411 PPV Roundtable Preview: WWE Royal Rumble 2007

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the 411 PPV Roundtable. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover, so let’s get right into it. First off, read Hayhurst’s PPV preview column for all sorts of information about this year’s Rumble card. Next, here’s a roll call of the contributing staff.

Stephen Randle, The Wrestling News Experience

Mark Sakamano, Reliving The Past

Daniel Wilcox, Schmozzes and Screwjobs

John Gregory, Death By Midwest

Larry Csonka, the Boss of all things

Ari Berenstein, Column of Honor

Neil Borenstein, 411 Sports’ Inside The Penalty Box

Andy Clark, The Shimmy

JT, Hidden Highlights

Mathew Sforcina, Evolution Schematic

Sat, High Road/Low Road

Bayani Domingo, Truth B Told

Zac Calhoun, The Ripple Effect

Michael Bauer, ECW recapper

Brad Borchardt, Smackdown recapper

Michael Weyer, Shining A Spotlight

Stuart Carapola, Friendly Competition

Samuel Berman, The Independent Midcard

Julian Williams, The Top Ten

Brian Bayless, video reviewer

John Meehan, Meethinks

Taareq Elsokari, 411 Sports’ The Thursday Kick-Off

and Jeff Small, The Small-For-All Thursday News Report

Big turnout this time, as befits my own personal favourite PPV of all time, and one of the WWE’s Big Four. With that all said, let’s check out the staff predictions for this year’s edition of the Royal Rumble.

The Hardy Boyz vs MNM

Stephen Randle: Who’d I pick last month? The Hardyz? Okay, switch it.

Winner: MNM

Mark Sakamano: Why waste this great match on a card that may very well limit how long these two teams can go? Not to mention that 3/4 of this match is in the Rumble. The build has been pretty good, though it still goes against the “MNM together for one night” issue. Look for the losing team to get some revenge in the Rumble.

Winner: Hardyz

Daniel Wilcox: Based on the first encounter at December To Dismember, this should be MOTN, assuming it gets roughly the same time as it did last month, maybe a bit less. It probably won’t get that much, seeing as there are actually other matches on this card that matter. I can see this carrying on to WrestleMania and a big blow off, and if that’s the case, MNM should pick up the victory here via Melina shenanigans as The Hardyz got the win at D2D.

Winners: MNM

John Gregory: This match shouldn’t get a ton of time, but that’s more to save the big match between these two until Wrestlemania. MNM wins by some sort of heelish tactic, or maybe a DQ caused by a ladder attack by Mercury on Jeff to set up the stipulation.

Winner: MNM

Larry Csonka: If I heard JR right he said on Raw that this would be the final meeting between these two teams. If that is true, Mercury and Matt are screwed. Anyway, Jeff and Nitro have been bringing it consistently as have the tag teams here, so it will be a good match, possibly great if given the right time.

Winners: The Hardy Boyzzzzzzz

Ari Berenstein: I like this match for The Rumble PPV and it can work either as a blow off or a lead up to a bigger match at Wrestlemania. All four men have really proven their worth and done their hardest work in a long time during their series of singles and tag matches. I would say this match has upped each of their stocks, but I don’t have faith WWE is going to do anything more with any of these guys than put them at the level of where they are right now. All indications are that this will be a hell of a match, probably the opener, but probably the potential of stealing the show, up until the Rumble.

Winner: The Hardy Boyz

Neil Borenstein: For a somewhat lackluster card – minus the Rumble match itself, of course – a match of this caliber is pretty necessary. The fans need something to get out of their seats over before the battle royal, and this match between The Hardyz and MNM can do that. Every other match is pretty predictable and almost completely without a high-flying aspect. This one can really go either way, but since it seems that the WWE might be more inclined to give the final match of this feud to The Hardyz, I will go against the grain and pick Mercury and Nitro to be victorious.

Winners: MNM

Andy Clark: Their first match at December to Dismember was quite good, but I felt it went long just for the sake of doing so. They shouldn’t have that problem here. Unfortunately you won’t be able to please anybody with the outcome. If the Hardys win then they’ve made MNM look like their bitches. If MNM wins then it’s parity booking. I’ll go with parity booking here.

Winners: MNM

JT: You know, both teams have shown that they are capable of going. The Hardyz isn’t even a question here and MNM has shown in their resurgence that they can at the very LEAST help the Tag Team Division out. Hardyz will always bring it, Nitro has come leaps and bounds since going single, and Mercury has shown that despite the injury from the PPV, he is willing to mix it up with the big boys. I see this being a fine match, and I’m not quite sure why everyone is tired of this matchup. This is what the Hardyz did with every team in the E during the height of the TTD and I see this no different. In fact, not only do I look forward to it Sunday, but I’m hoping to see it at WM 23.

WINNER – Hardyz.

Mathew Sforcina: Sure, the Hardys won at D2D. But not a damn soul saw that, so why should it impact here?

Winners: The Hardy Boys (Nitro chair shot to Joey by mistake, leading to two splits and 4 men in the MITB match at WM disliking each other)

Sat: This will probably open the show and it will be an awesome match. The outcome will be Jeff Hardy beating Joey Mercury.

Winner: The Hardy Boyz

Bayani Domingo: Wow, is it weird that of these guys, only Joey Mercury doesn’t get another shot later in the night in the battle royal? MNM soooo needs a win here, as they could be the NEW Hardyz for the coming millennium. All they need are distinctive ring gear…oh wait… I mean a big breasted valet…oh um…I mean one of the members has to be a druggie… uh…I guess all they really need is some more merchandise.

Winner: M and N with help from M

Zac Calhoun: I was kind of hoping they would save this one for WM, now that they’ve stretched the feud out this far already. I guess they have different plans for Jeff and Nitro (and not Matt and Mercury) for the big show. As for the match, I can’t imagine the Hardys not winning, especially if this is the end of the feud. Look for Mercury to bring a rake for a little revenge on Matt’s face!

