Want more wrestling news, rumors, and results? Be sure to visit PWInsider.com and PWInsiderXtra.com.
WWE will present Night of Champions this Saturday on ESPN Unlimited and Netflix from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia with a 1:00 PM Eastern start time for the show (with the first hour also airing on ESPN). Here is what we think will happen on Saturday.
WWE Championship Match: Cody Rhodes vs Sami Zayn vs Gunther
Dave: I outlined my scenario on audio. I could see them having the Sami situation blow up, costing Cody the Title and making Gunther the champion. They could have Cody go after Sami to get him out of the Title picture for a while, which would be good for his character as he would have to chase the Title again.
Mike: I would love to see Sami Zayn get a title run, I don't see it happening here. My gut is Cody gets the win and moves on to face a returning CM Punk at Summerslam. So, what's the finish? My feeing is Zayn tries to fo the "right" thing and it blows up in his face, leading to him being beaten and he finally goes full heel.
Richard: I think the KIng of the Ring winner could give us a hint of who wins. The way this match was set up last week made me very uninterested in this match because of how Sami got rewarded for being a jerkface. People will expect interference from the Bloodline in the King of the Ring finals, but if Roman is the mastermind behind the 'Get both belts in the Bloodline' plan, let them dictate who Jey faces at SummerSlam. Is Sami still part of the Bloodline or has that ship sailed? Who is the 'easiest' option for Jey? Do they do everything to stop Gunther from winning, even though Jey has the Wrestlemania victory over Gunther (but SummerSlam is not Wrestlemania so Gunther might be booked better). Do we see anyone else make a special trip to Saudi Arabia to make an appearance in this match? If you want to sell the most tickets for Minneapolis and Jey is King of the Ring, Cody should win.
King of the Ring Finals: Jey Uso vs Oba Femi
Dave: If this was in May, Oba should win easily. But, SummerSlam is coming and they have two nights at a football stadium to fill. Oba made it clear that Brock Lesnar is his main focus right now. I think we need Femi=Lesnar in Brock's home state in his possible last match. So, I have Brock come out and Oba goes out and attacks him. They brawl all over the building and he gets counted out. Yes, that would lead to Jey vs. Gunther, but that's OK with me as long as Gunther wins at SummerSlam. Uso should be in the Title picture for years to come. He doesn't need to go there now. He also doesn't need to get the win here, only to lose to Roman at SummerSlam, which is what I think would happen.
Mike: think they should go all the way with Oba here and maybe save the Brock confrontation, if they do it, for after the match. Then, you could do Brock vs. Oba on Night One of Summerslam and Oba vs. Roman on Night 2. One of the problems with WWE programming right now is its so formulaic, so whatever they do, please do something surprising and not run of the mill pro wrestling 101.
Richard: I think the result of the WWE Title match could be foreshadowed by this match result. If Oba wins and does not choose Roman, I could see Gunther winning. If Jey wins, I could see Cody retaining or Sami winning to see if Sami still has ties to the Bloodline. This match will have so much interference and from so many potential directions. What I said above would take the Bloodline out of the picture. Since this is in the first hour, Brock Lesnar is on the clock and could either interfere or distract Oba to help Jey win. Does Solo get involved after what happened on TV this week. Does LA Knight do something to another member of the Bloodline? While it won't happen, I would laugh for at least 40 minutes if they have Brock come out and attack Jey to get Oba disqualified. Brock and Oba is written on the sacred scrolls or is in a Juicy Lucy to set up the match at SummerSlam. Jey wins and a portion of the internet gets very angry at Jey 'winning something he shouldn't win' again.
Queen of the Ring Finals: Iyo Sky vs Liv Morgan
Dave: Iyo has to win here. They can't tie up both women's belts in one match at SummerSlam. And if Iyo wins, they can build a little drama around whether she challenges her best friend or goes after Liv. What I hope doesn't happen is that Liv wins here, Rhea can't got at SummerSlam and Iyo defends her Title for her. That would just be a mess.
Mike: I like the idea of IYO beating Liv and then challenging her at Summerslam, especially if Rhea isn't good to go.
Richard: While there a number of stories around King of the Ring, there are more with this match. Does Liv get a chance to try for double gold by winning Queen of the Ring to face Rhea at SummerSlam? Does Iyo finish off the Judgement Day female trifecta with Liv and then you get the conundrum of Iyo facing Liv twice in five weeks or does she go after her best friend Rhea? Rhea is injured so would Iyo take advantage of that situation? We have a week or two before we need the decision. I think the best result would be for Iyo to win so it can set the Liv/Roxanne situation in motion. Maybe Liv expects Roxanne to interfere and she is 'not in position' so Iyo gets the win. If Iyo is going to win, it needs to be clean because of the other matches that will likely have cluster finishes. Iyo will be your new Queen on Saturday because I want her to point to her crown.
Women's US Title Match: Tiffany Stratton vs Jade Cargill
Dave: They really dropped the ball after she lost the main belt and they can't do that again here. There are plenty of ways to have Jade lose in a manner that doesn't affect her at all. That is what they need to do here.
Mike: I wouldn't be the least surprised to see a title change here.
Richard: It is nice to see the Women's US title defended on PPV, but is this the best match to showcase the title? Jade has been dominating Tiffany in the build to the match so that would mean, under the inverse proportional go home theory, that Tiffany wins on Saturday. I think Tiffany should win the match because Jade should not be stuck in the US title picture. I would assume that Chelsea (and maybe Alexa) will be there to neutralize B-Fab and Michin.
Men's US Title Match: Trick Williams vs Ricky Saints
Dave: Look up Ricky, those are the lights! There is no way any sane person has Trick lose here. He should go into SummerSlam with the Title, not chasing it. Now if Carmelo Hayes was in this match, maybe I could make the case for the change but he is not so I can't.
Mike: Trick's the guy. I don't see any valid reason to do a title change at this point in time.
Richard: Something is wrong with WWE if they take the title off Trick. WIth the reactions he gets, he is one of the most over people on television right now. The promos leading up to this match have been prime cliche and catchphrase masterpieces. Trick wins with the Trick Shot and Lil Yatchty sees his shadow so we get six more weeks of him.
Steel Cage Match: Seth Rollins vs Bron Breakker
Dave: Bron needs to come out of this feud as the winner since he is the young guy on the rise and Seth is a made man. I look at the calender and see how close we are to SummerSlam. I wonder who these guys wrestle if the feud ends here. So, I have them go to a screwy finish that decides nothing and then, at SummerSlam, they actually use the demonic structure for the real reason it was created, and the feud ends inside the Cell.
Mike: Unless they do a spot where Bron spears Rollins and Seth crashes through the cage to win (like the old Don Muraco-Jimmy Snuka finish in MSG), it has to be Bron's time to win. He's going to be a big main event player for them, why wait?
Richard: Is there any reason why Bron shouldn't win this match? The big question is what is next for both men after this match. If the feud is not over, I like Dave's suggestion of ending this in a Hell in a Cell match. Will we see the return of Bronson Reed on Saturday to bolster the group? Could either of these men move on to face Roman at SummerSlam? Who else is there on Raw to face Roman?
If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!
Bang On Casino
