Money in the Bank was always going to be a different kind of show as they had to fly through the build do to the lack of time. However, it was also helpful as we didn’t have to sit through a month of people just fighting each other for no reason other than they would be in a contest determined by completely different means of winning. Let’s get to it.
We’ll get the biggest deal out of the way first: this show took place just a few days after the passing of the American Dream Dusty Rhodes. The show opened with a touching tribute as the roster came on stage to have the bell rung ten times, followed by Dusty’s famous theme music being played one last time. This is one of the few wrestling deaths that actually got to me, which is surprising as I never cared much for Rhodes over the years. However, it’s always good to see WWE give their heroes the kind of treatment they deserve.
However, there’s also some really stupid stuff to get through, starting with the pre-show match. R-Truth beat King Barrett because that’s what almost everyone does to Barrett. In theory this leads to Truth as the self professed King and Barrett running around saying “NO! I’M THE REAL KING!”, because he hasn’t been embarrassed enough yet. I’m not sure when we reach that point, but I’m scared to think of how bad it could get for him.
They started the regular matches off fast with the Money in the Bank ladder match, consisting of Sheamus, Randy Orton, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, Roman Reigns, Neville and Kane. Sheamus won in what was actually a pretty big surprise, meaning it was time for people to criticize it. However, let’s take a quick look at why Sheamus was at worst the second best option to win.
Neville – Not ready
Kane – Will you be serious?
Kofi Kingston – The longest of long shots but never a real contender
Dolph Ziggler – Dead in the water for months if not years now and potentially leaving in the near future. This would have been the weakest choice imaginable as Ziggler isn’t a main event guy anymore.
That leaves us with three options.
Randy Orton is always a possibility, but we’ve seen Orton vs. Rollins how many times now? He would have been a good fall back option, but it feels like something we’ve seen so many times now that there’s nothing to rehash.
Roman Reigns was definitely the heavy favorite but let’s imagine the reaction if he wins. “Man, WWE never mixes things up anymore.” “Reigns wins, just like everyone knew he would.” “Can we get a surprise for once?” Well that’s what we got, as Bray Wyatt remembered he had a reason to be mad at Reigns and interfered to cost him the match.
That leaves Sheamus, nearly through process of elimination. He may not be the most exciting option, but at least he’s a former World Champion and has been doing well enough in the new heel role. If this leads to him taking over the Authority enforcer role from Big Show/Kane, it’s certainly a plus. If Sheamus wins he’ll be little more than a transitional champion, but he gets a recharge out of it. I see little problem here, but I’m sure I’ll be told why he’s so boring and all that, meaning I’ll point out why doing the obvious Reigns win wouldn’t have been much more interesting.
The match itself was the expected good Money in the Bank match, but as usual there were too many people in there. It lead to a bunch of sitting around for people, with Ziggler especially taking long rests outside on the floor instead of going for the briefcase. I could go for taking this down to five people or so and letting there be some drama instead of just piling the same spots we see every time. It’s still entertaining though.
Nikki Bella beat Paige to retain the title with that big forearm after the referee caught the Bellas cheating because that’s how the match was scheduled to end instead of having the ending that actually follows the rules of wrestling. The match was actually good stuff as they had the longest title match since 2006 and the match worked accordingly. That’s a telling sign going forward, but that being said, how many Divas would be able to survive a five minute match, let alone over eleven? Nikki is getting better but this Bellas storyline is long past its expiration date.
Ryback and Big Show did an average power match until Miz ran in to make it a three way feud, which is clearly what they’ve wanted to do the entire time. Why they didn’t just MAKE IT THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE is anyone’s guess, but I’d assume it has something to do with wanting to stretch feuds out for the sake of stretching them out because they think just waiting means building a story.
Cena vs. Owens II was outstanding, just as you would expect it to be. I liked it better than the first match but I won’t put up much of an argument if you liked the first one better. The key here though was Owens’ post match attack on Cena, as he continues to be the best heel in the company by just being a jerk that thinks he’s better than everyone else. Yeah he’ll run when it’s not his time, but when the bell rings, he’ll go toe to toe with anyone.
