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WWE presents the Elimination Chamber PPV tonight. Here’s our take on the event.
WWE Champion Daniel Bryan vs. Samoa Joe vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Kofi Kingston vs. AJ Styles vs. Randy Orton inside the Elimination Chamber. Orton will enter the match last.
Dave: Bryan has been so good as champion there’s no way I would take the Title off of him here. Looking at the others, Kofi was a filliin so he has no shot. Samoa Joe I love, but they have not pulled the trigger on him yet and I don’t seem them doing it now. Whether they should or not isn’t the issue. He is worthy, and then some, but they just haven’t booked him well and I don’t see him winning the Title before Mania. Ditto Jeff Hardy. So it comes down to who will be in the Title picture at Mania. I keep the belt on Bryan here but if they change it, it has to be to Styles so that we get another bout in their feud. Orton will get the last entrance, and I could see WWE putting him in the Title picture, but if it’s me, it’s Styles vs. Bryan at Mania so the finish here should set that up.
Mike: I expect this to be excellent. We got a great wrestling match (really, that Gauntlet was one of the best matches on Smackdown in forever) so I expect a WAR here. So, who goes over To me, it comes down to two men - Daniel Bryan or Randy Orton. If they are going to do a big babyface win, they can save that for Wrestlemania. Orton will be the last one in, so he can always whip out the RKO out of nowhere and this company does have a fascination with putting him in the main event picture out of nowhere, so I never count him out. Bryan should be the winner so he can go into Mania, but if he is, where's the fresh challenger for Mania? I really could see Bryan being eliminated early and then Orton stealing the win and facing Styles at Mania. I really could.
Richard: I loved the way that they built Kofi in the gauntlet match to make him a credible challenger (and I hope that is what they would have done with Ali if he was not pulled from the match). With the level of Bryan's promos, I don't think they can take the title off of him. I thought that the only other options would have been AJ or Joe, but Kofi joined the discussion. I like that Orton will be the last one in so it will minimize what he does. Maybe they can give AJ the four eliminations before Bryan finishes him off. I wonder where they will put this on the show because I would end the PPV with the women's tag chamber.
Nia Jax & Tamina vs. The Riott Squad vs. Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville vs. The IIconics vs. Sasha Banks & Bayley vs. Carmella & Naomi to crown the first WWE Women's Tag Team Champions. - Banks & Bayley vs. Rose and Deville will start the match.
Dave: Mike and I talked a lot about this match on No Name. I think that Bayley and Sasha are the clear choice here, for a few reasons. One, they are original Horsewomen and I want to see them unite with Charlotte and Becky to face off with Ronda Rousey and her group at Mania. Two, they deserve to be the first champs due to all that they have done for the division. Three, they are the underdogs and I want to see them win. Looking at the other teams, with all due respect the only other pairing that should “be able to beat them”, in wrestling terms, are Nia and Tamina. They should not be the first Women’s Champs. Only one team should be.
Mike: Bayley and Sasha have the longest lineage as a duo here and are the strongest babyface team, so you would think they would be the easiest choice. My heart says the IIconics as I know they could really use this milestone moment and that this would help raise their profile, but I can't see WWE doing it. I think we're looking at Nia and Tamina coming in third and wiping out everyone and the IIconics playing up their fear as they wait in the chamber for their eventual release, which will be good comedy. Unless they want to go all Road Warriors with Tamina and Nia (which I would be fine with as they can pillage and plunder both brands), it's gotta be Bayley and Sasha, right? Unless, of course, this is where they FINALLY split THAT team.....
Richard: Of the six teams, I can only see two of them winning and both are on the Raw brand. I think the favorites are Bayley and Sasha but the other option would be Nia and Tamina. The bigger task is Sasha and Bayley lasting the entire match to win, especially with Sasha's injury and the inability to take a ten minute nap like you can in a multi-person match without a chamber. There are two things I am looking forward into in this match. First, during the opening part of the match, when Sasha and Mandy are in the ring together, how will Corey react since he has an unhealthy infatuation with Mandy and an irrational belief that Sasha has no integrity. Second, I am looking forward to Nia punching through the Lexan chamber. It will either happen when the chamber does not open or if someone tries to hide from Nia and she acts like a horror movie killer and reaches through and grabs her victim. While I don't think they will win, I think the team that has the most to lose in this match is the Iiconics. I guess Carmella doesn't have to worry about taking the fall for her team. Since The Riott Squad and Absolution were considered mirror images of each other, maybe they will do a mirroring deal when they are in the ring together.
WWE Raw Women's Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Ruby Riott.
Dave: Clearly Ruby is not winning here, nor should she. The money is in Ronda’s streak being in tact at Mania. But, they can get Ruby some rub here by having her fight her and being elevated in losing. That is exactly what should happen.
