Now before I go anywhere, I saw a general discussion thread, threads which cover the discussion based on each individual match and plenty of others but I was surprised to see no actually prediction thread given that most or all of the matches have been announced. Personally I have a lot of fun with this every year so I wanted to kick one off and yes I do believe it deserves it's own thread because I'm going to do a bit of a modification of the traditional concept. I want to ask two questions.
1) Can you try to predict the outcome of each match, or as many matches as you care to based on what's gone down to this point and your own personal ideas?
2) Can you compare your predictions for what you think is the best possible outcome for each match?
And remember, you are free to discuss at length your decisions, other people's decisions, try to avoid just typing out matches and bolding whoever you think is going to win. This aint no spam thread foolios.
I'mma start.
Match 1:
Cody Rhodes vs. Big Show - Intercontinental Championship match.
The build for this match hasn't been anything extraordinary but this year if you aren't one of four men, any match you're in matters that little bit less because nobody is expecting you to draw flies. Cody Rhodes took it upon himself to eliminate Big Show from a battle royal which could have seen him as the number one contender to the WWE Championship after he himself had already been eliminated. Good start.
Since then Rhodes has basically been trying to embarrass The Big Show based on his Wrestlemania performances and record, somewhat successfully it must be said. Expect more of the same for the next couple of weeks and a change of gear in the last week leading to their match. Considering that Big Show seems to be coming from a worse off position here and he's been on and off feuding for the WHC for the last 6 months or so, I wouldn't consider a win by him to be out of the question. I do think that they are going to go the route they proved they are prepared to take this as they proved last year by having him defeat Mysterio, and are going to have Rhodes stomp out another grizzled veteran in the process. Show doesn't need the win at this point in his career. I am not certain but I would be more likely to take a bet on
Cody Rhodes in this match.
I'm a bit conflicted to who I think should win this match frankly. The mid-card belts have become a a burden in the WWE. They are just an excuse for the WWE to go, 'oh we don;t have to do anything with him, he's got a belt'. I'd want to draw Rhodes AWAY from the belt at this time if I could. I don't think he's going to suffer from a loss because it would free him up to move on to do better things. In fact I would probably say it would be better right now for Big Show to win this match. He'd be an ominous IC champion, he doesn't have to clog the world title scene and he leaves plenty of space for somebody just like Rhodes to move up there.
Match 2:
Team Laurenitis vs. Team Long
I think the obvious move for this match would be to have Team Jonny win it. Heel guy in charge of both shows theoretically means that there'll be an interesting dynamic. The odds'll be stacked against the good guys and it's something to overcome eventually which people will tune in to see. I have to believe that they aren't going to want Long running both shows as that'll be dull as dishwater and I'll say
Team Laurenitis are almost certainly going to grab this one.
I've gotta echo my sentiments from when I last spoke on this topic. 99 times out of 100 I'd agree with that as the booking decision but this is one of those exceptional cases. People say any heat is good heat. Those people are wrong. John Laurenitis is not good at what he does, do not be fooled by the boos. Those boos are kayfabe shattering boos. People boo him because they don't like him genuinely, because he is not pretending to be really bad and boring, he actually is really bad and really boring.
He brings in the wrong kind of heat. I anticipate that if he wins, people aren't going to be watching avidly to see him be toppled, they are simply just going to be less inclined to watch at all. Of course I can't prove this, I can only extrapolate from my own feelings and the obvious fact that he's an awful awful performer. I would gladly accept Michael Cole over him in the same position because even though he's crap, he's still infinitely better. I say skip this opportunity to get the heel corporate guy in charge and jump on the next ship carrying that flag. I think Teddy Long should win for this reason even though he's also dreadfully boring, he's still a decent face GM because he's totally inoffensive and blends into the wallpaper. Sometimes literally depending on what suit he's wearing.
Match 3:
Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan - World Heavyweight Championship match
From a storyline standpoint, I really feel this is looking like a Sheamus win. He's been gathering steam for a good while, and he's proven to be the best success from the young guy initiative in the last couple of years. A lot of that contributes from the way they brought him in and built him up, and the other part is because he's a good character, he understands his role well and wrestles accordingly. I think all this will be capped off with a win at this coming mania. I am a little concerned about where Bryan goes after this if he doesn't win but I feel he's probably proven enough to me about his capabilities as a heel if needed to survive without the belt for the foreseeable future. +1 for
Sheamus.
Yeah, I'm convergent on this one. I think Sheamus ought to win this. As the one guy who's been proven to be a success I think they should be putting stock in this guy, he's been hanging around for a while and yet stocking up victories and support and it's time to put the strap back on him and see how much weight he can carry as a torchbearer on one of the shows.
