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The 411 Wrestling Top 5: The Top 5 Predictions For 2015
The 411 Wrestling Top 5: Hello everyone and welcome to 411 Wrestling’s Top 5 List. We take a topic each week and all the writers here on 411 wrestling will have the ability to participate and give us their Top 5 on said topic. So, onto this week’s topic…
Week 294 – The Top 5 Predictions For 2015
The 411 staff shares some predictions for the year 2015…
JUSTIN WATRY
5. TNA Continues To Be TNA – No explanation needed.
4. TNA Star Makes Their WWE DEBUT – For years, WWE has looked everywhere for wrestlers. From Japan to Mexico to the indy scene to Ring of Honor to even athletes with very little in-ring experience, the company absolutely has a ton of variety on their roster. Yet, they have rarely dabbled into plucking TNA talent. I mean, if we are being honest, if WWE truly wanted Bobby Roode or James Storm or Samoa Joe or AJ Styles in the past few years, they would have dropped a big dollar offer and signed them in heartbeat. Yet…nothing. In 2015, I think WWE finally changes things a little. No, I do not mean Sting, Hulk Hogan, Booker T, Kevin Nash, or a legend already well known. That does not count! I mean a new/young star that WWE ‘steals’ from TNA. Whether it is Tigre Uno, Magnus, or whoever, somebody from TNA makes their WWE debut in 2015…
3. WWE Network Continues To Struggle Financially BUT Also Continues To Be Awesome – When the WWE Network launched in early 2014, the company made it clear they wanted one million subscribers after year one. As I write this, they are 75% of the way to their goal with a few months to go AND a UK launch still to come. Heck, by WrestleMania 31, WWE could definitely pass the beloved one million mark. Not a total bust as some will claim – still too early to call it. Certainly within reach of their target is not a bad thing for a new upstart project. Still, million of dollars were lost in 2014 due to the WWE Network start up costs. Like any long-term project, that was a given. Nobody should be baffled by it losing money to start; all companies do when beginning. The assumption is to take a short-term hit but benefit in the long-term. Will that ever come? I have no idea…in the mean time, I am going to continuing enjoying the WWE Network. For the ridiculously low $9.99 price tag, the value is just too much to pass up.
2. No Undertaker Match – I have seen the pictures of The Undertaker, just like everybody else. Truth be told, it is more than that. For the past few years, there has only been two opponents left I cared to see take on The Dead Man. One was Brock Lesnar. The other was John Cena. We saw Brock/Taker in 2014. Now it is time for the last remaining ‘dream match’ for Taker to have. We have seen Taker vs. Cena in the past but not when they were big time names, especially at a pay-per-view event like WrestleMania. With Taker being in his current state and with The Streak gone, there is no reason for him to compete at WM31. Maybe he can raise the hand of Bray Wyatt or give him his “powers” or something? Maybe he can have that magical stare down with Sting following his likely match against Triple H? Regardless, I do not see Taker wrestling this year, and if he is not 100% retired already, then his final bout would be in Dallas in 2016 in front of a record breaking 100,000 fans with a year long build.
1. Sting Wrestles For WWE – The Undertaker does not wrestle in 2015, but Sting does. For WWE. At WrestleMania. Finally! WWE could even add in the inevitable Hall of Fame induction as well. Regardless, the dream becomes a reality. Fantasy becomes fact in 2015 when Sting wrestle inside a WWE ring and does so at the biggest event of the year. Logic says it is going to versus Triple H (yes, Sting will win), and I am perfectly fine with that. Great heel and great person to lead him through the squared circle for 20 minutes on the grand stage. No split crowd. No confusion. Every single person in the arena and watching at home will be rooting Sting on, and it is well deserved. Will be an epic “WrestleMania Moment” and really is going to be the icing on the cake for Sting and his legacy.
