Choke's Summerslam Predictions / Season Wrap Up
Posted by: choke Aug 19, 2017 | 1417 views | 1 comments
I thought I'd write up a little predictions story with some of this season's takeaways mixed throughout to commermorate the end of another great WWE Fantasy Season here at DroptheBelt
I hope your league is as close as mine is, with all 4 of the DTB Staffers in a close battle.
PS. I've been known to take a gander at sports betting sites' odds on occassion but given how terribly accurate they sometimes end up being, I've tried to avoid that habit lately. For Summerslam, this is no exception. Going in solely from my own personal preference/take on the storylines they've offered up so far
NEVILLE VS AKIRA TOZAWA FOR THE WWE CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Boy I really botched my 205 Live drafting this season, taking Jack Gallagher in the 2nd round (!) which just seems insane at this rate. But I thought Jack was going to be on the same path as Tozawa actually, which makes me feel better about my decision. Right mindset, just picked the wrong guy. 205 Live is a force in these leagues now, for better or worse. I like that it makes those matches much more meaningful to someone like me who'd otherwise probably not care very much, but I do still think I'd prefer the points toned down a bit for the 205 show results. Akira Tozawa and Neville being 2 of the top 3 wrestlers points wise in the league just highlights this for me.
In any case, it was time to move on from Neville for the time being even though he did a great job as King for as long as he held it, and its certainly not time to go back. Akira Tozawa retains
DEMON FINN BALOR VS BRAY WYATT
The always underperforming Bray Wyatt (#35 overall this season) and the slightly underperforming Balor (#24 overall, only 5 more points than Elias Samson!) meet in a matchup that the result feels so obvious that its impossible for me to go against it. the Demon wins in its WWE Main Roster debut
BIG SHOW VS BIG CASS (WITH ENZO SUSPENDED IN A SHARK CAGE ABOVE THE RING)
Oof. What a disaster this entire story has been. Obviously the payoff they're trying to get us to is Enzo vs Cass in some "meaningful" match probably at Survivor Series or heaven forbid Mania, but what a long, aggravating road that sounds like for this viewer. I know there is a lot of speculation about Enzo and Cass re: their future in the WWE, but ignoring all that, feels like a given you'd give Cass the win here to get us to that matchup. Big Cass wins, Enzo does a big bump from the cage
RANDY ORTON VS RUSEV
It's 2017, why on Earth is this match happening on a major PPV? Coinflip, I'll go with Rusev just because he probably needs it more? Both of these guys feel like nonfactors for the foreseeable future in Fantasy Rusev wins
THE USOS VS THE NEW DAY FOR THE WWE SMACKDOWN TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS
I've enjoyed this feud much more than I would've expected, with both teams putting in good work lately. For fantasy the new day gave me some much needed points when they won the straps, but the dilemma of their having 3 members seemed to rear its ugly head more than ever this season. It used to always be a lock to just have Kofi and Big E, but Xavier this season seemed to get much more ring time, even being one of the 2 to actually win the tag belts. It really reduces their draft/trade value, never knowing (unless announced like it was this week) which two members will be wrestling prior to a match. Definitely something I'll consider more moving forward. I think the Smackdown tag division story works best with these titles moving hands again, and also opens the door more for a potential Breezango title shot in the near future. I'll go with that for now, but wouldn't be surprised otherwise The Usos win the Tag Team Championships
NATALYA VS NAOMI FOR THE WWE SMACKDOWN WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
It's hard to picture the scenario of Natalya winning, especially with what feels like a likely Carmella MITB cash in. I, regretfully, have not been following NXT as much as I'd like, but I'm wondering if Asuka is close to joining the main roster and I think Carmella would be a great first opponent for them to introduce Asuka to the (main roster) world. Introducing Asuka to the Smackdown women's division would give it a great shot in the arm that could ultimately lead to Asuka/Charlotte which could be one of the better Women's feuds in recent memory. Naomi retains against Natalya, but loses to Carmella cashing in the MITB contract
SASHA BANKS VS ALEXA BLISS FOR THE WWE RAW WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
Sasha sneakily had an incredible season points wise at #6 overall and was the top scoring Woman on the roster, which I'm not sure if many saw coming prior to the start. Yes, a lot of that was due to Bayley's injury, but even taking those #1 contenders matches away her point total still would've been impressive. It seemed like they were moving towards possibly turning Banks heel against a champion Bayley pre-injury, and I think they still may be able to go that route if they were intending. Its hard to go against Alexa, but I thought Bayley was going to take it from her, and am going to stick with that prediction even with the substitute. Judging by the poll voting, this is not a popular pick Sasha Banks wins the WWE Raw Women's Championship.
DEAN AMBROSE AND SETH ROLLINS VS CESARO/SHEAMUS FOR THE WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS
Cesaro and Sheamus were fantasy beasts this season (#7 and #10 overall) but they feel like a stepping stone for the Shield reunion at this point. All signs point to a potential Ambrose turn, but it seems most logical to give them the straps for a while before having them lose them down the line and then turn. Hell it took them a month just to fistbump, why turn them against each other a week later. The build dictates this result. Ambrose and Rollins win the WWE Tag Team Championships
KEVIN OWENS VS AJ STYLES FOR THE US CHAMPIONSHIP WITH SHANE MCMAHON AS SPECIAL GUEST REF
AJ has really solidified himself as a surefire 1st round pick the last few seasons (#2 overall in points). The US title feels beneath both of these guys especially with Jinder and Orton having the WWE title this entire season. Hard to complain when you get to see them wrestle each other as many times as we have I suppose. Many thought it was going to be Owens vs McMahon at Summerslam, but perhaps they'll just push that forward several months. If that smoke had any fire, I'll say Shane somehow "screws" KO and leads to that path. AJ Styles retains
JOHN CENA VS BARON CORBIN
As much as I appreciated the surprise cash in on Smackdown just for the sheer not having a clue it would happen factor, I think it took a lot of suspense out of Summerslam. It simply felt unnecessary at that moment to me. I also think it may have tipped their hand as to this mostly inconsequential match. I'd think they feel like they owe Corbin this win, and if Cena truly is moving onto Raw as rumors indicate, perhaps he leaves by pushing Corbin on his way out. By the way, Corbin may have been the steal of the draft this season, as he ended up with the #8 most points overall to this point. Gotta think he was drafted much further out than that in most leagues Baron Corbin wins
SHINSUKE NAKAMURA VS JINDER MAHAL FOR THE WWE CHAMPIONSHIP
It might seem too soon for a Nakamura win, and I can understand that sentiment. I still feel like its a necessary evil, and the payoff in future matches and hype with Nakamura holding the belt would be well worth it for them to pull the trigger ASAP. Definitely a wishful thinking pick here. Shinsuke Nakamura wins the WWE Championship
SAMOA JOE VS BRUAN STROWMAN VS ROMAN REIGNS VS BROCK LESNAR IN A 4 WAY DANCE FOR THE UNIVERSAL CHAMPIONSHIP
I'll be honest I feel like I'm completely in the dark here. In checking the poll results it seems like most people are with votes split among every competitor in this match except Strowman, which sort of blows my mind actually. WHAT DO YOU ALL KNOW THAT I DONT? You know what, don't tell me. I would have thought just about any of these 4 could win it except Samoa Joe. With the stip that Brock and Heyman have to leave the WWE if Brock loses, and without knowing of any set in stone contract details that Lesnar is done after this weekend, it's too hard to not go with the incumbent champion. Brock Lesnar retains the Universal Championship
See you all next season! Good luck tomorrow