Want more wrestling news, rumors, and results? Be sure to visit PWInsider.com and PWInsiderXtra.com.
WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns vs. Cesaro.
Dave: Do I want to see Cesaro win? Sure, he has earned it and deserves it. Do I see it happening? No, not yet at least. The program with Roman is too new and they shouldn't take the Title off him yet, especially on a B show. He is the most compelling thing on Smackdown. With that said, I hope they protect Cesaro. A good way to do it would be to have the Usos fight each other with Jimmy not being happy being a pawn. They could turn it into a program where Jimmy sides with Cesaro. If done right, they could build it up to a SummerSlam rematch where Jimmy then joins the family. Or something similar.
Mike: No way Roman loses the title. The Smackdown team should be commended for how strong this storyline has been. To me, this is a one match show, and this is that match.
Richard: They have done with Cesaro what so many of us wanted and that was to make him the top guy that he is. I do not see him winning on Sunday night, but they can do some interesting things out of this match to establish Roman's next opponent . . . Jimmy Uso. Do you have Jimmy side with his brother and help Roman win the match (which I think will happen so there can be some doubt in the eyes of some that Roman couldn't beat Cesaro on his own), or do you have Jimmy try to avoid helping Roman only to have Jimmy accidentally cost Cesaro the match. Then you do the Jimmy and Cesaro team against Jey and Roman to give us Jimmy versus Roman at Summerslam after we get Jimmy versus Jey at Money in the Bank with the stip that if Jimmy wins, he faces Roman. Then we can get the family back together after Roman beats Jimmy. (I did not see what Dave wrote until I was halfway into posting my thoughts so any similarity is purely coincidental). A strong showing for Cesaro and no 10 minute monologue is all I am asking for.
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley vs. Braun Strowman vs. Drew McIntyre - Triple Threat match.
Dave: And now we begin the lazy booking portion of the evening. Triple Threats are so overdone. I see Lashley retaining here when Braun and Drew get into it with each other, making it easy for Lashley to pull out the win.
Mike: Let Lashley win and springboard Damian Priest as the next challenger. The booking on the Raw side has been weak, despite everyone working hard. I almost feel like everything is just a placeholder waiting for someone to return from a hiatus, but everyone in the trenches right now deserves something stronger and better.
Richard: There is no reason why Bobby Lashley should lose this match. The biggest question coming out of this match is who is the next challenger for the WWE Championship (and it should not be anyone in this match who is not champion). Let Braun take the pin. It is a shame that Drew carried the brand for the year of COVID and is now going to be relegated down the card.
WWE Smackdown Women's Champion Bianca Belair vs. Bayley.
Dave: It's way too soon to take the Title from Bianca. And given that WWE didn't even see the need to give Bayley a match at WrestleMania, I don't see her getting the win here anyway.
Mike: I have enjoyed this story, especially Bayley reminding Bianca that she used to be exactly who and what Bianca is but look where it got her. This should be about Bianca overcoming and scoring the win to continue to legitimize her.
Richard: They remembered that Bayley is one of the top wrestlers in the company and a feud with Bianca is something that will help the new champion establish her as a top star by getting wins over the two most dominant women on the brand. I hope they give this match time so it makes sure that they decide to keep Bayley a regular fixture on television. Now they need to figure out Bianca's character instead of pinballing her with her promos.
WWE Raw Women's Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Asuka vs. Charlotte Flair - Triple Threat match.
Dave: Lazy booking, part two. This is so forced. Rhea has been booked so poorly since her call up. I know, the record is broken here. She needs to get a strong win but honestly, given Vince's love of putting the Title on Flair, I am concerned. Probably the best we can hope for is that Charlotte has Asuka pinned and Rhea comes in and steals the pin to keep her belt.
Mike: I am with Dave on the weak booking for this. They have done zero to reinforce that Rhea is a player here - and she's the CHAMP. I feel like the Flair stuff has been forced since the return promo and Asuka has been just sort of there. There should not be a title change here.
Richard: The set up for this match by having Charlotte force Sonya to put her in the match has to be leading to Adam Pearce versus Sonya Deville for control of Raw and Smackdown. How is it possible for the current champion and the former champion be so irrelevant in a triple threat match? You do it the way they have on Raw. Just give the title to Charlotte so we don't have to deal with her promos complaining about not getting title matches any more. Rhea should retain, but then it will lead to the backlash of multiple future Charlotte title defenses.
WWE Smackdown Tag Team Champions Dolph Ziggler & Bobby Roode vs. The Mysterios.
Dave: I love that Dominick tries hard and he is improving. He is not someone I would put a Title belt on at this point however. No way, no how.
Mike: I can see them hot potatoing the tag belts here to make a moment for the Mysterios. Dominik needs seasoning, but he could also use a nice moment.
Richard: This is a storyline that will end with the Mysterios winning the tag titles. However, it does not happen on Sunday night. There is a little holiday in June where it would make more sense for Dominik Mysterio to win a title with his father. And there is a pay per view on that evening. Roode and Ziggler retain, but I would have them lose by disqualification because why not give us a reason to continue this feud. Then we can have Roode lose many matches to the Mysterios until Money in the Bank.
The Miz vs. Damian Priest - Lumberjack Match.
Dave: The Miz gets killed by pretty much everyone, including Bad Bunny. Priest should win here and it should be pretty dominant. Will it be? Well, we all know how Vince does things.
Mike: We know we're going to get a big brawl, so until then, nothing major will go down. If anything happens but Priest going over and keeping him momentum going, it's the wrong move. The company needs to try and ascend some talent into the upper echelon, especially with Orton now apparently a tag guy.
Richard: I hope we get the usual in a lumberjack match (two sides of heels and two sides of faces with no mixing until the inevitable LUMBERJACK BRAWL). Some of Priest's offense will be limited unless we get Priest diving onto hordes of lumberjacks fighting over Miz during the match. Priest wins because Miz does not need to win anything to keep his position on the card.
If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!
Bang On Casino
