Bray Wyatt has gone to Raw and they have decided not to work any angle to make this a title rematch. I think that is just terrible. Randy Orton did not need a title reign right now. But let's move on from the title.

On the one hand, given everything that has happened in this feud, I am glad it is a unique gimmick match. And the WWE has not been 100% clear on what fans will see in this match. That should interest some fans to see what it is all about. That should make it a draw.

On the other hand, given everything that has happened in this feud, the way they have been treating it in the last few weeks is terrible. Randy Orton has moved on to Jinder Mahal. Bray Wyatt got into the groove of things on Raw this week. That is what happens when you separate the two. This feud had so much put into it. For it to just lose momentum like this heading into the big final encounter is terrible. While the unique match type might interest some fans, the poor feud development might also disinterest some other fans.

Who wins? Bray Wyatt. If the title is not on the line, Bray Wyatt might as well win to give him a ton of momentum. This can be a step towards properly building him to be the next Undertaker. Undertaker had a couple specialty matches to his name. House of Horrors can be Bray Wyatt's match. But it would suck if he lost the first one.

Wrestlemania 33 Preview: Part 2

I will be talking about the Raw matches today. Goldberg vs. Lesnar will be saved for Friday.

Neville defends the Cruiserweight Championship against Austin Aries. Austin Aries can be seen as TNA's answer to CM Punk. He was definitely a poor man's CM Punk. He knows how to wrestle. In the WWE, he currently finds himself in the cruiserweight division. Even though I dislike too many multi-man matches, I wouldn't have minded a few more cruiserweights in this match. It just seems too soon to push Austin Aries. And yet, the WWE has shown that they will push men in this division too quickly, then pull the rug out from under them. Let's say the tradition continues. I'll say Austin Aries wins.

There will be a multi-man match for the tag titles. Anderson & Gallows defend against Sheamus & Cesaro and Enzo & Cass. Enzo & Cass should have won the titles since last year. This is the stage for them to do it. I will say they win.

The United States Championship match will not be a multi-man match. This is a personal feud. Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens has arguably been developed better than any other feud. It does not feel rushed. The development has not been inconsistent. Injuries have not screwed it over. This is what I had hoped for with the Jericho vs. Styles feud from last year. Owens and Jericho were friends for a good while. They both held titles at the same time, although not the tag titles. There were a few great elaborate segments. They just developed things well, building up to the obvious split and match coming up.

Who wins? It just seems obvious that Kevin Owens will win. Jericho doesn't need the title anymore. Moreover, he already got a Wrestlemania win he did not need last year against AJ Styles. No need for two in a row. I have seen some fans say Jericho will retain here and lose it to Samoa Joe after Wrestlemania, likely due to Owens interference. There is also the point of Owens eventually going back after the Universal Championship. But that will probably happen down the line. Right now, let Owens get his Wrestlemania moment. This feud is fit for a title change.

Roman Reigns vs. The Undertaker was another feud that just felt thrown together in the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania. That might be because it was just thrown together in the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania. And it has been a pretty lame feud. The WWE is once again selling it like this can be Taker's last Wrestlemania. They did the same thing last year to try to draw in more fans. There are also dirtsheet rumors about it. As I have seen other fans point out, if this is Undertaker's last Wrestlemania, the WWE has done a terrible job making this feud feel more special. I do not think The Undertaker's career ends here. The WWE has been pretty mediocre with a ton of things these days, but I doubt they treat the end of The Undertaker's career with such mediocrity. A feud over whose yard it is? Passing the torch to Roman Reigns? No, I would expect something bigger. Then again, that feud leading to Lesnar ending Taker's Wrestlemania streak was also pretty mediocre.

Who wins? Reigns winning this could very well make him hated. Would they then turn him heel? I don't know if he can even carry beating The Undertaker, and possibly retiring him, like Lesnar could carry ending The Streak. I don't know how much that rub would do for him. But I will still say he wins. This can build up to Undertaker's last match next year.

