The WWE Tag Team Division's Battle Against Fate

WWE's tag team division hasn't had an easy time of it this year. This is a shame. There's clearly been effort put into making it worthwhile and a worthwhile tag division would be most welcome. It would help WWE's TV product to feel more interesting and lively. It would also give the many lower cards wrestlers who currently have nothing going on something to do.

The Usos disappeared after WrestleMania because Jey suffered a shoulder injury. Their status as the company's longest-standing, most reliable unit likely altered plans for the division. It's all too easy to imagine that they were pegged to work with New Day, who would officially go heel within a month of 'Mania. To an extent their unexpected hiatus was probably a good thing. It's all too easy to imagine that, had the Usos been available, we wouldn't have seen as much of the various other units on the roster.

Sadly the main team I (and probably most other people) would have wanted to see featured also disappeared due to an injury. Tyson Kidd suffered what has apparently been described as a freak neck and spinal injury in a dark match against the newly signed Samoa Joe in early June, ending his run alongside Cesaro. Weeks later Erick Rowan tore his bicep at a house show (or, if you prefer, live event). He'd reunited with his Wyatt Family partner Luke Harper in May and it seems likely, now that SummerSlam's been and gone, that the three original Wyatt Family members were to be put back together for a six man tag against Ambrose, Reigns and someone else (Sting, according to the rumour mill) at 'The Hottest Event of the Summer'.

These losses were in addition to the unfocused use of The Ascension and the Lucha Dragons. Konor and Viktor were never going to amount to a great deal in WWE but had they been used with more care earlier in the year they could have been a far more over act by now. The Dragons, on the other hand, should have been given far more to do and received some protection from the writing team. They're an exciting team with obvious merchandise potential. Kalisto is very clearly a singles act waiting to happen who could be that Top Latin Star™ role we're always hearing WWE want. He may not have the name value or status of Rey Mysterio but he's ten times the worker Mysterio is these days. And he wears a cooler mask! What more do they want?

The tag division had mostly been left to the Prime Time Players and New Day. Focusing on two teams is nothing new. It's been the standard approach from WWE for years now. But it's disappointing because they seemed to be setting up a positively thriving division with the Usos, Cesaro and Kidd, the Wyatts, New Day, and the Lucha Dragons. New Day and the PTPs are very engaging teams who connect with audiences well in their respective roles and it would have been nice for them to have had a deeper roster to work with, even though the PTPs wouldn't have been receiving as much attention as they have been.

The good news is that despite all of these injuries and scuppered plans WWE is forging ahead with making doubles ranks worthwhile. The post-SummerSlam August 24 episode of Monday Night RAW saw a return and a debut that should and could impact on the division. 

These lads know how to win belts.

The returnees were the Dudley Boyz. Which may not mean anything to some people because it's actually been ten years since they were last employed by WWE and allowed to use that name. For the last decade they've been Team 3D in TNA. They're former twenty-four time world tag team champions, having held the WWE tag team titles once, the WWE world tag team titles eight times, the ECW tag team titles eight times, the WCW tag team titles once (although that was when the belts were under WWF ownership), the TNA tag team titles (a surprisingly low) two times, the NWA tag team titles once, the HUSTLE super tag team championship once, and the IWGP tag team titles two times. How many of these reigns are recognised by WWE is anybody's guess. I'd assume they'd count the WWE, WCW and ECW reigns but they could surprise us and acknowledge others.

In addition to being the most decorated double act to ever hit the wrestling biz the Dudleys are twenty year veterans and were a significant part of the Attitude Era. That Maggle Cole said that the tag scene had gotten more interesting when the Duds hit the ring to attack New Day and have a staredown with the Prime Time Players indicates that their return will be a permanent one, or at least not something that's over after a few weeks.

I'm interested to see what's done with Bubba and Devon. Matches against New Day and the Prime Time Players seem likely and both could be good. I'm be particularly interested in seeing them tackle heat magnets New Day which, judging by the last week of television, seems like a match we'll get at Night of Champions. A match with the Usos could also be fruitful considering the big bumps Jimmy and Jey frequently take. It's just a pity The Ascension weren't afforded better booking. If they had they'd probably be ideal opponents for the Dudleys right now.

The Wyatt Lads.

Monday's debut was Braun Strowman. He's a developmental guy who's been under contract since May 2013. Naturally he's been based at the Performance Center for the last year. Although he never appeared in a match on NXT he did feature regularly for a while as the large Spartan in Adam Rose's Exotic Express entourage. That he never got an official debut on the developmental programme likely means that WWE are still willing to have guys bypass a period of televised learning if the right spot presents itself on the main roster. This is a good thing. It means they're in a better position to surprise us.

Strowman joined Wyatt and Harper in attacking and ultimately laying out Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns. Presumably the Shield lads will recruit a third man to help them in their battle against the Wyatt Family. Cesaro would be a nice addition, but I'd take Dolph Ziggler or anyone vaguely talented with not much to do right now. Once that feud's done it seems reasonable to assume that the Wyatts will stay together and two members will form a regular tag team. As much as I love Luke Harper he deserves to be the number two singles guy of that group. Strowman and Rowan would be a good pairing. Rowan is painfully bland and Strowman seems green around the edges. Pairing them would help cover these failings and give the tag division more bodies.

The summer of 2015 could have featured a great tag division without the spate of injuries we saw. But there's nothing to stop WWE getting their plans back on track and factoring in the Dudleys and an altered Wyatt line-up. A division with New Day, the Dudleys, and the Usos on top and the Wyatt Family, the Lucha Dragons, The Ascension, and the Prime Time Players in supporting roles sounds pretty good to me.

WWE Elimination Chamber 2015 review

Every so often WWE manages to put on a pay-per-view so good it reminds you why you bother with them at all. The matches are exciting, they have a reason to happen, and performers look better afterwards than they did before. Technically this was not one of those times because this card wasn't available on pay-per-view. It was available exclusively on the WWE Network, an experimental offering designed to gauge the interest and feasibility of similar specials in the future. But in terms of ticking all the boxes required to remind you what WWE's like when it's good this show got the job done.

After a pre-show which saw Stardust beat Zack Ryder and Daniel Bryan appear on Miz TV to hype his book, Tough Enough and life in general the Elimination Chamber spesh got underway with the tag team championship Elimination Chamber (the first of its kind, fact fans!). The Ascension and the Lucha Dragons started the match with a stretch characterised by Cole and JBL fumbling their way through awkward chatter about the rivalry the teams had in NXT. The decision to have these four lads kick the match off struck as some sort of test to see if the audience would break into an NXT chant in a similar way to how audiences used to when ECW alums wrestled one another. If that was the case then this crowd failed.

New Day suck.

There were no eliminations to be had this early. They had a basic exchange which ended with the Dragons on top of pods. Sin Cara hit a Swanton bomb on Konnor but Kalisto was unable to perform his move of choice as New Day had grabbed his leg. Cara was unable to capitalise, presumably because he'd winded himself or something (some luchador!) and all four men were incapacitated when the first pod opened and Cesaro and Tyson Kidd entered the match.

