Greetings jabronis,
Well, it’s certainly not the most enticing PPV that WWE has ever tried to pawn us, but sometimes greatness can catch us by surprise. So whilst a majority of the wrestling community likely have low expectations for the Over the Limit event, WWE might see it as the opportunity to really churn out something fantastic to prove us all wrong – and then laugh in our stupid, ugly faces.
And hey, if you live in the UK and subscribe to Sky Sports then you’re able to watch Over the Limit for free anyway. Hurrah! So it’s not really a “pay per view” in the true sense. More of just a “view’.
There’s speculation that a divas match and perhaps Sin Cara v Chavo will be added to the mix, but they are mere rumours as I type so I will just be focusing on the matches that are confirmed. I beg your forgiveness if this upsets you.
Rey Mysterio v R-Truth
R-Truth’s heel turn has been a bonafide revelation. For me, he’s genuinely been the most entertaining performer on RAW for the last month. I think WWE will be well aware of this new box of tricks they have stumbled upon, and thus won’t be looking to thwart any momentum Truth has already built for himself.
So I foresee Truth picking up the victory over Rey Rey here (perhaps from a Del Rio assist, seeing as he is suspiciously absent from the card) and somewhere down the line very soon he’ll get his chance to headline a PPV against Jonathan Cena.
Pick: R-Truth
CM Punk and Mason Ryan v Big Show and Kane
Other than The Great Khali, I genuinely believe Mason Ryan is the worst in-ring performer on the WWE roster right now. He’s slow, clueless, has terrible ring awareness, bad timing and is incredibly limited. Michael Cole probably has more in-ring ability. It makes you realise just how rare it is to see guys of his size who are actual decent wrestlers. Only Batista and Brock Lesnar immediately spring to mind from the modern era (and Batista wasn’t particularly awe-inspiring).
Regarding the match, the question that needs to be asked is; who would WWE prefer to feature on both brands (as that is part of the reward of being tag champs)? Big Show and Kane are both long established names in the business and their presence adds depth to both rosters. On the other hand, CM Punk might just be the most effective heel in the WWE right now, and the promo he cut on RAW this week seemed to suggest that WWE has big(ish) plans for The New Nexus.
But with The Corre (an overly similar faction) already on Smackdown and the aforementioned problems with Mason Ryan being utterly crap, I’m gonna have to side with the big guns to retain.
Pick: Big Show and Kane
Wade Barrett v Ezekiel Jackson
Like Mason Ryan, Ezekiel is clearly on the WWE roster right now solely because of his blimp-esque biceps. But although I haven’t seen an abundance of Ezekiel’s in-ring skills (which is a tad concerning see as he’s been on the roster for 3 years), I can confidently state that he’s far better equipped than Mason Ryan to be out there performing. Which admittedly isn’t saying much.
WWE seems to have lost interest in Wade Barrett – which is a shame as he carried himself incredibly well for a newcomer in his ridiculously long feud with Cena last year (that he obviously could never win). His character needs to be freshened up or given some real direction, otherwise he risks suffering fate of being lost in the shuffle.
So seeing as Wade’s stock seems to be faltering, I predict Big Zeke to win the title here… But as the IC title changes hands every few weeks, it won’t mean anything to anyone. Can you smell that, Ezekiel? That’s me pissing on your fireworks.
Pick: Ezekiel Jackson
Jerry Lawler v Michael Cole
It’s the feud that just refuses to die – and depressingly I’ve heard rumours that Vince is planning on dragging the feud out to a Summerslam conclusion. Three more months of this?! Oh dear.
I think Michael Cole will win again here, I’m very sorry to say. The nonsense involving the Hall of Fame ring wouldn’t be stipulated unless it was relevant, so Cole will again pick up the cheap victory and play up the fact he gets to wear Lawler’s ring on RAW, making him even more obnoxious (or tiresome – which ever you prefer).
I think the Jack Swagger swerve thing is a ruse, and he’ll run-in to assist Cole on the night. This will likely cause Josh Matthews to scream “It was a set-up all along” in such a way that will make us all long for JR to return to the announce desk.
Pick: Michael Cole
John Cena v The Miz
There’s no way that Super Cena is gonna say “I quit”. Absolutely no way. So consider the outcome of this one a foregone conclusion.
There’s talk that John Cena screaming “I quit” at the end of RAW this week will be used against him and blasted over the announce system at an opportune moment tricking the ref into awarding the match to The Miz… but I think that trick is still a little too vivid in fan’s memories from the Mankind/Rock “I quit” match a few years back to be dug up here. I know WWE loves to recycle stories, but I’d give that one another decade yet before it’s used again.
At this point, It would seem obvious that WWE’s plan is to keep the belt on Cena so he can feud with R-Truth and/or Alberto Del Rio. I’m predicting they’ll keep the belt on him until at least Summerslam, where The Rock will get involved in his match as the special guest referee. How exciting. Maybe.
Pick: John Cena
Randy Orton v Christian
It’s the most intriguing match on the card, and – such is the trend when Christian is involved these days – you can expect it to be match of the night too.
I’m not a happy chappy at all regarding Christian’s short title reign (but I’m not going to rant about it now, I’ve already done that in my column here).
So the big question is; will WWE seek to rectify the huge number of fans they pissed off to an incredible level after giving Christian a 2 day reign as champ, or will they continue firmly down the road of shoving Orton down our throats until we’re as sick of him as we are Cena?
It’s going to be the latter, isn’t it. Damn.
Regardless of the outcome, it seems very likely that a Christian heel turn will occur on the night (or very shortly afterwards), which is definitely a thumbs-up thing as Christian was always massively entertaining as a heel. You think turning heel will stop the fans cheering him though? Not a chance.
Pick: Randy Orton
Those are my picks, jabronis. Please add your own thoughts and predictions below. I love it when you do.
As I said at the start of this scribe, I don’t have particularly high expectations for the event – but sometimes that’s the best way to approach an event, because you can either be pleasantly surprised if the action is good, or not too fussed if the action is bad because that’s what you expected. It’s kind of a win-win situation if you consider having your low expectations met to be a win!
Over and out.