WWE Battleground 2017 Review

WWE Battleground took place on Sunday 23rd July at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The last couple of Smackdown PPVs have not been great so will Battleground be an improvement? Let's take a look.

The match on the Pre Show was Aiden English taking on Tye Dillinger.  Early on, Dillinger uses some impressive technical skill before he gets headbutted then kneed in the back. English goes to get the win after hitting The Director's Cut. Quite a surprising victory for English but it was a decent match between the two.
Winner: Aiden English (0 for 1)

The first match on the show is for the Smackdown Tag Team Championship as The New Day  challenge The Usos. The Usos start to wear down Xavier Woods with cheap shots and double team moves. Woods his a missile dropkick, giving him the chance to tag in Kofi Kingston. The match goes back and forth with The Usos coming close a couple of times. The New Day then almost win it after hitting The Midnight Hour. In the end, Kofi hits Trouble in Paradise on Jimmy followed by an top rope elbow drop by Woods from the other side of the ring to get the win.This match was awesome to watch with so many near falls. A great way to start the show.
Winner: The New Day (1 for 2)

The next match is Shinsuke Nakamura taking on Mr Money in the Bank Baron Corbin. Corbin gets the advantage, wearing down Nakamura with moves such as a bearhug. Nakamura stuns Corbin to get out of a chokeslam and starts to make a comeback. The end comes Nakamura goes for an exploder suplex and Corbin hits a low blow, getting himself disqualified. Er...what? Afterwards, Corbin hits Nakamura with The End of Days. There was a cool spot when Corbin reverses a Kinshasa into a Deep Six, otherwise the match was pretty poor. Also I don't get the booking decision. I understand that you want to make The Money in the Bank winner has to look strong. However, there have been times when previous winners have lost clean, Daniel Bryan being a prominent example. So, why is Baron Corbin any different?
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura (1 for 3)

We now get to determine who will face Naomi at Summerslam for the Smackdown Women's Championship as Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair, Lana, Natalya and Tamina face each other in a 5-Way Elimination Match. Becky puts Lana in the Dis-arm-her twice but her buddy Tamina saves her both times. Becky eventually gets Tamina then Lana to submit to the Dis-arm-her. However, Natalya immediately rolls up Becky to eliminate her. In the end, Natalya rolls Charlotte head first into the bottom turnbuckle and pins her to win the match? Er...what? The match was going at a decent pace but we suddenly had 3 eliminations in less than 40 seconds then a pretty shitty ending. As for Natalya winning, part of me is happy for her and I think her match with Naomi could be pretty good. However, I feel that the majority of the fans would have preferred Charlotte instead.
Winner: Natalya (1 for 4)

Next is Kevin Owens challenging AJ Styles for the United States Championship. Styles accidentally hits the barricade, giving Owens the chance to send him into the ring post and get the advantage. Styles does eventually make a comeback and after some and forth, Owens sends Styles flying into the referee. Styles has Owens in a crossface but it's reversed into a pin and Owens wins. The match was pretty good but the ending came out of nowhere. There are rumours that the referee fucked up or the decision for Owens to win was very last minute. Despite that, congratulations to Kevin Owens.
Winner: Kevin Owens (1 for 5)

We now get an old school flag match as Rusev takes on John Cena. Well, I thought it was. In order to win, you have to grab your flag then plant it on a pedestal by the entrance way. Rusev is the first one to get his flag after reversing a missile dropkick into a powerbomb. After taking out Rusev with a STF, Cena grabs his flag. The match goes up to the pedestals and Rusev stops Cena from planting his flag. Instead of chucking it into the crowd, Rusev goes to grab his flag and comes very close to planting it. In the end, Cena hits an AA from the pedestal, sending Rusev through 2 tables. Cena then plants his flag to get the win. Except for the ending, the match was ok, nothing special.
Winner: John Cena (2 for 6)

After an awesome episode of The Fashion Files, we get our penultimate match which is Mike Kanellis taking on Sami Zayn. Maria Kanellis stops Sami from hitting a suicide dive, giving Mike the chance to gain the advantage. Sami does get back into it and despite Maria interfering again, gets the win with a Helluva Kick. The match was too short and whilst I'm happy for Sami getting the win, I really think that Mike should have won.
Winner: Sami Zayn (2 for 7)