Match 4:
Randy Orton vs. Kane
I'm anticipating that a stipulation may yet be added to this match. There's not many/any gimmick matches floating around this year and both men seem to thrive in those sorts of environments. As for who I reckon will win, it's a tough one. Randy Orton is a bit out of the mix, but he's always dangerous as the viper, but the same can be easily said of Kane. I feel that Randy Orton is more likely to win at Wrestlemania but that the feud could continue past and Kane could get the better of it at the next PPV. But I say
Randy Orton at Wrestlemania
As I said, Orton is not rally anywhere, whereas Kane is sort of coming off something and still has a bit of direction. I would be interested to see what he could do if he wins this match whereas I think if Orton wins it'll probably go nowhere, Orton will go on to somewhere else with a bit of momentum, possibly back to the title. I would personally like to see Kane win because I think he could use the momentum gained in a bit more of a positive and interesting direction, but I wouldn't mind Orton getting the better of him in a PPV or two down the line.
Match 5:
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho - WWE Championship match
This is another tough one to call. Punk's had that belt a long time now, but it's unclear how much longer Jericho will be around regardless of whether he wins or not. From a storyline standpoint I can see a similar argument to the Rhodes and Big Show match. Punk going over Jericho in a hellluva match could do quite a bit for him, but I'd question how much exactly. This is the first time anybody has got Punk flustered enough to stop smiling at anything they say and it would make sense for him to be shaken up enough to be thrown off his game, it might be better for him to lose this one first time in fact. I'm torn. I feel that Punk would win but since he's held that belt for so long it might be better for
Chris Jericho to take this one so that's who I'm calling.
For me, I really have to iterate how much it concerns me that Jericho may be leaving shortly after that. I weighs greatly on my decision as to who wins this match. If he can stay around for a good half a year or more as a minimum then I'd be happy to let him have this one, but if not I'd be going with Punk. As I'm not confident I think as a safe answer I have to go with Punk
Match 6:
The Undertaker vs. HHH - Hell In A Cell match with Shawn Michaels as the special guest referee.
Well surely this is as easy as anything.
The Undertaker takes it. I don;t know how, but he wins. I don't think WWE would be stupid enough to do anything other than this
And what's more he should win. The Game is not the right person to take the Streak from The Deadman. He wasn't the last two times they faced off and nothing's changed. I don't know how it's going to happen but I am confident of two things about this match which is :
1) The Undertaker will win
2) It'll be a hell of an entertaining match
Anything else is up in the air.
Match 7: The Rock vs. John Cena
So erm.... how long have you got?
I have to start somewhere so I will I think... maybe. No only joking, this one really isn't that difficult in terms of prediction. Hulk Hogan put his finger right on it with his recent comments in fact.
John Cena ought to win from a storyline point of view. He may not be the fan favourite going in to the match but he is going to be the guy still there years down the line. The Rock isn't going to benefit the WWE any if he wins and takes that win back to Hollywood. John Cena, like him or hate him, needs to win this to raise the whole bar of the WWE at this time.
Importantly, the way the crowds are divided now with far more people supporting Rocky really lends itself to a heel turn WM17 style. When you get two faces together and one of them isn't getting as big of a reaction, you turn that guy, it's only natural. It seems they have really been trying to resist this move but it's seemed like the right way to go for a while now and there is no better time than the match itself.
The way I would book it is to have Cena win the match after a 30 minute classic, they go to handshake each other due to Rock's new found respect for him and Cena pulls him back and goes for the AA. He does''t stop there. He basically absolutely decimates the Rock. The uses chairs, the steps, tables, whatever he can get to prove4 a point to the universe, that he didn't need them, that the man they supported was just a phony and he was the real deal and that he was betrayed by them all as soon as a guy who hasn't been working in that company for SEVEN WHOLE YEARS comes back. Everybody just dropped everything to join his side and it made him feel sick. And this is what they get in return, their long-awaited hero destroyed as a punishment to them. "From now on, I do it all... for me." The Miami crowd will only add to the fervor.
Basically a lot of what I put overhead including that little scenario. I'm a bigger Rock fan but anybody who's anybody with a brain or half or even something resembling one should recognize that John Cena NEEDS to win this match and that The Rock winning is completely out of the question. John Cena is going to be able to use this win however he pleases and The Rock isn't, it's that simple.
I hope you enjoyed or even had the stamina and endurance to read that and please feel free to write out your predictions and reasons why, not forgetting who you think ought to win the match and who you think will win it. Thank ye young sirs
