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Your Average Preview & Predictions For WWE Extreme Rules
WWE Extreme Rules takes place live this Sunday FOR FREE on the WWE Network in Rosemont, Illinois. For a filler pay per view, it’s a pretty stacked card with 8 matches, including a few with Extreme Rules stipulations. Every major title (for now*) is being defended, so let’s get to the preview and predictions!
WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Cesaro & Tyson Kidd (C) vs. New Day
New Day has been on a roll lately (words I never thought I’d write) thanks to their new found strategy of winning by any means necessary. They are on the slow build to becoming a very good heel tag team, and I’m glad they’re finally taking advantage of having three guys at ringside at all times. They’re not ‘bad guys’ as much as they’re opportunists, and they’re using the crowds disdain for them as an advantage. If the crowd keeps telling you that you suck, you can either pack your shit up and never be heard from again or you can use that hate to motivate you. New Day is employing the latter strategy, and I’m glad, because Big E and Kofi have always been fun to watch in the WWE. Cesaro and Kidd have zero momentum going into Extreme Rules, but it looks like they’ll be working as the good guys in this match. I don’t know if a title change is in order, but the tag team division is clearly an afterthought in the WWE right now, so unless a Give Tag Teams A Chance hash tag starts trending, the winners of this match don’t really matter.
Prediction: I’m going with Cesaro and Kidd, because they’re wonderful together and should be Tag Team Champs forever.
WWE Divas Championship Match: Nikki Bella (C) vs. Naomi
AJ Lee retired, Paige is filming a movie and the rest of the Divas that aren’t the Bella’s are in limbo, so Naomi has been boosted up to the #1 contender slot, and she’s doing a great job with it. Similar to the New Day, Naomi isn’t your classic heel. She’s proven herself over and over again, yet opportunities and title shots have consistently been given to other Divas. Instead of sitting back and waiting her turn, she created an opportunity for herself, and now she’s one pinfall or submission away from being the Diva’s champion. The WWE creative team is ass backwards most of the time, so why not call them out on it? It makes storyline sense, and it gives a Diva more personality than she’s had for her entire career. I think a Bella Twins split is long overdue, so hopefully some seeds are planted for that here and Naomi walks out the champ.
Prediction: Naomi, who becomes the first former dinosaur woman to ever hold the Divas title.
Last Man Standing Match: Big Show vs. Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns wins the Royal Rumble to become the #1 contender for Brock Lesnar’s title. He beats Daniel Bryan in the main event at Fast Lane to maintain that #1 contender’s spot. He co-main events WrestleMania with Brock Lesnar, only to lose when Seth Rollins cashes in his MITB briefcase. How does he get rewarded for his four month reign of dominance, featuring the best two matches of his career? A Last Man Standing Match with the Big Show. I don’t know if the WWE is intentionally trying to cool off Reigns, but going from wrestling in the main event of WrestleMania for the WWE Championship to wrestling the Big Show in a mid card gimmick match is not the progression you want from the future of your company. The WWE did the same thing last year with Daniel Bryan. Instead of giving him a fresh feud after he won the belt at Mania, he got attacked by Kane and thrown into a pointless angle that STILL hasn’t been resolved. Big Show and Roman Reigns feuded late last year, Roman won, end of story. Why is he fighting Big Show again less than a month after main eventing WrestleMania? I don’t get it, and I fully expect this match to be a stinker.
Prediction: Roman Reigns buries the Big Show alive even though that’s not the stipulation. He just needs this feud to end.
Chicago Street Fight: Luke Harper vs. Dean Ambrose
This is my pick for the match of the night. Two guys with nothing to lose, wearing the same clothes, just going out there and beating the shit out of each other. No zany hot dog stand antics from Ambrose; I want steel chairs, barb wired baseball bats, whatever else he can find. You can’t nickname someone the Lunatic Fringe then have him act like your drunk uncle. He needs to be a legit maniac, which doesn’t seem too far off from the actual Dean Ambrose’s personality. Harper is just trooping along, and continues to have great matches with everyone he’s put in the ring with. The story here is that Harper put Ambrose through a ladder at Mania then a table on Smackdown, and Ambrose wants revenge. I hope these two go out all here, and the Rosemont crowd should eat it up.
Prediction: Ambrose really needs to get going, so I’ll go with him here.