The main event is Randy Orton challenging Jinder Mahal in a Punjabi Prison Match for the WWE Championship. Early on, they both try to go through  one of the inner doors but they don't do it within the 60 second time limit.The Singh Brothers turn up from under the ring and help Mahal go through an inner door. They go on to interfere and Orton fucks them up as usual, including sending Samir off the outer cage through the announce table. It looks like that Orton is going to climb out to win when The Great Khali makes his triumphant(?) return and stops Orton from climbing any further. That gives Mahal the chance to climb out of the outer cage and win the match.

I thought that this match was pretty boring and I struggled to see what was going at times. As for The Great Khali returning, I mean for fuck's sake. I understand that WWE want to expand into the Indian market but bringing back the worst wrestler that I have ever seen to do that? Really?
Winner: Jinder Mahal (3 for 8)

I honestly think that Battleground is the worst show of the year and possibly the worst show that I have ever reviewed. Some of the wrestling was good but some of the creative decisions and the endings are really shitty at times. At times, the RAW shows weren't great but not to this level. With Summerslam coming up, I hope that WWE pull their finger out and make a vast improvement. Hopefully it won't get any worse.

WWE Battleground Preview 2017

WWE Battleground will be taking place this evening at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The last Smackdown PPV, Money in the Bank, was a massive disappointment so will this one be any better? Let's look at the card.

Tye Dillinger vs Aiden English
This could be a good match and I'm going for Dillinger to win.
Predicted Winner: Tye Dillinger

Sami Zayn vs Mike Kanellis
I would love for Sami but it's more likely that Mike will win instead.
Predicted Winner: Mike Kanellis

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Baron Corbin
A tough one to call as I can see both guys winning. I'm going for Corbin to win here.

Kevin Owens vs AJ Styles
United States Championship
This is one that I'm really looking forward to and I'm going for Styles to retain.
Predicted Winner: AJ Styles

The New Day vs The Usos
Like last time, I'm going for The New Day to win. Hopefully it will be a clean victory.
Predicted Winners: The New Day

John Cena vs Rusev
Flag Match
I can see both guys winning but I think that Cena will win.
Predicted Winner: John Cena

Becky Lynch vs Charlotte Flair vs Lana vs Natalya vs Tamina
Elimination Match to Determine the No 1 Contender for the Smackdown Women's Championship
I think that it's between Becky and Charlotte for this one and I think that Charlotte will win.
Predicted Winner: Charlotte Flair

Randy Orton vs Jinder Mahal
Punjabi Prison Match for the WWE Championship
Admittedly I have never seen a punjabi prison match but I've heard that they're not great. Anyway, I feel that Jinder and Randy will deliver a good match and I'm going for Jinder to retain.
Predicted Winner: Jinder Mahal

I'm still catching up on PPV reviews so I will get to publish my review as soon as I can. Until then, I hope you guys enjoy the show.

WWE Battleground 2016 Review

WWE Battleground took place at the Verizon Center in Washington DC last Sunday. Battleground is normally not a great PPV; however, the card looks good here. Let's take a look.

The match on the Kick Off Show is The Usos taking on Brezzdango. In a short match, Brezzdango gets the win after Breeze stops a splash by Jimmy Uso. Breeze then puts Jimmy in a small package to get the win. It was a decent match but it felt that it was too short.
Winners: Breezdango (0 for 1)

The first match on the show was Charlotte and Dana Brooke taking on Sasha Banks and a mystery partner, who turns out to be Bayley. It looked like Cahrlotte and Dana would win it as they would shut down any momentum built up by Sasha and Bayley. After a back and forth match, sasha gets Charlotte to submit to the Banks Statement to get the win. This was an enjoyable match and it was so good to see Bayle make her main roster debut.
Winners: Sasha Banks and Bayley (1 for 2)

Next was The New Day facing The Wyatt Family. I was interested in this because of what was happening in The New Day. They were making jokes while Xavier Woods was taking it seriously and fearing the Wyatts. In the match, the Wyatts are dominant on Kofi before Big E gets the hot tag. In the end, Woods overcomes worries and takes on the Wyatts. However, he gets a Sister Abigail from Bray for the Wyatts to get the win. It was a good match but the brand split means that this feud will end too soon.
Winners: The Wyatt Family (2 for3)

