Mike Tedesco’s WWE Hell in a Cell Predictions
October 26, 2014
By: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
Even though the version of Hell in a Cell that Mick Foley was talking about hasn’t existed for years in terms of career defining moments and brutality, I still find myself looking forward to tonight’s PPV offering. If there was ever going to be that “career defining” moment in a Hell in a Cell match, it has the opportunity to occur tonight in the Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins match. Both of those guys have to go out there and prove that they deserve to be in the upper portion of the card. That should be a great match. I also, shockingly enough, have high hopes for the John Cena vs. Randy Orton cell match as well. As for the rest of the card, hopefully it’s not as long of a night as I think it’ll be.
Big Show vs. Rusev
Since he officially debuted on the main roster with a match in April, Rusev has gone on to prove that the old school xenophobia angles are not dead and buried. At certain points over the summer, his feud with Jack Swagger was the hottest things on some of the television shows. That has continued into the fall. While his angle with Mark Henry wasn’t as awesome as I was hoping, things have picked up since he started feuding with Big Show. It got to the point where we almost had the yearly Fall return of “Crying Big Show.” The crowd reaction has been good for most of the stuff. I went to the RAW in Brooklyn at the beginning of the month so excited to see this match only to be disappointed when they canceled it (at least I got to see The Rock). The match finally happened like two weeks later on RAW, and it was pretty darn good. I’m hoping for a similar experience tonight. The finish isn’t in doubt, as I believe Mark Henry is turning heel tonight. I also don’t think Rusev is losing anytime soon unless he faces John Cena.
Prediction: Rusev
Loser Must be the Winner’s Assistant
Brie Bella vs. Nikki Bella
If there’s one thing WWE has done right in the past month (and I’m really searching for something positive to say about this past month of the product), it was pulling the plug on any more segments involving these two. At first it seemed like a war of attrition. The crowd turned on the segments about a week into them, but since Stephanie McMahon was personally involved in all of them, she just wanted to wear down the crowd until they accepted them. That didn’t happen, so she distanced herself from the angle, and we finally stopped getting Bella/Bella segments. It got to the point where this match was announced on WWE.com. That’s quite the drop-off from having featured segments on the 10:00 PM EST portion of the show. Neither woman has really shown much personality in this feud, so to me it’s kind of a toss up as to who should win. I’m just guessing, but since Brie has been made to look like a fool this entire feud, I think Nikki will come out on top. Maybe they’ll do some segments where Brie will sabotage whatever Nikki makes her do. I’ve got my fingers crossed that at least they’ll make for some entertaining segments for the next thirty days.
Prediction: Nikki Bella
WWE Divas Championship Match
Paige vs. AJ Lee (c)
What started out as one of the first Divas programs I was excited about in years (aside from Kaitlyn vs. AJ) has turned into one of the most boring, repetitive, and painful things about the show. There is really no storyline here. They claim that this rivalry is two former friends going head-to-head, but there was never an established friendship between these two. Sure, they tagged a few times, but there was nothing about it that signaled friendship. Paige beat AJ for the title in her first night; AJ goes away for a few months, then AJ returns and beats Paige for the title in her first night back. At what point were they ever friends? Now it’s become a monthly thing at the PPVs and on television, they both just trade wins week in and week out. There’s no storyline here. It’s just them doing whatever. There’s no progression, no build-up. It’s a shame because I believe it could have been so much better. AJ is one of the few Divas they’ve ever had that can talk, and Paige isn’t far behind with her heel persona. Oh well. Unfortunately, I don’t see it ending any time soon. I’ll bet money that they will have a Survivor Series elimination match. As for tonight, I think we need to see stability with some title runs. AJ should retain.
Prediction: AJ Lee
WWE Tag Team Championships Match
Jimmy and Jey Uso vs. Gold and Stardust (c’s)
I’m racking my brains trying to think of something positive to say about this match, but I’m coming up blank. The Usos are staler than five-year old bread, and the team of Gold and Stardust don’t have any steam whatsoever. Months ago I was calling for The Usos to save their big spots, such as diving over the top rope and the like, for only PPVs so they don’t become predictable and their bag of tricks can be safeguarded. Instead, they’ve continued to throw away their biggest spots on every RAW and Smackdown so as a result they’ve become stale and predictable. The Usos had a long run with the Tag Titles while Gold and Stardust were searching for the cosmic key for months. I don’t think Gold and Stardust will lose their key tonight.