Kiss Me Arse Match: Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler
When I hear the words ‘Extreme Rules’, I don’t think of one man kissing another man’s ass, but maybe that’s just me. Sheamus returned after months away from the ring with a badass theme song, a silly haircut, twisty tied beard hair and a chip on his shoulder. He doesn’t think guys like Ziggler and Neville belong in the same ring as him, and he’s going to prove it. By…making Ziggler kiss his ass? Stipulation aside, this should be a great match. I’m not looking forward to either guy kissing the other guy’s ass, but Sheamus works best when guys are willing to take a beating, and nobody takes a beating like Dolph Ziggler. Between this match and Ambrose/Harper, I’m more invested in the mid card non title matches than I am the US or WWE Championships, and that is 100% due to the performers involved. You know they’re going to give you all they have, and they’re proving you don’t need a title to get people invested in a feud.
Prediction: Sheamus’s first pay per view match since returning should result in a win. With that said, If I see his bare white ass, I will not be happy.
Intercontinental Championship Match: Daniel Bryan (C) vs. Bad News Barrett
How I feel every time I read a Daniel Bryan health update.
*I highly doubt this match will happen, since the latest report is that Bryan will be out for up to 5 weeks. I doubt they’ll strip him of the title since Bryan should only miss Extreme Rules and possibly Payback, so maybe Barrett issues an open challenge in the name of wanting to fight someone. My pick would be for a solid Neville vs. Barrett match with Neville picking up the win, thus making him a legit challenger for the IC title which should be his logical progression in my opinion. Neville already pinned Barrett on Smackdown in a tag match, so two wins over a #1 contender should get him a shot sooner rather than later. Also, Bryan vs. Neville is something I’d love to see before Bryan’s head falls off.
Russian Chain Match For The US Title: John Cena (C) vs. Rusev
Everything leading up to Extreme Rules seems like it should end with a Cena win Sunday. Rusev attacked him from behind twice with a Russian chain, the second time putting him in the Accolade with said chain. Cena beat Rusev at Mania, but ever since, Rusev has had the upper hand. USUALLY when that happens, the hero, in this case Cena, will get his revenge and win. The only problem with that theory is that if John Cena is going to lose a match, it’s going to be because someone cheated or because of a fluky stipulation. While a normal Russian Chain Match is just a match were you’re allowed to use the chain, this specific match also included the stipulation where you can win by touching all four corners while chained to your opponent. My Spidey senses are tingling with this added stipulation, because this is a perfect scenario for Cena to lose without being pinned or forced to submit. On the other hand, this is also a way for Cena to retain the title without Rusev losing clean on back to back pay per views. Lana played a key role in their Mania match, so will she do the same here?
Prediction: Death, Taxes and John Cena successfully defending a WWE title belt. Those are the three certainties in life.
Steel Cage Match For The WWE Championship (RKO Is Banned): Seth Rollins (C) vs. Randy Orton
The logical next step in the Seth Rollins title reign would be to face Randy Orton, and I’m glad WWE went this route. Orton beat Rollins clean at Mania, so now that Rollins is the champion, why shouldn’t Orton get a chance to prove that he can do it again? Rollins is excelling in his role as the weasel champion, and it’s funny that the two guys left to defend him are smaller than he is. The power of stealing the show and winning the title during the main event of WrestleMania is clearly going to his head, and the people who helped put him there (HHH and Kane) don’t seem as keen on the Future of the WWE as they once were. Orton is sliding into the #1 contender’s slot at the perfect time, because Rollins has never been so vulnerable. With Kane as the Gate Keeper or whatever the hell it’s called, it’s almost a certainty that he’ll influence the end of the match. Rollins win was such a triumph at Mania that I can’t imagine he’d lose the belt already, and I think Kane will come to his senses Sunday and help the champ retain.
Prediction: Seth Rollins. The only way I want to see his title reign end is in a puddle of blood and urine at the hands of Brock Lesnar.
As always, we’ll be live tweeting Extreme Rules over @averagenobodies. Join us Sunday night!
– Ryan
5 Stars From Last Night’s #RAW
Last night’s Raw was back in the United States and LIVE from Albany, New York. It was a solid show overall and built to all the matches that will be taking place at Extreme Rules this Sunday. Randy Orton was on an RKO spree, The New Day won over my heart and Kane lost to John Cena. Some things never change. Let’s get to the 5 stars from last night’s Raw!
