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The first companion book in the WrestleMania Era series, The Greatest Champions Of The WrestleMania Era, is also available now! ”The Doc” Chad Matthews has been a featured writer for LOP since 2004. Initially offering detailed recaps and reviews for WWE's top programs, he transitioned to writing columns in 2010. In addition to his discussion-provoking current event pieces, he has written many acclaimed series about WrestleMania, as well as a popular short story chronicle. The Doc has also penned a book, The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment, published in 2013. It has been called “the best wrestling book I have ever read” and holds a 5-star rating on Amazon, where it peaked at #3 on the wrestling charts. Follow @TheDocLOP QUESTION OF THE DAY: What did you feel was the Match of the Month in June? Who did you feel was the Wrestler of the Month? The following is a case study of WWE’s product for the month of June 2016. On The Eve Of Extension We've all had a month to allow the news of the Brand Extension to sink in. I have now gravitated toward being on-board with it if for no other reason than because there's no point in not being on-board with it at this stage; it's going to happen no matter how we feel about it, so if you're still feeling ill about the situation, then I urge you join me on the positive side of the fence and discuss with me the happenings that are beginning to take shape for Raw vs. Smackdown 2.0. Three particular items interest me most ahead of July 19th's draft. #1 - The scheduling of multiple PPVs per month after Summerslam. Some will scoff at this and I completely understand their reasoning, but the best part of the WWE product right now is the PPVs. Consistently since 2014, WWE has been delivering high quality PPVs. That is mostly due to greater roster depth and the WWE Network's existence, the former allowing for better PPVs thanks to more talented wrestlers being utilized across three hours and the latter placing a premium on PPV success to give fans their money's worth for the $9.99/month price tag. Though I am reasonably concerned about finding the time to watch all of these PPVs while still struggling to make time for the NXT Takeover specials, I am not at all opposed to seeing more of WWE's top modern attribute. I see the TV shows as so borderline (PG) gosh-darn irrelevant these days compared to their past usage and role in the WWE machine that PPV is the main thing that keeps me in-tune with the product. #2 - Are we going to have two World Champions? I'm assuming that we are primarily because it would be difficult to take seriously the internal competition that could and should be one of the best things to come of the brand split if one brand has a World Champion and the other does not. Functionally, I see no way around that primary issue. Titles should matter and the stature of being the World Champion should not be limited to a single brand. Realistically, if there are two shows, then there should not be a need for one wrestler - even the World Champion - to compete on both. Two World Champions is the way to go. The depth is there and the talent acquisition strategy is rock solid to ensure that depth will not be fleeting. #3 - The strategy that WWE will use to make the two shows different. How are Raw and Smackdown going to compete with each other? Same Network, both live, back-to-back nights, a PPV for each brand for non-Big 4/5 months; the setting is ripe for real competition to emerge between brands. Part of what will create that competitive drive is how the products of each brand work creatively. I know that I don't personally have any interest in watching two bland TV shows (i.e. Raws) each week, which is one of the reasons why I think it's a necessity to spark a legitimate competition between the brands. You should have people that want to go to certain brands and there should be a sense of brand loyalty that develops organically over time. WWE is getting a mulligan on a unique concept that they weren't prepared to handle properly in the early 2000s. I hope they make the most of it. NXT Takeover: The End of the Beginning Review Match of the Month: Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns at Money in the Bank I do not suspect it will hold this title for longer than a month with the historic Shield triple threat on deck for July, but Rollins vs. Reigns is my current front-runner for Match of the Year. A rewatch has only strengthened that opinion. Reigns repeated the caliber of performance that was so rightfully praised in the month of May, accentuating a few character traits in a very engaging manner, but the match-long story of Rollins trying