The BTE immediately blasted their way through both teams with some slick double team moves. Cesaro was like a man possessed, dishing out uppercuts like they were going out of style before sprinting across the ring and leaping to the top rope to superplex Kalisto. Moments later he would catch Kalisto out on the steel and attempt to power bomb him but Kalisto exhibited canny lad abilities and clung onto the chains of the cage, pulling himself free and scrabbling up onto the Prime Time Players' pod.

Los Matadores were the fourth team to enter. El Torito, who'd been maxing and relaxing on top of their pod (because mascots were allowed, according to JBL) launched himself onto Sin Cara as his boys joined the fray. Kalisto busied himself with climbing to the top of the cage to hanging down from the top of the structure before dropping awkwardly onto a gaggle that included everyone except his partner. This was likely designed to be a breath-taking daredevil spot. It was not impressive, although it took some guts and skill to pull off.

El Torito emulated the spot but got caught by The Ascension. Without their mighty bull protecting them Los Matadores were easy pickings for a Fall of Man from The Ascension. Thirty seconds later Sin Cara got one too. Yep, The Ascension got the first and second evictions of the night. Cole tried to highlight this sudden ability to pin people by shrilly telling us that it was the best The Ascension have looked in WWE. He wasn't wrong but all he really accomplished was making it clear how much better they were used in NXT. Good work, Maggle!

The Prime Time Players' pod opened as Konnor and Viktor were hammering Cesaro and Kidd. Amazingly, they were permitted to eliminate the boys from the wasteland with relative ease: Titus grabbed hold of Konnor as Young gave Viktor a gutbuster and pinned him. Just, as Tommy Cooper would have said, like that. The PTPs went on to have possibly their best ever match opposite the BTE. That wasn't a surprise, to be honest. Everyone looks good with Cesaro and Kidd.

Better than that Kings' finish where Hero did a pump kick I reckon.

Reigning champions New Day entered last. All three men were wrestling as payment for having helped Kane out on the previous episode of SmackDown. After a brief spurt of dominance the champions were quadruple (or triple?) suplexed by all four babyface. Cesaro and Kidd shut Xavier Woods back in his pod and then gave Kofi the big swing-drop kick combo. Then d-Young reappeared, rolled Cesaro up and got a pin, giving us New Day versus the Prime Time Players for the match's closing moments.

New Day went into full-on heel mode by sticking Titus's head through the chain wall. Their attempted triple team of Young didn't work out for them though: Young fought free of Big E's grip, knocked Kofi and Xavier off the top rope, and sidestepped a spear from E, sending him careening into a turnbuckle. After freeing Titus the two took it to New Day for a bit before getting overwhelmed by the numbers. Big E flattened Young with a belly-to-belly suplex on the grate then headed back into the ring to chop block Titus as he hoisted Woods up for a fallaway slam. That sent Titus down to a knee, setting him up for Trouble in Paradise from Kingston. That was enough to allow Woods to get the fall and win for his team.

The finish got some well-deserved heat. Although nothing New Day was illegal because all three members had been permitted into the match it was very much positioned as an unfair, unsportsmanlike approach. Thus sort of thing can only help them become more disliked. The only way it could have been better is if it had featured Cesaro and Kidd or the Dragons in place of Young and O'Neil. Both teams are more popular than the PTPs so it would have had more impact. Although I was impressed with how good the Players were made to look considering they've done nothing since they reunited three-plus months ago. It could be argued that the PTPs being the ones to be outsmarted and outgunned by New Day in the closing moments was intended to protect the more popular teams but that seems unlikely to me: Cesaro fell to a flash pin from Darren Young and the Dragons went down to a team they've previously handled pretty easily.

The match was enjoyable. Considering the number of guys involved it could have easily become an omnishambles so we should all be pleased it avoided that. There were no truly memorable moments but it was good fun and a solid advert for tag team wrestling in WWE.

After a recap of Rusev injuring his ankle on SmackDown and Lana wishing Ziggler good luck in the IC title match we got Nikki Bella's Divas championship defence against Paige and Naomi. 'King' kicked things off by openly perving on all three women, making Vince McMahon's (he produces the commentary crew and is insistent on keeping Lawler involved) views on women's wrestling crystal clear.

Spot of the match? Maybe, mate.

This match was not on the level of Banks v Lynch from Unstoppable but that wasn't for lack of trying. Although they only got about six minutes they packed in a lot: a stacked power bomb from the corner;  an inverted hurricanrana from  Naomi; and Naomi breaking up a PTO attempt with a nice super kick being amongst the highlights. Had they had longer it's clear this match would have been great. As it was it was very good. Nikki retained the title after a Rack Attack. Cole talked up her 189 day reign. I assume that means they're going to keep it on her a while yet.

Cena versus Owens was preceded by a nice video recapping their interactions on RAW. The match did the considerable expectations they were facing justice. Owens screamed at Cena and the crowd throughout, successfully making himself the bad guy to the majority. The pace was just as quick as any of Owens' matches against faster foes in NXT and featured all of the spots you'd want and expect. After setting the pace early on Cena was dominated for a few minutes.

Things slipped into high gear when Cena kicked out of a pop-up power bomb. Owens went for a double jump moonsault but Cena avoided it and got the AA. Owens kicked out and, after a yay-boo trade, floored the United States champion with a super kick. He attempted to mock Cena with the Five Knuckle Shuffle but got pulled down into the STF. After he made the ropes Cena went to reapply the hold but Cena took the chance to escape and used Cena's own AA to get a two count.

After selling disbelief Owens turned around into a tornado DDT. That got Cena a two count. So did his never-not-dangerous-looking top rope leg drop. Cena again went for the AA but couldn't get Owens up for it. Big Kev took the chance to drop Cena with a package piledriver into a power bomb. That provided us with another two.

Cena going down clean as a whistle here. What a time to be alive.

The two again traded punches. Owens tried a pop-up power bomb but Cena hit him with a springboard Stunner. With the NXT champ rattled Cena took things to the top rope only to be surprised with a fisherman buster. When that didn't finish Cena off Owens pulled out a Swanton bomb. Cena kicked out of the cover that followed and gave Cena a pair of hard clotheslines. He went for a third but Owens ducked and caught him with a pop-up power bomb for the clean as a sheet victory seconds before the twenty minute mark.

This match set out to accomplish a lot. It wanted to establish Owens as a credible name. It wanted to show Cena can wrestle a highly touted NXT prospect. It wanted to be a great, classic encounter. It accomplished it all. Both guys looked great and Owens got a win over a fifteen time world champion in his main roster debut. WWE couldn't have done better with this match. Owens got the introduction he deserved.

After that we got a match that would have warranted far more praise on practically any other WWE show between 'Don't Call Him Adrian' Neville and Bo Dallas. It did it's job of continuing to build Nev up. He went over with the Red Arrow as everyone knew he would. After that Triple H found Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns backstage and told Reigns he was barred from ringside for the main event. It had been announced that Reigns would be in Ambrose's corner. Despite this Ambrose just smiled and laughed.

