The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) (c) vs. Cesaro and Sheamus (WWE Raw Tag Team Championship)
Predictions & Winners: We wish they were “broken,” but we’re still pleased with the return of Matt and Jeff Hardy to the WWE. We think a slow burn will occur and eventually blossom into the Broken Hardy Boyz gimmick fans want to see so badly. Here’s what we think’s going to happen – both teams will fight tooth and nail for the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship. But at the end of this meeting, Cesaro and Sheamus will shock the world and capture the titles. It’s easy to see that The Hardy Boyz captured the titles at ‘Mania 33 to get the big nostalgia pop and end the ladder match on a satisfying (yet still predictable) note. They’ll take the loss here, which will set the wheels in motion for their “broken” state. Losing the titles so quickly after winning them should be the catalyst for their eventual mental breakdown. This war will continue, but Matt and Jeff Hardy will slowly deteriorate into their broken states and give this feud another interesting wrinkle to follow.
Seth Rollins vs. Samoa Joe
Predictions & Winner: Rollins vanquished his former mentor at ‘Mania 33 in one of the best matches of the entire event. We figured Samoa Joe would try to intervene during Rollins’ bout against Hunter, but that never came to pass. But now Samoa Joe is ready to get revenge on HHH’s part by facing off with Rollins in a one-on-one matchup. It seems as if Rollins is still in a rebuilding phase now that’s he’s gone full blown babyface. Coming off of one of the biggest victories of his career has aided Rollins in getting him back to a good spot on the Raw roster. Samoa Joe is still in the middle of a strong push that classifies him as an unstoppable killer. So in our eyes, it would be suck if any one of these guys ate the final pinfall. But alas, someone has to win and someone certainly has to lose. We’re placing all our winning bets on Rollins since he’s a bit hotter at the moment. Expect this to piss off Joe beyond belief and cause him to put hands on Rollins after the match concludes. This will set up another match between the two and keep their grudge going until HHH/Stephanie McMahon come back for revenge. HHH might even select someone new to do his dirty work against Rollins or even pair that new bounty hunter up with Joe for some stable hijinks. But yeah, Rollins will get the big win here nonetheless.
Bayley (c) vs. Alexa Bliss (WWE Raw Women’s Championship)
Predictions & Winner: With a few roster changes resulting from the Superstar Shakeup, the Raw Women’s landscape got the reboot we’ve been praying for. Charlotte and her wars against Sasha Banks and Bayley got tiresome over the course of a few months due to constant title changes. Charlotte has moved onto SD Live and now Raw has the talents of Alexa Bliss and Mickie James to call upon. Miss Bliss enjoyed a great run over on the Blue Brand that gave her way more validity in the fans’ eyes. She gained the #1 contendership spot for the WWE Raw Women’s Championship and is now set to take on the reigning champion, Bayley. We love Bliss, no doubt. But it’s too early for her to get her hands on the Raw Women’s Championship. Sasha Banks will pop up once again to keep Bliss from cheating her way to victory. This will lead to Bayley overcoming Bliss to retain her title. This of course will continue Banks’ slow burn into a heel turn against her best buddy. Banks obviously wants Bayley to keep the title so she can take it from her herself. This match is more of a page turner within the book of Heel Banks vs. Babyface Bayley. We’re sure the match will be good, anyways.
Kevin Owens (c) vs. Chris Jericho (WWE United States Championship; The Winner Will Transfer to SmackDown Live)
Predictions & Winner: A clean shaven Owens who’s still a Class A douchebag is pretty fun to watch. He showed up on SD Live with the United States Championship in tow and is seemingly changing up his appearance, but not his approach to winning. While AJ Styles became the #1 contender for the US Championship, we think Owens will manage to retain and go right on to face his former best friend. Chris Jericho looks like he’s ready to take another hiatus and go on tour with Fozzy. So we think Owens is definitely going over on Y2J in their big US Championship rematch. Owens just moved to SD Live and it just wouldn’t make sense for Raw to have both midcard titles. So yeah, Owens will keep the US Championship and continue to reign as an unbeatable badass on SD Live.
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WWE Payback 2017: Matches & Predictions