Helena Cell, The Most Dangerous Woman In Wrestling

   Here we are, getting ready for another WWE Pay-Per-View tomorrow night.  It's time for Hell In a Cell and I'm about to lay down my predictions.  Some of this is the aftermath of the events that took place at SummerSlam and beyond.  I'm not overly excited about this one but it should be decent.  I still don't like the idea of matches having this stipulation just because it's that time of year.  Hell In a Cell should be earned based on the degree of the feud.  For instance, I can't for the life of me fathom how Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton, with nothing on the line, deserves a Cell, yet a much more personal feud between AJ Styles and Samoa Joe for the WWE Championship doesn't!  I don't get it at all!  Until the addition of Mick Foley as the special guest referee, I didn't think Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman deserved the Cell either!  A change has been made to the structure of the cell which can be seen on several wrestling news sites, as the color scheme has turned to red.  I can't judge until I see it tomorrow.  With that being said, I would love to see the Steel Cage go back to the classic blue bar look WWE had during the Hulkamania days.  We're here for Hell In a Cell though, so let's get started, shall we?

(Pre-Show) Smackdown Tag Team Titles - The New Day vs. Rusev Day

   It's a shame that an actual Title match is relegated to the Pre-Show.  Then again, Shinsuke Nakamura, the US Champion, isn't even featured on this card.  In any event, after their match with the Bludgeon Brothers at SummerSlam, The New Day captured the Titles two nights later on Smackdown due to an injury sustained by Erick Rowan.  A few matches determined new number one contenders for Hell In a Cell.  In a surprising turn of events, Rusev Day won and earned an opportunity, when Aiden English finally redeemed himself to Rusev and Lana.  Although it would be fun to see Rusev and Aiden win, The New Day just won the Titles and I doubt they're losing them this fast.  In the event that Rusev and Aiden do not win, I wouldn't mind Rusev eventually going after Nakamura's US Title in a program.

Raw Tag Team Titles - Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose

   If you haven't seen anything between SummerSlam and Hell In a Cell, you'd be quite confused by this match.  The Revival worked hard to get themselves another shot at the Tag Team Titles held by the B Team.  However, just as fast, they were phased out, as Ziggler and McIntyre attacked and replaced them, winning the Tag Team Titles.  Meanwhile, they formed an alliance with Braun Strowman against the newly reformed Shield.  Even though the Titles just changed hands, I see Rollins and Ambrose winning the Titles here.  This is mostly because there's a good chance Roman Reigns will remain Universal Champion and it would be weird to see Ziggler and McIntyre with Titles while their leader Braun Strowman does not.  I also think this is the outcome because WWE wants to make sure the Shield is at the top.  The only problem I have with this match is that Rollins is the current Intercontinental Champion and now that Title will be lost within this entire debacle.

Mixed Tag Team Match - Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella vs. The Miz & Maryse

    After Maryse got involved at SummerSlam and helped her husband defeat Bryan, Brie then got involved to defend her husband and here we are.  This has been an on and off feud for years now and will intensify as the months go by, likely leading to a match at WrestleMania next year.  Since The Miz won out last month, I'm going with Bryan and Brie here, with the result being Brie pinning Maryse.  That way, The Miz doesn't lose any momentum and Bryan will be happy with a win.  Unfortunately, we have seen Brie competing on both Smackdown and Raw, as she has teamed with sister Nikki lately on Raw.  I hope we don't see Brie try any more suicide dives because she nearly broke her neck doing it recently.  Bryan and Miz have another singles match set a few weeks from now at Australia's Super Showdown with the stipulation of a future Title shot, which I see The Miz winning.  

Hell In a Cell - Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton

   Directly after losing the US Title to Shinsuke Nakamura two months back at Extreme Rules, Hardy was attacked by the returning Randy Orton.  Since then, Orton has brutalized Hardy several times, in disturbing fashion.  I can't even look when Orton sticks his finger into Hardy's earlobe and pulls.  Even so, I don't think this feud needed the Cell.  It doesn't seem as personal or important as other matches on this card.  I did read that Hardy requested this match backstage because he had never participated in one before.  Since it's Jeff Hardy, we all know he's going to take some kind of insane bump.  This could be possibly be the end for Hardy's career, which is another rumor. but could be true based on his brother Matt's possible retirement as well.  I see Orton taking the victory after moving out of harm's way from a Jeff Hardy maneuver.  