Triple H faces Seth Rollins in an unsanctioned match. On paper, this should have been the best feud this Wrestlemania season. You can say it was years in the making. Triple H chooses Seth Rollins to be the next big star. Seth Rollins fails to deliver. Triple H betrays him. Wrestlemania match. But the WWE just did such a terrible job after Triple H screwed Seth Rollins last year. Triple H never showed up. Seth Rollins lost his edge. There was even a span where it seemed Seth Rollins had forgotten Triple H. What was the story? Triple H didn't want to fight Seth Rollins? If you don't want to fight him, why screw him out of the title? Because you don't want him as Champion? Okay, so why didn't you try to screw him those other times he got title shots? And you are still going to fight him now? They just took what could have been an amazing feud and ruined it, and for lame reasons. Seth Rollins getting injured also hurt things, but you can argue that it added some value back into the feud.

What can you expect in this match? Samoa Joe will likely get involved. He doesn't have anything else to do. Stephanie McMahon will also likely be around. She might take a bump, like she has at Wrestlemania recently. Mick Foley might even show up to stick a sock in her mouth. As for the winner, part of me believes Triple H should win here and this feud should continue to Summerslam, where Seth defeats his former mentor. But I'll go against that and say the WWE has Seth Rollins overcome the odds to win it.

Braun Strowman Takes A Hit

Braun Strowman did indeed lose to Roman Reigns at Fastlane. But he didn't want things to end there. He called Roman Reigns out at the end of Raw this week. Instead of Reigns, The Undertaker came out. Strowman then just backed off and left without any altercation. Roman Reigns then came out to confront The Undertaker, setting up their Wrestlemania feud.

How does this make Strowman look? The loss to Roman Reigns is one thing, but backing down from The Undertaker? The Undertaker is indeed a figure to be respected and feared. I am not arguing that. I agree with that. But it doesn't make the monster that Braun Strowman is supposed to be look good to back down from any other wrestler.

People might say the WWE is doing a terrible job building stars for the future. They have to rely too heavily on part-timers, like Goldberg. I am not saying Braun Strowman could have been the next Undertaker. I knew very well this guy was a jobber to the stars. But they could have done a better job with him right now to at least give him a better chance to stay strong.

What could they have done to set up Reigns vs. Undertaker without making Strowman look like a coward? How about let Roman Reigns come out and actually brawl with Strowman? Reigns wins the brawl. He can then proclaim that this is his yard. Cue The Undertaker. Or wait until the following week for Undertaker to show up and take exception to what Reigns said. Or cue The Undertaker's gong this week on Raw, which would symbolize he would show up next week to confront Reigns. I know some people are saying the third hour of Raw did poor ratings this week because Undertaker was not advertised. That's no excuse. It's Wrestlemania season, the time of year fans are supposed to expect big things to happen. Anyway, doing things this way would have set up the same story they are going with now for Reigns and The Undertaker, without making Strowman look like a coward. In terms of his image, it would be better to lose a fight than be afraid to get into one.

What can Strowman look forward to for Wrestlemania season? Probably nothing personal. I am not saying they should have protected him so well that he should be forced into the match between Reigns and Undertaker. But they could have protected his image a little better than this, even if no big push is immediately on the plate for him.

Previewing The Fastlane 2017 Undercard Matches

The Raw Tag Team Championships will be decided between Anderson & Gallows and Enzo & Cass. Enzo & Cass deserve an eventual title win. Last year might have been a good time for it, but New Day happened. Anderson & Gallows just won the titles not too long ago, however, so they should win here. Build up the feud to make the eventual title change mean something more.

Neville defends the Cruiserweight Championship against Jack Gallagher. This is another title where they have just been tossing it around in recent months. I will say Neville manages to hold onto it for a little longer.