Winners: The Hardys

Michael Bauer: Well, they say this is the final encounter, which I think means Jack shit. But then again, I do think Jeff Hardy needs a new challenger heading into Wrestlemania. Ever since December 2 Dismember, The Hardyz have dominated this rivalery, winning every match (sans one Matt Hardy vs Johnny Nitro match), and I can’t see much difference here.

Winners: The Hardy Boyz

Brad Borchardt: I’m hoping they get enough time for this match and pull off another match of the night like they did at December To Dismember. Since the Hardy Boyz have basically owned this feud with the exception of a couple beat downs and Nitro over Hardy, I got to go with MNM picking up the victory and hopefully there will be a rubber match at WrestleMania. I hope Joey Mercury gets the win as he has bitched out to Matt twice and Jeff once already.

Winner: MNM

Michael Weyer: This should be a great match, although I hope the rumors aren’t true about it being the last. Cause a ladder match at Wrestlemania would be awesome. It’ll be a rough contest but I see MNM getting the win, which can push Mercury more. I tell you, get him some decent tights and music, he’d make a convincing US champion.

WINNER: MNM

Stuart Carapola: I think I heard that this is being billed as the last meeting between the two teams. Does it say anywhere that this is going to be the end of either team staying together once the feud ends, though? Either way, I think that this is the time for MNM to go over on the Hardyz, especially in light of what happened to Joey Mercury at Armageddon.

Winners: MNM

Samuel Berman: I hate when any match is billed as “the last time XXX and XXX will meet”, because all that means is that they’re going to do their best to keep the teams apart for like the next three PPVs. To be honest, if this match goes well (and there’s no real reason to think that it won’t) I WOULD want to see these teams again at Wrestlemania in a Cage Match or something similar. As for this contest, MNM has more to gain with a win, so that’s the pick.

Winner: MNM

Julian Williams: This match should be the show stealer (if given an adequate amount of time) as these two teams seem to have fantastic chemistry with one another. Since the Hardyz have pretty much dominated this feud, I’ll look for MNM to go over here to continue the feud into the granddaddy of them all. Now let’s all cross our fingers and pray to Foley for a triple threat TLC match at ‘Mania with these two teams and the Hooliganz.

Winners: MNM

Brian Bayless: seeing how this probably is the last match between the two teams, the Hardy Boyz are a lock to win. Expect Mercury to get pinned and head off to jobberville on Smackdown.

Winner: Hardy Boyz

Meehan: I suspect the rest of the night to be kind to babyfaces, so Meethinks they’re going to need to give at least ONE rule breaker a win. Should be a good match, and since they’ve sorta’ been glossing over that “last time ever” stipulation, chances are an MNM win could easily set us up for the rubber-match at ‘Mania. Unfortunately, we probably shouldn’t expect BOTH a tag TLC/ladder match AND a ladder Money In The Bank title shot on the same show. But that’s a topic for another day.

Winners: MNM

Taareq: With the Hardy’s winning at December to Dismember you would expect MNM to maybe get their win back, so therefore I do and expect to maybe see the end of this feud happen at Wrestlemania.

One thing will be for sure; this could very well be the match of the night.

Winners: MNM

Jeff Small: Can I go out on a limb and say this match will be the best Rumble opener since The Harts/Quebeecers from 1994? Well, it will sure beat the Dudleyz/the Pint Size Terrors from 02. Hell, it should be a better matchup than anything from last year. Anyway, the Hardyz have always had the advantage in this match ranging from Joey Mercury’s singles losses to both brothers last week to Jeff Hardy beating Johnny Nitro at New Year’s Revolution. While I would not be surprised to see the Hardyz win again, really it’s MNM’s turn to even the score and force a rubber match at Wrestlemania.

Winners: MNM

Lashley (c) vs Test – ECW Championship

Stephen Randle: Wait a second.

Nope, I’m neither drunk nor high.

Winner: Lashley

Mark Sakamano: No ECW Original in this match. Test “finally” gets his 1-on-1 title shot. WWE seems to really want to continue to build up Lashley.

Winner: Lashley

Daniel Wilcox: WWE seem pretty high on Test but they are also high on Lashley. The match itself should be fairly decent if nothing groundbreaking, but I don’t expect a title change at this point. But I don’t see this being the last encounter either, so there could be some screwy finish leading to a rematch somewhere down the line. On the other hand, Lashley isn’t on much of a role lately, so he needs a win here.

Winner: Lashley

John Gregory: Ten bucks says this is the only time ECW is on the Rumble. I couldn’t care less.

Winner: “The Green Extreme” Lashley

Larry Csonka: I don’t expect good things here overall. I think it will be ok, but am not particularly looking forward to it. It could go either way with the booking of ECW lately.

Winner: Test

Ari Berenstein: This match, on the other hand, has train wreck written all over it. Test pulls out miracle matches everyy once in a while, but I don’t think this will be one of those moments. If Lashley does not miss his spots, that will be the true miracle. I also hope that Lashley DOES NOT do a pre match promo, because my ears can’t take it.

Winner: Lashley retains the ECW title.

Neil Borenstein: BLAH! I might be one of the few people on this planet that was actually happy when the WWE brought Test back. But holy crap! I don’t need to see him fighting for a Heavyweight Title! This brand is seriously a joke.

Winner and Still Champion: Bobby Lashley

Andy Clark: This won’t be groundbreaking, but I don’t think it will be horrible either. It shouldn’t matter either way because it will be short. The outcome is a toss up because I could see them doing a title switch on TV. I’ll still go with the safe bet.

