wrestling / Columns

411’s WWE Elimination Chamber Roundtable Preview

May 31, 2015 | Posted by Sean Garmer

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Introduction

In a surprise move, WWE announced a few weeks ago that they would be doing a WWE Network Special PPV. WWE decided to bring back the Elimination Chamber and not only include one match inside the demonic structure, but two title matches. One of them being a first time ever Tag Team Elimination Chamber match. There’s not only that, but Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins meet for the WWE World Championship, Nikki defends her Divas Title against both Naomi and Paige, and Kevin Owens makes his WWE main roster debut against John Cena. So, what’s going to happen when WWE presents the Elimination Chamber live at 8ET/5p on PPV and the WWE Network? Let’s go ahead and find out what the 411 staff think could happen.

The Staff

Kevin Pantoja, WWE NXT Reporter, Wrestling Video Reviewer

Eric Palmer, WWE SmackDown Reporter

Michael Weyer, Shining a Spotlight

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

Mike Hammerlock, The Wrestling Zone 8-Ball

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,

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Neville vs. Bo Dallas
Singles Match

Kevin Pantoja: A few weeks ago on Smackdown, Neville squashed Bo Dallas in like two minutes. Why should I think Dallas is any sort of threat to him on Pay-Per-View? I like Bo and have enjoyed the leg work in the build, but this is an easy win for Neville. I do hope that if Rusev is unfortunately out of action, this becomes a situation where the winner gets into the Chamber. Neville via Red Arrow.

Winner: Neville

Eric Palmer: I’m still not sure why this is a match that’s actually happening, but here it is. I’d like to see Bo go over and use the injured knee/leg as an excuse, but I’m sure Neville will pick up the win.

Winner: Neville

Michael Weyer: Not as big into this one despite a fair build and would like Bo to win but see Neville getting over and more of a push. Sounds like a forgettable opener.

Winner: Neville

Wyatt Beougher: I think this is the first feud to really acknowledge characters’ history in NXT, and it’s appropriate, since they headlined the first NXT live special on the WWE Network. Dallas and Neville have decent chemistry in the ring, and while they won’t have the benefit of a ladder this time around, this should be a fun little match that I’m guessing will either be on the pre-show or open the main card. Bo has attacked Neville in back-to-back weeks, so the traditional booking would be for Neville to win here, but I’m guessing they stretch this feud out for at least one more Live Special, so I’m picking Bo to win.

Winner: Bo Dallas (Bodog)

Mike Hammerlock: Once upon a time beating Bo Dallas was Neville’s top-of-resume accomplishment. Now poor Bo is nothing more than a detour on Neville’s road to bigger and better things in the WWE. Seeing that they’ve got some time to play with here, they could stand to stage a competitive match here. It would give Bo some dignity and help establish Neville as a reliably hot match.

Winner: Neville

Gary Vaughan Do not adjust your Network stream, you are not watching an NXT rerun. These two talents have battled before, so I would assume their match should be smooth & high energy. Bo Dallas will pull out all the stops to win, but Neville will overcome it all in victory.

Winner: Neville

Sean Garmer I’ve liked the build up to this, but due to Neville squashing Bo Dallas so quickly a few weeks ago. I just have this feeling that perhaps there’s something more to this. I subscribe to that rumor that Bo Dallas could join his brother and reform the Wyatt Family. Perhaps Neville wins, but we get a tease of it, with Rowan and Harper coming out afterwards to beat up Neville. I just don’t think Vince wants to bring back Bo Dallas to rekindle an old NXT feud. There has to be something else to this and I really hope there is because Bo needs some help.

Winner: Neville (After Red Arrow)

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(Champions) New Day vs. Cesaro & Kidd vs. The Ascension vs. Los Matadores vs. Primetime Players vs. Lucha Dragons
WWE Tag Team Championship Elimination Chamber Match

Kevin Pantoja: I really wish that we got qualifying matches or something here. It’s better than just randomly picking teams. Let’s get the obvious out of the way here. Los Matadores isn’t winning. Honestly, the Ascension won’t either since they’ve been booked like shit on the main roster. The Prime Time Players are very entertaining, but I see them losing here. Maybe they can capture the titles down the line, but right now, it’s not their time. That leaves the three most impressive teams in the division. I love Tyson Kidd and Cesaro so much and they are the best tag team in the company, but they aren’t winning the titles back yet. The Lucha Dragons are kind of the popular pick. The hot new team that already has the crowd behind them and can do some insane things in the Chamber. Even with all of that, I see New Day retaining. They have been gold since winning the belts and I want that to continue. They will use underhanded tactics to steal this thing and surprise many by retaining.