1. New Day
I will give the WWE credit when credit is due, even though the entire New Day was their fault from the beginning. The original New Day concept was never going to work. They came out clapping and smiling and the fans immediately shit all over them. Thankfully the WWE recognized that and not only embraced the ‘New Day Sucks’ chant, but turned them into the bad guys they should’ve been since the beginning. Kofi and Big E have proven they can go, and while Xavier Woods might get lost in the shuffle, he can be effective as the third cog in the wheel that helps them win matches. The Lucha Dragons continue to look great, and last night’s match was a step in the right direction for the tag team division. I especially enjoyed the end of the match, which had the Lucha Dragons do a double moon sault onto Big E and Kofi. When all four struggled to get back into the ring to beat the ten count, Xavier Woods grabbed Sin Cara’s legs from under the ring, allowing New Day to pickup the win and challenge Cesaro/Kidd for the Tag Titles at Extreme Rules. Heels being heels. Sometimes it’s that simple.
2. Naomi
I wrote last week about how giving Naomi a character other than a Funkadactyl or being one of the Uso’s wives would be beneficial for her and the Diva’s division, and she proved that last night. She had a good match with Brie Bella and besides Nikki Bella’s phone sex operator commentary style the segment was really well done. With AJ retired, Paige filming a movie and WWE being hesitant to bring up any of the NXT Diva’s, this is Naomi’s chance to shine. While Nikki has improved immensely in the ring, I think it’s time to split the Bella’s up and put the title on Naomi. The Bella’s working together are really boring, but when Brie is the face and Nikki is the heel, they have a much better dynamic. The only thing I’d change in this buildup is Naomi’s entrance music. It no longer fits her personality, and she should be as far away from a Funkadactyl as humanly possible.
3. Randy Orton
With the RKO banned this Sunday, you knew that the move would be a focal point on Raw. Orton started off the show with a good promo and followed that up with an RKO to everyone who takes it well. The Randy Orton who has no friends is my favorite Orton. He shouldn’t be shaking hands with other wrestlers or chumming it up with the baby faces. He’s The Viper. He should be RKO’ing guys into plates of food and be the only man in history to intimidate you while not wearing pants. The first victims of the RKO were Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, then it was Heath Slater in catering and to cap it off, he hit Seth Rollins with a rope assisted RKO inside the steel cage. I understand Orton not being able to use the RKO from a storyline standpoint, but as a fan, it’s disappointing Orton isn’t going to use it this Sunday. The curb stomp/RKO at WrestleMania was one of the most beautiful wrestling moves you’ll ever see, and last night’s RKO was no different. These two work extremely (see what I did there) well together and can fight any style of match they want, so I’m looking forward to their match on Sunday. With Kane now involved, and some escalating tension between Rollins and HHH, I wouldn’t rule out an Orton title win on Sunday.
4. Kane
Speaking of Kane, he had himself one hell of a night. He gave an impassioned promo on Seth Rollins, officially putting him in his place and reminding him why he not only became Mr. Money in the Bank, but also the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. His El Torito line was funny, but the gist of the promo was that Seth Rollins has become so accustomed to The Authority having his back that he’s forgotten who got him to the promised land in the first place. While I think Kane should step away from in ring competition, if he’s going to be on TV, I’m glad they’re at least using him in an important role. I don’t know what his role will be this Sunday, but it’s almost a certainty that he’ll influence the outcome of the main event. Kane also decided to answer Cena’s open challenge for the US title, and that ended how literally ever single Kane/John Cena match has ever ended, but I’ll give him points for trying.
5. Seth Rollins
Rollins was in about 5 segments on Raw, and he nailed every single one of them. He has the weasel villain down to a science, and I loved his interactions with Orton, Kane and HHH. My favorite segment, besides the match with Ziggler, was when he asked HHH for more backup. He’s alienated everyone who helped him get where he is, and with a hungry viper on the loose, he’s finally realized J and J Security aren’t going to stop anyone. As much as Orton has all the momentum going into Sunday, I hope they keep the title on Rollins. Lesnar dominated the title scene from August to Mania, and with Rollins as the champ, that dynamic has taken a complete 180. While Lesnar never lost, Rollins hasn’t had a match as champion yet where he wasn’t in jeopardy of losing. That makes the title picture that much better, and gives every WWE superstar on the roster a legitimate chance at the gold. His match with Ziggler was good, too. I can’t wait until the day that WWE just lets these two loose and they put on a 25 minute classic, but Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler on Raw will always be a good thing.