Scott Rutherford
5. NJPW Gains As Foothold In America – Puro has always had a small but loyal fanbase in the U.S but no matter the quality of the wrestling, it never really got a hold of the general wrestling public. Thanks to the new deal with GFW that will distribute NJPW PPV’s in the U.S and most importantly with English commentary from the best in the business Jim Ross, there’s a very real chance this will draw a new crowd. Add to that the launch of NJPW very own online network that will have all current TV and PPV’s, there’s now very little excuse for people to not watch. Will they explode in the U.S? Not really. But given the right exposure and promotion I can see them easily matching up to TNA thanks to the quality of the wrestling and the smarts of the booking.
4. Vince McMahon Concedes Control Of RAW and Smackdown to HHH. – Truthfully I’m 50/50 on this one. There’s no denying that the HHH controlled NXT is vastly superior to the main roster at this point. With the need to drive up network subscriptions, the WWE needs to again make RAW destination programming at the very least and the monthly PPV specials the booking pinnacle. The CM Punk issues have highlighted that HHH does have a heavy bias or outright dislike of some guys and there’s been concern about how HHH will treat certain talents once he does take control. Well, that’s about par of the course for wrestling when a new head booker takes over, isn’t it? They get rid of the old talent they don’t like and bring in their own guys. In case people haven’t noticed, HHH has been stacking developmental with “his guys” for the past couple of years. The recent NXT special was dominated by Kevin Steen, KENTA, El Generico, Prince Devitt and PAC. All are massive stars in wrestling outside of the WWE system and all with experience and talent to burn. They’re all talents brought in by HHH. If he’s in charge of RAW and SD you can bet we’ll see the other end of a bunch of guys as they’re jobbed out to his new crew. If Vince is still in charge when they’re brought up, HHH will be able to do very little if McMahon or Kevin Dunn don’t like them. Obviously HHH has a plan for the future and the sooner he takes over the quicker we can make the product at least fresh again and hopefully more exciting.
3. More WWE Talent Leaves To Try MMA – Word in the ‘hood is that Dana White is looking to make the UFC a bit more “pro-wrestling” and CM Punk may not be the last shock signing. The recent success of the Bonner/Ortiz wrestling-style angle in Bellator has opened up a fair few eyes and since UFC is in a slump, bringing in guys that know how to promote themselves and a fight is not the dumbest move in the world. I wouldn’t suggest signing any guy with a pro-wrestling background, but a guy like Dolph Ziggler, who was a stand out wrestler at Kent State, is very much a believer in his abilities and can make a crowd react…might not be as silly as it sounds. The trick is not to turn it into a circus, but the right guy, with the right credentials to at least be competitive…UFC could do worse.
2. Reigns Will Get Over Or The Mid-Card Dies Trying – The reaction to Roman Reigns at TLC all but ensured that he will be “the guy” at WrestleMania 31. There has been a marked de-emphasis on John Cena for the last few months with Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Dolph Ziggler and Bray Wyatt all heavily featuring on TV and in PPV main events. There’s obviously been a step up in urgency to make Reigns a top guy and I wouldn’t put it past them to let Reigns eliminate something like 20 men from the Royal Rumble this year. Or at the very least have it set-up that he gets in the ring with about 10 other guys and just runs threw them in 3 minutes and eliminates the lot as the crowd gives mental. He’ll main event WM and he will earn an emphatic victory over either Cena or Brock Lesnar. After that he’ll run through a couple of feuds and will stay strong at least until Summerslam. He will be feed almost every viable opponent to get or keep him over. This man will only fail as a top talent if fans don’t care, and if we don’t care they ramp his push even more.