Winner: The New Day

Eric Palmer: I like the idea of the tag team Chamber match to try and boost the division, but I hate that they put Harper and Rowan together just in time to NOT be in this match. Unless they attack PTP or the Lucha Dragons during their entrances, it just makes no sense. I would like to see the Lucha Dragons come away with the victory here, but I’m pretty sure New Day is gonna retain via some sort of shenanigans.

Winner: The New Day

Michael Weyer: I have to admit, the idea of all those guys in the Chamber should be a damn cool visual so that alone makes this worth watching. Sure, it seems just “throw a lot of guys in there” but it shows the tag scene is a bit better than in the past and that should pay off here. Los Matadores aren’t winning and unsure about the Dragons either. The Ascension could get the push but WWE has been bungling their jump to the big time already, I don’t see that changing here. Of the other two challengers, Cesaro and Kidd are a great team but these things do sometimes favor the champion going in. And the fact is, the New Day have become a highlight with their fun heel gimmick and getting the crowds behind them so taking the belts off so soon doesn’t make sense. Nope, it’ll be wild but in the end, the New Day uses some trickery to retain and set off a celebration the fans will love to hate.

Winners and STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: The New Day

Wyatt Beougher: I feel like a person in an abusive relationship as it pertains to this match. This is WWE essentially asking me to take them back by promising that the tag team division is going to matter and dangling this awesome match in front of me to get me to believe them. So I’m all excited, because while the line-up maybe isn’t the most exciting, it’s the thought that counts, right? And not only is the first-ever tag team Elimination Chamber match, it also features two teams I absolutely adore in New Day and the Uppercats. I’m also hanging onto my theory that Rowan and Harper take out either the Primetime Players or Los Matadores and take their spot in the match, and while that particular duo winning would almost rectify their series of losses to the Usos last year, I don’t think it’s going to happen. This is basically a two-team race between the suddenly-awesome New Day and the always-awesome Uppercats, and while both teams are doing phenomenal work, I think there’s still money in Cesaro and Kidd chasing New Day. To that end, Xavier Woods (or whichever member of New Days is supposed to be the odd man out) is somehow going to find his way inside the Chamber and play a role in the finish. And hey WWE, while you’re giving us cool gimmick matches for your suddenly-relevant tag team division, can we get a tag team Money in the Bank ladder match next month?

Winner and STILL WWE World Tag Team Champions: New Day (Big Ending/Top Rope Elbow combo)

Mike Hammerlock: Excited to see how a tag team EC match plays out. New Day has been a blast so far as champions. I’m guessing for a lot of people it’s a reminder of just how much ring talent Kofi and Big E have. It was sort of the same thing for Cesaro & Kidd earlier this year. The other teams aren’t slouches either, even if The Ascension, Los Matadores and the Primetime Players have no hope of winning here. This could be a tough show to steal, but I suspect we’ll be buzzing about the match after it happens.

Winner: New Day

Gary Vaughan It’s gonna be interesting to see all these tag teams paired in one pod. This match will have everything but the kitchen sink in it with all the various tag team styles in play. In the end, I see New Day retaining their tag titles in a blockbuster match.

Winner: New Day

Sean Garmer: I have high hopes for this match because a lot of the teams in here can work and there is just going to be a “wow factor” with the possibility of 12 guys all being active at once. I know there are those under this belief that because this is some huge match for the tag division, it should start a new era with first-time champions. However, I think those people forget that WWE is trying to establish this division again and also make sure the New Day continue their upward trajectory as well. So, New Day will find a way, probably through Xavier Woods, to add the third man into the match and use that to get a win.