That’s what makes all the chicken heels annoying: it’s clear WWE knows how to book another style but they just don’t. Owens could be in the title picture tomorrow if they wanted him to be, but I’m sure it’s time for a gimmick match with Cena because that’s what they do.
The Prime Time Players took the Tag Team Titles from the New Day in a surprising upset. However, the more you think about it, the more you think about it, the more it makes sense. This was the first time New Day was in a standard tag match (due to Kofi’s injuries in the ladder match) and they lost the belts. It makes sense, which is why it’s so surprising that WWE actually went with it.
The main event saw WWE World Champion Seth Rollins beat Dean Ambrose in a very, very long ladder match. This was a very solid option for a main event, but I’m hoping they take a break from Ambrose vs. Rollins for a while. It was a long, brutal match but the comebacks got a bit too much to handle near the end. They could have cut five minutes out of the match to make it a bit better, though it was still an excellent match with some great drama. When you can make me believe that something I know won’t happen might happen, you’re having a good match.
Overall, Money in the Bank was exactly what I was expecting it to be, which made for an entertaining show. The ladder matches were always going to be fun, meaning they were more than carrying the show. That leaves you with anything else as a bonus, which consisted of a fun Divas match and an outstanding rematch between Owens and Cena. For a show thrown together in two weeks and the third in seven or so weeks, that’s quite impressive.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
Money in the Bank 2015 Date: June 14, 2015
Location: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield, Michael Cole
It’s already time to crown a new Mr. Money in the Bank, just two and a half months after Seth Rollins cashed in during the main event of Wrestlemania XXXI. In addition to the ladder match, the main event is…..another ladder match! Seth Rollins will defend his WWE World Title against Dean Ambrose after saying he doesn’t need the Authority’s help. Let’s get to it.
Pre-Show: King Barrett vs. R-Truth
Before the match, Truth says dressing up is fun and he’s going to become King What’s Up. Barrett comes out with a new silver outfit which he says was tailor made in London. Truth starts fast with a headscissors before sending the King to the floor as we take a quick break. Back with a boot to the face putting Truth down as JBL name drops all the famous British women that have been trying to get together with Barrett.
Cole: “R-Truth has every bit as much right to call himself King as Barrett.” No Cole, he doesn’t. Truth jumps over him in the corner but takes a kick to the ribs for two. Back up and the Winds of Change is countered into a crucifix for the pin at 5:49. Cole treats this as a huge deal because he has the memory of a drunken elephant.
Rating: D+. Just a Raw match here with Barrett losing again. I don’t know if this makes Truth the King, but why not at this point? Barrett needs to get far, far away from WWE because it seems that he tortured and murdered Stephanie’s pet Feline Animal Champion (pick a hashtag for it) who was destined to revolutionize our industry one day with groundbreaking forms of entertainment at a WWE Pay Per View Event which everyone would be talking about on social media, thereby earning WWE a very prestigious award due to Stephanie’s leadership. How else can you explain the way he loses so much?
Truth gets the crown but throws it at Barrett and leaves.
As expected, this show is dedicated to Dusty Rhodes. We also get a ten bell salute with the roster on stage, complete with Dusty’s theme song playing as everyone claps along. Dusty deserves this and so much more.
The opening video focuses on how there can only be one, meaning a briefcase holder and champion. Wouldn’t that be two? Also, I’m sure that theme is in no way connected to last night’s UFC 188 theme of “there can only be one.” There’s actually no sarcasm there. It really is likely just a coincidence.
Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns vs. Neville vs. Sheamus vs. Kane vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler
Money in the Bank. Kofi is one third of the Tag Team Champions. Everyone brawls to start and Kofi goes for the ladder but everyone stops to look at him in a funny spot. We get the rapid fire climbs with almost everyone getting a hand on the case until almost everyone is knocked down. Kane stops Sheamus from climbing but eats the running DDT from Ziggler.
It’s Sheamus back up first and cleaning house with ladder shots on the floor but having to run back inside to shove Kofi off a ladder. Neville comes back in but takes Trouble in Paradise, followed by Sheamus taking the same. Kofi’s next climb is broken up by Neville and Reigns takes Kingston down as well. With right hands not working, Reigns blasts Neville in the face with the ladder but has to deal with Kofi.