Samoa Joe faces Sami Zayn. This is obviously not the first feud the WWE would have liked for Samoa Joe on the main roster. He had a feud with Seth Rollins right in front of him. That would have been a bigger deal than this feud with Sami Zayn. No offense to Sami Zayn. These two can put on a great match, unless the WWE just wants to sell Samoa Joe as a destroyer and have him wreck Zayn. Either way, Joe is going to look strong. I will say he wins.

The feud between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman is the top Raw feud outside of the Universal Championship feud. Some might say it has been treated even better than that feud. The contract signing for this match closed Raw this week, the last Raw before Fastlane. And it's not like this is football season, where they sometimes do some questionable booking. They could have ended the show with an angle to hype Goldberg/Owens. Even Seth Rollins could have closed Raw. There was a nice brawl between Reigns and Strowman that saw a bit of destruction, but I don't think that meant the segment had to go on last.

It seems like it is a sign that Reigns is still the centerpiece. John Cena frequently went on last even when he was not involved with the main title matters, and sometimes at the expense of CM Punk. But I don't think the WWE should be doing this with Reigns right now. His push has obviously hit multiple snags. Even Cena's rise to the top was smoother than what has been going on with Reigns. I would keep him in the midcard, especially when he is only feuding with Braun Strowman. Wait until he has a bigger feud, like what might be coming for Wrestlemania.

Some fans are dreading that Braun Strowman will lose to Reigns and get buried. They point to Rusev, who has lost to the likes of Cena and Reigns and suffered depushes after. He has now been stuck with Jinder Mahal, a fate worse than being fired. Some guys only get great pushes because they are being built to put someone else over. And after that push, they typically will get some kind of depush. It is just the way things are. It happens all the time in the women's division. It is one of the reasons most female wrestlers did not become very over in the diva era. Once they were done being pushed to serve whatever purpose, they got depushed and lost their momentum. There is more space for men to be featured, so don't cry too much for a depush that Strowman will eventually be getting one day. He can at least get something to do elsewhere.

Who wins this match? Let it be Reigns. If Strowman gets this big win, where would he go after? Would he be the one feuding against The Undertaker? Will he be added to Lesnar vs. Goldberg? Does he have any great possibilities? If not, what's the point in giving him this kind of win? He would have all that momentum and nothing to do with it. Let Strowman just be a jobber to the stars in this feud. If there was a good storyline reason for Reigns losing, then I would say he would lose. I just can't picture it. Reigns wins.

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.

Chris Jericho Wins United States Championship

Roman Reigns has been feuding for the Universal Championship, while still holding the United States Championship. That changed on Raw this week. Chris Jericho has won the United States Championship.

Chris Jericho obviously did not need this title win to be considered an obvious Hall of Fame inductee. He could have retired years ago and be inducted into the Hall of Fame by now. He has won a ton of titles. He is popular. He is one of the best ever. The United States Championship is one of the few titles he had never held between the WWE and WCW. I would not have had him win it. He doesn't need it.

At this point in his career, Chris Jericho doesn't really need title reigns. He has spent the last few years as a jobber to the stars. He has jobbed to some people that just might make some fans sick of seeing him show up at all. Maybe they could have given him a title a few years ago. Maybe it would be better if he was pushed better during those previous runs.

The only situation where I would be all for a Jericho title run at this point is if it is part of a good storyline. Like what? Like when Jericho and AJ Styles were teaming last year. I would have been for them winning the tag titles. It would have helped to sell the relationship and make the storyline more interesting. I felt the WWE rushed that storyline and didn't really handle it right. Most fans won't care. You have two popular smark favorites. Nevertheless, that was a situation I would not have hated to see a Jericho title run. This recent situation with the United States Championship does not really involve a rich storyline where Chris Jericho needs the title.