The Intercontinental title Elimination Chamber match kicked off with Dolph Ziggler and King Bad News Wade Barrett I. They went with Barrett giving Ziggler a kicking and Ziggler bumping about. He left him to have a breather on the grate as R-Truth entered the match. Barrett forced him back into his pod and gave him a pounding then went back to Ziggler instead of trying to pin him for whatever reason. This allowed Truth to recover to attack Barrett for a bit. Barrett put him down with Wasteland before returning his attention to 'The Show Off'.

Barrett threw Ziggler into Mark Henry's pod (he was the replacement for Rusev), breaking the plexiglass and allowing Henners to wade into the match. Seconds later Ryback's pod opened and he joined the bout too. Things got a bit messy at that point. Henry clearly wasn't meant to be in the match so early which meant he joined Truth in awkwardly standing about.

The first elimination came when Truth hit the Lie Detector (the name of his finisher this week) on Barrett and pinned him. That King of the Ring victory continues to be massively confusing. The four faces talked amongst themselves and exchanged pinfall attempts. There was a brief alliance against Henry but it didn't last. Ryback would eliminate Truth with a spinebuster. During all of this Sheamus was meant to be in the match but his pod door was "stuck". This was revealed to be a swerve after Ziggler and Ryback wiped one another out during an energetic exchange: he pulled his naff Celtic cross necklace out of the door's hinges and swaggered out.

Sheamus made quick work of Ziggler by tossing him through his pod door. Mark Henry fell to a Brogue kick. Shaymo and Ziggler then had a lively tussle as Ryback lay about at ringside. Ziggler came close to pinning 'Great White' but he would ultimately fall to a Brogue kick. Which left Sheamus and Ryback to have a hoss fight. They gave each other a good pasting , including largely unnecessary White Noise and rolling sentons on the steel grate, and pulled out a good finish: Ryback power bombed Sheamus from the outside of the ring, over the top rope, and then scooped him up for a match-winning Shellshock.

It wasn't as good as the tag team Chamber match nor a classic of its kind but this match was enjoyable for what it was and avoided being an embarrassment. Ryback isn't the greatest wrestler on the roster but he is over. That's what WWE needs at the moment.

Ambrose went on to do a bit of finger-biting.

That left only the main event: WWE champion Seth Rollins defending the title against Dean Ambrose. After a satisfying undercard they had they work cut out for them but as Owens and Cena had earlier on the show they met the expectations they'd been given. After a good but unremarkable first half characterised by interference from J&J and Rollins working over Ambrose the match came alive when Ambrose fired off some jabs and a swift pin exchange sequence was launched. J&J pulled their boy to safety but that wasn't enough to save him from 'The Lunatic Fringe', who was perfectly happy to launch himself out of the ring with a suicide dive.   

Back in the ring Rollins was lamped by the rebound clothesline. The champ tried a backslide with his feet on the ropes but the ref caught him. Ambrose got a rollup for two as Rollins shouted at the referee and then ate a super kick seconds after Rollins had kicked out. They took a tumble to the outside so that Rollins could power bomb Ambrose into the crowd barricade. This would only get Seth a two count so he nailed his springboard knee and an elevated inverted DDT. This also only got him a two count, the perfect excuse for Rollins to bust out his always enjoyable exasperated face.

Rollins trash talked the challenger for a bit and smacked him with elbows until Ambrose avoided one and snuck in a tornado DDT. Rollins escaped Ambrose's rope-hung leg drop. Ambrose sidestepped the springboard knee and got the rebound clothesline. Rollins kicked out at two. Ambrose racked up another near fall with the top rope elbow before taking a suicide dive on the outside and a buckle bomb back in the ring. After taking out J&J and Kane with a top rope dive Ambrose clotheslined went for the elbow dive again. Rollins pulled the referee in to absorb some of the blow. Yeah. They did a ref bump. But it's not the staple it once was so that's okay.

Rollins went for a Pedigree. Mebt use countered, tripping Rollins and see-sawing him into the corner. Rollins landed on the second rope, kicked Ambrose to the mat, and tried for the Phoenix splash. Ambrose rolled away. Rollins in turn landed on his feet only to be spiked with Dirty Deeds. A new referee dashed down to the ring to count the three. Ambrose's music played. He was announced as the new champion. Everything was right with the world.

Two belt thievery angles within months of each other. Shameful.

It didn't last. The original referee kicked off and said Rollins was disqualified for dragging him into the path of the lunatic elbow. Lilian Garcia announced the Dusty finish to boos then J&J, Kane and Rollins rushed the ring and pummelled Ambrose. That brought out Roman Reigns, his music causing Rollins to flee into the aisle where he got KOed by 'The Juggernaut' himself. Reigns and Ambrose then merced all the heels and ran off into the audience with the championship belt. It wasn't a crowd-pleasing title change but it was a move that seemed to please the crowd and send them home on a positive note.

Elimination Chamber was excellent, easily one of the two best main roster shows of the year along with WrestleMania. Anytime a card is favourably compared to a good WrestleMania something's gone right. There wasn't a single bad match here. Rollins v Ambrose and the tag Chamber were both very good and Cena v Owens was a classic encounter. Every match had a reason to be happening and delivered on its build-up. This was, basically, WWE doing everything it could right. If only this happened more often.

***

Results summary:

New Day retained the tag team championship in the Elimination Chamber
Nikki Bella defeated Paige and Naomi to retain the Divas championship
Kevin Owens defeated John Cena
Adrian Neville defeated Bo Dallas
Ryback won the the Intercontinental championship in the Elimination Chamber
Dean Ambrose defeated Seth Rollins by disqualification

WWE Elimination Chamber 2015 preview

This is the second time this month I've previewed a WWE show. It's the first time in a considerably longer period that I've actually looked forward to a main roster show not named WrestleMania. NXT specials are a different story. They're related to this because one of the reasons I'm looking forward to this show is that it will feature NXT champion Kevin Owens. He's not only wrestling, he's wrestling John Cena.

This is a big deal. This marks the first time that a reigning NXT champion has wrestled on the main roster while being acknowledged as the NXT champion (Seth Rollins, Big E and Bo Dallas all made main roster appearances while they were the champion without the title being acknowledged), which is significant in itself as it pits the top guy in NXT against the top guy in WWE. And make no mistake, no matter who has the WWE world title it's Cena that is the measuring stick and the main man on the WWE roster.

But this match is more than just a clash between developmental and the old guard. This is Cena once again coming up against an indy standout. Owens, under his real name Kevin Steen, was one of the biggest non-WWE draws in North America prior to his signing with WWE late last summer, just as Seth Rollins was in 2010, Daniel Bryan was in 2009 and CM Punk was in 2005. Cena collided with all three of those guys in significant ways during their respective rises up the ranks and it was always interesting to see them handling themselves well opposite WWE's premier performer. This match is another of these rare occasions when Cena brushes shoulders with the world of independent wrestling, albeit by proxy. They almost always produce something noteworthy and interesting, perhaps because Cena is aware that guys who have made it to the top of the indies know how to get over without the WWE machine behind them and puts in extra effort to ensure he's not outshone.

