What a weekend that was for the TKO group as UFC 317 delivered along with Night of Champions, which definitely shook things up in the WWE. Since Monday Night RAW is in Pittsburgh today, Dan from the Fight Club of Pain will be in attendance after coming back from his vacation. So we’ll have someone behind the scenes as we get ready to see how some of these wrestlers took after winning or losing at the Night of Champions. Of course we have a new King of the Ring as well so let’s get to this week’s rankings as we start the journey to Summerslam. Have a great day everyone and may the slams be with you.
John Cena: John Cena faced C.M. Punk in a championship match for his Universal Championship. Leading up to this match, Punk and Cena kept things fresh from Punk dressing up to represent Punk Life, which was a rip off of Cena’s Word Life years. That was previously outdone by Cena’s take on the pipe bomb promo. However, when the match went down there were some antics from Seth and his crew. Quickly Sami Zane and Penta showed up to help but Cena still won and now it’s on to Summerslam.
Cody Rhodes: Cody Rhodes moves back up to second in this list after being crowned King of the Ring. Cody faced off against Randy Orton, who pulled almost every dastardly thing out he could till he let his feelings get in the way. That led to a cleaner match going forward after that which I would give this match a 3.5 out of five stars. In the end, Cody won the match and now he’s looking forward to Summerslam.
Seth “Freakin” Rollins: Seth Rollins thought he would get fresh on Saturday and tried to sneak an easy win by cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase. Instead, his plans were foiled by Sami and Penta, who defended the cash in more than worrying about saving Cena. What’s next for Rollins and his faction will most likely be announced tonight on RAW, but if not, you can see a direction being set.
“Main Event” Jey Uso: Jey Uso had a match against J.C. Mateo on Smackdown last Friday. Of course, Solo showed up and helped Mateo win the match before Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu had to come save Jey. After all of that, Jey and Jacob met eye-to-eye as a sign of respect before parting ways. Since Jey wasn’t needed for the Night of Champions, and was a perfect way to get Jey some rest. Going forward, you know the WWE will have something planned for Jey, heading into Summerslam.
Bron Breakker: Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed tried to help Seth cash in his MITB briefcase but failed in the process. Soon Seth could start getting angry about this futility and blame the two. I don’t see any of that happening right now but believe me, Seth gets really irritated when he doesn’t get his way so be prepared for Seth to win a title before summer is over.
C.M. Punk: C.M. Punk had some jokes for Cena by coming out with a Punk Life gimmick, to troll the champ. He busted out so many bars that I was simply laughing like the rest of us. Of course, his match at Night of Champions didn’t go his way but both him and Cena left that match strong. I’m sure Punk won’t keep his mouth shut for long so be sure to tune in tonight, to see what’s next for this WWE superstar.
Gunther: Gunther came out last week to run his mouth about Bill Goldberg, who now has a shot at his title at Summerslam. Over the next few weeks both of these superstars are going to build what should be a squash match for Gunther. However, I could see Goldberg winning which would lead to Seth and his faction showing up and cashing in his MITB briefcase. This has been my prediction for awhile now and it’s close to happening with the only thing holding it back is the wait till August 2nd.
Jacob Fatu: Jacob Fatu was ready to defend his U.S. Title against Solo Sikoa, who didn’t come to this war alone. He brought J.C. Mateo and Tanga Loa, who just returned from injury. Jacob was ready for all of that until Hikuleo showed up. That was the final nail in the coffin because as soon after that Fatu found himself alone and beaten. He is no longer the champ but you can best believe that it’s going to be all gas and no brakes in RAW tonight.
L.A. Knight: L.A. Knight took some time off last week for the most part because he wasn’t needed. Prior to that he called out Seth and his faction which was met with Paul Heyman coming out. After a few words exchanged, the two went their ways but since there wasn’t anything planned for Knight, this was a perfect way out for some time off.
Roman Reigns: Roman Reigns is still off of T.V. and should be back for Summerslam. The first thought for Roman would be trying to get the Uso’s back together because both are staying relevant but Jimmy’s stock is dropping right now. However, all the WWE does is use him to save other wrestlers when he needs to focus on his career. I feel that a tag team match featuring both Uso’s is close to happening and I could even see a three-way tag team match including Roman against Solo’s Bloodline at the summer’s biggest party.
