Night of Champions (2023) Predictions
We are heading to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the location of the next WWE PLE and with 7 matches on the card, it should be a good, mid-day event. We will see the debut of the new World Heavyweight Championship and I’m interested to see a new champ. With that being said, Roman Reigns isn't defending his belts. He is competing for a title though. The tag belts. That should be interesting. I’ll not waste any more time with the intro though, let’s break down these matches.
*Predicted Winners are bolded
- Women’s Singles Match: SmackDown Women’s Championship
Rhea Ripley (C) vs. Natalya
Natalya competed in the first women’s match in Saudi Arabia and it was a big moment. Lots of fans do not think she should be in a title match in a PPV at the moment, but I disagree. I think she should be in more to be honest. She is one of the best in-ring competitors in the women’s division. With that being said, should she be champion at the moment? No, I do not. Rhea Ripley is the clearly a top of the division performer and Natalya is great, but she isn't Tier 1 at the moment.
- Men’s Singles Match: Intercontinental Championship
Gunther (C) vs. Mustafa Ali
I would say that Ali has the least chance on the card to win their match. Well, it is either him or Natalya. So, chances are slim for Ali, but there is a big opportunity for him to shine here. It doesn’t have to be a squash match. I expect Ali to have a nice match with the dominant IC Champion. Gunther will continue his reign, a reign that has been the longest in 35 years. He will close in on a full year in just under 3 weeks.
- Women’s Singles Match
Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch
This match could be a toss-up, but Becky will probably get the win here. Trish Stratus is still very solid in the ring, but despite her best efforts, I can't really buy into her being a heel at this point in her career. This feud has been OK, but I wouldn't say it has lived up to its full potential. Maybe the will continue it, but I don’t see a reason to prolong it.
- Women’s Singles Match: RAW Women’s Championship
Bianca Belair (C) vs. Asuka
It wouldn't surprise me if Asuka gets the win here, but I’m not expecting it. It feels like a long time ago when these two put on a great match at WrestleMania. I thought Asuka was going to get her moment then, but it didn’t happen. Belair is favored in this contest, but like I said, I’m not completely sold that she will retain. Bianca has already had the longest reign in the belt’s history, so who else is left? You could argue that she and Rhea Ripley could have something down the line, but there will be plenty of opportunities down the road for that. My guess is that Bianca will lose it to Charlotte Flair within the year.
- Men’s Singles Match
Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes
This time around, Brock Lesnar is the favorite. You never can tell about matches with Lesnar. The best bet is usually don’t bet against Brock, but I just don’t know how they want to progress Cody. Rhodes will be beaten up heading into the match, but I don’t think that will stop them from having a solid match. Give me the underdog in this one and I guess we’ll see where it goes from here.
- Men’s Singles Match: World Heavyweight Championship
Seth Rollins vs. AJ Styles
It is an exciting time. The World Heavyweight Championship is back with a new design and we will finally get to see a belt defended on a regular basis. I was torn on the belt design, but I think I like it. It has definitely grown on me. Other than that, I’m just happy that Roman can do his thing and this belt can be defended wherever and whenever. With that being said, does it devalue this belt? Yeah, probably, but it will be up to the guys that win and compete for the belt to make it relevant. No matter who wins today, these guys will ensure that it is in good hands for its inaugural reign. It would shock me if AJ Styles wins today. Don’t get me wrong, Styles is one of the best in the world, but Rollins has been the saving grace for the WWE. When you have a guy with a dominant reign like Roman has had, it brings down the rest of the roster, but Rollins has made sure to be relevant without a title. He will get his shot tonight and it would be surprising if he doesn’t fly out of Jeddah without the big gold. I also saw where this is opening the show, so it should be a fantastic match.
- Men’s Tag Team Match: Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn (C) vs. Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa
This will go one of two ways. Either Roman and Solo will get their chance squandered by The Usos and not win the match or Roman and Solo will leave Saudi Arabia as the new tag champs and use it to push The Usos further away from The Bloodline. I’m going with the latter, but I’m back and forth with this decision. Part of me wants to see Roman Reigns with all of the gold, but part of me thinks that Jimmy and Jey are going to cost them a potential victory. I guess we’ll find out today. I’m interested to see what happens. It is worthing noting that Sami Zayn is performing in Saudi Arabia, that’s something that I thought I would never see. KO and Sami are favored in the matchup -600.
Yacs