Next is Zack Ryder challenging Rusev for the United States Championship. Ryder comes close to winning it after hitting a RoughRyder. However, Rusev manages to fold Ryder in half while applying the Accolade to get the win. Afterwards, Mojo Rawley comes out to stop Rusev continuing his assault on Ryder. This was a good match and it will be interesting to see how the Hype Bros do on Smackdown.
Winner: Rusev (3 for 4)


Now one match that I was looking forward to: Sami Zayn versus Kevin Owens. This match was as good as I expected it to be with one of the highlights being Zayn hitting Owens with a brainbuster on the apron. Owens goes on to survive 2 exploder suplexes before reversing a helluva kick to hit a pop up powerbomb for 2. In the end, Sami hit 2 exploder suplexes followed by 2 helluva kicks to get the win. This was probably the best match between the two of them. It's a shame that it's the end of this feud but with both guys on RAW, I suspect that it will be reignited at some point.
Winner: Sami Zayn (4 for 5)

The next match was Natalya taking on Becky Lynch. During the match, Natalya gets to focus on Becky's leg and, despite a brief fightback, gets the win with the sharpshooter. This was a goodmatc between the two. Shame it followed the Owesn/Zayn match.
Winner: Natalya (5 for 6)

We now get Darren Young challenging Hollywood Miz for the Intercontinental Championship. The match was going pretty well until it went off in a weird direction. Maryse slaps Backlund then tells Miz that she got hit by Backlund. Miz then pushes him to the floor and Young puts Miz in the cross faced chickenwing and the bell rings. I think it was a double disqualification tho I don't really get why.  It was a shitty ending to what is starting to become a good match.
Winner: None (5 for 7)

The next match was AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson taking on the team John Cena, Enzo Amore and Big Cass. The Club focus their attack before he gets the hot tag to Cena. After very close near falls, Cena hits Styles with an AA from the top rope to get the win. This was an entertaining match and I look forward to seeing The Club and Enzo and Cass fight each other on RAW.
Winners: John Cena, Enzo Amore and Big Cass (6 for 8)

After a special edition of Jericho's Highlight Reel featuring the return of Randy Orton, we get the main event that has been over 2 years in the making: Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns challenging Dean Ambrose for the WWE World Championship. Highlights of the match include: Ambrose diving from the announce tables into his opponents in the timekeeper's area; Reigns hitting them both with a Superman punch; and Rollins and Ambrose working together to powerbomb Reigns through the Spanish announce table.Rollins comes close to winning after hitting a superplex into a falcon arrow. In the end, Reigns hits Rollins with a spear. However, Ambrose immediately hits Reigns with Dirty Deeds to get the win. This match was so much fun to watch. It's a shame that we never get to see them in the same ring for the foreseeable future.
Winner: Dean Ambrose (7 for 9)

 I really enjoyed Battleground as there were some really good matches. It's a shame that most of the feuds that were started now have to end due to the draft. However, I'm looking forward to the future with guys like Finn Balor now on the main roster.

WWE Battleground 2015 Review

WWE Battleground took place on Sunday 19^th July at the Scottrade Center in St Louis. Will Brock Lesnar get his revenge on Seth Rollins and reclaim the WWE World Heavyweight Championship? Let's take a look.

The first match was Randy Orton taking on the new Mr Money in the Bank Sheamus. Highlights of the match include: Sheamus constantly rolling out of the ring; Orton reversing a Brogue kick into  a powerslam; and Orton hitting a second rope DDT. The end comes when Sheamus hit a Brogue kick followed by a Texas cloverleaf. Orton eventually manages to get out of it and hit the RKO to get the win.  It was a strong opening match in front of a home crowd for Orton.

Winner: Randy Orton

Predictions: 1 for 1

The next match was for the Tag Team Championships as The Prime Time Players defend against The New Day (sucks!) Titus is dominant to start with before tagging in Young. Young loses control and gets a beating from The New Day. Young manages to hit an enziguiri on Big E and gets the hot tag to Titus. Big E goes for the big ending but Young avoids it and hits Kofi with the gut check. Titus then hits the spine buster on Big E to get the win. It was another good match and everyone had a chance to shine here.

