Opinion

Andrew’s WWE Raw & SmackDown Live 1/14 & 1/15/2019

Published

6 years ago

January 16, 2019

Andrew gives us his thoughts on this week’s Raw and SmackDown Live! Does Raw finally outperform SmackDown Live this week?

Well if you read my Honor Reigns Supreme article, you’d know that left such a bad taste in my mouth, that I was excited for WWE this week.

So I guess it’s time to see if the initial anticipation paid off.

Raw Ratings:

Ronda Rousey & Sasha Banks vs Tamina & Nia Jax – Banks wins via Bank Statement – **
The Revival vs Lucha House Party – Dawson wins via DDT – * 1/2
Natalya, Bayley & Nikki Cross vs The Riott Squad – Bayley wins via Elbow Drop – ** 3/4
Jinder Mahal vs Finn Balor – Balor wins via Coup de Grace – ***
Intercontinental Championship Triple Threat: Dean Ambrose (c) vs Bobby Lashley vs Seth Rollins – Lashley wins via Spear – *** 1/2 – TITLE CHANGE!!!
Fatal Four Way for Universal Championship Match at Royal Rumble: Finn Balor vs Drew McIntyre vs Baron Corbin vs John Cena – Balor wins via Coup de Grace – *** 1/4

Review Notes:

Braun kicks things off, oh god, he’s gonna talk. *spins the See-N-Say* Okay, Cow says Moo and Braun says something about getting hands, Beastie Boy, rawr rawr, Baron Corbin…whatever. The he finds Corbin in a limo, tears the door off, it was Vince’s so he admonishes the Monster and fines him $100,000 – and Braun mouths off. So Vince not being one to take kindly to that, pulls him out of the Universal Title match and kicks him out of the building after he flips the limo.
After the Braun stupidity is over, now we get Sasha and Ronda. Sasha did most of the work, Nia somehow looks worse than Tamina, even the preview for Glass did better in the match, and they try really hard to force animosity between Sasha and Ronda by making Sasha be unable to understand body language and comprehend context in a sentence. Maybe she’s low key dyslexic and this brought back bad memories of reading pages out loud in school.
A line forms outside of McMahons door…okay, time to see Jerry Lawler and a bunch of random characters…great.
Revival get a real tag match against the Lucha House Party, so maybe the conspiracy is over…but they interrupt the match with interviewing people meandering around outside of Vince’s office. You’re only really legitimate tag team on Raw, that people like, and you’re trying to rebuild…and you kill the momentum of the match with pointless interviews. So what we did see was alright, and the DDT being a finish is nice, but the wrinkle of Wilder having to push Kalisto’s foot off the rope, doesn’t make a ton of sense. Is it karma? Is it doubling down on them being bad guys? Is it just stupid? Tune in next week on Dragon Ball – wait…no.
Vince heads to the ring to announce a replacement and instead we get Cena. Cena who tries to say when Austin, Rock and Lesnar left, they had no passion coming back. He tries to recreate his debut Ruthless Aggression line, McIntyre comes out and schools Cena with lyrics to Word Life saying Cena’s Time is Up and Drew’s Time is Now. So it was cute. Corbin comes out cause he’s delusional. Then lastly Finn comes out to play the little engine that could. Vince says he’s small, Finn says he never believed in him, but he’ll prove he can beat Lesnar. Fatal Four Way match is created after McIntyre wins the initial squabble and Vince nearly orgasms seeing Drew and what he did.
Jinder, makes up a story about tending to a broken Singh, so Vince tells him to pick one and winner gets the 4-way spot. Jinder picks Finn, cause you always pick the smaller guy, right?
Bayley and Natty were trying to separate Ronda and Sasha earlier when the Riott Squad got mouthy and challenged the two that aren’t really friends to find a third and face them. Bayley has a great line as they fade to commercial since Natty accepted on behalf of them, she just looks at her and says something like ” Oh?! We’re good now?!” – which nicely points out the stupidity of some of these throw together matches.
Now the Riott Squad do nothing for me, but Nikki Cross making her Raw debut added a new life to this match that I didn’t know it needed. Nikki made this match entertaining, and at this point, her shear joy just brightened up my enjoyment of the entire show. Decent match too, but Nikki, always let Nikki play.
Jinder versus Finn wasn’t bad. Regardless of what some people think about Jinder, the match work was solid. If you just don’t like him, sure that’s fine, but this was Jinder’s best match in a long time and again, I thought it was pretty decent.
Lio Rush speaks, and it’s calm, direct and Lashley is looming in the background like an ominous force instead of a posing imbecile. I don’t know how to feel…cause I liked this promo…but Lio Rush is annoying.
The triple threat was… good. No real complaints aside from my usual gripes about Seth’s inability to sell, PLUS Lashley pinning Ambrose does allow for a rematch most likely at Rumble cause he can point out it wasn’t a 1 on 1 match and the odds were stacked against him, conspiracy stuff, so I can see it happening. Lashley with the IC title at least gives him something when he should’ve been a main event guy from day 1 on his return, at least this is a step in the right direction.
Alexa Bliss…ugh I know I say she’s the best female character on Raw, cause she is. But walking in on her changing added nothing to anything, it was done purely for the “hot chick partially clothed” pop. And then her two episodes of Moment of Bliss have been…awful and trainwrecky. Otis randomly appearing and babbling makes him seems more moronic and not endearing like NXT made him seem like a hyper country bro. But yeah, he acted more like he needs a harness and a helmet. At least the Women’s Tag Titles look nice and aren’t the big ugly WWE logo design.
This four way wasn’t bad, but the two commercials hurt the flow, it turned into more of just disjointed cool spots that eventually lead to something but you weren’t sure how we got there. Kinda like a drunk train ride and you end up somewhere dangerous, but sexy…yet the right person goes over. So…drunken miracles do happen folks.

