WWE Payback worth the payout?

With Payback only a few days away, I figured I would chime in with my recap of the card as well as my predictions.

WWE Championship Match - Three Stages of Hell: John Cena (c) vs. Ryback

Three Stages of Hell is a great match concept. It essentially settles the feud once and for all by having the rubber match included. It seems like an excellent way for WWE to book Ryback to lose while also giving him a clean win over Cena so he doesn’t look all that weak. This is probably the best way for WWE to end a feud that saw them book themselves in a corner having the new champ whose reign was hyped for a year against a newly turned unstoppable monster. I wouldn’t mind seeing Ryback walk away with the title but the likelihood of that happening is very slim.

Now, being a realist we have to look a bit closer at this match. Ryback has a lot of cool hard-hitting moves. He puts on one hell of a squash match and can probably put on a decent 20 minute match. ONE 20 minute match. Here Ryback will have to wrestle three matches in one night which might expose him as still being green when it comes to piecing long matches together and telling effective stories in the ring.

Cena on the other hand is capable of having excellent matches however that is maybe 1/5 of his matches, the rest are formulamatic repetitive garbage. Hopefully with all the gimmicks in one match Cena and Ryback will have enough toys to play with to keep things interesting and burn time by teasing big spots.

Besides the hit or miss potential for the match to be solid enough to headline a PPV that seems loaded with a pretty lame undercard of commercial free RAW matches, there is one gaping issue I have with the match… Lumberjack. Lumberjack matches always stupid and it is always ridiculous to see big card guys like Sheamus standing at ring side pretending his is Arn Anderson trying to break up a fight… when his whole moniker is that he loves fights.

When it comes to this match I think the Lumber Jack stip could potentially kill the entire match. First of all it is Super Cena vs The Terminator… What is the need for a bunch of lumberjacks around the ring? Are one of them looking to run away like a coward? Maybe if it was Brad Maddox v Cena the stip would make sense but this is just stupid. Not to mention it is the first stage of the match, so either wrestler could run away the next stage of the match and with the other stips they wouldn’t even be counted out.

Most importantly the stip allows for someone to cheap shot Cena and give Ryback a dirty fall only to lose clean two straight. That means the idea of three stages of hell being smart because it gives Ryback a big win while still losing would then become invalid. This is probably the one way this match will play out and that would be a real shame for creative to cop out and pass on an opportunity to strengthen both stars rather than ONLY Cena!

Doing it that way will help allow for the super Cena story book come back where he becomes the underdog after losing the first round and must win the next two in order to over come the odds and keep the gold. It’s astounding that a guy who has lost clean a handful of times in the last decade can continue to play underdog to people who have lost the majority of their PPV matches.

Verdict: Stage 1 Ryback, Stages 2 and 3 Cena. Cena over comes the odds to retain, Ryback continues to be booked horribly as a maineventer.

World Heavyweight Championship Match - Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio

Does anyone care about this match? I know I don’t! I’m a huge fan of Dolph Ziggler and I used to like Del Rio before he decided he was going to have the same match and cut the same promos every week for three years. Maybe people were right… He isn’t Eddie, he is Mexican JBL. Actually, worse than JBL, at least JBL could cut a promo before boring you to death in the ring.

Verdict: Ziggler will retain and hopefully moves on to a real feud now that he is healthy.

Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk

This should be one hell of a match even though the build up has been one of the worst in recent memory for a match that will have a blistering hot crowd. Punk could have at least appeared on RAW last week!

Odd build up aside, I love bother wrestlers and they should tear down the house in Punk’s home town. These two have mixed it up in a high profile feud with 2 PPV matches before, however I did feel those matches left something to be desired. Don't get me wrong, they weren’t great matches, but I think I kind of over hyped myself for the feud... Which I find myself doing yet again for this match!

I have a feeling this time the match will be considerably better not only because it will get ample time with a hot crowd, but because now Punk is the heel and Jericho is the face. Changing their alignment will mean a considerably different match as the way matches tend to work, the heel often carries the match while the face sells. CM Punk has a wide variety of holds and has been able to piece some incredible matches together over his career. I think Jericho plays a much better face than Punk and in ring his moveset features a variety of high flying and catch moves that will work nicely to set up for come backs and crowd popping moments. The end result could be a true classic that gives me what I have been waiting for from these two!

