Welcome to another edition of eWN Ring Position, where we gather some of the most active writers here on eWrestlingNews and share the platform to answer some questions surrounding a centralized topic, upcoming event, etc.
This is meant to showcase the potential for both a wide range of perspectives as well as how sometimes, there can be a group consensus no matter what your viewpoint is, so we also invite all of you to join in on the discussion by answering these questions yourself in the comments section below.
For this particular volume, we’ll be focusing on NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 4 and SummerSlam 2018.
Participants for this round = Anthony Mango, Richard Staple, Ethan Absler and Yiannis Bouranis.
1) “Would you have been more excited to see the original Triple Threat for the NXT Championship, or is Tommaso Ciampa vs. Johnny Gargano your preference?”
MANGO: Since we’ve already seen a No DQ match between Gargano and Ciampa at the previous two events, I was excited to see the Triple Threat more as Black’s involvement would have spiced things up and introduced a new element to the dynamic. I still think this is going to be a great match, but I can’t help but feel like it won’t be as good as if it would have happened in Los Angeles as the follow-up to this, and if WWE would have been able to go with the original plan.
STAPLE: Personally, I preferred to see the triple threat match. Johnny and Tomasso always tear it down and I have no doubt that they are going to rip each other apart limb from limb like only they can. But I preferred the triple threat dynamic with Black simply to maintain the consistency of the story. Since Black was the man Tomasso took the title off of, I think the triple threat match should have come before the inevitable NXT title match between Ciampa and Gargano. Plus, Johnny and Tomasso’s matches in Chicago and New Orleans are still relatively fresh in my mind, and it’s extremely hard to envision what more they could possibly do to each other.
Now, I’m certainly not going to complain, because it’s still going to be an awesome match. But I feel like it’s too soon to have them face off against each other one on one again in essentially the same match they’ve done twice before, only without a pinfall/submission finish. Then again, I know WWE didn’t really have much choice. But hey, can you think of a better impromptu match than a Last Man Standing match for the NXT Title between arguably the two best competitors for NXT this year?
ABSLER: In my opinion, knowing that the match was originally supposed to be a triple threat takes away from the one on one aspect. Gargano and Ciampa can tear the house down, and I assume they will, but adding Black to the mix not only made sense, but was keeping the feud fresh. Adding a stipulation to the match greatly helped raise the levels of excitement for the bout, but again, a triple threat is just so fresh.
BOURANIS: I think their last man standing match is the best decision right now, because it could put an end to their feud, which started in the early months of 2018, with both wrestlers scoring pinfalls against each other at Takeover events.Given the WWE’s original plan was to have a triple threat match featuring Gargano, Ciampa and former NXT champion, Aleister Black, it seems the company has changed the plans and may have created a different ending to this rivalry.I would say the Ciampa vs Gargano is “best for business”, but I would like to see an outside interference that would help the storyline evolve.
2) “Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, Braun Strowman or Kevin Owens. Who do you want to see walk out with the Universal Championship?”
MANGO: If Roman Reigns turns heel, I want him to walk away with the title and for nobody to even attempt to cash in the Money in the Bank. However, if WWE is going to try to keep doing the same thing over and over again with him being a babyface and not changing up his character at all, I’d rather see Lesnar absolutely destroy him in the span of a minute or so, only for Braun Strowman to cash in, have a long match with Lesnar, fight off some potential interference from Kevin Owens, and take the title. That way, we can get Owens vs. Strowman in a Hell in a Cell match for the Universal Championship, the belt is on someone who is actually over with the crowd, Lesnar’s put someone over instead of being protected, and all is good in the world.
STAPLE: I’m going to cheat because I have two preferences. Either Braun Strowman or a heel Roman Reigns. Anyone who says Brock Lesnar needs to check into a mental facility. We’ve gone basically 500 days with WWE’s top title not being defended for months on end. It’s a shame that I have more fingers between both my hands (10), then Brock Lesnar has Universal Title defenses since he first won it at WrestleMania last year (6). It’s time for a change. If I want change, then Roman Reigns isn’t the guy I want, because he’s representative of the status quo, unless he’s a heel. Braun Strowman is WWE’s next big mega-star if you ask me. He has the look, he’s over with the crowd, and he’s just an incredible sports entertainer. There’s no reason not to have him win the title.
The fantasy of mine this Sunday is that Paul Heyman will turn on Brock Lesnar, costing him the title, and a new alliance of Roman and Paul being form, essentially turning Roman heel. If that’s not the case, then I don’t want him near the title, for now anyway. Now, believe it or not, the last time Roman Reigns held a world title was Money In The Bank two years ago. So I suppose we can’t say he’s constantly hogging WWE’s top title, but Roman winning the championship without a change in character wouldn’t feel special because it is a highly predictable thing. So yeah, Braun or die.