Overall Score: 7/10

GO FIGURE! I really enjoyed this episode. As I mentioned on Raw Reaction the appearance of Nikki Cross and that little fire starter ball off energy actually just made me enjoy the show. There’s something about seeing someone run about the ring, be it because she’s manic, frantic or just having fun…but it’s nice. So from that point I got a little less nit picky, enjoyed nonsensical things like Dean and Seth cooperating because I got the fact they were going for “they did it out of muscle memory” not so much liking each other.

Plus seeing Finn get a semi-legitimate push for the Universal Championship is always refreshing. We’ve seen smaller guys give Brock believable matches, so maybe Finn or the Demon can tear the belt off the Beast.

SmackDown Live Ratings:

Becky Lynch vs Peyton Royce – Lynch wins via Disarm-Her – **
Asuka vs Billie Kay – Asuka wins via Asuka Lock –N/A
Samoa Joe vs Mustafa Ali – NO CONTEST
Andrade Almas vs Rey Mysterio – Almas wins via Draping Hammerlock DDT – ****
The Miz w/ Shane McMahon vs Sheamus w/Cesaro – Miz wins via Rollup – ** 1/4

Review Notes:

Becky pulls in, cute but lacking personality interviewer tries to question her, she says she’ll say it in the ring. On her way in she sees Otis and Tucker with the New Day making a meat, eggs, powder, take a few panckes, generally assuming a protein shake of doom since their whole NXT shtick is ‘Steaks and Weights’. Otis tries some and likes it, New Day almost pukes, Otis offers it to Becky. Becky agrees, takes a decent mouthful (giggity) and says it’s good but weak and marches to the ring. Otis mumbles something that sounds like “she is the man”. This was actually the correct way to introduce Otis’ brand of buffoonery since he’s supposed to be simple but charmingly dumb…not Festus 2.0.
Becky and Asuka argument turns into the IIconics teasing and saying they’ll win Rumble. Becky says why wait, get your ass in here now. So Peyton apparently offers herself as tribute.
What was this match? Asuka was watching intently, Billie didn’t really get involved much, but Peyton held her own for what felt like at least 10 minutes. If this was supposed to help Peyton look like a competent threat, I think it hurt Becky more than helped Peyton. Advantage though, Asuka adorably screaming in Japanese basically getting across the point of “if you can do it so can I”. So she literally drags Billie into a match, the referee shrugs and doesn’t question an angry woman screaming in a language he doesn’t understand. Asuka went for a Fujiwara Armbar while looking at Becky to make a point, but took too long, Billie got a small opening but then Asuka chokes her out with the Asuka like in what felt like 40 seconds.
AJ walks out while Becky and Asuka are still arguing, and apparently new music is the signal to leave. AJ walks down the ramp, around the ring, through the crowd, up to the concession stand. This is him taking Daniel Bryan’s promo from last week and turning it on it’s ear. He starts endorsing hot dogs and merchandise before Daniel Bryan jumps him. Daniel hates fun obviously…
Jimmy gets a note from Mandy Rose with a hotel key enclosed. WHAT DOES THE UCE DO!?
Joe jumps Mustafa mid pose, beats on him until the LED on his chest goes out. So if that’s like Iron Man, Mustafa is now dead. Someone else needs to assume the suit. TJ Perkins maybe?
Sonya gets to the bottom of Mandy’s evil plan to break up a marriage cause she just hates Naomi. Catty…but it happens. Sonya seems a little disgusted though.