Reigns powerbombs Kofi onto a ladder bridged over the bottom rope and then powerbombs Neville onto Kingston for a big pileup. Kane is back up to stop Roman but Orton remembers that he’s in this match and pulls Kane down by the business pants, followed by an RKO. The second RKO puts Kingston down but Neville springboards over Randy onto the ladder, only to get pulled down into RKO #3. Sheamus can’t get over Orton to grab the briefcase either and a backbreaker puts him down.
That earns Orton a Brogue Kick but Ziggler (where has he been?) runs up the ladder for a save. Ziggler and Sheamus slug it out on top of the ladder with Sheamus teasing White Noise from way up there, only to have Ziggler counter into a sleeper. That changes into a Zig Zag for a massive crash. The Red Arrow drills Sheamus but Neville comes up holding his hand or wrist. He’s fine enough to knock Ziggler off the top of the ladder but Kane pulls Neville’s leg to break it up.
Kane hits Neville and Ziggler with the ladder and throws everything outside, only to turn around into a Superman Punch. Reigns, ever the genius, dives onto the pile instead of climbing a ladder. Cue Big E. and Xavier Woods because this match needs more people. They get Kofi most of the way up but Reigns makes a save and powerbombs Kofi over the top and onto everyone at once.
Orton comes back in and takes a spear, leaving Reigns all alone. He goes up but we’ve got Wyatt! Bray lays out Reigns with Sister Abigail (remember that Reigns cost Wyatt a match against Ambrose a few weeks back) and leaves, allowing Sheamus to climb up the ladder but Neville is there for the save. Sheamus rips at his face and shoves Neville down to win the briefcase at 20:33.
Rating: B-. This was one of the more entertaining Money in the Banks in a few years, but the standard problems hurt it. At the end of the day, this needs to have five or six people instead of seven. The extra people makes this a rotating triple threat with guys like Orton and Ziggler just laying around for long stretches and some, mainly Ziggler, just being there to fill in a spot instead of really adding anything. Fun stuff, but they need to cut the roster down.
Paige talks about the Bellas dominating the Divas division for years and how they do it all for themselves. Tonight Paige is going to change all that and she’s going to do it for Dusty.
Divas Title: Nikki Bella vs. Paige
Nikki is defending. Paige is ready to go but Nikki wants to do jumping jacks. That’s fine with Paige as she takes it to the floor and slams Nikki down, only to get dropped face first onto the barricade. Nikki takes it back inside for some pushups as the rest of the Divas are watching in the back. Paige comes back with a knee to the jaw for two but eats a slingshot suplex. JBL calls this creative but thankfully credits it to Tully Blanchard.
We hit the bodyscissors and a chinlock on Paige for a bit before she kicks Nikki in the face. Why make things more complicated than they need to be? Something like PTO (minus pulling on Nikki’s arms) has Nikki in trouble but she grabs the ropes. Because no one was pulling on her arms you see. An attempt at the actual PTO is kicked away and Nikki hits her spinning kick out of the corner to the…..side?
The Rack Attack is countered into the Rampaige for two because All Hail The Bellas. They fight to the corner and fall outside for some Twin Magic, but Paige reverses Brie’s small package for the pin. They don’t even bother ringing the bell though as Brie rips the stuffing out of her top, allowing Nikki to come back in with the forearm and Rack Attack for the pin to retain at 11:17. JBL wants to know how that’s not a DQ (fair question) and points out that Paige has alienated all the other Divas so no one wants to help her.
Rating: C+. Annoying Bella finish aside, this was one of the better Divas matches in a long time, and one of the reasons is the time. That was the longest Divas/Women’s Title match on pay per view since 2006 and only the second female singles match to get over ten minutes in that time span. However, I’m beyond tired of Nikki keeping the title as they try everything they can to make us accept the Bellas as top stars on Lita and Trish’s levels. Either that or they’re making us wait until Nikki is the longest reigning Divas Champion ever so we forget about AJ.