Honorable Mention: Rusev
Like I’m not going to love Rusev giving John Cena The Accolade with a Russian chain.
– Ryan
WWE Is Handing Out Letter Grades To Every City They Visit And Providence, RI & Boston, MA Both Got A’s
Letter Grades
Starting 6/28/15, WWE also assigns letter codes to each city (A/B+/B/C).
It appears it’s an indication of the relative overall drawing power of the city based on the last visit.
(If we assume that the percentage is in relation to the overall building’s capacity.)A: 70 examples (minimum: 3,500; maximum 15,913) – average: 9,235
B+: 32 examples (minimum: 3,122; maximum 14,481) – average: 7,608
B: 48 examples (minimum: 2,626; maximum 12,717) – average: 6,496
C: 61 examples (minimum: 2,230; maximum 6,996) – average 4,546
Overall Average: 7,002“A” Cities: Anaheim, CA, Atlanta, GA, Baltimore, MD, Boston, MA, Bridgeport, CT, Brooklyn, NY, Buffalo, NY, Chicago, IL, Cincinnati, OH, Columbus, OH – Schottenstein Center, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Detroit, MI, Hartford, CT, Hildalgo, TX, Houston, TX, Jackson, MS, Kansas City, MO, Los Angeles, CA, Miami, FL, Minneapolis, MN, Nashville, TN, New York, NY, Newark, NJ, Philadelphia, PA, Phoenix, AZ, Pittsburgh, PA, Portland, OR, Providence, RI, San Antonio, TX, San Jose, CA – SAP Center, St. Louis, MO, Tampa, FL, Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON – Ricoh Coliseum, Washington, DC, White Plains, NY, Wildwood, NJ
“B+” Cities: Albany, NY, Anaheim, CA, Anchorage, AK, Bangor, ME, Birmingham, AL, Bridgeport, CT, Calgary, AB, Cincinnati, OH, Corpus Christi, TX, Daytona Beach, FL – Ocean Center, Des Moines, IA, East Lansing, MI, Edmonton, AB, Fairbanks, AK, Fort Myers, FL, Fresno, CA, Greenville, SC, Hampton, VA, Hershey, PA, Jonesboro, AR, Lafayette, LA, Laredo, TX, Lincoln, NE, Little Rock, AR, Loveland, CO, Memphis, TN, Milwaukee, WI, Montreal, QC, Nashville, TN, Ontario, CA, Orlando, FL – Amway Center, Roanoke, VA, Rochester, NY, Sacramento, CA, Salt Lake City, UT – Maverik Center, San Juan, PR, Stockton, CA, Syracuse, NY, Tampa, FL, Tulsa, OK, Uncasville, CT, Wilkes Barre, PA, Winnipeg, MB
“B” Cities: Austin, TX, Bakersfield, CA, Calgary, AB, Cleveland, OH, Dayton, OH, Edmonton, AB, Everett, WA, Fresno, CA, Hartford, CT, Indianapolis, IN, Knoxville, TN, Louisville, KY – YUM Center, Milwaukee, WI, Montreal, QC, New Orleans, LA, Oklahoma City, OK, Omaha, NE, Phoenix, AZ, Portland, OR, Rochester, NY, Sacramento, CA, San Diego, CA, San Jose, CA – SAP Center, Seattle, WA, St. Louis, MO, Trenton, NJ, Tulsa, OK, Winnipeg, MB
“C” Cities: Amarillo, TX, Augusta, GA, Bakersfield, CA, Baton Rouge, LA, Beaumont, TX, Binghamton, NY, Bloomington, IL, Bossier City, LA, Bowling Green, KY, Canton, OH, Casper, WY, Cedar Rapids, IA, Charlotte, NC, Charlottesville, VA, Chattanooga, TN, Colorado Springs, CO, Columbia, SC, Columbus, GA, Daytona Beach, FL – Ocean Center, Erie, PA, Evansville, IN, Fairfax, VA, Fargo, ND, Fayetteville, NC, Fort Myers, FL, Green Bay, WI, Huntsville, AL, Jackson ,TN, Jacksonville, FL, Johnson City, TN, Jonesboro, AR, Kalamazoo, MI, Laredo, TX, Macon, GA, Mobile, AL, Montreal, QC, North Charleston, SC, Odessa, TX, Peoria, IL, Rockford, IL, Salisbury, MD, Savannah, GA, Sioux City, IA, Sioux Falls, SD, Springfield, IL, Syracuse, NY, Tallahassee, FL, Toledo, OH, Tupelo, MS, Vancouver, BC, Victoria, BC, Waco,TX, Wilkes Barre, PA, Worcester, MA
(Same city may appear in more than category. This is because different letter grades are assigned on different trips – often because one time it’s a TV taping and another time it’s a house show.)