In my article last week I think I claimed I wanted a best of 27 between these two. And I still want more. This was so damn good. Also, FINALLY, Zelina does what she should’ve been doing from the beginning. She got involved just enough to give Andrade the opening to beat Mysterio when Almas was on the brink. If this is the beginning of returning to their NXT dynamic, then I just need more Vega and Almas on my TV in general.
Jimmy actually goes to the hotel, he pauses, heads in, Mandy takes off her robe to show a lacy black outfit and Jimmy says no. But as his rebuking her advances, a Paparazzi guy shows up out of nowhere snaps some pictures and runs away. Mandy puts the robe back on, said she never wanted him, just wanted to ruin the marriage and now Naomi will crumble. Jimmy laughs it off, walks out, and Naomi pops in and beats some ass. So Mandy’s plan didn’t work at all, I wonder if Sonya tipped them off and this could split those two into a feud or something.
Miz and Shane are fantastic. Miz throws a celebration for Shane’s birthday, gets him a pair of Jordan’s where Shane’s reaction sounded close to legit. Then Miz runs a little reel of clips which is actually kinda nice with the story they’re telling. Shane buys into their team idea a little more by telling Miz that when he was a kid he had a dream to be tag team champs. His dream partner as a kid was Andre the Giant, but he’s still proud to call Miz his friend. There did seem to be a small hesitation during some of this where maybe there were some real comments that weren’t exactly scripted, but that just makes you buy into them more. The Bar interrupt the celebration and Shane does the talking now. Says Sheamus thinks he’s a big man for sucker punching Miz last week. Well they’ll have a match right now and it’s fair. Miz tries to say he’s not dressed and Shane retorts nicely with “I wasn’t in my gear when I stepped in for Best in the World” and Miz is like “is this what you want for your birthday?” and Shane is like ” This is my Birthday wish, yes”. The immaturity,yet, simplicity of the exchange is what made it perfect. Miz is trying to impress Shane so of course a good point and birthday wish is something that Miz won’t deny.
The match was never supposed to be groundbreaking, but it was fun for what it was. Cesaro tries to interfere, Shane sends him through a cake on a table, distracting Sheamus long enough for Miz to get the Rollup. Sheamus tries to attack Miz afterwards, Shane helps out his partner, Miz hits Skull Crushing Finale, and then Shane positions for Coast to Coast. Miz gets the other cake and we get Coast to Cake…mostly, and Shane looked to have killed himself at the same time.

Overall Score: 6.25/10

SmackDown felt more like a story building episode this week and less geared towards the in-ring action. Nothing was bad, some things were done purposely to push storylines forward, so it felt about average if not a tick below for a SmackDown.

So for the first time in my doing these articles, and even recent memory…Raw was the better show this week. I mean…wow. Either ROH broke me or WWE just happened to push all the correct button for me. You know, like the song the Pussy Cat Dolls talked about, not the irritating buttons.

About Chairshot Radio Network

Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!

MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)

THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)

SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5

Classic POD is WAR

Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!

All Shows On Demand

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Up Next

Put Lex Luger in the Hall of Fame

Don't Miss

The Good, Bad and Ugly: SmackDown (01/15/2019)

Opinion

Chairshot Staff Picks: Backlash St. Louis

Chairshot Staff picks!!!

