Well, WWE fans, another PPV is headed our way and that's Elimination Chamber this Sunday, and what has now become a fixture of this blog, it is time for me to share my Hopes and Predictions for the matches we'll be seeing on the card for this PPV. Admittedly, this will have some of the easiest predictions for just about any PPV this year, because we're locked into the "Road to Wrestlemania", so it's highly unlikely that the stories leading there will change, but you don't know what Vince will do sometimes, and that's just one of the reasons why we watch these PPV's! So let's get down to it! As you likely already know, but in case this is your first time reading one of these, I will give you what I hope will happen, and what I predict will happen. You'll get the hang of it while you read it. Full disclosure: I have no idea of what the match order will be, but I'm going to hazard a guess on it.
Likely on the pre-show, we have the Cruiserweight title match where we have Akira Tozawa against champ Buddy Murphy. As energetic and fun of a performer as Tozawa is, I just don't see WWE getting this title off Murphy any time soon. Murphy will keep this until Mania, and we'll likely get a pretty cool match out of him since Murphy is pretty fucking great. I wish I cared more about this title and more about 205 Live, because those guys are really pretty fantastic, but without a really charismatic presence on that show like Mustafa Ali, I just don't have the interest to make the time for another hour of wrestling every week.
Hope: Buddy Murphy retains
Prediction: Buddy Murphy retains
The first actual show match of the night I hope will be the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match which will have Samoa Joe vs A.J. Styles vs Kofi Kingston vs Jeff Hardy vs Randy Orton vs champion The New Daniel Bryan. Let's face it; with the nuclear (or, I should say... environmentally sustainable) heat that D-Bry is getting right now, there's no way they're going to put that championship on someone else. It made sense when Bray Wyatt won it two years ago (at a show I was at!) because it set up Orton vs Wyatt at Mania in one of the shittiest matches I've ever seen. Goddammit, Wyatt deserved better. Anyway, Bryan deserves a championship reign that rivals that of A.J. Styles, because they can eventually do something different with The American Dragon and have him turn face or they could keep him as heel for a good long while. This version of Bryan is something that I don't see getting old or stale for a long time. But I'm betting that the starters will be A.J. and Kofi, because their openings will get the biggest pops from the crowd, and I'm guessing that Kofi will not last as long as he did the other night, but I'm also guessing that Rowan and Big E and Xavier Woods will be on the outside, and we'll get some kind of tag match at Fastlane between Bryan/Rowan and New Day. And since there's a strong likelihood that the title will stay on Bryan, this won't be a show-closer.
Hope: Daniel Bryan retains via some kind of interference by Rowan
Prediction: Daniel Bryan retains
One of the goofiest matches we're going to have is the Smackdown Tag title match where we have The Usos vs champs Shane McMahon and The Miz. I don't know how they're going play this duo, because I just can't think of a scenario where we don't have Shane and Miz falling apart and a feud that leads us to a Shane vs Miz match at Mania. But I don't think this match is going to provide that catalyst. And as I stated in my Smackdown recap this week, I don't think that The Usos need another run with the titles this soon. There's been too much Hot Potato with this title over the last year, so it just makes sense that Shane and Miz will retain. As far as where the "Best Tag Team in the World" will go after this, that's anyone's guess. Although, it would make me kind of happy to see Shane be the one who turns heel on Miz just to see what that would be like, but as I stated, this match isn't the time or place for that.
Hope: McMiz retains, but Shane turns heel immediately following the match
Prediction: McMiz retains
Also, apparently there's a No DQ match between Braun Strowman and Baron Corbin and literally the only reason I know about it is via Wikipedia. This is one of those that Vince likes to throw in there as something that seems like a no-brainer, but it really could go either way, especially since this is part of a larger story. As I mentioned in my recap of Raw this week, it really seems like they're setting up for a Strowman and Kurt Angle vs Corbin and Drew McIntyre match at Mania, so while the smart money would always been on Strowman winning, I have a feeling that, since this is a No DQ match, Drew is going to insert himself and lay out Strowman, Angle will run in to try to make a save, but he'll get locked in his own Ankle Lock by the Scottish Psychopath, and Corbin will make a lazy cover for the win. Angle is rumored to be done with anything in-ring after Mania so it's likely that this will be the build to that match. Frankly, I'm shocked they keep fucking Strowman so hard at each Mania, but then I read about some of his apparent backstage heat, and then I can kind of understand it if it's true. But if this Mania match is going to be Angle's last match, it'll be more palatable to have him win, and they could make that work with Strowman in his corner.
