At first glance, this column may seem like the typical PPV prediction column - but it isn't. I have brief thoughts on who will win each match, but the majority of the column centres around who will REALLY win, as a result of every match. This doesn't necessarily mean the wrestler who takes the pin fall or submission in the match, but rather the man, or women, who will truly benefit most from the match, and where said match will lead their career, whether they win or lose.
The column is split up into three parts which are oh-so (not-) cleverly named as a part of the development of a project - which in this case is WWE Armageddon 2007.
Analysis & Design
Armageddon has had a pretty good build up on all fronts. Most of the matches have drawn a lot of interest and have had a fair share of focus on them as well. The addition of Raw's 15th anniversary show was expected to really hurt the build up, as WWE normally scraps all PPV hype in favour of complete nostalgia on nights like these, which would have been a disaster for the go-home show before the event, but thankfully the show managed to hype up the pay-per-view excellently and was often the main focus.
Raw comes into the last big event of 2007 with four matches; two title matches, one contendership match and a big name feud as well.
My main gripe with Raw's build-up is the importance they have placed on the matches themselves. The three matches featuring men seem to have been given a fair amount of screen time, but nothing truly intense has happened. Shawn and Kennedy had a nice brawl to start off their feud but then sat around and mocked each other with the occasional beating in between. I actually liked all of this as both men delivered great promo's and the lack of real intensity points to a further match in the future, when either Kennedy reacts badly at losing, or HBK finally snaps at Kennedy's actions - and possible cheating to victory.
The women's title match has come about as a result of tag matches involving Mickie and Beth really. There hasn't been too much between them but I am still looking forward to this one as I believe they will put on a hell of a match, and I hope to see another one, hopefully with a nice stipulation, next month at the Rumble.
Now, the two main events from the Raw side have been put together rather well. Jericho and Orton have had a typical build up, with Jericho making the whole thing very entertaining. But, it has to be said that it has come across as quite flat. Some of this is down to crowd reaction, some of it is down to Orton just being useless in the situations he has been put in, and some of it may well be down to the fact that most people have already resigned themselves to believing that Jericho cannot possibly win and that Orton will be losing to Triple H next month anyway. But that is not the fault of the two involved.
Triple H and Jeff Hardy had an interesting match going. I didn't like another face vs. face match being added for no reason, especially when Jeff could be defending his title, but now the number one contendership is on the line, the whole thing is a lot more interesting. The two have shown some intensity backstage whilst still helping each other out and not turning it into a proper feud. I do hope that Jeff comes across as at least like to win though, or this match may suffer, in the same way as the main event, due to the crowd believing that they already know what the result is going to be.
ECW haven't really had much to do to build up for this event, but what they have had was done very well. They have two participants in a tag team match and whilst I am not going to enjoy watching the match itself, it has actually been produced rather well. Ignoring the heel team being Mark Henry and Big Daddy V, the feud, with Punk getting the better of Striker sometimes but being beat down by the larger opponent more often, has been built in a more than half-decent manner. In fact, if Kane and Punk were facing a team such as Miz and Morrision, I think I would be looking forward to the match quite a lot. At least Kane is a good choice of partner though.
Smackdown drew the short straw, in terms of matches, as usual. The main event and US title matches are more than solid and could rival Raw for the better matches of the night, but there only other match (unless you count half of the ECW/SD tag team match) pits Finley against The Great Khali. This match has been born out of the shenanigans between Hornswoggle and Vince so at least the build up has been entertaining, if you are enjoying those segments, and Finley and Khali have had some decent interactions with Finley saving Hornswoggle and taking a beat down on Smackdown as well. Unfortunately, much like the ECW/SD tag match, it is hard to get into this one and enjoy it too much as, despite Finley being involved, you just know that the match isn't going to be a masterpiece and that Khali can't really do much to help the situation as he lacks his own charisma, and general ability, to piece together a decent feud.
MVP and Rey were thrown together after Matt got injured but it has been done very well. It is a shame for the storyline that the US title is involved, as Rey is above it and that could hurt the pair here, as they have done very well to build a intense rivalry over a short period of time. Rey was the perfect choice to get involved when JBL was sucking up to MVP and since then the two have fought in matches and duelled in brawls. Last week saw a great segment with MVP and Michael Hayes which lead to Rey coming out to make the save. The two have done such a good job that I believe that they have a real hatred for each other - not bad to say it has only been 3 weeks altogether.
The main event is a continuation of the last year's storylines really. Not much more can be said on that front as the whole thing has been brewing very nicely and it has continued. Edge made a hell of a move at Survivor Series that threw himself back into the title picture and really made Taker angry, and since then we have had all three men taking each other out of matches and we even got both Teddy and Vicky involved and made another major storyline, outside of the World title, out of the angle. This has certainly been entertaining and has lead to what should be being perceived as a real big time main event.
