Quick Thoughts On The Three Title Wins At WWE Night Of Champions 2015

Three out of the five titles that were on the line at Night of Champions changed hands. All three winners can be viewed as positive changes for their prestigious titles. Here are a few quick thoughts about the US Championship, the Diva’s Championship, and the Intercontinental Championship.

John Cena Regains His US Championship

Looking back at 2015 so far, one of the bright spots of WWE programming will no doubt be the season of John Cena US Open Challenges on Raw. Since having that mid-card title, it’s become one of the most well-defended belts in all of wrestling. It felt like many NXT alums would go the route of a lengthy US Championship match against Cena on Raw as a way of being properly introduced to the main roster. Even though they were almost always losers to Cena, it’s hard to argue that they weren’t better off for it.

Now that Cena has regained his title, I look forward to him resuming the US Open Challenge matchups. Having the belt off of him for a month not only raised the prestige of the title even more by having it paired alongside the WWE World Heavyweight Championship but it also gave the WWE Universe a chance to take a break from the regularity of defenses. This clearly turned out to be a case of absence making the heart grow fonder.

Charlotte Defeats Nikki Bella To Win Diva’s Championship

A big sigh of relief could be heard in the WWE Universe when Nikki finally broke AJ Lee’s record of longest reign for the Diva’s title. That was the goal of McMahon and Co. and any other competition had to take a back seat to breaking that one record. Once that task was crossed off of the to-do list, Charlotte won the belt about as quickly as she could have.

The match that Nikki lost her belt in was a pretty darn good match. She proved that she can be a dominant force in the ring, even against the imposing Charlotte. She brutalized Charlotte’s leg, targeting the very appendages she uses for his signature submission move.

Even though Sasha Banks has an IronWoman match on NXT to prepare for in the coming weeks, I’m salivating at the thought that she too can be moved into the Diva’s Title picture opposite of Charlotte in the near future. Even the obvious heel turn of Paige is an exciting matchup. Now that Bella doesn’t have to be champ for the purpose of erasing Mrs. CM Punk’s name from the top of the record books, the options are wide open.

Kevin Owens Wins Intercontinental Championship

As a personal mark for The Big Guy, it’s bittersweet to see him drop the Intercontinental Championship. He generally gets a good babyface pop in most arenas and is an overall marketable guy. I saw the writing on the wall that Owens was going to win the strap but sort of hoped that they dragged it out for a few months. Oh well, a Kevin Owens IC Title run is not a bad thing; in fact, it’s a very good thing. (Hi, DDP.)

Owens is still a hot commodity in WWE and has tons of heat that any babyface would love to work opposite of. The IC Championship is seemingly the one belt that hasn’t had the chance to get elevated in 2015 due to an unplanned Daniel Bryan injury, but it’s in great hands now.

Owens has had about as good of a first year into WWE as anyone could have been planned. His run with the NXT title was exciting and then his feud with John Cena will probably go down as WWE’s feud of the year. He’s great in the ring so this a great pairing between him and his new title.

Final Thoughts

This was a tad longer than I planned but I guess I’m just excited about the direction of WWE right now. Sure, there’s negatives if you want to dwell on them but with John Cena, Charlotte, and Kevin Owens carrying three of the gold belts in this company, those are some pretty big positives.

If you want to check out some fun .gif analysis of last night’s Night of Champions event, head on over to WhatCulture.com and click through my latest article, 16 Most Insane Spots From WWE Night Of Champions 2015. It’s got a ton of wild spots that you’ll want to see!

Please Fans, Stop Jumping In The Ring With The Shield

At last night’s Night of Champions event from Houston, Texas, an incredibly stupid fan jumped into the ring and stood beside Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns while they awaited the reveal of their mystery opponent. The wrestlers in the ring didn’t appear worried and casually snickered while security tackled the guy to the ground. Bray Wyatt even could be heard asking his opponents if the fan was one of theirs.