Winners: The Prime Time Players

Predictions: 2 for 2

Next was Roman Reigns taking on Bray Wyatt. Highlights of the match include: Reigns countering a headlock into a belly-to-back suplex; Reigns hitting 2 pumphandle grip fallaway suplexes; Wyatt hittting an uranage; and Reigns getting out of a Sister Abigail and hitting a Superman punch. The end comes when Reigns stated tossing chairs into the ring and a hooded guy attacks him. Wyatt seizes the opportunity to hit an uranage followed by a Sister Abigail to get the win. Afterwards, the hooded man was revealed to be Luke Harper, reuniting with Wyatt. The match started quite slow but it got better towards the end. However, I wasn't really a fan of the finish and it seems that Reigns won't be near the title picture for the foreseeable future.

Winner: Bray Wyatt

Predictions: 3 for 3

The next match was Brie Bella (with Nikki Bella and Alicia Fox) taking on Charlotte (with Paige and Becky Lynch) taking on Sasha Banks (with Naomi and Tamina) in a triple threat match. Charlotte and Sasha clear out and face each other one on one but Brie later on hit a running bulldog on both of them. Later on, Sasha dropkicked Brie out of the ring onto the Divas aruging outside. Sasha then flew through the ropes onto them followed by Charlotte doing a plancha. Sasha applies the Bank Statement on Charlotte and it was broken up by Brie. However, Charlotte puts Brie into the figure-eight leglock to get the win. This match was quite enjoyable and I think that Charlotte and Sasha had strong main roster debuts.

Winner: Charlotte

Predictions: N/A

We now get the United States Championship as Kevin Owens challenges John Cena. Early on, Owens is dominant over Cena, hitting a torture rack into a neckbreaker for a nearfall. Other highlights include: Owens mocking the You Can't See Me; Cena applying the STF; Owens hitting a release German suplex followed by a cannonball splash; and Owens hitting the AA then applying the STF. Cena hit a super AA but Owens kicked out then later on, got an inside cradle for a 2 count. However, Cena manages to apply the STF and Owens tapped out, giving him the victory. This was another good match between the two and Owens looked really well not just in this match but over the last few months. The question is how will the WWE follow it up?

Winner: John Cena

Predictions: 4 for 4

The main event is Brock Lesnar attempting to regain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship back from Seth Rollins. As soon as the bell sounded, Lesnar charged Rollins and proceeded to hit him with 5 German suplexes. Rollins tries to leave but Lesnar cuts him off and hits another German suplex. Rollins manages to get back into it after blocking a F5 and knocking Lesnar out of the ring. However, it wasn't for long as Lesnar hit another 8 German suplexes. Lesnar hits the F5 then covers but the lights go out and a bell tolled. The lights came back on revealing the Undertaker. After a brawl, Taker hit a Tombstone (the referee had seemed to have disappeared during this point). Taker goes on to hit another Tombstone then makes his way to his way to the top of the stage with his music playing and blue fog filling the arena.

Up until the end, I was enjoying the match, I've become a big fan of Rollins over the last year and I was wondering how he would fare against Brock, who WWE have made into a version of the Terminator. However, I did not like the ending. I always wondered if Taker would try and get his revenge on Brock on ending the Streak. However, it begs the question of “Why now?” as it's been over a year since then and Taker had wrestled at Wrestlemania without any mention of what Brock did. If it was me, I would have Taker do it at the main event of Wrestlemania, which would given Rollins the opportunity to cash in the Money in the Bank briefcase. Anyway, it looks like we are going to have Taker-Lesnar II at Summerslam and I am looking forward to that match.

Winner: No Contest

Predictions: 4 for 5

I quite enjoyed Battleground. At the minute with work, I don't get to see the events until weeks after they finished. It's a shame as I would have liked to have seen this live. However, I did not like the way that this PPV ended as Taker's logic doesn't make sense. I could argue that it's WWE logic but even that is pushing it.