Published

3 weeks ago

May 9, 2025

PC Tunney

May is upon us and with that, so is Backlash from St. Louis! What does the first PLE after WrestleMania have in store for the WWE Universe? Let’s see if the Chairshot Staff can properly interpret the crystal ball of rasslin’ future.

AJ – Pat MacAfee – Gunther has to start losing control and who better than an announcer.
Andrew – Pat MacAfee – Goldberg getting involved does seem correct here.
Dave – Gunther – He’s not losing to a broadcaster.
DJ – Gunther – Pat is sent to the shadow realm until football season is over.
DPP – Gunther – Post match beat down leads to Pat time off.
Jason – Gunther – One massive spot and or bump from Pat.
Patrick – Gunther
Rey – Gunther – RIP MacAfee, t’was a good life.
Rob – Gunther
Greg – Pat MacAfee – Why? Goooooldbeeerrrrrgggggg!

Tunney’s Take: Gunther – Seems like the right pick here. Pat may be getting some time off and Gunther needs more heat.

Chairshot Pick – GUNTHER 8-3

AJ – Lyra Valkyria – Becky’s hopefully putting her over, still mad about Dakota.
Andrew – Becky Lynch – I have no real interest in Lyra currently.
Dave – Becky Lynch – Lyra is boring AF!
DJ – Lyra Valkyria – Bayley interferes.
DPP – Becky Lynch – Becky cheats and steals the title.
Jason – Lyra Valkyria – Bayley costs Becks.
Patrick – Becky Lynch
Rey – Becky Lynch – Story needs to jump up a bit, Becky Charlotte’s Lyra.
Rob – Lyra Valkyria
Greg – Becky Lynch – It’s been fun, Lyra. (It kinda hasn’t)

Tunney’s Take: Lyra Valkyria – Bayley’s interference should set up some type of program with Becky as we head towards Summer(Slam).

Chairshot Pick – BECKY LYNCH 6-5

AJ – Jacob Fatu – Great way to put him over w/ two former WHCs and LA Knight.
Andrew – Jacob Fatu – He’s Jacob Fatu!
Dave – Jacob Fatu – Too soon to pull the belt off him.
DJ – Jacob Fatu – Priest and LA can’t decide who’s is bigger.
DPP – Jacob Fatu – Your hardcore match, tables and chairs involved.
Jason – Jacob Fatu – The Champ retains due to or in spite of Solo.
Patrick – Jacob Fatu
Rey – Jacob Fatu – All gas. No brakes. Ain’t losing.
Rob – Jacob Fatu
Greg – Jacob Fatu – Someone from The Samoan Dynasty ain’t winning a title just to drop it.

Tunney’s Take: Jacob Fatu – Uncle Mo is on Fatu’s side and other than Knight, I don’t see Drew or Priest holding the US title in the current circumstances of this title’s landscape.

Chairshot Pick – JACOB FATU 11-0

AJ – Dominic Mysterio – Judgement Day shenanigans just leading up to Finn turning on Dom later.
Andrew – Penta – Dom’s fine having a short reign, could also work for pushing AAA.
Dave – Dominic Mysterio – He’s probably more over than Penta.
DJ – Dominic Mysterio – Dirty Dom takes home the gold and the girl.
DPP – Dominic Mysterio – Big Head helps Dom pull out the win.
Jason – Dominic Mysterio – By hook and crook.
Patrick – Dominic Mysterio
Rey – Dominic Mysterio – Latino Heat keeps burning. Finn gets closer to the edge.
Rob – Dominic Mysterio
Greg – Dominic Mysterio – Someone from The Guerrero Dynasty ain’t winning a title just to drop it.

Tunney’s Take: Dominic Mysterio – That belt looks good with the king of chicken tendys. I can see Penta and Rey reforming as a tag team sooner than later.

Chairshot Pick – DOMINIC MYSTERIO 10-1

AJ – John Cena – Why? Cena wins, lol.
Andrew – John Cena – Shenanigans ensue so it’s not a clean win.
Dave – John Cena – The last time is now.
DJ – John Cena – Randy hears voices telling him he needs an Attitude Adjustment.
DPP – John Cena – Cena tries to cheat but the ref doesn’t call for a DQ.
Jason – John Cena – Nefarious means, Randy not ready for Evil John Cena.
Patrick – John Cena
Rey – John Cena – Cena just counting down the dates. Should be fun though.
Rob – John Cena
Greg – John Cena – You know they want Cody to be the hero in the end.