Prediction: Gold and Stardust
WWE United States Championship Match
The Miz vs. Sheamus (c)
Isn’t it funny that the guy whose lackey is more over than he is will, in my opinion, become a new champion tonight? Yes, in the only match I think we’ll see a title change hands it will be this one. Sheamus just doesn’t have any steam and is miscast as a face. The Miz on the other hand has Damien Mizdow, and they could have a lot of fun with the championship and their shtick. Sheamus needs to go heel like yesterday.
Prediction: The Miz
WWE Intercontinental Championship – 2 out of 3 Falls Match
Cesaro vs. Dolph Ziggler (c)
So Cesaro comes up short against Sheamus in a fantastic match last month for the United States Championship, so that means he challenges for the Intercontinental Championship a month later? Why, after seeing how amazing that match was against Sheamus, did they not want to put them out there for a series of great PPV matches? Don’t get me wrong – this will most likely be a very good match, but it won’t be on par with what I think Cesaro could have done with Sheamus. Those were the kind of matches that can generate a lot of interest and reinvigorate careers in the case of Sheamus. It’s also kind of a sad presentation because both Cesaro and Ziggler should be further ahead than they are right now. These guys have been treading water for a while now. I don’t think Ziggler will ever get further than he is now, but Cesaro had a real chance earlier this year and creative blew it. Then whenever a big star goes down, creative flips out because no one is over. Um, hello people! It’s because you kill these guys off whenever they’re at their hottest with lame segments and constant losses. I could go nuts talking about the flaws in the product, but I’ll save that for a later time. I’m not sure why, but I can see Ziggler coming out on top in this one only because I don’t think they have the first clue how to properly book Cesaro.
Prediction: Dolph Ziggler
Hell in a Cell Match
Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins
This is obviously the Hell in a Cell match I’m most looking forward to. It’s just refreshing to see two young guys get a chance to shine in a featured setting on the show. My only thing now is that they have to, have to, have to have a good match to wash away the stink of the two terrible promos this week from RAW and Smackdown. How the segment with Ambrose beating up a dummy with a hammer while saying, “I’m going to hammer this point home,” is beyond me. How did that get the Vince McMahon seal of approval? It’s like they’re intentionally trying to kill these guys with horrible segments. To combat that, they have to have a great match and then pray to god segments like those of this past week never happen again. Luckily for them, these guys have tremendous talent and can put on a great match. I still remember how wrong I was about the Lumberjack stipulation for their SummerSlam match. That was really well done. With how much Ambrose has been wanting to get his hands on Rollins and end the feud once and for all, I think it’d be ridiculous for anyone but him to come out on top. I’m predicting a great match with Ambrose finally vanquishing his foe.
Prediction: Dean Ambrose
Hell in a Cell Match – Winner becomes #1 Contender
John Cena vs. Randy Orton
For the 1,761st time in WWE history, John Cena and Randy Orton will square off against one another on PPV. The number is an exaggeration, but it sure feels that way. Still, even though they’ve faced one another a whole bunch of times, I think they’ll actually have a decent match tonight that people will be into. Orton is at a crossroads in his career right now where he’s on the verge of becoming a babyface. He’s also had the spotlight shone on him these past two PPVs, and he has responded in kind with two very good matches against Roman Reigns and Chris Jericho. In short, Orton’s career (and seemingly his passion) has been reinvigorated. Cena has had his chances against Brock Lesnar. I don’t think Lesnar’s only title opponent before he faces whomever he faces at WrestleMania should be John Cena. I think Randy Orton needs to come out on top in this one if only for the simple fact that it’s the one match from the past (aside from Batista) that they haven’t done with Lesnar, and I’m curious to see how it would go. I’m hoping for an “RKO out of nowhere.” Anything else would, in my opinion, be lame. Cena vs. Lesnar III (or IV depending on if you count the Extreme Rules match) isn’t something I’m interested in seeing anymore because they blew the follow up with SummerSlam and the Night of Champions match left something to be desired.
Prediction: Randy Orton
Last month at WWE Night of Champions, I had a pretty good night. Ok, I’m being modest. It was a great night. I went 6-1 with my predictions, only missing on the Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena match. I predicted Lesnar would beat Cena straight up, but Cena wound up winning by disqualification. Oh well. My record is pretty golden. I’ve been keeping track of this since WWE Money in the Bank.
Predictions Record: 21-10
Well, those are my predictions for the show. What are yours? Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know!
E-Mail – MikeyT817@gmail.com
Twitter – @MikeTedescoWV
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