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There's another WWE pay-per-view this Sunday, and with a new name too. WWE will present the first-ever Stomping Grounds from Tacoma, Washington. However, it does not look all that good. The product is stale and ticket sales have been pretty woeful, with a lot of seats yet to be filled and show less than five days away. The card is almost entirely filled with rematches from the previous pay-per-view, either Money in the Bank or Super Showdown. There even is a WrestleMania rematch between two superstars who are on separate shows.
WWE will be fully aware of the underwhelming nature of the card and certainly have some tricks up their sleeve to avoid this show to be a complete dud. Stomping Grounds may have a couple of really good matches on it, but it isn't a far reach to expect Vince McMahon to come up with some surprises on the night. This will be a show that is in desperate need of some added oomph. Whether it comes in the form of a surprise will remain to be seen.
Anyway, here are five shocking moments that might happen at Sunday's Stomping Grounds pay-per-view.
#5 An impromptu classic tag title match
As of right now, there are nine matches advertised for Stomping Grounds. However, hardly a couple of them stand out as exciting matches. WWE has a history of adding impromptu segments on pay-per-views to fill time, but this would be one that would make the show much better. The Revival regained their Raw Tag Team Championships from Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder, about two months after they should have.
Now is the perfect opportunity to rejuvenate tag team wrestling to some extent within the main roster. The Revival had an incredible match against the Usos a few weeks ago on Raw, proving that they don't need embarrassing photos or 'Ucey Hot' to have a compelling program. It seems like these two teams will continue feuding after the Dash Wilder stole the pin from the Usos in that triple threat tag title match.
Give them fifteen minutes to do their thing, and the entire WWE universe will be talking about Stomping Grounds once they are done. The Usos and the Revival are possibly two of the greatest tag teams in the entire industry today. Hopefully, WWE allows them to prove that sooner or later.
#4 Ricochet stuns Samoa Joe
One of the few fresh matchups on this card is between two former singles champions in NXT. Samoa Joe, who took back his United States Championship after Rey Mysterio had to vacate it, will defend his title against Ricochet. The high-flyer won an entertaining Fatal-5-way match to get this spot, even eliminating Braun Strowman in a very heelish way.
This match is sure to deliver if given the time to do so, and it seems like Joe will retain after Ricochet puts up a good fight. However, WWE has been known to throw some curveballs at us and it has been well documented, just how vulnerable Joe is to quick and sudden pinfalls from smaller men. It is a cheap way to defeat him while keeping him strong, but it has happened a lot recently.
AJ Styles, Kofi Kingston, and Rey Mysterio all profited from similar situations against the master of the Coquina Clutch. Ricochet could very easily use his superior athleticism to evade Joe and shock him with another quick roll-up to win the US title. After all, Joe did lose to Rey Mysterio a month earlier at Money in the Bank.
#3 Baron Corbin wins the Universal Championship
This is something that would have a detrimental effect on the entire card and product as a whole. Baron Corbin has found his role and is a master at getting significant heel heat. His move set is decent and he is solid on the microphone. However, he must not beat Seth Rollins on Sunday.
He is a solid hand in the upper mid-card, but he has been receiving opportunities way beyond what he would ideally receive. Corbin's schtick is entertaining enough to remain a constant on Raw, but WWE must limit the spotlight they are shining on him. The tiresome plot with the special guest referee may or may not have an interesting conclusion at the pay-per-view, but it has to end with Seth Rollins getting the better of him once and for all.
Rollins has had a fine reign as Universal Champion, obviously bogged down by the lackluster booking surrounding and affecting him. Hopefully, he can move on from Corbin and have a compelling feud for the title against probably Drew McIntyre or AJ Styles again. Who knows, maybe Brock Lesnar will show up soon and cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase.
#2 Sasha Banks returns to help Bayley (and then turns heel on her)
This is unlikely to happen, but it has been speculated that Sasha Banks has had some positive talks with WWE officials and has done some work for the WWE 2K20 video game. This would suggest that she is set to return to WWE programming at some point. If she is going to, what better way to reintroduce her than to do it on a show which needs a shocker or two?
Right now, Bayley is set to defend her Smackdown Women's Championship against Raw superstar, Alexa Bliss, with Nikki Cross in her corner. It would make sense for Sasha to come out and neutralize the threat of the former SAnitY member interfering in the match. She would help Bayley, who is as shocked as anybody, retain her title and raise her hand. But, an even bigger impact would be made if she attacks her best friend and turns heel on the same night. The story is right there, provided Sasha is ready to go to work.
The only way she can return now is as a heel, especially after all the heat she has received online heat from the Internet Wrestling Community. Plus, a return to her Legit Boss character would be perfect for WWE at a time when they need more female stars.
#1 Bray Wyatt makes an appearance
There isn't anyone or anything hotter on the WWE main roster than Bray Wyatt and his Firefly Funhouse. The last two months have shown just how great Bray Wyatt is and is proof that anybody can recover from bad booking if they are booked right for a while. This past Raw saw Wyatt play 'Follow the Leader' in his Funhouse, culminating in the Fiend, his spooky alter-ego, teleporting from the room. This could possibly signify the end of these segments and a return to the ring for the Eater of Worlds.
Whenever Wyatt finally shows up live, the reaction he will receive will be one of the best this year. That moment could happen on Sunday. As mentioned so many times already, WWE will need to have a major surprise or two to make Stomping Grounds a successful show. And what would be bigger than the in-ring return of the best character in the WWE today? It remains to be seen what will happen following Wyatt's reappearance but at the moment, he is the hottest thing on TV. And if he does show up at Stomping Grounds, it could save the show.
Bray Wyatt will always light the way. And all WWE has to do is, let him in.