Winner and STILL ECW World Champion: Bobby Lashley

JT: I have been all for the revival of Test, but I never said get a title shot. However, the fact is that they are running with Lashley, and very few on the ECW roster are suitable to lose here. Holly is injured, and Punk is just not ready for it. I’m sure this will be a complete “big man” match, but you know what, sometimes you could do much worse, and that’s the case here. I suspect middle of the card and I’m fine with both men getting a chance to shine.

WINNER – and STILL ECW Champion, Lashley

Mathew Sforcina: Well, given that neither man will have to worry about Monty Brown getting over enough to challange them (No, I will never use that asanine name), and Vince can, occasionally, see dollar signs more than harmony, and if Punk wins at WM they need a heel champ…

Winner, and NEW ECW Champ: Test (Brown run in)

Sat: I am not looking forward to this match at all. This will be a short match and anybody could walk away with the victory. The logical choice seems to be Lashley, so I’ll go with him

Winner: Lashley

Bayani Domingo: ECW has no idea what to do with their long term booking right now. Test as a champion anywhere is just…so…wrong. Then again, I can’t imagine we won’t get at least 1 title change. Damn you Test.

Winner: Vanillazilla… (not as catchy as Blackzilla I know)

Zac Calhoun: WWE is in a very weird position going into January: three face champions. Lashley’s satisfying reign isn’t going to end in a meaningless match with only a couple weeks’ buildup.

Winner: Bobby Lashley

Michael Bauer: There is no way Test is winning the title. Not when we could see Lashley vs The Alpha Male.

Winner: Lashley (Still ECW Champ)

Brad Borchardt: They should have waited and made this a triple threat match with Rob Van Dam instead of doing it on tv. It would add a lot more interest to this match and leave an open spot in the Royal Rumble for Charlie Haas, Joey Mercury, or Marquis Cor Von. I’ll go with Lashley as they seem to want to build ECW around him now and it would not look good if he dropped the title in just over a month.

Winner and Still ECW Champion: Bobby Lashley

Michael Weyer: Ugh. Lashley may be good but even Benoit would have trouble getting a good match out of Test. Ten to one this’ll replace HHH vs Steiner from the ’03 Rumble as the worst Rumble title match ever. Expect losers of the fans and…

WINNER and STILL ECW Champion: Lashley

Stuart Carapola: Wow, this match brings back fond, fond memories of classic ECW Title matches like Raven vs Sandman and Taz vs Douglas. Actually…wait a minute, no it doesn’t. I’ll refrain from going off on what a bastardization it is to have this match on PPV and for the ECW Title, especially since Van Dam has been removed from the equation. All I’ll say is that as much as I hate Bobby Lashley, I don’t think I can sleep in a world where we have World Champion Test.

Winner: Bobby Lashley

Samuel Berman: Lashley won on Tuesday, so conventional wisdom says Test gets the strap. I hope that conventional wisdom doesn’t stick here, because Test’s one-and-only moment to get any ‘World’ title in WWE was at Survivor Series 1999, and he didn’t even end up getting entered into the match. Lashley should drop the belt in a match that means more than this one does.

Winner and STILL ECW Champion: Lashley

Julian Williams: Or the match that they gave away on FREE TV! Seriously why should I give a flying donkey fart about this match after seeing it on Tuesday night already? This match will be my piss break as there is no way that Test is winning the title because if he does, ECW is in even worse shape than I thought.

Winner: Lashley

Brian Bayless: No way Test becomes the ECW champion, at least not right now.

Winner: Lashley

Meehan: If Test wins the belt, then what few fans ECW has left will tune out. Unfortunately for ECW, if Test DOESN’T win — Lashley’s left only to move on from this program, and there’s really no other top-level heels left to spin his wheels against in a title program. Doesn’t bode well, but at least a screwy-Test win (maybe via DQ?) will leave the brand with SOMETHING for their main-eventers to do until all the ‘Mania plans are sorted out.

Winner: Test (no title change)

Taareq: Do I really have to care about this. I haven’t seen the match last Tuesday but from all accounts and purposes it wasn’t great.

I’m not a big fan of either although if I had to choose I’d go with Test as at least he is a little bit more interesting. There’s no way that they will kill Lashley’s push and so I will go with him to retaining the title but maybe they’ll have an extreme DQ for Test

Winner: Test (DQ)

Jeff Small: I am still perplexed as to why this match happened on Tuesday. Clearly, we won’t be given the exact match finish again so I fear for Lashley and his title. Actually, I fear for a concussion as Test probably will drill him with a chair to force a Extreme Rules match on television. Yes, they used this match on TV to build to a PPV match to build to another TV match. I miss Heyman.

Winner: Lashley (via DQ)

Batista (c) vs Mr. Kennedy – World Heavyweight Championship

Stephen Randle: I said it last week, Kennedy’s not ready for a title run yet. My beliefs haven’t changed.

Winner: Batista

Mark Sakamano: Tons of rumors about matches for Batista at Wrestlemania; most have him with the title at Wrestlemania. Mr. Kennedy, while great, needs a slow build to an eventual title win. Kennedy won the title shot on too easy of a stipulation with no pure 1-on-1 interaction with the champ.

Winner: Batista

Daniel Wilcox: With Taker penciled in for a title shot at WrestleMania, there are several scenarios that I can see working here. My favourite, Kennedy getting the win here and defending in a Triple Threat at Mania, is the least likely, as Batista is probably just building momentum to his big defence at Mania.

Winner: Bat- No, Ken- Oh I don’t know. Kennedy.

John Gregory: Kennedy is great. That being said, Batista vs. Taker is the money match for Mania, and Kennedy shouldn’t given a title run yet.

Winner: Batista

Larry Csonka: I would love to see the title off of Batista, but I fear that won’t happen since they are working towards Batista vs. Taker. Should be a fine match.

