411 Roundtable Preview: WWE Payback 2015

Introduction

This year’s edition of WWE Payback emanates from Baltimore, Maryland. Leading the line for this card is a Fatal 4 Way for the WWE Championship between Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, and Randy Orton. Then there’s also John Cena and Randy Orton in an I Quit Match for the United States Championship, and a 2 out of 3 Falls match for the Tag Team Championships, which includes New Day vs. Cesaro & Kidd. With WWE adding another PPV between this and Money in the Bank, one has to wonder how much this show will mean in the grand scheme of things. Regardless, there’s ptobably going to be some good wrestling to be had when WWE presents WWE Payback at 8ET/5P on PPV and the WWE Network. However, I think the 411 staff doesn’t need to wait anymore to give their predictions and thoughts on the PPV happening on Sunday night.

The Staff

Eric Palmer, WWE SmackDown Reporter

Mike Chin, The Magnificent Seven

Kevin Pantoja, WWE NXT Reporter, Wrestling Video Reviewer

Mike Hammerlock, The Wrestling Zone 8-Ball

Wyatt Beougher, Wrestling Article Writer, MMA Fact or Fiction Organizer,

Gary Vaughan, Wrestling 2 the MAX Podcast

Sean Garmer, Wrestling 2 the MAX Podcast, WWE Roundtable Organizer, Games Top 5 Organizer, Co-operative Multiplayer Podcast,

The Ascension vs. Curtis Axel and Macho Mandow
Pre-Show Kickoff Match: Tag Team Match

Eric Palmer: This is a match that’s actually happening? Why?

Winners: Axel and Mandow

Mike Chin: I know I’m the minority, but I actually dig the Axel-Sandow team. They’re two under-utilized mechanics who have proven themselves capable of comedy. If WWE isn’t going to do anything more important with them, then they could do a lot worse than this comedy-nostalgia-underdog wacky duo. Here’s hoping this one hits right notes and comes off painlessly.

Winners: Axel and Mandow

Kevin Pantoja: I’m pretty sure that I haven’t been this disappointed in a Kickoff match since Hornswoggle/El Torito II. Take this for what it is though; a fun little tag match for the fans to enjoy and nothing more

Winners: Axel and Mandow

Mike Hammerlock: I know I’m supposed to hate that this match even exists, but I kind of dig Sandow and Axel’s current insanity. They look like they’re having a blast. Hopefully they evolve into something more. Sandow’s former gimmick-of-the-week gimmick might work if they put together some wins. Plus, they’re getting a free win here. No way the Ascension wins. If only Sandow and Axel were coming out dressed as Sandhawk and Aximal. Anyway, surely this is all building to a feud with the Prime Time Players.

Winner: Axelmania and Macho Mandow

Wyatt Beougher: I know this isn’t really a step forward for Sandow, but I love the pairing of two guys with goofy charisma who are damned good in the ring. Hopefully this earns them a spot in the tag title match at Elimination Chamber, but even on its own merits, seeing a fake Hulk Hogan and a fake Randy Savage take on a fake Demolition (who were, in turn, fake Road Warriors) is something that I’ll likely enjoy. I’m not sure if this will reach WeeLC levels of wrestling comedy, but it should be a fun little match for what it is, and that’s pretty much all you can ask for on the pre-show.

Winner: Mega Impersonators via Leg Drop, followed by an Elbow Drop

Gary Vaughan The Mega Powers 2.0 will be sight to see as they comically wrestle the most joked about tag team The Ascension. Hopefully, we will be more entertained than bored in this matchup. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a Sandow fan, but the other three guys in this match are not thrilling anyone. Mega Powers 2.0 win to please the crowd.

Winner: Macho Mandow & Axel

Sean Garmer: The mini-powers are hilarious and I really want them to succeed. I’m sure there are many disappointed that Sandow isn’t doing more, but these two look like they are really enjoying things and that makes me want to watch. No one cares about Ascension and I hope WWE sort of uses this as a match to get Macho Mandow and Axelmania into the Elimination Chamber later this month. Mandow gets the pin with an elbow pinning Viktor.