WWE issued this statement following what was one of many recent attempts by fans jumping the barricade… “WWE takes the safety of our performers very seriously and any fan entering the ring area will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Current performers seem smart enough to not choose to attack the fans the second they get near. That’s wise in this lawsuit-happy age that we live in. But considering the frequency of morons lately, maybe fans could use a few stiff punches to remind them that they aren’t part of the show.

Thankfully, every recent fan who’s gotten involved with the action either had no intention of physically engaging the wrestlers or were at least taken out by security before it got to that point. But who’s to say that the next fan to enter the ring isn’t looking for a fight? Or even worse, what if one is carrying a weapon?

Roman and Dean could’ve really won over the fans if they decked the guy who tried to take Jericho’s surprise spot. One good shot is all in the name of self-defense so surely they would avoid legal trouble, right? As a fan myself, I’m just a little sick of these occurrences happening over and over.

For detailed analysis of Night of Champions, head on over to Whatculture.com to read my latest article, 10 Biggest Winners From Night Of Champions 2015.

Seth Rollins vs. John Cena Could End Up Being Match Of The Year

Looking forward to tomorrow’s Night of Champions event, there’s one match in particular that I’m most excited about. Before talking about the reasons why Seth Rollins vs. John Cena is a lock to be the match of the night, here are a couple of other matches that I’m also excited about. I won’t touch on everything but here are a few quick thoughts:

New Day vs. Dudley Boyz

This should be loads of fun. New Day are on levels of funny that haven’t been touched since the days of Edge & Christian. Add to that the fun of when Bubba Ray and Devon put one or more them through the table and this should be a highlight of an already great show.

Ryback vs. Kevin Owens

Kevin Owens has been one of the best performers of the year in WWE as a mark for The Big Guy, I’m stoked for this matchup. I ultimately see Owens carrying the IC Title, but I hope that this is more than a one and done feud. That would likely require a screwy ending, which would hamper this match from being as good as it could be.

Seth Rollins vs. John Cena

The United States Championship will be defended in what should be Rollins’ first match of the evening. Considering the two titles he has to defend, this one seems way more likely to have a clean finish. Also factor in that Rollins is already a spectacular performer and John Cena is having a legendary year of matches already and this could end up being one of the best matches of the year. I’m very stoked for this one and hope it lives up to the hype that I’m putting into it.

Thanks for reading my quick thoughts on the upcoming show! If you have the time, go to WhatCulture.com to check out my feature archive, including “8 Losses That Need To Happen At Night Of Champions 2015!”

Last Minute Rumble Predictions

I’ll keep this short and sweet. I’ve been avoiding spoilers today because I want to experience the surprises as much as I can in full mark-out mode. The Rumble is sacred; don’t mess with it.

Big E, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods (New Day) vs. Cesaro, Tyson Kidd & Adam Rose (Pre-Show)

I see New Day winning this one. There is loads of talent on this pre-show match and I hope all of these guys weather their spot on the card until they get their chances to move up.

Mitch’s Pick: New Day

The Bella Twins vs. Paige & Natalya

Since Nikki Bella is the Diva’s Champ I’ll assume that she’ll take the fall in this match. Not sure if Paige or Nattie is the one to get the win but I’ll hope that both of them get a Title shot soon. If some combination of these women (or all of them) are in the Diva’s Championship match at Mania then I’ll be fine with it.

Mitch’s Pick: Paige & Nattie

The Ascension vs. New Age Outlaws

I remember reading a dirt sheet rumor recently that people who matter were already balking on an Ascension push. I guess it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that the Outlaws could win tonight, but I’m still going with the safe pick of The Ascension. Young guys winning over legends just makes sense.

Mitch’s Pick: The Ascension

The Usos vs. The Miz & Damien Mizdow (WWE Tag-Team Championship)

Miz & Mizdow need to split up and The Ascension will need a babyface team to feud against in their eventual title hunt. The Usos should win this.

