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2019's edition of Clash of Champions is this Sunday, and while some interesting things are going on, the card looks rather predictable, which is what you would expect for the traditional filler pay per view that takes place in September.
Seth Rollins will undoubtedly retain the Universal Championship against Braun Strowman (let's be honest, every single time Braun Strowman has had a title shot, he's lost, we know where he stands in the company by now). Meanwhile, he and Strowman are likely to drop the Raw Tag Team Championships to Dolph Ziggler and Bobby Roode (their partnership was always going to be a temporary one).
Drew Gulak looks set to retain the Cruiserweight Championship (it's unlikely he'll drop it in a triple threat match), Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross will likely retain their titles (Nikki Cross losing this week on SmackDown probably means she and Alexa will get their win back on Sunday), and the Intercontinental and SmackDown Tag Team Championships aren't likely to change due to the challenges from Raw superstars (The Miz and The Revival, respectively).
That doesn't leave a whole lot of room for WWE to make an impact with this show, but the company can make it worthwhile by making the following four decisions.
#1 Sasha Banks must win the Raw Women's Championship
Sasha Banks' long overdue heel turn has been the catalyst the company's floundering women's division needed. Thanks to the events that her turn to the dark side has set in motion, the women's division is starting to get hot again after sputtering out early in 2019. The next logical step is for the resurgent Sasha Banks to capture the Raw Women's Championship.
Becky Lynch has had a long reign, but it hasn't had the energy that her reign on SmackDown had last year. If Sasha Banks loses, all the progress that the division has made recently comes under threat. She'd just be one more victim of Becky's, with no interesting challenger behind her.
Even if tradition holds and Sasha Banks drops the title back soon afterward, she should win it on Sunday night. That would take the rivalry between these two to the next phase.
#2 Bayley retains the SmackDown Women's Championship
A few weeks ago, Bayley had a zombie reign that looked more than ready to come to an end. Now she has a new lease on life. After joining her BFF Sasha Banks on the dark side, it would now be premature for her title reign to come to an end. Now, it suddenly looks like a loss would just lead to another bland Charlotte Flair title reign, especially now that the Queen is back to being a good guy.
Bayley retaining and Sasha Banks winning would make for a great visual and the next evolution in this story. It's obvious that's the choice that should be made for the good of the division.
It would force Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch to cooperate once again, with their tenuous alliance under much greater stress than the eternal friendship between the other two horsewomen.
#3 Randy Orton wins the WWE Championship
This is a tough call to make. Randy Orton's title reigns have historically been boring. He's also not the edgy, despicable heel that he was at this time last year. If he was, that would have made this an easier call to make.
But despite that, Kofi Kingston's feel-good story now feels like it's run its course. His rise to the title was incredible and he's had a reign longer than anyone would have ever guessed, but now it seems like we're seeing the same story on loop.
And if Kofi Kingston gets past Randy Orton, are there any other obvious, realistic challengers left on SmackDown?
A Randy Orton title win would at least shake up the division, opening the way for new challengers, and the prospect of feuds with the likes of Ali, Buddy Murphy, and especially Aleister Black, are interesting ones.
#4 The Fiend makes his mark
Bray Wyatt's Fiend persona is the surprising success story of 2019. The astonishing thing is that we've only seen him in one match. We haven't seen him in a match in a while, not since he laid a beating on Finn Balor at SummerSlam. This kind of scarcity is building anticipation for his next appearance and making him feel special. We don't see him, but we know he's there. It's the exact opposite of the feel of most of WWE's wrestlers, who feel ordinary.
We know that the Fiend is going to challenge for the Universal Championship at Hell in a Cell. To build that match, which feels special already, he should make an appearance on Sunday night, presumably after Seth Rollins retains the Universal Championship.
By laying a beating on Rollins, or even reuniting with Braun Strowman to do so, the stakes will feel much higher going into October's Hell in a Cell confrontation and end the pay per view on a high note, and make Raw a lot more exciting for the next few weeks.
