After the overall positive response to WWE Backlash, Smackdown Live will be looking to continue this trend of successful PPVs with their next PPV No Mercy, which airs this Sunday.
As we’ve seen at Raw’s PPV Clash of Champions, splendid in-ring action by itself cannot carry a PPV to success, as good booking/decision making must be present as well. Would Backlash have had such a positive response if Dean Ambrose retained the WWE World Championship, or if Becky Lynch didn’t win the Smackdown Women’s Championship?
Probably not, and unless Smackdown Live wants to follow in the footsteps of Raw, it would be smart to make booking decisions that please the fans. In order for the second Smackdown Live PPV to be considered successful like its predecessor, Here are 7 Things We Must See Happen at WWE No Mercy.
#7 Curt Hawkins Faces a Smackdown Live Superstar, Not Local Talent
After weeks of vignettes hyping Curt Hawkins’ return with his new “Face the Facts” gimmick, Smackdown Live are finally featuring Hawkins in a match at No Mercy, albeit with an unconfirmed opponent.
Rather than boring the audience with a bout against local talent, Hawkins should be facing and defeating an established name from the Smackdown Live roster.
Assuming they re-introduce Hawkins as a heel, he could face Apollo Crews or Kalisto, which would immediately establish Hawkins as a heel by positioning him against a babyface, in addition to definitely increasing the quality of the match itself.
Instead of leaving talented wrestlers like Crews or Kalisto off the PPV, it would be smart to have them face Hawkins, even if it’s a losing effort.
#6 Rhyno and Heath Slater Remain Together, Tag Champs or Not
Despite reaching the pinnacle of their Cinderella story at Backlash by capturing the Smackdown Tag Team Championships, Heath Slater and Rhyno have not been as prominent on Smackdown Live in recent weeks.
Rather than being the focus of the story as was the case in the build to Backlash, The Beauty and the Man Beast have taken a step back as The Usos have showcased their new heel attitudes every week heading into No Mercy.
Due to this booking, many fans are predicting The Usos will walk out as champions, then engage in a feud with American Alpha over the titles. Although this could potentially leave Rhyno and Slater with a lack of direction, WWE would be dumb to break them up already.
Despite not having the in-ring skill of American Alpha, they are still incredibly over with the fans, and seeing Slater revive his career with this latest run has been awesome. If WWE are serious about pleasing the fans at No Mercy, they must keep Rhyno and Heath Slater together, even if the team lose the titles.
#5 Baron Corbin Beats Jack Swagger
Although this match will likely end up on the pre-show, it is still important that Baron Corbin is victorious. After a number of poor, baffling feuds against the likes of Kalisto and Apollo Crews, Corbin needs a big win to continue ascending the card.
Rather than prolonging a feud with Jack Swagger, who hasn’t been relevant since his feud with Rusev in 2014, WWE should look to give Corbin a quick win over the former world champion.
Nobody really wants to see Corbin lose to Swagger anyway, who just lost clean to Jinder Mahal in his final match on Raw. Although WWE may think a feud for Corbin with Swagger is their only option, they should reconsider, as Corbin deserves a more high-profile opponent if he is to be considered as a top star on Smackdown Live in the future.
A quick squash win for the Lone Wolf will be the best option moving forward, as Corbin can move on to a bigger rivalry rather than wasting time stuck on the undercard.
#4 Bray Wyatt Beats Randy Orton
The Bray Wyatt-Randy Orton match is a tough one to analyse. Usually when analysing a PPV match there is an obvious choice for a winner as one competitor usually needs it more than the other.
With Orton and Wyatt, however, both men have unfortunately been undermined by the booking, although Wyatt arguably has suffered more damaged credibility than Orton. Still, Orton’s TKO loss to Brock Lesnar has left him with an ill-fated lack of momentum, so many fans have considered the match at No Mercy a must-win for Orton as well.
Although Orton needs the win, he is an established legend already, and a loss won’t hurt him in the long run. Wyatt, on the other hand, hasn’t won a singles match on PPV since Battleground 2015, and a win for Wyatt here would salvage what is left of his credibility.
If WWE are still considering Wyatt as future cornerstone main-eventer, this is a must-win match for the Eater of Worlds.
