This is the last PPV preview from me for the monthly PPVs. I'll probably do previews for WrestleMania, Summerslam, Survivor Series and the Royal Rumble. That's it, though. They've become too much of a strain, so I'm only going to do them for the big four. I'll talk about PPVs more in my show recaps to make up for it.
The shape of Smackdown since WrestleMania has been full of ups and downs. For the first five weeks or so after WM, SD was a good show. The Cena reign was off to a good start. Then the last two weeks have seen poor editions of Smackdown. The Guerrero/Mysterio feud cooled off considerably, the Booker/Angle storyline took a turn for the worse and although they tried hard with the Cena/JBL feud, it limped into the weekend. The rest of the card is obviously unimportant to WWE since they have put such small focus on the other matches. This preview won't be the usual length for me, but I'll still cover it as best I can.
Paul London vs. Chavo Guerrero for the Cruiserweight Title
Truth be told, I have no idea if this match is on the card. They didn't announce it officially on Smackdown, nor is it listed on WWE's Judgment Day page as of this writing (Saturday morning). So who knows? I'm guessing it will be on since they only have six other matches on the card. This match, if they gave a damn, could have been really good. Guerrero's a good heel that the fans are familiar with while London is a guy who could really thrive as a babyface if he was only backed by the booking committee. I'll say London retains because I don't think it'd be wise to take the belt off him before he's even had a proper feud with it. This match will be too short, as are all cruiserweight matches in WWE.
Winner: Paul London
Orlando Jordan vs. Heidenreich for the United States Title
Simply put, this is the worst belt in WWE right now. Orlando Jordan has not been put over as a champion at all. He won the belt in a cheap manner and he's lost a bunch of non-title matches in the meantime. Why put the belt on him them? It's stupid. If you're not going to use the guy or push him, why waste the belt here? Heidenreich beat him in some non-title crapfest on Thursday. Does anybody want to see the rematch? Not me. I'll say OJ wins. Not like I care about this joke of a title.
Winner: Orlando Jordan
MNM vs. Charlie Haas & Hardcore Holly for the WWE Tag Team Titles
One of the biggest travesties in WWE ever since last year's lottery has been the misuse of Charlie Haas. I don't get it. Dude has talent. Use him! Anyway, this is about as predictable a tag match as there could ever be. MNM will retain for two reasons. One, Holly beat Mercury on Smackdown and the way PPVs often work is if you win on TV the show before, you'll lose on PPV. Second reason is MNM is going to keep the belts because they'll be a fresh tag team for the Dudleys to face once they return around the ECW PPV in June. The champs retain. Oh yeah, and Melina rules. My second favorite WWE female now behind Trish. Well behind Trish, but still, she's in second now.
Winners: MNM
Big Show vs. Carlito Caribbean Cool w/Matt Morgan
I like Morgan being paired with Carlito. Sure, it reeks of the Christian/Tomko duo on Raw, but that's alright. Talkative heels need bodyguards to make them look even cheaper as performers. I have no idea how this match will be in terms of workrate. I won't have my hopes up. Show is okay with the right person. I still haven't seen that much of Carlito. As a character, he's one of my favorites. In ring, though, there's a lot of questions with him. Big Show is not the opponent to find those answers. However, a win over Show would do wonders for Mr. Cool, so I'm going to say the afro man gets the win here. Show can lose and it won't matter. Cool could win and will help his future.
Winner: Carlito Cool
Kurt Angle vs. Booker T.
I'm torn on this one. On one hand, I love that Booker T is finally getting a storyline on Smackdown that is more than "face this guy because you have nothing else to do." I thought it was a travesty that he wasn't even used at WrestleMania. He hasn't had a good angle on Smackdown in the year he's been there. Now he's feuding with Kurt Angle because Angle wants to have hot animal sex with his wife. Classy. I think they're reaching too far with this angle. As for match quality, you never know. Booker has been in a lull, but anybody that wrestles with Kurt Angle for 15-20 minutes is going to look good, so this could be a solid three star affair. My pick is that Angle wins by using some heel tactics, but I don't see the storyline ending here.
Winner: Kurt Angle
Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio
This is the best feud in WWE right now. I don't hesitate when I say that. The only part about it that I didn't like was the angle on the last Smackdown where Eddie walked in the ring, grabbed a microphone and said nothing. I understand why it was done. I just didn't like it. That's about all the complaining I can do about this though. I love evil Eddie Guerrero. He's phenomenal in that role. Since he's also fresh as a heel again, it's fun to watch him act like a dick all the time. Mysterio is the perfect babyface because he's always going to be the underdog based on how he looks. The emotion in this storyline has been great. Since this is such a big match on a show that isn't stacked, I expect them to get plenty of time to tell a great story. Should this get 20 minutes then we're looking at a match of the year contender. I like Guerrero to win to tie up their PPV series at one, leading to a third and final match for them with a stipulation for the Great American Bash.
Winner: Eddie Guerrero
John Cena vs. John Bradshaw Layfield - I Quit Match for the WWE Title
I've liked the build to this. I think they've done a good job in portraying how opposite their characters are. Cena hates JBL for the things he believes in and vice versa. It works perfectly. I don't know how much I like the "I Quit" stip. It's good because they're both good talkers, so they should be able to pull out some funny stuff when they have the microphone in eachother's faces. I think we'll see blood from both guys here. I also think they'll be using plenty of weapons to make the match flow. Should be all around ringside in a hectic environment that is common in WWE main events. I don't see Cena losing. They didn't make him a new belt and give him a CD to plug so they could yank the belt off of him. It'll be interesting to see where both men go from here.
Winner: John Cena
In Closing…
It has the potential to be a pretty good show. Since I think Guerrero/Mysterio will get time, that'll probably a match that hits the four star level. The rest is up in the air. I could see another two or three matches hitting the three star level too. Not bad, really. Certainly better than what No Way Out, Armageddon and No Mercy were. Personally, I won't be ordering it because it's a long weekend here in Canada (Victoria Day) and I don't plan on being home Sunday night. I might pick up the DVD in a month after I read about it. We'll see. If you're watching it, enjoy.
See you in a few days for the WWE News & Views.
Smell ya later,
John C. - oratoryjohn@gmail.com