ABSLER: I’d like nothing more than to see Braun Strowman win the Universal Championship at Summerslam. Although I really don’t think it’s gonna happen, I believe it would be the best option for ratings considering that the vast majority of fans love Strowman… who by the way, would be on RAW every week.
BOURANIS: I would say Braun Strowman. Although Roman Reigns has received a big “push” and is getting ready to become the face of the company, Braun Strowman should cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase and become the Universal Champion.The WWE has not included the “Monster Among Men” into a championship match lately and this should now change, as Strowman is a dominant force and should become the face of the company.
3) “Which superstar do you feel is the biggest omission from TakeOver / SummerSlam?”
MANGO: Technically speaking, Aleister Black is the biggest change from TakeOver, but that wasn’t WWE’s choice. Ruling him out, I feel like Randy Orton’s lack of placement in the United States Championship match effectively kills that segment, as we’ll all just be waiting for him to make an appearance, disrupt things, and that’s about it. Waiting for someone who isn’t booked—but has no reason not to show up and certainly will—isn’t my idea of fun. I’ll just want to skip to the end and get it over with.
STAPLE: We’ll have to see how things play out after RAW and Smackdown this week, but as of 10:00 pm EST on Tuesday night, the biggest omission from the Summerslam card off the top of my head is probably Randy Orton. It’s simply because he has been destroying Jeff Hardy ever since he returned at Extreme Rules, but he’s still facing Nakamura for the title at Summerslam one on one. The match should logically be a triple threat match since Orton has inserted himself into Hardy’s life for the time being. Hell, if anything Hardy should have more of a beef with Orton now than Nakamura, because Shinsuke’s pretty much said and done nothing in this feud against Hardy aside win the title from him. I guess the ongoing investigation of Orton’s backstage antics may influence it, but since we saw him on television tonight, I can’t be so sure what the real reason is. It’s kind of weird that the champ, Nakamura, is probably the most irrelevant part of this beef.
ABSLER: Every time I see an NXT Takeover card without Kassius Ohno, I feel like he is being wasted. He left NXT years ago because WWE dropped the ball with him and they are making the same mistake again.
BOURANIS: Randy Orton. Given his return in the previous episodes of SmackDown Live, I was thinking he would be booked for SummerSlam. However, I believe it’s certain he will involve in the US Championship Match between Shinsuke Nakamura and Jeff Hardy as part of the storyline.
4) “If you could add one more match to either of these cards, what would it be?”
MANGO: Since the pre-show for NXT is an hour long instead of 30 minutes, I’d add another match to that section of the show to keep it from being entirely video packages and such. As far as who would compete, I’d probably book two people who could use some exposure, like Dijak and Aichner, just to give them some buzz and not waste anything that could go on another future TakeOver event.
STAPLE: I probably wouldn’t add another match to the card for the sake of it being too long, especially since there are matches on the card that I feel don’t have any place there other than for the sake of putting them there. What I would do, however, is add Asuka to the triple threat Smackdown Women’s Championship match, just because it feels appropriate to have Carmella face all of the obstacles she’s had to go through since winning the title all at once at Summerslam. Plus, you could say that in terms of pure wrestling, Asuka and Charlotte had the best match at WrestleMania, and it feels kind of disingenuous to leave her off the card for Summerslam.
ABSLER: I would add an extra match to the NXT Takeover card. With the card only being five matches long there is plenty of time to slip in Ohio, or a match in the Tag Division with teams like Heavy Machinery, The Mighty, or the Street Profits.
BOURANIS: Dean Ambrose vs Drew McIntyre. As McIntyre has interfered many times, in favour of Dolph Ziggler, in the latter’s feud with Seth Rollins, a match between him and the returning Dean Ambrose would make the storyline even more interesting.
5) “Which match are you most excited to see this weekend?”
MANGO: If I had to pick just one and only one, it would probably be Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz, but I’m also really into Alexander/Gulak, Gargano/Ciampa, Cole/Ricochet, and Styles/Joe.
STAPLE: I suppose you can say Johnny/Tomasso for obvious reasons, but I’ve been waiting for Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz for the longest time. I was skeptical as to whether this match should take place at Summerslam, or if they should play it out long term until WrestleMania next year. However, since Daniel has yet to re-sign with WWE, and we still don’t have a guarantee Bryan is sticking around, I’ll definitely take whatever we can get from him beforehand. This feud is probably the best-booked feud on the card. Why? Because there is a real reason for the two to hate each other and they have a history that spans 8 years. Summerslam feels like the culmination of this feud, but I actually hope that this is going to be the firs step in an even bigger match at a bigger stage with bigger stakes. I also think if it gets the time, the match could be the best one on the card. The Miz had the best match at Backlash with Seth Rollins, and I believe he can do it again this Sunday.
