Well, hello there! Welcome to my first predictions post since May! Sorry it’s a bit late, but it’s up and that’s all that matters!
Today we’re discussing WWE Battleground, which takes place this Sunday on July 20, 2014 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa, Florida.
The deck is stacked, and other than a potential Sandow/Adam Rose match, there doesn’t seem to be room for anything else on the show! So without further ado, let’s get to my match-by-match predictions!
Cameron vs. Naomi
Let’s face it, this match is worthy of its spot on the pre-show as opposed to the actual event itself. That’s not me being sexist, or thinking the talent is not good enough to be on a Pay-Per-View, but it’s really all down to booking.
WWE Creative wanted this rivalry to be something big as far as Divas go (or Total Divas, if you will), but there was never any hope of that. It was known for a while that Cameron and Naomi would eventually turn on each other and even that didn’t get us excited.
We like Naomi because she’s a great athlete, and could eventually be one of the women to help turn the Divas division around if that day should ever come. And while Cameron may never shake the fact that she was the first eliminated in Steve Austin’s ‘WWE Tough Enough’ because she couldn’t run ropes and her favourite match was Melina vs. Alicia Fox, I won’t deny the fact that she is trying (no matter how much she fails to deliver).
But the lack of talent in the division, and the distinct lack of care on the creative team’s side makes this almost impossible not to forget about. Will there be many people tuning into the pre-show specifically to see these girls face off? Probably not.
That’s not to say they won’t put on a good Divas match with the amount of time they’re given, but when it’s all said and done, it won’t mean anything. There’s a reason why this sub-rivalry doesn’t have as much attention as AJ Lee/Paige or the Nikki Bella situation, and it’s because it doesn’t involve a title, Daniel Bryan, Stephanie McMahon, two of WWE’s best female wrestlers or John Cena’s girlfriend.
Do I expect the match to be entertaining? It wouldn’t surprise me, but since these pre-shows are probably exclusive to the WWE Network, I’m not exactly the target audience, so it doesn’t matter what I think.
This match is likely to show that Naomi is, in fact, a beast in the ring, so expect her to pick up the victory.
Winner: Naomi
2-out-of-3 Falls Match for the Tag Team Championship: The Usos (c) vs. Erick Rowan & Luke Harper
We’ve seen this match enough times already, and while the stipulation may make it more interesting, I would’ve preferred to see a Steel Cage implemented, or something to give it some life.
I have enjoyed their matches together, and have no doubt that they will put on a great show, but I see way too many people complain about it on Social Media to ignore it. I didn’t really mind seeing the match this many times, but I suppose the people have a point, and to be honest, this match has pretty much been the same each time.
That being said, I do look forward to the result of this one, because it looks like Rowan and Harper may finally be walking out with the titles. It has long been thought that the best team should have the belts (although that’s not always the case), and the Wyatt Family are by far the best team in the WWE right now.
Luke Harper is one of the most impressive big guys in WWE history at this stage, and Rowan is often overlooked for that fact, but he’s pretty damn good too. And together, with Bray Wyatt, they are completely different from anything we’ve seen in a long time.
They are monsters with a purpose, be it change, revenge or just utter destruction. So I think it’s time for the Wyatts to finally make the impact that they came to make, and walk out with some gold.
If I was booking it, I’d give Harper and Rowan an early first fall victory, so the crowd can help the Usos build momentum and go crazy when they pin one of the giants, before Harper nails a wicked clothesline for the victory. And, with a bit of luck (although I see a rematch clause being invoked in the near future), this feud can finally be put to rest.
Winners and New Tag Team Champions: Luke Harper & Erick Rowan
Jack Swagger vs. Rusev
I recently wrote a separate article about Rusev and his path of destruction so far in the WWE. In that article I stressed the importance of this particular match ending in a draw, because I really see that being the only way we can get a long-term, entertaining feud out of these men.
Jack Swagger’s face turn has been a rousing success, and how could it not be? Americans are attracted to patriotism like moths to a flame, and since Lana has been bad-mouthing the USA for months now, a reaction like this for Jack Swagger was to be expected.
For the last year and a half, Zeb Colter and Jack Swagger have made names for themselves by being two dominant dudes with a clear hatred for anything un-American crossing their borders, so I appreciate the fact that their face-turn has come about in a way that fits in with their characters. Rusev and Lana are just like anyone else they’ve set their sights on over the last year, but now that the crowd actually agree with them, more and more people are shouting “We the People” as the weeks go by.
Rusev, on the other hand, has also made a name for himself by kicking people’s heads off and making them submit, while Lana spews some appropriately begrudging statements about America being stupid and whatnot. It works, and so this rivalry is fast-becoming something rather intriguing in the eyes of us fans.
However, this match needs to end in a draw in order for the rivalry to be just as (if not more) interesting when SummerSlam comes around. These guys will surely be bringing the feud to a halt at the biggest party of the summer, and if so, the score needs to remain 0-0 to keep it going. Like I said, Rusev will be able to take the victory next month, but this Sunday would be too soon.