Winner: Batista

Ari Berenstein: This is an interesting situation, because Kennedy has really been positioned as the major heel on Smackdown…AND Smackdown has the next PPV (No Way Out). Not to mention that Batista has not been the Batista we all knew and loved in 2005. A hot shot upset win and title switch here can do wonders for Kennedy and hopefully give Batista back some killer instinct as he chases back the title in February.

Winner: and NEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW World Heavyweight Champion…MISSSSSSSSSSSSSTERRRRRRRRRRRRR KENNEDAYYY! …KENNEDAYYY!

Neil Borenstein: I love that the WWE is pushing Mr. Kennedy. He’s basically one of the few reasons I have left to watch Smackdown and getting a Heavyweight Title shot is great for him. It’s just too bad he doesn’t even stand a chance. There’s no way that the WWE is going to have Batista actually drop the title here. I think the match will be good and everything, but your outcome is pretty obvious.

Winner and Still Champion: Batista

Andy Clark: This could be quite good. Mr. Kennedy is the future of SmackDown and I would love to see him become Mr. Money in the Bank at WrestleMania. Batista is on a collision course with Undertaker at Mania though, so Batista needs to retain. I wouldn’t mind seeing a post-match beatdown by Kennedy with the title belt to prompt a rematch at No Way Out.

Winner and STILL World Heavyweight Champion: Batista

JT: Kennedy is not ready and we all know it. That being said, he is building for what will eventually come. I feel more than confident that while this won’t be the best match on the card, both men will do what they can to make it bearable.

WINNER – and STILL World Heavyweight Champion, Batista

Mathew Sforcina: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!

Winner, and NEW World Heavyweight Champion: Mr. Kennedy. (‘Botched’ Taker-ferance)

Sat: This will probably be the main event at No Way Out, so they’re are going to have to extend it. So, Batista wins and gets a beat down after the match.

Winner: Batista

Bayani Domingo: Only Edge loses his title during his first defense after winning it.

Winner: Ba(u)tista

Zac Calhoun: I’m super glad Kennedy is getting this shot on a major PPV, but it makes me worry because of the last mid-size blonde guy who challenged for SmackDown’s title three years ago at the Rumble: Hardcore Holly. He most definitely won’t win the title, but I hope he gets enough credibility from the match to actually stay around.

Winner: Batista

Michael Bauer: You know, EVERYONE seems to forget one thing. Smackdown does have a Pay Per View in February. That said, no matter what happens here, it could all be re-done or built upon. Kennedy gets the win here, but only via DQ, so we can have a rematch at No Way out. By the way, when is the last time Batista has had a televised match?

Winner: Mr. Kennedy Via DQ (Batista Still Champ)… Kennedy!!!

Brad Borchardt: I really really really want Mr. Kennedy to win. Batista bores me and Mr. Kennedy has been on fire in the last month. But, Batista vs. Undertaker is written on the wall for WrestleMania so unless it would be a non title match, I got to go with BORE-Tista. I hate to be mean to the guy but he isn’t what he was in 2005.

Winner and Still WWE World Heavyweight Champion: BORE-Tista

Michael Weyer: Kennedy has potential for the top spot but is still a bit green. Then again, he’s a much better wrestler than Batista. But they do seem intent on Big Dave keeping the main belt for Wrestlemania, a shame.

WINNER and STILL World Heavyweight Champion: Batista

Stuart Carapola: “Hi, my name is Batista. Dave Batista, to be exact. I’m going to be defending the World Title against the Undertaker at Wrestlemania, but I need some poor sap to waste time with until then. Someone named after the boss would be preferable. Hmmmmm, who do we know who fits this description?”

Winner: Batista

Samuel Berman: I need to pick a title change, if only for form, so I’m going to throw my lot in with the crowd anticipating a hot-shot title switch. If Kennedy wins the World Heavyweight Championship, he gets instant credibility to main event future cards (whether he continues to hold the belt or not), and even though it means three title changes in three PPVs, I don’t think WWE is above having Batista go under here, win in the return bout at No Way Out and then drop the belt to the Undertaker at Wrestlemania.

Winner and NEW World Heavyweight Champion: Mr. Kennedy

Julian Williams: These two had some pretty damn good matches over the summer so I think that they can deliver a fun match at the rumble. Kennedy is beyond awesome, but it’s too soon for him to run with the big ball. And besides, we all know that it’s going to be ‘Tista and ‘Taker at ‘Mania so dropping the belt here would be pretty f-ing stupid.

Winner: Batista

Brian Bayless: I find this match interesting. On one hand if a title were to change hands, I would figure this one because of how bad Batista has become. The only reason it won’t, because I still think that Undertaker vs Batista is scheduled for Wrestlemania and my guess is that Taker will win the belt there.

Winner: Batista

Meehan: Well, at least predicting who wins and loses in these title matches is getting easier, no? Batista is steamrolling his way to an Undertaker showdown at ‘Mania, so the handwriting is pretty much on the wall for how this one will end up. Good news for Kennedy, though — even though he’s not walking out the champ, the Royal Rumble match is THE selling point for the PPV, meaning at least he’ll get a chance to semi-main-event a PPV WITHOUT fear that a low buyrate will torpedo any hopes he might have of staying in the hunt for the future.

Winner: Batista

Taareq: I wish I could honestly say that Kennedy will win here but we all know that Botch-tista will win this one and head to Wrestlemania where he will then lose the title most likely to Undertaker. Its crazy to think that I’m not a fan of the man since just two years ago I was trying to convince my friends about how cool this guy was.

This has potential to be a decent match as we saw some good ones over the Summer. Kennedy is on a roll and seems to have recovered well from his ill fated program with the Undertaker. With that being said, Batista will win this.

