Preview: Hell In A Cell 30 October 2016

Hell In A Cell is one of the PPVs with specific match gimmicks which I love. I love knowing that we'll get at least one Hell In A Cell match, and this year we're being spoiled with three of them. I am worried that it might be overused, but hopefully each of the matches will be different enough to justify the fact they were in a cell.

Six matches doesn't seem enough for a pay per view of this stature and I'm wondering if they might include some more matches. Noteable names not on the card include Bayley, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel who have had conflict recently, Rich Swann who looks like being a fan favourite and Sami Zayn who has beef with both Braun Strowman and Chris Jericho, neither of who are on the card.

Enzo and Cass v The Club

The Club need a win here. They've put The New Day over repeatedly over the past few months and have started to lose a bit of the status they had prior to that. Enzo got a victory over Anderson on Raw and if The Club don't get the win then I don't know why WWE even bothered to sign them in the first place if they weren't going to give them a push that befits their status - a status which the commentary team have reminded us about at almost every available opportunity.

Enzo and Cass remain popular even when they lose and while they should be future title holders, the tag team division needs the Club to look like contenders as well. The Club should be the ones to take the belts from the New Day when the time comes so they need to start to get on a bit of a run now.

Prediction: The Club

Tag Team Championship:
The New Day (c) v Cesaro and Sheamus

There's no day that the New Day aren't holding the title to beat Demolition's record as the commentary team have been talking about it for the last couple of months. By my calculations, they will beat the record on the 15th of December. This suggests that they will beat Sheamus and Cesaro at Hell In a Cell, will likely compete in the Tag Team match at Survivor Series and therefore not drop the belts until Roadblock (18th December) at the earliest.

This leaves the tag team division in a bit of limbo until then. The Club look like they will be wrapped up with Enzo and Cass for a while, so Sheamus and Cesaro have been brought in as filler. Cesaro and Sheamus got a victory against the New Day on Raw, which makes it even more unlikely that they will get the belts here. That victory was probably just to give them a bit of momentum.

What will happen with the losers? For them to argue and fight again would just lead us back to where we were with the best of seven series. I guess there's two options. One is for them to finally have the deciding match but I think that a more likely option is for Cesaro to embrace Sheamus and for him to turn face. The win on Raw suggests that the WWE might actually be pushing them as a tag team even though it seems really unlikely. The odd couple thing might work for a bit and then they could start to actually get along.

With Finn Balor injured and not due to return until Spring, Seth Rollins is the only top level face on Raw at present. Sheamus is a former world champion and perhaps him and Cesaro could take turns challenging Kevin Owens once the Rollins-Owens storyline is over.

Wherever they go, they should give these two guys a bit of the spotlight as they are both great performers.

Prediction: The New Day

Cruiserweight Championship:
TJ Perkins (c) v Brian Kendrick

I'm starting to be a bit more interested in the cruiserweights. I listened to TJP on Talk Is Jericho and it helps to have an understanding of where guys have come from. If it seems as if someone has paid their dues, it's a lot easier to take them seriously and realise that they deserve their spot on the card.

Brian Kendrick has said that this is basically his last shot and they've made a lot out of his previous history with TJP and this should add a bit off fire to the match. This strikes me as the most likely belt to change hands. I'm not really sure why but I think something needs to happen in the Cruiserweight division to keep it in everyone's minds.

Prediction: Brian Kendrick

United States Championship, Hell In A Cell:
Roman Reigns (c) v Rusev

This should be the first of the cell matches on the card. The rivalry has been getting more heated and physical and this needs to be in the cell to contain it and likely put an end to the story to allow both competitors to move on.

Cell or cage matches are often the end to a feud and it is probably time for these guys to move along different paths as this seems to have gone on for decades.

Reigns is going to win here. He was being pushed as the champ earlier this year until he was a little bit naughty. He got demoted but it still seems like they want him to hold a belt, even though it's a lesser one, and he'll probably be the US champ for a while yet.