Hope: Baron Corbin wins with the help of Drew McIntyre and a failed run-in from Kurt Angle
Prediction: Baron Corbin wins with the help of Drew McIntyre and a failed run-in from Kurt Angle
Then we're going to have the match I'll be keeping probably the closest eye on, and that's Finn Balor challenging both champ Bobby Lashley and hype-man Lio Rush in a Handicap match for the Intercontinental title. This one is something that can really only go one way, and that's Lashley picking up the win. This way, you get a Finn that is fed up and really fucking hungry for a rematch for this title at Mania, and you get an angry, ferocious Demon King at Mania and Finn finally gets his hands on a title; something that's eluded him since Summerslam 2016. But there's the possibility they waste that mega-pop at Mania and give it to him now, because Finn is getting this title as a reward for eating shit for the last two years on the main roster and for not going to AEW. It's just that it would be a better and bigger moment for Finn to get it done at Mania with the Demon King. What would make it stronger is if it was a No Contest or a DQ for Lashley who can't get the job done on Balor without cheating, and yes, a Handicap match is kind of a cheat shitheel thing to do, but Finn needs to really bring out the Demon because he's pissed off because Lashley or Rush did something gross.
Hope: Bobby Lashley retains in a dirty and despicable way
Prediction: Bobby Lashley retains somewhat cleanly
The second-to-last match I'm guessing will be Ruby Riott vs champ Ronda Rousey for the Raw Women's title with Charlotte Flair at ringside. So we know there's not a snowball's chance in even the coldest parts of Hell that Riott will win this match. So how to make it interesting and keep the story between Ronda, Charlotte and the currently-suspended Becky Lynch hot? Well, that's easy; you have Charlotte in full-shitheel mode at ringside to "scout" Ronda, but she secretly wants Riott to win because Ruby would be an easier win, so she tries to fuck Ronda over, but Becky comes in to halt Charlotte's attempt to schmozz up the match because she not only wants to fuck with Charlotte, but she wants to face Ronda at Mania so she would need to retain. It's such a simple thing to do that I'm afraid that they'll fuck it up and have Ronda do it all herself.
Hope: Ronda Rousey retains after attempted interference by Charlotte Flair but the interference is stopped by Becky Lynch
Prediction: Ronda Rousey retains after attempted interference by Charlotte Flair but the interference is stopped by Becky Lynch
What I'm hoping won't be the first match and should be the last is the Women's Tag title Elimination Chamber match where we have The Boss 'N Hug Connection vs Nia Jax and Tamina vs The Riott Squad vs Fabulous Glow vs The IIconics vs Fire and Desire. Now we know that the two teams to start off will be Boss 'N Hug vs Fire and Desire, and a big part of the story that will be told will be that of Sasha Banks' shoulder, which has been the subject of a lot of speculation in the dirt sheets as WWE released a statement that her status was "questionable", but WWE.com made it clear that it was essentially a work earlier today that The Legit Boss is cleared to compete. So expect everyone to target that when she's in the ring. They'll make it to the final two, I'm betting, but I'm really hoping that the other final two will be The IIconics, because I'm all about Billie and Peyton getting those titles first. They've been a duo pretty much since their introduction in NXT, and obviously long before that, and I can see them having a lot of fun with these titles and really making other teams jump through a lot of hoops to get a rematch at those titles. Since the PPV's are co-branded again, it's still likely that we won't see a defense of those titles until Mania, but I really don't want this to be another Hot Potato tag title, but there should be a defense every other PPV. I think that keeping Bayley and Sasha as far as possible from these titles for as long as possible is the wise option and they'll take it maybe at next year's Rumble. Hopefully, they'll also have more talent in the Women's division soon, so more potential tag teams can get involved as well. But I have this real fear that they'll put these on Nia Jax and Tamina if for no other reason than to have the monsters hold the gold for a while. But as far as the rest of the field is concerned, Riott Squad, Fire and Desire and Fabulous Glow don't have any business holding these titles yet.
Hope: The IIconics are the first-ever Women's Tag Champions
Prediction: The IIconics are the first-ever Women's Tag Champions
As I stated at the top, this seems like a really easy card to call the winners and losers of, but how they win or lose is up for some debate. I'm just hoping for a halfway-decent show, and with the historic importance of the Women's Tag titles, it should absolutely be the main event. Just be ready for a lot of heel wins.