Winner: Batista

Jeff Small: I’ve said this before and I’ll say this again: Kennedy should at least be seen as a viable option to fight the Undertaker at Wrestlemania. That said, while I cannot see Kennedy winning this match, he should at least be involved in the main event scene until Wrestlemania. How so? Picture this if you will: Batista looks to have won the match but Kennedy takes a powder. Taker comes out to stop Kennedy from leaving and throws him in the ring where he’s Batista Bombed. Taker then enters the ring to finish off Kennedy when Batista blindsides him with a clothesline! Batista vs. Kennedy vs. Taker is made for No Way Out. How easy is that!

Winner: Batista

John Cena (c) vs Umaga – WWE Championship – Last Man Standing

Stephen Randle: You have to give it to Umaga, he’s made the most of the chances he’s been given. There’s no way he’s winning, though. Which, really, makes his efforts more impressive, since he knows he’s not going to win this feud.

Winner: John Cena

Mark Sakamano: I hate Cena. I hate his lame title. I hate his gimmick. I hate the 8 yr. old boys/girls that cheer for him. it pretty much depends who “gets the last laugh” on RAW prior to the Royal Rumble. I’d love for Umaga to rip his head off and send Cena’s 100 fans home crying. But Vince loves him too much to do that. Though going the Yokozuna route with Umaga would be great, I don’t see it happening…yet.

Winner: Vanilla Ice-lite…Cena

The build up has actually got me interested in this match and looking forward to it. The usual format when someone calls a guy’s win a fluke, that guy proves the doubters wrong, but I don’t see that happening. I still don’t think this feud is over, so I see a double knock-out ensuing.

Winner: No-one, draw.

John Gregory: Good build to not so good match. On paper, at least. But this could be a sleeper match if Umaga sells at all, and Cena is at his best when he’s bleeding.

Winner: John Cena

Larry Csonka: I really want to see HBK win the Rumble, and a match with either guy would work. He and Cena would work good together, and HBK vs. a monster is always gold. They had a good match last PPV, but the way WWE does last man standing hurts the flow of the match. Hopefully it is a lot of Umaga killing Cena, but I could see some shenanigans leading to Cena losing.

Winner: Cena

Ari Berenstein: All I know is that TNA, WWE and ROH are all having Last Man Standing matches within weeks of each other, so either its a big coincidence or a grand conspiracy. Maybe the big wigs in each company watched Rumble ’04 and the last man standing match from that PPV. Let’s hope WWE doesn’t book this one the same way.

Winner: John Cena retains with a super FU.

Neil Borenstein: Um … why? Honestly, I just don’t see the draw out of Umaga. Can we please not see this guy walk out as WWE Champion? On the lower end of the card, Umaga might be a fine attraction. But as a main event wrestler, he simply doesn’t work for me. The fact that he got one title shot annoys me, let alone two. I will lose so much respect for this company if they put the strap on Umaga. And for that alone, they shouldn’t do it. I understand John Cena’s title reign has been lengthy, but he’s a better draw for Wrestlemania than Umaga ever will be and he at least needs to keep the gold until then.

Winner and Still Champion: John Cena

Andy Clark: If they were planning on booking a rematch Umaga should have won at NYR. I wasn’t interested in the least in this match until that beatdown on Cena on Monday. Now I have a little bit of doubt in my head. With Trips out of the Mania picture WWE could have the guts to try something crazy with the WrestleMania main event mix. I’m hoping for a Four-Way with Cena, Michaels, Edge, and Orton at Mania, so I’ll go with the Champ here, but I wouldn’t rule out a surprise title change.

Winner: Cena

JT: Kind of odd how I think that all three titles will be retained here. But I can’t see them giving the title to Umaga. All three title matches seem to be designed to help the “Road To WrestleMania” kick off. These two have put on a decent match before, and with it being one of the big four, I’m sure that it will be at WORST smoke break worthy. Cena has shown before that he can put on a good match with bigger, less agile men.

WINNER – and STILL WWE Champion, Cena

Mathew Sforcina: It’s John Cena. In a big match. Like there’s a fricking doubt.

Winner, and STILL Spinning Projectile Vomit Belt Holder: John ‘Batman, Iron Man, Superman, hell, every superhero and superheroin ever’ Cena (1 Sole FU through something)

Sat: Cena is definitely heading into WrestleMania as the champion, so he defeats Umaga.

Winner: John Cena

Bayani Domingo: Cena is going to main event Wrestlemania. He’s THE guy in the “e” right now. So what that means is that him losing to Umaga ain’t going to happen. Because you’d have to be an idiot to win the belt and not go after the WWE title. Logic. Or better yet, Vince has no confidence on any other person main eventing WM23 not named HHH.

Winner: Cena via Jared from Subway-ference

Zac Calhoun: It would certainly be more interesting for the title scene for Umaga to win. It could bring some intrigue and mystery to the Raw main event, it would motivate Cena to get badass again and he could even win it back before WM. That being said, I just don’t see it happening. Cena will continue without a real contender.

Winner: John Cena

Michael Bauer: This match is all about a timeline. Think about it. Nobody has had the upper hand in consecutive shows since this began with Coach’s “No Contact” law. Since then, Cena whipped Estrada, Umaga helped K-Fed beat Cena, Cena won at NYR, Umaga destroyed him the next night, Cena knocked out Umaga and put Estrada through a table, and Umaga splattered Cena in the ring. Umaga has looked better than I expected, but he’s ahead right now.

Winner: John Cena (Still Champ)

Brad Borchardt: This could be a fun little match as John Cena has his best work in triple threat matches or gimmick matches. If No Way Out was a RAW pay-per-view, I could see Umaga sneaking in the win and Cena getting the title back or this match end in a draw and have a thrid match, but since No Way Out belongs to Smackdown, I have to go with Cena retaining and looking strong going into WrestleMania.

Winner and Still WWE Champion: John Cena

Michael Weyer: This again? Geez they need to put a call in to OVW and get some fresh challenges up for Cena. Still, should be a decent brawl, which Cena works well with.