But most importantly it's Kevin Steen on a major WWE show. That's what makes this stand out. That's what makes me want to see it. Steen, now Owens, in WWE proper being treated as a man who can not only share a ring with Cena but also pose a threat to him. That's incredibly appealing.

I'll be amazed if the match isn't enjoyable. Part of what will help there is that there's no obvious outcome. A Cena victory is not assured. Although it's been said that Owens' move to the main roster is only a temporary thing that's not definite. It could be a permanent move, with him working RAW, SmackDown, NXT TV tapings and a blend of house shows for the foreseeable future, in which case a victory over Cena would get his run off to a great start. Even if he is going back to NXT there would be no better way to enhance that brand by having its champion defeat Cena. Shady tactics will be employed by Owens if he does go over, but that's nothing new not anything important. The result is what would matter.

As nice as it would be to see I don't think it will happen. I think a DQ or non-finish is likelier. That would protect Owens, which will be a factor in the booking given his NXT title reign and general standing, but keep the balance of the universe in check. By which I mean Cena would win, like usual.

The other main reason I'm looking forward to this show is the Chamber itself. I'm usually against WWE's themed shows because holding them annually devalues the gimmicks and frequently leads to awkward plotting as feuds are bent out of shape to incorporate stipulations that don't fit them. But that's not the case here. Away from 'The Road to WrestleMania', which was understandably more about building to 'Mania than putting together a great Chamber card, the six celled cage can be deployed more carefully, and has been. The vacant Intercontinental championship is a nice prize to put up in a Chamber match. For a company averse to tournaments a multi-man match to crown a champ is about as good as it's going to get, and the Chamber makes the IC belt appear more meaningful.

For the most part the line-up for the match backs this up. Sheamus has been booked well since returning in March. Bad News King Wade Barrett I received a minor boost by winning King of the Ring and never looks out of place at the modern day IC level. Ziggler always looks at home in these kind of matches and there's the additional appeal of his sort-of-feud with fellow entrant Rusev. Although his status took a thumping in his recent series with Cena 'The Bulgarian Brute's' standing overall is still pretty impressive. Ryback, like Sheamus, has been positioned well over the last few months and has seemingly found his niche in the upper mid-card. The only guy who really doesn't fit in is R-Truth, and with this being an elimination rules match (clue's in the name, mate) we can't even argue that he's in there to eat a pinfall. All but one guy is in this match to be pinned. Including Truth makes no sense.

Arguments could be made for pretty much anyone that's not Truth winning but I like Sheamus's chances most. Rusev and Ziggler seem poised to head off into a singles programme that wouldn't need the IC strap to be over, Ryback's popular but not really doing that much, and Barrett has his royalty gimmick sustaining him. 'Great White' makes sense as a bully boy IC champ lording it over the mid-card. He'd make a nice target for an underdog babyface to chase. Like Adrian Neville, for example.

Speaking of Neville he'll be facing his old NXT rival Bo Dallas at Elimination Chamber. This is just a way of keeping him out of the IC title match, something that's presumably necessary because it's too early for him to win the championship or be jobbed out attempting to do so. I suspect their NXT history, which culminated with Nev defeating Bo to win the championship at the first Takeover show, will be glossed over at best, ignored at worst, and that they won't get long enough to do anything special. Not that doing anything special is the goal here. The goal is clearly to make Neville look like a somebody with some flashy moves who can beat guys at Bo's level.

Back on the titular match, its other outing of the night will feature tag teams for the first time ever. The good news is that the Lucha Dragons, New Day (presumably the popular Kofi and Big E combo or all three together) and Cesaro and Tyson Kidd are three of the six teams involved. The bad news is that The Ascension, Los Matadores and the Prime Time Players are the other three teams and Luke Harper and Erick Rowan are nowhere to be seen.

I like the Prime Time Players. I enjoyed The Ascension when they were shaded by logical booking in NXT. I can appreciate Los Matadores for the reliable hands they are. But I would have much preferred to see Harper and Rowan in this match than any of these teams. They haven't been presented as perennial losers and are better workers (well, Harper is). Their inclusion would have been a boon to this match. Not that it will be bad though. Presumably things will come down to the Luchas, Kidd and Cesaro and New Day for some nifty tag spots. I'm hopeful that the gang will be able to offer us something new from a Chamber setting, or at least some high spots we haven't seen for a while. If it goes right this could be the match of the night. If it goes wrong it could be a mind-blowing omnishambles.

It could end with a title change. The Dragons have been popular since their main roster call-up so having them win would make sense. Kidd and Cesaro remain popular so they could be in with a chance too. But I think the likeliest outcome is New Day winning by shady tactics again, last eliminating the Lucha Dragons to set up a traditional tag match and a title switch at Money in the Bank.

A triple threat for the Divas championship and Ambrose versus Rollins for the WWE championship round out the show. The Divas title match will see Nikki Bella defend against Paige and Naomi. They are the three best workers in the division and this show being light on matches should mean that they get enough time to put together something worthwhile. With Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch receiving nothing but plaudits for their match of the year contender at Takeover: Unstoppable last week I think it's likely that Paige, Nikki and Naomi will feel they have something to prove here. I hope they get the chance to show what they can do.

I think a title switch could be due here. Nikki's been the champions since November 24. That's over six months. It's possible WWE will keep the title on her long enough for her to outdo AJ Lee's 295 day reign (because AJ's in the company's bad books and they may want that accolade on somebody who's still around) but Naomi is also doing solid work as a heel and that should be capitalised on. Putting the title on her would create some new scenarios for her opposite Natalya and Alicia Fox. Not that WWE is bothered about doing anything with either of them.

Rollins versus Ambrose will be great. Because it's Rollins versus Ambrose. They never have bad matches, people care about them, and they have a considerable history with one another. It will be nice to see them have a singles match on pay-per-view without a gimmick or stipulation attached. They'll provide a top quality main event for the evening. You can't ask for more than that, even with the obvious ending of Rollins winning.

I'm surprised at how positive I feel about this card. I think it says a good deal about the use of fresh talent in Kevin Owens and the lack of announced Big Show or Kane match. Even if one gets added, and Kane and Big Show v Randy Orton and Roman Reigns looks worryingly likely, I don't think it would dampen my spirits for the show. Owens and a logical reason for dusting off the Chamber are more than enough to keep me happy.

Now if only they could convince me that this will be better than Takeover: Unstoppable...

***

Predictions summary:

Seth Rollins to defeat Dean Ambrose to retain the WWE championship
John Cena to defeat Kevin Owens
Sheamus to win the Intercontinental championship
New Day to retain the tag team championship
Naomi to defeat Nikki Bella and Paige to win the Divas championship
Adrian Neville to defeat Bo Dallas

WWE Payback 2015 preview

Payback is going to be an historic pay-per-view. In the main event, for the first time on a WWE television show, all three members of The Shield will face off against one another. This isn't like a generic, run-of-the-mill triple threat pitting three guys against each other for no reason. This is a big deal. Because the three have a shared history.

At the time of their split last June The Shield were one of WWE's top acts. They're one of the creative team's biggest successes of the last half decade. They achieved a lot together and were presented as a headline act despite being a faction, rare in WWE. That a match involving all three working against one another wasn't rushed into, instead being saved for later, further emphasises the importance and significance of its first occurrence.