We recap Ryback vs. Big Show, but here’s Miz with something to say. He sucks up to his home state fans but reminds them that they don’t count if they live in Los Angeles or New York. His team is working on giving us the Intercontinental Title feud that we deserve, but tonight he’s creating an audio visual masterpiece.
Intercontinental Title: Big Show vs. Ryback
Miz is on commentary and Ryback is defending. Ryback hits a spinebuster and Meathook in the first 20 seconds but Shell Shock is broken up. That’s fine with Ryback who knocks Show over the top rope but stops to beat up Miz. Back inside and Big Show gets in a shot to the ribs to slow things down. Ryback throws on an armbar of all things before nailing a suplex. The Meathook is countered into a chokeslam for two and the KO Punch knocks Ryback to the floor. Show goes to get him but Miz attacks with a microphone for the DQ at 5:30.
Rating: C. Not bad here and now they can go to the triple threat that they clearly wanted to do all along and didn’t do here for reasons I don’t quite understand. Miz interfering and ending the match makes sense and hopefully leads to Miz rising up the card a bit more. I’ve always (well almost always) liked the guy and he’d be great as a shorter form Honky Tonk Man: he gets a title from more deserving people and brags about how awesome he is.
We recap Owens vs. Cena. Owens beat Cena two weeks ago in his WWE in ring debut and talked about how this made him a better wrestler than Cena. John countered by saying he was still a better man because he fights for the right causes. Tonight is the rematch for bragging rights.
Kevin Owens vs. John Cena
Owens’ NXT and Cena’s US Titles aren’t on the line. Cena grabs a headlock to start as they’re trying to make this feel as big as they can. A wristlock earns Cena a right hand to the face but Cena blasts him with the big clothesline. The fans are WAY into this and it’s really helping things out. Owens dropkicks him down and hooks a chinlock before busts out Cena’s finishing sequence, including the Shuffle.
Cena escapes the AA (that’s a weird one to type) and puts on the STF. That goes as far as the first STF is going to go so Cena busts out a reverse suplex for two. A Codebreaker of all things staggers Cena but Owens has to escape an AA of his own and hits a release German suplex, followed by the Cannonball for two more. The big man goes up top for a Swanton (but he’s big! I thought big guys couldn’t wrestle a fast paced style.) but Cena gets the knees up. Again, shouldn’t that hurt his knees?
The AA gets two (why is Cena even surprised at this point?) and Cena spends way too much time arguing with the referee. Cena takes him to the corner for a super AA but gets countered into an electric chair, which Owens spins into a Batista Bomb for a very close two. The Pop Up Powerbomb is countered with a hurricanrana but Owens nails him with a superkick for an even closer near fall, causing Owens to headbutt the mat in frustration. There’s a tornado DDT for two for Cena as frustration is really setting in.
Cena misses the top rope Fameasser and eats the package slam for two. Owens keeps things even by missing the springboard moonsault and another AA gets another two count. They head up top again with Cena’s superplex being countered into the swinging fisherman’s superplex for an even closer fall.
With nothing else working, Cena slaps on the STF but Owens gets the ropes again. In a very unique move, Cena tries a sunset flip but can’t get all the way over, so he pulls up and flips Owens down into a sunset bomb for two more. The Pop Up Powerbomb out of nowhere gets another near fall and both guys are spent. Back up again and the springboard Stunner sets up the third AA for the pin at 19:19.
Rating: A+. Yep. This was one of the best matches they’ve had in a long time and these two were just trading bombs for nearly 20 minutes. Cena respected Owens the entire way and could barely hang in there with him. This is one of those matches where Owens doesn’t lose a thing by getting pinned so everyone comes out looking great.
Post match Cena offers a handshake to a real champion but gets kicked in the ribs and tastes the first apron bomb in WWE. Owens walks off with the US Title but throws it down because “The real champ is here!” and laughs like a villain. He calls for a stretcher which is probably match #3 for them. Cena limps off, not being able to put much weight on the knee.
