'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Stomping Grounds is indeed a pay per view that feels like it just exists, as Dave Meltzer noted recently. Filled with rematches galore, it doesn't scream "must see" by any means, and even by WWE's post-WrestleMania slump standards, seems pure filler.
There are nine matches on this card, thankfully, instead of the usual 11 or 12. In the understandable event that you don't want to watch this show live, which ones would you probably want to go back and see later on? Which ones would you choose to miss entirely? Let's take a look and rank each match according to how good they'll likely be.
#9 Raw Women's Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Lacey Evans
You almost have to feel bad for Becky Lynch. At this time last year, she was seeing the beginnings of a meteoric rise. Yet, she's been badly mishandled following the Royal Rumble and has been riding on the inertia of that rise ever since. She had the chance to catch a different wave after her WrestleMania victory, but she's been stuck with Lacey Evans since then.
Despite her tapping out cleanly a month ago, Lacey Evans is still in the title picture for some reason. The match at Money in the Bank was fine for someone of Evans' experience level, but that was the point - she isn't ready for a spot like this yet, and it's been showing. No one is particularly keen on seeing a rematch between these two, but we're getting it anyway.
For the sake of Becky Lynch and the Raw Women's Championship, let's hope that this is the last title shot for Evans for now. She's not ready to be champion yet and would only hamstring the title as SummerSlam gets closer.
#8 Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre
Unfortunately, things have changed since WrestleMania season. Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre underwhelmed then, and now the latter is a lackey to Shane McMahon. We can expect to see the latter all over the ringside area in this match, running interference and potentially getting Drew McIntyre a win, though this isn't likely.
Still, the lack of chemistry between Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre and the presence of Shane McMahon guarantees that this match is going to be one to miss. Much like the actual Stomping Grounds card itself, it's happening just to happen.
Hopefully, the match won't be too long and we can get to the next inevitable stage in this story. The sooner Roman Reigns finishes Shane McMahon off, the better. The last thing SmackDown needs heading into this fall on FOX and with AEW looming is to be the Shane O' Mach show.
#7 SmackDown Women's Championship: Bayley (c) vs. Alexa Bliss
Thankfully, the 2019 version of this feud isn't the abysmal catastrophe that the 2017 version was. The presence of Nikki Cross has been helpful. Nevertheless, that doesn't mean that this should be a match worth going out of your way to see. We've seen Alexa Bliss in title matches too many times to count. We know what to expect. It's not going to be anything great. Think lots of restholds on a bigger and stronger opponent, making the match psychologically incongruent.
Hopefully, this is just a filler rivalry to explore Alexa Bliss' relationship with Nikki Cross. With her being a Raw superstar, it's unlikely she wins SmackDown's title, but the "wild card" mess leaves everything in the air. We don't need to see another Alexa Bliss title reign. Bayley still has some mileage left in hers and shouldn't lose it at this juncture.
#6 SmackDown Tag Team Championship: Daniel Bryan and Rowan (c) vs. Heavy Machinery
Rowan works surprisingly well in a tag team with Daniel Bryan and the presence of the former WWE Champion has a strong chance of bumping this match above its weight class. Daniel Bryan can always do that. Nevertheless, Heavy Machinery aren't the most exciting opponents, and we know that this match is pure filler, so there's little intrigue as we head into it.
Daniel Bryan and Rowan vs. the New Day is the SmackDown tag team match everyone has in mind as SummerSlam begins to creep over the horizon. There's no way Heavy Machinery will spoil it.
Hopefully, this match will surprise. Daniel Bryan is always worth watching, but is it something you'd want to go out of your way to see as it actually happens? Much like the entire Stomping Grounds pay per view, the answer is probably no.
#5 The New Day vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
Much like Daniel Bryan and Rowan are warming up on the way to SummerSlam, so are the New Day. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn don't have a chance of winning this. As always, the two have fallen into the roles of underwhelming comedic losers, particularly when they're together. Kevin Owens has lost all the momentum he had when he turned on Kofi Kingston in April.
I hoped that Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn being on separate brands would reinvigorate them, but they quickly fell into their old tropes, and the "wild card" rule has inevitably put them back together, because that's what WWE always does for some reason.
Either way, the two of them are fodder for the New Day. With all four of the talents involved, the actual match itself should be fine, but this isn't must-see by any means.
#4 Universal Championship: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Baron Corbin
This isn't a match anyone's particularly excited to see, especially since we've just seen it at Super Showdown in Saudi Arabia. Yet, here we go again. WWE's constant pushing of Baron Corbin doesn't appear like it's going to stop any time soon, no matter how underwhelmed it leaves fans.
Still, it shouldn't all be bad. Baron Corbin isn't the most exciting worker in the world, but he's nevertheless underrated in the ring, no doubt because his character isn't palatable to a lot of fans. We all know what Seth Rollins can do and he should be able to carry this contest into something better than it ordinarily would have been.
It's not a terrible Universal Championship match for a minor card. Count your blessings it isn't happening at SummerSlam.
Brock Lesnar is the bigger threat. His winning would be worse than Corbin.
#3 WWE Championship: Kofi Kingston (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler
As we see above, Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston have battled many times. Their Super Showdown match earlier this month wasn't among their best bouts. Hopefully, they'll pick it up at Super Showdown, even though this match is entirely missable because there's no chance that Dolph Ziggler is winning here, steel cage be damned.
The cage should make this match more fun than their Super Showdown match, at least, and given these two compared to most of the rest of the card, it should easily outperform the lion's share of the other matches.
Still, it isn't exactly compelling television. Everyone is no doubt looking forward and wondering who Kofi Kingston's SummerSlam opponent is going to be. I still have a feeling Brock Lesnar is going to cash in on him and not Seth Rollins. That makes sense with the FOX deal looming.
#2 Cruiserweight Championship: Tony Nese (c) vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Drew Gulak
This match is probably going to be a preview of a coming Drew Gulak vs. Tony Nese rivalry heading into SummerSlam. Tony Nese doesn't have much of a chance of losing the purple strap here, and Akira Tozawa is probably going to take the pin.
Still, 205 Live always punches above its weight class on these pay per view pre-shows. In comparison to this card, the Cruiserweight Championship match should do very well. It should lend further credence to Cedric Alexander's sad tweet about missing 205 Live in comparison to doing nothing on the supposed "major league" of Monday Night Raw. That should tell you something.
205 Live's title match is probably going to prove him correct. Sunday is going to be a night for the underappreciated purple brand to shine in comparison to the main roster's chronic doldrums.
#1 United States Championship: Samoa Joe (c) vs. Ricochet
What do you know, an actual exciting match for Stomping Grounds? This one could have been put on the card of WrestleMania 35 or on the card of this year's SummerSlam in Toronto.
Ricochet has been the surprising success story of this year's NXT call ups and now he's going into his first singles title match on the main roster. In Samoa Joe, he'll have a powerhouse who clashes against his own high-flying style perfectly. The bumps Ricochet will take for Joe should alone make this match memorable, to say nothing about the One and Only's comeback.
A title change isn't impossible, either.
Samoa Joe has moved on from the underwhelming Rey Mysterio feud and now has a much more exciting opponent. If they get the time that they deserve, there's no reason why this shouldn't be the match of the night.