Maybe it's just because I haven't bought into Reigns for a while but I just want this to end now because I feel Rusev is better used elsewhere other than Reigns' punching bag.

I'd love for Strowman's calls for a strong opponent to result in him getting a US title shot as Reigns is easier to get behind when you think he's going to struggle.

Prediction: Reigns

Universal Championship, Hell In A Cell:
Kevin Owens (c) v Seth Rollins

These guys have obviously got good chemistry in the ring and enjoy their time together, as seen by the house show where KO did the people's elbow and Rollins hulked out. They should be able to pull off a great match and there was a nice bit of aggression on Raw which suggests which way this is going to go.

Owens has always had a mean streak. the way that he reacted after injuring Sami Zayn was indicative of how fierce he can be and he often brings that to the ring. I therefore can see Rollins being the one to take the big bump if there is one, especially as I can't see Owens dropping the belt. He's a great performer and a great personality in the ring and deserves to stay at the top for a while.

I don't see this ending here, though. Rollins should probably still be in the title picture for a while as he's the main guy on Raw if not in the whole company. If Jericho takes another break as is rumoured, then he will need to be written out storyline wise. Him going after Owens belt makes sense and Rollins is currently embroiled in that story as the antagonist. I wouldn't be surprised to see another triple threat between them before the year is out.

One way to start this all off would be for Jericho to help out, possibly by bringing Owens a weapon, and for Owens to be annoyed as he wanted to do it on his own - just as Jericho did a couple of weeks ago.

Prediction; Kevin Owens


Women's Championship, Hell In A Cell:
Sasha Banks (c) v Charlotte

This match has been billed as one of three main events, and might even be the one to close the show. Foley's promo on Raw highlighting to both competitors how dangerous the cell is means that if something spectacular doesn't happen then it will seem like a massive let down. Rumour has it that Charlotte has asked to do a moonsault off the top of the cell which Vince turned down. Something similar needs to happen though to justify the hype they have given this.

In terms of the match itself, both of them are likely to up their game but there's no reason to have the belt yo-yoing between the two of them so Sasha should retain. Charlotte's perfect PPV record has been made a lot of and so it should be even more of a reason for Sasha to celebrate when she gets the Charlotte to tap out to the bank statement.

Prediction: Sasha Banks

Raw Is Jericho

I will start out by saying that Chris Jericho is my all time favourite wrestler. Apologies therefore if this seems a little (or a lot) biased. When I was in my wrestling watching prime as a teenager, I modelled my look on Jericho's. I bleached my hair blond and grew out a beard to look similar to the photo on the right. Perhaps not quite as muscular, and I was never able to pull off a shiny shirt quite as well, but otherwise it was basically the same look.

I remember the first time he appeared on Raw. There was the Y2J countdown on the Titantron for weeks before he turned up, and I recall thinking: "who is this guy?" I never watched ECW or WCW so he turned up and I had no idea who he was.

I quickly started to like him. The sense of fun and his constant mockery and smack talk endeared him to me as it appealed to my childish side. It is sports entertainment, and Jericho provides a lot of entertainment. 

One of my favourite wrestling moments, was when Jericho became the first ever undisputed champion at Vengeance 2001. It seemed like he wasn't the obvious choice to be the champ over Stone Cold, Kurt Angle and The Rock. It felt like my guy had taken on the establishment and won.

And no matter what happens, how many heel turns, how many losses to Fandango... he will always be my guy. The one that I root for no matter what. 

And that loss to Fandango hurt. Jericho has come and gone from WWE and for him to come back and lose to some nobody hurt. My guy doesn't lose to jobbers. Looking at it less emotionally, he was being a pro. Seasoned pros losing to new guys is what helps them get over, and that's what Jericho was doing here. It's one of the reasons I admire Cena - his willingness to lose to less established stars every so often. 