Ambrose talks about getting ripped off by Rollins and Kane last year at this very event but he knows he’s earned this title. It was about respect last month but now it’s about a payday. Of note here: Ambrose called Rollins an errand boy, which was an old Dusty insult.
We get a video dedication to Dusty Rhodes. This felt like something very special, just as it should have.
Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Prime Time Players
Xavier/Big E. are defending for New Day here and Kofi is off recovering from the ladder match. Woods refers to Kofi not winning as a travesty and Big E. rips on Ohio State for their NCAA sanctions a few years ago. However, Kofi needs some power of positivity right now, so the Clap Nation needs to give him the clap therapy that he needs. Woods tells Columbus that they really suck but Big E. says nothing will deter them. Xavier looked like he was about to explode.
Darren flips out of a Woods wristlock to start but it’s quickly off to Big E. to slam Young down. A double splash gets two on Darren and Big E. puts on an abdominal stretch, complete with New Day Rocks slaps to the ribs. There’s a belly to belly for two before it’s off to Woods for a cobra clutch. Darren’s sunset flip to Woods isn’t quite as good as Cena’s was earlier and it’s a blind tag to bring in Big E. for the save. Big E. comes in but goes into the post, finally allowing for the hot tag to Titus to clean house. Everything breaks down and the Clash of the Titus is enough to pin Woods at 5:48 to give us new champions.
Rating: C-. This was in a very tough spot on the card as they were coming after the Owens vs. Cena classic and the Dusty video, but at least we saw a finish that made sense: New Day was down a man and finally in a fair match and lost the belts as a result. I don’t picture the Players as a long term team on top but it’s cool to see them get a run.
The pre-show panel does their thing.
We recap the ladder match. Reigns vs. Wyatt is already confirmed for Battleground.
We recap the World Title match. Ambrose pinned Rollins at Elimination Chamber but wound up winning by DQ, meaning it’s time for a ladder rematch.
Rollins walks past the Stooges in the back but runs into Kane. The big man says this is what he’s been waiting for since Wrestlemania and tonight the future is history. The Authority comes up and says a loss is all on Seth. HHH gives Rollins a pep talk and wants Rollins to show the fans why he chose Rollins to be the man. Show them all.
WWE World Title: Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins
Ladder match. Rollins is defending and comes out all alone. We start with some wrestling as Dean takes him down to the mat and works on the legs in a smart move. A kick to the back has Rollins crawling to the corner but he snaps Dean’s throat across the top. Dean is able to stop Seth from getting to the ladder and drops him with a big clothesline.
They head outside for the first time with Dean taking a slam onto the floor. We get the first ladder brought in (not exactly a dramatic introduction) but Seth springboards onto it and goes inside, only to have the suicide dive hit the steel. Both guys go for a climb but Dean is smart enough to ram Seth into the ladder to take over again. A butterfly suplex sends Rollins into the ladder in the corner and Dean goes up.
We get the spot that we’ve been waiting on all night as Dean does the Flip Flop and Fly before diving into the standing elbow drop. Lawler seemed genuinely happy to see that. Rollins is in trouble but blasts Dean in the knee to stop a climb. Dean’s knee gets crushed in the ladder as we get some rare psychology in one of these things. Seth slaps on the Figure Four around the post and Dean is in even more trouble as Rollins shouts that Dean can’t climb with one leg.
The champ follows it up with a regular Figure Four in the middle of the ring before tying Dean up in the Tree of Woe. You know that’s not all he’s doing as he cracks Dean in the knee with a chair. He adds a double stomp to Dean’s chest but Ambrose is still caught in the Tree of Woe. Somehow Dean is able to shove the ladder over and knock Seth down for a huge crash.
The rebound clothesline is countered with a ladder to the face though and both guys are down. Rollins goes to the top for some reason and gets a chair pelted at his head, followed by a clothesline to knock Seth back down to the mat. A Cactus Clothesline puts both guys on the floor and everyone is down. It’s Rollins back in first and chucking a ladder at Dean, only to eat the rebound clothesline instead.
