Book To The Future: Predicting The Clash Of Champions Match Card

WWE SummerSlam is now firmly in the books and it was a widely well-received show. From a mesmerising debut of ‘The Fiend’ to a compelling main event match, there was plenty to enjoy.

So where do we go from here? WWE will want to continue this momentum, especially with AEW’s weekly TV show on the horizon.

Raw and SmackDown have both been decent in recent weeks with new superstars being put in the spotlight. Gone are the days of Baron Corbin, Lacey Evans and Shane McMa…oh wait, Shane’s still here.

But even so, the future is looking bright. The likes of Buddy Murphy and Cedric Alexander are finally getting a chance to show what they can do. The former Cruiserweight Champions had the best matches on WWE TV this week, against Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre respectively.

Their presence, along with a number of other changes, has added a fresh coat of paint to WWE’s product. There is a new sense of optimism in the company right now and WWE must capitalise on this.

We’re barely on the road to Clash Of Champions, but where we’re going, we don’t need roads.

So let’s floor it to 88mph and ‘Book To The Future’ as we try and predict the match card for WWE Clash Of Champions.

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8. Daniel Bryan & Rowan vs. Roman Reigns & Buddy Murphy

As Roman Reigns’ ‘whodunnit’ storyline roles on, we need to start looking at how this angle can translate into in-ring action.

Hopefully, the big reveal and subsequent finale are still a few months away as this story still has legs. However, a significant chapter could still be told at Clash Of Champions.

A number of Roman Reigns matches were rumoured for SummerSlam although nothing came to fruition. It was speculated that Reigns could team with Samoa Joe to take on Daniel Bryan and Rowan, or perhaps go one-on-one with Buddy Murphy.

The latter match ended up taking place on this week’s Smackdown Live and teased a potential new direction in this story. Reigns and Murphy put on an excellent match and, despite losing, Murphy seemingly earned the respect of the ‘Big Dog’.

Following the match, Bryan and Rowan attacked Buddy backstage and forced the Australian superstar to retract his comments from the previous week.

Perhaps we could now see Reigns coming to Murphy’s aid and even up the odds against Bryan and Rowan, leading to a tag team match at Clash Of Champions.

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7. The New Day (c) vs. The Revival – Smackdown Tag Team Championship

The New Day’s next challengers for the Smackdown Live Tag Team Titles were seemingly revealed this Tuesday.

Firstly, The Revival cut a backstage promo on New Day, blaming them for the state of the tag team division. Then, in this week’s Smackdown main event, they pinned the Champions in a six-man tag team match.

This usually leads to a title shot in WWE, which will likely take place at Clash Of Champions.

The Revival and The New Day are two of WWE’s best tag teams. If given the right attention, a feud between the two teams could be great and put tag team wrestling back in the spotlight.

The story is already there for this feud. The old school attitude of Dawson and Wilder is an obvious antithesis to the New Day’s antics. Add to this the fact that New Day have never defeated The Revival and you’ve got a simple, yet effective story to tell.

Now obviously, The Revival are a Raw tag team and shouldn’t really be going for the Smackdown Tag Team titles. But, you know, ‘Wildcard’…I guess.

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6. Drew McIntyre vs. Ali – 2019 King of the Ring Tournament Final

Earlier this week, WWE announced the return of the ‘King Of The Ring’ tournament. It has been reported that it will culminate at September’s Clash Of Champions pay-per-view.

But which two wrestlers will contest the final?

WWE has revealed the sixteen participants for this year’s tournament. It is a strong field of performers and could lead to some great matches over the next few weeks. The bracket has since been revealed, and we have eight exciting first-round matches to look forward to.

From Raw’s group of contenders, Drew McIntyre is the standout for me. This could be more in hope than expectation, but Drew is a potential main eventer for WWE. The ‘King Of The Ring’ tournament could be the way to get him there.

So, if we’re going with Drew from Raw, he will need a babyface from Smackdown to go up against. There are a couple of wrestlers from the blue brand that could fit this role.

It would be great to see Kevin Owens go all the way to the final. However, it looks like his feud with Shane McMahon is continuing and that could be his focus going forward. I wouldn’t be surprised to see that angle dragged out until Survivor Series…eurgh.

Ali is perfect for this role and it would be great to see him on television in a significant role. Ali has had a stop-start push since WrestleMania and this tournament could be the direction his character needs.

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5. Becky Lynch (c) vs. Sasha Banks – Raw Women’s Championship

Sasha Banks has been away from WWE for four months, but that didn’t stop people talking about her. Rumours swirled that Banks was ‘done with the company’ one minute and then that she was ‘returning imminently’ the next.

