What a night. Let us know what you think in the comments section below! Good night folks!
Seth Rollins retains the WWE Championship.
Orton is about to RKO Rollins, but Kane gets in the ring and eats an RKO. Rollins hits the pedigree on Orton for the win. Yes, you read that right.
Orton gets back in the ring and RKO's both J &J, then catches Rollins off the top with a power slam.
Ambrose hit Dirty deeds on Rollins, but Kane pulls him out of the ring. Kane chokeslams Ambrose on the steps.
Reigns hits the Spear on Ambrose, but Rollins breaks up the pin.
Superman Punch by Reigns. Ambrose manages to kick out.
Reigns says to Ambrose there is only one thing left to do. Ambrose and Regins get int he ring and attack each other.
Reigns and Ambrose turn on Rollins, and set him up to be powerbombed through the other announce table. Kane jumps in and after two attemps Ambrose and Reigns powerbomb Kane through Rollins through the table!
Amrbose, Rollins, and Reigns, team up and put Orton through the announce table.
Ambrose alomst hits Dirty Deeds, but Kane runs into the ring and chokeslams Ambrose.
Rollins hits the turnbuckle power bomb/super kick combo, but Ambrose kicks out.
Ambrose and Reigns are taking turns beating the crap out of Reigns. Reigns sets up for the Superman punch, but Kane pulls Rollins out of the ring. Looks like Kane has made his choice.
Ambrose dives off the top and hits Orton with a diving elbow. Orton reverses into a back breaker, but Reigns breaks up the pin
J & J pulls Reigns and Ambrose out of the ring. Rollins attacks Orton. Orton sends Rollins to the outside. Reigns dives over the top and take sout every body!
WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Randy Orton (Fatal 4-Way; if Rollins does not retain, Kane will be fired)
After the match Barrett attacks Neville. Barrett puts on his cape and crown and parades around the ring. Neville gets back in the ring and hits a delayed German suplex. Neville hits The Red Arrow for good measure.
King Barrett loses via count out.
Neville almost hits The Red Arrow, but Barrett rolls out of the way. Barrett takes the count out instead of fighting. Not a bad tactic.
Barrett sets up for the Bullhammer, but Neville ducks. Barrett hits winds of change for a two count.
Standing shooting star by Neville.
Neville goes for a springboard, but get kicked in the face.
Barrett kicks Neville in the gut and toses him into the ring apron.
Crossbody by Neville. Barrett goes outside to regroup.
Singles Match: King Barrett vs. Neville.
Naomi & Tamina defeat The Bella Twins via pin fall.
Naomi get the win after slaming Nikki off the top ropes.
Nikki tags in and cleans house. Tamina distracts Brie and Naomi hit the rear view. Brie kicks out at two.
Tamina and Namoi take turns working over Brie. Neckbreaker by Naomi to Brie.
The Bellas take control early. Brie hits her running knee. Before she could take advantage of that, Tamina superkicks her off the apron.
Divas Tag Team Match: Naomi & Tamina vs. The Bella Twins
Backstage The New day is having a toast. With milk. Go these guys are great. Byron Saxton tells The New Day they will be defending the tag titles in the Elimination Chamber in a few weeks. This doesn't go over well with The New Day.
John Cena retains the US title.
Cena reverses and locks Rusev in the STF with the ring ropes. Rusev was screaming... something.. not sure what. Lana gets in the ring and says that Rusev said he quits. Guess this writer was right.
Rusev hits Cena with a side kick, then the Accolade. Cena picks up Rusev on his back. Cena ends up falling back down... Cena looks to be out. Rusev let's go of the hold. He thinks he won. Cena has to say I quit. So Rusev does not win. Rusev undoes the turnbuckle and ropes.
Cena hits Rusev in the head with the guard rail. Cena tires to AA Rusev on the guard rail, but Rusev reverses it and suplexes Cena on it.
Cena AA's Rusev on top of the pyro on the stage. Rusev still wont quit.
Cena spears Rusev though the barricade. Cena get Alabama Slammed through a table, but he still refuses to quit.
Rusev hits a spinning spine buster on the steal steps. Cena still wont give up. Cena manages to AA Rusev on the steel steps.
Cena hits the five moves of doom, but before Cena hits the AA, Rusev hits a fall aways slam on Cena. Rusev sends Cena into the steal steps. Rusev brings the steps into the ring, and throws Cena into the steps two more time.
Lana is crazy over with the crowd.
Standing dropkick by Rusev. The ref keeps asking Cena if he wants to quit every time Cena hit the mat. Very annyoing.
Rusev makes Lana sit down a the announce table. He then turns his attention to Cena. Rusev mauls Cena.
Rusev has the mic... for some reason. He is going to talk Cena to death.
Our Lana throwing in the towel theory may be flawed... She isn't carrying one. Oy...