Verdict: Punk will win at home, the question is… Does he stay heel? Either way if you are actually going to fork out money for this event, this is the match you pay for… Hands down.

WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Shield (c) vs. Randy Orton & Daniel Bryan

This match could go either way. On one hand it could be a cookie cutter tag match that sees Orton or Bryan cost the other the match and then set up what should be an amazing feud! However, while the Orton v Bryan angle is garenteed the match being cookie cutter is not. Daniel Bryan has been on FIRE! Easily the best thing going in the WWE right now and after him The Shield are the second hottest commodity. Seth Rollins and Daniel Bryan don’t do “Cookie cutter” and Reigns and Orton can easily interject in the match to hit some big spots and create some near falls.

This match could get wild and with the current card being rather light we might actually get a nice long match between four guys capable of tearing down the house. Yes, four… Reigns is still a work in progress but he knows his strengths as a wrestler and hides his weaknesses well. He’s perfect for tag wrestling and is blessed with learning alongside Ambrose and Rollins! Orton is the biggest wild card for this match to go from “meh” to “holy sh*t!”

If we can awaken the Orton from his feud with Christian and get that kind of work rate out of him for this Bryan feud, this will easily be the best feud of the year. This match might be the one that ignites that fire back in Orton, especially if the feud with Bryan sees him turn full on heel rather than just a feud based around a stupid tag argument. Orton has said numerous times he wants to turn and Bryan is getting the biggest reactions of anyone on the card. Orton will be treated by the fans as a heel in the feud, so he might as well become one.

Verdict: Shield will retain because Bryan and Orton won’t be able to coexist. The real question mark will be the effort put forth by the combatants.

Intercontinental Championship Match: Wade Barrett (c) vs. The Miz vs. Curtis Axel

Really? Really? Who is going to be on the pre-show now? All joking aside, The Miz is so far gone I don’t even know if he will have a job in 3 years. After getting blamed for a poor PPV buy rate in The Rock’s tag team return The Miz was jobbed out to just about any pet project the WWE could come up with. Everybody thought a high profiled face turn would see him regain momentum and right the ship, and it might have, however he turned face in a lower mid card feud against 3MB and cut some REALLY corny promos before moving on to ruin Ric Flair’s return and his finishing hold. Right now I wouldn’t mind the Miz taking a year or two off because he has to be getting close to the point of no return.

A funny note going into this match... I was watching RAW last week and when Miz came out I was surprised to see him without the IC title. That is because the title has become so meaningless I had forgot he lost it… That should give you a good idea of what I think of Barrett’s reign. More and more Barrett looks less like a future main eventer and more and more is he following into the Cody Rhodes mold. Like Rhodes, Barrett had a really hot upper mid card run that saw fans clamoring for him to be elevated to the next level, but there has always been something missing that makes him seem like an incomplete package. I honestly don’t blame creative for not pushing them to the next level, they don’t belong there. It is hard to really explain why this is, maybe they just hit their plateau early on and really just don't have anymore left in the tank to take them to that next level. Maybe it is the infamous "IT factor" that these two just simply don't possess. Whatever it is, both seem to be going in reverse, but in this rare case creative is actually trying to push them. The crowd just aren't biting.

Enter the saving grace of this match, Curtis Axel. I think Fandango was going to win the IC title and when he got hurt they put Axel in as his replacement for not only the match but the title run. While I’m still not really sold on Axel, his promos are beyond robotic and his matches haven’t been anything special either, probably the only cool thing he has done is hit the McGillicutter on Barrett when he was getting into the ring. Hopefully this match is what defines Axel’s push.

When I think of the IC title I think Mr. Perfect because back when he held the title it meant something. He brought prestige and work ethic to the title and even though it was the second main title it often was the title fans of the in ring action most looked forward to rather than the big named main events. If Axel gets the title, especially with the white vintage look, it should make those old enough to remember Mr. Perfect (Or those who did their research) mark out. If I’m booking it he wins it with the Perfect Plex and pretty much sends everyone into a nerdgasm. Not to mention with the show taking place in Chicago I think it would actually go over well live.

Verdict: Curtis Axel wins. Likely will pin The Miz.