They fight into the crowd with Dean being knocked into a wall. Rollins heads back to ringside but can’t lift a ladder up, allowing Dean to charge back (while limping) and knock Seth down. The ladder is bridged between the ring and announcers’ table and Seth is quickly backdropped (mostly) through the ladder to leave Dean all alone in the ring. Dean is spent and takes a long time to set up the ladder, plus he only has one good leg. Rollins gets back up and tries a powerbomb, only to be hurricanranaed out to the floor.
They crash over the announcers’ table and Seth tries a Pedigree, only to be countered into Dirty Deeds (THUD). The table doesn’t break so the fans want one more time but Dean can’t get up. Eventually Ambrose does the slow climb but Rollins comes back in with a monitor to crush the knee one more time. The champ climbs but Dean grabs the leg, only to eat a Pedigree, allowing Rollins to…..not quite retain as Dean grabs the leg again. Ambrose pulls him down and sidesteps a charge to send Seth outside one more time.
Rollins pulls Dean out as well and sends him face first into the bridged ladder, following a running powerbomb against the barricade. That’s not enough as he does it again against the other barricade to knock Dean out. Seth still isn’t done as he piles a bunch of chairs onto a ladder for a running sitout powerbomb. Rollins makes sure to bury Dean under a bunch of metal objects but Ambrose gets up AGAIN. Both guys climb on the same side and they pull it down at the same time with Rollins coming up with it to retain at 35:53.
Rating: A-. I really liked the match for the most part but they got a bit ridiculous with Dean getting up over and over so many times. They nailed the drama part though with Rollins never being able to put Dean away until the very end. Very entertaining match here and hopefully the end to the feud.
HHH congratulates Rollins but Jojo comes up for an interview where Seth gets to say he told us so. He declares himself the greatest champion of all time as Dean looks defeated to really end the show after 11pm, which might be a first.
Overall Rating: B+. This followed the Money in the Bank formula with the ladder match headlining things and then two other big matches filling out the card. Unfortunately the supporting matches aren’t as good and held this back from being a great show. That being said, you had six matches and half ranged from good to great so it’s hard to say this wasn’t a very good show. WWE has found the pay per view groove again and haven’t had a bad one in a very, very long time.
Results
Sheamus b. Roman Reigns, Kane, Neville, Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler and Randy Orton – Sheamus pulled down the briefcase
Nikki Bella b. Paige – Rack Attack
Big Show b. Ryback via DQ when Miz interfered
John Cena b. Kevin Owens – Attitude Adjustment
Prime Time Players b. New Day – Clash of the Titus
Seth Rollins b. Dean Ambrose – Rollins pulled down the title
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
Was better than the first. I’m as shocked as you are.
Mr. Money In The Bank Is……
Delayed by a spoiler warning……..Sheamus. Roman Reigns had it won but Bray Wyatt started his next feud by breaking it up. Remember a few weeks back on Smackdown (yes, Smackdown) when Reigns Superman Punched Wyatt to cost him a match against Ambrose? I doubt that’s the reason but it’s actually there.
Wrestling Wars Podcast Episode 12
NorCal and Ty preview Money in the Bank and look at the NFC West.
We’re up to another show here and I’m not the most interested. However, this is more like the TLC and Extreme Rules shows: if you just let the gimmicks carry the show, everything should fall into place (and off the top of the ladders). Hopefully we get a cash in on the night of the show so we don’t have to have the briefcase carried around all year. Let’s get to it.
On the pre-show, I’ll go with Barrett over Truth. I know Truth has been doing some funny stuff lately, but I have to have faith in the wrestling world. I know they’ll likely job Barrett again and chuckle at the idea that people believed in him for the dozenth time, but I have to believe that it can happen just one time. I mean…..please?
Now for the matches that people actually care about, that might actually get more than five minutes, and won’t involve a bag of rubber spiders.
I’ll take Cena to win over Owens, but not by pin or submission. They seem to be taking care of Owens and the other rookies, so hopefully they just have him walk out or get disqualified this time. There’s nowhere near enough heat for this rematch to take place so soon and it’s really holding things back. This should have been at Summerslam to build up Owens even more and take away some of the awesome memories of the first match. Still though, this should be fun and something very interesting depending on the ending.
