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Hey guys... Mr. Tito here exclusively at LordsofPain.net / WrestlingHeadlines.com once again. Special THANK YOU to my readers who have pumped my numbers upward here in 2017. I'm heading into my 19th year as Mr. Tito and I'm still running strong. This old man still got it, like it or not... And even for the haters of my columns, you cannot resist clicking and commenting. You're like me with a brand new Mario Kart game... It's HARD to put down that crack pipe! Now... Those RAW viewership numbers... Just barely above 3.0 million viewers. OUCH. Consider this. We're just a few weeks after a financially successful Wrestlemania 33 and the overhyped "superstar shake-up". We're back at 3.0 million viewers FLAT and likely to head South. Many of you have reminded me repeatedly of my pre-Draft call of RAW being "permanently under 3 million viewers"... Well, here we are and the trends are pointing to my prediction being right. Sorry, but you cannot remain in ROYAL RUMBLE to WRESTLEMANIA season and have the likes of GOLDBERG/LESNAR/UNDERTAKER helping to create short-term ratings bursts. Goldberg and Undertaker are GONE, with the Taker retiring and Goldberg not wrestling again (unless they want him for Wrestlemania again). The "Shake-up" did NOT help either roster and that's a FACT. Smackdown has averaged 2.5 million viewers in the 2 weeks following the shake-up! That's SAD. At least RAW has a problem with having too many talented wrestlers... It's just that the Vince McMahon led Creative Team for RAW cannot comprehend ideas that might connect fans. Same old problems from the previous year, but at least their Pay Per Views will be stacked with good matches. Just sleepwalk through RAW and enjoy the Pay Per Views on WWE Network. Nothing wrong with that... But Smackdown... Damn it sucks with the WRONG people getting pushed. What we should be seeing is the Miz in Jinder Mahal's spot and that's a FACT. Jinder Mahal has only won 17% of his total career WWE matches while barely winning any televised matches since his 2016 return. What, because he's in shape with veins popping out of his body everywhere that it merits a Main Event push? Huh? Great physique suddenly justifies a push? WWE hasn't changed, folks... Get ripped or don't get pushed. The Miz move was the WORST move of the Shake-Up... Just totally screwed Smackdown and RAW is already proving that their depth didn't need him. The moves of Ambrose/Wyatt/Miz have NOT proved to be ratings boosts for RAW and pushing Jinder Mahal has caused fans to turn Smackdown off. Smackdown's identity for the past year was John Cena, AJ Styles, Miz, and Dean Ambrose. That was the "Fab 4" of Smackdown that actually carried the show together. Cena is on vacation while Miz/Ambrose are now on RAW. That leaves AJ Styles who is the #1 contender for the United States Title. Do you hear that? Styles was JUST the WWE Champion who carried the belt during late 2016 and early 2017 while giving great matches to EVERYBODY on the roster. But no, let's see how Jinder Mahal does in a WWE Title match against Randy Orton. Yay. And then, just when Vince McMahon's stupidity couldn't get worse as he oversees the yes-man Creative Team... Shinsuke Nakamura, excuse me, the "Artist Known as Shinsuke Nakamura" is becoming compared to Michael Jackson. Seriously, did you see that Dolph Ziggler promo? Now... I know what you'll tell me. Nakamura's character took inspiration from Michael Jackson as a dancer, etc. OK, fine... But what about the rest of Michael Jackson? See, I'll agree with you on Michael being one of the best musical talents and performers of ALL TIME. From Jackson 5 through the HISTory album, nothing but quality music for the most part. He was legendary for his live performances... But, he was also legendary for weird stuff and legal problems. I fully understand the childhood damage caused by his father, Joe Jackson, being abusive physically and mentally... Some of the stuff that I've read on Joe and what he did in front of the boys makes me understand how Michael Jackson became "broken" long-term. However, regardless of what caused the "broken" Michael Jackson, the reputation Michael earned stuck throughout the years and still does to this day (death has eased it a bit). And when you have a heel like Dolph Ziggler cutting a promo on Nakamura and comparing him to Jackson, it's not flattering. Ziggler isn't cutting a promo on Nakamura to suggest that he resembles Michael Jackson the musician... No, he's comparing Nakamura to Michael Jackson the WEIRDO. The guy who had repeat plastic surgeries, strange spending habits that somehow left him in debt, hanging a baby over the balcony, having sleepovers with other people's children and sharing the same beds (paid out $22 million in