Implementation
This section covers the event itself and quickly runs through how I think it will turn out. I won't go into too much detail as the meat and bones of the column is the next section, which follows on from the event itself, rather than focusing on these results.
CM Punk and Kane vs. Big Daddy V and Mark Henry
Kane may be saving Punk and he may have the victories over the opponents here, but the two heavyweights have certainly had the better of CM Punk over the last few weeks and months. This match has no real repercussions behind it so it wouldn't hurt too much for the heels to win, but for the sake of a face victory on the show, for the sake of giving Punk some redemption, and for the sake of making the champion look good, I would say that it is more likely that Punk and Kane will pick up the win.
Winner - CM Punk and Kane
Finley vs. The Great Khali
Finley seems to have been getting a decent push of late and I was hoping that it might lead somewhere for the Irish man. However, it now looks like the best he will get is a proper tag team with Hornswoggle. I would have had him down for the win here, and I am now quite unsure as to the result as the rest of the my card is rather heel-heavy, however, I get the feeling that this match is going to be used to humble Finley and that Vince will be using it as a message to tell him to stay away from Hornswoggle.
Winner - Khali
Shawn Michaels vs. Mr. Kennedy
Both men have been able to look equally strong in this feud so they are on an even playing field going into this match. Kennedy seems to have got his footing back on Raw and Shawn seems to have regained some of the intensity that he has been missing of late. I don't think this feud is likely to continue as the pair are more likely to be participating in the actual Rumble match next month, so the feud has to end here. That, more than likely, means a victory for HBK. This result should certainly not hurt Kennedy and if he is made to look like a decent enough threat, then he will only benefit, despite the loss.
Winner - Shawn Michaels
WWE Title Shot
Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy
Jeff had a real chance here. He is the Intercontinental champion and it would have been massive for him to pick up the victory (even if via roll-up) and Triple H could have always won the return match the next night on Raw. However, now that this match is for a WWE title match, there is no chance that Jeff is going to win. As great as it would be to see Jericho vs. Jeff for the WWE title at the Royal Rumble, it's not happening. It is heavily rumoured that the plan is for Triple H to take the title off Orton at the Rumble and face Batista at WrestleMania 24 and I think that is the more likely scenario.
Winner - Triple H
US Title
MVP vs. Rey Mysterio
This has been a pretty even feud and, much like with the HBK vs. Kennedy match, I don't really think it would really hurt MVP to lose this match. Again, the same as HBK vs. Kennedy, this feud will probably not continue past Armageddon as the two will be participating in the Rumble match. That would tell me that the face is picking up the big win, but, with the title on the line, I think that the opposite will come to pass. I would give Rey the nod by DQ or count out, but seeing as that isn't exactly a feud ender, I am going to say MVP will pick up the victory.
Winner - MVP
Women's Title
Beth Phoenix vs. Mickie James
These two haven't really had an amazing feud yet, and I think the plan will be to continue this one to keep the champion busy until she can face Candice in the run up to WrestleMania. Beth retains the title here for me, with another match taking place next month. I have Beth down for the victory flat out, to continue her impressive run, but I wouldn't at all be shocked to see Mickie pick up the win through a disqualification.
Winner - Beth Phoenix
World Title
Batista vs. Edge vs. The Undertaker
I keep trying to decide if all the rumours about the run up to WrestleMania are being thrown out there to fool us. Several times I have changed my mind about it all and said that Batista is going to retain here, which would certainly be a surprise. However, I really think that the plan is to move Batista to Raw and have him go up against Triple H. That means that he is definitely losing the title here (or at best, on a Smackdown show in a week or two). So the real question is who is better to take the title between Edge and Taker. The two are almost definitely going to face each other in the Smackdown title match for WrestleMania, so it doesn't necessarily matter who is going to go into the match as champion. But, seeing as Edge is the heel and has just returned, plus it will continue the General Manager storyline, I see him coming out as the new champion.
Winner - Edge
WWE Title
Randy Orton vs. Chris Jericho
Again, I have to point to the supposed plan that Randy Orton will be facing, and losing to, Triple H at the Royal Rumble. Obviously this would mean that he keeps his title at Armageddon. Like many other matches tonight, I could point to the face picking up the win by DQ. That would keep Jericho's momentum going and wouldn't embarrass his return with a loss. However, I would expect that to lead to a re-match, which isn't going to take place; unless on Raw. The more likely scenario here is that someone is going to screw Jericho over, or of course that Orton simply picks up the win by himself.