Winner: Axelmania & Macho Mandow

RyBack vs. Bray Wyatt
Singles Match

Eric Palmer: The build for this match has been fine, and both guys are serviceable enough in the ring to produce a decent match, but I’m just not feeling it. Like most of the card, I’m just having difficulty getting invested in this one.

Winner: Bray Wyatt

Mike Chin: This program has reasonable potential and its way too soon for WWE to blow it off, particularly without having another clear direction for Wyatt to wander off to. I foresee a draw this go-round to set up at least one PPV rematch.

Winner: No Contest

Kevin Pantoja: The WWE really seems to have no idea what they have in Bray Wyatt. They don’t know what to do with him most of the time. He just wanders around and cuts weird promos before challenging people for no real reason. I can’t get into him after he lost to the Undertaker. Like, you lost but still call yourself the “New Face of Fear”…why? Anyway, when it’s not a big feud, Bray does well in terms of wins and losses. He annihilated Dean Ambrose over the winter and Ryback is more on Dean’s level than John Cena or Undertaker, who Bray was clearly defeated by. Bray wins here I guess, but I don’t really care.

Winner: Bray Wyatt

Mike Hammerlock: I love that Bray Wyatt singles out his opponents. I wish I understood why, but I’m in favor of him messing with people. This is another match that could have Elimination Chamber ramifications. Both guys could make a case that they’re a top five contender. If so, a thoroughly indecisive finish is warranted here. Maybe a double countout or maybe Wyatt gets himself disqualified. Seeing that Harper and Rowan have patched things up, maybe that means the Family is getting back together. Only Bray could have brokered that truce, right? We can hope. In that case, maybe Ryback gets laid out while the ref isn’t looking. Whatever happens it surely will make them angrier for the big event two weeks later.

Winner: Dusty Finish

Wyatt Beougher: Under normal circumstances, I would be inclined to praise Bray’s underrated wrestling ability, but he works best against smaller opponents and Ryback isn’t exactly Ricky Steamboat in the ring. This match could be surprisingly decent, or could be nearly unwatchable, and the worst part of it all is that I’m not sure what it does for either man, as they’re more or less in the same boat right now as it pertains to WWE booking (and that boat doesn’t have any paddles or any other means of conveyance). With Cena and now Reigns on the roster, Ryback is never going to be “the” guy, but what good is building Wyatt up again going to do if he’s just going to lose to someone like Cena or the Undertaker in the end? I’ve seen a lot of fans talking about how this match would be the perfect time for a Wyatt Family reunion, and that’s an idea that I can get behind. Not only does it give Bray back part of what made him so special initially, it also makes Ryback a sympathetic babyface fighting against the odds.

Winner: Ryback via disqualification after the Wyatt Family interferes

Gary Vaughan With a very light story, we get two talented young wrestlers going head to head. I hate that either guy will get a loss, cause both need momentum. Wyatt needs the win mlre though & think he will sneak past Ryback; even if takes a little help from The Family.

Winner: Bray Wyatt

Sean Garmer: There isn’t much going into this, but it could be a decent big man bout between the two. I’d imagine we get some kind of no contest here because this will probably continue on to Elimination Chamber. I do wonder if Wyatt and Gary are onto something with the Wyatt Family becoming involved to stack the odds against RyBack. It would actually be a smart move for WWE to reunite The Family. Let’s see what happens in this match first.

Winner: RyBack (via DQ)

Naomi & Tamina vs. The Bellas
Divas Tag Team Match

Eric Palmer: The only diva in this match I like is Nikki. I’m all for give divas a chance, but there are three better divas in NXT that could use the shot. Naomi will pick up the pin on Nikki.

Winners: Naomi and Tamina

Mike Chin: Naomi has been solid since her heel turn, and Tamina is getting a comeback push for the time being. Either one could challenge for the Divas title soon. In the meantime, I see WWE pushing them both.

