We’re on the Fast lane to Wrestlemania Survivor Series (?) – I guess WWE needed to put on an October PPV that is not a gimmick PPV (Like TLC, Hell in a Cell, etc) which is a good thing as WWE needs to distance themselves from that.

5 matches on the card (at the time of writing) with 3 titles on the line tonight.

Non-Title Matches

• Latino World Order (Rey Mysterio & Santos Escobar) & ??? vs Bobby Lashley & The Street Profits in a 6-man tag team match.

  • PREDICTION: LWO to win. The extra person for LWO is either going to be Carlito or Dragon Lee.

• John Cena & LA Knight vs The Bloodline (Jimmy Uso & Solo Sikoa) in a tag team match.

  • PREDICTION: I feel there are going to be shenanigans with this match with someone interfering from The Bloodline…Maybe Judgement Day which is going to allow Jimmy and Solo to pick up the win

Title Matches

• The Judgement Day (Finn Bálor & Damian Priest) (C) vs Cody Rhodes vs Jey Uso in a tag team match for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship

  • PREDICTION: I don’t see any valid reason for the titles to change hands… unless there is interference from JD McDonagh which costs Finn & Damian the titles. Finn & Damian to retain

• Iyo Sky (C) vs Asuka vs Charlotte Flair in a Triple Threat Match for the WWE Women’s Championship

  • PREDICTION: Immediately, I am discarding Charlotte as she should not be anywhere near this title. Iyo and Asuka are going to be a banger of a match. I would like to see Iyo retaining the title but I wouldn’t be disappointed if Asuka won.
  • Also, since there are rumours about Jade Cargill, I will predict that Jade Cargill will appear at the end of this match and square up to Charlotte Flair setting up that rivalry.

• Seth “Freakin” Rollins (C) vs Shinsuke Nakamura in a Last Man Standing match for the World Heavyweight Championship

  • PREDICTION: As much as I like Seth, I don’t see any immediate future with him and the title. He has also been a workhorse for the last 3 years and it would be nice for him to rest between now and Wrestlemania. It would be great to give Shinsuke what he rightfully has deserved for the last several years and that is a world title! Shinsuke to win and become champion

Follow me on Mastodon – @padraig@mastodon.ie

WWE Payback is back for the first time since 2020.

Here are my predictions:

Non-Title Matches

• LA Knight vs The Miz

  • PREDICTION: LA Knight

• Becky Lynch vs Trish Stratus in a Steel Cage Match

  • PREDICTION: Becky Lynch

• [Potenially a Match] – Cody Rhodes vs Grayson Waller

  • PREDICTION: Cody Rhodes

Title Matches

• Rey Mysterio (C) vs Austin Theory for the United States Championship

  • PREDICTION: Rey Mysterio to retain.

• Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs The Judgment Day in a Steel City Street Fight for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship

  • PREDICTION: Sami & Kevin retain.

• Rhea Ripley (C) vs Raquel Rodriguez for the Women’s World Championship

  • PREDICTION: Rhea to retain.

• Seth “Freakin” Rollins vs Shinsuke Nakamura for the World Heavyweight Championship

  • PREDICTION: Shinsuke to win and become the NEW World Heavyweight Championship

Apologies for the late release of the predictions but I am hopeful that Shinsuke will win tonight 🙏

Rev your engines as WWE heads to Detroit for SummerSlam.

I’m slightly disappointed about the lack of women’s matches that is on this card. We could have had 3 or four, but we have a mere 2. One which was thrown together with a random stipulation and a title match.

And can Finn Bálor regain a title that he never lost, 7 years later?

Let’s predict.

Non-Title Matches

• SummerSlam Battle Royal presented by Slim Jim
  • PREDICTION: Only 12 of the 25 entrants have been announced and out of the lot announced so far… LA Knight, YEAH!
• Ronda Rousey vs Shayna Baszler in a ‘MMA Rules’ match.
  • PREDICTION: We don’t know what the ‘MMA Rules’ stipulation entails but this is really a nothing match and I only see Ronda Rousey winning this.
• Logan Paul vs Ricochet
  • PREDICTION: This is going to be the match of the night. The two will probably pull off a banger of a match. Logan will win to get the rub.
• Cody Rhodes vs Brock Lesnar
  • PREDICTION: Brock Lesnar – I don’t believe Cody will pin Brock. If he does, it would only be by shenanigans.

Title Matches

• Gunther (C) vs Drew McIntyre for the Intercontinental Championship
  • PREDICTION: Gunther – WWE wants the record to be broken and Gunther is the guy to do it. Sorry Drew, maybe at Wrestlemania.
• Asuka (C) vs Charlotte Flair vs Bianca Belair in a Triple Threat Match for the WWE Women’s Championship
  • PREDICTION: I despise Charlotte Flair… why is she here. She actively ruins my enjoyment of the women’s division because we KNOW the result before it even happens. Charlotte Flair is going to win. Asuka or Bianca should retain/win, but you know it is not going to happen.
• Seth ‘Freakin’ Rollins (C) vs Finn Bálor for the World Heavyweight Championship
  • PREDICTION: A re-match from Money in the Bank and having Finn winning it, would work storyline-wise. He won the title at SummerSlam 2016 but vacated it the next night on RAW due to injury. 7 years later and he could get it. I hope he gets it. Finn Balor to win
• Roman Reigns (C) vs Jey Uso in ‘Tribal Combat’ for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship
  • PREDICTION: If this had been against anyone else, you could have easily put your money on Roman. But this match is serious. The culmination of a 3-year story and the potential end of Roman’s VERY long title reign. I can see it happening. I can see Roman losing tonight but it will not be clean. Solo will turn on Roman, Jimmy may come back to attack Roman. Ref bumps, visual pins but Jey will get it done. Jey Uso to win the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship

How are you seeing these matches fare?

• Follow me on the Fediverse – @padraig@mastodon.ie
• pf.ie | solo.to/pf.ie