So keep your eyes on this blog for my NXT recap which will likely be coming in the wee hours of the morning tomorrow, but at least you have this tonight to keep you warm in whatever part of the world you're in, and also I'm likely going to have a "live blog" of Elimination Chamber you'll be able to see on Sunday night after the PPV, so keep your eyes out for that!
Until next time, kids...
Likely on the pre-show, we have the Cruiserweight title match where we have Akira Tozawa against champ Buddy Murphy. As energetic and fun of a performer as Tozawa is, I just don't see WWE getting this title off Murphy any time soon. Murphy will keep this until Mania, and we'll likely get a pretty cool match out of him since Murphy is pretty fucking great. I wish I cared more about this title and more about 205 Live, because those guys are really pretty fantastic, but without a really charismatic presence on that show like Mustafa Ali, I just don't have the interest to make the time for another hour of wrestling every week.
Hope: Buddy Murphy retains
Prediction: Buddy Murphy retains
The first actual show match of the night I hope will be the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match which will have Samoa Joe vs A.J. Styles vs Kofi Kingston vs Jeff Hardy vs Randy Orton vs champion The New Daniel Bryan. Let's face it; with the nuclear (or, I should say... environmentally sustainable) heat that D-Bry is getting right now, there's no way they're going to put that championship on someone else. It made sense when Bray Wyatt won it two years ago (at a show I was at!) because it set up Orton vs Wyatt at Mania in one of the shittiest matches I've ever seen. Goddammit, Wyatt deserved better. Anyway, Bryan deserves a championship reign that rivals that of A.J. Styles, because they can eventually do something different with The American Dragon and have him turn face or they could keep him as heel for a good long while. This version of Bryan is something that I don't see getting old or stale for a long time. But I'm betting that the starters will be A.J. and Kofi, because their openings will get the biggest pops from the crowd, and I'm guessing that Kofi will not last as long as he did the other night, but I'm also guessing that Rowan and Big E and Xavier Woods will be on the outside, and we'll get some kind of tag match at Fastlane between Bryan/Rowan and New Day. And since there's a strong likelihood that the title will stay on Bryan, this won't be a show-closer.
Hope: Daniel Bryan retains via some kind of interference by Rowan
Prediction: Daniel Bryan retains
One of the goofiest matches we're going to have is the Smackdown Tag title match where we have The Usos vs champs Shane McMahon and The Miz. I don't know how they're going play this duo, because I just can't think of a scenario where we don't have Shane and Miz falling apart and a feud that leads us to a Shane vs Miz match at Mania. But I don't think this match is going to provide that catalyst. And as I stated in my Smackdown recap this week, I don't think that The Usos need another run with the titles this soon. There's been too much Hot Potato with this title over the last year, so it just makes sense that Shane and Miz will retain. As far as where the "Best Tag Team in the World" will go after this, that's anyone's guess. Although, it would make me kind of happy to see Shane be the one who turns heel on Miz just to see what that would be like, but as I stated, this match isn't the time or place for that.
Hope: McMiz retains, but Shane turns heel immediately following the match
Prediction: McMiz retains
Also, apparently there's a No DQ match between Braun Strowman and Baron Corbin and literally the only reason I know about it is via Wikipedia. This is one of those that Vince likes to throw in there as something that seems like a no-brainer, but it really could go either way, especially since this is part of a larger story. As I mentioned in my recap of Raw this week, it really seems like they're setting up for a Strowman and Kurt Angle vs Corbin and Drew McIntyre match at Mania, so while the smart money would always been on Strowman winning, I have a feeling that, since this is a No DQ match, Drew is going to insert himself and lay out Strowman, Angle will run in to try to make a save, but he'll get locked in his own Ankle Lock by the Scottish Psychopath, and Corbin will make a lazy cover for the win. Angle is rumored to be done with anything in-ring after Mania so it's likely that this will be the build to that match. Frankly, I'm shocked they keep fucking Strowman so hard at each Mania, but then I read about some of his apparent backstage heat, and then I can kind of understand it if it's true. But if this Mania match is going to be Angle's last match, it'll be more palatable to have him win, and they could make that work with Strowman in his corner.
