Summerslam 2013 - World Heavyweight Championship: Alberto Del Rio (c) VS Christian

[Jack-Hammer]

A few minutes ago on SmackDown!, Christian won a great triple threat match against Rob Van Dam and Randy Orton to become #1 contender for Del Rio's World Heavyweight Championship. As a result, Christian will get "one more match" at SummerSlam.

Frankly, I was surprised that Christian came out on top. Given Orton's status as having the WWE Championship MITB briefcase, I honestly thought that WWE might go the route of having Orton win this match, beat Del Rio for the WHC at SummerSlam and cash in his MITB contract so he'd have both titles. So as I said, I was surprised, but pleasantly so.

Christian and Del Rio had a good rivalry back in 2011 and Christian did beat Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship, as the title was vacant at the time, during Extreme Rules. Earlier this week on Raw, Christian scored a win over Del Rio. Christian has momentum in his favor right now, so it depends on how the build for this match goes over the next couple of weeks.

I could see WWE putting the title on Christian for a third time, especially if they ultimately plan on having Damien Sandow keep the WHC MITB briefcase. If he & Cody Rhodes have a match at SummerSlam over the contract and Rhodes wins, then I suspect that Del Rio will retain against Christian.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

If Christian beats Del Rio it should be a shocking feel good moment, but I'll have a hard time buying into it, if that happens. WWE's piss poor treatment of the World Heavyweight Championship and its champion have killed a lot of interest in the WHC picture and any potential challengers, who might dethrone Del Rio.

If Del Rio loses, let him have his rematch, but for the love of all things holy, keep the man away from the WHC or WWE Championship pictures afterwards. Del Rio needs a lengthy break from any world title pictures, so he can have more time to establish himself as a character and build up some real momentum.

If Christian wins, he'll be a much needed breath of fresh air as WHC, but I don't expect him to hold on to the WHC for long. Having Christian as the WHC would make more sense for a Sandow cash-in, so WWE can keep up the tradition, and more importantly the logic of having a face pass the title to a heel. I'm a fan of Christian, but let's face it. At his age, he's not going to have some great run, and be a top guy in the company. Hell, Christian taking the title off of Orton at MITB '11 was just a stepping stone to keep the feud going, because he dropped the WHC back to Orton at the very next pay per view (Summerslam).

It's tricky to pick a winner, because unless Christian turns heel quick, who in the hell is he going to feud with? Until he actually cashes in, Orton is still a face, Cody Rhodes is a face now, RVD is a face, Ziggler is a face, and Sandow has the briefcase. Del Rio is stale as all hell as champion, but he is the heel, and he's proven himself to be reliable over the years.

I dunno. It's a tough choice, because Del Rio's time as champion is getting close to the expiration date (again), and while Christian wouldn't be a bad choice for the winner, I just don't see a bright future ahead for him as champion. I mean, WWE could stick with Christian VS Del Rio in a series of rematches, until someone else steps up or Sandow cashes-in. But the WHC picture doesn't need another handful of months with Del Rio at the center.

 

[Wolf Pac]

I don't expect any cash-in after this match especially if Orton is cashing-in after the WWE Title match between Bryan & Cena, that would just overshadow Sandow or Rhodes' cash-in as Cena & Bryan's programme is too hot, but it would be pretty cool if one day both MiTB briefcases were cashed in at the same event. Has that been done before?

With the mention of Ricardo Rodriguez tonight on Smackdown, I expect he'll be back at Summerslam to help Alberto retain the title. Not before Summerslam, AT Summerslam, probably posing as a cameraman or something before making an unexpected attack on Christian. And then Del Rio will go back to feuding with Ziggler over the World Title and lose it to him.

 

[LSN80]

Christian makes the most sense here, as he'll both have a good-to-great match with of Del Rio, and he loses nothing at this point in his career in putting Del Rio over, which he should do. Van Dam is still newly back and fresh in fans eyes, and another loss to Del Rio could hurt his stock. Orton, while intriguing in that he would have been fighting for the World Title while holding the WWE MITB case, shouldn't be losing either.

And Del Rio very much needs to win this match, and if at all possible, cleanly.

The booking of Del Rio continues to puzzle me, and shows the lack of faith WWE has in him as a champion. He loses more non-title matches then he wins. AT times, WWE has attempted to play up his aggressiveness and a ruthless side, like against Sheamus' leg and Ziggler's head. However, there seems to be times where this ruthless streak disappears, and when he doesn't have a specific body part to target, he usually loses. His loss to CHristian on Raw and Orton on Smackdown last week are examples of this.