Winners: Naomi and Tamina

Kevin Pantoja: Yea, nothing about this really interests me and I’m someone who tends to look forward to Divas stuff. The WWE seemed to misunderstand the #GiveDivasAChance movement. It didn’t mean to just have them wrestle longer matches, there should be some character development for these girls. Why are the Bellas face again? Why should I cheer for them? Anyway, Naomi and Tamina win here to get Naomi another title shot. This all feels placeholder until Paige returns or Charlotte debuts.

Winners: Naomi and Tamina

Mike Hammerlock: When did the Bellas become faces? Do not understand. I know logic is a foreign concept in the WWE, but everytime Naomi speaks into a microphone these days, she’s making sense. But she’s the bad girl. Seeing that the title isn’t on the line, that favors Naomi and Tamina. Biggest thing is hopefully they give this match some time.

Winner: Naomi & Tamina

Wyatt Beougher: The good? WWE actually booked a storyline for the Divas that makes sense and doesn’t revolve around petty jealousy. The bad? Naomi continues the WWE’s trend of “smart=heel”, as she realized that in order to overcome the Bellas and rule the Divas division, she needed backup. The smartest thing to do was to recruit from her husband’s family and in doing so, she got the biggest, meanest woman currently on the WWE main roster. The ugly? Tamina’s wrestling, which still hasn’t improved a single iota. If this match is mostly Nikki and Naomi, it has the potential to be very good. If it’s mostly Brie playing Ricky Morton against Tamina, it could get really bad. The end result will probably be somewhere in the middle, and I look for SamoaTron to pick up the win to set up a Naomi/Nikki match.

Winner: Naomi/Tamina via Tamina superkick

Gary Vaughan It’s still hard to wrap my mind around the good girl Bellas. Though Naomi & Tamina are doing well by making the Bellas look angelic by their devilish antics. I believe we will get Naomi pinning Nikki for the win to continue the feud.

Winner: Naomi & Tamina

Sean Garmer: I’ve enjoyed heel Naomi and I think it was a stroke of genius to add Tamina to the act. The problem is, no one really believes in face Bellas. This is obviously setting up for Naomi to get another title shot. However, I’m sure Paige could get involved and make things interesting once again for the Divas division.

Winner: Naomi & Tamina (Naomi with the Rear View and pins Brie)

Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus
Singles Match

Eric Palmer: I love Sheamus’ new heel turn, but all of his promos are the exact same thing almost to the word. I like that they’re not making him completely unbeatable, but after Extreme Rules, he needs the win here and needs to move on from the feud with Ziggler.

Winner: Sheamus

Since Ziggler picked up the first win at Extreme Rules, I feel as though Sheamus needs it more, and WWE recognizes that.

Winner: Sheamus

Kevin Pantoja: Heel Sheamus has been pretty awesome. I just wish he would lose the dumb beard braids. Anyway, with the exception of the “Kiss Me Arse” stuff, I think this has been a pretty excellent rivalry. When they brawl, they really beat the hell out of each other and it shows. It’s good that he didn’t turn heel and just beat everyone but he needs to win here. He’ll get his win back from Extreme Rules and move on to what I predict will be an Intercontinental Title run.

Mike Hammerlock: My big question is whether this match has Intercontinental Title ramifications or Elimination Chamber ramifications? Hopefully it’s the latter. Since Ziggler got the win at Extreme Rules, I’m going to theorize that 50/50 booking demands Sheamus gets the win here. I don’t have a problem with that, though I don’t get where this feud is headed. I suppose I’m cool if all it amounts to are some good matches. Worse things have happened. Though it would be so much better if these two wound up having a #1 contender’s match.

Winner: Sheamus

Wyatt Beougher: I generally enjoy both of these guys in the ring (and the Sheamus character works so much better as a heel), but this feud just isn’t doing anything for me. The matches are almost guaranteed to be solid, barring injury, but the focus has shifted from “big bully picks on scrappy underdog” to “two guys who are overly worried about butts”. Still, though, this has the potential to steal the show, though part of me feels that it’ll end inconclusively to get both guys into the Elimination Chamber IC title match. It wouldn’t surprise me if Ziggler gets Bryan’s Intercontinental title push, so look for him to lose here.