Winners AND STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: New Day (Some kind of tag finish with Cesaro and Kidd being the final team)

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(Champion) Nikki Bella w/ Brie vs. Paige vs. Naomi w/ Tamina
WWE Divas Championship Match

Kevin Pantoja: Nikki Bella has been really good in 2015. Her chemistry with Paige has produced some good matches but her match with Naomi at Extreme Rules was lackluster. I honestly don’t want to see her reign end here. Naomi isn’t good enough to be deserving of ending Nikki’s reign and, while I’d love Paige to get an extended run with the belt, I just don’t see it. Honestly, Charlotte should get called up and be the one to overthrow Nikki. That would have worked great if Nikki was still a heel. But she has turned face for no real reason. I don’t understand the main roster sometimes. Anyway, while I don’t think she deserves it, I sense Naomi wins.

Winner: Naomi

Eric Palmer: Naomi has been horrible in her heel turn. She’s had one decent promo and a bunch of sloppy matches, but sadly, she’s probably picking up the win here. Nikki and Paige have shown they can work very well together, as seen on Main Event earlier this year and a few matches they had last year as well, including another Triple Threat with AJ Lee. I do not have high hopes for this match, as mentioned, Naomi is extremely sloppy in the ring.

Winner: Naomi

Michael Weyer: Nikki is winning over more as the champion, improving in the ring while Paige is a great worker too. Sadly, it seems Naomi is getting the bigger push despite not showing as much skill as other NXT ladies. These things favor the champion but in the end I see Naomi getting the fluke pinfall off another move to get the belt. But man, I wish they’d just call up Charlotte already.

Winner and NEW Divas Champion: Naomi

Wyatt Beougher: Paige is back from making a crappy Christmas movie and should be around for the foreseeable future, Naomi is absolutely killing it in terms of being a logical and reasonable person (nearly unheard of in the Divas division), and Nikki has the conspiracy theorists on her side who believe that she’s going to hold the belt longer than AJ did, just to erase her from the record books as the longest-reigning Divas champion. I’m fairly confident that since WWE had the opportunity to do that same thing with Punk’s record when Lesnar re-signed and opted not to do so, that this match is actually up for grabs, but hey, stranger things have happened I suppose. As for the match itself, you’ve got Paige, a great worker, Nikki, who has turned into a great worker, and Naomi, who isn’t a great worker but is athletic enough to compensate for her shortcomings, so my only hope is that they don’t do the tired WWE triple threat formula, where each person in the match takes turns laying around while the other two wrestle. This match could be SO GOOD, you guys, but WWE actually needs to cut these women loose a bit. Hopefully the spectacular match between Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch from Unstoppable last week, and the hugely positive reception that it received, is enough of a motivator for Vince to just let them do their thing and actually put on a fun match. My heart says Paige wins this and moves into a program with Naomi while Nikki starts building towards a match with Stephanie McMahon at Summerslam (where Brie turns on her and we start the whole process over again), but my head says Nikki has done a good enough job as champion that they let her keep the strap at least another month.

Winner and STILL WWE Divas Champion: Nikki Bella (Rack Attack)

Mike Hammerlock: Nikki, Paige and AJ staged a good triple threat title match at Night of Champions last year. One of the high points of that card in fact. No reason we can’t see similar quality here with Naomi’s acrobatics thrown into the mix. After the gem that Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch put on during NXT Unstoppable, you’d think WWE would want to send the message that the women on the senior roster a pretty good too. They certainly shouldn’t be squeezed for time here. Seeing that Naomi’s lost seven televised Divas Championship matches during her career, she kind of needs a win here. Plus, she’s done nice work during her recent push. Time to put her over.

Winner: Naomi

Gary Vaughan The divas division has been less than half entertaining for too long. I don’t believe that this match will turn that around, but it should be a good match none the less. Page is just returning, so she is not ready to hold the belt just yet. Naomi is due her opportunity & I believe Tamina will help her score her first butterfly belt..

Winner: Naomi

Sean Garmer: As everyone has mentioned, there is a chance that this winds up being a good match. As long as WWE doesn’t decide to add some filler matches to the card, the ladies should be given time to do some work here. I think Tamina being around gives both Nikki and Paige an out and she distracts to help Naomi get a outta nowhere rear view on Nikki. I’d imagine we could see these three again at Money in the Bank and then Naomi and Paige go into a continued program on their own.

