WWE Clash Of Champions Predictions 2017
Hello Misfits! This is The Wrestling Classic here with my predictions for this Sunday’s Clash of Champions. This is the final PPV of 2017 and will be hosted by the Smackdown Live brand. As expected by the name of the event every championship title on the blue brand will be defended at this event. Jinder Mahal will finally get his rematch for the WWE Championship after losing in last month in England. Natalya gets one last shot to try to win the Women’s Championship back from Charlotte in a lumberjack match. The Usos defend their tag team titles against three other teams. The other hot angle coming to the from Smackdown Live is that the future of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn careers in the WWE are on the line in a tag match against Orton and Nakamura where the special referees are both Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan. Excluding the KO/Zayn match, this event didn’t have the best build up but hopefully it’ll live up beyond the little hype. The WWE has surprised us before by making PPVs that didn’t have the best build up be very memorable due to what actually takes place on them. Lets get to my predictions.
Kick-Off Show Match
Zack Ryder vs. Mojo Rawley
Image via WWE.com
Well the Hype Bros are no longer together and hyped. To be honest at one point it almost seemed like they had something good going on but Ryder got hurt. During that time Rawley seemed to have been gaining someone momentum as a solo star but that even lost steam so when Ryder returned it seemed like a blessing for Rawley. They never reached the same success they had prior to Ryder’s injury though and the tension between them began. The tension has been lingering on for months but they seemed to keep overcoming any issues. This was until a few weeks ago where Mojo had enough and attacked Ryder following a match. This is the first match between the former teammates and I’m not sure how long this rivalry is going to last but considering Rawley is the younger star that the WWE might want to try to build for the future, I see him picking up the victory over Ryder. This will also give them a reason to continue this rivalry.
Prediction – Mojo Rawley
Breezango vs. The Bludgeon Brothers
Image via WWE.com
I’m a huge fan of Breezango and I hate to see them lose but I wouldn’t blame anyone for not putting their money on them winning this Sunday. The Bludgeon Brothers have been on a reign of terror since coming debuting under their new characters. It would be silly to bet against them. I hope we get some comedy stuff here but just enough to keep Breezango over but not take any of the badass edge away from the Bludgeon Brothers.
Prediction – The Bludgeon Brothers
United States Championship
Baron Corbin (C) vs. Bobby Roode vs. Dolph Ziggler
Image via WWE.com
The Baron Corbin US Title run has been pretty forgettable. The build up for this match has been very lacklustre. I feel like the Corbin experiment just isn’t working. If this was Bobby Roode defending his US Title against Dolph Ziggler or vice versa, I feel like I would be a bit more intrigued for this match because we could at least expect them to try to steal the show. Triple Threats can kind of be tricky and these three guys all wrestle different styles. The last time we saw a triple threat for the United States championship, it ended being good and Corbin found a way to walk out champion. I would love the title to change hands here with Roode becoming the champion because I feel like he could really use it. It would elevate both Roode and the championship. If Ziggler was to win, I think it would really throw everybody off and could be the one last time to try to rejuvenate his career before he potentially leaves after his contract ends. However, a part of me just feels like the WWE still wants to keep trying with Corbin and he picks up the win this Sunday. There are clearly some very powerful people backstage who really seem to dig him. I just dont get the hyper personally but thats just my opinion. The championship would feel more important with someone like Roode or Ziggler holding it. Anyway, I predict Corbin retains and the rivalry with Roode continues. As for Ziggler, I dont know, maybe he gets lost in the shuffle again or maybe he gets used to help elevate another talent like Tye Dillinger or something.
Prediction – Baron Corbin
Lumberjack Match
Women’s Championship
Charlotte Flair (C) vs. Natalya
Image via WWE.com
The Queen defends her championship against the Queen of Harts. Natalya is determined to become champion again and Charlotte is determined on keeping the championship. These two have wrestled so many times that they know each others strengths and weaknesses but none of that matters as much as the fact that the ring will be surrounded by a group of rowdy and combustible women who can’t find it in them to stay of the same page longer than a couple of weeks. This match has the potential to break down in chaos at any moment. I can already visualize Charlotte doing her moonsault on a mass sea of female superstars. This may be a blessing for Natalya who could capitalize on Charlotte being distracted from the other women out there or a curse if she’s the one to get distracted. However, considering that this is Charlottes second defence since winning the title, I dont see her losing it just yet. As much as I would enjoy seeing Natalya as champion again because she makes a great heel champion, I think Charlotte retains the belt. I also think we shouldn’t forget the wildcard of all of this and that is the fact that Carmella will be at ringside and still carries the MITB briefcase that guarantees her a championship title match whenever she pleases. Mella cashing in after a brawl between all the women leaving the Champion defenceless would be one way to make this PPV memorable.