Another reason I dislike this title change, go back to what I was saying recently about the Intercontinental Championship over on Smackdown. Dean Ambrose won the title. Miz held it before him. Dolph Ziggler held it before him. Ziggler won it from Miz. All these guys are former World Champions. I did not like that they are not letting midcarders hold the midcard title. They are treating the title like it is important, but maybe too important for the midcarders. Raw has not been that bad. Jericho is a former World Champion. Reigns is a former World Champion. But Rusev and Kalisto were the two United States Champions before that. Those are midcarders. The WWE really should be using the midcard titles to improve the midcard, especially in this brand-split era.

Who else was there to win the title from Reigns? How about Braun Strowman? He is a heel. He is a midcarder currently getting a monster push. He is currently involved with Reigns in some way. He was standing right there last night. He definitely could have been the guy to take the title off Reigns. He could then continue feuding with Sami Zayn, but now a title would be involved. I would say this would have been the better option for the midcard.

What does this loss mean for Roman Reigns? Some smarks dreaded the possibility of Reigns holding two titles at the same time. That is now unlikely to happen, but I would say the possibility that he does win the Universal Championship has gone up. I doubt Reigns takes back the United States Championship from Jericho.

Reigns Or Rollins: Who Should Be The Centerpiece?

The WWE is a company that likes to have a centerpiece. They like to have that one guy that will dominate the main spotlight. That does not mean that there won't be a #2 guy that works with the centerpiece and might sometimes get featured ahead of the centerpiece for a while. While John Cena has been the centerpiece of the previous era, Randy Orton was often that #2 guy.

This era obviously belongs to The Shield. Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose have dominated the spotlight for the last few years. Ambrose is obviously on Smackdown, along with AJ Styles and John Cena. Looking at Raw, who is the centerpiece there? Reigns or Rollins? Roman Reigns was obviously getting a big push for a while that fans were hating. Seth Rollins then stepped in with endless title matches when he returned last year. When he finally took a break from that, Roman Reigns was once again chasing Raw's top title. Meanwhile, you know Seth Rollins has Triple H looming. That is also a pretty big feud, even if a title is not involved. Is the WWE grooming one of these guys to be the #1 guy and the other to be the #2 guy? Or will they split the top spot between them?

Who should be the centerpiece out of these two? Neither of them is perfect. Roman Reigns has shown signs of overcoming that hatred smarks have for him. But he is still hated. Seth Rollins is better in the ring, but it sometimes is hard to buy into him as a face. It doesn't help that the WWE messed up the storyline involving him and Triple H. Neither of these guys really look like he deserves to be the future top star of the company.

The WWE made a huge investment with The Shield years ago. And this group looked like something amazing. Ever since they split them, however, these guys just do not look nearly as great. They might still have some impressive spots in the ring, including Reigns, but they just do not look like they can work as A+ players as it stands now. The WWE has to be willing to move on to someone else if these guys cannot break out better with their solo careers. That doesn't mean you fire these guys. It doesn't mean you turn them into midcarders. Just give other men a chance to be the centerpiece. After all the work the WWE has put into these guys, I doubt they will be willing to demote any of these guys, even if they should.

Roman Reigns Continues Against Kevin Owens

The Universal Championship match between Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns obviously did not end cleanly and decisively last Sunday. That means Reigns will get a rematch at the Royal Rumble next month. They are also trying to make it more interesting by putting Jericho in a cage so he can't interfere like he usually does.

There is one problem. Roman Reigns is still the United States Champion. I don't like it when titles get hijacked. I didn't like New Day's long reign that recently ended. I didn't like the title being stuck between Charlotte and Sasha Banks for almost half the year, although that has also come to an end. Roman Reigns getting one title opportunity against Kevin Owens while still being United States Champion is nothing to get too upset over. It is better than the endless title matches Seth Rollins has gotten. It created an interesting feud. Would Roman Reigns end up holding two titles? But prolonging it becomes problematic. Other people could be chasing after the United States Championship in this time Reigns is feuding for a more important title.