This has nothing to do with anything, but man Eden is hot.
US Title Match: United States Champion John Cena vs. Rusev ("I Quit" Match)
Bray Wyatt wins via pin fall.
Ryback tries Shellshocked, but Wyatt drives Ryback into the corner. Ryback tosses Wyatt off the top. Ryback dives off the top with a splash, but Ryback can't cover. Ryback os driven into a exposed turnbuckle pad. Wyatt hits Sister Abigail for the win!
Wyatt throws Ryback into the corner. Wyatt pulls Ryback to the outside and drops him with a ddt on the ring apron, follwed by a senton splash.
Ryback hits a huge powerslam. The crowd could careless.
Ryback hits a Thez press on Wyatt as the crowd yells, "Let's go Wyatt". This match is silly. The crowd could careless about Ryback.
Singles Match: Ryback vs. Bray Wyatt
The New Day retains!
Woods took of his vest, rolled in the ring and pinned Kidd for the win. So many jokes could be made right now... This writer will just let it go tho..
Kidd finally tags in Cesaro. Cesaro hits five European uppercuts on Kofi. Cesaro tries tiger bomb, but couldn't get Big E over. Kidd locks in the Sharpshooter on Kofi.
Another belly to belly by Big E. to Kidd.
Kidd walks right into New Day's finish to even it at one fall a piece.
Kofi goes up top, but Kofi runs right into a drop kick by Kidd.
Big E. Speared Cesaro through the ropes. Cesaro looks hurt.
Big E. caught Kidd midair on the outside with a belly to belly suplex.
Kidd goes for a quick pin on Kofi, but Kofi kicks out. Big E. and Cesaro tag in. Cesaro catches Big E. mid air for a slam, followed by a double foot stomp to both Big E. and Kofi. Cesaro and Kidd get the first pin fall after the big swing drop kick combo. Xavier Woods tried to take Kofi's place but the ref wouldn't allow it. Woods yelling Freebird rule was prett funny.
The New Day cut a promo on the way to the ring ripping into the town of Baltimore. Pretty entertaining stuff. Xavier Woods just said that the city of Baltimore can change! Fitting social commantary by New Day.
Tag Team Title Match: WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day vs. Cesaro & Tyson Kidd (2-out-of-3 Falls Match)
Backstage Kane and Rollins are having a "come to Jesus" meeting. Kane is teasing a turn tonight, which means there probably will not be a swere and title change tonight. That is disheartening.
Sheamus defeated Dolph Ziggler via pin fall.
Ziggler hits a superkick, but Sheamus kicks out. Ziggler is busted open bad. Sheamus hits the Brogue Kick for the win. Ziggler is in bad shape.
Sheamus hits Whitenoise, into the Cloverleaf. Ziggler managed to get to the ropes.
Ziggler manages to hit a jumping DDT, but Sheamus kicks out. These two are doing their best to destroy each other. Ziggler follows up with stiff knees to Sheamus Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus in the corner. Ziggler hikes up his tights and gives Sheamus a stink face in the corner. Sheamus goes for the Brogue Kick, but Ziggler reverses into the fameasser for another two count. Running powerbomb by Sheamus, followed by a running powerslam by Sheamus.
Ziggler is favoring his knee. Irish Curse back breaker by Sheamus. Only a two count, though.
Ziggler is all over Sheamus. Ziggler sends Sheamus to the outside and then dives to the outside with an elbow drop. Ziggler goes for a super kick, but Sheamus elbows him in the knee to stop Ziggler's rally.
At second glance, Sheamus new music is pretty good.
Singles Match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus
Well it's show time! Let's get it started!
Mandow hit the classic rope hang Macho Man bit and scoop slam combo. But Konnor knocks Mandow off the top. The Ascension hit The Fall of Man for the win. Didn't see that coming.
Viktor is all over Axel. Axel Hulks up and hit the big boot and leg drop combo for a two count.
Ha! Axel is in full Hulk Hogan gear tonight, compelte with Hogan's "Real American" theme.
Do you all think The Ascension have a chance here tonight?
Tag Team Match- Curtis Axel & ‘Macho Mandow’ vs. The Ascension.
Renee just referred to Ryback as one of the most dominate superstars on the roster... Someone send Renee a few Youtube clips of Ryback "highights". She might change her mind.
R-Truth defeated Startdust via pin fall.
Truth hit a front face ddt for the win! Didn't see that coming. Seems Truth only wins when he is fighting Stardust.
Side effect by Stardust, but Truth kicks out again.
Truth hits the Lie Detector on Stardust. Stardust retorts with a springboard kick to the face. Two count for Stardust.
Stardust stomps Truth in the corner while frothing at the mouth.
Truth and Stardust get into a slap fight before Stardust takes control with an elbow to the face.