At this point Rollins and Reigns are both bona fide main eventers. Dean Ambrose has cooled off considerably since the second half of last year but he remains popular and talented. It's come at a good time for 'The Lunatic Fringe'. He's there to take the fall but being involved gives him a status boost, something he's in need of after failing to capture the Intercontinental title (because what sort of self-respecting WWE wrestler can't win the IC belt in 2015?). The last few weeks of television have shown that he can still get crowds to react to him when given something to do.

I find myself unable to get as excited about the match as I'd like though. Because it's not the logical three-way that it deserves to be. Instead it's a four-way also involving Randy Orton. What should be a meaningful, memorable, landmark moment in the careers of all three Shield guys is instead something that's happening because Vince is in a bind when it comes to main events. A Reigns versus Orton versus Rollins triple threat was initially decided on via public vote on the April 27 RAW. Ambrose was added a week later when Kane was irked for the umpteenth week in a row by Rollins' arrogance. The reality of the situation is that WWE realised that this would be the third pay-per-view of the last five with a triple threat WWE championship match going on last. With a triple threat also planned for SummerSlam (a 'Mania rematch of Reigns v Rollins v Lesnar) the decision was made to make this a four-way.

The logic behind the switch is sound but it was a situation WWE could have avoided if they planned better and concentrated on elevating a wider variety of talent. They're throwing away one of the few meaningful matches they have access to to salvage a B-level pay-per-view. Technically, yes, they can still go ahead with a Shield triple threat at some point in the future but its appeal will be lessened because we'll have already seen the three at loggerheads here. You only get one chance at a first impression and all that.

Honestly, I'd have preferred Kane in the match in place of Ambrose. It would be far less offensive for him to be in there as the blatant fall fodder and it would have made sense in terms of recent characters directions. A month ago Ambrose wasn't involved with Orton, Rollins or Reigns while Kane and 'The Future' have been sniping at one another since shortly after WrestleMania (and Kane was running interference against Orty before that). His issues with Rollins could have been safely paid off in a four-way saving us the chore of sitting through a Rollins and Kane singles match, and as he's technically a heel his involvement would have made more sense from a ring psychology perspective: it would have been two heels and two faces in one match, instead of the three faces against one heel we're actually getting.

None of this is to say the match won't be good. Reigns has had a number of very good matches recently. Rollins is quite possibly the best active wrestler on the WWE roster. Ambrose and Orton are both reliable and over. Unless something very surprising happens the match will be satisfying. But this doesn't make it any less of a massive waste.

A Rollins win seems painfully obvious.

In the second biggest match of the night John Cena will defend the United States championship against Rusev in an I Quit match. This will be the fourth straight meeting for the pair on pay-per-view. Nothing about their previous three explains why a fourth is necessary. They haven't been bad together but they haven't been anything special either. The win-loss record also makes this a bit of a pointless meeting. After suffering a loss in their first showdown at Fast Lane Cena has dispatched Rusev twice. As we've been told this will be the final entry in their series the best Rusev can do here is draw the feud. That means it's impossible for him to come out of Payback looking like the juggernaut he was shaping up to be before he was sent Cena's way. It would have been better for all involved had WWE cut their losses and split them following Extreme Rules.

Not that that matters much. Cena is going to win this match and keep hold of the US championship so he can continue his run of surprisingly exciting TV matches against mid-carders. Rusev's future isn't clear but the last month of TV has made one thing certain: Lana won't be featuring in it. Not as his manager at least. Lana, you see, has been corrupted by The West, waving at crowds who chant for her and dancing with Fandango. She and 'The Super Athlete' are going to split. Presumably Lana will find someone new to manage and Rusev will take them on.

The obvious finish would be to have Lana quit on Rusev's behalf. She could argue she felt she was doing the right thing, Rusev's shaky claim of only having one definitive loss to his name could be maintained (just), and the desired split could be achieved. I don't want this to happen. Rusev and Lana are a great act and both will suffer for being apart. But what I want and what I think will happen aren't always the same thing when it comes to WWE.

Another fine example of this is the Bray Wyatt versus Ryback match. The idea is that Wyatt, having suffered a high profile loss to The Undertaker at WrestleMania, can be rehabilitated with a few victories over 'The Big Guy'. I can't see it working. I enjoy Ryback's character (especially when he's an anti-internet heel) but he's not on a level where a win over him is enough to make up for a recent loss, especially to someone like 'The Phenom'. He's not even a good enough wrestler to provide 'The New Face of Fear' with a good match.

This said I'm going to go against the grain and pick Ryback as the winner. Every so often WWE goes through a phase where obvious pay-per-view outcomes don't happen. Sting's loss to 'The Game' at 'Mania and Sheamus's loss to Dolph Ziggler at Extreme Rules indicate we're in one of those periods. A Wyatt win seems like the obvious thing but a Ryback win wouldn't alter any major plans so I think they'll go with it. 'The Eater of Worlds' can get his win back in the rematch (there's always a rematch).

Speaking of Shaymo and 'The Show Off', their bout is far more promising, although their feud seems to be running in reverse to booking logic. Instead of starting with a normal match against one another and running through gimmick matches afterwards they started with a gimmick match and have regressed to regular rules. Not that a Kiss My Arse match is a classic gimmick or anything but it's a gimmick nonetheless. They work well together and I expect they'll put out something good here. As Ziggles won at ER it's Sheamus's turn to go over this time.

Another outcome that seems easy to predict is The Ascension's loss to Macho Mandow and Curtis Axel. After four months on the main roster what potential The Ascension had is completely gone. Teaming Mandow with Axel isn't the best use of either man. Mandow has been one of the most popular guys on the roster for over six months now and it's disheartening that in that time WWE have blundered splitting him from Miz and preparing something meaningful for him to do afterwards. But at least they've come up with something. That's better than doing nothing with him, right? Right?

King Barrett v Adrian Neville is another one that seems fairly straightforward to predict. They met on the pre-show of last month's Extreme Rules. Neville won. They met again in the finals of the (shambolic) King of the Ring tournament two nights later. Barrett won. Barrett got himself a new royal gimmick with that win, which means he's the favourite to win again here.

The match I'm most looking forward to at Payback is the tag team title match. Cesaro and Tyson Kidd will challenge New Day for the championships they were cheated out of a month ago. If previous encounters are anything to go by this will be one of the best matches of the night. They also have a well chosen stipulation to work with: two-out-of-three falls. That's a good choice for two good teams anyway, but it's especially good here because New Day are defending their titles under the Freebird rule.

In case you don't know (unlikely as that is, being that you're reading a niche blog about wrestling already) this is a rule that allows any members of a three man unit to defend a two man tag team championship. It's application in a two-out-of-three falls environment could create some amazing heat as New Day swap members in and out on different falls, giving them an advantage in the latter stages of the match. I expect New Day to retain via shady tactics. I expect this to be the best match of the night.