United States Championship Match: Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Kane

Just had this match for free on Smackdown not too long ago. It was actually pretty solid, which shouldn’t be surprising considering Ambrose is a genius. Kane to his credit did solid and sold Ambrose’s finisher really well. The only issue is, I think that was about as good of a match as you are going to get out of them. Expect a very similar match for this. It will be solid but not worth your money.

Verdict: Ambrose to retain. Will likely slam Kane into a ring post/steps, roll him in and hit his finisher for the win.

Divas Championship Match: Kaitlyn (c) vs. AJ Lee

You know say what you will about the Diva’s division, AJ’s acting, or Kaitlyn’s man legs… This might actually be good! I know, I know… It’s a Divas match. Unlike most of those this one has a storyline. A full-blown Kaitlyn v AJ feud has been building up since AJ turned heel and after RAW things are finally starting to heat up. While it was incredibly awkward to see Big Zeke steal Monty Brown’s wardrobe and get into the ring trying to seduce a girl, the angle did an effective job of embarrassing Kaitlyn. Let’s face it Big E looks like the result of FACEOFF 2 starring Carlton Banks and Monty Brown. To come in and make Kaitlyn look like an idiot after she was ready to mate with this creature, it should speak volumes. Although I did think it was kind of odd for Big E to pass on her and then high five AJ like it was really cool to be the awkward third wheel who looks menacing while wearing a diaper with suspenders and no knee pads.

Regardless, the Divas have a storyline and one that actually had a decent amount of build up and a good pay off. On top of that AJ Lee is a very good in ring performer for a Diva. She has trained heavily with Jay Lethal of TNA/ROH fame and she has a moveset better than half the men in the WWE. Kaitlyn tries hard and is a lot bigger than AJ which could make her a powerhouse hell bent on tracking down AJ and making her pay, but AJ can use her wits and speed to keep one upping her. That is right folks, story telling in a Divas match! I really hope the women get a fair shake and some decent time to shine in this one. I’m not a fan of women’s wrestling by any means but these girls travel year round just like the men and work hard. At least give them 10 minutes on the PPV! Let’s hope they do but it would be a bitter sweet to see the women actually get showcased after the majority of talented divas have already given up on the company.

Verdict: I’m not sure! I like that. I would guess AJ wins to further degrade Kaitlyn and take “everything” from her so that the feud can continue. Although I think it would be cool to see Dolph at ring side cheating for AJ and then Big E swerves and goes face helping Kaitlyn win while revealing Kaitlyn as the one playing AJ all this time. Maybe they could do that for the rematch? I still think Big E needs to get away from Ziggler and AJ, he just doesn’t fit in.

"Payback" Match Kickoff: Sheamus vs. Damien Sandow

Is match kick off the cool way of saying pre-show match? Kind of surprised to see this one treated so lowly as it features two decent level stars and the feud has gotten quite a bit of TV time.

The match could be good; Sheamus is cookie cutter as all hell unless he is in a hard hitting back and forth brawl type of match. Sandow is more of a brawler in the ring as well and since he is a cowardly heel who uses his brain, the story should be pretty simple to play off. Instinctual brute trying to rip the head off of the pompous coward, not reinventing the wheel but it should be enough to tell a fun story.

Verdict: I would imagine Sandow controls the match with his tactics before Sheamus eventually manages to catch him and kick his head off with a Brogue kick… Winner: Sheamus

While I assume many expected me to bury this PPV, this is actually a show I think has real sleeper potential. The card is short which means the matches should have ample time. While the match pairings aren’t anything special, almost every match is padded with a very capable in ring performer. When you combine time with talent it should equal quality. It might not be the best PPV but I have a feeling it will hit the spot on a Sunday night!

Also, it could see the debut of The Wyatt Family! I cannot wait for them to debut. Bray Wyatt is easily the most interesting and fresh character in the entire WWE. He plays the character to perfection in and outside of the ring! Add in his backwoods behemoths as some muscle and the WWE Universe is going to be taken by storm. If you haven't had the pleasure of watching Wyatt progress from Husky Harris (who was criminally underrated) into his current persona, definitely check You Tube for some of his work on NXT! Brilliant!

That wraps up The Dazzler, feel free to send me feedback or voice your opinion by contacting me on Twitter @BloatOfHippos or via email douggarbark@live.com !