Tunney’s Take: Randy Orton – Once upon a time Randy got himself intentionally disqualified and it cost John. Saturday, history repeats itself with a 180-degree twist. Cena retains via Orton DQ victory. This time, Travis Scott’s appearance takes care of that task.

Chairshot Pick – JOHN CENA 10-1

In closing I want to thank everyone on the panel for participating with their picks! You can follow each prognosticator/podcaster on X @ the handles below. We all enjoy Pro Wrestling so remember three things… be respectful of others, comparison is the thief of joy and HAVE FUN!

AJ – @PhenomenalAJB
Andrew – @IWCWarChief
Dave – @AttitudeAgg
DJ – @TheMindlessPod
DPP – @itsmeDPP
Jason – @JediFett
Patrick – @WrestlngRealist
Rey – @itsreycash
Rob – @rbonne1
Greg – @gregdemarco44
PC – @PCTunney
TheChairshot.com – @ChairshotMedia

prowrestlingtees.com/TheChairshot – a PLETHORA of GREAT designs…MAKES A GREAT GIFT!

About Chairshot Radio Network

MONDAY – Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY – 4 Corners Podcast (sports)

WEDNESDAY – The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)

THURSDAY – POD is WAR (Los Tres Friends)

FRIDAY – DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)

SATURDAY – The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY – Keeping the news ridiculous… The Oddity / The Front and Center Sports Podcast

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE’s PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS…IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O’Dowd’s 5X5

Classic POD is WAR

Chairshot Radio Network
Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts… Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!

All Shows On Demand

Listen on your favorite platform!

iTunes | iHeart Radio | Google Play | Spotify
Listen, like, subscribe, and share!

About Chairshot Radio Network

MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)

THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)

SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5

Classic POD is WAR

Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!

All Shows On Demand

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Opinion

Chairshot Staff Picks: WrestleMania 41 Las Vegas

Time for The Chairshot personalities to put their money where their mouths are! WreslteMania 41 predictions from the “expert” staff at TheChairshot.com and Chairshot Radio Network.

Published

1 month ago

April 18, 2025

PC Tunney

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to the Chairshot Staff Picks. And what better setting than WrestleMania for this article to return! This 41st edition has one of the most stacked rosters in WWE history. So, without further ado, let us get to the predictions and prognostications…

AJ – The New Day
Andrew – The New Day – No one seems to hold tag titles long anymore.
Dave – The New Day – They have earned it.
DJ – The New Day – Feel tha Powah!
DPP – War Raiders – Big E distraction.
Jason – The New Day – We are not getting E in a working capacity though everyone wants it.
Patrick – The New Day – WWE doesn’t care about this match, so why should I?
Rey – The New Day – Its a New Day, bruh.
Rob – The New Day – New Day rocks and wins!
Greg – The New Day – New. Day wins. New. Day wins!

Tunney’s Take: War Machine – Yes, WAR MACHINE. I have personally had the pleasure of throwing back a few cold ones with these guys on more than one occasion. Not only being tag champs in WWE but defending the titles at Mania and against The New Day is really cool for me as a long-time fan. Would it be fun to see The New Day have another title run.. YES. I think it’s smarter to give the War Raiders a big Mania W.

Chairshot Pick: THE NEW DAY 9-2

AJ – Jade Cargill
Andrew – Jade Cargill – She needs to stay a dominant force.
Dave – Jade Cargill – Gotta gear her up for the long term.
DJ – No contest – Naomi puts another beat down on Jade.
DPP – Jade Cargill – Nervous for how this match will go.
Jason – Naomi – Way more runway with Naomi as a bad guy. Keep it going!
Patrick – Jade Cargill – Jade gets her revenge.
Rey – Jade Cargill – Best non-title feud going. Naomi should win but Jade sneaks by.
Rob – Naomi – Naomi gets help to win.
Greg – Jade Cargill – They ain’t beating Jade here.

Tunney’s Take: Jade Cargill – I imagine WWE sees Jade’s ceiling much higher than Naomi’s. What better way to keep Jade climbing the ladder towards a World Title than to pick up a decisive victory in Vegas!