The difference is that Cena generally loses to mid carders to elevate them to main event status - Kevin Owens, AJ Styles and the like. This loss was to someone who hadn't even wrestled a match before. And it hurt.

Since then, Jericho has been in a number of rivalries, although none of them were terribly memorable. The brand split has really helped him though. He was drafted higher than many people thought he should have been, but he has proved his worth to the Raw brand.

The best of friends storyline with Kevin Owen has helped them both have a bit of focus and a sense of purpose. The List of Jericho is just brilliant and stupid fun, as is the fact that their opponents are going to get "it."

I would say that Jericho has elevated himself over the past couple of months to be on the verge of being a main eventer again. The fact that he was close to being added to the Universal Title match at Hell In A Cell shows that the organisation think of him this way too.

I can see Kevin Owens holding the title for a while and the logical way for the story to go is for either him or Jericho to turn on the other and lead to a title feud... with Jericho winning.... well a boy can dream.

Preview: No Mercy 9 October 2016

Team Blue have had more time to develop storylines for this PPV than they did for Backlash and it has shown. These matches are generally more anticipated and seem to feel more important rather than slightly hastily booked matches.

All the Smackdown titles are on the line, although I don't see that many changing hands because, with the exception of The Miz, none of them have been held for more than a month.


Baron Corbin v Jack Swagger

Swagger's return to programming has earned him quite a good reaction from the fans, but his dubious victory over Corbin on Smackdown and the quick rematch suggests they are in for a series of matches. I'm not sure which of these guys will come out on top in the long run. Hopefully the feud will elevate them both. Corbin should get the victory here to make it 1-1 in the series, possibly by doing whatever it takes to keep Swagger down. The story hasn't developed enough for this to be their final match with each other.

Prediction: Baron Corbin

Smackdown Tag Team Championship:
Heath Slater & Rhyno (c) v The Usos

The Usos have had a new lease of life since their heel turn and seem to have a little more dimension to their characters. They're the number one heel team on the blue brand by quite some distance and will undoubtedly get the belts at some point soon, although whether American Alpha will get a run first remains to be seen.

An Alpha-Usos rivalry for the belts seems likely in the future, however Alpha probably won't take the belts direct from the current holders, so the Usos will likely do it but not until Slater's had his moment in the sun. Slater and Rhyno need and deserve another few months with the straps to build their following.

Prediction: Heath Slater and Rhyno

Nikki Bella v Carmella

As the longest reigning Divas champion, Nikki had a big target on her back for Carmella to target to attempt to get some respect. Carmella needs the win much more than Nikki does. With only 7 women on the roster, Smackdown really needs more of the women to be believable title contenders otherwise storylines will be stale quite quickly and the brand really needs Carmella to pick up at least one victory over Bella.

Prediction: Carmella

Curt Hawkins v TBC

His oppenent is currently unknown but judging by the number of promo clips he's had on Smackdown over the past few weeks, he should definitely win this one to keep his Chuck Norris style legend going. There's two ways that this could go. It could be a squash match. WWE have shown they are fond of these recently, with Kane, Nia Jax and Braun Strowman all having them since the brand split. It's perhaps not surprising as you have fewer wrestlers available for each of the weekly shows, although it seems to be a bit overused.

The other thing they could do is put him up against someone reasonable who doesn't have a match. Apollo Crews and Kane are the highest profile guys who don't have matches but I don't see either of them putting Hawkins over at this stage in their respective character arcs so my hunch is that it will be someone weak. I half expect them to get James Ellsworth after the reaction he got a couple of weeks ago when he was due to be AJ Style's partner, and the fact he has been mentioned twice on Talking Smack.

Prediction: Curt Hawkins to beat whoever is put in front of him.

Smackdown Women's Championship:
Becky Lynch (c) v Alexa Bliss

Becky said on Talking Smack that she's holding onto the title with a death grip and that's the way that I see it staying for a while. Alexa Bliss has been elevated. I ruled her out completely when doing the preview for Backlash but she  managed to make herself into the number one contender by winning a fatal 5 way against the rest of the women's division and has managed to carve out a bit of a niche for herself.

