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WWE presents Payback on Sunday evening from Rosemont, Illinois We will have full coverage of it here on the site. Here is our take on what we think will happen on the show.
WWE Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns versus AJ Styles
Dave: What they should not do here is have “babyface Roman” beat “babyface AJ”. But that is probably what will happen. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson will be in play and the question is how? If it’s me, I realize the fact that Roman is just not going to get cheered any time soon and I pull the trigger, and have him turn here. I have Gallows and Anderson come out as if they are going to help AJ, only to lay him out. AJ works better as a face. Reigns is not getting over as one, so turn him already. Plus, in a month John Cena comes back. WWE will totally be in Bizarro World if they, by choice, book their top two babyfaces as guys that get booed. It would just be crazy. I don’t blame Cena or Reigns either. Both work hard and don’t deserve their reaction in my opinion, but the fact is that they get that opinion. If they go with face Roman beating face AJ, it will probably be due to AJ not wanting help from his friends and it leads to him losing.
Mike: I think the build for this has been excellent. I love a good mystery, when it's teased right, in wrestling and where the loyalties of Anderson and Gallows land has been a good tease thus far. The work here should be good as Roman can have great matches when in there with the right person (see: Daniel Bryan) and Styles' work in the ring has been impeccable thus far. I don't see Styles getting the belt and wouldn't be shocked to see all of the Anderson and Gallows stuff has been a ruse to set up the debut of Finn Balor and the Balor Club.
Richard: In less than 5 months, AJ Styles has received his first World Title Match. The other story for this match is whether Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows are working with AJ or not. As soon as they debuted, I thought they would be turning on AJ to help Reigns retain the title (then they can join forces with Finn Balor, after another 140 teases suggesting he is debuting). I think the crowd will be disappointed if either AJ does not win or if Gallows and Anderson do not help him. I think we will see some disappointment on Sunday. I think Reigns retains but Styles shows what we saw from him in important matches in whatever company he worked for.
WWE Women's Champion Charlotte (with Ric Flair) versus Natalya (with Bret Hart)
Dave: Well, at least we know Bret is happy to be there! Seriously, I expect this to be really, really good. I don’t see a Title change because Nattie hasn’t been heated up that much and Charlotte is really good in her role. I think it’s way to soon to end her run, so she retains.
Mike: No way Natalya wins the belt. I suspect the Flairs will cheat and then we see the Harts putting them in double Sharpshooters after the match. This should be really good as we've seen nothing but entertaining bouts out of these women in the past.
Richard: I hope the fans care more about this match than Bret does, based on his recent comments. Right now, the focus on the women's division is solely on these two women. People are going to expect a repeat of their match in NXT that probably propelled Charlotte into this position. I am afraid that the two people who are going to be outside the ring are going to be the focus of this match, not the women. Since they are suggesting that the odds are evened because Natalya has someone to watch her back, that we will get a new champion. I think Charlotte retains, but there will be shenanigans on both sides.
WWE Intercontinental Champion Miz (with Maryse) versus Cesaro
Dave: I said when Miz beat Zack Ryder the day after WrestleMania that if it was all done to put Cesaro over big, I am OK with it. So now it’s time to put Cesaro over big. I think Maryse has helped rejuvenate Miz’s character and am glad she is back, but he is a lying heel. He doesn’t need the Title. Cesaro has been out with the injury so his return made him feel like a different guy. WWE has the chance to really elevate him and let him show the company what he has (which is a hell of a lot). They need to pull that trigger and change the Title here.
Mike: I am with Dave completely here. Cesaro has worked hard to come back and is getting great reactions. It makes more sense for Miz to have something to whine about after he's lost the belt. Let Cesaro take that IC belt and turn it back into what it used to be, the working man's championship with great in-ring workers having great matches.
Richard: It looks like they remembered what they had with Cesaro since his return from injury. He has not missed a beat since returning and I expect to see him win the title. While it probably won't happen, I would like to see Maryse try to stop Cesaro from hitting the Giant Swing, only to be caught in it with her husband.
Sami Zayn versus Kevin Owens
Dave: This should be great, great stuff. I wished that they would have pushed these two harder leading up to it. The Raw a few weeks back where they lost to Dean Ambrose and Chris Jericho didn’t help them. But, by letting them do what they can do in front of a great crowd, they can get it back. Sami owes Owens a beating so I say have him win here, only to get decimated by Owens afterward. Owens can won the next one and they can finish it at SummerSlam.
Mike: This is a gimme that it's going to be awesome, unless they don't give it the time it deserves. Zayn should get the win here to help establish him on the main roster. This feud will be going on for a long, long time, so there's no need to rush it. This thing could still be going all the way to Wrestlemania if we are lucky.
Richard: This should be a great match, or at least the first step in what will be a long series of matches between these two men who have battled on the same side and against each other all over the world. Unfortunately, I think we will see Creative look at these two and give us the 2016 version of the Dean Ambrose/Seth Rollins feud that to me was such a let down after their FCW series. While I do not advocate non-finishes on pay per views, this should end in a double DQ or no contest because this should culminate at SummerSlam or Survivor Series or in a Hell in a Cell Match.