Side note: Stardust is the luckiest man on the planet. Have you seen his wife? :-)
Singles Match: R-Truth vs. Stardust.
Hmm ok. Here we go…
For some reason, R-Truth is coming out. We love Truth here at Vavel, but why is he on his way to the ring?
They are really calling Mandow and Axel “The Mega Powers”. Figured they would call them a name close to that.
The preshow has begun! Renee Young is leading the panel. She is join by Byron Saxton, Booker T, and Corey Graves. Corey Graves has really come into his own as a personality.
How long do you think I will take for Hulk Hogan to get involved with the new Mega Powers angle?
The Shield will probably unite at some point, but it probably will not be this soon. Their reunion will take place at one of the big ppvs. Not a random ppv in May.
Speculation has run rampant about a potential Shield reunion tonight. This writer thinks it is highly unlikely. What do you guys think? Let us know in the comments! Let’s get talking!
Also, with Luke Harper and Erick Rowen reuniting, will they step in and help Bray Wyatt during his match with Ryback? Maybe the ultimate swerve would be to have them join Ryback instead. Granted, that would make no sense, but man would it be entertaining.
The internet has been abuzz all day. The Undertaker was spotted at the Baltimore airport. Will we see the deadman tonight?
The time is almost here! What do you think of our predictions for tonight? Let us know in the comments section below!
One of the main reasons Reigns winning at Mania wasn’t going to work is because then champion Brock Lesnar was super over, even though he was supposed to be the heel. Seth Rollins on the other hand is the second most hated entity in the company (the first being The New Day). Rollins is a classic slimy chicken-ish heel. If you want Reigns to be your champion, now is the time.
And the Winner is: Roman Reigns. Shocked? You should be. Kane is being primed for one last run, why not have it be a feud with the former world champion that he cost the belt? Having Rollins drop the title now does not diminish him as a heel or his value to WWE. You have to keep in mind the plan was original plan was for Reigns to win the title at WrestleMania. It is save to assume that WWE has been just bidding their time before putting the belt on Reigns.
Any match involving Rollins and Ambrose always has the potential to steal the show. These two managed to make a lumberjack match good. That takes talent. If you add in the vastly improved Reigns and the always-awesome Orton, you have all of the makings of an instant classic. The thing about this match is the match itself doesn’t matter as much as what happens after it. The Kane subplot here has to come into play in the end. Who knew that in the year 2015 Kane would be such an integral part of the main event picture?
And the winner is: John Cena. Rusev will not quit here either. Even money says Rusev ends up in the STF and Lana throws in the towel. It maybe an overly used pro wrestling trope, but in this case it makes everyone look good and gets them to their ultimate goal which is a Rusev/Lana split.
The first two matches in this feud were actually really good. That abomination of a chain match at Extreme Rules almost turned this writer against this feud. When it was announced there would be a fourth and final match in this saga it still seemed somewhat intriguing to see Rusev and Cena lock horns once again. Well, until it was announced that the final match would be an “I quit match”. There is no way Cena says I quit. They have tipped their hands on this one. The only logic this writer can discern form this match stipulation choice is maybe it is going to be used as the means to finally break Lana and Rusev up.
And the winner is: Bray Wyatt. Look for a potential Wyatt Family reunion here as well. This match ends with Sister Abigail.
This hasn’t happened in a long time but this is the second match on this card (Ziggler vs. Sheamus being the first) that just doesn’t make a ton of sense. The difference between this match the Ziggler vs. Sheamus match is the later will most likely still be a entertaining match. This one has train wreck written all over it. They are doing a disservice to Bray by putting him in this match. Not to knock Ryback… well… forget it, it hard not to knock Ryback. He just flat out isn’t that good. Ryback needs to go back to not speaking and just destroying people to reclaim any of the momentum he had months ago. Does anyone think Ryback has a chance here?
It’s funny how everyone hated New Day until they finally pulled the trigger and turned heel. It doesn’t matter what anyone says, that was the plan from the beginning. There was no way New Day could get over as faces in this day and age. Maybe if it was 1983. It will be interesting to see if since this is a two-out-of-three falls match will New Day pull a fast one and have Xavier Woods take Big E. or Kofi’s place after they lose a fall. Got to love the Freebird rule.
This has the potential to be the match of the night. Everyone involved can go. The great thing about this match is because it is two out of three falls it is likely to be one of the longer matches on the card (crosses fingers) unless they go with a quick first pin.
What can WWE to turn around the lackluster state of the mainevent? Find out here.
And the winner is: Sheamus will win this one. Why? No real rhyme or reason. It is extremely difficult to become invested in this match due to the fact that it has been lackluster from the start. Obviously Ziggler is currently in the spot Daniel Bryan would be in if he wasn’t hurt, but the Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus feud actually has some history behind it. So that feud makes sense. This one not so much.