And I expect Payback to end up being the latest forgettable WWE pay-per-view. There are elements of it that are promising, such as the main event, the tag title match, and Ziggler versus Sheamus, but there's not enough to make it look like it'll be worth more than one repeat viewing (if that). There are too any rematches and shoddy booking choices for that. Sadly, this isn't the first time I've expressed that sentiment about a WWE pay-per-view. Even more sadly, I'm yet to be wrong.

***

Predictions summary:

Seth Rollins to retain the WWE championship against Roman Reigns, Randy Orton and Dean Ambrose
John Cena to defeat Rusev after Lana quits on Rusev's behalf
New Day to defeat Cesaro and Tyson Kidd
Ryback to defeat Bray Wyatt
Sheamus to defeat Dolph Ziggler
King Barrett to defeat Adrian Neville
Macho Mandow and Curtis Axel to defeat The Ascension

Dark Day

Despite their general lack of direction WWE has a pretty strong top end on their roster right now. John Cena is experiencing something of a resurgence thanks to the varied opposition his fourth reign as US champ has provided him. They have cowardly, conniving heel Seth Rollins walking around as WWE champion without having fully earned the right. Roman Reigns is ready to be tipped over into headlining champ territory at a moment's notice. And there's Brock Lesnar waiting in the wings to make a triumphant return as an unstoppable monster out for revenge and the world heavyweight championship.

But despite this the company's hottest feud is between two mid-card tag teams.

The rivalry between Cesaro and Tyson Kidd's Brass Ring Club, Masters of the Universe or Best Team Ever (they're going through names like nobody's business) and the New Day trio of Big E, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods is an example of a wrestling company listening to their audience and reacting accordingly. Two months ago Cesaro and Kidd were bad guys but their ring work has been so enjoyable that audiences have been supporting them (a theme throughout Cesaro's career). New Day are the opposite of this. Even though they've been positioned as good guys and their matches have always been solid the stereotypical characters they've been given to play have seen audiences booing them. That they're essentially playing 80's-style clean cut babyfaces has probably been a factor too.

The smart thing for WWE to do was to take the two tandems, flip their roles and put them in a series against one another. So that's what they did. Cesaro and Kidd are now free to officially encourage the positivity crowds send their way and ramp up the pop-inducing sequences in their matches.

New Day heat.

It's the New Day lads who have really benefited from this, and not just because their status as heat magnets has resulted in them getting a tag team title reign complete with the Freebird Rule. When they were lobbed together last year it took the writing team months to figure out what they wanted to do with them. They were eventually cast as bland babyfaces with unclear motivations. They spoke like gospel preachers and liked to clap, that was it. There was no depth to them and it wasn't clear what they were meant to be.

No reason was provided to cheer them. So people didn't. The resulting apathy gradually turned to active dislike, perhaps because the three New Dayers remained so positive despite being in such an obviously poor spot on the roster. That's the kind of blending of storyline and playing on audience's heightened knowledge of pro wrestling's workings that WWE (and others) should do more often.

The turn itself has been handled well and has allowed New Day to tinker with their performances. One of the key moments for the trio came when Kofi interfered in a match on Woods' behalf. The look Woods responded with was perfect, conveying that he'd only just realised in that moment that there was nothing to stop them breaking the rules. It created a reason for New Day to be booed and set up a simple booking formula for them: the cheat to win matches. And they had a reason for this change in attitude too. They were being booed while trying to fight fairly, so what did they have to lose by cheating?

Playing heel also suits the three men well. Kofi Kingston is essentially playing a slightly more arrogant version of the character he's always played, which makes sense as for him to make drastic changes nine years into his WWE run would be odd. I remember him saying in an interview years ago, so it's nice to see him getting the opportunity to do so. Big E is more at ease than he has been since his time with Dolph Ziggler, showing passion and presence both in the ring and on the mic. He's playing a man who knows that his obnoxious hollering will get under people's skin but who doesn't care.

It's Xavier Woods who has the most interesting character right now. He's coming across as a man with a lot of pent up rage inside him, glaring into the distance as Big E and Kofi prattle on during promos, clearly wanting to speak out about the ridiculousness of what they've been given to do but not quite bringing himself to verbalise his anger. If he ever gets to cut loose in a promo he could deliver gold.

I like what's being done with New Day. There's nothing revolutionary or amazing about any of it. It's just simple, effective booking that takes into account the crowd's views on an act. It's what WWE should do all the time but don't, so when they do it's eye-catching.

Summoning the Demon

Anyone who watched the RAW after WrestleMania (and as it was guaranteed to be one of the most eventful episodes of the year that should be most people reading this) would have seen Adrian Neville make his main roster debut. Or, more accurately, Neville make his main roster debut. He's dropped the first name between NXT and Monday Night RAW. Very probably because Vince McMahon doesn't think the name sounds tough enough.

With this call-up WWE has an ideal opportunity to set up another one in a couple of months time. Here's how...

Adrian Neville doing some weird Hawkeye pose.

Have Nev win some more showcase matches over the next couple of months. Maybe put him in a feud with a mid-card heel who's not doing much (which is most people). Someone like Stardust would be ideal, or New Day if they go bad. The idea would be to establish him as a flashy wrestler who can win so that people have reasons to care about him.

Between now and April reunite Erick Rowan and Luke Harper. Nothing fancy would be needed to achieve that. They could simply watch one another's matches from the stage for a few weeks and having little staring contests afterwards. On the RAW after Extreme Rules have one of them wrestle a match against Cesaro or Tyson Kidd. Harper would be nice because he's the better of the two but Rowan is the established face so he'd probably make more sense.

Rowan (or Harper) could beat Cesaro (or Kidd) and then Harper (or Rowan) could wander out to the ring and together the swamp-lovin' lads (decent team name right there) could beat down Kidd and Cesaro. Harper, Kidd and Cesaro are all officially designated heels by WWE but that shouldn't matter. This could just be a feud in which people cheer for whichever team they like best. That's a direction WWE should be testing more anyway.

After the standard array of singles matches between the two teams they could have a tag title match at Payback. Rowan and Harper would win. They could head into defences against the Usos (who they had good matches with last year) and the Lucha Dragons. Maybe the Prime Time Players and New Day too.

Meanwhile the disgruntled former champs could attack Neville (yeah, I got it back to him) during a match the night after Payback. It needn't be a DQ finish or anything. Neville could win a match then be attacked. By that point he'd have two months of TV exposure behind him, enough time for people to think it bad that two angry blokes are taking out their frustrations on him.

This would naturally lead to a couple of singles matches between Nev and the former tag champs. Ideally he'd lose to both Kidd and Cesaro via interference, distractions and shenanigans. These screwy finishes would give him a reason to challenge both of them to a tag match at Money in the Bank: they could interfere but he'd have someone there to watch his back. Cesaro and Kidd would accept and the Nevster would promise a mystery partner for the show.

Neville and Bálor could do a lot of good in the tag division.

Naturally this mystery partner would be Finn Bálor. Just as naturally he and Neville would win the match. This would be an ideal show-opener and would help to make Money in the Bank a memorable show. With it having become one of WWE's most important pay-per-views that's probably going to be a priority. It's also worth noting that as so many guys always get funnelled into a ladder match there'd be a good amount of time available for Cesaro, Kidd, Neville and Bálor to do something  particularly worthwhile.