WWE Battleground 2015 Preview

 

WWE Battleground takes place this Sunday at the Scottrade Center in St Louis, Missouri.  At the minute, only 5 matches have been announced so how it will fare? Let's take a look.

Roman Reigns will face Bray Wyatt in a match that I'm not really sold on. Whilst Reigns is growing on me as a possible main eventer, I don't really care about Bray's character anymore. Despite that, I fel that Bray will find some way to win here.

Predicted Winner: Bray Wyatt

Randy Orton will take on Mr Money in the Bank Sheamus in what could be an interesting match. A tough one to call as WWE won't be that bothered about making Sheamus look strong despite him being a future WWE World Heavyweight Champion (possibly). For that reason, I'm going for Orton to win here.

Predicted Winner: Randy Orton

The Prime Time Players will defend their Tag Team Championships against The New Day. This has the chance to be an entertaining contest and I think that Young and O'Neill will retain here.

Predicted Winners: Prime Time Players

Kevin Owens will challenge John Cena for the United States Championship. I'm really liking Owens at the minute but I would like him to win the Championship. However, he is facing John Cena so I don't think that will happen.

Predicted Winner: John Cena

The main event will be for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship as Brock Lesnar challenges Seth Rollins. This is undoubtedly Rollins' toughest test and a lot of people think that Lesnar will win here. However, I think that Rollins will find some way to win and possibly face Lesnar again at Summerslam.

Predicted Winner: Seth Rolljns

I know I have been massively behind with my PPV reviews (work and illness I'm afraid) so I'm going to get it all sorted by the end of the month. Until then, I hope you guys enjoy the show.

WWE Battleground 2014 Review

WWE Battleground 2014 took place at the St Pete’s Times Forum in Tampa, Florida. The inaugural Battleground was not very good. Will this year be any different? Let's take a look.

The first match on the Pre-Show was Fandango taking on Adam Rose. Layla and Summer Rae have now put their feud behind them and come out with the Rosebuds. In a short match, they distract Fandango long enough for Rose to hit the Party Foul and get the win. This match seemed to be more about the angle between the four of them and less about selling the Pay-Per-View. 

Winner: Adam Rose 

Predictions: 1 for 1

The second match on the Pre-Show was between Naomi and Cameron. There seemed to be a lot of hair pulling by both women in this match and some wrestling moves thrown in there. The end comes when Cameron throws Naomi front first into the ropes then rolls her up for the victory. This match was not very good and it had a terrible ending.  

Winner: Cameron 

Predictions: 1 for 2

The first match is a 2-out-of-3 falls match for the Tag Team Championships with Erick Rowan and Luke Harper challenging The Usos. The Wyatts work on Jey Uso and get the first fall after Jimmy Uso gets tagged in and gets creamed with a big boot by Harper. Jey Uso later on gets tagged in and takes the opportunity of Harper missing an avalanche splash to roll him up and get the second fall. After some back and forth, The Usos get the third fall after hitting a double superkick followed by a double splash on Rowan. I thought that the first two falls seemed a bit sudden. However, I thought it was a really fun match to watch, especially with the near falls near the end.

Winners; The Usos

Predictions: 2 for 3

Next is Dean Ambrose taking on Seth Rollins. At least that was the pan. Ambrose attacks Rollins while he was giving a backstage interview and he is restrained by the road agents and the referees. He is then thrown out of the building by Triple H. I guess we won’t see the match after all.

Now a match that I was looking forward to: Paige challenging AJ for the Divas Championship. Paige gets the advantage early on before getting hit with a tornado DDT. AJ later on applies the Black Widow but Paige gets out of it and hits the Paige Turner for 2. Paige goes for the PTO but AJ avoids it and almost kills Paige with the Shining Wizard to get the victory. Whilst I wished it went on for a bit longer, I thought it was a good match. The next night, Paige attacks AJ and turns heel. It will be interesting to see how Paige does as a heel because she has always been a face as “The Anti-Diva” while she was in NXT. So far, it hasn’t been too bad, so we’ll see how it turns out.