Of course, the WWE can have Reigns lose the title in the coming weeks due to interference from Kevin Owens. It adds a little heat to the feud and gets the title off Reigns. Chris Jericho might seem like the obvious choice, but it really does not need to be him. Pick another heel. Braun Strowman? Rusev doesn't need the title back right now. There are other heels on Raw, although some of them may lack credibility. People said a few months ago that Raw won the draft. Maybe in terms of numbers, but questionable in terms of quality. When it comes to midcard heels, they need to do some work. Maybe getting the midcard title off a main-eventer and putting it on a midcarder would help.

John Cena winning the United States Championship last year was refreshing. Even smarks, his biggest critics, liked it. Why hasn't this title reign for Roman Reigns worked out anyway like that? I think one of the biggest differences is that you did not have the brand split last year. Rosters are limited now. Seth Rollins has been getting endless title matches. Who takes his place that has the credibility to go after the title? It would have been nice if the WWE took a chance on a midcarder, like Cesaro, but not too shocking that they did not. Even in terms of just looking at Roman Reigns and the United States Championship, the brand split hurts the number of free challengers he can have. Last year, Cena was having title matches with a variety of guys. Right now, as I just pointed out, you have a lot of midcarders already tied up with something or just lacking credibility. Does anyone want to see Jinder Mahal get a shot at Roman Reigns? Roman Reigns is needed to give the Universal Championship scene someone new. The heel midcard pool isn't too great. Brand split just hurts the depth. The WWE needs to make better use of the roster. Just signing guys is not the answer, especially if they are not handled right.

Previewing The Roadblock: End Of The Line Top Matches

Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins are the four top guys on Raw right now. That is not just a statement regarding their credibility. Their paths have been intertwined in recent weeks.

Seth Rollins had been getting title shot after title shot for a while now. Chris Jericho finally screwed him out of the title to a point that Rollins is moving on to feuding with Chris Jericho. Roman Reigns, having finished his United States Championship feud with Rusev, is now in the title hunt for the Universal Championship against Kevin Owens.

Even though I am all for Seth Rollins getting out of the title picture, I don't like how it was done. Go back to that title match on Raw Rollins and Owens had. There was a stipulation that Chris Jericho could not come out to ringside and interfere. What happened? Jericho put on a mask, attacked Rollins from the crowd, and did end up at ringside to interfere enough to help Owens retain. How can you make a rule that Chris Jericho can't interfere, have the rule be broken, and not say Rollins has a legitimate claim to a rematch? If the WWE never made that stipulation, there would be no issue. Jericho interferes and that transitions to Jericho vs. Rollins. But the stipulation was there. What's the point of having that rule if it is broken that easily? No, it is not still real to me, dammit, but it is bad writing. How you start a feud matters as much as how you end a feud. And all the stuff in between matters, as well. The WWE could have handled the storyline development smoother.

Who wins between Jericho and Rollins? Rollins. The part-time jobber to the stars has picked up some wins this year that he obviously did not need, but that is just to build him up to put over the stars. After losing so much, the WWE probably will give Rollins this win just for the sake of some momentum.

Onto the Universal Championship match. If Roman Reigns wins, he is a dual Champion. Some people are groaning like it is going to happen. I don't see it happening. Roman Reigns is obviously not in the doghouse for his suspension earlier this year. But I just don't see him winning the title.

Will Chris Jericho get involved? The WWE has been teasing tension between Owens and Jericho for a while now. It is likely that Jericho will show up during this match. But whose side will he be on? I will say he once again helps Owens retain the title.

Two Endless Rivalries

Seth Rollins has been feuding with Kevin Owens over the Universal Championship and Sasha Banks has had that feud with Charlotte over Raw's Women's Championship. Both feuds have been going on longer than they need to.

Let me start with the women's feud. It has been going on for longer than Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens. On the main roster, you can say Sasha and Charlotte have been feuding since that night they both debuted last year. In terms of feuding over a title since then, you can say they got started at Wrestlemania season this year. Becky Lynch was also involved back then. That feud took a hiatus as Charlotte went against Natalya. Sasha Banks then took back the feud. And they have been feuding since. They have already juggled the title between them a few times. Charlotte recently won back the title at Hell in a Cell last month. Sasha Banks never got her rematch. That is what she will get on Raw next week.