From there Neville and Bálor could enter the tag division. They could win another tag bout the next night on RAW (maybe a rematch against Cesaro and Kidd) and then tell some backstage interviewer that they like teaming and that they're setting their sights on tag team gold. A win over the Usos, the closest thing WWE has to a well-established, always on top form team, at Battleground could set them up as challengers to Harper and Rowan at SummerSlam. Winning championships in their SummmerSlam debut would draw attention to the lads and allow talk of them being the future of the company to sound legitimate.

This would reinvigorate the tag division and create a platform for two new guys to make an impact in their first months on the roster. Which means it's something WWE aren't going to do.

That RAW Recap 30.03.15

The more I think about it the more I think WrestleMania 31 (reviewed here) is one of my favourite instalments ever. There were things I disliked about it but the good far outweighed the bad and the quality of even the worst stuff (Big Show winning the battle royal, for example) was so high that as a show it deftly overshadowed the last several 'Mania cards. It's still too early to tell but it might even be that this show is my second favourite WrestleMania behind X7, a show I, like many others, hold in incredibly high regard.

The last few years have seen the RAW after WrestleMania more lauded than the big spectacle its followed. Whether it was The Shield saving Daniel Bryan from a beating at the hands of a reformed Evolution in 2014, Dolph Ziggler's electrifying cash-in in 2013, or Brock Lesnar returning to F5 John Cena in 2012, RAW has always had something to rival 'The Showcase of Immortals'. The excellence of WrestleMania 31 meant that for the first time in years RAW was going to struggle to be the more highly regarded of the two shows.

Rematch clause, bitch.

Things got off to a strong start when Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman marched out to the ring. Heyman introduced them, reminded everyone of what had happened the night before (because I'm sure there were loads of people watching RAW who'd chosen not to watch or read about WrestleMania), and announced that Brock Lesnar was enacting his rematch clause right then and there. Instead of new WWE champion Seth Rollins it was Stephanie McMahon who answered the pair. She informed them Rollins was still flying back from his early morning TV appearance on the east coast but that she felt certain he'd accept Lesnar's challenge upon arrival.

As an opening segment this was great. It gave the crowd Lesnar, the one person they really wanted to see, positioned him as an official babyface, and set something up for later in the programme. The writing team tries to do this fairly often but they usually have no idea what people want to see as a show's thread. I suspect this was more happy accident that considered insight, but the result's the same.

The first match saw new Intercontinental champion Daniel Bryan defend against Dolph Ziggler. Going with Ziggler versus Bryan in this spot was a clever move. It gave the crowd two more guys they cared about and the pair were awarded enough time to have a satisfying match. In storyline terms it did seem a bit off that 'The Show Off' got the first shot at D-Bry while the former IC champ Bad News Barrett was relegated to the commentary desk.

Oh, Sheamus. Who did this to you?

Bryan won after surviving a super kick and a Zig Zag and hitting the running knee. Bad News then attacked both Bryan and Ziggler before a returning Sheamus ran out to chase him off. He was sporting a ridiculous Mohawk and beard beads. In a move that shocked precisely no one 'Great White' attacked Bryan and Ziggles too, then cut a two word promo. "Oi'm back." He didn't even toss in a "fella".

An eight man tag match followed that. Cesaro and Tyson Kidd teamed with The Ascension to tangle with New Day representatives Big E and Kofi Kingston (Xavier Woods was again on standing-at-ringside duty) and the debuting Lucha Dragons. Kalisto proved incredibly popular with the live crowd. They immediately broke into an NXT chant and stayed invested in Kalisto throughout the match. The Cesaro v Kalisto exchanges were the easy highlight and made it clear that Kalisto could work as the company's new lead masked Latin star. 'The King of Flight' got the win for his team when he pinned Viktor off the Salida del Sol.

After a slow mo video of Adrian Neville performing the Red Arrow Brock Lesnar returned. Seth Rollins followed him. That the WWE world championship match was supposedly kicking off RAW's second hour set alarm bells ringing. The match clearly wasn't going to happen at this point because it was a natural main event. It was only going to happen here if an angle was planned.

The angle we got was something special. Rollins backed out of the ring at the beginning of the match and announced that he was jetlagged and his foot hurt a bit so he wasn't going to be defending the title against Lesnar. This triggered one of the most furious rampages in wrestling history from 'The Beast'. He grabbed Rollins from ringside and tossed him back into the ring. There he tried to German suplex him but Rollins landed on his feet and hit an enziguri, which Lesar no-sold.

Rollins again left the ring and tried to run through the crowd and was again caught by the former champion. Lesnar went for an F5 through the announce table but Noble and Mercury saved Rollins. Lesnar clotheslined the pair of them, giving the champ enough time to dive over the barricade and run backstage.

RIP Michael Cole.

Lesnar hurled the announced desk onto its side in frustration, crushing JBL and Booker T. Then he grabbed Michael Cole (to thunderous cheers) and took him into the ring to hit him with an F5. Not satisfied with killing WWE's former lead heel Brock grabbed an indy guy who was cosplaying as a cameraman at ringside. This brought out Steph again, demanding 'The Pain' put the man down. Lesnar did so with an F5.

Steph screeched about Lesnar' actions being unacceptable and suspended him. Lesnar paced back and forth in the ring, Heyman trying to reason with him. For a moment it felt like they were trying to tease Lesnar hoisting Heyman up for an F5 but that didn't happen. Instead the crowd chanted "One more time!" so Heyman called an audible and told Lesnar to F5 the camera lad again. Lesnar obliged and then stormed backstage with the crowd chanting his name.

This was another great sequence. It kept Lesnar as the unstoppable monster, made Rollins look like a complete coward, and created a logical reason for Lesnar's next sabbatical (necessitated by his light contract). This was the best thing on the show.

Sadly things went downhill from there. Damien Mizdow's win over Stardust was enjoyable because the audience was so into Mizdow. The Miz's post-match attack went down well for the same reason. Curtis Axel versus the debuting 'Don't Call Me Adrian' Neville was also warmly received although the match was too short to be anything particularly special.

Does the United States title mean more after this match? Not really.

Surprisingly, it was John Cena's open challenge that stopped the audience's buzz. Cena himself was greeted with a strong mixed reaction, as is always the case the night after 'Mania. Dean Ambrose got a loud response when he came out to face him. But once the match started the audience just died. They weren't as into the match as they had been the rest of the show, presumably because people would have rather seen Ambrose do something less obviously designed to simply get him on the show and seen Cena confronted by Russian killdozer Rusev. Cena won with an AA, the inevitability of which may also have harmed the crowd's response to the match as a whole.

Backstage, Renee Young asked Seth Rollins for his views on Brock Lesnar. Before he could give much of an answer Randy Orton showed up to remind us of his existence and to declare that he was going after 'The Future's' title. Rollins booked a six man tag main event with Kane and Big Show as his partners. This left Orton approximately half an hour to find two partners, the idea being that this would be hard as he's not a popular guy.