Winner: AJ

Predictions: 3 for 4

Next was Rusev with Lana taking on Jack Swagger with Zeb Colter. The match starts with Lana slapping Zeb Colter as soon as he starts to speak. During the match, Swagger keeps on trying to put on the Patriot Lock. Rusev does get to wear down Swagger, including sending him flying over the top rope. Swagger hits some big moves like the Swagger Bomb and he counters a superkick inot the Patriot Lock. Rusev does manage to get to the rope and the action goes to the outside. Swagger again applies the Patriot Lock but Rusev manages to send Swagger into the ring post. Rusev just manages to slide back in before the ten count to get the victory by countout. Afterwards, Rusev applies the Accolade on an unconscious Swagger. I thought it was a good match and it was refreshing to see Rusev have to work hard to get the victory. I look forward ot seeing more matches between the two.

Winner: Rusev

Predictions: 4 for 5

We now get Seth Rollins coming out and officially(?) winning his match against Dean Ambrose via forfeit. Ambrose, who Triple H had banned from the building, runs in and attacks Rollins. After a lengthy brawl, security manage to get Ambrose out of the building. It seems like they building it up to a match at Summerslam and that should be a good contest.

Winner: Seth Rollins (I guess)

Predictions: 5 for 6

Now another match that I was looking forward to: Bray Wyatt taking on Chris Jericho. Jericho, during the match, tries to apply the Walls of Jericho but Harper and Rowan interfere and eventually get sent to the back by referee Mike Choida. We get some really good back and forth between the two before Jericho hit the Code Breaker out of nowhere to get the win. It was a good match although nothing really stood out and I was surprised that Jericho won

Winner: Chris Jericho

Predictions:  5 for 7

After we see Dean Ambrose attack Seth Rollins as he was leaving the building, we get the battle royal for the vacant Intercontinental Championship. The competitors are: Big E, Alberto Del Rio, Cesaro, R-Truth, Ryback, Curtis Axel, Zack Ryder, Titus O’Neil, Damien Sandow, Heath Slater, Diego, Sin Cara Version 2, Xavier Woods, The Great Khali, Kofi Kingston, Bo Dallas, Dolph Ziggler, The Miz and Sheamus. Khali is, thankfully, eliminated early on and there were some good bits: Cesaro knocking Kofi off the apron and landing on top of Big E's shoulders; Cesaro then superplexing Kofi off Big E's shoulders back into the ring; and Cesaro getting shockingly eliminated by Heath Slater. It looks like Ziggler and Sheamus are the final two and Ziggler eliminates Sheamus by dropkicking an attempted shoulder block from the apron. However, The Miz, who had spent that last half of the match in a heap by the announce table, slides in and eliminates Ziggler to become the new Intercontinental champion. I really enjoyed the battle royal and whilst I was gutted that Bo Dallas didn't win, I'm happy with Hollywood Miz winning and I loved Ziggler's reaction afterwards.

Winner: The Miz

Predictions: 5 for 8

The main event is a fatal 4-way match with Roman Reigns, Kane and Randy Orton challenging John Cena for the WWE World heavyweight Championship. In the beginning, you get to see Kane and Orton work together. That falls apart when Kane covers Reigns after a DDT and Orton doesn’t take that well. You get teases of Cena and Reigns fighting each other but either Kane or Orton put a stop to it. Cena does hit the AA on Kane but he rolls out of the ring. Cena then puts Orton in the STF but Reigns drags Orton out of the ring and throws him over the announce table. Cena and Reigns then have a mini-match, in which Reigns hits the Superman punch then a spear. Reigns, later on, spears Orton through the barricade then spears Kane inside the ring and Cena breaks up the pin. Orton RKOs Reigns but Cena hits the AA on Orton, sending him on top of Kane. Cena then pins Kane to get the win. 

I thought this was a decent main event. They really made Reigns strong, although I don’t really see him as a World Champion, and they told a good story throughout the match. 

Winner: John Cena 

Predictions: 6 for 9

I thought the Battleground was good, with some enjoyable matches. However, the two matches they had for the Pre-Show were not very good. Even though a lot of their audience are watching the event through the WWE Network, there are some people paying to watch it. To help with that, they need matches on the Pre-Show that are enjoyable and I feel that they failed on that count. I hope that the Cesaro/RVD match on the SummerSlam Kick-off Show will be better than these matches.