WINNER and STILL WWE Champion: John Cena

Stuart Carapola: Anyone who thinks Umaga has a snowball’s chance in Mexico of walking out of the Royal Rumble with that title has some serious issues with reality. However, I don’t think Cena’s going to do it clean, probably going to tie Umaga up or bury him under a bunch of heavy stuff or something cute like that to show what a smart wrestler he is.

Winner: John Cena

Samuel Berman: Umaga will not win the WWE Championship on Sunday.

Winner and STILL WWE Champion: John Cena

Julian Williams: These guys had a damn good match at New Year’s Revolution and I think that this match will top it as both guys are willing to take some brutal shots to entertain the fans. I’m praying to the wrestling gods that the ‘E doesn’t do what I suspect they might do and that is have a double knockout ala Rock/Mankind at St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and HBK/HHH at Royal Rumble ’04. I don’t see them putting the title on Umaga so close to Wrestlemania and they are building Cena up as the underdog due to having a hurt spleen so I suspect that Cena will win this one and start building up a program with whoever he’s going to face at ‘Mania.

Winner: John Cena

Brian Bayless: I expect a good match from the two. Cena will be a bloody mess but somehow hold on the title.

Winner: John Cena

Meehan: For shits and giggles, I’d LOVE to see Umaga take it here, simply because the guy has busted his ass and done a TREMENDOUS job of silencing even the harshest of his “nobody takes Jamal seriously” IWC detractors. Amazing how far a few well-placed words of praise from Samoa Joe can go, no? Anyhow — Umaga is as credible a top-level heel challenger as RAW has got, so the odds are good that a clean Cena win here would probably put an abrupt end to The Samoan Bulldozer’s days on top of the red brand’s heel heap. Still, that leaves us room to start from scratch as for Khali (groan), Michaels (hmmm…) and Orton (?) step up, which is probably a good idea going into the hard-sell “Road to WrestleMania.”

Winner: John Cena

Taareq: with them playing up the “ruptured spleen” as well as having Umaga get the upper hand on Raw, there is absolutely no doubt that Cena will retain his title here and travel to Wrestlemania to face the winner of the Rumble.

Winner: John Cena

Jeff Small: Umaga is just another victim for the one man wrecking machine known as John Cena. He’s got a DVD to promote ya know.

Winner: John Cena

Royal Rumble Match

Participants: Shelton Benjamin, Chris Benoit, Carlito, Tommy Dreamer, Kenny Dykstra, Edge, Finlay, Ric Flair, Chavo Guerrero, Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Hardcore Holly, Kane, King Booker, Chris Masters, Shawn Michaels, The Miz, Johnny Nitro, Randy Orton, MVP, CM Punk, Sabu, Sandman, Kevin Thorn, Undertaker, RVD, Viscera, Super Crazy, The Great Khali, Gregory Helms

Stephen Randle: By process of elimination (also known as not being stupid), we’re left with Michaels, Undertaker, RVD, Orton, Edge, with minor outside chances of Booker, Khali (remember, he’s really, really big), and Benoit. Taker and Batista already have issues, as well as a February PPV to build with, so Taker doesn’t need to win here to get the shot. That doesn’t mean he won’t, but I think the winner’s coming from the Raw side. Cena vs Michaels would be a really, really good match, so I’m going to vote with my interest instead of my brain this time. (Note: My brain says watch out for Khali)

Winner: Shawn Michaels

Mark Sakamano: Many times there is a clear cut winner going into the Rumble, not so much this year. Edge and Orton may cost one another the win, thus leading to the break up of the team. And yes, I’m actually interested in seeing the brand separated wrestlers interact with one another. I wish they hold the last 3 slots for surprise entrants (like the 2001/2002 Rumbles). Orton could win and then do the given job to Cena at Wrestlemania. God Cena sucks…

Winner: Undertaker (to face Batista at Wrestlemania)

Daniel Wilcox: It’s either Taker or Michaels. With Triple H on the shelf and the show being in San Antonio I’m thinking Michaels gets the shot at Mania, and Taker wins a #1 Contender’s match at No Way Out

Winner: Shawn Michaels

John Gregory: I like the Rumble way more when you don’t know who is going to win. This year is a dead heat between HBK and Taker, with an outside chance for Randy Orton. I’m going with Taker because Shawn has already won 2 Rumbles. Personally, I’d rather have CM Punk, but that won’t happen ever. Thanks Arn.

Winner: Undertaker

Larry Csonka: It comes down to HBK and Taker for me. Taker would lead to Batista and HBK to Umaga or Cena. HBK is the hometown boy and it would be a great story, even if done before, but his recent performances have been tremendous. Taker has never won the Rumble and the win and title win at WM would be a great way to end the career of a hall of famer. Coin flip…

Winner: HBK

Ari Berenstein: They’re billing it as the “most star studded Rumble” and I’m not sure of that, but there does seem to be a nice mix of talent here, enough for perhaps the best rumble in quite a while. Let’s put Monty Cor Von in there and maybe one or two Legends for some kicks and hope for the best. This should be an interesting test for CM Punk and a good indication of where the bookers stand on him. If he is in for a while and looks good, that’s one thing. If he is eliminated in thirty seconds, that’s the sign we’ve been waiting for that shows he’s in trouble. Kenny Doane should also make a good showing as the up and comer on Raw. Benoit has been the longevity man over the last few years and I expect that to continue. Final Four will be HBK, Edge, Orton and Taker. Realistically this comes down to those men as the prime candidates for main eventing Mania. While HBK remains my sentimental favorite AND Raw is due for a win in one of these things, I think we go with the sure thing we know is on the boards for Mania 23.