I was all for Sasha Banks retaining the title at Hell in a Cell. I don't think she deserves to be pushed as the centerpiece, but she certainly deserved the opportunity to legitimately show what she could do when the spotlight is truly on her and she's not just being used as a jobber to the centerpiece for Charlotte. Problem is, that didn't happen. She didn't retain the title. And since that is the booking decision that has to be lived with, they should not just shoot the title back to Sasha again. Not so soon. Charlotte is likely to retain against Sasha Banks, then move on to Bayley.

What about Sasha Banks? She can move on to Nia Jax. She is lucky she even has that to do. In the previous era, credible jobbers would be treated a lot more poorly. They would have complete mediocrity to do, if they were even lucky enough to have that.

Onto Seth Rollins and his never-ending quest to burn Raw to the ground and get back at Triple H. Or not. He just seems to get title shot after title shot. He had one on Raw this week. Pretty good match. But it ended in a controversial way that pretty much makes it obvious that he will still be feuding with Kevin Owens.

Now, Rollins and Owens have not been feuding as long as Sasha Banks and Charlotte have. But the problem is that Seth Rollins has been involved in every PPV World title match he could legitimately be involved in since first winning the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania last year. The only exceptions have been the period in which he was injured, Smackdown-exclusive PPVs recently, and Survivor Series recently, where neither World title was defended.

While on a message board recently, I came across another piece of trivia about Seth Rollins that shows just how overbearing his booking has been. Someone pointed out that he has been involved in every Universal Championship match. The title is only a few months old, but it is kind of ridiculous that this one guy has been in all the matches, despite never winning the title. This is worse than Roman Reigns. Roman Reigns never had a stretch like this.

Seth Rollins is supposed to be feuding with Triple H. That whole storyline has just lost almost all its edge. The WWE has failed to properly follow up with this at all. Some fans point out that it was created at the last minute when Finn Balor got hurt. So what? Injuries happen all the time in sports. The "Next Man Up" philosophy doesn't just mean you throw someone out there when an injury happens and let whatever happens just happen. You try to help the replacement to succeed. Okay, an injury happened to ruin what the WWE had planned. But they did a good job in laying the seeds of a big angle when Triple H showed up to screw Seth Rollins. But they have not nurtured this storyline well at all. I don't care if this is going to culminate at Wrestlemania, they should have handled these few weeks better. And if they had no intention to, they should have come up with a different angle when Finn Balor got injured to cause some buzz.When they eventually do go back to Triple H vs. Seth Rollins, I doubt that feud will have that same feel to it that it could have.

What could Seth Rollins have been doing now? Why is he not feuding with Jericho? Jericho has been a torn in his side. Those two could have feuded for one or two PPVs. By the time it was all over, it's Wrestlemania season and Triple H can take over against Rollins.

Where does that leave Kevin Owens and his title? Pick any legitimate contender in the men's division and have him go against Owens. The men's division has a lot more bodies than the women's division. In the women's division, moreover, there are just some women you would not expect to be treated as legitimate contenders for the title, like Lana. But there are so many options for the men. Why is it Seth Rollins, Seth Rollins, Seth Rollins, and Seth Rollins in the title picture so much? Especially in the brand split era, this kind of thing is just not going to work. There are so many guys being underutilized, while one guy just gets pushed in the title scene too much. I wouldn't even mind Roman Reigns getting a brief push against Kevin Owens again. He has taken a few months off from the World title scene.