Not a lot can be said about this match other than the fact that this writer is happy it isn’t another “Kiss my Arse” match. That was hard to watch.
And the winners are: Naomi and Tamina. Naomi has to pin Nikki to get another shot at the title. This match will end with the Rear View (which is a stupid finisher by the way, but that’s another conversation for another day).
Did anyone else notice that Naomi has essentially taken AJ Lee’s spot on in the Divas division? Feuding with the Bellas? Check. Tamina as your heater? Check. It’s the perfect storm. Naomi has deserved a push for a while and it is great to finally see her get it. This match itself is a bit o f a throwaway, but hopefully it will lead to another singles title match between Naomi and Nikki.
It is nice to see that the Divas are getting time on Raw, but why is this not a title match? Also, why are the Bellas being booked as faces? Be honest, is there anything likeable about the Bellas? They are natural heels.
And the winner is: Neville. If they want this feud to continue Neville has to get the win here. Early prediction for Elimination Chamber: Barrett wins the IC title chamber match and goes on to feud with Neville over the belt.
Rumor has it that Barrett won the King of the Ring because he is in line for what seems to be his 257th push. Barrett is great but he has to have the worst luck when it comes to ill-timed injuries. Another one of the knocks on Barrett has been that he managed to get over with the fans even though he is supposed to be a heel. That is most likely the reason he is going by King Barrett now and not Bad News. That is also the reason he has all but abandoned his popular, “I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news for you!” catch phrase.
As stated in our Good, The Bad, and The Ugly column a few weeks ago it is hard not to be impressed with Neville’s run so far on the main roster. This writer is willing to bet money that Neville will be an IC or US champ within the next six months. This should be an entertaining match. Neville and Barrett match up very well together and Barrett has proven that he has no problem selling for Neville which just ads legitimacy to their bout.
The main card:
And the winners are: Macho Mandow and Curtis Axel. This match will end with the leg drop/top rope elbow combo.
As for The Ascension… well… they still kind of stink.
Oh and then this happened...
On the other hand, the Mega Powers handshake on Raw between Axel and Sandow was pretty entreating, so let’s give them props for that at least. Not to sound like a hypocrite, but Axel’s “Axelmania” gimmick actually works for him. If only by the virtue of him not having a heck of a lot going on before hand to begin with. If anything, Axel will come out of this whole scenario for the better. He is a legitimate talent that needs to be given meaningful TV time to develop.
First, Sandow’s Macho Man impression is terrible. Secondly, Jay Lethal already did it. Now, we all know WWE likes to think no one pays TNA attention but Lethal’s Macho Man impressions is legendary amongst wrestling fans.
What a difference a month makes. It is very easy to be apathetic to Damien Sandow’s current situation seeing as how it is more of the same. He was probably more over than John Cena a few weeks ago, but for some ungodly reason after his feud with The Miz ended (the blow off match on Raw for Pete’s sake) he has been relegated right back into the same position he was in before he became Miz’s stunt double and began tearing it up. Why does WWE seem to think Sandow can’t survive without a goofy gimmick? Also why put that evil on Sandow to have him do a Macho Man impression? Putting him in the position is the definition of setting him up for failure.
This month the ppv kickoff show only has one match. That may be better for everyone involved. It could give the superstars more time to work, instead of rushing through because they have to fit in another match no one really cares about. Let’s be honest, in most cases the kickoff match usually features a lower mid card feud that doesn’t have much heat going into the event. Tonight is no different.
All that said let’s take a look at tonight’s card!
This writer may be getting old but it’s hard not to miss the good old days when ppv’s meant something. It was awesome to see the return on King of the Ring, but for some reason WWE didn’t bother to make it a ppv it was just a special event on the WWE Network. Why not make it a legit event? Would anyone miss Extreme Rules or Payback or Lawn chair or whatever the next ppv is if King of the Ring replaced it? Also, We know there is a strict policy about using things that Vince didn’t create, but if WWE could use The Great American Bash as an event years ago why can’t they use War Games as well. Fans have been clamoring to see a War Games match in WWE for years. Why not finally give the fans what they want.
Payback is one of the newer WWE ppv’s in the WWE’s pantheon of events. To be fair, Payback is on the short list for worst ppv concepts ever. Why you ask? Because there really isn’t a concept to go along with it. WWE essentially took No Mercy and Backlash, combined the two and changed the name. Now we haven’t seen a No Mercy or Backlash in a long while, but still. Even when WWE comes up with something “new” it really isn’t #MindFreak
Welcome to Vavel USA’s live coverage of the 2015 WWE Payback PPV. Will Seth Rollins be able to hold on to the WWE World Heavyweight Title when he defends it against Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, and Dean Ambrose? Payback begins at 7:00pm EST time on May 17, 2015.