These two aren't without their history, as they feuded leading up to Wrestlemania 27, then battled in a ladder match for the World Title at Extreme Rules 2011 following Edge's retirement. It would be nice to see their past history brought into play, including Del Rio's utter lack of success against Christian in the past.

Still, I think Del Rio wins this. He's got relatively little credibility as a heel, and a win over CHristian, by hook or by crook, would be an excellent step towards establishing credibility.Sure, the argument could be made that Christian is the least relevant of the three, but he's been incredibly hot since his return from injury. In fact, I don't believe he's won a match.

With how Del RIo is booked, this match could certainly go either way. But if Christian does win, he'll certainly be a transitional champion. In fact, while everyone has speculated that Orton will cash-in on Bryan or Cena, what if Sandow were to cash-in on Christian? No, Sandow hasn't been built up as a legitimate World Champion to date, neither was Jack Swagger or even CM Punk the first time he cashed in.

Still, I'm going with Del Rio to retain and walk out of Summerslam as World Champion. A veteran like Christian who isn't a full-time main-eventer yet still retains credibility and respect is the perfect choice to put Del Rio over. And I believe Del Rio wins here, likely with the Superkick.

 

[The Eighties]

Christian has been on a winning streak so I wasn't that surprised that he won, especially after beating Del Rio on Raw.

I think this will be a good match that will go on around the halfway point, I don't see Christian winning as I don't think Sandow is ready to cash-in any time soon and I doubt WWE have any intention of giving Christian a long WHC run.

My guess is the match is designed to give Del Rio a strong, clean win on the second biggest PPV of the year.

 

[GameOver]

Christian makes the most sense here, as he'll both have a good-to-great match with of Del Rio, and he loses nothing at this point in his career in putting Del Rio over, which he should do. Van Dam is still newly back and fresh in fans eyes, and another loss to Del Rio could hurt his stock. Orton, while intriguing in that he would have been fighting for the World Title while holding the WWE MITB case, shouldn't be losing either.

And Del Rio very much needs to win this match, and if at all possible, cleanly.

The booking of Del Rio continues to puzzle me, and shows the lack of faith WWE has in him as a champion. He loses more non-title matches then he wins. AT times, WWE has attempted to play up his aggressiveness and a ruthless side, like against Sheamus' leg and Ziggler's head. However, there seems to be times where this ruthless streak disappears, and when he doesn't have a specific body part to target, he usually loses. His loss to CHristian on Raw and Orton on Smackdown last week are examples of this.

These two aren't without their history, as they feuded leading up to Wrestlemania 27, then battled in a ladder match for the World Title at Extreme Rules 2011 following Edge's retirement. It would be nice to see their past history brought into play, including Del Rio's utter lack of success against Christian in the past.

Still, I think Del Rio wins this. He's got relatively little credibility as a heel, and a win over CHristian, by hook or by crook, would be an excellent step towards establishing credibility.Sure, the argument could be made that Christian is the least relevant of the three, but he's been incredibly hot since his return from injury. In fact, I don't believe he's won a match.

With how Del RIo is booked, this match could certainly go either way. But if Christian does win, he'll certainly be a transitional champion. In fact, while everyone has speculated that Orton will cash-in on Bryan or Cena, what if Sandow were to cash-in on Christian? No, Sandow hasn't been built up as a legitimate World Champion to date, neither was Jack Swagger or even CM Punk the first time he cashed in.

Still, I'm going with Del Rio to retain and walk out of Summerslam as World Champion. A veteran like Christian who isn't a full-time main-eventer yet still retains credibility and respect is the perfect choice to put Del Rio over. And I believe Del Rio wins here, likely with the Superkick.

Have to disagree with Christian having a good match, he hasn't had a good match in along time. He always looks weedy and tired, he's not Main Event material, never was and shoulda stayed in the midcard whether he quit again or not.. Give the guy props for busting his ass for so many years but he just doesn't have that IT factor anymore. Then again Del Rio is far worse at this point, but atleast something like RVD woulda been a bigger buzz even if he lost which he would.

Orton being involved made the least sense since he was a RAW guy with a RAW title shot why the hell was he competing for a #1 contender spot on Smackdown

and i don't believe they ever intended a MITB winner to walk away from SummerSlam with both titles, Orton cashing in on Cena or Bryan yes but not both titles. Thats not to say both MITB briefcashes wont be cashed in, thats still a possibility cause god knows Del RIo needs to go from that top spot and Sandow is far more credible atm and Orton has a life long rivalry with Cena and beef with Bryan atm.

