We wouldn’t be magnanimous at all in saying that WWE Payback 2016 crossed expectations as the first capacity since WrestleMania 32. In fact, it left us coloured a healthy shade of impressed.
The McMahons main-evented their second straight PPV and those disappointed with the outcome of the tag team title number one contender’s final should be ashamed and on their knees praying for Enzo's diss-troyer to get back into kilter.
All the matches made the grade when it came to action, but the crowd were left with a bitter taste in their mouths after witnessing a bootleg of the reason behind a wrestling's legends (who just beat cancer, no less) vendetta against Vince McMahon.
Speaking of the power-walking, let-your-walk-do-the-talking, there's-nothing-I-can't-get-away-with CEO, he once again demonstrated the power of uncertainty. The whole arena was filled with the grating sound of fingernail against scalp after Vince tossed the future of the WWE into his children's hands with the same air of a father giving into his kids' pleas for a second ice cream.
But after all that, we couldn’t help feeling that the element of surprise could have been amplified. Here's how:
5. Brand split
The most obvious and rumoured shift in the landscape is still in incubation. The sibling-partnership thing though underwhelming, is a shrewd tactic to make assure viewership while not spending it on a lesser PPV.
It’s most probably going to be announced for SummerSlam, what with Survivor Series succeeding it and whispers of War Games being revived. It looks like the WWE are holding their nerve in the absence of a lot of top draws. This would’ve been a nice compensation for WrestleMania, but, sigh, we’ve been patient with them for this long, so why not a little longer?
Stephanie versus...
Make no mistake, the biggest heel in the WWE right now isn’t Kevin Owens or Chris Jericho, it’s Stephanie McMahon. The crown princess of the WWE sacrificed herself for Roman’s biggest pop in the main event at WrestleMania and is now doing most of the legwork in the new angle.
When we reach a full-blown power struggle, it would be a treat to watch Stephanie challenge Shane to his face and of course big brother isn't going to lay hands on little sister even for a prize as big as the WWE. He'll take a leaf out of Vince's book and have someone do it for him. Sasha Banks, perhaps?
3. Shane McMahon at Extreme Rules
Inextricable, fates intertwined, made for each other and any other kind of prophetic expression you can think of. The Authority's return is a question of when, not if and the closest thing in the WWE to a Hardcore Champion just needs to pull out a few moves (one has to be a Coast to Coast) for the PPV to become a hit.
The opponent is a little tricky. Triple H himself could step up and would do a redoubtable job, even better than Taker, we daresay. But with three weeks to the PPV, that amount of fast-tracking would bleed the golden goose when with a little patience, it could fill the treasury.
Triple H versus Shane’s representative at MITB
A ladder match with a deed signing over RAW dangling above the ring is *verb form of expletive* tantalizing. And with the roster expected to be whole by then, a whole feast of options is at Creative's disposal to make this a contender for Match of the Year.
Triple H's heel turn bombing could be the reason he's off screen for now and when he returns, he will make a more believable bad guy when he challenges a darling like Shane O'Mac. Instead of facing Hunter himself, Shane could choose a champion who's more of the current flavour, an anti-hero, getting himself over immeasurably in the process. Do you hear a Viper hiss?
Balor Club vs Shield at SummerSlam/Survivor Series
We don’t envision Roman Reigns in this situation at all. Rollins, Ambrose and Styles against Balor, Anderson and Gallows. ‘The Guy’ can be doing his own thing against Cena or somebody else who has the wherewithal to climb back to prominence from a job.