Hope: Baron Corbin wins with the help of Drew McIntyre and a failed run-in from Kurt Angle
Prediction: Baron Corbin wins with the help of Drew McIntyre and a failed run-in from Kurt Angle
Then we're going to have the match I'll be keeping probably the closest eye on, and that's Finn Balor challenging both champ Bobby Lashley and hype-man Lio Rush in a Handicap match for the Intercontinental title. This one is something that can really only go one way, and that's Lashley picking up the win. This way, you get a Finn that is fed up and really fucking hungry for a rematch for this title at Mania, and you get an angry, ferocious Demon King at Mania and Finn finally gets his hands on a title; something that's eluded him since Summerslam 2016. But there's the possibility they waste that mega-pop at Mania and give it to him now, because Finn is getting this title as a reward for eating shit for the last two years on the main roster and for not going to AEW. It's just that it would be a better and bigger moment for Finn to get it done at Mania with the Demon King. What would make it stronger is if it was a No Contest or a DQ for Lashley who can't get the job done on Balor without cheating, and yes, a Handicap match is kind of a cheat shitheel thing to do, but Finn needs to really bring out the Demon because he's pissed off because Lashley or Rush did something gross.
Hope: Bobby Lashley retains in a dirty and despicable way
Prediction: Bobby Lashley retains somewhat cleanly
The second-to-last match I'm guessing will be Ruby Riott vs champ Ronda Rousey for the Raw Women's title with Charlotte Flair at ringside. So we know there's not a snowball's chance in even the coldest parts of Hell that Riott will win this match. So how to make it interesting and keep the story between Ronda, Charlotte and the currently-suspended Becky Lynch hot? Well, that's easy; you have Charlotte in full-shitheel mode at ringside to "scout" Ronda, but she secretly wants Riott to win because Ruby would be an easier win, so she tries to fuck Ronda over, but Becky comes in to halt Charlotte's attempt to schmozz up the match because she not only wants to fuck with Charlotte, but she wants to face Ronda at Mania so she would need to retain. It's such a simple thing to do that I'm afraid that they'll fuck it up and have Ronda do it all herself.
Hope: Ronda Rousey retains after attempted interference by Charlotte Flair but the interference is stopped by Becky Lynch
Prediction: Ronda Rousey retains after attempted interference by Charlotte Flair but the interference is stopped by Becky Lynch
What I'm hoping won't be the first match and should be the last is the Women's Tag title Elimination Chamber match where we have The Boss 'N Hug Connection vs Nia Jax and Tamina vs The Riott Squad vs Fabulous Glow vs The IIconics vs Fire and Desire. Now we know that the two teams to start off will be Boss 'N Hug vs Fire and Desire, and a big part of the story that will be told will be that of Sasha Banks' shoulder, which has been the subject of a lot of speculation in the dirt sheets as WWE released a statement that her status was "questionable", but WWE.com made it clear that it was essentially a work earlier today that The Legit Boss is cleared to compete. So expect everyone to target that when she's in the ring. They'll make it to the final two, I'm betting, but I'm really hoping that the other final two will be The IIconics, because I'm all about Billie and Peyton getting those titles first. They've been a duo pretty much since their introduction in NXT, and obviously long before that, and I can see them having a lot of fun with these titles and really making other teams jump through a lot of hoops to get a rematch at those titles. Since the PPV's are co-branded again, it's still likely that we won't see a defense of those titles until Mania, but I really don't want this to be another Hot Potato tag title, but there should be a defense every other PPV. I think that keeping Bayley and Sasha as far as possible from these titles for as long as possible is the wise option and they'll take it maybe at next year's Rumble. Hopefully, they'll also have more talent in the Women's division soon, so more potential tag teams can get involved as well. But I have this real fear that they'll put these on Nia Jax and Tamina if for no other reason than to have the monsters hold the gold for a while. But as far as the rest of the field is concerned, Riott Squad, Fire and Desire and Fabulous Glow don't have any business holding these titles yet.
Hope: The IIconics are the first-ever Women's Tag Champions
Prediction: The IIconics are the first-ever Women's Tag Champions
As I stated at the top, this seems like a really easy card to call the winners and losers of, but how they win or lose is up for some debate. I'm just hoping for a halfway-decent show, and with the historic importance of the Women's Tag titles, it should absolutely be the main event. Just be ready for a lot of heel wins.
So keep your eyes on this blog for my NXT recap which will likely be coming in the wee hours of the morning tomorrow, but at least you have this tonight to keep you warm in whatever part of the world you're in, and also I'm likely going to have a "live blog" of Elimination Chamber you'll be able to see on Sunday night after the PPV, so keep your eyes out for that!
Until next time, kids...
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