Winner: The Undertaker (Cello prediction: Taker is the first man to win at # 30)

Neil Borenstein: I don’t see this so much as Shawn Michaels or The Undertaker as much as I see The Undertaker. He has never won the Royal Rumble during his career with the company, and it’s completely obvious that he is facing Batista at Wrestlemania 23. The WWE could of course throw a swerve, but the fact that fans might think there is a swerve could be a reason the WWE chooses not to use a swerve in the first place. The final two should be Michaels and Taker – that I’m not doubting. But the final one will be The Undertaker, leaving the RAW No. 1 contender spot open. And that, my friends, with the proper storyline build and hype, should go to … JOHNNY NITRO! Let it swirl around for a bit.

Winner and No. 1 Contender at Wrestlemania 23: The Undertaker

Andy Clark: Everyone seems to think Taker and I’ll go along with that prediction, but I still won’t believe it until it happens. All I know is that I’m looking forward to this match very much, and it damn well better be the last thing on the show. Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Edge, & Randy Orton are the final four (with RVD being in the final five representing ECW).

Winner and NEW No. 1 Contender: Undertaker (last eliminating Edge)

JT: I’ll probably get total shit for this, but I’m going with a wish as opposed to a “what I think” pick. I would love nothing more than to see KING BOOKAH win the whole thing and go to WM 23 and win back his title. If I have to attempt to justify, I will say that by the time everyone has talked their shit by the end of Friday (Edge, HBK, RVD, Finlay, etc), most will have forgotten that Booker was in fact the FIRST person to mention winning the whole thing two Friday’s ago. Perhaps that was a little foreshadowing to what will really go down.

WINNER – and NEW #1 contender for the belt at WM 23, King Bookah!

Mathew Sforcina: First off, I mark for the Cello Prediction, since that’s, you know, me. Second, can anyone give me a logical, sane reason why it’s 13/10/7? I mean, 11/11/8 or 12/12/6 I could MAYBE understand, but why does Raw for some reason had 3 of ECW’s entrants? Why? Anyway, since I have Taker/DAVE/Kennedy at WM (Thus making it ‘Will Taker’s Streak end without him involved’ which is much more interesting then plain old DAVE/Taker, with or without the belt or a heel turn), he shouldn’t win the Rumble here. Hence, to get the sole man who has a shot at beating Cena in the ME slot…

Winner: HBK (#15, Superkick to Taker. Then he jumps to SD just to piss me off.)

Sat: The two obvious choices are HBK or the Undertaker. SmackDown could easily do a tournament to determine the winner, so I will go with HBK

Winner: Shawn Michaels

Bayani Domingo: Batista vs ‘Taker seems a given. I actually hope it happens and Batista goes semi-heel in the match up. But something tells me that Smackdown just lets ‘Taker get eliminated last to make him #1 contender. That is really the only other match besides Cena vs Edge/Orton or HBK that I see happening. For that match to take place, ‘Taker would have to be booked to win the title. I don’t see Kennedy vs ‘Taker being main event, especially after that schmozz of a program they just had. Cena vs HBK would be good, but who do you root for or against? The other problem is, if HBK goes against Cena and Batista/’Taker goes down, what do you do with Booker T, Edge, Orton, and Finlay? Too many heels left over when the faces are all squaring off. Everyone is going HBK or Undertaker at this point so I’m throwing out a wild card. Cena main events as the biggest star in the “e” and he goes up against the biggest heel(s) that RAW has to offer. Hell, if I’m right, I look like a genius right? No? Aww hell.

Winner: Edge / Orton, double winners.

Zac Calhoun: First off, I feel it important to stress how horrible the buildup to the Rumble has been. Outside of Shawn and Edge on the Raw before the show, no one has really expressed a strong desire to win the damn thing. This is the Royal Rumble, one of the most difficult matches in the industry to screw up, and they gave NYR more attention. I don’t think Taker will end up winning, because he doesn’t really need to when Shawn and Edge would make better winners. I hope they don’t do a tie thing with those two though; Edge is compared to Luger enough already.

Winner: Shawn Michaels or Edge

Michael Bauer: Unlike the past three years, this year there is no credible contender who has yet to grab that brass ring and needs the Royal Rumble to do so. We have seen Chris Benoit, Batista (and Cena to an extent), and Rey Mysterio do this in the past three years. That simply means the winner will be a former WWE Champion. In this match, we have nine people that fit this description. Six of them will definitly not win and here is why:

Rob van Dam – He’s in ECW, need I say more.
Ric Flair – Hasn’t been near the title in a dog’s age and doesn’t need to be near it.
Kane – Last I checked, he doesn’t have a movie coming out this time. Besides, nobody holds the title for one night after Wrestlemania.
Chris Benoit – Already has the United States Title.
King Booker – A dark horse, plus I think he is more likely to face Benoit at Wrestlemania.
Edge – While he makes alot of sense, didn’t we just finish Edge vs Cena three months ago?

That leaves us with Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Randy Orton. While the Undertaker makes sense with all the rumors, let me restate something I said before. Smackdown does have a Pay Per View in February. So he still has an opportunity to get his title shot and build the story more. And we are down to HBK vs RKO. The choice seems obvious, given that Triple H is gone, Wrestlemania is in San Antonio, and Orton can feud with Edge. But I’d rather see Randy Orton vs John Cena and we know the WWE does as well.

Winner: Randy Orton

Brad Borchardt- If Mr. Kennedy was in this match, I would of picked him to upset and switch over to RAW to start his feud with John Cena that they were hinting at a couple months ago. With HBK and Undertaker as the two favorites with Edge, Randy Orton, and possibly even Great Kahli as dark horses, I’ll go with Shawn Michaels just for the fact that I would rather see Michaels win it than Undertaker. Undertaker will probably win it, but screw that.