ABSLER: I am most excited to see Daniel Bryan vs The Miz and Adam Cole vs Ricochet. I expect Cole and Ricochet to have a possible 5-star match here and the storytelling that will take place in the ring during Bryan vs The Miz will be off the charts.
BOURANIS: WWE Champion AJ Styes vs Samoa Joe. This feud has become personal in the last episodes of SmackDown Live and both wrestlers will do their best in the ring. They both are very talented and have the potential to create a dream match.
6) “Which event do you think will be better overall, TakeOver or SummerSlam?”
MANGO: TakeOver, for sure. There are too many variables with SummerSlam and too many opportunities for WWE to pick some horrible directions for the future. I have a feeling even if mostly all of SummerSlam is good, the Reigns/Lesnar situation will annoy me enough to put a sour taste in my mouth for the entire thing. That’s if the rest of it is even good. It could be just okay, or even bad. With TakeOver, I feel like all of the matches will be worth watching and there won’t be questionable booking decisions.
STAPLE: WWE is under the impression that more matches mean a better show. Takeover is 5 matches long and will probably 2 to 2 and a half hours long. Summerslam is 13 matches long and will probably be at least double the length in time, if not more. I would say Summerslam if they had trimmed some of the fat. Takeover will feature Johnny and Tomasso in the main event, which never fails. Adam Cole and Ricochet is an undercard match that I think can easily be a four-star match. Moustache Mountain and the Undisputed Era will have Brooklyn on the edge of their seats simply because they have developed an incredible chemistry with each other. If Velveteen Dream and EC3 can bring the goods, that will only be icing on the cake. I have historically have had an easier time watching Takeover than I do WWE’s main card shows. After a Takeover, I’m typically filled with adrenaline and left wanting more. After watching shows like WrestleMania, Money In The Bank and probably this Sunday at Summerslam, I will feel like I just went through a marathon. Sign me up for Takeover.
ABSLER: As always, I think Takeover is going to blow its WWE counterpart out of the water. I’m sorry but a 13 match card is just too stacked to give each and every match the spotlight it needs. The in-ring quality that Adam Cole and Ricochet, EC3 and Velveteen Dream, as well as Ciampa and Gargano just simply can’t be matched on the main roster.
BOURANIS: I think both shows will be of high quality, but I believe NXT Takeover has the potential to be the dominant show during the weekend.
7) “Toss out a wildcard prediction of a surprise you feel will happen, but nobody will have seen coming, for either event.”
MANGO: I feel like everyone can see the potential Dean Ambrose heel turn, a turn for either Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair, Randy Orton’s interference, and so on. It may not be the biggest wildcard, but I’m thinking there’s a very solid chance that people are overlooking the possibility that Kevin Owens wins the Money in the Bank briefcase and cashes in to steal the Universal Championship and we have a complete repeat of WrestleMania 31, and WWE STILL tries to book Reigns as a babyface heading into Hell in a Cell and possibly even thinks that another Reigns/Lesnar match should happen down the line. Or, another wildcard prediction, Reigns beats Lesnar in just a few minutes flat.
STAPLE: I’ve heard a lot of speculation in regards to potential things that can happen all weekend, from Roman Reigns turning heel and aligning himself with Paul Heyman to Dean Ambrose costing Seth Rollins the IC Title, sporting a new haircut and a new attitude. However, I’m going to take a shot in the dark here. How about in the Smackdown Tag Team Championship match at Summerslam, The New Day knock off the Bludgeon Brothers, and as soon as they win it, The Undisputed Era comes out and lays everyone out in sight? Whether or not The Undisputed Era loses the North American Title and NXT Tag Titles in Brooklyn or not, I think it would be a good surprise to have that faction make their main roster debut. Not a lot of people are expecting them to get called up, but if there’s a time to elicit a reaction and make an impact at the same time, Summerlsam’s the place.
ABSLER: I do have a few wildcard predictions for this weekend. One being that Matt Riddle will appear front row at NXT and get a huge pop. Also, many people think that they can see Ambrose’s heel turn from a mile away and while I do think he turns, it may not be in the way people think. Whether it be at Summerslam or just RAW the next night, Ambrose is going to get a huge push.
BOURANIS: I guess that if Carmella retains the SmackDown Women’s Championship at SummerSlam, this could lead to a feud between Charlotte and Becky Lynch, with probably the latter having a heel turn.
Big thanks to everyone who took part in this edition!
Those are our thoughts, but what do you have to say about these issues? Keep the discussion going by chiming in via the comments section below!