Winner: Sheamus via Brogue Kick

Gary Vaughan This return match should be really good. I think the action will be fast and brutal. Ziggler will give his all as always but Sheamus will find a way to ensure his victory.

Winner: Sheamus

Sean Garmer: Both of these guys bring it inside the squared circle, so I’m more willing to forgive some of the dumb stuff they’ve had to deal with in this feud so far. Dolph won the first match and it makes a lot of sense for Sheamus to win this one. Especially because his deal is that he doesn’t think the small guys belong in the same ring with him. Get ready for a BROGUE to the face of Dolph to finish this one off.

Neville vs. King Barrett
Singles Match

Eric Palmer: This would be a match I’d be really looking forward to if we hadn’t seen it almost a half dozen times in the past month. Unless there’s a title on the line here, which I don’t believe there will be, there’s just not a lot here. Neville is a ton of fun to watch, but beyond that, there’s nothing to really look forward to about this.

Winner: Neville

Mike Chin: It’s sad to think that less than a month ago this felt like such a fresh rivalry, and yet it now seems so entirely worn out. Both man could really use the win and it’s a shame one will lose. I’m giving Barrett the duke to nominally continue his push as king.

Winner: King Barrett

Kevin Pantoja: I wish that we didn’t see a million variations of this in tag matches throughout the weeks. It would make this a bit more fun. However, they’ve only had two singles matches that I can think of. Neville won at Extreme Rules and King Barrett won in the King of the Ring finals. This should be good like those bouts and work as a rubber match. I would normally pick Barrett here but I have so many heels winning that I’m going against the grain here. Neville wins and gets momentum.

Winner: Neville

Mike Hammerlock: They’re all but telegraphing Neville as the next Intercontinental Champion. Yet what does that mean here? Probably a win for Barrett. He beats the Man That Gravity Forgot and claims superiority. Then Neville gets the win back for the IC Title, making them more or less even (Extreme Rules/IC belt vs. Payback/KOTR). That’s 50/50 booking I can get behind since both guys are coming out of it with some accolades.

Winner: King Barrett

Wyatt Beougher: Neville is making a case for being the best-booked NXT alumni to debut on the main roster to date (at least singly, as it’ll be hard for any performer or group to top the pre-breakup portion of the Shield’s main roster run), and Barrett is Barrett – he’s a guy who would probably be a legitimate main eventer if he didn’t have a penchant for getting injured every time he gets over. One thing I will say for Payback is that while it feels like a throwaway pay-per-view full of matches we’ve already seen, it should be a night of great in-ring action, at least on paper, and this match is no exception. Neville is my second choice (behind Dolph) for the IC title at Elimination Chamber, so I look for Barrett to go over here.

Winner: Barrett via Royal Bullhammer

Gary Vaughan Here is the King of the Ring rematch you may or may not have wanted. There first battle was pretty good and this one should be better. Look for Neville to use a Bull Hammer miss to his advantage and use it to hit his finish.

Winner: Neville

Sean Garmer: WWE has done this feud well and not overdoing the singles matches. Each man has won a big contest and things are even. The thing is, every time Barrett wins something of consequence, WWE subsequently has him lose. Barrett needs to win to show that him being crowned King of the Ring means a lot. I’d say Neville wins here because Neville is gonna be a heavy favorite come time for that Elimination Chamber match.

Winner: Barrett (Via Bullhammer)

(Champions) New Day vs. Cesaro & Kidd w/ Natalya
WWE Tag Team Championship 2 out of 3 Falls Match

Eric Palmer: I actually thought for a moment that Kidd and Cesaro might regain the belts, given the new reunion between Harper and Rowan, it seems like they’re prime for a title shot in the near future. However, with Elimination Chamber in two weeks, that’s probably where they’ll drop the belts. I like New Day to retain in the match of the night

Winners: New Day

Mike Chin:While we can debate quality, in terms of quantity the WWE tag ranks are building nicely between New Day, The Brass Ring Club, Kalisto and Sin Cara, Harper and Rowan, Los Matadors, The Ascension, and The Not-So-Mega Powers. While a division like this could benefit from the superior wrestlers–Cesaro and Kidd–serving as the champs and de facto focal point, New Day is just coming into its own as a heel act, and I foresee WWE keeping the titles on them for the time being–particularly after allowing the threesome a win over Roman Reigns and Randy Orton less than two weeks ago.