Raw Women's Title - Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

   At SummerSlam,  Ronda made short order, no pun intended, of Alexa Bliss, by quickly defeating her for the Raw Women's Championship.  This is the obligatory rematch that I see going the exact same way.  I doubt we see Alexa in the Women's Title hunt for quite some time, which I am pleased with, even though I still think Ronda didn't need it yet.  However, I've moved on and Ronda is Champion, moving on to bigger and better things.  There's a strong rumor that she will headline October's all Women PPV Evolution with Nikki Bella, which I hope to all things holy that is untrue.  Eventually, I see the big money match of Ronda Rousey vs. Charlotte Flair and it's likely to take place next year at WrestleMania.

Smackdown Women's Title - Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch

   Becky clawed her way back to the Championship picture and leapt through many hoops to finally earn her one on one match with Carmella at SummerSlam.  Charlotte returned during this time and got her way into the match, making it a Triple Threat.  Charlotte pinned Becky to win the Title.  Afterward, Becky turned on Charlotte and though it looked like a heel turn, it got Becky cheered even more.  Though WWE tried to spin the narrative to Becky as a heel by having Becky question her fans, it seems they have corrected things.  Fans have garnered around Becky and started to boo Charlotte, though they still seem adamant on Charlotte remaining babyface, even though she clearly plays a better heel.  I see this going down in the same manner as that infamous match between Bret Hart and Stone Cold Steve Austin.  Charlotte will retain due to having Becky in the figure eight.  However, Becky will not tap out, she will simply pass out.  It will be somewhat of a double turn by finally cementing Becky as the super bad ass babyface that she has become while Charlotte will get booed more harshly and turn heel once again.  Though they have another match at Australia's Super Showdown, I expect Becky to finally take home the gold at Evolution.  After their feud is settled, I see Becky having a reign to hopefully reach WrestleMania, while Charlotte win's the Royal Rumble to face Ronda Rousey.

WWE Title - AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

    Again, I question why this match is not being decided in the Cell.  Samoa Joe has taken the Tomasso Ciampa approach as a heel, and has taken his feud with AJ into one of the most personal and incredible one's I've seen in a long time.  Samoa Joe has left behind the "cool heel" persona that many heels still possess and has gone for the throat, bringing AJ's family into it.  In fact, his antics during their match at SummerSlam caused AJ to uncharacteristically get disqualified.  Joe's acts as a heel went to a whole new level when he enlightened the Smackdown crowd with his new book entitled "Night Night AJ."  This is where I see the WWE Title changing hands, as Samoa Joe will defeat AJ Styles to become the new WWE Champion.  If you were to say to me three years ago that the most compelling and important Title feuds in WWE would be between AJ and Joe, I'd have thought you were crazy.  Since this match does not have a stipulation, I'm guessing one will be added to their match at Australia's Super Showdown.  In the mean time, AJ goes night night at Hell In a Cell.

Hell In a Cell Universal Title - Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman

  Much like the Becky/Charlotte situation, things have gotten really confusing with this match's narrative, which clearly is to push Roman Reigns at all costs, not matter who it affects.  The wrestler I see losing the most from this is Braun Strowman.  Braun had become the ultimate monster babyface that fans wanted to succeed.  The Shield reunited and the refusal to turn Reigns heel has led to Braun being forced into the heel role.  What doesn't make sense is the way they went about it.  He told Roman ahead of time that he would cash in his "Money In the Bank" contract at Hell In a Cell.  Later that night, Braun turns on Roman in their tag team match and aligned himself with Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre.  Now, he has no briefcase and he's pretty much screwed if he does not defeat Roman in the Cell.  Since it has been 20 years since his infamous Hell In a Cell match with the Undertaker, Mick Foley has been added as the special referee.  Even though it might not be feasible these days, I somehow see Foley taking some kind of bump.  Reigns is walking out still Universal Champion, especially if his fellow "Hounds of Justice" Rollins and Ambrose win the Tag Team Titles.  The only hope is that acting Raw GM Baron Corbin, who Braun gave the briefcase to, does not consider this Braun's cash in.

 If you have any further thoughts on this topic, let me know in comments.  Heck, let us all know on The WAR Report podcast, every Tuesday at 7PM EST on YouTube, brought to you by tagmeadate.com, the first and only dating site for wrestling fans.  Go to askthewarreport@gmail.com or #askthewarreport.  For TagMeADate members, our Android and Apple apps are vastly approaching so stay tuned!
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