As weak as it is, I’ll take Reigns for the Money in the Bank briefcase. It’s such a simple idea that you would think they might mix things up, but there’s really no reason to have anyone but Reigns take it down. Kingston and New Day would be awesome for a moment before you remember they’re the Tag Team Champions. Neville isn’t ready. Orton doesn’t need it. Ziggler, Sheamus and Kane are Ziggler, Sheamus and Kane. Reigns is tied in and the logical move, which is why it probably doesn’t happen if WWE tries to get cute. I’ll go safe here though and hope that Reigns cashes in very soon.
I’ve already gone into the World Title scene but I think Rollins retains and brags about it tomorrow night on Raw, only to have Brock come back as the biggest monster face in the history of monster faces to chase the belt. I know a lot of people have been wanting to see Ambrose win the title and that’s still a possibility, but the Lesnar factor changes so many things.
You combine that with the possibilities of something interesting happening with a Shield reunion and there’s almost no way of telling where this goes. Well I mean between the two people who are possible winners so it’s really 50/50, but saying there’s no way of telling sounds better, despite it not really being that hard to tell. I’ll take Rollins retaining and Ambrose turning heel as a result, because why listen to the crowd cheering for someone they love when you can turn Reigns heel and let him build himself up for a year or so down the line.
New Day retains the belts. I’ve been chuckling at the Prime Time Players and Darren is actually showing some potential, but I don’t see them being the team to beat New Day for the titles. New Day is getting even stronger as kind of associates of the Authority, which is even further of a miracle than they were expecting.
Ryback keeps the Intercontinental Title. As easy as a Big Show joke would be here, let Ryback retain and build himself up a bit more with a Shell Shock on the giant. You remember that move. They did it on Raw because why save it for the pay per view when you can show 18 replays of it on Raw. Odds are Ryback moves on to feud with Miz after this, or maybe back to Wyatt, who beat him so recently.
Oh and Nikki retains as the march to 295 continues, meaning she can pass AJ Lee as the longest reigning Divas Champion ever so WWE can put her in montages with Trish and Lita, because it’s totally the same thing.
This is a show that is going to be based entirely on the strength of the ladder matches and little more. Cena vs. Owens is a big match, but it’s going to be dealing with the big expectations that the previous match built up. Other than that though, the Money in the Bank ladder match should be a big fun mess and Ambrose vs. Rollins could be great. The interesting thing is going to come the following night though as an angry Lesnar is going to be back to go a Rollins hunting.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
About WWE’s main event scene. WWE is in a weird place this weekend, and unfortunately it looks like it’s ending with another Ambrose loss on pay per view. Let’s take a quick look at this.
Here’s how I see it going down/what I want to see, and no this isn’t meant to be some grand plan that is some huge insight/shocking prediction.
My guess is Rollins, all by himself, cheats to win on Sunday and keeps the title. The following night on Raw, Rollins is bragging about doing it all on his own……“OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!” “THE BEAST IS BACK MAGGLE!” This leads to Brock vs. Rollins at Battleground and, with Rollins in trouble,
SIERRA
HOTEL
INDIA
ECHO
LIMA
DELTA
Does it make sense? Not really. Is it likely to happen? Eh possibly as there have been far dumber reunions before. This sets up Lesnar doing something at Summerslam and then Shield fighting in the triple threat for the title. I firmly believe the first part is happening but the Battleground ending is much more fantasy booking.
The problem here is they’ve set up Lesnar vs. Rollins at some point and much like Ryback in 2012, there’s no place for Ambrose at the top of the card. Well not on his own at least as they could put him back together with Shield. Either that or they’ll have Ambrose turn on Reigns because it’s as stupid of an idea as they could have and do Reigns vs. Ambrose at Summerslam and do Lesnar vs. Rollins for the title again there, assuming it’s at Battleground.
Either way, Ambrose isn’t getting the title, or at least isn’t going to keep it very long.
New Column: An Old School Reality Star Climbs A Ladder To Fight A Mutant Japanese Barbershop Quintet. And Kofi Kingston
Some might call this a mixed bag. Others might call it an overly long title that isn’t as funny as I was hoping.