Winners: New Day

Kevin Pantoja: Since winning the belts, New Day has been one of the most entertaining thing going on in the company. They even beat Roman Reigns and Randy Orton. I think they should go a very fun route and have three different New Day pairings compete. Change up the groups for each fall to stay fresh and give us three different matches. Could be something we haven’t seen and different is usually good. I sense New Day retains here, only to drop the straps at Elimination Chamber.

Winners: New Day

Mike Hammerlock: No reason this should be anything but a good time. Expect lots of innovative combo moves and some high drama. In general things are looking up for the WWE tag division with these outfits, the Lucha Dragons, the reformed Harper and Rowan, and eventually the Usos. It would be nice if the WWE changed up its predictable weekly programming to feature these teams better, but I’ve got hope for the WWE tag scene regardless.

Winner: New Day

Wyatt Beougher: New Day have been amazing since their turn, Cesaro and Kidd have been amazing since stints in NXT revitalized both of their careers, and 2 out of 3 falls has always been one of my favorite stipulations, so this match is arguably the one I’m most looking forward to on this entire show. Regardless of the outcome, this should be well-wrestled and entertaining. As much as I’d like to see the Uppercats regain the titles, it doesn’t make sense to take them off of New Day yet, especially not with an Elimination Chamber tag team championship match coming up in like two weeks. Look for the champions to retain via chicanery, but can we take a minute to appreciate how much better the tag team division is without the Usos in it?

Winners and STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: New Day via unseen outside interference that leads to a tag team finisher

Gary Vaughan Boy, do I enjoy watching Cesaro & Kidd as a tag team. A more sinister New Day is almost as impressive. We should see a great with near falls abound. I think what seperates the teams is their outside the ropes help; which is why I think Xavier Woods will be the deciding factor that keeps the tag belts with New Day.

Winner: New Day

Sean Garmer: New Day have been awesome and I generally actually am excited to see what they do every week. That being said, those titles just fit them right now. Not to mention, you want heels as champions going into a big match like the Elimination Chamber. I hope we don’t get the first two falls really fast, but mostly I hope New Day keep switching partners around and really use that freebird rule. New Day should win 2 falls to 1 with some kind of double team move.

Winner: New Day

(Champion) John Cena vs. Rusev w/ Lana
United States Championship I Quit Match

Eric Palmer: This is basically where Rusev’s push ends. There’s no way in hell Cena loses this match, and I think we’re all expecting Lana to screw Rusev over. I think these guys can have a good brawl, but the fourth pay per view in a row with this match is just too much for me to get excited about.

Winner: John Cena

Mike Chin: I’m calling the rest of this show pretty conservatively, so I’m going out on a limb on this one and calling Rusev gets Cena to quit on account of threatening or actually hurting Lana–possibly in service to Lana swerving us all and shoring up her alliance with Rusev; possibly for her to make good on that positivity from the crowd and turn face.

Winner: Rusev

Kevin Pantojar: There is nothing at all good about this match. First, they are dragging out the John Cena/Rusev program. They had a really good match at Fast Lane, a mediocre one at WrestleMania and a shit one at Extreme Rules. Second, having this match booked has really hurt the drama of some of Cena’s open challenges lately. Lastly, this is going to be the death of the Rusev character most likely. I’ve long disliked the anti-America gimmick but I’ve enjoyed the man’s ring work. Either Lana throws in the towel to further their angle or Rusev actually quits and is really dead in the water.