Unfortunately I can see WWE fast-tracking this thing and giving Rusev the immediate victory, which is why my prediction on the SLTD Wrestling Predictions League will see Rusev walking out the victor, but I’ll be sticking to my guns here with the hope that WWE does something right.
Rusev will likely be bringing his undefeated streak into the New Year, and in order to keep his matches from now until the end of 2014 unpredictable, then Swagger needs to prove himself equally as dominant as the Bulgarian Brute.
Result: Draw
Battle Royal for the Intercontinental Championship
As sad as I am for Bad News Barrett and his injury, that’s just the way things go in the WWE. We see that even more with the Daniel Bryan situation, so Barrett can count his lucky stars he wasn’t holding a more important title when the time came.
That said, now we get to witness yet another Battle Royal to crown a new champion, and I’m pretty excited. There aren’t many people in the match that I can see winning, but I do love the match type, so it doesn’t really matter.
As much as I dislike him, I think a win for Alberto Del Rio would be the most interesting here. Del Rio was pretty much hot-shotted to the main event scene when he showed up in WWE, and it shows at this stage that he has nowhere to go on the roster, so why not give him the Intercontinental Championship? Maybe he can give it some variety, I don’t know.
Sheamus would be an interesting choice. Ever since the WWE and World Heavyweight Titles were unified back in December, people have been considering the idea of unifying the mid-card belts too, so it’s a definite possibility. However, I feel like having one mid-card title would mean that even more talent would get lost in the shuffle (I still think unifying the main belts was a bad idea), so hopefully it doesn’t happen.
Fandango and Dolph Ziggler are pretty much guaranteed not to win here. Their rivalry is sure to play a role in this match, but I can see Ziggler tossing Fandango out, but in a fit of rage, Fandango hops back in and eliminates Ziggler. This will set up their match at SummerSlam (it’s funny to call it that, given the context of the rivalry), where they compete in something utterly ridiculous like a Ladder Match with Layla and Summer Rae hanging above the ring, or a (dare I say it) Summer/Layla-on-a-Pole match. Keep it PG, kids, come on.
I think the most obvious winner is The Miz, but I don’t really want to see that. I like him, and the whole A-Lister thing is really working, but he just got back. And considering his last few runs with the title, I don’t really see him adding anything to it. Bad News Barrett was finally going somewhere with the belt, but I think giving it to Miz would be a step in the wrong direction.
My pick, in case you couldn’t guess, is the King of Swing, the Swiss Superman, Cesaro!
I don’t need to explain why I love this guy any more than I have in the past, so we’ll let that go for now. But even if the rumours of Heyman and Cesaro parting ways are true (and I personally don’t think they are) then Cesaro still has every right to pull this off.
Cesaro winning the Intercontinental Title is a step closer to becoming not only the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, but a Grand Slam Champion, and a guy like Cesaro deserves a moniker like that under his belt. Plus, the guy has experience with Battle Royals, so he has to win, right? Right.
Winner and New Intercontinental Champion: Cesaro
Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho
If there’s any match forcing fans to buy this Pay-Per-View, it’s Chris Jericho’s first encounter with Bray Wyatt. This match evokes suspense and in my opinion, unpredictability, and the fact that two of my favourites are involved makes it all the more special.
Whenever Y2J comes back to town, there’s always a heightened sense of excitement among the fans, and rightfully so. He is perhaps one of the greatest wrestlers and most entertaining men to ever set foot in a WWE ring. And the whole SAVE_US thing from his return in 2007 fits just as appropriately here, because without him, the product would be sorely missing something.
Bray Wyatt, on the other hand, has proven himself one of the most intriguing characters and competitors to lace up a pair of boots in the last few decades, hypnotising us with his words and leaving us on the edge of our seats when he kicks someone’s ass in the ring.
Some people think that Wyatt’s promos have become stale and have even caused fans, as we saw this week on Raw, to chant “boring” whenever he speaks. I couldn’t disagree more, but if that many people think it, then something must be done.
I’ve been hearing a lot of talk about Wyatt turning face pretty soon, so maybe that would give his character the freshness it needs to get him over again, but in the meantime we get to feast our eyes with his imminent battle against Chris Jericho.
I’m torn between Jericho and Wyatt here, not only in terms of who I think will win, but also who I want to win. The good thing is that Jericho has no problem putting over young talent, and Bray Wyatt has been on a rough patch as of late so he can afford to lose another match if it’s against someone like Jericho.
So nobody absolutely has to win here, which is a good thing. It adds to the unpredictability of the match. Chris Jericho just got back, so naturally I would expect to see him pick up the win here, but I can see this stretching to SummerSlam.
Gun to my head, I’d have to give this one to Bray Wyatt. I reckon it’ll go the same way as Fandango/Jericho did last year, with Wyatt picking up the first win and then Jericho getting revenge at SummerSlam.