This isn’t a surprise by any means, but it’s nice to see that Boston and Providence get the love they deserve. Over the last five years, my friends and I have been to a Royal Rumble, Survivor Series and Money in the Bank in Boston and every crowd has been hot fire. Not mention last year’s Raw in Providence where Daniel Bryan turned on Bray Wyatt in the steel cage and really catapulted the YES! movement to the next level. I’ll be attending Smackdown in Providence next week and although it’s not a live show I guarantee the crowd will be loud and engaging. Sucks for cities that got a C, but I’m proud to be apart of two crowds that the WWE recognizes as A+ players.
– Ryan
H/T Indeed Wrestling
5 Stars From Last Night’s #RAW
Raw was overseas last night and it was a solid show overall from the O2 arena in London. A few matches were finalized with ‘Extreme Rules’ stipulations, and is FANDANGO BACK? (no) Let’s get to the 5 Stars from last night’s Raw.
1. Home Field Advantage
One of my favorite things that happen on a wrestling show is wrestlers wrestling in front of a hometown or home country crowd. It’s not the 1980s anymore, and the days of wrestlers being billed from ‘Parts Unknown’ or ‘Hell’ are long gone. Wade Barrett and Paige are actual people from actual places. So when BNB comes out and gets cheered for his match against John Cena, the WWE should use that to their advantage. At this point in Cena’s title reign, it’s pretty much set in stone that he’s not going to lose to Barrett on Raw, but the crowd is into the near falls and it makes the match much more exciting. Same thing goes for Paige. She gets the biggest ovation out of any of the Divas, and get to cut a great post match promo talking about her journey for wrestling at carnivals to winning a match at WrestleMania. Naomi’s turn and attack on Paige is enhanced because Paige is in front of her home country crowd, and WWE addressing the fact that she’s from England helps that immensely.
2. The US Title Open Challenge
I also love the Open Challenge idea, because when Cena does lose, it will not only come as a shock, but it will immediately elevate whoever he loses to. Ambrose, Stardust and now BNB. Cena is elevating the title and making these guys look good in the process. One small complaint is that every match has had the same style so far, and after awhile people kicking out of the Attitude Adjustment might do more harm than good. It’s exciting for the false finish, but I’d like to see Cena switch it up and wrestle a different style of match that doesn’t involve him kicking out of a guy’s finisher and then in turn that same guy kicking out of the AA. In what is going to be a running theme in this write up, wins and losses don’t matter if it’s being booked correctly. BNB, Ambrose and Stardust losing to Cena help them out more than beating the bums of the WWE. Ambrose beat Adam Rose and Stardust beat Fandango, but both of them looked better in loses to Cena than in victory last night.
3. Rusev And His Russian Chain
A personal highlight from last night’s show was Rusev showing up with a RUSSIAN CHAIN and knocking John Cena out cold. I’ve mentioned it before, but I love when wrestling villains are actual villains. Cena is exhausted after a tough match against BNB, so Rusev sends Lana out on the ramp to distract Cena and attack him from behind with a chain. The Russian flag drops from the ceiling and Rusev stands over Cena’s crushed body. That’s what a villain SHOULD do, and I’m glad they’re going all the way with Rusev. It’s impossible for the smart audience not to cheer him against Cena, but adding some heel tendencies to his character will help him in the long run.
4. Naomi
After Paige won the Battle Royal, Naomi attacked and mauled her outside the ring. Later during the show, she cut a promo on the entire Diva’s division that was one of the most logical statements made in a long time. Naomi was in the same rookie class as AJ Lee, yet AJ has had 3 Diva’s title reigns and now that she’s retired, she’s considered a legend. Naomi has pinned Nikki Bella numerous times over the past few weeks, yet had to enter a Battle Royal just to get a title shot. The WWE creative team is so screwy that they should take advantage of it and let the Divas or any other superstar call them out on it when things are being booked so idiotically. Naomi was finally given a personality and immediately sky rocketed up the Diva’s ranks in my opinion. Her athleticism was never a question, but when you give her something more than “Funkadactyl or Usos’ wife’ to work with from a character standpoint, she’s going to bring it home.