Chairshot Pick: Jade Cargill 8-2-1

AJ – Jacob Fatu – “AJ does a pretty good LA Knight impersonation” – PC Tunney
Andrew – Jacob Fatu – I’m biased, Jacob for President.
Dave – Jacob Fatu – Getting gold back in the Bloodline is smart.
DJ – Jacob Fatu
DPP – Jacob Fatu
Jason – Jacob Fatu – Thanks for coming pal, YEAH!
Patrick – Jacob Fatu
Rey – Jacob Fatu – C’mon cuz! All gas no brakes with it. Yadadamean??
Rob – LA Knight – Solo costs Jacob.
Greg – LA Knight – Solo screws Jacob.

Tunney’s Take: Jacob Fatu – It has been quite the journey for the Samoan Werewolf. I feel like that journey and the positive turn around it has taken deserves to be rewarded. Let’s see what Jacob can do on his own. Plus, LA Knight is ready to challenge for a World Title.

Chairshot Pick: Jacob Fatu 9-2

AJ – Tiffany Straton
Andrew – Tiffany Straton – I hate Charlotte Flair, no objectivity here.
Dave – Charlotte Flair – Tiffy might be the future, but she kinda failed the litmus test.
DJ – Charlotte Flair – The Queen crowns the freshman.
DPP – Tiffany Stratton
Jason – Charlotte Flair – Tiff wasn’t ready for this spot. Charnos is inevitable.
Patrick – Charlotte Flair – Lol Charlotte wins.
Rey – Charlotte Flair – Tiffany SHOULD win but, if Charlotte can squash, she will.
Rob – Charlotte Flair – Charlotte gets number 15.
Greg – Tiffany Stratton – Lol Charlotte wins. (Actually she doesn’t)

Tunney’s Take: Charlotte Flair – Charlotte needs the title for the first time in her career. Tiffy has had a nice run but now needs to take that all important step of not losing momentum after losing the title. Despite the drama and lackluster build here, I see a really good match coming this weekend from these two.

Chairshot Pick: Charlotte Flair 7-4

AJ – El Grande Americano
Andrew – El Grande Americano – I’d like to see Gable gain some momentum. Rey is Teflon.
Dave – El Grand Americano – He needs a marque win much more than Rey.
DJ – Rey Mysterio
DPP – El Grande Americano – Grande wins with the switcheroo to prove he is not Gable.
Jason – Rey Mysterio – Unmask Grande at the end. It is fun but has a shelf life.
Patrick – El Grande Americano – TOTALLY NOT CHAD GABLE
Rey – Rey Mysterio – Someone’s mask is coming off and it ain’t Rey.
Rob – El Grande Americano
Greg – Rey Mysterio – Hall of Famer wins but doesn’t take the mask.

Tunney’s Take: Rey Mysterio – Go listen to DWI 471. DP, Greg and I lay out exactly what this match should be, FUN! Multiple Americanos!!!

Chairshot Pick: El Grande Americano 6-5

AJ – Jey Uso
Andrew – Jey Uso – Kinda booked themselves into a corner here.
Dave – Jey Uso – It just makes sense.
DJ – Jey Uso – Jey YEETS all over The Ring Genreal.
DPP – Jey Uso – Jey wins after normal Gunther beating.
Jason – Jey Uso – Land the plane man. YEET
Patrick – Jey Uso – Jey has earned this one.
Rey – Jey Uso – YEEEEEEEEEEEET!
Rob – Jey Uso – YEET
Greg – Jey Uso – If Jey loses we riot. We don’t cause he wins.

Tunney’s Take: Jey Uso – ‘Til sweat drop down my balls, ‘Til all these bitches crawl, ‘Til all… YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET YEET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chairshot Pick: Jey Uso 11-0

AJ – Roman Reigns
Andrew – Seth Rollins – I can see Rollins being the last piece of Team Rock.
Dave – Roman Reigns – I can’t see Roman losing two years in a row.
DJ – Seth Rollins – Paul Heyman is a Seth Freakin Rollins guy.
DPP – Seth Rollins – The Rock helps Rollins.
Jason – Roman Reigns – Seth’s favor is a red herring. Make-A-Wish Brooks got his main, now look at the lights.
Patrick – Seth Rollins – Seth Rollins… Paul Heyman guy.
Rey – Seth Rollins – I smeeeeellllllll a new soul to sell.
Rob – Roman Reigns – Paul Heyman helps Roman win.
Greg – Seth Rollins – Brock Lesnar returns to help Seth win.

