The latest PLE has six matches on the card and the show seems to be tons of fun on paper. As always, these predictions are not based on insider knowledge. Let's jump into the first match.
Fatal Four-way match for the World Heavyweight Championship Seth Rollins (c) vs. CM Punk vs. Jey Uso vs. LA Knight
You don’t have Seth Rollins pull off the ruse of the century and then have him lose less than a month later. Unless WWE is trying to establish him as a vulnerable or chickenshit heel. While Rollins is not a dominant heel, he’s the smart one that can get one over on babyfaces. This should be a good match, but this will be the ruse of the century if anyone but Rollins walks out with the belt.
I guess there’s a possibility that Bron Breakker accidentally spears Seth Rollins and one of the wrestlers gets the win off of it. Likely, CM Punk would get that spot because Rollins WILL get that title back quickly.
But I just don’t see that happening either. It’s too early to tease dissension between Breakker and Seth. Plus, if Breakker is going to be the guy that beats Seth for the WWE World Heavyweight title then it would be smarter to build Seth’s credibility by racking up wins.
Winner: Seth Rollins
Women’s Intercontinental Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Nikki Bella
Like Becky’s “hot” American husband, I don’t see the titles changing hands. Honestly, I don’t know who Becky could end up losing the belt to. It wouldn’t be surprising if someone like Rhea Ripley took it off her, but Becky would likely prefer someone new to lose to. I just don’t see “The Man” dropping the title anytime soon. The only belts I can see Nikki winning are the tag team titles with her sister Brie.
Winner: Becky Lynch
John Cena vs. Logan Paul
John Cena is going into a match against Brock Lesnar; a meteor has a better chance of destroying the Earth than Logan Paul winning this match. There is the possibility that Brock interferes and costs the former WWE Champion the win, but I don’t see Paul getting the honor of beating Cena on his retirement tour.
John is coming off a huge loss to Cody Rhodes and Logan can always get his heat back by just walking to the ring and being himself. If this was a situation where Logan was being primed for a big push then I can see Cena taking the fall, but Logan is not going to be a world champion anytime soon.
Winner: John Cena
Roman Reigns vs. Bronson Reed
I desperately want to believe that WWE is going to take a risk and give Bronson the win. Hell, they can have Breakker spear Roman, costing him the victory. Unfortunately, my optimism is small here.
WWE didn’t even give Bron the win over Braun Strowman, which remains a baffling creative decision. It would be great to see how his character reacts to losing here. I just don’t want them to make it easy for Roman to get to Seth. But Bronson isn’t being built as the future of the company and for the most part, he’s just henchman #2 for Seth. I hope Bronson wins, but I won’t bet my house on it.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Sheamus vs. Rusev in a Good Ol’ Fashioned Donnybrook match
I’ve been very underwhelmed with Rusev’s return. I was hoping that he would be put into the main event scene, but the company decided to go back to square one with him. Why? Nevertheless, Sheamus doesn’t need this win. At least not now. I don’t know what the future holds for Rusev.
He’s not going to be in the world title mix unless he turns face. And it’s doubtful that WWE will put him on Smackdown to feud with Cody. I can genuinely see him losing this match. But, I think Sheamus’ purpose is to put over Rusev, so…
Winner: Rusev
WWE Tag Team Championship match: Dexter Lumis and Joe Gacy (c) vs. The Street Profits
Let me save you time: The Wyatt Sicks are winning. There’s no purpose in putting the belts back on The Street Profits. They’ve literally beaten every team on the Smackdown roster except the Wyatt Sicks, but what happens if they win again? Are they going to feud with DIY or The Guns again? The Street Profits feel stuck in a role that they should've moved past from years ago. It’s a shame that heel faction with Bobby Lashley didn’t work out.
There’s so much you can do with tag team wrestling. Unfortunately, WWE doesn’t do much with it. Usually it’s just matches, matches, and matches. Smackdown’s tag division has been better than RAW as of late in terms of story, but the division needs new life beyond the Wyatts. What are Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins going to do after Clash in Paris?
It would be great to give them a secondary feud with a fresh tag team, but there isn’t much to choose from in NXT. They could go to RAW and feud with Judgment Day or The New Day, but given the lifeless booking of tag team feuds on the main roster, it wouldn’t exactly bring new life to a stagnant division.
Nevertheless, I love tag team wrestling, but it’s clear that WWE doesn’t know what to do beyond surface level storytelling here. Should be a good match though. And it’s nice that the tag titles are on a PLC outside of the main shows.
Winner: The Wyatt Sicks