WWE Bold Predictions: Braun Strowman to Pay For Backstage Assault
By Bryan Heaton
Bobby Roode vs. Mojo Rawley Put On Match of the Night
To this point, the United States Championship Tournament has been mostly successful. When Dolph Ziggler won the title at Clash of Champions, it was a surprise. His subsequent abandonment of the championship was similarly surprising. But hey, I love tournaments, and if we’re not getting the King of the Ring any time soon, give me a tourney for a vacant title.
The eight names in the tournament bracket was a good mix of previous championship contenders and good workers who could use the rub of a title win. The first round played out almost exactly as one would expect, based on how the bracket was set up. The two second round matches are scheduled for this week’s episode of SmackDown Live.
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While Xavier Woods is likely the fan favorite to win the entire tournament, my guess is that Jinder Mahal finds a way to win. Or, rather, the Singh Brothers find a way to win for Jinder. Hey, it could set up New Day vs. Mahal and the Singhs down the road.
But the match to watch is Bobby Roode vs. Mojo Rawley. Roode is a seasoned veteran, and has the uncanny ability to pull a better than average match out of thin air with the right opponent. For all the jokiness surrounding Roode being a clone of Triple H, there’s some truth in that statement – remember, we all hated The Game back in the day for his perceived backstage clout, but he was really good most of the time.
Then there’s Mojo, who’s riding the breakup of the Hype Bros to the peak of his young career. Of course, it should have happened last spring, when Rawley won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. But beggars can’t be choosers.
All the elements are there for Rawley and Roode to have the best match of the night on SmackDown this week. That’s on a show where AJ Styles holds court weekly, and the Usos and Gable & Benjamin have been tearing it up regularly. But Rawley has nothing to lose, and Roode is likely en route to a Royal Rumble match against Jinder Mahal for the vacant US Title.