AJ Lee, Paige and Naomi defeated the Bellas and Natalya when Naomi pinned Divas champion Nikki with the Rear View. In a locker room Ryback approached Orton and talked to him about eating. This seemed to signify that he was going to help Orty out and team with him. Rusev returned to his winning ways in a match against Goldust. This match felt like what it was: an excuse to have Rusev on the show without getting him involved with Cena.

Gold piping. Gold belt. Rollins has started liking gold.

The main event saw Randy Orton, Ryback and Roman Reigns defeat Rollins, Show and Kane when Reigns speared 'The Big Red Machine'. When you stop and think about it Reigns being in this match was odd. It was a last minute addition to the show, meaning that had Rollins not made the match Reigns wouldn't have been booked but Curtis Axel an Goldust would. The crowd clearly weren't interested in the match. They amused themselves by performing a Mexican wave and performing chants for various NXT stars, including Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Hideo Itami and Enzo Amore. I don't blame them. This was an uninspired main event. Things should have been reworked so that the Lesnar angle closed the show.

For the first time in years WrestleMania was easily better than the RAW that proceeded it. Everything that happened with Lesnar was great, and the less-is-more approach taken with Reigns is what should have been done all along. But there wasn't enough on offer to come anywhere close to competing with 'The Granddaddy of Them All'. 2015 was the year WrestleMania took back its crown.

The Darewolf

Justin Gabriel's out. 'Darewolf' PJ Black is in.

It's not exactly breaking news that the artist formerly known as Justin Gabriel has been released by WWE. Apparently frustrated with his lack of direction and the nonchalant way his TV appearances were being handled Gabriel left the January 19 RAW and informed the company he wanted to be released from his contract. His status as a free agent was confirmed on January 25 when WWE announced he'd been released.

Pointing to the sky shows you mean business.

It's hardly surprising the man born Paul Lloyd Jr wanted out of WWE. He rarely got to appear on the promotion's more important broadcasts. When he did it was usually in a short match which he lost. His appearances on NXT were more promising. He didn't win much but he did get to wrestle lengthier matches in a less restrictive environment. A regular slot on that show would have been a good fit for him, allowing him creative freedom while providing the show with a reliable performer who could guarantee a good outing while putting over the hot prospects. Unfortunately for him Tyson Kidd got the main roster veteran in residence spot. NXT only needs one.

It's hard to imagine many people being happy to work hard to get to WWE's main roster only to be content with an enhancement role. His request was and is understandable. The last time he verged on relevance was when he was a tag team champion with Heath Slater in 2011. That Slater has to be mentioned there should tell you all you need to know about how well Gabriel was truly doing.

I think WWE could have done more with 'The Werewolf of Cape Town'. From what we were shown he could have turned in some belters opposite the likes of Cesaro, Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler. His on-off team with Tyson Kidd had potential too, but the writers never seemed overly interested in it. An injury to Kidd didn't help matters either, to be fair. Given time to develop, and used as part of a proper, actual tag team division Gabriel and Kidd could have been great. Matches with the Usos, the Wyatt Family, and even The Shield could have been excellent.

Gabriel wasn't necessarily a natural headliner or even an upper mid-carder, but he was capable of more than we saw. Which is what I think we'll see from him in his matches for the WWN over WrestleMania weekend. Gabe Sapolsky was quick to sign him for the group's shows, which speaks of the faith an experienced booker and promoter has in him. As does Black's announced matches against EVOLVE champion Drew Galloway and former Open the Freedom Gate champion Ricochet. They're not just some of the best wrestlers Sapolsky has available to him, they're some of the top names of the WWN. Black wouldn't be wrestling them on such major shows if there was any doubt in his ability.

If only he'd only a better nickname than 'Darewolf' I could get really into his new found freedom.

Marital Troubles

One of the few consistent stories WWE’s told over the last few months has been the one concerning the marital problems of Tyson Kidd and Natalya. It’s been a prominent part of Total Divas and has been a regular, if minor, aspect of the pair’s appearances both on the main roster TV shows and NXT. All the signs indicate that it’s not something that’s going to come to much outside of Total Divas, which is a waste because WWE could do something memorable with it if they wanted to.

It’s been pretty well established that part of the problem is Tyson having a problem with Natalya getting the spotlight when he doesn’t. There have been times where he’s posed in front of her after she’s gotten a victory and he’s frequently not bothered going to ringside for her matches, while she accompanies him for all of his (unless a storyline reason prevents her from doing so). There’s also been the more highlighted stuff with Tyson being “overly friendly” with Nikki Bella when she’s been competing against his wife.

Note Tyson's complete lack of interest.

So how about building towards Natalya versus Tyson Kidd at WrestleMania 31? Have Kidd continue to upstage Nattie on RAW and SmackDown across the next week of TV, and refuse to accompany her to the ring for matches she considers important. Nattie could win a number on contenders match on an episode of SmackDown, earning her a shot at the winner of the Nikki Bella versus Paige Fast Lane match on an episode of RAW. Her celebrating could be interrupted by Tyson strolling to ringside and batting her out of the way to stand on a turnbuckle. Because he’s totes a megastar.

Natalya could shrug that mistreatment off as she shrugs all his mistreatment off, and then convince Tyson that she really, really wants him there at ringside to see her become the Divas champ at against Nikki or Paige. He’d reluctantly agree (it’s not like he’s on RAW much anyway) and be at ringside for the match. This being wrestling he’d end up accidentally costing her the match in some way and then storm backstage when she dares to blame him for her loss.

This would end up being a turning point for Natalya, the moment that makes her realise that her husband doesn’t respect her or her career. The following week’s RAW could see her announce she’s made a decision about her marriage, setting up the reveal for the following week and giving people a reason to tune in. Naturally the commentary crew could play up that she’s going to ask Tyson for a divorce, because that’s the on the nose approach favoured by WWE.

But instead the next week’s show would arrive and Natalya would get an in-ring promo segment challenging Tyson to a match at WrestleMania. He’d laugh it off before being convinced (through a slap or the threat of separation or some other Grand Gesture™) that Natalya’s serious. Maybe he could say no and then spend weeks being convinced that Nattie will go through with her threat of divorce, or maybe he could simply say yes to begin with.

Either way it would need to be clear that the match isn’t about spousal abuse (because that’s distinctly un-PG and, more to the point, not something I think pro wrestling is well-equipped to tackle) but rather about respect and gender equality (the former of which is firmly in pro wrestling’s ball park and the latter of which really should be). Natalya would want to prove she’s just as good a wrestler as any of the guys and that Tyson should respect her. Tyson wouldn’t necessarily have to transform into a raging sexist for the story to work, he could simply remain the inattentive husband who believes Natalya supporting his endeavours is of greater import than him supporting hers.

Natalya would need to win the match, of course. A mid-card husband versus wife story of this nature needs to win with the wife vindicated otherwise it sends a very poor message. Ideally she’d go over with the Sharpshooter before they reconcile with a hug. I think Natalya and Tyson could have a good match if they had more than five minutes, and it would be nice for them to get a genuinely memorable, meaningful WrestleMania Moment.