Chapter 1 Royal Rumble Picks
All questions, comments and otherwise can be sent to mr.armchair@yahoo.com . You will get a direct response. Thank you.
J. Daniels here sitting in the comfort of a blue cushy armchair, beginning the first chapter of the chronicles.
Welcome.
In my opinion, there is no better way to begin the chronicles than with my picks for my personal favorite PPV of the entire year; the Royal Rumble. This year's edition seems to be built up so much more strong than before, namely the rumble itself and the two major title matches. Let's start, however, with what I consider to be somewhat of an under-card despite the fact that they are both world title matches in their own right. Here we go.
--Women's champion Beth Phoenix vs. Melina. This past Monday didn't do justice to the skills of the very motivated, not to mention uber-hot, Melina. Her contest with Jilian was quite the botch job slathered with missed spots and Melina is better than that. On the flip side, we all know Phoenix is one tough gal between the ropes rivaling the likes of names such as Chyna and Trish Stratus in the way of skills. This should be a relatively good match up. Now, when you factor in this whole Rosa Mendez situation, I believe she will play the down fall of Phoenix, accidentally causing her the title. --Winner: Melina.
--ECW champion Jack Swagger vs. Matt Hardy. I'm not so well versed on the skills of the current champion and that's my fault. I do like the fact that they are pushing new talent in the form of Swagger. But, I have to beg the question as to why they took the title off of Hardy to begin with. He is one of the most popular superstars on the roster currently, getting large pops when they count. Maybe ratings? Putting a major title on a relative new comer that was held by a seasoned veteran makes you want to watch on Tuesday nights to see just who this Jack Swagger fella is and why he's a champion. There may be other reasons behind taking the strap off of Hardy as well that I will explore later on. As far as the match goes, Matt Hardy is a fantastic performer and Jack Swagger must have something special to have beaten him, so I think these two will keep the fans on their feet with near falls and innovative styles, but I think there is more than meets the eye when it comes to Matt. --Winner: Jack Swagger.
--World champion John Cena vs. JBL. I have made it clear in the past that I really don't care too much for these two and their lack of in ring capabilities, but this storyline with HBK Takes this feud to another level. Michaels acting and mic. skills, another place Cena and Layfield don't shine in to say the least, have made this match one to watch for no other reason than to see what Shawn will do. Will he restore his "integrity" when the chips are down and JBL wants a helping hand to get the duke over Cena or will he take the low and broke road and aid Bradshaw in his quest ti gain the championship? They have done a fantastic job in turning Michaels heel while still feeling somewhat sympathetic for his struggle, but the final brick will be placed in the wall as HBK, after long and hard contemplation, will in fact help to give JBL the win with a well placed super kick square on the chin of Cena. Somehow, though, it'll backfire on the self made millionaire as he'll receive one just the same...accidentally. This, I think, will cause the retention of the belt. --Winner: John Cena.
--WWE champion Jeff Hardy vs. Edge. As we all should believe by now, Christian should be making his long awaited return to WWE in this match up at some point. With all of the "accidents" happening to Hardy from vehicular assault to the dreaded pyro attack, we'll finally find out the culprit behind it all....but will it be Christian? If you haven't been paying attention lately, WWE has been trying to be anything but predictable. That said, let's throw in Matt Hardy. He has been defending his brother's name for quite some time. But will this be where he reveals his disdain for his more successful brother and makes the turn to Edge's side or is this storyline too played out with such brother vs. brother feuds such as 'Taker & Kane or the Hart brothers? Perhaps so, perhaps not. If this was the case, where would Christian play into this equation? Will he come to the aid of Jeff for some reason and reverse the perceived renewal of an Edge & Christian vs. The Hardy Boyz feud, or will he play the part he was meant to play, a heel, and be the man behind all of the questionable happenings? I should hope the latter. All this aside, the thought of Edge and Hardy going one on one has escaped the minds of fans, myself included. This should be one heck of a compelling wrestling match as the two combatants skills and charisma are off the charts. This will be the one on one match of the night. But who will come away with gold? I could only hope they don't cut Hardy's reign short. He's just too hot right now. --Winner: Jeff Hardy.
--THE Royal Rumble match. My favorite match of the entire year has been beautiful built. Examples: Triple H going thru trial after trial just to be in, Jericho getting fired and then having to begrudgingly apologize to both Stephanie McMahon and the WWE fans just to be rehired and get back in and so on. I believe with a few returns on tap, such as Mr. Kennedy and Umaga filling the 9 spots still open, and superstars such as C.M. Punk, Legacy, Miz, Morrison, Show, Kozlov, 'Taker and others involved, it promises to be a greatly competitive battle royal. But who will win and get his Wrestlemania title shot? In my humble opinion, there is only one man out of the many with THE most heat behind him since the days of Stone Cold. That man being Randy Orton. After his punt to the head to the chairman of the board this past Monday night, the heat that was already behind him has increased 10 fold. You would expect him not to be able to compete after his most recent actions, but he'll find a way. The tension of the moment between him and Mr. McMahon was just too tight. The fans were ready to burst. He is, in fact the modern day Austin, only heel and they'll keep it that way if they're smart. He'll squeak out the big W with help from his new cronies Dibiase and Rhodes, and the building will be in a frenzy. I think I've made my point. --Winner: Randy Orton.
Once again, I can be contacted at mr.armchair@yahoo.com for any comments, questions or opinions so please don't hesitate to do so. I will reply personally. The chronicles will continue. Thanks for reading.
J. Daniels.