Just like great booking can help a wrestler get over, terrible booking can hurt a wrestler's overness. I don't think either Sasha Banks or Seth Rollins have A+ overness, but the booking they are getting is not helping. Especially in the case of Seth Rollins, they are obviously not screwing the guy. He is a guy they want to be a top star. But they are botching. No one needs to be in the title scene this much. As a Mickie James fan, I have said in the past that I wish she had gotten some great periphery angles like Lita got. It would have helped to extend her career and take her to another level. But they only pushed her as a credible jobber. Being in the title scene so much for her was not a good thing. They were just using her to put over whom they wanted over or using her as filler. Sasha Banks looks like she is following in that path, although the new era will be kinder to her. But back to Seth Rollins, it is just so much easier to keep men relevant outside the title scene than it is for the women. There are so many men on the roster for him to feud with until Triple H continues the storyline. But this booking is just going to turn some fans against Rollins. I doubt he gets as bad as Roman Reigns, but he is not reaching his full potential.

Previewing The Hell In A Cell 2016 Undercard

Enzo & Cass take on Gallows & Anderson. If the WWE had made a smart booking decision months ago, Gallows & Anderson would have won the tag titles back when they looked like they deserved it. This match would then be for the tag titles and Enzo & Cass would finally win some gold. Instead, this is just a filler match. Enzo & Cass are a popular team that should be winning more big matches than they have been. I would say they win here.

Speaking of the tag titles, New Day defend against Cesaro and Sheamus. This comes down to whether this Cesaro/Sheamus angle has really gotten hot. If it has, those two have a better chance of being booked to win the titles. If it has not, New Day continues to hold the tag titles hostage and every record known to mankind will fall at their feet. Cesaro and Sheamus have not looked that interesting. They will likely lose here. And what will the payoff of this storyline end up being? It might just end up being a feud the WWE tried too hard with.

TJ Perkins defends the Cruiserweight Championship against Brian Kendrick. This feud has been rather enjoyable. I might usually say that the WWE needs to stop taking advantage of real-life drama for storylines. But Kendrick acting like this is his last chance in the WWE and that he needs to win the title has led to a good midcard feud. I think he should win it. If he loses, I can imagine a face turn, but does that really seem necessary? Keep him heel and give him the title.

Even though it has not been made official, I can imagine Sami Zayn vs. Braun Strowman getting put somewhere on Sunday. I doubt Sami is being pushed to overcome Strowman. If this match happens, Strowman wins.

For a match that is supposed to be one of the main events of Hell in a Cell, Roman Reigns vs. Rusev is least likely to close the show. But you can never tell in this era. Roman Reigns just won the title a few weeks ago. Has the WWE gotten what they wanted out of this title reign for Reigns? And if Rusev does regain the title, it will likely be by some shenanigans. I can't imagine Reigns losing cleanly here. Will Lana get involved? I can't really see Rusev winning. The WWE might have someone else interfere to screw Reigns, which would then mean Reigns can move on to feuding with that person and the feud with Rusev would not have to drag on. But I don't see anyone on the horizon that would want to interfere to screw Reigns that he could feud with after Hell in a Cell. I'll say he retains.

Previewing The Clash Of Champions 2016 Main Event

This match seems pretty straightforward. The winner seems obvious. But I will also take this time to look ahead to what the WWE should do with the Raw main-eventers after Clash of Champions.

First, you have Seth Rollins. He obviously has his drama with Triple H. Rollins is slowly turning into a full face. What some people might not be thinking about is the fact that Seth Rollins has been in every World title PPV match for about a year and a half now that he could possibly be in, not counting the time off he took for being injured and the recent Smackdown-only PPV. It made sense when he was WWE Champion last year, but he has just gotten title shot after title shot this year. He has even gotten some non-PPV title matches in recent months. It is just too much Seth Rollins. Even if they have decided to groom him as the centerpiece over Roman Reigns, it is too much.

In the other corner, you have the Universal Champion, Kevin Owens. He just won the title a few weeks ago. He won it in a cheap way, Triple H pretty much handing him the title. Kayfabe aside, he has not been built up for this big push like certain other guys are prior to a World title win, like Rollins and Reigns. But there is nothing wrong with that. There is nothing wrong with a surprise big title win like this. The WWE shouldn't telegraph everything they are going to do. Fans will complain about them being predictable.