But now the talking is over, as Sasha made her return to WWE on last Monday’s Raw. But while she arrived as ‘happy, purple-haired’ Sasha, she left as ‘evil, blue-haired’ Sasha.

‘The Boss’ interrupted an emotional Natalya promo and attacked her before brawling with Becky Lynch. You’ve got to believe that this will lead to a championship match between Banks and Lynch. If so, it could potentially steal the show at Clash Of Champions and it’s exactly what the Women’s division needs.

There is obviously history between the former NXT performers and there ‘Four Horsewomen’ connection. But there is also new ground to be explored.

Sasha Banks is an excellent heel and will now get the chance to showcase that on WWE’s main roster. As for Becky, she hasn’t had a genuine contender to her championship since WrestleMania.

‘The Boss’ vs. ‘The Man’ will be a breath of fresh air for the fans and could reignite the Women’s revolution.

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4. Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade – Mask vs. Hair Match

Who wouldn’t want to see more of Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade?

Every time these two get in the ring there is magic. They always deliver an exciting match with sequences and spots we’ve never seen before.

But if there is one thing that their contests are lacking, it’s stakes. Sure, they are still great matches but it’s never really felt like it matters who wins.

That has changed recently with Andrade defeating Rey twice in a row in a 2-out-of-3 falls match. After the aforementioned match on this week’s Raw, Mysterio was clearly distraught. He was interviewed backstage and claimed he didn’t know where his career was going.

Andrade has defeated Rey convincingly multiple times in recent weeks. If Mysterio wants another match against him, he would need to put something on the line, perhaps his mask.

A ‘Mask vs. Hair’ match would add some significance and genuine drama to the story. With Rey putting his mask on the line, he is essentially putting his career on the line. If Andrade was to end the legendary career of Rey Mysterio, he would be able to rub it in the fan’s faces for years.

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3. Bayley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair – Smackdown Women’s Championship

Charlotte is likely to be Bayley’s next challenger because…well, let’s face it, who else is there?

Carmella is busy chasing the 24/7 Championship with R-Truth, whilst the Kabuki Warriors are wasting away in the tag division. Meanwhile, the former challenger, Ember Moon, was beaten cleanly by Flair on this week’s Smackdown Live.

This leaves Flair as the only viable contender for Bayley’s Championship and will likely get her shot next month. Unfortunately, Bayley’s Championship reign was been largely forgettable. I wouldn’t be surprised to see her drop the title to Charlotte at Clash Of Champions.

Also, with Smackdown debuting on Fox on October 4th, WWE will want a recognisable star holding the title. Charlotte is the biggest female star on the current roster and her as Champion will bring more eyes to the product than Bayley.

On top of this, if this match and Becky vs. Sasha do take place, that would be a marketing dream. The story of the ‘Four Horsewomen’ all vying for the two Women’s Championships writes itself. If done correctly, these matches will feel big-time and could potentially main event the pay-per-view.

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2. Kofi Kingston (c) vs. Randy Orton – WWE Championship

After a wet fart of a finish at SummerSlam, the Kofi and Orton feud looks set to continue.

It was a shame to see such a disappointing match at SummerSlam. This feud was literally a decade in the making and should have delivered much more than it did.

However, all is not lost and developments on Smackdown seem to be taking the story in a better direction. Orton was at his best and laid out all of the New Day with three vicious RKOs. It was a great visual and placed Orton as a genuine threat to Kofi’s Championship.

This is a much more compelling narrative than was being told previously. Two bitter rivals battling over one of the top titles in the company is a simple, effective story. Much better than the heel claiming the underdog babyface isn’t good enough, a story that’s been done to death recently.

If WWE continue down this path, a rematch at Clash Of Champions could easily erase the disappointment of their SummerSlam match.

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1. Seth Rollins (c) vs. Braun Strowman vs. AJ Styles – Universal Championship

The rumoured main event for Clash Of Champions is Seth Rollins defending the Universal Championship against Braun Strowman.

However, I’m not going that way, largely because I personally don’t want to see the match. Rollins slayed ‘The Beast’ at SummerSlam and slaying ‘The Monster’ would be a very similar story.

Therefore, I would like to see AJ Styles added into the mix in a triple threat match. Not only would this likely make for a better in-ring match, it would tell a better story. A face vs. face match with Braun and Rollins would be fine, but a heel Styles involved would add another dimension to the match.

Also, WWE could potentially add a stipulation to the match. Perhaps have the first fall for AJ’s United States Championship and then the second for the Universal Title.

A triple threat would be far less predictable and add much more intrigue to the match. It would also elevate the U.S. Title and WWE desperately need to make their championships feel more prestigious.

• Clash of Champions
• Seth Rollins
• Roman Reigns
• SummerSlam

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