 

[Mantaur Rodeo Clown]

Yeah. Fine.

This will just be another person for Del Rio to knock down before they can either find him a storyline or a reasonable contender.

I mean Ziggler is the one who should be champion, but I guess having two face champions for the forseeable future would have severely drained the stocks of available main event heels, so I have no problem with Del Rio having a decent reign.

Christian isn't credible at all as a ccntender and is certainly the least popular out of RVD, Orton and himself, but hey, if you need a challenger of the month, thems is the breaks.

What would be actually decent is putting Alberto Del Rio in a goddamn storyline, which he hasn't had since Mania. He's Mexican for christs sake. Book him in a soap opera angle and print your money.

Right now, all it seems like is a standard "I want your title and you attacked me, its on" WWE template, which is disappointing for the second biggest show of the year, but then again this is a midcard match and nothing compared to Cena vs. Bryan.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Frankly, I was surprised that Christian came out on top.

You & me both. When you think about it, I don't believe they have plans for RVD to win a world title; he's supposed to be a part-time performer (although his showing up on every Raw and Smackdown since he got back seems to belie that). If he's going to be available on a limited basis, having him wear a major belt would be difficult.

In the meantime, Orton doesn't need to earn a title shot by winning a three-way; he's already in possession of MITB.

So, it comes down to Christian and I admit being wrong about him becoming a permanent mid-carder after losing a few matches since his return. I figured he would have compiled a longer winning streak, and when he didn't, it seemed he was likely to spend the rest of his career as a middle-level guy.

Of course, that might still turn out to be so. He could be in this match simply to lose to Alberto Del Rio and travel on back to Never Never Land. On the other hand, ADR isn't being presented as a formidable champion. As always, he possesses the ring skills to ride with anyone, but his cowardly choosing of "Ricky Ricardo" Rodriguez as a Summerslam opponent leaves him with a lot of 'splainin' to do.

I'd pick ADR in this match, but I have no idea where WWE is going with the storyline....so who really knows?

 

[MWRedskins]

it should be a fun match where i think they have Del Rio go over. Christian would be a nice shock value win, but i have a feeling that Del Rio's next world title loss will be against Dolph Ziggler when he fully gets over as a face. they took Ziggler away from Del Rio for the time being and looks like they are trying to use a match with Big E (and feud with AJ) to get Ziggler over as a face. hopefully he eventually does get more over as a face because Ziggler would be a great face champion as he can sell a beating vs. a heel challenger like gold. as for Damien Sandow, i think they wait his cash in till sometime in 2014 and hopefully WWE has him cash in at Wrestlemania even if it is a match where the champion is beat down because a cash in at WM would be fresh.

 

[MCMG]

I'm not excited about this at all. It will be a solid PPV match but they should be investing more into Summerslam. Christian vs Del Rio for the World Title should not be happening at the second/third biggest PPV of the year.

I can definitely see RVD being added to the match to make a triple threat. It would make the match more exciting and interesting for the viewer.

Del Rio will probably win. For some reason the WWE are invested in him. The possibility of Christian is intriguing for two reasons: 1) the romantic reason that I want him to be World champ again, 2) I think he would be a perfect transitional champion for Sandow. Sandow cashing in on Christian would be a perfect way to build heat and get his title reign of to a strong start.

 

[Tech N9ne]

It does seem as if there are 100 different ways this can go lol... I think if he wins, it is probably to put the title on a Face for Sandow to take it from. It would sort of be out of nowhere if Christian were to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Once again, it would be another feel good moment for Christian, that will probably again be short term.

I like Christian but a long term WHC run for him is not in the cards and I don't think it should be. Another title win, making him a 3x (WWE) World Heavyweight Champion will be a cool thing, no matter how it ends. But the fact of the matter is, it should end pretty quick.

 

[Trill Co$by]

For the simple fact that he's upped the in-ring action since being back, I say give Christian the green light for one last World title run. He's a familiar face of the Attitude era for any randoms flipping that watched back then, and he's talented in the ring. Hell, I'll even say he's the guy that makes a believer out of people. He did for me. I used to think Christian was stale, and was glad when he left [although hoped his health was still good]. It was only 2 weeks after he left that I realized how valuable Christian is to the company. Christian is just like RVD, Chris Jericho, Kane, and now Daniel Bryan. He can be placed in whatever role WWE wants to stick him in and it'll work out for the best. He's not afraid to put people over for the betterment of the company, at least not since being back. Not to mention, the guy can still go.