settlement money in 1993), many strange interviews, and his prescription drug use and abuse leading to his death. Being compared to that is not flattering, whatsoever. Shinsuke Nakamura is still NEW to the WWE roster. And as I've said repeatedly now, not every WWE fan watches NXT. That's a fact... Hence, why many NXT call-ups occur and they aren't quite getting over at every venue as expected. Thus, Nakamura is still brand new and he didn't receive weeks of vignettes to hype his debut. Nope, he just appeared one night without any announcement or anticipation. Weeks later, he's mocked by a heel for resembling Michael Jackson. But I'm sure Vince McMahon, who has ZERO CLUE on how to get any Japanese wrestlers over (Tajiri was a midcarder, folks, got over on his own with his wrestling style) thought that the Michael Jackson comparison was funny. Har har har... Oh, Nakamura speaks broken English, you say? Gee, if there was only a way to help that out? Oh, could someone tell me WHY Brock Lesnar has a manager again? Sure, having Paul Heyman around lets Brock exist when his scheduled dates won't let him appear on RAW... But when Brock Lesnar appears, he rarely speaks. Paul Heyman speaks for him. Imagine that... The old wrasslin' premise of using a manager to speak for you. What a concept! It's as if Jimmy Hart, Bobby Heenan, Jim Cornette, Paul E Dangerously, Gary Hart, JJ Dillon, Mr. Fuji, "Precious" Paul Ellering, Bill Alfonzo, Sensational Sherri, Paul Bearer/Percy Pringle, Classy Freddie Blassie, and many others weren't effective. Aside from being incorporated in matches, they spoke for wrestlers who couldn't cut promos effectively. It works and we have decades of proof that it works. If you believe that Nakamura cannot talk, then give him a damn manager! INSTEAD of stacking our announcing teams with MORE bodies, why not have more managers? Many wrestlers who STRUGGLE with WWE's scripted lines could use one... ============================================ WWE PAYBACK Pay Per View PREDICTIONS By the way, if I didn't watch RAW on Hulu this week through Thursday, I would have totally missed that WWE Payback was happening this weekend. Completely uneventful Pay Per View that follows Wrestlemania. Remember how IMPORTANT that the Pay Per View following Wrestlemania used to be? But there I go again, eating those 'Member Berries. You know, just remembering when the wrestling business was GROWING. ----------- Pregame Match: Enzo/Big Cass vs. Anderson/Gallows With both of these teams, the return of the Hardy Boys have certainly removed the bloom off the roses for both teams, particularly the babyface Enzo & Cass. I bet that if the Hardys didn't appear at Wrestlemania 33 with their huge return, Enzo & Big Cass would be RAW Tag Champions. No doubt in my mind... But, as often is the case of the wrestling business, something better came along and I believe that fans are wearing a little thin on Enzo's act. Based on the injury angles we see on Enzo, I think we're getting closer and closer to the day where Big Cass starts to wrestle as a singles competitor. WWE needs it, too, because they'll need another thick guy to compete against Braun Strowman and Bray Wyatt on the RAW roster. I believe that the Hardys will retain their Tag Titles and therefore, heels win here for a future feud. WHO SHOULD WIN: Enzo & Big Cass... I think there is still some babyface life to squeeze out of team if pushed hard. Seems like the WWE does too much 50/50 booking on these guys. WHO WILL WIN: Anderson & Gallows because they are heels and the Hardys are babyfaces. ---------------------------- Cruiserweight Title: Neville (c) vs. Austin Aries Hey, this event isn't called Wrestlemania? Therefore, Austin's chances of winning have greatly increased because Vince McMahon will NOT let any wrestlers from TNA/WCW, his competitors, to win their first Wrestlemanias. Period, end of story... Why have a Pay Per View rematch if the title isn't switching? WHO SHOULD WIN: Neville. Cruiserweight Division needs a strong champion for a while. WHO WILL WIN: Austin Aries and this will set up their 3rd rematch at the next RAW Pay Per View. ---------------------------- HOUSE OF HORRORS: Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton (reportedly non-title) Talk about bonehead moves by booking a rematch with wrestlers on 2 different rosters. Idiotic superstar shake-up... What was wrong with their Wrestlemania 33 match, folks? Too many gimmicks going on with the images of worms and bugs appearing on the ring. It reduced the quality of a BASIC WRESTLING MATCH for a WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. Bray Wyatt is a much better in-ring wrestler than an actor. I've said that consistently from day one. But somehow, we'll ruin that ability to have a GOOD WRESTLING MATCH by throwing