Winner AND NEW DIVAS CHAMPION: Naomi (After Tamina distracts and Naomi hits a Rear View on Nikki)

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King Barrett vs. RyBack vs. Rusev vs. Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth
WWE Intercontinental Championship Elimination Chamber Match

Kevin Pantoja: Seriously, who keeps putting R-Truth in these things? Also, with the new reports that Rusev may be injured, I wonder what they’re going to do here. Regardless, I don’t see Rusev, Truth or Dolph Ziggler winning. Truth for obvious reasons and Dolph or Rusev because I see them feuding on their own after this. King Barrett is already King and a five time Intercontinental Champion so I doubt that happens. Part of me would be okay with seeing Ryback as the champion because he has to be the most over guy to not hold any sort of title in recent memory. You know who that leaves don’t you? Sheamus. First of all, Sheamus has won a ton in his career. US Title, WWE Title, World Heavyweight Title, Royal Rumble and King of the Ring. I sense he adds IC Title to that list and why not? The dude has been great since the heel turn.

Winner: Sheamus

Eric Palmer: I’ve been a fan of Sheamus for a while, and his new heel turn started out fine, but I’m bored with it now. He wrestles the same guys the same way and cuts the same promos, but at least here it’s an environment that gives him something different. Aside from the obviously favorited R-Truth, I think Sheamus is the one to take this. Barrett has been booked like absolute garbage since winning King of the Ring, Ryback is terrible and Rusev is apparently hurt. Sheamus is an obvious choice here for me in what should be at least an entertaining match.

Winner: Sheamus

Michael Weyer: Last I heard, Rusev was still iffy and his injury should slow him down. Still, it’s a great mix of guys who should combine into a fun battle as they’ll be out to steal the show. Ziggler and Barrett have proven themselves as champs in the past so either would be a good winner although WWE may want to give RyBack something as a new push. However, I see Sheamus taking it, IC belt is one he hasn’t worn yet and he has been fun as a champion in the past with his new heel push giving him more of an edge. It’ll be wild but in the end, the Celtic Warrior adds some gold to his new look.

Winner and NEW IC Champion: Sheamus

Wyatt Beougher: Well, Barrett won King of the Ring earlier this month and that in theory would’ve given him momentum going into this match, but approximately eight seconds after his coronation, he immediately defaulted to his Intercontinental Champion stat level, meaning he’s one of the easiest guys to beat on the entire roster. Sheamus is always a guy who could win a match like this for a secondary title, but I think it’s far more likely that he and Ziggler end up getting each other eliminated to continue their feud. R-Truth at this point might as well be Token from South Park, as he’s just there so that they have a minority presence in the match. Rusev is supposedly legitimately injured coming out of Smackdown, and it’s unfortunate that they’ve already acknowledged his injury on WWE.com, because they could’ve gone the Itami route from NXT and had someone “injure” him on-camera in order to earn a spot in the match. In theory, they could still do that, and the most likely suspect to replace him (even if they don’t do the injury angle) at this point is Bray Wyatt. He’s feuding with Ryback, another competitor in the match, and the Elimination Chamber is absolutely the kind of cage match Bray should be in – there’s no escape, and it’s billed as a life-changing, career-shortening monstrosity, which is right up Bray’s alley. Imagine how awesome it would be if the match started with only five guys and an empty pod, and then when the last pod was due to open, the lights went out and came back up to reveal Bray in the now-open pod. If he does enter the match, I’d prefer to see him not attempt a single pin and just create chaos, perhaps even destroying another competitor (Truth?) to the point where they can’t continue the match, which would then cause the remaining competitors to have to work together to eliminate him. And Ryback is essentially an afterthought at this point, especially if he is nursing a rib injury. So who wins? I’m thinking either Barrett or Sheamus, and since I still think Sheamus and Dolph are going to cause one another to get eliminated, that leaves Barrett. Unfortunately, that means his forecast is six more weeks of jobbing.