1. John Cena – Not The Only Guy In Town – As I mentioned during my last prediction, Cena has taken a step back in the WWE product in the last few months. Of course he’s still “the man” but time has been put into newer and younger talent. At the moment Cena is beat up and the date is getting much closer to where he will need to take an extended break. With the push of Roman Reigns, I think we’ll see a marked decrease in Cena being the focal point. He’ll still be around and he’ll still win, but he’ll not be main eventing post WrestleMania. If the switch between HHH and Vince does become a reality, I think you will see a series of Cena matches putting over new NXT talent. You may even see the fabled Cena heel turn. Vince McMahon is about the last person to realize that Cena on top is stale and has been for a long while. I think this year we’ll get a sea change in the booking philosophy of the WWE. Good or bad.
Kevin P
5. John Cena Ties Ric Flair – If John Cena doesn’t win the WWE Title at the Royal Rumble, I still expect him to win number 16 at some point in 2015. Now, I know that the popular opinion is that Brock Lesnar drops the belt to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania and there should be a Seth Rollins title run somewhere in there. I expect that too but I also see Cena getting some kind of reign near the end of the year, or, doing what he did this year and winning the title in case of emergency if one of those guys goes down with an injury. He’s their back up plan because he’s so durable.
4. NXT Continues to be the Best Thing About WWE – This is not me bashing the WWE in any conceivable way. I’m not the kind of guy who just badmouths everything about the product as I tend to try and enjoy myself. But, there is no way that the main roster has been better than NXT this year and I expect that trend to continue into 2015. Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Finn Balor, Hideo Itami, Tyson Kidd, Tyler Breeze, Adrian Neville and the phenomenal women of NXT are all motivated and assisted by a creative staff that books with long term ideas. Everything about NXT is well done. Even if some guys and gals are called up to the main roster, I have confidence in NXT thriving.
3. Roman Reigns Struggles at the Top; WWE Doesn’t Care – If Roman Reigns does in fact win the WWE World Title at WrestleMania or some point this year, I don’t expect him to light the world on fire. This is not hate on Reigns as I think he does have a ton of potential, I just think he’s not ready at this time. By WrestleMania 32? Sure. But, the WWE doesn’t have that luxury of waiting. I see him winning and getting a John Cena like reaction. Women and children will love him, but the men will give him a negative reaction as he’s still lacking in the wrestling, promo work and acting department. Even if he proves to be pretty good at those things, I still see the fans being negative. Just like with Cena, the WWE won’t care and Roman will still be booked as the new man in the company.
2. Triple H Continues to be Best for Business; Vince McMahon Stays in Control – Triple H has shown that he knows what’s best for business with the NXT brand. I think the WWE will be in better shape if he officially takes over. Between him, Vince and Stephanie, it seems that he has the best head on his shoulders for what will make a good product. Regardless, I feel like Vince McMahon won’t leave his throne until death. It isn’t what is best for business, but it is what I expect to see happen.
1. Someone from NXT Gets Called Up and Wins WWE World Title by Year’s End – Here’s the bold prediction. I MUCH prefer this to my number five prediction. With no injuries, I can see the belt going from Brock to Roman to Seth and either back to Roman or shockingly to an NXT talent. I see this being either Finn Balor or Kevin Owens. Again, this is not a prediction I expect happening, but it’s my fun and shocking prediction. It would be fantastic to see this as I’m a 100% supporter of NXT. This would be an incredible thing to see. I don’t expect Balor to be in developmental that long since he has the “it” factor. He could make the main roster and connect with the audience quickly, vaulting him to the top of the card.
Mike Hammerlock
5. The WWE loses money again – I maintain there is a very simple reason why the WWE Network already hasn’t topped a million subscribers, because the WWE sucks these days. Not since Diesel was the WWE champion has the creative product been this terrible. The company ought to be paying people to watch it. No reason to think Vince McMahon will be making any major creative modifications until the fiscal pain becomes severe. Through three fiscal quarters in 2014, the WWE has lost $28.5M. Apparently that wasn’t severe enough. During earnings calls, Vince and other WWE officials keep insisting a turnaround is imminent. Got a feeling the denial will continue though at least the second quarter of 2015. The WWE is so far out of touch, it’s not figuring out its problems any time soon. WWE wrestlers may not be able to bleed in the ring, but the company will continue bleeding cash.