5. Dolph Ziggler v. Neville
So Neville has been on the main roster for three weeks, and he’s already progressed more than half of the roster who’ve been there for years. The internet wrestling community is obsessed with wins and losses, so naturally there’s already talk of how bad ‘Neville is being buried’. My only response to that is that I’d rather Neville lose back to back to weeks to Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler in competitive matches than have him beat the Curtis Axel’s or Fandango’s of the world. Let me ask a question: who looked better last night: Stardust or Neville? Stardust won over Fandango, Neville lost to Ziggler, but I guarantee most people don’t even remember the Stardust/Fandango match. Wins and losses don’t mean anything in the world of wrestling if the matches and feuds are booked right. Neville has proven he can hang against both Rollins and Ziggler, and he would’ve beat the WWE World Champion if it wasn’t for J and J Security. So yeah, Neville is fine, and he looked great again last night. That 450 splash from the ring barricade was insane, and there’s really no one like Neville on the WWE roster. He’s the total package, and pairing him with Ziggler was a great choice. Ziggler is the best seller on the roster, and that Brogue Kick on the outside from Sheamus was brutal. I can live in world where Sheamus/Ziggler/Neville are feuding with each other.
– Ryan
Finn Balor Could Be Making His Main Roster Debut At Tonight’s Raw In London #WWE #RAW
It’s purely speculation, but Finn Balor tweeted this out earlier today.
Finn Balor’s Twitter:
“Ok Vince.. Well, I’m here AND they’re here, too… ” #BálorClub#WWELondon#RAWLondon#WWEpic.twitter.com/m1AZopJESI
— Finn Bálor (@wwebalor) April 13, 2015
He’s with the main roster for WWE’s current tour of Europe, and he’s also going to be backstage for tonight’s Raw. Out of the current crop of stars down in NXT, Balor showed up the most ‘main roster ready’. With Neville already making his debut and looking fantastic doing it, it’s only a matter of time before Balor is also up there. Since it’s always fun to fantasy book, why not bring Balor up to challenge Cena for the US title tonight? He’s already going to be over with the crowd, and putting him against Cena from the get go would show the WWE Universe that this is a guy you should be paying attention to. The tapings will start in about an hour, but I’ll be staying away from the spoilers as best I can until show time here in the States. If you’re watching Raw tonight, we’ll be live tweeting the show over on Twitter @averagenobodies.
– Ryan
5 Stars From Last Night’s #RAW
A Monday Night Raw without Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Brock Lesnar, Rusev, Dean Ambrose and Bad News Barrett can’t possibly be WWE’s strongest show, and that’s what we got last night. Raw wasn’t bad, but when you’re missing most of the fan favorites, three hours can be an especially long show. With that said, there were some important storyline progressions, and we now have a new #1 contender for Seth Rollin’s title at Extreme Rules. Let’s get to the stars!
1. Neville
If you’ve ever seen NXT, then this should come as no surprise, but if you haven’t, you watched a big part of the future last night as Neville took on WWE Champion Seth Rollins. The best part about having a heel champion who isn’t Brock Lesnar is that they can realistically lose any match. Rollins is quick and explosive and freakishly athletic, but by WWE standards, he’s still a relatively small guy. While he dominated most of the match against Neville, all it took was one reversal and Rollins was in the kill zone for the Red Arrow. I also love that J & J Security interfered, which helped Rollins win the match. Around the time Stone Cold came around, it seemed like WWE was trying to make all heels these bad asses who would get cheered by the smart crowds, but from day one in wrestling heels have been chicken shit guys who cheat to win. As much as it seemed unnecessary for Rusev to low blow Cena at Fast Lane, that’s what he SHOULD be doing. He’s a bad guy. The bad guy can’t keep winning clean and fighting honorably or else there will be no distinction between good and bad. Getting back to Neville, it was great seeing him get a shot with the Champ in just his second match on Raw. He can go, and he’s had some of the best matches in wrestling over the past year, so giving him a spotlight was great to see. The announce team was actually pretty good here, too, as they didn’t just make fun of Neville like they do with most NXT call ups. Neville has a bright future, and I love how the WWE is handling him so far.