Winner and NEW WWE Intercontinental Champion: King Barrett (Royal Bullhammer)

Mike Hammerlock: The cat may have gotten out to the bag about who’s winning this one. I’d be fine with most any outcome, though R-Truth would be a confusing choice and Rusev would make it look like the IC title is now the U.S. title’s bitch (seeing that he’s been squished under the boot of John Cena the past three months). Ziggler probably would garner the most over crowd reaction, and that could be a factor since I expect it to be a big night for heels. Ryback really needs to win belt (never done it). He’d provide some feel-good too. Barrett’s been a terrible IC champion multiple times in the past, but maybe now that he’s King that means he wouldn’t be a jobber champion this time around. However, rumor has it Sheamus is winning the day. Nothing wrong with that. He’s a quality worker and he’s got some momentum now that he’s a heel again.

Winner: Sheamus

Gary Vaughan Watch out for a hard hitting blood thirsty fight in the chamber in this bout. With all the big hitters like Sheamus and Rusev in this match, I expect guys like Ziggler will be punished and will have to deal it out by using the chamber for an advantage. Sheamus is my pick to win only because it just feels right.

Winner: Sheamus

Sean Garmer: Who knows what could happen here as both Rusev and RyBack now have an injury. Could we see one or both guys get replaced before this all starts? I think Rusev still makes it into the match with Ziggler maybe eliminating him and then coming back to take out Dolph. King Barret is well, King, so he’s not winning this either. It comes down to Sheamus and RyBack. RyBack’s injury will play a role and Sheamus gets the victory and becomes IC Champion.

Winner AND NEW INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION: Sheamus (After a Brogue Kick to RyBack)

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John Cena vs. Kevin Owens
Singles Match

Kevin Pantoja: Despite a Rollins/Ambrose match and two Elimination Chambers, there is nothing on this card more intriguing than this. For two weeks so far, Kevin Owens has looked legit in the eyes of main roster viewers. However, kicking John Cena’s ass leading into a Pay-Per-View doesn’t bode well for a new talent. Hell, just facing Cena on Pay-Per-View doesn’t usually bode well. I’m not a Cena hater but just look at Rusev, Bray Wyatt, Wade Barrett, etc. Who knows, maybe we get a Punk or Bryan situation here and Cena loses. Honestly though, I don’t think that’s the best move just yet. Cena is the US Champion and shouldn’t lose, while Owens is the new guy and NXT Champion, so he shouldn’t lose. I think Owens hits the apron powerbomb or this ends in some sort of disqualification.

Winner: John Cena via disqualification

Eric Palmer: Like Kevin said, this is easily the most interesting match on the card, and also the most unpredictable. I think if they had Cena’s United States Championship on the line, then Cena would win, but it’s not, so I’m having a harder time picking a winner. I love what Cena has been doing with the US Open Challenge, and I would love to see him get upstaged here by Owens, but I can see this being a feud WWE books into Summerslam, so I don’t think there’s going to be a clean winner in this bout. I think Owens gets himself DQ’d.

Winner: John Cena

Michael Weyer: Probably the most anticipated match on the show. Owens has been made a true bad-ass by WWE in his RAW appearances, boosting himself and the NXT title while Cena is…well, Cena. The match should be great, Cena brings it to big battles and should be more than ready to handle Owens, who’s going to take advantage to boost himself up big time. The result is what matters and while logic dictates Owens goes over, this is Cena and we know how logic fails WWE when it comes to him. Owens will do his best but Cena pulls off the “miracle win” but hopefully still a good rub for Kevin in the process.