Expect a very competitive, enthralling match-up, with Bray Wyatt nailing Jericho with Sister Abigail with a little help from the family.
Winner: Bray Wyatt
Divas Championship: AJ Lee (c) vs. Paige
I was hoping to see some great mic-work coming out of Paige and AJ Lee on the build to this match, but unfortunately I was gifted with poorly-acted friendship and as Gary pointed out on Raw Revisited this week; the over-explanation of the word ‘frenemy’.
I am hoping the match itself will be worth it, although anything longer than five minutes will probably do the trick, as opposed to their previous matches. I do love both of these girls, and I think a lot of people will agree that they are as good as it gets in today’s WWE, so with a bit of time, they can put on a great match.
Despite the fact that I’ve got an undying love for Paige, if this feud is to continue into SummerSlam, then I don’t want her to win here. I would rather her lose, completely freak out and officially turn into the badass heel that we loved from her NXT days. Then she can earn a rematch, beat AJ Lee at SummerSlam as her actual enemy, and start making the difference she has the ability to make in the WWE.
Plus, with the fans all hopping on the AJ Lee bandwagon now, a win for her (and a huge pop) would be just what Paige needs to send her over the edge, and kick the shit out of AJ post-match, in a ringside breakdown more in line with Cesaro than Alicia Fox.
I’m hoping for a great match out of these two, and I have no doubt that they can deliver, so expect AJ Lee to pull off a victory in what will hopefully be a top notch contest.
Winner and Still Divas Champion: AJ Lee
Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins
A part of me wishes that this rivalry hadn’t involved the Cena/Authority situation as much, but I have enjoyed Ambrose’s efforts to prevent Seth Rollins from cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase.
The Shield’s break-up has done wonders for both of these men, not to mention Roman Reigns, and seeing these two square off on Pay-Per-View is going to really show what they can do without having a tag-team partner.
I’m not sure what role Seth Rollins’ obvious knee injury on Raw will play here, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the match called off. I don’t think it will be, but for the sake of Seth’s health, it may be for the best. Plus, having Rollins forfeit this match due to injury might make it more of a surprise if he comes out later to (attempt to) cash in his briefcase.
Triple H’s Plan B is obviously going to be a failed cash-in, likely due to yet another Dean Ambrose interference, before Paul Heyman introduces Plan C-M Punk!!! Just kidding, he won’t be there, but Lesnar will be, either at Battleground or on Raw the next night.
So whatever way this match goes, the result will still be the same in the main event. I think it makes more sense for Rollins to win by the skin of his teeth here, because it would make Dean even angrier and give him more incentive to continue stopping any and all cash-in attempts.
I know SummerSlam may be shaping up to have a few rematches (this, Wyatt/Jericho, Paige/AJ Lee, Rusev/Swagger) but I doubt anyone would be too sad to see this match happen a second time. Rollins and Ambrose no each other so well, and so it will make for one of the most interesting in-ring battles we’ve seen in quite some time.
However, in the first instalment of Ambrose vs. Rollins, I believe the latter has this one in the bag. So unless Rollins’ injury comes into play too much, expect Ambrose to get curb stomped into defeat… at least until the main event comes along.
Winner: Seth Rollins
WWE World Heavyweight Championship: John Cena (c) vs. Kane vs. Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns
Talk about unpredictability, huh?
Even before it was confirmed with a leaked video, we knew Cena would be defending his title against Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam, and even if we didn’t, Paul Heyman’s suggestion of a Plan C virtually guarantees that Cena will be leaving Battleground with the title.
Unless Triple H comes out after Cena wins the Fatal Four-Way (and Dean Ambrose chases Seth Rollins away), to announce that Brock Lesnar would be facing him then and there, then Cena will be leaving with his hand held high, still clutching to his title belt. I think that would be the only way to actually have a surprising ending to an otherwise completely predictable match.
Plus, with the amount of tag-team matches we’ve seen between Cena, Reigns, Kane and Orton, it feels like we’ve already seen this match several times. The only thing we’ve yet to see is Kane losing it and kicking the shit out of Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns fighting with John Cena, and those two things were practically given away on Raw.
I am looking forward to this event, but the main event? Not so much.
I am excited to see the re-introduction of Brock Lesnar (for the first time since breaking the streak, *sniffle*), but this match has pretty much just been filler until that happens. Expect John Cena to overcome the odds as he usually does, to walk out with the title.
Winner and Still WWE World Heavyweight Champion: John Cena
That’ll do it, folks! Be sure to make your very own predictions with the SLTD Wrestling Predictions League, and check out SLTD Radio, the MFX Podcast and all of the other articles here for more Battleground coverage.
You can also follow me on Twitter @AdamOB_SLTD, and share this article on Facebook and Twitter as well as leaving your comments below!
Thanks for reading!
Self-Professed Conversational Wizard.
Admin, Editor and Writer for SLTD Wrestling.
Creator of 'Under the Spotlight'.
Studying Computing in Games Development.
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