With five titles on the line, the first ever Great Balls of Fire pay per view promises a lot. Raw PPVs have generally been less unpredictable than Smackdown's, throwing up fewer surprises. Hopefully they might have learnt from this and will be able to make it one to remember.
Ambulance Match:
Roman Reigns v Braun Strowman
I struggle to care about any match with Reigns in at the moment, which is mainly because I just assume they are going to push him so hard that he will win. Strowman is improving all the time and is almost the face in this match. I doubt they want to push him as a face, though but the fans will be behind him.
Strowman got the victory last time these guys faced off, and Reigns has declared himself the number one contender to the Universal Championship after this PPV. I'm not sure how that works. Can I declare myself to be the next number one contender please? Anyway, as Reigns is going up against the champ, they'll want him to be on a roll so I'm sure he'll end up putting Strowman in the ambulance here.
Prediction: Roman Reigns
Seth Rollins v Bray Wyatt
Bray Wyatt has not really benefitted from the superstar shakeup as yet. After his brief title reign, he appears to have been largely forgotten about. Seth Rollins is the face of WWE 2k18 and so will be pushed, and should be challenging for a title (possibly the Intercontinental title) soon as part of the promotional push, I'd imagine.
Prediction: Seth Rollins
Enzo Amore v Big Cass
I was really not expecting these guys to be split up. Their chemistry and popularity as a tag team didn't look like fading and so it didn't seem sensible to end that what felt like prematurely.
Sure, when Enzo was injured a while ago, Cass had a short run as a singles competitor in which he held his own in the ring against main eventers, but his mic skills aren't up to putting him at the top of the card just yet. That's why Enzo was a great foil for him. He's dynamite on the mic and Cass is the muscle. They worked amazingly together.
You would hope that WWE creative had sensed that they'd reached their peak and have called time on their partnership became stale. You would hope that they picked the perfect time to break up the team. I do feel there was still some good storytelling to be had, especially as had they managed to take the tag titles it would have been a very special moment. They had however been pushed farther to the back of the line when the Hardys showed up at Wrestlemania to take the belts.
Anything other than a Cass victory here would be odd. He's been the aggressor and for Enzo to one up him straight away would pretty much kill off their new rivalry. Enzo will do better chasing revenge over the next couple of months, ripping it up on the mic and eventually getting his revenge.
Prediction: Big Cass
Cruiserweight Championship:
Neville (c) v Akira Tozawa
Neville has been ridiculously dominant as the King of the Cruiserweights, and has held the title now for longer than all other champions combined. Tozawa is now part of Titus Worldwide, whatever that may be. These guys are picking up a bit of momentum but I really think what's best for business is Neville retaining here.
Prediction: Neville
Raw Women's Championship:
Alexa Bliss (c) v Sasha Banks
Sasha somehow managed to win in what was effectively a 2 on 1 handicap match on Monday Night Raw. She has been shown to be strong and we know she's a great competitor having torn up the rulebook for the women's division over the last couple of years along with Charlotte Flair.
That makes her a great challenger for Bliss to beat to increase her credibility. She's held both the Raw and Smackdown women's championships - the only woman to have done so - and she's been a title holder for pretty much all of the last 8 months. I can see her keeping her momentum here, despite the fact that Sasha is probably the favourite.
Prediction: Alexa Bliss
Intercontinental Championship:
The Miz (c) v Dean Ambrose
The Miz only won the championship back last month and there doesn't seem much of an argument for him to drop it again so soon. Ambrose is popular enough without a title and should be looking to get back into the main event picture at some point soon.
The Miz has been outstanding over the last year. He's probably the best heel on the roster right now and with the Miztourage in his corner, he has a definite advantage. His arrogance whilst holding the title makes for compelling viewing and I can see him holding it for a while. Miz v Ambrose has been done to death and I can see Miz retaining but then feuding with another big name for whom there isn't space in the main event scene at the moment. Rollins or Balor would be the obvious picks.
Prediction: The Miz
WWE Raw Tag Team Championship, Iron Man Match:
Sheamus & Cesaro (c) v The Hardy Boyz
Having predicted 3 successful title defences, I'd expect one of the last two to change hands. I can't see it being this one. Sheamus and Cesaro as a team still have a long distance to run. There are so many things that WWE could do with the Hardy Boyz that I feel they would be wasted continuing in the tag team division. As an Iron Man match, this will probably end up going 2-1 and I'd guess the champions would get the final fall close to the end of the time limit and then perhaps run off so that the Hardys couldn't tie it up.
Prediction: Sheamus & Cesaro
WWE Universal Championship:
Brock Lesnar (c) v Samoa Joe
So that leaves the Universal Championship as the one to change hands. I really feel it should do. It should really be on television every week, regardless of how big a draw Lesnar is when he is on PPV. Joe would be a great champ and as a believable opponent for Brock, he could legitimately take the belt from him. I thought it was too soon for him to be in the main event picture but he's certainly got the talent to do so.
I'm not sure how the crowd will react to this with both guys leaning towards heel, but with the blurred lines between faces and heels these days, and the fans respecting both of these guys, Joe especially, there should hopefully be a good atmosphere. Others deserve the title more than Joe, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't deserve it.
Prediction: Samoa Joe
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