WWE Great Balls of Fire Preview & Predictions
An Introduction To The Article
As someone that has quite a bit of experience doing these roundtable type articles, I wanted to do this a bit differently than some others. Instead of having numerous people all give thoughts on each match, I felt it better to assign one match to each person. So, one of our staff members will give their thoughts on the match itself and predict a winner. – Sean Garmer
W2Mnet Staff
Sean Garmer, Co-Host of Wrestling 2 the MAX, W2Mnet Editor-in-Chief
Paul Leazar, Co-Host of Wrestling 2 the MAX, W2Mnet Wrestling Dept. Head
Patrick Ketza, Host of Wrestling Unwrapped, W2Mnet Wrestling Senior Editor
Harry Broadhurst, Co-Host of Wrestling Unwrapped, W2Mnet Wrestling Contributor
Noah Mooney, W2Mnet Wrestling & Football Contributor
Robert Taylor, W2Mnet Wrestling & Games Contributor
Cedric Colon, Jobber’s Court Co-Host, W2Mnet Wrestling Contributor
Blood Brothers
Enzo Amore vs. Big Cass
This feels fairly open and shut. The WWE obviously sees more in Cass than in Enzo. Which, it can be a shame, but is somewhat true. Cass has all but dominated this whole time since their team split up, and I don’t see any reason to think otherwise. Enzo has never been super strong in the ring, and I don’t really see why or how he’d pick up a win. Cass, I see getting the nod and the bump here on his way up. Enzo, if he wants to stick around, NEEDS this win. I just don’t see it. – Patrick Ketza
Winner: Big Cass
Other Staff Member Predictions: Everyone else also picked: Big Cass.
Cruiserweight Championship
(Champion) Neville vs. Akira Tozawa
Due to being mainly an exclusive of 205 Live on the WWE Network, I have not been able to enjoy the king of the cruiserweight and his dominance over the division. But what I’ve seen in RAW and the network specials, I’ve been impressed. The darker, moodier Neveille has earned his place as one of the all time great cruiserweight/lightweight champions. And I don’t see him relinquishing his place anytime soon. The Power of Tozawa has momentum but the night will belong to Neville. The king of the cruiserweight will continue to reign from his iron throne. – Cedric Colón
Winner: Neville
Other Staff Member Predictions: Patrick: Neville, Harry: Tozawa (via DQ)
Tag Team Championship (30-Minute Iron Man Match)
(Champion) Sheamus & Cesaro vs. The Hardy Boyz
For what seems like the thousandth time, Sheamus and Cesaro will do battle with The Hardy Boyz over the Raw Tag Team Championships. This time, the match will be an Iron Man Match. While these teams have been paired many times recently, letting 4 talented performers go out and do their thing will lead to a great match. I suspect the teams will trade pinfalls as the Hardyz take to the air and Sheamus and Cesaro dominate the match physically. Sheamus and Cesaro will retain the titles after being too physical for the brothers, leading them to question themselves, bringing them closer to their “Broken” personas as WWE and Anthem near closer to making a deal to pass the gimmick over to the WWE. – Noah Mooney
Winners: Sheamus & Cesaro
Other Staff Member Predictions: Everyone Else Picked: The Hardy Boyz
The Man vs. The God
Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt
Man, has this feud been an incredible chore to sit though. Both guys are just so boring, and it’s been so hard to get invested in this feud because the very idea of it has just been crap from the beginning. Bray wants to make people pay from the #1 contendership match. Great! Bring on the weird stuff! Or, we can let him keep doing what he’s been doing, and watch it not work all over again. Don’t get me wrong, Bray can cut some great promos, but the incredibly nutty things you can do with him make feuds more interesting, a la the Orton feud (up until the end).
To that end though, they’ve let Seth do all the talking too. Seth is another person who can cut good promos too, but they’ve been zero action to work with to change up the content of their promos. It’s been dreadful. This would work if either guy had some momentum behind them too, but they’ve been duller than dishwater since Wrestlemania. I don’t really have a horse in the race here at this moment, but Bray Wyatt so rarely wins on PPV, so I’ll pick Seth to win here. But honestly, who cares at this point? – Paul Leazar
Winner: Seth Rollins
Other Staff Member Predictions: Everyone Else Also Picked: Seth Rollins
Intercontinental Championship
(Champion) The Miz vs. Dean Ambrose
The buildup to this match has felt long and dragged out. Each Miz TV segment where Ambrose has intervened has felt the same. Yet Miz’s seventh IC reign still feels fresh. The IC has become synonymous with the Miz. The man can definitely sell and represent it in a prestigious way (yes, even with his shady antics to retain the belt). Ambrose may have had the last laugh in many of their encounters but with Maryse and the Miztourage (great seeing Bo and Axel being utilized) by his side, the comeback tour will continue. – Cedric Colón
Winner: The Miz
Other Staff Member Predictions: Everyone Else Also Picked: The Miz
Women’s Championship
(Champion) Alexa Bliss vs. Sasha Banks
I’ve had the idea for a while (and I’m sure I’m not alone in this thinking) that the WWE has wanted to have Sasha and Bayley rematch in Brooklyn for Summerslam this year. However, with what happened to Bayley during her last reign as champion, it would seem that the WWE has gotten gun shy with her, and that may not be in the cards anymore. Yet, Alexa continues to prove that she’s a great champion, and a great lead for the fledgling division on RAW. They also continue to tease something with Nia and Alexa, but turning Alexa face would be the wrong choice here, and I’m just not sure Nia should play the babyface against somebody half her size. It makes sense to move the championship back Sasha here. Not only would it freshen up the division some, but it would open the door if the WWE still wanted to do Bayley and Sasha at Summerslam, or if they finally want to give the title shot to Nia that they’ve been dancing around since she got to RAW. – Paul Leazar
Winner: Sasha Banks
Other Staff Member Predictions: Patrick: Sasha Banks, Everyone Else Picked: Alexa Bliss
Ambulance Match
Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman
This is the rare match where it is hard to argue against either guy winning. With Roman laying claim to the title shot at SummerSlam and Braun having trucked through pretty much everyone on the roster, botht guys can make a case to take this. Personally, as much as I would love to see Lesnar and Braun, I don’t think it happens yet. Roman gets the win here to go into the Slam main event on a roll and to get his win back from Extreme Rules. – Harry Broadhurst
Winner: Roman Reigns
Other Staff Member Predictions: Paul & Patrick: Roman Reigns, Cedric & Robert: Brawn Strowman
Universal Championship
(Champion) Brock Lesnar vs. Samoa Joe
To me, has been the absolute BEST built match the WWE has done in some time. The best part about it is that not only has it been built for the past few weeks within the company itself, but it’s been built by fans for years, as Samoa Joe challenging this Brock Lesnar has become sort of a dream match for many. Samoa Joe has been portrayed as something nobody outside of Cena and Reigns has been thus far: a legitimate threat to the Beast Incarnate. The second he started calmly explaining to Heyman the effects of being choked out, you could feel something special happening.
Weeks later, when he practically choked out Brock, he was made. For these reasons, the company can not afford to send Joe to Suplex City. If they won’t pull the trigger on Joe(as I think they should. They’ve caught lightning in a bottle here) then Joe needs to go toe-to-toe with him and come out strong. The problem is, the company has a fixation on Brock vs. Reigns soon, so they also have an interest in keeping Brock as strong as possible. I sadly see Brock getting past Joe clean and without controversy. The momentum killer that is WWE creative will strike again. – Robert Taylor
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Other Staff Member Predictions: Cedric: Samoa Joe, Everyone Else Also Picked: Brock Lesnar.