Mitch’s Pick: The Usos

30-man over-the-top Royal Rumble match

I don’t mind Roman winning this and I still think he’s the safe pick. I’d rather have Bryan winning it (or Ziggler or Ambrose or Wyatt or…) and there might be better options than Reigns, but it’s not terrible if he does. He’ll do fine in the main event of Wrestlemania and as long as they stop writing dumb promos for him people will largely enjoy the mega-push he’s being given.

Mitch’s Pick: Roman Reigns

Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins (WWE World Heavyweight Championship)

I’ve heard a ton of convincing reasons why John Cena will win the match tonight but I think I’ll stick with Plan A. Roman will win the Rumble and he’ll go on to face Lesnar at Mania. This is a hard one to pick and I won’t be surprised at all if I’m wrong. I’m also still holding out on Rollins doing a cash-in because I’d like him to be the first one to do that at Wrestlemania.

Mitch’s Pick: Brock Lesnar

So here it is, my picks for the Rumble. It’s such a great show and I’m very stoked to watch it tonight. I’ve heard rumors of The Dudleys and The Rock over the past few days and I expect that Sting will show up in some capacity as well. But as for today, I’ve avoided the dirt sheets.

What do you think? Let me know your picks and predictions and if I can I’ll banter with you before the show. As always, check me out on Twitter @MitchNickelson and I’ll chat over there as well. Take care.

Another Classic Macho Moment: Tears of Joy at Wrestlemania VII

“He certainly lost the match! But he got something MUCH more valuable…his woman!” – Gorilla Monsoon

At the risk of turning my wrestling blog into a Macho Man-exclusive fan page (would that be a bad thing?), here’s ANOTHER one of my personal favorite Randy Savage moments. Get yourself a box of Kleenexes, folks.

“This is better than Love Story…if you like this kind of mush!” – Bobby “The Brain” Heenan

How often does professional wrestling cause its audience to weep like they’re watching a Nicholas Sparks movie? This is truly a stand-alone moment in the history of this business. For crying out loud, just look at this kid…

The moment was proceeded by a fantastic retirement match that pitted Randy Savage against the legendary Ultimate Warrior.  It was a great match that is worth watching in its entirety but for now, I’ll simply link to the tear-jerking aftermath. Enjoy…

Do you have a favorite Macho Man moment? Share below and let me know.

And while I have you here please give a listen to the most recent edition of my podcast, Mitch Nickelson Radio. Sgt. Damage, who is joining the show as a permanent co-host, talked with me for close to an hour regarding UFC, Wrestle Kingdom 9, and the WWE. Considering Jon Jones had to check himself into rehab regarding trace amounts of cocaine, it has been a week with plenty of interesting things to talk about.

A Classic “Macho Man” Randy Savage Moment: SNAKE BITE!

It is being reported everywhere online that Macho Man Randy Savage is going to be announced as the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2015 on tonight’s Raw. Congrats to him. His posthumous induction will be long overdue.

In honor of this sure to be great moment for the wrestling community I am linking to one of the most scarring videos of my whole childhood. This was the only time that I ever saw Jake Roberts actually use his snake on somebody. It was gruesome and I was probably only about nine or 10 when I watched it at my grandparents’ house.

Thankfully, the video I found on YouTube edits out the disturbing part. But it is still pretty sick. Enjoy, I think…

Do you have a favorite Macho Man moment? Share below and let me know.

And while I have you here please give a listen to the most recent edition of my podcast, Mitch Nickelson Radio. Sgt. Damage, who is joining the show as a permanent co-host, talked with me for close to an hour regarding UFC, Wrestle Kingdom 9, and the WWE. Considering Jon Jones had to check himself into rehab regarding trace amounts of cocaine, it has been a week with plenty of interesting things to talk about.

2014 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 7,300 times in 2014. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 6 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.