Tunney’s Take: CM Punk – I really have no idea here. I picked Punk because nobody else did. This is going to be professional wrestling cinema at its finest. The story is thick and neatly woven. All the participants are legends and so are the potential party crashers. Will The Rock stick his nose in here? Will Brock Lesnar return to play a factor? Obviously, Paul Heyman has a Plan A… but what is it? All these questions and more will be answered Saturday as night 1 will definitely go out with a bang!

Chairshot Pick: Seth Rollins 6-4-1

AJ – Iyo Sky
Andrew – Iyo Sky – Rhea vs Bianca doesn’t need a belt to be compelling.
Dave – Rhea Ripley – Going with Rhea barely, hoping Iyo wins.
DJ – Iyo Sky – Unfinished business.
DPP – Iyo Sky – Rhea and Bianca are too consumed with each other.
Jason – Iyo Sky – More layers to Rhea/Bianca. Iyo rules.
Patrick – Iyo Sky – Iyo stole the build and gets the win.
Rey – Iyo Sky – Smart money is on the underdog champ.
Rob – Iyo Sky – Iyo survives.
Greg – Bianca Belair – Naomi helps Bianca win and turn heel.

Tunney’s Take: Rhea Ripley – Rhea is the best women’s wrestler in the world. Give her the biggest win on the grandest stage of them all!!! Bianca needs to go full heel. Iyo has been amazing in this build.

Chairshot Pick: Iyo Sky 8-2-1

AJ – Dominik Mysterio
Andrew – Finn Balor – I can see a Judgement Day meltdown incoming.
Dave – Bron Breakker – Bron is about to become a MegaStar.
DJ – Bron Breakker – Judgement Day implodes.
DPP – Dominik Mysterio – Finn take the pin.
Jason – Penta – I literally do not care because the winner is us, the fans.
Patrick – Bron Breakker – The WWE doesn’t care about this matchup, so why should I?
Rey – Dominik Mysterio – Only match without a clear winner. I choose chaos.
Rob – Bron Breakker – Finn and Dom cancel each other out.
Greg – Dominik Mysterio – Dom steals the pin from Bron, on Finn.

Tunney’s Take: Bron Breakker – The case can be made for any of these four to walk away with the most prestigious non-World title in pro wrestling history. The short of it is though that the Main Event picture isn’t really readily accessible for Breakker right now. Let this IC reign go through the summer, to SummerSlam.

Chairshot Pick: Bron Breakker 5-4-1-1

AJ – Damian Priest – “AJ does a pretty good Drew impersonation” – PC Tunney
Andrew – Drew McIntyre – Priest has not been interesting in this face incarnation.
Dave – Drew McIntyre – Time for Drew to get that win back.
DJ – Fuck finish – To be continued at Backlash.
DPP – Drew McIntyre – Physical matchup!
Jason – Drew McIntyre – Either one is fine here.
Patrick – Drew McIntyre – With two eyes, Drew turns the tide.
Rey – Drew McIntyre – Low key match of the weekend.
Rob – Damien Priest
Greg – Damien Priest – Priest wins, Drew tweets about it half hour later.

Tunney’s Take: Drew McIntyre – With the addition of the Street fight rules, these two behemoths have a really good chance to have one of the best matches of the entire weekend (winks at Rey Ca$h-A-Mania)! I do wonder what is next for both of these talents moving forward. Priest has staled since leaving the Judgement Day and Drew seems stuck in the same cycle for a while now. Very interested to see what the summer holds for this pair.

Chairshot Pick: Drew McIntyre 7-3-1

WHO WILL BE RANDY’S OPPONENT?!?