Winner John Cena

Wyatt Beougher: This is the match that I’m the most afraid of. Cena’s history with up-and-coming stars and the fact that Owens has gotten over on Cena every time they’ve crossed paths leads me to believe that Cena is going to kill his momentum dead in this match, but the fact that it’s non-title gives me some hope. One of wrestling’s most well-worn tropes has been a non-title match like this where the champion loses to set up an eventual title match, but that kind of booking has fallen by the wayside in WWE in recent years (save for the Intercontinental champion, who loses approximately 8 non-title matches a month, only to win the title match at the PPV, which gets neither the champion nor the challenger over), plus it’s Cena, who overcomes all odds and never gives up. Ideally, this match would be Owens’ coming out party for his transition to the main roster, but with his match against Finn Balor still likely the better part of three months away, I’m hoping the goal is to keep him strong on the main roster at least until after he’s lost his NXT title. Still, though, Owens has arguably looked better than any NXT call-up perhaps ever in his interactions with Cena, so I have some hope that this isn’t going to be another burial a la Bray Wyatt or Rusev. There’s no way Owens pop-up powerbombs Cena into oblivion like he’s done to Sami Zayn twice now, but in both of those matches, Zayn was controlling the match until Owens capitalized on a mistake by the fired-up Zayn. That could easily translate to this match, perhaps with Owens countering a Cenacanrana into the Lights Out. Regardless of how it plays out or what issues people have with Cena’s booking and character, he’s a solid hand in the ring and this should be a very, very solid match. Since I picked the Divas Championship match with my brain, I’m going with my heart on this one.

Winner: Kevin Owens (Lights Out Pop-Up Powerbomb)

Mike Hammerlock: Only a fool picks against John Cena at a PPV. Well, I’m a fool this time around. I find it difficult to believe the E would squander the momentum it’s built up the past two weeks with Owens stepping up to Cena by having Cena beat the new guy out of the box (and without either of their belts on the line). It would be cool if they added a stip where the loser has to forfeit his belt. Won’t happen, but I’d like champions to have to win at big events. I’m pro-consequences. This one strikes me as an anything can happen match. Cena’s faced two former NXT champs (Neville and Sami Zayn) in his open challenges for the U.S. Championship. We may be starting on a bit of a theme here. I’m highly interested in seeing WWE vs. NXT come to fruition and this could be where it kicks off.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Gary Vaughan This is the match I can hardly wait to see. Cena has been great working with young talent; while putting on some of RAW’s best matches. Owens is doing well himself in his brief time in NXT. Look for Owens to find a way to not lose & that means he will have a great fight he will just walk away from.

Winner: No Finish

Sean Garmer: Kevin Owens signing a WWE contract has kind of put a wrench in things because I guess he could conceivably win here and setup something in the future with Cena. Before the news of this contract, I figured Samoa Joe could show up and distract Owens and it leads to Cena winning. I mean I guess we could still see this end by DQ as well. I’ll go with that. John Cena and Owens have a great match, but Owens gets frustrated and attacks Cena with a chair.

Winner: John Cena (via DQ)

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(Champion) Seth Rollins w/ J & J Security vs. Dean Ambrose
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match

Kevin Pantoja: When I first heard that the Intercontinental Title would be decided in the Elimination Chamber, I wanted that to main event this show. However, knowing now that the title match it between Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, I’m all for this closing things out. They showed at SummerSlam, Hell in a Cell and every televised match they’ve had, that they can deliver. Their chemistry is off the charts and I’m sure this will be another great match. Considering this show was a late addition and considering I don’t think the WWE is ready to strap the rocket onto Dean, Seth retains here. I actually don’t see him dropping the belt until at least SummerSlam.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Eric Palmer: These guys always deliver when they’re in the ring, and I don’t expect this one to be any different. This should be a solid main event, and I would love to see Ambrose pull the upset, but there’s no way in hell they put the strap on him just yet.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Michael Weyer: The build to this has been better than expected and we should be in for a fun battle. These guys know each other inside and out and should be more than able to give us a great main event with plenty of hard shots, hard hits and more to enjoy. Ambrose is hot but just not ready yet as plenty more to use with Rollins as the heel champion and he should show that off here. Expect interference from the Authority to cost Ambrose and Roman getting involved as well to allow Rollins to retain and set up more wild antics down the road.

Winner and STILL WWE World Champion: Seth Rollins

Wyatt Beougher: It’s crazy that Dean Ambrose, WWE’s erstwhile Bugs Bunny, is headlining two PPVs in a row, but I’m not going to complain about a WWE pay-per-view in 2015 being headlined by Tyler Black vs Jon Moxley, no matter how much I dislike Ambrose’s booking since the conclusion of the his feud with Rollins last year. While I think there’s approximately a 0.00% chance that Ambrose wins this match, and a 99.99% chance that it’s overbooked and features mid-match interference from J&J and possibly Kane, Rollins will still pick up a relatively clean pinfall win here to set up Ambrose winning Money in the Bank.