Winner of the 2007 Royal Rumble: Shawn Michaels

Michael Weyer: Hmmm….A lot of potential here. I know most think it’ll be Undertaker to boost his Wrestlemania appearance and the fact he’s never won. But the appearance of ECW does throw it off a bit as I wonder that they may be trying to give it a push by having one of their guys win. Of course, always the chance of them giving Booker another push. That makes it incredibly hard to predict so I’m going to go for a different choice than some…

WINNER: All hail King Booker!!!

Stuart Carapola: I think we’re all pretty much in agreement that either Shawn Michaels or the Undertaker’s going to win this match. Seriously, who else is there? While they might do something cute like have King Booker sneak a win, I’m 95% sure it’s either Michaels or Undertaker. Each would have their merits. Undertaker’s a lock to face Batista at Wrestlemania and this win would put him there, plus it’d be a nice reward for him since he’s never won the Rumble before. Michaels, on the other hand, has also had a great deal of longevity with the company, and he has been working hurt for almost a year now with the DX thing reigniting. If Michaels won, he could go to Wrestlemania and face Cena, which has never been seen in any meaningful way. Michaels can put Cena over and then disappear for a little while to rest his injuries while HHH is also out, and then they can come back together when they’re both healthy. Also, if Shawn won it would make him a record-tying three time Royal Rumble winner and, being that he’s my favorite wrestler of all time, I’m a little biased in wanting to see that happen, especially since it’s been 11 years since his last Rumble win. Damn I feel old now.

Winner: Shawn Michaels

Samuel Berman: The five guys I would like to see main event a Wrestlemania (CM Punk, Matt Hardy, Gregory Helms, Rob Van Dam and Chavo Guerrero) have a combined 2% chance of winning this match, and the entirety of that rests with RVD. The five guys WWE is putting over as the top contenders (Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Randy Orton, Edge, King Booker) can probably all be in the main events without a win here, so then it’s pretty much a coin flip. Undertaker already has an issue with Batista. Combine that with the fact that he’s THE UNDERTAKER, and you’ve got a match in the making. Booker is going to get shut out on SmackDown!, but is a much better fit for that show and a match between him and Cena does nothing for me at all. Edge and Orton are possibilities, but I think the Wrestlmania money match for them lies in them facing each other after an ugly split. That leaves HBK to pick up the win here, which works as well on my end as anything else that’s likely to happen.

Winner: “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels

Julian Williams: And this, ladies and germs, is what we are here for. I really like the field in this year’s rumble as it’s very diverse and there are a lot of credible contenders. After you do the process of elimination, though, you see that the only guys who really have a chance are Shawn Michaels, Edge, Randy Orton and The Undertaker. I’d like to go with The Undertaker since he’s never won the rumble and he’s heavily rumored to be facing off against Batista at Wrestlemania, but for some reason I feel like he’s going to get screwed by Kennedy so they can finally end their feud at No Way Out (Hell In A Cell, maybe?) in a number one contender’s match that he’ll win and then go on to ‘Mania for the showdown with the Animal. I don’t see Edge winning due to the fact that he feuded with Cena for the majority of 2006 and I believe the ‘E wants a fresh matchup for Cena at WM. That leaves Randy and HBK (who I think will be the final two in the match) and it’s really a toss up between those two. Cena/Orton would be very intriguing and it’s the match that the ‘E has wanted for the last few years at ‘Mania, but Randy kept fucking up. Cena/Michaels I feel would be a damn good match as HBK can have a great match with just about anyone and Cena can more than carry his own. Since it’s going to be in San Antonio, I’ll go with HBK picking up the hometown win. And besides, I really REALLY want to see a Cena/Michaels match.

Winner: Shawn Michaels

Brian Bayless: My prediction for the final four is Orton, Edge, Undertaker, and Great Khali. Undertaker will eliminate those three, with Edge being the last one out. Taker will head to Wrestlemania as the rumble winner for the first time in his career.

Winner: Undertaker

Meehan: Realistically speaking — and as Berman noted — less than a third of the guys in the match have even the remotest shot at winning. Michaels, RVD and ‘Taker seem to be the standouts from each brand — but Van Dam has had (and blown) his shot at WWE top dog already, and he’s got zero backstage clout to warrant trying the same experiment again. Michaels and ‘Taker, meanwhile, have likewise both already seen their best days on top of the WWE mountain — but unlike RVD, Shawn and the Dead Man have scored themselves enough backstage stroke to justify another go at the top. Here’s the catch, though — ‘Taker is already rolling into WrestleMania with enough momentum the way it is. So while a ‘Rumble win would be nice, it just seems excessive since folks are likely to tune in for the rumored “Title vs. Streak” challenge against Batista REGARDLESS of whether or not the Phenom has a Royal Rumble win to bolster his cred. That leaves us with HBK, and if I were a betting man? Sounds like a good pick to Mee.

Winner: Shawn Michaels

Taareq: first off, I hope this Rumble is better than last years. The ring seemed too empty at times last year and it really took away from the special-ness of it.

Neither Undertaker nor Shawn Micheals need the rub of winning this match. Although in saying that I’m sure if any of them won it would generate a massive reaction. The Undertaker will most likely be involved in one of the main events against Batista (they’ve already started sewing those seeds from now) and so will not need the Rumble to get there. Edge winning might be cool and unexpected but that would require a rehash of the Edge Cena feud that just finished. I’m hoping the winner is a surprise but we all know it wont be and unfortunately at least for me since I hate him, I think the winner will be…..

Winner: Shawn Michaels

Jeff Small: Now some ballsy predictions. The first two superstars will be #1 CM Punk and #2 Finlay. The Great Khali will get a superman push only to be eliminated by Kane! Tommy Dreamer will get punked out and replaced with Monty Brown. Johnny Nitro will be the Iron Man of the match. And lastly, our final four will be Taker, HBK, Edge, and Kevin Thorn.

Winner: HBK