4. WWE releases Cesaro, NJPW snatches him up – All that money the WWE will continue losing will mean more personnel cuts. Cesaro’s drifting aimlessly in the WWE and I suspect he makes more money than the company will be able to afford for someone in that position. For some guys it makes sense to hang onto that WWE gig no matter what. Not Cesaro. If he went free agent, the rest of the wrestling world would line up for his services. In 2014 AJ Styles demonstrated how cool it is when a top tier performer from a U.S. promotion mixes it up with Japan’s best. We need more of that. Cesaro against AJ, Okada and Tanahashi? Those are dream matches, the kind of thing that would make a New Japan World subscription the surprise hit of the Internet. NJPW has got to recognize Cesaro is ideal for its promotion. I’m guessing the stars align for that to happen in 2015.
3. Sting fights at WrestleMania and loses – I think we all know Sting didn’t just show up at Survivor Series for a cameo. He’s going to have a match at WrestleMania. For obvious reasons HHH seems the most likely opponent. Yet we shouldn’t rule out Undertaker, which is the supposed dream match. Personally I think it’s a bit weird to dream of two men in their 50s making theatrical entrances and then leaning on each other for 15 minutes, but who am I to judge someone else’s dream? Maybe even someone from the current roster could be drafted – Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton, Seth Rollins. The possibilities abound. Yet the prediction here is no matter the opponent, Sting loses. What?! No way Sting resists the WWE for 14 years only to lose his big debut match. That’s unthinkable. It’s a crime against humanity. Never in a million years would they do that … which is exactly why it makes sense. No one sees it coming. Sometimes wrestling promotions are supposed to blindside you, to pull the rug out from under your feet. We need our complacent faces slapped. Sting losing the match he can’t possibly lose would be the perfect way to do it.
2. Dolph Ziggler: WWE Champion – No matter how much the WWE may try to ignore it, entire arenas are uniting behind Dolph Ziggler. He’s the hottest thing going in the WWE at the moment and at some point in 2015, he’ll become the WWE champion. Dolph rapidly is transforming into the antidote for when the Roman Reigns push turns sour. The WWE will need someone the fans actually love rather than the guy it’s trying to force them to love. That will be Dolph. If the WrestleMania card looks like it’s going sideways – Dolph. If you need a hugely popular Money in the Bank winner – Dolph. If you need an underdog winner in an Elimination Chamber match – Dolph. If you want to inject instant life into the main event scene – Dolph. He’s becoming the answer to all of the WWE’s potential 2015 questions, at least the major ones.
1. John Cena finally turns heel – I suppose the Internet is full of columns where writers insisted THIS is the year where Cena finally takes a heel turn. There’s one on every server. Well, I didn’t write any of those. This is my one shot at making the Cena heel prediction and I’m picking 2015. Why? Look at #5 above. If I’m right about that one, business as usual will have to change. And nothing is more business-as-usual than John Cena being a friend to all children (kind of like Gamera or Michael Jackson). There’s nWo money in Cena going bad. People will tune in to see John Cena doing dastardly deeds. He’s got 13 years of pent up aggression to work out of his system. Imagine how much the fans will love the faces who rise up to beat on evil John Cena. He really does have the power to unite people, just not the way Vince McMahon imagines it. Plus, I think we all know Cena’s bringing back the Authority at some point. No way that stipulation won’t be used. Rather than trying to shoehorn sympathy no one actually has for poor John Cena into that storyline, they ought to make it into Cena’s deal with the devil. Hey, maybe John Cena beats Sting at WrestleMania. Now that could stoke some quality hatred.
List your Top Five for this week’s topic in the comment section using the following format:
5. CHOICE: Explanation
4. CHOICE: Explanation
3. CHOICE: Explanation
2. CHOICE: Explanation
1. CHOICE: Explanation