Winner and STILL WWE World Heavyweight Champion: Seth Rollins (Pedigree)

Mike Hammerlock: The big question here is how egregious will the overbooking be? J&J, Kane and Roman Reigns are pretty much guaranteed to get involved here. Too bad, because a straight up Rollins-Ambrose match could push ***** territory. I don’t know why they didn’t let them do it last year, I don’t expect it this time around, but I’m prepared to mark out if it happens. Just let the hypertalented wrestlers do their thing.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Gary Vaughan As much fun as it would be to see Ambrose win WWE’s world title, we all know this is not the right time. The Authority will keep Ambrose busy all match long; even if Roman Reigns comes to save the day. Rollins will retain in a hard fought battle.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Sean Garmer: I really hope WWE let’s them have a match and don’t just overbook this ridiculously from the start. I mean, we all know there will be interference because it is Rollins and that means Reigns will get involved too. There are some scenarios that could happen that would make this crazy, like possibly a Reigns heel turn, but I have a feeling everyone is gonna do something and it will allow Rollins to sneak out a win with a Pedigree.

Winner AND STILL WWE INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION: Seth Rollins (Via Pedigree)

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

Kevin Pantoja: My interest level for this PPV is a 4: Is it weird that I’m more excited for this show than any other main roster PPV this year? Yes, including WrestleMania. Granted, Mania ended up delivering, but I an looking forward to this. The two Chamber matches should be a blast and Owens/Cena has a special feeling to it. Seth and Dean always put on a great show, meaning that we could be treated to four really good matches.

Eric Palmer: My interest level for this PPV is a 3: I’m looking forward to it more than I was the last few Pay Per Views for sure, but there’s still not a whole lot outside of Cena/Owens and the tag chamber for me. Rollins/Ambrose will be fun, but it’s just too obvious of an outcome for me to really get excited for it. With that said, I think it will be a very solid show.

Michael Weyer: My interest level for this PPV is a 4: The Cena/Owens match should be really terrific and push Owens more. The tag team match will be a good spectacle and the IC bout looks pretty promising as well. The main event should be a wild brawl to push Rollins as the heel champ to enjoy and even the Divas doesn’t look too terrible. Overall, one of the better shows of the year for the Chamber and other bouts so definitely one to check out for sure.

Wyatt Beougher: My interest level for this PPV is a 5: Even if the rest of the card was garbage, the tag team Elimination Chamber match would be enough for me to be excited about this show. Thankfully, it’s a very solid card, with the only match I’m truly worried about being the non-title match between John Cena and Kevin Owens. And if Cena does stunt Owens’ main roster momentum, it should still be a solidly wrestled match, which is about all you can hope for from a Cena match at this point in time. Rusev’s injury adds a lot of intrigue to the Intercontinental title match, Rollins and Ambrose should be fun, and even the Divas matches and Neville/Dallas should be good. Payback was a good if predictable show, but I think Elimination Chamber is going to surpass it for second-best Live Special this month (after Unstoppable).

Mike Hammerlock: My interest level for this PPV is a 3.5: The WWE’s gotten more right with this short build than its five other 2015 big events. Maybe it’s because they didn’t have enough time to lose the plot. We’re thankfully past Cena’s slow, painful burial of Rusev. That was getting hard to watch. I’m hopeful this proto-feud with Owens is headed somewhere. We’re getting a different kind EC card this year, with the Intercontinental and Tag Team titles on the line in the signature match. Rollins vs. Ambrose drips with potential. Wish I believed they could resist the temptation to overbook things. However, this could be a fun night of wrestling.

Gary Vaughan: My interest in this PPV is a 4 i actually have a ton of confidence that we will get a top tier show. The card looks good and we know the card being short means it’s not watered down. Cena and Owens alone gets me excited about it alone.

Sean Garmer: My interest level in this PPV is a 5 I’m interested in everything on this card. Most of it is for potential of things that could happen. But you have four terrific matches here and I don’t think anything is gonna disappoint here.

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 Money in the Bank.

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article topics :

Elimination Chamber, WWE, Sean Garmer