WWE Clash of Champions 2019: Daily DDT Staff Predictions

Bayley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair – SmackDown Women’s Championship

Bassam Kaado: Charlotte Flair is the gold standard of WWE. Flair is, arguably, the greatest women’s wrestler to ever compete in WWE, which is why I think Bayley needs a clean win to add validity to her title reign. Flair wouldn’t get hurt too badly by a loss, but Bayley would suffer greatly. Also, I just want a vicious Bayley to the point where the whole Kendo Stick on a Pole Match fades into memory.

Bryan Heaton: It’s been a good, what, six months since Charlotte feuded with Becky Lynch? I think that SmackDown’s move to FOX will be the impetus to bring those two back into direct conflict, and if Charlotte holds the title for the Blue Brand, it will be that much bigger of a deal. So at Clash, Charlotte gets her victory back over Bayley, who starts to sink further into the depths of heel-living, before an ultimate redemption arc down the road.

Chris Jeter: So, how did WWE follow up Bayley’s big heel turn? If you guessed “have her take the pin in a tag team match,” congratulations! Your prize is the knowledge that this feud makes no sense. Before Bayley’s turn, Charlotte winning seemed like a slam dunk. But the new heel needs to recoup some of that lost momentum, so I’ll pick the champion to retain. I am curious to see how this heel vs. heel match gets laid out.

Chris Schad: A couple of weeks ago, I alluded to Bayley needing an edge with her heel turn. While many thought it was a request for an Io Sharai clone, I felt Bayley needed to be something more than Sasha Banks’ delusional sidekick.

Although she lost to Charlotte on the last episode of Raw, Bayley came back with a win over Ember Moon the next night where she looked more aggressive and determined to put the SmackDown women’s division on the map. If WWE wants to keep the heel version of Bayley going strong, picking up a win over one of the best superstars on the roster (male or female) is a great place to start.

Joe Anthony Myrick: Interesting dynamic going into this match. It’s essentially heel vs. heel, but with Clash of Champions taking place in Charlotte’s hometown, The Queen might be the babyface by default. It’s almost as if Bayley needed to turn heel for that reason alone, or risk the crowd turning on her in favor of the hometown hero.

Considering that it’s in her hometown and she is nearing her 10th women’s title win, the writing seems to be on the wall for Charlotte to win. But knowing WWE’s booking, they understand how obvious that sounds and will hand Bayley – who given her latest character switch, needs the win the most anyway – a win instead.

Mark Justice: For any of the fans who continuously question Bayley’s convoluted heel turn, I respect you because that’s exactly the buzz she needs to more efficiently elevate the SmackDown Women’s Division.

Charlotte is a mediocre babyface, already main evented WrestleMania and has had nine title reigns. Enough is enough. She doesn’t need a tenth at the moment and that reign could easily be saved for a bigger stage like WrestleMania. The title should unquestionably stay with Bayley for now.

Maysum Hudda: Given WWE’s history of upsetting crowds with hometown superstars, I see Bayley retaining the Smackdown Women’s title. Her recent heel(ish) turn and re-alliance with Sasha Banks make her one of the top women in the company and a win over Charlotte this Sunday should cement that. Both women are incredibly talented wrestlers and as a result, this is my dark horse candidate for match of the night.

Ryan Anderson: Bayley’s heel turn has been confusing. She doesn’t have the nuances in her character to be disliked like Sasha Banks.

Charlotte Flair’s character is strong enough to where winning the title at Clash of Champions won’t move the needle. If WWE is going to commit to Bayley being a heel, then she should defeat Charlotte to retain the SmackDown Women’s Championship, preferably by using underhanded tactics.