However...

From the whole "How does him winning help WWE" standpoint, I have to think that giving Christian the title would simply set fans up for wondering when Damien will cash his case in. Which, to be honest, isn't even fair to Christian. But then again, a win for the world title over Christian can send Damien to higher levels. Won't say to the great beyonds because I hate Sandow's character and don't think it'll go too far. But I will say high enough to where he'll be believable as the current day's standards of a world champion.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

I think ADR will retain but I wouldn't be totally shocked if Christian won. Since it's one of the "big four" PPVs, I think they could bring back Edge to be Christian's corner for the match. Edge would get a major pop at SS and it would really add to the overall "experience" of the match.

That said, I don't think Vince is giving Christian another title run.

 

[The Eighties]

After RVD's win over Del Rio tonight I'm thinking MCMG's theory that this will become a triple threat may be on the money. Adding RVD would benefit the match I think as far the crowd goes, he's still clearly very over and the possibility of him winning the WHC would be popular.

 

[HBsam31]

I have been enjoying Christian since his return, and was not surprised when he won. It seems to me Del Rio might be hitting his stride as a heel, and I enjoyed the beatdown of Ricardo. That said i think Christian is a great opponent for ADR right now. Christian will have a strong fan backing, and Alberto needs to get a clean victory here.

 

[Mac Attack]

I have been enjoying Christian since his return, and was not surprised when he won. It seems to me Del Rio might be hitting his stride as a heel, and I enjoyed the beatdown of Ricardo. That said i think Christian is a great opponent for ADR right now. Christian will have a strong fan backing, and Alberto needs to get a clean victory here.

I couldn't agree more with what was said here. Christian since returning from his return has been excellent in the ring and has performed extremely well. The crowd is into him and the commentators are building him up as a legit competitor. At first I was apprehensive with his wining ways not quite sure what it would lead to but I actually think that it has turned out great for him and then for ultimately Del Rio. Christian is now at the stage in his career where he can put guys over, take losses on the big stage and not lose any heat. That's the effective way to use him and the smart thing to do right now.

Del Rio on the other hand has been in somewhat of a "slump" as of late. However as a heel he continues to elevate himself and I truly believe that he will continue to progress as a character. I think the destroying of Ricardo will be great for his character and will make him look even more a heel when he enters Summerslam. Now I find usualy WWE likes to give people losing streaks without any payoff. I think that Del Rio winning at Summerslam totally clean I might add will take him to the next level. The crowd will be against, I'd imagine there will be those who think it's Christians time for a run but ultimately Del Rio will be pull through.

 

[fouldsy91]

Christian has beat Del Rio twice now in the past few weeks. In WWE logic, this means that people (especially kids) will think Christian will definitely win. But, it's quite the opposite. Del Rio will retain the title, when ever an opponent beats the title holder in a non-title match, they normally get beat when it actually matters.

 

[The Eighties]

This one was lukewarm to begin with and they just gave it away on free TV for the second time in as many weeks. It'll be interesting to see if the match gets as much time at the PPV.

I honestly felt they would throw another guy into the match for a triple threat or add some sort of stip to spice it up, but nope.

 

[JamJam]

Not sure why WWE gave this match on Smackdown but ohwell. With Christian winning again, I gotta believe Del Rio will retain, unfortunately. Big fan of Christian but this more than likely means he'll put Del Rio over for this time. However, I wouldn't be surprised if for Del Rio's next title defense, it'll be a triple threat with Christian and RVD. That's when I think Christian should win. Not sure how much left he has in the tank, but Christian should definitely win the WHC at least one more time. Give it to him WWE!

Prediction for Summerslam: Alberto Del Rio retains

 

[The Brain]

I’m just not feeling this match. The rest of the show is shaping up really well but I’m not buying into this one. I think RVD would have been the better choice. The fans would be more excited about RVD possibly dethroning Del Rio than Christian. It would be a much more fresh match which is always good for a big ppv like SummerSlam.

Why in the world did they have this match on Smackdown this week? What the hell was the creative team thinking? Why give away a world title match for free barely over a week before you want me to pay for it? I get it. Nobody is buying SummerSlam for Del Rio vs. Christian. So what? At least pretend to care about the title match. Its stuff like this that make people think so little of the world title. This does not make any sense whatsoever. This just makes me think the creative team is going through the motions and just trying to get by week to week instead of looking to the future of their product.

