Hey Everyone! I'm Payton Conway, a life time fan of the WWE and The Face, the Heel and the Pin blog is where I give my take of WWE events, news, and rumors.
For my second blog post, I'm giving my prediction for Raw's first exclusive pay-per-view, Clash of Champions, which will air on Sunday, Sept. 25 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. For this pay-per-view, every Raw championship is on the line (five to be exact), which mean's there bound to be a new champion crowned. The card is stacked so let's get right into it!
Clash of Champions Match Card
Pre-show: Alicia Fox vs. Nia Jax
Best of 7 Series: Cesaro vs. Sheamus (3-3)
Enzo and Cass vs. The Shining Stars
Chris Jericho vs. Sami Zayn
Raw Tag Team Championship: The New Day vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson
Crusierweight Championship Match: TJ Perkins vs. Brian Kendrick
Triple Threat for Raw Women's Championship: Charlotte vs. Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
U.S. Championship Match: Roman Reigns vs. Rusev
WWE Universal Championship: Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins
Pre-show: Alicia Fox vs. Nia Jax
Since arriving on the Raw roster, Nia Jax has been destroying jobber after jobber. That was until two weeks ago when she actually faced Alicia Fox. The match probably lasted about all of three minutes and ended with Nia Jax putting Alicia Fox through the barricade (which I was pretty impressed with). Now the two are set to face off again and I'm assuming it will end in a similar fashion. Nia appears to be on track to be the next dominant force in Raw's women division (like another Beth Phoneix) and it looks like she's going to be running right over Alicia Fox.
My pick: Nia Jax
Cesaro vs. Sheamus
In predictable WWE Creative fashion, this best of 7 series is now tied and it's going to culminate at Clash of Champions. While the matches up to this point between these two have displayed great physicality, the truth is, unless there is some sort of surprise stipulation added (Last Man Standing would be perfect) this Clash of Champions match will be nothing but the same old thing we have been seeing for the past six weeks. In addition, the feud for both of these guys has seemingly been a waste of time, as there is no real direction for either of them. The winner will supposedly get a future title shot, but we don't know against who or when. Both of these men desperately need a push to help build themselves back up, but only one of them will get victory doesn't and even that doesn't guarantee that he will not stay lost among the rest of the midcarders. If the rumors about Cesaro leaving have even a bit of truth behind them, he ought to walk away on Sunday with a win.
My pick: Cesaro and hopefully he gets a U.S. title shot in the very near future.
Enzo and Cass vs. The Shining Stars
Who doesn't love Enzo and Cass? Show me a person who doesn't love those two and I'll show you an American flag without the color blue (I know it sounds weird, just go with it). Seriously though, Enzo and Cass are one of the hottest things in WWE right now. They are the "realest guys in the room." The Shining Stars...not so much, but that's okay. While you might feel like the Enzo and Cass should be fighting The New Day for the Raw Tag Team Championship, it's not the end of the world that they're fighting The Shining Stars. If the WWE plays their cards right, this feud should further solidify their standing as a contender in the tag team division, while also helping The Shining Stars look like credible threat and not just two guys trying to sell everyone a trip to the islands.
My pick: Enzo and Cass (Bada boom! Realest guys in the room!)
Chris Jericho vs. Sami Zayn
Kevin Owens' current best friend versus his former best friend. This is going to be a pretty decent match as you have the agile, high-flyer Sami Zayn facing the ring general, Chris Jericho. Especially after that incredible match with Kevin Owens at Battleground, we all know that Sami Zayn is capable of being one of the top stars in WWE. This feud could put him back in the WWE limelight after having such a random tag team victory with Neville over the Dudley Boyz at SummerSlam. As for Jericho, he's found a somewhat humorous way to reinvent himself. "The Ayatollah of Rock n' Rolla" is still a great ring technician and that will show in their match on Sunday. Regardless of who wins, this feud will more than likely continue after Sunday, so it will be interesting to see how the feud will escalate at Sunday.
My pick: Chris Jericho
The New Day vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson
Just like Enzo and Cass, almost everybody loves The New Day and it's because of their unique charisma and crazy gimmick that they have become the longest reigning WWE Tag Team Champs (now the Raw Tag Team Champs). When they walk into Indianapolis on Sunday, it will be day 399 of their historic reign. But even historic reigns have to end at some point and I get the feeling that Sunday will be just that. While Gallows and Anderson haven't exactly looked like the credible threat they were when they first invaded Raw, snatching those titles from the lovable trio will definitely give them credibility. Still, the real question will be how the trio will react in defeat. Will they soon crumble and go their separate ways? Or will we see a more intense New Day looking to regain the titles?
My pick: Gallows and Anderson
TJ Perkins vs. Brian Kendrick
With just one match on Raw, the cruiserweight division has already proven to be an exciting asset to the red brand. For the past 10 weeks, 32 cruiserweights have competed in a tournament and TJ Perkins was the man to beat them all and become the first Raw Cruiserweight Champion. Brian Kendrick, who also competed in the tournament and earned a title shot on Raw, is back in the WWE after more than a five-year absence. In a match where both competitors are somewhat unknown to some of the fanbase (yeah, there are some people who didn't watch the Cruiserweight Classic), it's kind of hard to predict who will walk out with the title. Either way, a feud between them will likely evolve from this match. For now though, it would make sense for Perkins to retain the title since he win the tournament.
My pick: TJ Perkins
Charlotte vs. Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
These three women are carrying the women's division on Raw, so it's no surprise that they would end up fighting for the top prize on Sunday. After Sasha Banks had to take a short break due to a minor back injury from SummerSlam, Bayley quickly made her way onto the Raw roster and into the title picture. In the meantime, Charlotte and Dana started to butt heads, so much to the point where Dana slapped Charlotte and almost became the number one contender for the title. From my point of view it looks like WWE is pushing Charlotte toward a feud with her former protege, Dana, which means she will more than likely lose the title and I'm pulling for the girl who probably would have won it at SummerSlam had it not been for a pesky injury.
My pick: Sasha Banks
Roman Reigns vs. Rusev
Rusev has had the U.S. title for quite a while (it will be 126 day of his reign on Sunday). Despite the lengthy reign, it has been mostly unmemorable, making seem a lot longer than 126 days. There is a desperate need to change that title holder. Having Rusev drop the title to Roman might help shake things up and make Rusev a bit more interesting. Wining the title also might be the next small step in repairing Roman's image with the WWE universe, which I believe WWE is still set on doing.
My pick: Roman Reigns
Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins
Kevin Owens versus Seth Rollins will be the match of the night and possibly the feud of the year! I honestly am so excited to see these two wrestle and feud against it but there is one thing missing from this feud...Triple H. Four weeks ago on Raw, Triple H betrayed "the future of the WWE," Seth Rollins, and essentially handed over the title to Kevin Owens (see video above) and while Owens and Rollins have done a great job to further advance the feud, we still need to see Triple H. We gotta have him at least explain why he handpicked the new champ. Especially since if the rumors are true and WWE is planning on a future feud between Triple H and Seth Rollins, Triple H should be at Clash of Champions, if not the WWE might be missing a major opportunity.
My pick: Kevin Owens and hopefully a surprise visit from the COO himself
Alright, well these are my predictions for the Clash of Champion pay-per-view! Post in the comments who you think will win on Sunday and of course, check in on #FPHBlog to see what other WWE news and results I cover.
Until next time...I'll see you when the bell rings!