w/ Alex Archer, Violet Buttle, and Mike Bradford
CM Punk (c) vs. Daniel Bryan for the WWE Championship
Alex: I'm hoping that these two are given plenty of time to go out there and put on display exactly why they are where they are. I'm expecting Punk to over, but in a way that it sets up a rematch for the next pay-per-view. There is defi
nitely more money in a Punk / Bryan feud, and I think both of these guys are going to give an extra effort, considering their history and similar backgrounds.
Violet: I expect for Bryan and Punk to put on an entertaining match from which Punk walks away victorious. These two have had some decent TV matches, so I'm excited to see what they'll do on PPV.
Mike: If the finish i
s clean I'll be happy because I'll have seen an awesome wrestling match. If AJ interferes I'll be happy because I have a huge crush on her, I'll have seen an awesome wrestling match, and there will be an opportunity for a rematch. Unless this is 18 seconds long, there's not much to not love.
Sheamus (c) vs. Randy Orton vs. Chris Jericho vs. Alberto Del Rio in a Fatal Four Way Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Alex: I'm putting my money on Sheamus edging out a victory, probably setting up a feud with Randy Orton, as that's what they've been playing towards on television for the last few weeks. I'm not sure where they leaves Del Rio or Jericho, but they just don't feel like major players right now.
Violet: I don't really see Del Rio or Jericho winning this. Del Rio hasn't done anything title worthy since coming back from his injury, and Jericho is leaving soon to go on tour with his band. Due to the feud that seems to be emerging between Orton and Sheamus, I pick either one of them for the win. But I'd give the edge to Sheamus.
Mike: All four guys are great workers, and I sort of feel bad that I'm overlooking this match in favor of Punk vs. Bryan. I don't really see a reason for Sheamus to lose this match. It will be interesting to see what happens in the wake of this match. Will Sheamus feud with Orton or ADR when it's all over? Strangely enough, Jericho is the afterthought here since it seems like he was just thrown in. However, a Bella won the Divas title at Extreme Rules, so I wouldn't be surprised if Y2J won just to swerve people.
John Cena vs. John Laurinaitis
Alex: I doubt that they've spent all this time building up Big Johnny just to have him vanquished by Cena in such short order. Brock and Big Show are technically free to interfere without having to worry about getting fired, so I'm predicting that one or both of them get involved on Johnny's behalf. It'll be interesting to see if he actually does any wrestling.
Violet: Though I expect some outside interference from either Show or Lesnar, I will be incredibly disappointed if he don't get to see Laurinaitis and Cena engage in any actual wrestling. Either way, Big Johnny will still have his job at the end of the night and Cena may get so much needed time off after this match to take care of his "injuries".
Mike: Mr. Excitement is around the same age as HHH and Undertaker, so it's not
like he's an old, out of shape guy that can't put on a show. Since he's
the biggest heel in the company now, I just don't see how it would make
sense for him to lose. Perhaps an already "fired" Big Show turns heel?
Kofi Kingston & R Truth (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger w/ Vicki Guerrero for the WWE Tag Team Championship
Alex: I'm hoping that the switch to a three hour Raw, along with the emergence of O'Neil and Young, and the focus on Epico, Primo, and AW, that WWE will
finally be giving us a respectable tag division. As much as I'd like to see Ziggler and Swagger succeed as singles wrestlers, I think they would be a much better fit as tag team champions than Kofi and R Truth. Unfortunately, I think that they're going to keep the belts where they are. Kofi is a treat to watch, but I couldn't be more over Truth and the Little Jimmy act.
Violet: Ziggler and Swagger never win anything, so why would they win this match?
Mike: The tag division is really starting to come together, and that's a good
thing. The only problem I have with it right now is a lack of team
names. I feel that if a team has a name, it's legitimized and not just
thrown together. Unfortunately, since the tag division isn't in full
swing, this match and the gold are irrelevant. I say Kofi and
Truth retain over ZigSwag so heel teams like Millions of Dollars (O'Neil
and Young) and All World Enterprises (Primo and Epico) can make a run
for the titles.
Layla (c) vs. Beth Phoenix for the WWE Divas Championship
Alex: I'm thinking that Kharma
has to be getting involved tonight. Either before the match is over, or after Beth takes the title from Layla. Either way, I'm already over Layla, mainly because I was hoping for and expecting Kharma but got her last month instead.
Violet: Layla has shown a lot of improvement since her return, so I sincerely hope that her and Beth put on one of the better Divas matches. I hope Beth wins, and Kharma returns to feud with her soon. However, Layla is pretty, so I wouldn't be surprised if WWE leaves the title on her for a bit.
Mike: Hopefully we see a wrestling match. Layla has obviously improved, and
Beth is Beth. It's PPV so it's got to at least have five minutes. Right?
C'mon WWE, give me a solid match for that silly looking belt. I hope
Layla wins, and we actually see a storyline develop.
Kane vs. Zack Ryder
Alex: I have absolutely no interest in Kane. I still dig Ryder, but seeing him get beat by Kane on a pay-per-view pre-show just doesn't do anything for me.
Violet: I don't care about Kane, and I wish Ryder was involved in something relevant. To make things worse, Kane'll probably win.
Mike: This match would've made more sense at 'Mania when the feud was somewhat
relevant. Now it's just like "Remember when Kane made Zack Ryder look
like a child for the benefit of a crappy feud with Cena? Or how bout the
time where Zack attempted to attack Kane during his falls count
anywhere match at Extreme Rules, but ended up looking like a doofus?"
Well guess what, here's the big payoff... for free... on Youtube.
Food for Thought
Alex: This has the potential to be a pretty good pay-per-view if WWE plays their cards right. I expect one or two unadvertised matches, but I don't expect them to be of any importance. Possibly one their pay-per-view squash matches we've all come to hate so much? As long as the advertised matches deliver, however, tonight should be a good time.
Violet: Due to the relatively small amount of advertised matches, I expect WWE to make us sit through at least one squash match with either Ryback, Clay, or Tensai. I certainly hope that they're also leaving room for a few surprises tonight, like a Kharma return or a Lesnar appearance.
Mike: That's only five advertised matches for a 3 hour
event. Expect AT LEAST one of the following: Rhodes vs Santino again,
Brodus Clay, or Ryback (hopefully in a 2 is greater than 1 rematch
#FiveStarMatch). If one of those doesn't happen the WWE will either have
to give lengthy match times or a lot of backstage filler. You know
which one they'll choose.
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