WWE Payback 2017 Predictions
By Tim Sherry
credit: wwe.com
RAW Tag Team Championship Match: The Hardy Boyz (c) vs Cesaro & Sheamus
Quite frankly, the booking in this feud so far has been maddening. You have 4 guys who can absolutely bring it inside the ropes and all have larger than life characters, yet these past few weeks have been pretty formulaic and outright boring. The Hardyz returning to the WWE after all these years was a great moment at Wrestlemania 33, and their title win was historic. But since then neither of them has been allowed to generate any excitement about the duo being back as they’ve been booked the same way 75 percent of tag team programs have played out for the past decade. Simple formula: a new contender takes shape, the teams engage in two singles matches, and it all culminates in a PPV title match. Not exactly dream booking for one of the biggest surprise returns in recent memory.
To make matters worse, for the past 3 weeks the WWE has foreshadowed a heel turn from Sheamus and Cesaro. Both former heels, this seemed like a great idea and the pairing has had ample opportunities to make the change. But instead each week comes and goes and instead of some animosity, we get some awkward handshakes.
Much like the other tag team match on the card, I’m going to go with what makes the most sense. The WWE didn’t bring The Hardyz back to win the titles at Wrestlemania only to lose them 29 days later. Look for the brothers to retain Sunday and go on a pretty good run as champs before ultimately breaking off into singles competition sometime this summer.
Winners and still champions: The Hardy Boyz