Wrestlemania XXXI Preview: WWE World Heavyweight Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns
And then there’s this.
This is one of those matches where there are so many different ways it could go that it makes me want to see it. I’m not entirely sure that’s how they meant to get there, but it makes me want to see the main event more than I did otherwise. I’m not even sure where to start with this one.
So Reigns won the Rumble after everyone knew he would for like a year, then beat Bryan to defend his title shot at Fast Lane. Much like HHH vs. Sting, it all started coming off the rails after that because they had no idea where to go with it after that. They’ve tried things like Roman wanting to be the monster that slays the bigger monster or Reigns living up to his family’s history of being all dominant and such, but it seems like they really don’t know where they’re going.
That of course leaves the problem of people not caring about Roman Reigns. They’ve done a horrible job at making him a guy that we’re going to connect with because he doesn’t have much of a personality. Look back at the two stories they’ve tried. Not many people are going to be able to connect with the idea of being a Superman who can beat up anyone in the world and is going off to fight the big dragon. At the same time, most of them can’t connect with the idea of being part of a legendary family with a huge reputation to live up to.
On the other hand, there’s a major risk of having Reigns booed out of the stadium because Brock Lesnar is the easiest guy in the world to cheer for because fans like seeing Brock destroy people like Godzilla crushing buildings in the abandoned warehouse district of Tokyo. He’s a guy people are ready to cheer for (because they can forgive the Streak being broken that quickly) but instead we’re supposed to cheer for Reigns because of…..hey isn’t that Reverend Slick over there?
They just haven’t done a good job of setting this match up because there’s no reason to want to see the showdown. Reigns is pretty much the same guy he was a year ago but now he has the stupid promos on his resume. He’s been SO much better when he’s the Batista type who lets his fighting do the talking and spears people in half after punching them in the face. But instead, for some reason WWE decides that he needs to be a guy with a personality because that’s how WWE thinks people are supposed to be.
You know who works as a powerhouse who doesn’t say much and shows off with his physical abilities? Brock Lesnar. He’s actually a really good standard for someone who doesn’t need to do much talking and can be a huge success by just letting his power and dominance do all the talking he needs. Let Reigns be something like a Batista instead of trying to make him the new John Cena.
I don’t even see why Reigns needs to win the title at Wrestlemania. Why does Reigns, age 29, NEED to get his first World Title here? Most wrestlers don’t win their first title at Wrestlemania and they wind up being fine. Let him win it somewhere else first and then come back and get his really big win later on? Why have him win here and throw him out in deep water? It’s like asking him to win a gold medal in the Olympics and not even giving him a broken freaking neck. It doesn’t work that way.
All these issues aside, it seems very obvious that it’s going to be Reigns taking the title from Lesnar because the story seems to be that Cena couldn’t do it so let’s get someone even bigger and stronger to take the title from Lesnar. That’s a pretty lame story to tell because it’s just going and getting the next guy up instead of finding someone we might be interested in seeing.
Then Lesnar re-signed and everything changed.
That signing turned this match on its head and made it a completely different story. The idea was that Lesnar was going to lose the title because he might have been on his way out of the promotion to MMA so Reigns had to be the guy to take it from him. However, now that he’s staying and there’s a chance Bryan and Cena will be winning the midcard titles to headline the house shows, why not leave the belt on Brock?
There are a million ways to go with Lesnar if he sticks around as champion, including turning him face. Like, for instance, Reigns sees that he can’t win the title on his own and needs some help. Maybe two guys in black? One of whom says Reigns is his brother? Or you have him fight the Authority and finally clear them out. There are a million options.
Then there’s one more option: the cash-in. I’ll keep this short: if Lesnar retains, I think there’s a cash-in tomorrow on Raw. Otherwise, nothing.
So for the official prediction, I’ll take Lesnar retaining because he’s sticking around. At the end of the day, I think WWE is going to throw the brakes on at the last minute and let Reigns lose here to build him up again for later. I know Vince wants to pull the trigger on him, but hopefully HHH can talk him out of the itchy trigger finger for now. No cash-in at Wrestlemania if Lesnar retains.
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