2. John Cena & The US Title Open Challenge
If you watched Chris Jericho’s live podcast on the WWE Network after Raw, you saw Cena talk about being the US Champion and giving all comers a chance at the title. He’s had the title for two weeks, and has fought two solid matches against Dean Ambrose and Stardust. He’s beaten both of them, but John Cena should beat both of those guys. Cena’s been around for awhile, but he’s still John Cena. It’s not like Kane or Big Show or Mark Henry who just show up to get beaten. He’s still the face of the company, and losing a contested match to John Cena is better than winning against most of the guys on the roster. If you’re in the ring with Cena and it’s not a squash, then you’re getting a spotlight on you that just doesn’t happen with most other guys. That he holds a secondary title and keeps defending it only makes this situation better. If Cena can leave the US title picture better than when he entered it, it will have been a job well done.
3. New Day ( Doesn’t Suck)
If you told me I’d be giving New Day one of the stars for last night’s Raw I would have called you crazy and slapped you across the face. But New Day is taking baby steps towards a heel turn and I absolutely love it. Big E is the best out of the three, and he followed up his tweets from last week with a promo about a fan telling him he sucks but also asking for an autograph at the same time. I also love that their clapping is the only thing that is keeping them sane while thousands of people tell them they suck. If you watched their match, at one point Kofi, who was not in the match, cheap-shotted Kalisto. When Xavier Woods gets up and realizes what Kofi did, he gives this sinister smile of approval, and the group is adding more depth to their characters each week. You’d think the WWE would know by now that a happy go lucky clapping group isn’t going to work, but at least they’re listening to the crowd and making New Day more interesting. I’m fine with Lucha Dragons feuding with Cesaro and Kidd and then a heel New Day swooping in as the next challengers to whomever has the belts.
4. Sheamus
Sheamus is another guy who should always be a heel, and I’m glad WWE recognized that and brought him back as this Celtic asshole. He came up as a heel, and although he might’ve been pushed too fast, turning him into a good guy was not the answer. Now he’s back as a heel, and he does all the little things that a good bad guy should do. He took out the two most popular guys on the show, Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler, AFTER they fought a grueling match. When a fresh Mark Henry shows up, he wants nothing to do with him and tries to leave the ring. As I said with Rollins, there’s a huge benefit to having your bad guys be actual bad guys. When Sheamus and Mark Henry are on the outside of the ring, he uses the ring post to his advantage, and it’s clear from his pre match promo and antics during the match that he’s here to destroy our idols. Also, his new music is awesome, and although his hairstyle is kind of silly, he needed a change and a look that now identifies him as a bad guy.
5. Randy Orton
This is more of a “none of my favorite guys were on the show” star instead of a “he had a good showing” star. Most of the popular guys weren’t on Raw, and since Orton is the new #1 contender, I might as well have given him this slot. He fought Kane earlier on in the night, and I’m pretty sure the WWE is 0 for 100 when they have Kane and Big Show wrestle on the same show. I think Roman Reigns should’ve been given this slot, as it seems like the Orton/Rollins story has run it’s course, but they have great chemistry together, so their match at Extreme Rules should be good. It’ll be interesting to see where the story goes from here, and how Lesnar and Reigns fit into the WWE Championship picture in the future.
– Ryan
Twitter News Weekly: Brock Lesnar Likes McDonald’s All Day Breakfast #BrockLesnar #McDonalds #WWE
On this week’s show we talk about the Beast Brock Lesnar and McDonald’s exploring the idea of having a 24 hour breakfast menu. Check it out and subscribe to our YouTube page at http://www.youtube.com/TheAverageNobodies.
5 Stars From Last Night’s #RAW – The Beast, The Diva’s & NXT Arrives
The first Raw after WrestleMania is always one of WWE’s best shows, and while we didn’t get any major surprises like year’s past, there was still enough solid wrestling and returns/debuts to keep us satisfied. A few NXT superstars made a big impact, and a returning Irishman put his boot back to work. Let’s get to it!