Prediction for SummerSlam: I don't give a damn because if WWE doesn't care why should I?

 

[Radical]

I'm a pretty big fan of Christian so I am happy to see him in a World Title match again. It was fun seeing him beat "Captain Wedgie-Pants" Del Rio a couple times over the last few weeks but I'm pretty sure that means he will lose at the PPV because it is 'too obvious' that Christian should win.

Even though I like Christian I really have no clue why WWE didn't make this into a Triple Threat (or even a Four-Way match!) They had a HUGE opportunity to do so. They should have had RVD involved and make it a Triple Threat. That would intrigue more fans, I'm sure. It would also mean they probably wouldn't have made Christian beat Del Rio in a singles match before the PPV, they would have done some other type of match.

I hate WWE's timid nature in putting together Triple Threat and other multi-man matches like that because AS A FAN I love to see them and they are sadly under used.

Final Thoughts: I would like Christian to win just because he's better than Del Rio in so many ways but it doesn't really matter because even if Christian wins it won't be for long as Sandow will probably cash in soon after.

 

[free40susbird]

I personally don't care for ADR, and while I think Christian is pretty good, I don't see him walking out as WHC. In fact, I don't see either of them walking out of that match. And here's why.

I've posted this elsewhere, but I don't think they're just gonna go with either Ricardo Rodriguez taking out just ADR, or even taking out Christian. What I think will happen is this.

He's gonna take 'em BOTH out.

Hey, Steve "Sting" Borden revitalized his career with an anti-hero gimmick, and so did Stone Cold Steve Austin. And although he's not in their class - at least not right now - why not do the same for Ricardo?

He's needed a gimmick change for a long time, and not merely as El Local/Chimaera, because everyone's expecting that, too. Either way, things are getting interesting in the 'E.

 

[rb286]

This match has been given terrible build up. Firstly, they've got given me a reason to care about this match or the World Title seeing they've barely cut promos on each other or had any interaction towards one another.

I'm not high on Del Rio either and Christian seems uninspiring at the minute although we all know he's capable in the past. I'm desperate for Del Rio to lose the belt and disappear so drop it to Christian and give Christian a slow heel turn with the belt, maybe make him unbearably arrogant and give him a lengthy run going into Janurary. He's far better as heel and it would give Ziggler a huge boost to beat him for the belt after such a lengthy reign.

 

[kadroan]

This match has been given terrible build up. Firstly, they've got given me a reason to care about this match or the World Title seeing they've barely cut promos on each other or had any interaction towards one another.

I'm not high on Del Rio either and Christian seems uninspiring at the minute although we all know he's capable in the past. I'm desperate for Del Rio to lose the belt and disappear so drop it to Christian and give Christian a slow heel turn with the belt, maybe make him unbearably arrogant and give him a lengthy run going into Janurary. He's far better as heel and it would give Ziggler a huge boost to beat him for the belt after such a lengthy reign.

True, I didn't think about that. I'd rather see Del Rio win though and let Ziggler lose to Del Rio @ NoC by cheating and finally beat Del Rio at HIAC in a HIAC match to have that signature win as a face

 

[Dagger Dias]

I have very high expectations going into this match. As far as the in-ring quality is concerned, this has the potential to steal the show. Alberto Del Rio and Christian are both extremely gifted in the ring. I'm very glad that Christian is getting ONE MORE MATCH for the World Heavyweight Championship. While that may be the case, I do not think he will be victorious. This will be about putting on a very enjoyable wrestling match. Christian is just the challenger to provide us with a good match for Alberto to retain in. If he overcomes those odds and does emerge as the winner, then a Damien Sandow cash-in could be inevitable. Sandow is not going to cash in on another heel so if Alberto retains then I doubt we will be seeing a Money In the Bank cash-in attempt.

I think it will go on toward the end of the evening, around 3rd to last or so. Alberto will retain. As much as I like Christian and want to see him win the World Heavyweight Championship again, the odds do not look that great for him winning. Del Rio is almost certainly going to retain and then move on to his next challenger. Unless the feud is to continue, and if this match ends up being even close to as good as it has the potential to be, then we could be in for a treat if they have a rematch. For now anyway, my prediction is that Alberto retains and moves on to a new face challenger while Christian moves on to some filler feud. Damien will not cash in just yet.

DAGGER'S PREDICTION
Alberto Del Rio retains the World Heavyweight Championship.
Damien Sandow does not cash in.