Winner: John Cena

Mike Hammerlock: No matter how long this one runs, it’s a squash match. Rusev will be quitting and Cena will be standing tall. Hooray America. I know my national pride is hanging on the result of this predetermined contest. Honestly, I feel bad for Rusev, who is getting thrown under the bus. This is hard to watch. The guy bust his tail to get into the WWE and did a better job than anyone had a right to expect with a tired gimmick. Now he’s doing the Cena Death March. By the end of this match, his career will be in tatters.

Winner: John Cena

Wyatt Beougher: If there’s any justice in the world, Rusev will make Cena quit, regain his United States championship, and he and Lana will move on to bigger and better things. But because John Cena’s entire shtick is never giving up, and the WWE wants to make Lana the female face of the company, it’s far, far more likely that she throws in the towel for Rusev, furthering their paint-by-numbers breakup storyline. The only real way I can see Rusev winning this match is if he goes Kevin Steen on Sami Owens and just beats Cena until he can’t continue. And honestly, if Brock Lesnar wasn’t booked to be able to do that, there’s no way Rusev is going to be.

Winner and STILL WWE United States Champion: lolcenawins via Lana either throwing in the towel or verbally submitting on behalf of Rusev, who will probably be in the STF

Gary Vaughan is there any more predictable on this card or even this year? Cena is never going to say “I Quit”, even the he can lose by passing out. Rusev will put on a good fight, but Cena will prevail in this battle. Lana may through in the towel, causing Rusev to be rid of her services.

Winner: John Cena

Sean Garmer: Due to the necessity of having to finish this column on time. I’m gonna be brief with the next few. Wyatt and Mike Chin I think covered the ways WWE could go crazy with this, but either give Cena a win and cement the break up of Lana and Rusev. I really like Mr. Chin’s idea and I’ll be praying that WWE is that clever to make that the end result all along. However, part of me believes it just won’t be that way. Cena wins and that’s that.

Winner AND STILL WWE US CHAMPION: John Cena (Via Lana throwing in the towel for Rusev)

(Champion) Seth Rollins vs. Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns vs. Dean Ambrose
WWE World Championship Fatal 4 Way Match

Eric Palmer: I’m looking forward to this match, and it’s certainly nice to see Ambrose in the title picture, but this match is incredibly predictable. Kane will get involved, probably turn face, but Rollins will get a dirty win pinning Ambrose. I’d like to see Ambrose get a really strong showing here, but with WWE, you never know.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Mike Chin: This match very much feels like filler for Rollins’s reign atop WWE–it fills time before the crowd is ready to accept Roman Reigns challenging for the title one-on-one again without the redundancy of another Rollins-Orton match. The best I’m hoping for is that the match itself is a good one; I have trouble imagining Rollins is actually in any jeopardy.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Kevin Pantoja: While I think the match will be really good, something about it feels kind of cheap to me. Like, we’re technically getting the Shield Triple Threat that we all want, but with Randy Orton thrown in there. I love Seth and he certainly deserves to be the WWE Champion but this has all felt like filler until they move to Roman Reigns. The fact that the focus has been more on Kane making Seth his bitch than the actual competitors in the match tells you how important the company thinks this match is. Seth retains in cheap fashion.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Mike Hammerlock: It seems like Dean Ambrose got put in this match in order to take the fall. Maybe not, but that’s my expectation. Seth Rollins wins here. Hurt feelings on all sides then lead these guys into the Elimination Chamber, where maybe Ambrose and Reigns burst into full-fledged hostilities. I’m all for major twists and turns, but my guess is Seth Rollins is about to have himself an excellent two weeks. I’m all for that too. The real key here isn’t the outcome, it’s whether the WWE can put on a high quality main event in a third tier PPV. The talent is there to do it.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Wyatt Beougher: This should be a fun match, and sadly, I can’t get excited for it. Instead, I just feel bad for poor, poor Dean Ambrose. The former Jon Moxley was once tabbed as “the next Stone Cold”, only to turn into a cross between Santino (antics) and the Usos (the repetitive in-ring spots). Now after months of languishing in directionless midcard hell, they’ve finally let him be an entertaining and important part of the show again, but that’s likely just so that he can eat the pinfall in this match. This match would actually be the perfect time for WWE to prove that they didn’t ban the Curb Stomp, as Rollins could use it on Reigns(even if it has to be renamed) after Reigns accidentally (or “accidentally”) spears Orton. No matter how the finishing sequence plays out (Phoenix Splash onto Reigns after a spear is my theory), Seth Rollins walks out of Payback with the title.