Mike: I hope they get time to have a good match beause Riott is excellent in the ring and truly feel these two would have a hell of a contest. That said, I don't see there being a title change and I can even see Becky showing up to help Ronda battle off the Riott Squad, just to snub the McMahons.
Richard: Ruby gets the Bob Holly memorial 'We need an opponent for the champ' title match and it is a shame because of how good she is. I think this will be a good match and if there are any points where Ronda is out of place, she can bring Ronda back into the fold. Since Charlotte said that she would have a front row seat (even though she can watch from the back on one of those nice monitors no one knows how to watch properly), we need to have Becky also arrive at the arena during this match and sit down NEXT TO CHARLOTTE. It is a shame that the Becky/Charlotte stuff may overshadow an actual match, but at least the Raw Women's Division is on TV.
WWE Smackdown Tag Team Champions The Miz & Shane McMahon vs. The Usos.
Dave: Before Jimmy’s arrest, I could have seen them do some kind of angle or have the Usos win. Now? It wouldn’t be a great idea to put the spotlight on someone that just put a bad light on the company. So Shane and Miz have to go over here. There’s plenty of time to set them up for Mania.
Mike: The real question is whether Uso's arrest has any bearing on the bout. For all we know, they get taken out and replaced, although my gut is that doesn't happen. I had noted when Shane and Miz were put together that this had to be a story setting them up for a singles match at Wrestlemania. I still feel that way, but my guess is they retain the Smackdown Tag Team titles here and lost them at Fast Lane to shoot the angle.
Richard: I am on the same page as Dave about how I would have seen it happen and what will likely happen due to the arrest. I guess we can get another team to beat Shane and Miz to set up the match at Mania. Let the dissension between Miz and Shane start during this match. Remember that Backlash is in Cleveland so Miz can get disappointed that his dad cares more about Shane than him and cost them the titles.
WWE Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley & Lio Rush vs. Finn Balor in a handicap match for the IC title.
Dave: If it’s me, I pull the trigger and put the Title on Balor. In WWE world, that would probably mean Rush takes the fall. If it’s me, I would have Rush get beat up a lot but have Lashley lose. He can then blame Rush and get a rematch at Mania.
Mike: I am with Dave here but I would have Rush be the reason Lashley get pinned. Then they can book him trying to make things up to pissed off Lashley. WWE has given Balor a bit of a push lately and not putting the belt on him would be contradictory, although it wouldn't be the first (or the last time) we have seen such things out of WWE creative.
Richard: Balor is an Ordinary Man who does Extraordinary Things with Idiotic Booking and by making this a handicap match, it is a way to have Lashley lose and not take the fall. If Balor does win, I hope we see Lio making excuses on Monday trying to avoid getting beaten up by Bobby. The more interesting thing is how many times Bobby will be referred to as "The Almighty' during this match.
Baron Corbin vs. Braun Strowman - No DQ.
Dave: Yawn. Since it’s No DQ, Strowman probably dominates and the Corbin cheats to win, so that they can continue this feud. Me? I would have Strowman definitively i end it here.
Mike: To me, this is just a quick way to tie up this storyline and give Braun the win he would have gotten at TLC before the elbow surgery threw a curve ball at WWE creative. This should be short and sweet. If I am WWE, I keep Drew McIntyre the hell away from this. He has been presented like he's just another guy lately and that should stop ASAP. I don't see any momentum on this story, so let's end it and get out from under it as we head into Wrestlemania.
Richard: On the Elimination Chamber preview audio, I have a creative suggestion for the stipulation for this match that I hope they employ. Why isn't this crap on the Kickoff Show instead of a match that people probably care about. Bring Drew out at some point so he gets involved and set up the Strowman/McIntyre feud since they have driven Drew away from the Universal Title picture. Remember when Braun was relevant?
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy vs. Akira Tozawa (Kickoff Show)
Dave: This should be great. If it’s me, I have Tozawa get right there to win it, but Murphy uses a heel move to keep the belt. Then, the rematch happens at Mania, ON THE ACTUAL PPV. Will it happen? Probably not. If they aren’t going that way they should have Murphy retain. He has been great as champion.
Mike: I really, sincerely hate that these matches continue to be on the Kickoff show, because the message to the audience is that they aren't good enough to be on the PPV, which is absolute garbage. On paper, this should be a really good back and forth match. I don't see a title change here. Murphy has been killing it as champion and I really so no logical reason to mess with what is working. I suspect he retains.
Richard: I was e-mailing back and forth with someone on Thursday and I was going to end it with 'at least the Cruiser match is still on the PPV, not the kickoff show', but that would have been a lie. This will be a good match, but I think we will see a match that would be even better if they put it on 205 Live. They have done a good job legitimizing the challengers for the title and I like that they had Tozawa earn this by winning an elimination match. I don't see them changing the title until at least Wrestlemania (when it will probably be broadcast live from Axxess. I almost want WWE to let 205 Live sit in his bubble free from the rest of the WWE fans since that is they way it has been treated.
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