I feel that the women's division has historically lacked enough heels, I think this was perhaps because of the way that they were marketed as "divas" and not superstars as they are now. With divas they were being sold on their image and it would have tarnished this marketing strategy. Now this has changed significantly and Bliss has done well to get herself to the top of the pile of heels and it might be that she gets a run at the top of the ladder at some point. She needs a bit more time to develop her character and make herself a more believable champion. I think this would be a bit too soon but I can see the rivalry extending for a few months.

Prediction: Becky Lynch

Intercontinental Championship (Title v Career):
The Miz (c) v Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler has to win this one. It's as simple as that. The amount of TV time that they've given him since the brand split shows that they're invested in him and so he's not going to just go away. The stipulation provides a nice twist to the storyline where he has been falling short of both the WWE Championship and the Intercontinental Championship over the last few months. The Dolphumentary on this week's Smackdown was nice to give you more of an idea of his history with the company and to make you buy into the fact that he's been hard done by and this is his final chance at redemption.

I'm more bought into Miz after the recent work with Ziggler. He seems to have more credibility even though his character is cowardly. Having to be one of the top heels on the brand has given him the room to shine.

Prediction: Ziggler.

Randy Orton v Bray Wyatt

This match was due to happen at Backlash and I didn't think there had been enough build up at that point. Wyatt attacked Orton backstage rendering him unable to fight and instead Wyatt faced Kane.

There has been a lot more now in the weeks since then and it has been building well, although I think there could still be better to come. Prior to Backlash I wrote that Wyatt's storylines often last a few pay per views and he isn't hurt by a loss. His loss to Kane has already been forgotten. He doesn't seem any less frightening after he loses. Orton probably still needs a morale boosting win after his Summerslam KO at the hands of Lesnar and Wyatt can still pursue him in ever more creepy ways. A few more weeks of mind games and a conclusion at Survivor Series would suit me nicely.

Prediction: Orton


WWE World Championship
AJ Styles (c) v Dean Ambrose v John Cena

I think Cena's inclusion was mainly so that we wouldn't be seeing Styles v Ambrose again and to give us a bit of variety. His talk about beating Ric Flair's record in recent weeks shows that he's got the desire to get back to the top again having been lower down the card for a while. The company probably owe him after the work he's done putting over upcoming talent (Styles and Kevin Owens, specifically) and he has really earned the honour. He's probably got a few years left of his career so it seems likely to happen at some point. Their weird thing about it is that he will have to win it and then lose it again in order to break the record.

For all that, this is not the time for him to take the belt back. It wouldn't be much of a journey for him to start talking about it and then win it a couple of weeks later. The record equalling championship should happen at a more prestigious event. Survivor Series is next month but that might still be too soon, and I think Royal Rumble in January is more likely.

It is not the time for Ambrose to get the belt back either. Styles has been dominant since his arrival in January and to cut his first title reign short now would undo all of that work. I was wrong about him winning the title at Backlash. I thought more of a pursuit of the title would happen, but he is unstoppable and he shouldn't be stopped now.

Prediction: AJ Styles

Current WWE Pay Per View Schedule

Updated as of 27 July 2017

19 August 2017 - NXT Takeover: Brooklyn
20 August 2017 - Summerslam (Raw and Smackdown)
24 September 2017 - No Mercy (Raw)
22 October 2017 - TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs (Raw)
18 November 2017 - NXT Takeover: Houston
19 November 2017 - Survivor Series (Raw and Smackdown)
27 January 2018 - NXT Takeover: Philadelphia
28 January 2018 - Royal Rumble (Raw and Smackdown)
7 April 2018 - NXT Takeover: New Orleans
8 April 2018 - Wrestlemania XXXIV (Raw and Smackdown)