Choke's WWE Battleground Preview and Predictions
Posted by: choke Jul 18, 2014 | 2065 views | 3 comments
For the first time in years I'm actually looking forward to a Battleground! Well to be quite honest I don't know if I even remember what happened at last year's show. I just looked it up, it happened in October? Antonio Cesaro beat the Great Khali and Curtis Axel beat R-Truth for the IC belt. I think it's safe to say this year's show will be better already.
Let's get to picking some winners!
Pre-show: Cameron vs Naomi: Say what you want about the in-ring abilities of these two or the Divas in general, but the WWE has actually done a solid job building up this feud. I think Cameron has played the heel role well with her non-chalant attitude (heels are always non-chalant) and Naomi remains one of the better in-ring talents in the division. Naomi deserves her shine and a chance at the Divas title again, but I'm going to say the newly heel Cameron wins and makes right her terrible loss to that thief Emma.
Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins: This would be a high energy way to start the show off, plus gives more time for a Rollins cash-in tease throughout the show. The wrestler who possesses the case in the past has had terrible luck on PPVs, with the theory being that owning the case means you don't need high-profile wins since you'll eventually get the title anyway. Makes sense here to me. Build Dean up with a win and keep Rollins at bay for the future cash-in.
Chris Jericho vs Bray Wyatt: Wyatt needs to be right back on that winning path, and Jericho is just the guy to put him over. Hoping we don't see interference from Harper and Rowan to get it done too. Wyatt needs to win to be made to look strong on his own. I could see the WWE making this an extended feud and giving Y2J the early victory, only to have Wyatt take it on the bigger Summerslam stage, but my first thought leans Wyatt here as well.
Jack Swagger vs Rusev: Not that they've done a bad job with it, but it's hilarious that Swagger is supposed to be a face now. Okay they have done a bad job at it. So it's okay that Swagger comes out wanting to deport Diego (okay bad example, we all want Diego deported), but now that he's against a Russian it's okay for them to cheer? Plus Zeb Colter hyping up Obama was just way too out of character. Weird stuff. It doesnt matter anyway, Rusev's gonna roll here.
AJ Lee vs Paige: We all win! I'm digging the Paige gradual heel turn (or is it?) Guessing it ends with AJ getting the win, and Paige raising her hand in a sign of goods sportsmanship, only for her to ultimately destroy her with the Paige Turner. Because THAT'S never happened in the WWE before.
IC Battle Royal: Gotta go with Xavier Woods here in an upset! Well it's an upset that he's still emplyed by the WWE and being asked to be there for this match. Maybe they decided they needed someone for Titus O'Neil to throw over the top and he was the first person someone thought of. lol @ Zack Ryder being in this also. Alright so in order, of who I think has a chance to win this:
1. Cesaro - too many losses lately for no reason. Went from winning the Andre statue at Mania and getting Heyman to wearing an eye patch and being rolled up by Kofi. Doesnt make sense. Here's where he gets some respect back)
2. The Miz - the new gimmick isn't really all that bad for him, and them putting him in a feud with Sheamus and giving him a win nonetheless might show the WWE still cares
3. Sheamus - longshot since he has the belt already, but there's been some talk of unifying the US and IC, so maybe it happens here
4. Bo Dallas - would a loss here ruin the win streak? Probably not since usually they just count singles. Clearly his gimmick is going over much better than say, Adam Rose's, but I still think it might be a little too early for Bo
5. Alberto Del Rio - Doesnt really feel right, but then again neither did his beating Ziggler for the World Heavyweight Title a while back. The WWE always seems big on him
6. Dolph Ziggler - Seems to be getting a bit of a push lately, but then again it's more likely that he just gets mixed up with Fandango in the match and they eliminate each other
7. Kofi Kingston - Probably just there for some crazy hijinx, but it wouldnt be that big of a shocker I suppose
Another interesting thing about the match is Barrett supposedly will present the winner with the belt. That makes it hard to see Miz, Dallas, or Del Rio winning as a feud between BnB and those three doesn't really make much sense. They were already starting a bit of a feud with him and Cesaro so it makes sense, and any of the faces would work as well.
The Usos vs the Wyatt Family in a best of 3 Falls match for the tag titles: I predicted the Wyatts to win last month and I'll predict it again. Rhodes Bros are pretty much the only squad left to even wrestler against, so I think the Wyatts go that route after they beat the Usos in a rematch. If the Usos win, there's not much else to do unless they bring in the Ascension or form another mishmash team (Kane and Orton?)
John Cena vs Roman Reigns vs Randy Orton vs Kane in a fatal 4-way for the Unified WWE and World Heavyweight titles: Plan C. Brock Lesnar. How are the WWE NOT going to do a Brock vs Cena main event next month? They've already pretty much advertised it, and Heyman dropping the Plan C "hint" on RAW to me just solidifies it. I hope the WWE has something more original up their sleeve than to just have Cena go over clean and Brock come out to destroy him either after or on RAW. The most interesting thing will be watching Rollins after any Brock attack. Anyway, I think they stay the course here. Cena goes over. Reigns goes on to feud against the Authority for the next few months and bides his time for his big shot later this year.
Not really an awful match on the card all things considered. Enjoy the show!