When these two come together this Sunday, who wins? It makes sense for it to be Kevin Owens. If Triple H screwed Rollins on Raw a few weeks ago, he's not going to let him get the title at Clash of Champions. The WWE should keep the angle going of Rollins being screwed. But will Triple H show up and do the same thing he did on Raw a few weeks ago? Will he Pedigree Rollins and hand Owens the title? Some variation of that? Will Stephanie McMahon be the one to screw Rollins? He has been taking out his anger verbally on her. Whether the story is about Stephanie legitimately not knowing her husband would screw Rollins or not, Rollins is giving her a reason to screw him herself. No matter how exactly it goes down, Kevin Owens will end up retaining the title thanks to shenanigans.

What happens after that? Seth Rollins really should move on from the title for now. He would want to get revenge on Triple H, or Triple H and Stephanie, depending on how the WWE handles the story. The WWE might try to drag this all the way to Wrestlemania, so don't expect Triple H vs. Seth Rollins for Survivor Series. What does Seth do in the meantime? What about Roman Reigns? He was also screwed by Triple H a few weeks ago out of the title. Moreover, he just beat Kevin Owens in a cage match on Raw this week. Does that create an argument for him getting a shot at the Universal Championship?

Let me start with Roman Reigns. Let him win the United States Championship from Rusev and continue that feud for a little while longer. No need to put him in a feud for the Universal Championship. Wrestling fans would dislike that even more than the endless title shots Rollins has been getting.

Speaking of Rollins, he should not be getting another shot at Kevin Owens so soon after Clash of Champions. Enough of Seth Rollins in the title scene. But if you cross that out and are not giving him Triple H immediately, what's left? How about a feud with Chris Jericho? He is friends with Owens. He might even be the one to screw Rollins this Sunday, which would make that feud even more obvious. Even if he doesn't screw Rollins, he can come out and rub it in that Rollins lost to Owens. He can mock Rollins for getting screwed. There is no real stable around Triple H and Stephanie McMahon anymore. If there was, Seth Rollins could just feud with their henchmen. He's not going to wrestle Mick Foley. The next best thing is feuding with another top heel outside the title picture. That's Chris Jericho.

Where does that leave Kevin Owens? Roman Reigns is busy with Rusev. Seth Rollins is busy with Chris Jericho. Have Owens face Cesaro. Remember him? He should be winning that series against Sheamus, and the winner gets a title shot. I have seen fans come up with some interesting scenarios with that Sheamus/Cesaro match. The WWE has been a little vague with what "title shot" actually means. Which title? I have seen one fan bring up that Cesaro will take his title shot and use it for Smackdown's World title. I have seen some fans talk about one of the two men winning the series, then being informed by Mick Foley that the title opportunity that he won was for the tag titles and his partner will be the guy he just beat at Clash of Champions. There is some room to get fancy with this angle, but I don't think there is any need for that. Give Cesaro a shot at Kevin Owens for the Universal Championship.

Wrestling fans have been wanting Cesaro to get that big push for years. I am not against him winning the series and getting this big push. I just hate the booking of the series. I can understand a face overcoming the odds, but the odds were just annoyingly against Cesaro in the series. And I would say this is the perfect time to give someone like Cesaro the push. It obviously wouldn't be the biggest story going on Raw. That would still involve Seth Rollins, but he does not need to be involved in the title chase for that story. Even Roman Reigns might still be featured better than Cesaro, but people would be happy that Reigns is out of the Universal Championship hunt. There is enough going on to still keep things going. And with the WWE Network, it's not like the WWE really needs to work hard to sell each individual PPV. For $9.99, just in terms of PPVs, you get one for Raw and one for Smackdown in a given month. The WWE's success in October does not have to hang entirely on Cesaro. But this will be a push wrestling fans can enjoy. And the WWE does seem to be interested in feeding those fans these days.