1. Brock Lesnar is the best wrestler going right now
If you missed WrestleMania last night, you missed one of, if not the hardest hitting main event in the show’s history. Lesnar took on Roman Reigns, and they literally beat the shit out of each other. For most of the match, Lesnar suplex, clotheslined and F-5’d Reigns like he was playing with a toddler. Reigns mounted a comeback, but just as the tide was turning, Seth Rollins snuck in and stole the WWE Championship from both of them, leaving WrestleMania as the new champion. Needless to say, Brock Lesnar was not happy. He came out to start Raw still in his wrestling gear, and Heyman announced he would like his rematch right now. Seth Rollins initially agreed, then backed out, and Lesnar snapped. The reason Lesnar is the best wrestler going right now is because he is the most believable guy in the ring at all times. Back in the day the monster heels used to legitimately scare audiences because even though they thought it the show itself was fake, THIS guy was real. That’s how I feel about Lesnar, which is something I never thought I’d say about a guy in 2015. Even guys like Kane and Big Show, who are larger than life, don’t put the fear of God in me when they get all bug eyed like Lesnar does. Brock just wrecked any living creature that was on his side of the barricade, including F-5ing Michael Cole right out of his loafers. They needed to write Lesnar off TV until his next appearance, and now that he’s clearly over with the fans, this is better than the usual “I’m a prize fighter” excuse. In the interest of my affection for this beast, I hope he’s not away for long.
2. The Intercontinental Championship
It hasn’t even been 48 hours, but the IC and US titles already feel important again. It’s amazing what happens when you give the belts to two established guys and let them have enough time in the ring to have great matches. That’s what the mid card used to be about. Before HBK and Bret Hart were in the main event, they were having the best matches on the card as tag teams or mid card champions while guys like Hogan and Warrior were holding down the main event. Then when HBK and Bret made it to the main event, guys like HHH and the Rock took over the mid card roles. WWE lost it’s way somewhere along the journey, but a Ziggler/Bryan feud is the spark that could reignite the division. As silly as he looked, it was good to see Sheamus back as a heel, which is where he belongs. Bryan defending against Sheamus, Ziggler and a motivated Barrett not only makes for great matches, but they’re all talented enough to create great storylines as well. And please for the love of God be careful with Daniel Bryan’s precious neck.
3. KALISTO
If you’ve watched NXT, you know that Kalisto is at his worst a poor man’s Rey Mysterio and at his best an actual Rey Mysterio. He tags with the new Sin Cara and like most Lucha Libre wrestlers they rely on high flying moves and the selling abilities of their opponents. Most of the time they’re good, but they do have some stinker matches in them as well. Last night, Kalisto was ON. He was flying around the ring, and everyone from Cesaro to Viktor was selling their ass off for him. The crowd was eating it up, too. The post Mania crowds are great, but sometimes they can get a little carried away, which is what happened in the main event. There’s never a need for a crowd to chant ‘we are awesome’. Watch the show and chant all you want, but as someone watching on TV, that chant’s a little much. Anyway, the crowd was great for this match, and I’m glad Kalisto got the pin but didn’t beat either of the tag team champs. A Lucha Dragons/Swinging Cats feud is definitely something I could get on board with.
4. The United States Championship
I can pretty much copy and paste what I wrote about the IC title and put it here, because it’s pretty much the same, glorious thing. If John Cena turns into a mid card super worker and elevates the US title I will forgive a lot of things he’s done in the past. This SHOULD lead to a new and improved Rusev eventually beating Cena, but for now, I want Cena having matches like last night’s match with Ambrose. Cena’s reputation automatically makes it believable when he beats guys like Ambrose, but it’s much more effective when they have a match like this and both guys end up looking great. Ambrose doesn’t really have any knockout blows, so he’s stuck trading punches and secondary moves with a guy like Cena, and that’s a battle Cena is going to win every time. Ambrose is a little nuts, which helps him kick out of the AA and power out of the STF, but ultimately he just doesn’t have enough in the tank to win. This is how guys SHOULD be fighting over a title, and I hope Cena becomes a fighting champion, because there are guys like Ambrose, Harper and possibly Neville waiting for a shot.
5. The Divas
Their match was a little short at Mania, but it seemed like AJ, Paige and the Bella’s were really enjoying themselves out there, and same goes for last night. They were given more time and a few additions in Natalya and Naomi, and they put on a solid match. I liked the story, too, as the tease pre-Mania was AJ and Paige fighting, but now it looks like the Bella’s are no longer on the same page. As good as the Bella’s are as heels, it is time for them to split again. Nikki especially has grown into her own character, and she could benefit from a run with the title without the assistance of her sister. The Diva’s as a whole seem like their enjoying themselves more out there, and there’s a noticeable difference in the in ring product. The Give Diva’s a Chance hash tag should help the Diva’s, and it goes beyond just giving them more time in the ring. The storylines should be more wrestling centric, and the announce team should treat their matches as seriously as any other match on the card. If not, get Brock Lesnar back out there and have him take out the announce team again.
– Ryan