to prove to himself that he was still "The Man" was what boosted the much-anticipated clash to the next level of greatness for me. You could tell that there was some uncertainty there, only natural given the severity of his 2015 injury; when he connected with the running turnbuckle powerbomb - the move that blew out his knee - the tone of the bout changed and it seemed like the 2015 WWE MVP was fully back in his groove. The finish was well-timed and highly innovative and the result was one of those rare moments in which the unpredictability of a victor can tremendously boost the profile of a match. Add in the Ambrose cash-in and the Lunatic Fringe's much-deserved catharsis and you have an instant classic. Previous winners: Ambrose vs. Owens at Royal Rumble (Jan), Ambrose vs. Reigns vs. Lesnar at Fast Lane (Feb), Dean Ambrose vs. Triple H at Roadblock (Mar), Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn at Takeover: Dallas (Apr), and AJ Styles vs. Roman Reigns at Extreme Rules (May) WWE Money in the Bank Review Wrestler of the Month: Seth Rollins With all due respect to the new WWE Champion, Dean Ambrose, his pair of moments at Money in the Bank (the Ladder match victory and the successful cash-in) do not trump the body of work put together by Rollins throughout the month of June. The Architect picked right up where he left off last fall and delivered spot-on promos and the Match of the Month in a burning-hot spotlight on PPV. The pressure was on for him to deliver and he did so in spades. He is a spectacular in-ring performer (add The Evolutionary Shawn Michaels to his list of nicknames) and, for my tastes, he is also the most interesting persona on WWE TV. I genuinely want to hear what he has to say and, while no one will mistake him for being CM Punk on the microphone, he simply gets the job done better than 99% of his peers. Not to be taken lightly is the fact that he beat Roman Reigns clean in the middle of the ring, giving him an important distinction that should serve his career well in the future. Perception may show Reigns to be the alpha who emerged from the Shield, but Rollins - on the back of a dominant record against his former stablemates - continues to stay in the race. That is important for WWE moving forward; balance is quite helpful for the product. Previous winners: Dean Ambrose (Jan and Feb), Chris Jericho (Mar), AJ Styles (Apr), and AJ Styles and Roman Reigns (May) July Predictions So, Money in the Bank did not quite live up to the expectations set for it becoming the greatest iteration in the PPV's relatively short history. It still felt, though, like a WrestleMania/Summerslam-caliber card in the early part of the summer. Delivery may have been 75% of what we'd hoped it would be, but it was refreshing that an aura that substantial could build for a PPV event in June. Well, here we go again. Battleground is shaping up to be bigger than Money in the Bank. The pessimist might say, "Battleground's card is what Summerslam's should be." The optimist might concede that Battleground's card could be Summerslam's for sure, but then add "If Battleground looks like Summerslam, then Summerslam must be shaping up to be like a WrestleMania." The Shield triple threat is, in my opinion, the most anticipated match since Rock-Cena 1 at WrestleMania 28. We have been talking about this match for over two years. On my podcast over the next few weeks, I will be setting the stage for it in a multi-part audio series called "Superstar Wars: Previewing The S.H.I.E.L.D. Triple Threat." I certainly question why it wasn't saved for Summerslam - or WrestleMania 33 for that matter - but the fact of the matter is that we're getting it now and I, for one, am putting "Match of the Year" and possible "Match of the Decade" expectations on it; I can't help it. Add in Zayn vs. Owens in what presumably could be the conclusion to the first WWE-proper chapter of their rivalry, the next installment in the AJ Styles vs. John Cena series, and perhaps even Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte for the Women's title and we undoubtedly have a Summerslam/WrestleMania-like card on our hands with "best PPV of the year" (or "the decade") potential. The WWE Draft taking place the week of Battleground could put the PPV match results in question and will be an intriguing piece of the story. Plus, you have the start of the Cruiserweight Classic and what could be the last NXT match for Finn Balor (against Shinsuke Nakamura). I cannot remember a month of July in WWE history that felt like this big of a deal. July is typically a low-point on the wrestling calendar. This year, it feels like the most must-see month of 2016.
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