As we
amble ever closer to the end of this blog, this week’s offering will take the
place of the usual pay-per view preview which has been a monthly staple of this
site since its inception three years ago. Those who read the Extreme Rules
preview will know that was that last one I was willing to write as we slowly
but surely take this blog off of life support and bring it to its natural
conclusion. However, for now anyway, we
have a job to do and though there may not be a preview of Payback, we are going
to take a short look at the only two match announced for the event as of
writing this, which are Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins vs Randy Orton vs Roman
Reigns for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and John Cena vs Rusev in an
I Quit Match for the United States Championship.
We’ll
begin with the latter and though everyone knows my thoughts on another John
Cena vs Rusev bout, WWE feel that they need to bring it to its natural
conclusion after Rusev has been a complete write off after WrestleMania. But
then, what did WWE think would happen when they fed yet another promising
career to John Cena? Did Vince really believe that Cena would treat Rusev any
different to the rest of those he’s had a hand in ruining? Of course not. They
knew what would happen but booked themselves into a corner with the whole
American pride angle they conjured up for the feud. Had the company not made
this about national pride, then Rusev could have easily defeated John Cena at
WrestleMania and Extreme Rules, only to have this bout contested under
different rules which meant he could have escaped with his title and undefeated
streak still in tact. That would have been the clever thing to do. But then
this is John Cena we’re talking about, and WWE still believe that Cena will be
damaged by not winning a bout in a feud.
As
mentioned before, WWE should have preserved Rusev for as long as possible. His
streak could have lasted well into 2016 and not come to an end until he lost
the WWE World Heavyweight Championship which it seems he will now struggle to
capture. But, do WWE have an ace up their sleeve to preserve Rusev’s image? I
think they do and it lays with Lana at ringside who I’m confident will turn on
Rusev at Payback and throw in the towel to preserve his image and standing
going forward. Rusev has now lost at two consecutive events and cleanly at
that. If WWE were to book controversy at the conclusion of this bout then it
may go some way to helping Rusev carry on after this feud is over.
I
don’t quite know where Rusev vs Lana could go, though it would be a safe bet
that Lana would side with Rusev’s next foe or bring up a star from NXT to
oppose him, Baron Corbin maybe? If not, then there’s no life in the obvious
turn on its way. And it’s coming. All those times Rusev has mistreated Lana
over the last few months has made sure of that. It’ll be interesting to see
where Rusev goes from here. Whether WWE have the courage to do something mind
blowing with him after John Cena or whether they bury him in the mid-card and
forget he ever held a threat to everyone in the locker room.
Whilst
we’re on the subject of this bout and John Cena, did anyone see how he treated
Sami Zayne on last week’s Raw? I watched in disbelief as John Cena paid Zayne
no respect whatsoever and just crushed him after permitting the challenger to
kick out of his Attitude Adjustment. For those who missed it, Sami Zayne leapt
through the bottom turnbuckle to hit a sumptuous swinging DDT on the matting
outside the ring only for John Cena to leap back up and hit him with a second
Attitude Adjustment seconds later. It made Zayn seem weak and not up the
challenge at this level. If you’re keeping count, that’s two NXT stars John
Cena has now ruined. These guys and girls are meant to be the next generation
of star. Not cannon fodder for John Cena to run thought when he’s been through
everyone else on the main roster.
Seth
Rollins is in trouble as WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Every week since he
won the gold at WrestleMania, Rollins has been either defeated or humiliated on
Raw and Smackdown. It’s simply not good enough. WWE have advertised Seth
Rollins on their November UK tour as Champion which means he’ll be the man
around these parts for the foreseeable future. He’ll overcome the challenge
which awaits him at Payback and also Brock Lesnar in the summer. But how much
will all that mean if WWE don’t push him as the biggest star in their company?
There’s no way we’re going to buy into him for that long if Rollins is kept
down by men like Randy Orton and Roman Reigns.
It
almost seems like a joke by WWE now. Bury the new talent that fans want to see
and then they can turn around and say we know nothing, and that they were right
all along. But this is business now, Rollins is the future of the industry and
what message does it send out if the company he represents is continuously
trashes him weekly? The perfect set-up for Payback would have been to have Dean
Ambrose qualify one week previous and then allow Seth Rollins to defeat Randy
Orton and Roman Reigns in singles competition in one night, without help. That
would have stood him in good stead with the fans and proved he was a force to
be reckoned with. Instead, J and J Security have been there at Seth’s beck and
call to aid him and he really doesn’t look like a capable Champion.
However,
after Payback, Seth Rollins will move on to pastures new and begin a new war
with Kane as has been signposted for weeks now with the Big Red Machine working
against Rollins and The Authority. Though it may have happened before you read
this, when Triple H and Stephanie return to WWE television they will turn on
Kane and expel him from their side. This will cause Kane to put back on his
mask and vest, which is for the best because I don’t know if I can stare at
that body much longer, and battle against those who have wronged him. Of
course, this also means Kane back in the main event once again whilst Dean
Ambrose, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns fight it out amongst themselves for a
number one contendership, but if it’s a means to an end and a bridge to
something better then we put up with it for a month or two.
Before
I end this week’s musings, I would just like to mention the man everyone is
overlooking in this scenario and that’s Dean Ambrose. The Lunatic Fringe isn’t
the first candidate that would come to mind when mentioning a replacement for
Seth Rollins, simply because of the way his former Shield partner has been
treated as Champion. But fans have taken to Dean Ambrose more so than they have
Rollins or Reigns it would seem. So, I’m not saying this will happen, but if
WWE decided that they wanted to shock the world this weekend then there’s a
stark possibility that Dean Ambrose could leave Sunday night as WWE World
Heavyweight Champion. It’s not likely right now, but just ask yourself why WWE have
put him in this situation when it would have been easier for them to book
Ambrose vs Luke Harper in a Steel Cage Match or another stipulation bout.
This
is Payback, maybe WWE are going to take it literally and give us what we want.
A WWE World Heavyweight Champion we can finally believe in.
Onwards
and upwards…