Prediction – Charlotte Flair
Fatal-Four Way Match
Tag Team Championship
The Usos vs. The New Day vs. Benjamin & Gable vs. Rusev & English
Image via WWE.com
The Smackdown crew is really big on these multi-person matches. Triple threats, fatal four ways, five pack challenges and matches as such are a common place on the blue brand. This is there way to make they are giving opportunties to as many people as they can. This could have been two separate tag matches with The Usos defending against Gable and Benjamin while Rusev and English had a fun tag match against The New Day. Instead all four teams are thrown into one match with a chance to become the tag team champions. Well…here is my take. I do not want to see The New Day win the belts. They are over without them and will continue to be over without them. Plus after being embroiled in a rivalry with The Usos for the last 3-4 months where the championships did change hands a few times, it would feel like we were going backwards. I would not complain if Rusev and Aiden English won and I think that could lead to a really entertaining rivalry with them and The Usos. I wouldn’t mind Gable and Benjamin wining but I feel like there should be more of a build up leading to them winning the titles. They dont really have any momentum and haven’t really been that relevant for this end half of the year. I was hoping more for Benjamin upon his return and I was hopeful when they paired him up with Gable. They have had some solid matches and mesh well but if they won it would’t feel like the WWE just did it for no rhyme or reason rather than just trying something different. In conclusion, I have a strong feeling that The Usos retain and they hold those championship belts until Wrestlemania or at least until after the Rumble.
Prediction – The Usos
Two Special Referees
Referees – Shane McMahon & Daniel Bryan
Shinsuke Nakamura & Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owen & Sami Zayn
Image via WWE.com
This match will definitely be filled with drama and finish with some sort of controversy. If it doesn’t, it will be a huge let down. I mean how could it not? You have Owens and Zayn fighting for their jobs. Then you have two referees who are the main authority figures of this show and clearly have different opinions on how Owens and Zayn should be handled. Shane-O technically wants them to lose this match and be gone. Bryan relates to them as he has had his own issues with the authority in the past and also shares a similar path working his way up through the independents to get to the WWE as Owens and Zayn have. Shane has no sympathy for Owens and Zayn whereas Bryan does but is trying to cooperate with his boss. Orton and Shinsuke are apart of this match too but are just there to make all of this worse for KO and Zayn. It’s still pretty cool to see Nak and Randal team up but they really dont feel as important as everyone else involved in this match. The only way I can see them playing significant role in this match besides being screwed, take the L or somehow managing to win is if one of them turns. Imagine the finish wasn’t controversial because of Shane or Bryan but because Orton decided to turn heel and hit the RKO on Nakamura forcing Bryan and Shane to argue how to call the finish. This could lead to a Nakamura/Orton feud while Zayn and Owens remain employed. However, that is just one idea which is most likely not going to happen. I still think when it all comes down to it, the finish will be effected but the two authority figure officials and Zayn and Owens overcome the odds only to cause a rift between Shane and Bryan. All I know is there are a lot of possibilities of how this match could end but nothing is 100% for sure. I’m looking forward to it.
Prediction – Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn
WWE Championship
AJ Styles (C) vs. Jinder Mahal w/ Singh Brothers
Image via WWE.com
This is the “Modern Day Maharaja” Jinder Mahal’s official rematch since losing the championship to AJ Styles a couple of weeks before Survivor Series in England. Jinder Mahal had held the championship for six months and did whatever it took to keep the title and Styles is well aware that he will do whatever it takes to get it back. AJ Styles also knows he’ll have to have eyes behind his head with the Singh Brothers being at ringside to but if anyone can handle the numbers being against him, it would be the Phenomenal One. There is the theory that the Jinder Mahal experiment might have run its course and it evident when he dropped the title kind of spontaneously. He also wasn’t the champion for when the WWE had their big show in India There is also the theory that the WWE might have just seen Styles vs Lesnar as a bigger draw and did not want to risk Jinder getting hurt prior to the show in India. Thus there is a chance Mahal could regain the championship for a second time. He is one the only heels who gets legitimate heel heat because people strongly dislike him as champion. The other theory going around is that Styles remains champion until Wrestlemania and Shinsuke wins the Royal Rumble to face Styles at grandaddy of them all. If the WWE has proven anything to us these past couple of months when it comes to title changes and last minute changes to their long term plans, its that nothing is for sure. I would not be surprised to see Mahal become champion again and I wouldn’t be against it. I feel like a heel going into Wrestlemania only to lose the title sends the fans home happy more than having a babyface go into Wrestlemania to just successfully defend the title or face another babyface. I might just be old-school thought. However, my gut is telling me AJ Styles retains and he’s heading to Wrestlemania this year to defend that championship.
Prediction – AJ Styles
What do you think about my predictions for the Clash of Champions? What are your predictions? Do you agree or disagree with my thoughts and ideas of what might happen on the show? Leave your comments and opinions below.