#3 Dolph Ziggler Wins the Intercontinental Championship
Once again, this was another tough match to analyse, as I am a huge fan of Dolph Ziggler but love what The Miz has been doing as of late with the Intercontinental Championship.
With both men arguably doing some of the best work of their careers in this feud, this was an extremely difficult choice. As much as I love The Miz’s recent work with the IC Title, I am too much of a fan of Ziggler to say that a career-ending loss for him is a must-see at No Mercy.
Although it could be argued that Ziggler’s recent string of losses has left him floundering and in need of a break, a huge win over the Miz at No Mercy to win his fifth Intercontinental Title would be a wonderful way to get back on track, and despite his recent failures Ziggler has been putting in some of his best work ever, especially on the mic.
Even if the Miz loses the Intercontinental Title to Ziggler, it will only lead to more spectacular work from the A-lister, who will cut some more viscous promos on Ziggler if the feud continues. A loss for Miz could also lead to a possible main event run due to his Intercontinental Title reign being over.
In what is sure to be one hell of a match, Dolph Ziggler vs The Miz, Career vs Title, should end with the Showoff holding his fifth Intercontinental Championship high after an incredible victory.
#2 AJ Styles Retains
In what is arguably the most anticipated bout of the night, the Triple Threat match for the WWE World Championship between AJ Styles, John Cena and Dean Ambrose should be a show-stealer.
All three men have done a wonderful job building to this main event encounter, and although both John Cena and Dean Ambrose can stake a claim to win at No Mercy, AJ Styles should walk away with the gold still in his possession.
Beating John Cena clean at Summerslam and then capturing the WWE World title at Backlash, Styles is on the best (and hottest) run of arguably any superstar on the roster. Stealing the show pretty much every time he is placed on the card, he is absolutely the right man to be holding the WWE World Title at the moment.
With his wonderful heel persona and his always incredible in-ring work, AJ Styles is carrying the Smackdown Live brand past Raw with his current reign as champion. Despite the temptation to put the title back on Ambrose, recent weeks have shown that Ambrose’s character is much more suited to chasing the title rather than being the champion.
In Cena’s case, his impending break from WWE to go film TV show American Grit makes this a poor time to place the belt on Cena. If that break is just a rumour, this is still not the ideal time to crown Cena a 16-time world champion, as that should be saved for a large-scale event such as Summerslam or Wrestlemania.
Overall, AJ Styles retaining on Sunday is crucial to continue his wonderful run in addition to not rushing a title win for Cena or Ambrose. As for who gets pinned in the main event…
#1 John Cena Takes the Pinfall Loss
I know. If you are a Cena fan you are probably wondering what the hell I am thinking. But, let me explain.
If Cena is really going to take a break after No Mercy, why have him be protected? If Ambrose is pinned and Cena is deserving of another title shot because he didn’t lose to the champion, why would he then leave when a title shot is available in WWE?
Instead of having the main event babyface that is there every week take the pinfall loss, have Cena take it. This leads to a reason for Cena to take a hiatus, in addition to keeping Ambrose strong.
Also, Styles pinning Cena leads to the continuation of Styles being unbeatable against Cena, which could ultimately culminate in a huge Wrestlemania 33 match where Cena wins his 16th world title, finally beating Styles on the Grandest Stage of Them All (assuming he isn’t facing The Undertaker).
Ambrose not being pinned is also extremely important if the Styles-Ambrose feud will resurface heading into No Mercy. If Ambrose was pinned at No Mercy, why would he be deserving of future title opportunities? If Cena is pinned, he is still worthy of a title shot in the future due to his star power.
For example, Cena is only in the triple threat at No Mercy because of his star power. He lost clean to Styles at Summerslam, leaving no reason for a rematch to be needed, but Cena has somehow worked himself into the story, and nobody is complaining.
Although Cena fans may hate to see him lose once again, a pinfall loss by Cena in the triple threat is vital to keeping all three men strong, despite the temptation WWE may get to have Ambrose take the loss. If WWE are looking at the long-term implications, a Cena loss by pinfall at No Mercy is a must-see in the main event.
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