more gimmicks towards their feud. No thanks. WHO SHOULD WIN: Randy Orton, 100% clean. He's the World Champion from another brand. If he loses, the entire Smackdown brand is reduced. WHO WILL WIN: Disqualification or No Contest. I figure that Jinder Mahal and his pals will attack and pull Randy Orton away from the match. Gotta hard sell that insta-push of Jinder Mahal. ---------------------------- RAW Tag Titles: Hardy Boyz vs. Cesaro/Sheamus This match perplexes me because I see WWE possibly wanting to create changes among both teams. I think that Cesaro and Sheamus have hit their peak and WWE might want both to move on. At the same time, WWE might want to create an event to cause Matt Hardy to begin his "broken" gimmick in the WWE (assuming that WWE has compensated TNA for that gimmick). However, I can't see the Hardys losing the Tag Titles so soon after their HUGE return to the WWE. WHO SHOULD WIN / WHO WILL WIN: Hardy Boyz ---------------------------- Samoa Joe vs. Seth Rollins I just don't know about this match-up... I don't know where either character is going. Joe is a Triple H loyalist but Seth Rollins disposed of HHH (Stephanie, too). At the same time, I don't know where Seth Rollins's character is going. As I've said for the past year since the Triple H betrayal, I'm still confused on if Seth is a true babyface or not. You cannot erase that 2014 heel turn moment and just because HHH betrayed him, it doesn't vindicate Rollins to become a babyface. It's not like he LEFT Triple H... That's the issue. Rollins has no identity on his own outside of the Authority. Honestly, I have no idea where the WWE is going so I'll guess here... WHO SHOULD WIN / WHO WILL WIN: Samoa Joe. Joe needs a big win in his WWE career while Seth Rollins needs some character construction. ---------------------------- IN CASE IT HAPPENS... Intercontinental Title: Dean Ambrose (c) vs. the Miz Neither guy is booked on the show yet they've been feuding since both joined the RAW roster. Just in case it happens... WHO SHOULD WIN / WHO WILL WIN: The Miz. He puts over that title better than anyone. ---------------------------- RAW Women's Title: Bayley (c) vs. Alexa Bliss Bayley just had her "Wrestlemania moment", but I don't believe that WWE management (Vince) is high on her talents. They are very high, however, on Alexa Bliss which is why she was swapped for freakin' Charlotte. I have a feeling that the WWE is itching to do Sasha vs. Alexa which I believe will produce not just amazing matches, but strong promos against each other. The two reportedly had real life heat in NXT when Sasha accidentally hurt Alexa in a match and that grudge could help fuel some great stuff on TV. WHO SHOULD WIN / WHO WILL WIN: Alexa Bliss. WWE had their opportunity to get Bayley over many times now and they failed. Time to move on. ---------------------------- United States Title: Kevin Owens (c) vs. Chris Jericho Weird stipulation in that if Chris Jericho wins the US Title, he moves to Smackdown. I believe that's going to happen (because RAW has too many upper midcarders now) and we'll see the next edition of Smackdown headlined by Jericho vs. Kevin Owens. That, or we'll see a TRIPLE THREAT between AJ Styles, Kevin Owens, and Chris Jericho at the next Smackdown Pay Per View. Then, when Jericho goes on tour with FOZZY, the WWE can press on with AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens. Jericho winning extends the feud, gives us more matches, we all win... WHO SHOULD WIN: Kevin Owens... Can't have him lose the US Title on a RAW Pay Per View WHO WILL WIN: Chris Jericho and that sets up a rematch and/or Triple Threat with Styles/Owens. ---------------------------- MAIN EVENT: Braun Strowman vs. Roman Reigns I believe that the current plans are to build Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman while saving Brock vs. Roman for a future bigger event. Reportedly, WWE wants to have Roman vs. Brock headline Wrestlemania 34 and therefore, Brock will need others to wrestle. Furthermore, I believe that Reigns will be selling the after effects of the beatdown and being in an ambulance that was tossed on its side. The more I think about it, the more that ambulance incident makes me laugh and creates an image about how ridiculous the wrestling industry has become. To be consistent, I said the SAME thing about the New World Order attacking the Rock's limo during 2002. WHO SHOULD WIN / WHO WILL WIN: Braun Strowman. If he doesn't, everybody looks bad after that beatdown and ambulance angle. Enjoy the show! SO JUST CHILL... 'TIL THE NEXT EPISODE! Comments and feedback are welcome. Follow and Tweet me @titowrestling or login in below to post comments. © Mr. Tito and LordsofPain.net/WrestlingHeadlines.com - 1998-2017
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