Winner and STILL WWE World Heavyweight Champion: Seth Rollins

Gary Vaughan Ambrose will be the fan favorite and Orton will be a close second, but neither will be wearing gold by night’s end. Reigns will be the featured hero against the dastardly Seth Rollins. I believe this match will be the best on the card. Rollins will retain his WWE World Championship despite Kane’s attempts to thwart it from happening.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Sean Garmer: This should be a pretty good match, wouldn’t be surprised if it is match of the night even. However, this storyline of having to watch Kane the whole match because his life depends on it, gives things away. Now it is possible that Kane falters and him getting kicked out of The Authority leads to his full face turn. But again, I’m gonna go the conservative route because it makes a lot more sense for Rollins to keep it until Summerslam.

Winner AND STILL WWE CHAMPION: Seth Rollins

Overall Thoughts & PPV Interest Level (from 1 being the worst to 5 being the best)

Eric Palmer: My interest level for this PPV is a 1: The build up for this show has me not caring about a single match on this card. I’ll be watching it, but I’m going in with extremely low expectations for it. The main event should be a fun cluster, and the tag title match should be a great watch, but overall this is least excited I’ve been for a WWE show this year. Hopefully it’s better than I think it will be.

Mike Chin: My interest level for this PPV is a 2: While the wrestling itself has the potential to be so good, this feels like filler PPV, chock full of rematches, plus a multi-man main event that feels awfully predictable. I’m hoping for a surprise in the US title match and that the main event will tell a fun story en route to a foregone conclusion–if WWE delivers on one or both of these goals, it should be a passable show.

Kevin Pantoja: My interest level for this PPV is a 2: As is the case with a lot of Pay-Per-Views since the beginning of the WWE Network era, the build for this has been lackluster. However, most of those PPVs have been able to deliver in terms of actual quality. It’s like they know we’ll watch for $9.99, so why bother building it properly? I except a bunch of solid matches and an overall enjoyable show, but I’m not really hyped about it.

MIke Hammerlock – My interest level for this PPV is a 2: This is what? The second most important WWE big event that’s going to happen in the next two weeks? Sounds about right. This has turned into a set up for Elimination Chamber. That’s not the worst thing, but it carries the potential of turning Payback into what Extreme Rules was, a slightly wrestling-heavy episode of Raw. Raw could stand to be that, but I think the WWE should want more from its monthly events. As always, the WWE has talent. There should be some good matches here, but the dreary run up to this event makes it hard to get enthusiastic about it. Payback doesn’t feel like a high stakes card. Instead it feels like we’re marking time.

Wyatt Beougher – My interest level for this PPV is a 4: It’s awful that I’m more excited for Payback than I am for Wrestlemania, especially because I tend to believe that anything important that’s going to happen this month is going to happen at Elimination Chamber. That said, on paper, this looks like it should be one of the best-wrestled cards in WWE’s recent history, and sometimes, that’s enough to get me excited for an event. Hopefully it doesn’t end up with a bunch of RAW distraction finishes and nonsense non-finishes.

Gary Vaughan: My interest in this PPV is a 3: Most of the matches on this card are revisits. So, their is nothing too big to get excited about. What will be most interesting is the progression of these storylines. Hopefully, we get some outstanding matches with the stories.

Sean Garmer: My interest in this is a 3: The match is full of rematches, but it doesn’t mean they will be bad. I would fully expect that there will be plenty of good action here. However, this is one of those PPV’s that I will have to just enjoy and hope it is good when its over.

Well, that is all for this month everyone. Don’t forget to leave us your thoughts and predictions below in the comments and we will see you again in a few weeks for Elimination Chamber.

Remember to join 411 for our LIVE PPV coverage, starting at 7:30pm ET Sunday night.