Smackdown. Photo by WWE.com
WWE Survivor Series is only days away. Could Jinder Mahal get his championship rematch so soon?
One of my favorite pastimes as a WWE fan is to try and guess what’s going to happen in the future. I don’t go out of my way to spoil myself. But trying to get into the heads of the creative department is a good way to kill some time.
This week, all the final pieces will fall into place for Survivor Series. We’re just six days away from the big “Raw vs. SmackDown” event. There are four champion vs. champion matches scheduled, plus two elimination tag matches pitting the best of each brand against each other. A pair of title changes last week turned the card upside down, but is that all she wrote for the new champions?
Here’s this week’s bold predictions for WWE programming.
Jinder Mahal Gets His WWE Championship Rematch
We’ll get things started with SmackDown Live this week. On the last episode, AJ Styles finally got his chance to challenge Jinder Mahal for the WWE Championship. In somewhat surprising fashion, The Phenomenal One earned the victory, becoming a two time WWE Champion.
Because Styles vs. Brock Lesnar is a much more intriguing match, I highly doubt that Mahal is going to become champion again before Survivor Series. Considering John Cena was named the fifth member of Team Blue’s Survivor Series squad, there would be nothing left for Styles to do on the show, as well. But I wouldn’t be shocked if WWE treads water by giving Mahal his rematch this week.
We all know about the rematch clause for superstars who lose their titles. My guess is Jinder will be granted said rematch now, ahead of Survivor Series, to get him out of the title picture once Survivor Series finishes. It’s been an interesting journey for Jinder as champion, but for everyone’s best interests it’s time for him to move on. Let Styles feud with some new blood for the championship, and move Mahal into a different feud. Build him back up, and give him another title shot later on down the road.
Raw’s Women’s Team Gets It’s Final Member
Sure, it’s not exactly a “bold” prediction here. Survivor Series is less than a week away. There’s one episode left of Raw before hand, so the final spot on any of the four teams needs to be filled. But what makes this prediction “bold” is who is going to be that fifth member. And it’s not going to be one of the superstars announced for the triple threat match this week.
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No, with an epic Survivor Series match on the horizon, a surprise entrant is what’s going to turn this from hotly anticipated to must-see. Bayley, Mickie James, and Dana Brooke would be fine additions to the team, but there’s no “wow” factor there. Who could join the team and shock the WWE Universe?
Yes, Paige is set to make her return to WWE after a lengthy absence. But suspensions and injury woes seem to be in the rear view mirror for the young superstar. And if she really is cleared to return to action, Survivor Series is a heck of a place to come back. So chances are, the triple threat match on this week’s Raw becomes a fatal four way, or Paige launches an attack and prevents the match from ending.
Team Raw Wins Men’s Elimination Tag Due To Unlikely Interference
Shane McMahon likes to project the fact that he runs a tight ship as Commissioner of SmackDown Live. He calls Tuesday nights the “land of opportunity,” and acts like things are fair across the board.
But there’s a pair of superstars who may not feel the same way. Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens feel they’ve been unfairly targeted by Shane – and General Manager Daniel Bryan. Despite the fact that, in their minds, Zayn and Owens are the best things going on SmackDown, they’ve been left off the Survivor Series team. Pay no attention to the fact that they had a chance to qualify by winning matches and failed, though.
Since being left off the team, Zayn and Owens have been an even bigger thorn in the side of Shane McMahon (and sometimes WWE as a whole, both on and off screen). There’s little doubt that these two will find a way to interject themselves into the proceedings at the pay per view.
Next: WWE Survivor Series: What's Really at Stake?
Whether it happens Tuesday night on SmackDown, or at Survivor Series itself on Sunday, Zayn and Owens will find a way to cost “their team” the loss. It’s a big deal for bragging rights for Shane, and anything to hurt his pride is on the table for Sami and KO. Whether they take out a member of the team – before or during the match – or just cause a distraction that leads to an elimination, they’ll be a big factor in Raw‘s victory at Survivor Series.