Chris Jericho versus Dean Ambrose .
Dave: The booking in this feud has been strong. Jericho has been excellent in his role as the veteran jerk heel. But Ambrose needs the win, he really, really needs it. The “close enough” stuff has run its course. Wins aren’t the only thing, but they do matter. He needs to go over here. Need is the right word too.
Mike: I've loved the build thus far. Jericho was originally slated to leave in late May but is currently being advertised for shows in June. To me, Ambrose should win but if history is any indication, he will be the one getting pinned.
Richard: The battle for talk show supremacy should also include Miz and have Edge or Christian as a guest referee, but instead we get a singles match. Ambrose needs to rebound after taking so many suplexes at Mania. Dean should be the present and future of the company but they are making him just another guy. A win for Ambrose, and a convincing one will do a lot to rehab what they did over the last two months. Will this be the time that WWE remembers that Chris Jericho will still be over with the crowd regardless of the match result and give Ambrose the win? Looking at the Magic 8 Ball, All roads lead to Probably Not.
Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady versus Aiden English and Simon Gotch in the Finals of the Number One Contender Tournament for the WWE World Tag Team Championships . . . Sponsored by Booty-Os
Dave: The New Day are babyfaces, which presents a problem because Enzo and Cass are too. If you listen to the fan reactions thus far, one of the two teams is really over already. So, I have the Vaudevillians screw over Enzo and Cass now so that they get the shot at New Day, which they lose. It’s way to soon to take the belts off of them so save Enzo and Cass for a later date.
Mike: I am with Dave here 100%. The Vaudevillains lose and they are dead in the water as the message would be these guys are the new Ascension. They win and they can face New Day and Enzo & Cass can chase them to get revenge. I think Aiden and Simon will get the duke here.
Richard: This was a long running feud in NXT and we get to see it on pay per view to see who faces the New Day for the tag team titles. By giving the chance to two teams who can be the future of the tag team division, they have done what they did not do with the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Tournament in NXT. My biggest fear is that The Vaudevillains become the 1910s version of the Ascension and it looks like that is going to happen sooner rather than later (and it is a shame because they are a good team). Enzo and Cassady are too over with the crowd to have them lose. I am the one on the site who is not a huge advocate for Enzo and Cass but WWE needs to make up for not giving them the NXT Tag Titles in Brooklyn last year. Enzo and Cassady get the big win here, but I don't see them taking the titles from the New Day. At least most people will enjoy the promos leading to the match.
Dolph Ziggler versus Baron Corbin
Dave: There is no world where Ziggler getting the win here makes sense. None. His whole gimmick is taking a whooping and getting hope spots. That is exactly what he should do here, before losing. And he should lose convincingly.
Mike: No way in hell should Ziggler win here, unless it's a deal where he is beaten so badly by Corbin, the referee throws it out and DQs Corbin for not adhering to the rules. Unless Corbin is then going to wipe out a referee, he should win via pinfall with the End of Days.
Richard: In an ideal world, this match should last as long as most of Corbin's early NXT matches with Corbin destroying Ziggler and follow with End of Days. Then they should have Corbin destroy Ziggler more after the match and stretcher Ziggler out.
WWE United States Champion Kalisto vs. Ryback [Kickoff Show Match]
Dave: Does it really matter? If Ryback wins, yay, finally Big Guy. If he loses, it’s the same thing over and over again. Ryback didn’t make the main Mania show. That tells me they don’t love him. If they don’t love him, don’t bother putting the Title on him.
Mike: I don't see Ryback winning here, unless it's to set up Ryback dropping the belt back to John Cena in a few weeks. Kalisto should win here.
Richard: I am surprised that Paul Heyman is not looking for royalties for Ryback/Kalisto . . . Kickoff Show . . . Repeat. Since they haven't really focused so much on the Big Guy defeats Little Guy Every Time (besides Wrestlemania) Theory, maybe this is the time that Ryback gets the win. If a Ryback and Kalisto match happens on the Kickoff Show . . . does it make a sound?
Vince McMahon announces who gets control of Raw
Dave: I would love a sensible explanation as to why he would give it to Shane, but I am not counting on it. Raw has been way more fun with Shane in control, and heel GM is old hat. But, ratings are down since Mania. So, I wouldn’t be shocked if The Authority wins. If so, hopefully Vince also realizes that “Shane has done a good job” and we get the pseudo brand split.
Mike: The story is in Shane and HHH running things opposite each other, building to the eventual war between the two. A brand split would be the right way to go. We will see.
Richard: In an ideal world, they would not need to focus on a character to get people to watch or care about Raw, but we have seen that regardless of how good people think Raw has been since Wrestlemania, people are watching other shows instead of Raw on Monday night. While it would appear that it is either going to be 'his son' Shane or 'his daughter' Stephanie who gets control of Raw, why not throw in a third option to surprise people like they did on Gilligan's Island for the Miss Castaway Contest. Would they go with a Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, or some other name from the 'Attitude Era' to hot shot things for ratings? Since this is absurd already, why not have Vince tell Shane and Stephanie that they will have to do a series of competitions to determine the winner and it ends up being all of the stupid challenges from Season One of NXT. Drink a soda for control of Raw.
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