AJ – Nick Aldis – Orton wins
Andrew – Orton and Aldis vs Solo and Tama – Orton and Aldis win
Dave – Someone is getting an RKO!
DJ – A segment w/ the Wyatt s6cks.
DPP – Rusev – Aldis introduces Rusev who defeats Orton.
Jason – Nick Aldis – You got one more in ya, bubba. Aldis wins!
Patrick – Nick Aldis
Rey – Solo then Rusev – Solo in a squash and Rusev MATCHKA(wins)
Rob – Nick Aldis – Aldis proves himself, Orton wins.
Greg – Nick Aldis – Orton beats Aldis, they shake after.

Tunney’s Take: I would really love to see a singles match between Orton and Aldis. More likely this is some type of involvement with Solo and Tama. Rusev as a surprise challenger would be cool but, I feel that would be better left for RAW. An impromptu Goldberg retirement match would be crazy and fun, yet highly unlikely and illogical. Whatever happens, best believe exactly what Dave Ungar said, “Someone is getting an RKO!”.

AJ – Logan Paul
Andrew – AJ Styles – Logan doesn’t need the rub and should stay upper mid card.
Dave – Logan Paul – It’s the smart move and would be a statement win for Paul.
DJ – Logan Paul – Kross gets involved somewhere.
DPP – AJ Styles – AJ wins a great high-flying match.
Jason – AJ Styles – Just enjoy it or get a beer, nerds.
Patrick – Logan Paul – Logan Paul will main-event Mania sooner than later…
Rey – Logan Paul – Pass the torch, my wily vet.
Rob – Logan Paul – Kross helps Paul win.
Greg – AJ Styles – Styles wins after Paul’s cheating backfires.

Tunney’s Take: Logan Paul – Logan seems to really have dedicated himself to becoming great in this business. Anyone with that type of goal must have a World title on their mind. Beating AJ at Mania will be a great springboard for Logan into the Main Event sooner than later (winks at Patrick O’Dowd).

Chairshot Pick: Logan Paul 7-4

AJ – Liv & Raquel
Andrew – Liv & Raquel – Not really a fan of Lyra, she needs more work.
Dave – Liv & Raquel – This Bayley and Lyra team makes no damn sense.
DJ – Liv & Raquel – Bayley crashes out.
DPP – Liv & Raquel – Bayley continues a potential heel turn tease.
Jason – Bayley & Lyra – Finish the story!
Patrick – Bayley & Lyra – The WWE doesn’t care about this matchup, so why should I?
Rey – Liv and Raquel – Bayley want a title but it ain’t the ones in this match.
Rob – Liv & Raquel – Champs retain.
Greg – Liv & Raquel – Liv and Raquel retain thanks to Carlito and maybe JD.

Tunney’s Take: Liv & Raquel – Liv and Raquel need to be kept as the cornerstone of the women’s tag division for a lengthier period of time. Building tag teams in this division is difficult enough, let alone without a North Star.

Chairshot Pick: Liv & Raquel 9-2

AJ – Cody Rhodes
Andrew – Cody Rhodes – They are mentioning it so much, I don’t think 17 happens.
Dave – Joh Cena – Record falls and we head to summer with a built-in storyline.
DJ – John Cena – Some kind of Final Boss involvement.
DPP – John Cena – Cena wins and retires on RAW.
Jason – John Cena – Story’s over, “Captain” BIG MATCH JOHN.
Patrick – John Cena – A record breaking night for Cena.
Rey – John Cena – They’d be really stupid to turn John just to lose. (Post-Mania: Rock, Cena, T Scott, Seth & Drew, TEAM Corporate)
Rob – Cody Rhodes – Cody surprises us with the W.
Greg – Cody Rhodes – Cody wins to piss off Rock and set the table for Cena to turn back face. Crowd is behind Cena all the way through.

Tunney’s Take: Cody Rhodes – They had me until the threat of retirement. Been there. Done that. Didn’t fall in love with it back then. I love John Cena. I love this final run. John will get his 17th just not here. I expect nothing less than an absolute GEM of a match here to close WrestleMania 41. This has all been, is, and will continue to be about Cody Rhodes. WM40 defeats Roman Reigns. WM41 defeats John Cena. WM42 defeats The Rock (The Final Boss).

Chairshot Pick: John Cena 6-5

In closing I want to thank everyone on the panel for participating with their picks! You can follow each prognosticator/podcaster on X @ the handles below. We wait all year for this so remember three things… be respectful of others, comparison is the thief of joy and HAVE FUN!