Winner - Randy Orton
Evaluation
This section takes a look at what the real results of the event will be. Not the actual winners and losers of the match, as discussed above, but who will benefit the most, and go on to bigger and better things.
CM Punk and Kane vs. Big Daddy V and Mark Henry
This is actually quite a tough one to pick. Punk is the champion and if he hadn't been in this feud, he probably would have made it onto the show defending his title anyway. He really doesn't gain anything from this. Daddy was already feuding with Punk but this match does extend his screen time somewhat. However, he probably won't be gaining much out of this one in the long term. The same could be said for Kane; this feud may have given him something to do on TV for a little while, but I don't see this one turning into anything much bigger, as he has already been through both the heels recently. Mark Henry may have been off our screens (big feud-wise anyway) for a while and he may be treading water until he leaves the company, but the natural progression here is for Henry to move into a singles feud with Punk. The champion has been through Daddy now and Henry is the next logical step, even if it is short term.
Real Winner - Mark Henry
Finley vs. The Great Khali
This one is pretty easy for me, if I have gotten my match winner prediction correct and my prediction for the future, in regards to Finley, is right. He will be going from involvement with the McMahon's to nothing, whereas Khali gets to look good in the ring against someone with great wrestling ability and probably comes out looking as dominant as ever. He may also be kept alongside Vince in some capacity as well.
Real Winner - Khali
Shawn Michaels vs. Mr. Kennedy
Kennedy is clearly the winner here. This feud has re-ignited the man and a good match here could mean that his big push is back on again. Shawn is always going to be in or around the main event but this is just another feud to him, and it isn't going to lead any further up the card, even if he wins, as he has only just finished feuding with Orton over the WWE title. Kennedy however has everything to gain. He can learn so much from HBK and has the chance to prove that he deserves a spot on the top of the card.
Real Winner - Mr. Kennedy
WWE Title Shot
Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy
Triple H wins, no question. You might say that Hardy is the real winner as he is being pushed as a legitimate challenger to Triple H and that he has a realistic chance of becoming the number one contender. But, I don't see it that way at all. Jeff is going to lose here, I don't doubt it, and after this match, he is going to be moved back down to compete at the next level down where he will be defending his Intercontinental champion. Hunter will be moving up and more than likely taking the WWE title from Orton next month. Whilst Jeff is getting the exposure and a big-time match, he still won't benefit anywhere near as much as H will.
Real Winner - Triple H
US Title
MVP vs. Rey Mysterio
The title being on the line here is the clincher, but I don't think anyone could doubt that MVP is going to benefit the most from both this match and from this feud. Rey has been given something to do, so he won't be complaining, but MVP has got lucky that he found a feud so soon after Matt was injured. He can also count himself a little lucky that someone of such high calibre was available. MVP is going from strength to strength and even if he ended up losing this match, I don't think that would change. He might lose some momentum if he lost his title, but that's almost definitely not going to happen as I don't see the title on Mysterio at the minute, and I think MVP needs it that little bit more.
Real Winner - MVP
Women's Title
Beth Phoenix vs. Mickie James
Whilst Mickie will appreciate being given the main event feud in the women's division, it is Beth who will be able to progress as a wrestler by being in the ring with Mickie, and she will be made to look like an even better champion. I don't doubt that the champion will be retaining here so she will be coming out looking the strongest of the two competitors and, as champion, will be moving onto another feud, probably against Candice, whereas Mickie will be pushed back down to inter-gender tag matches on Raw.
Real Winner - Beth Phoenix
World Title
Batista vs. Edge vs. The Undertaker
I'm going to look like a real idiot if the supposed ‘mania run-up does not occur because I am basing this one on that supposed outcome again. Edge and Taker have a lot to gain here as one of them will be walking out as the World title and the two of them will almost certainly be main eventing WM24, however, Batista is going to be winning the Rumble, moving over the Raw (The "A" show) and headlining the biggest show of the year with Triple H.
Real Winner - Batista
WWE Title
Randy Orton vs. Chris Jericho
Whilst I would say that Jericho couldn't possibly be the real winner here as his momentum could well be stopped dead if he ends up taking the loss against Orton. You might also look to give Orton the nod for being the first one to defeat Y2J and moving on as the champion. However, seeing as the champion will probably be losing his title to Triple H next month, I am going to say that Jericho will actually benefit more here, by losing, as he will avoid the loss to Triple H and will be able to stay strong for the long term and move on to better feuds that Orton will.
Real Winner - Chris Jericho
Thanks for taking the time to read again, I hope my version of a predictions column is working. Hopefully I'll be writing again soon.
Any comments or queries, feel free to contact me at batista666@hotmail.com (I use this e-mail just for my writing and check it regularly).