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WWE Super ShowDown 2019: Picks for Every Match and Bold Predictions
June 7, 2019WWE Super ShowDown 2019: Picks for Every Match and Bold Predictions
WWE is really harping on the idea Super ShowDown will be "just as good, if not better than WrestleMania" and despite all the controversy surrounding these Saudi Arabia events, the card doesn't actually look bad.
Kofi Kingston will defend the WWE Championship against Dolph Ziggler, Goldberg and The Undertaker will battle each other for the first time, and there will be a 50-Man Over-the-Top Battle Royal that will make history.
Since these events are treated like such big deals, there is always a possibility for something major to go down like a title change or the start of a serious angle.
What might WWE have scheduled for Super ShowDown and who will most likely win the matches set to take place this Friday afternoon? Let's take a look at the card and toss out some picks.
Kickoff: The Usos vs. The Revival
Two of the best tag teams in WWE, as far as in-ring performance goes, will be squaring off against each other in the pre-show as a means to carry on the storyline between Roman Reigns and Shane McMahon.
That feud is the primary reason this match is happening, as The Usos have been backing up The Big Dog, while Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson have been Shane-O-Mac's lackeys as of late.
But McMahon also has employed Elias and Drew McIntyre to be on his side, and the five-on-three numbers advantage is what will create the end result of The Revival coming out on top.
It makes sense to establish early on that McMahon and his minions have the momentum, which will cast doubt as to whether Reigns can overcome the odds later in the show.
That way, when the former universal champion does win, it will mean more. And since he's the bigger deal than The Usos, they will be sacrificed to help tell the story.
Prediction: The Revival wins
Handicap Match: Lars Sullivan vs. Lucha House Party
For several weeks, Lars Sullivan attacked people at random until The Lucha House Party presented enough of a challenge to actually fight back.
That hasn't amounted to too much, though, as The Freak has still managed to come out on top in all of their skirmishes, despite the numbers disadvantage.
Capitalizing on their fights, Kalisto, Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado will be in a true handicap match against Sullivan here in the hopes to bring him down a peg.
However, that isn't going to happen. It's guaranteed that Sullivan will be victorious, as the entire purpose of this scenario is to make him look strong.
Even though it's a 3-on-1 scenario, he cannot lose, or his momentum will diminish. Even though a victory isn't going to amount to much in the grand scheme of things, it's still a step in the right direction if WWE is still committed to pushing him going forward.
The Lucha House Party will try to put up a fight, but even outnumbering Sullivan will still not be good enough.
Prediction: Sullivan wins
Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Even if he continually fails to win the big matches, it seems WWE's booking philosophy regarding Braun Strowman is to protect him as much as possible by having him win most of the time and only ever lose by proxy of someone else.
For example, the recent No. 1 Contender's match on Raw was changed from an elimination-style setup to a one-fall situation to avoid The Monster Among Men being pinned. He didn't win the match, but he didn't truly lose, either.
As that is still how WWE treats Strowman, it's hard to imagine he will lose clean to Bobby Lashley on Friday.
This is especially true given his position on the previous two Saudi Arabia events, where he won the Greatest Royal Rumble and only lost to Brock Lesnar due to favoritism for The Beast Incarnate as champion. WWE tried to protect him in that loss, too.
A win would mean a lot for Lashley, but since there's nothing on the line that dictates that a necessity, the safe bet is to stick with Strowman.
Prediction: Strowman wins
Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon
Leading up to WrestleMania 35, all signs pointed to The Miz vanquishing Shane McMahon to end their feud, but it continued into Money in the Bank, with Shane-O-Mac winning both encounters.
Based on previous years of booking, this was undoubtedly done with the primary goal of making McMahon look stronger in preparation for this match with Roman Reigns, as there is no question who WWE puts higher on a pedestal between The Big Dog and The Miz.
If that is true, and McMahon's wins were just to get him to this point, he's reached the end of his journey and there is no need for him to win, even with help from Elias or Drew McIntyre.
By and large, Reigns wins the majority of his matches, so he was already the smart pick to begin with. And it's doubtful he'll lose to someone like McMahon, who will likely not perform after this for several months as The Big Dog moves on to feud with someone else.
Prediction: Reigns wins
Triple H vs. Randy Orton
Last year, the international events of Greatest Royal Rumble, Crown Jewel and Super ShowDown had a big focus on nostalgia, so it's no surprise to see Triple H up against Randy Orton.
Sadly, no effort has been put into making this an actual storyline to follow. Instead, WWE took the lazy way out by asking fans if they remember their previous feuds and showing video packages to those who weren't watching a decade ago.
Since nothing is on the line, no egos will be crushed if either man wins, and this is only happening to appeal to whoever keeps requesting the Superstars of previous eras do battle. You might as well flip a coin to determine a winner, as that may be how WWE books this.
But if the company is smart, The Viper will come out on top.
The Game already got a big win at WrestleMania against Batista and isn't a regular member of the roster, whereas victory for Orton will help his case as one of the next potential challengers for Kofi Kingston's WWE Championship.
Triple H can take a loss from an RKO out of nowhere and his legacy will not be tarnished in the slightest.
Prediction: Orton wins
Intercontinental Championship Match: Finn Balor vs. Andrade
Perhaps the hardest match to predict is the Intercontinental Championship contest between Andrade and Finn Balor.
On any regular night, given Andrade's momentum as of late, it wouldn't be hard to argue a case that he would walk out of this event holding the gold. However, he's advertised to face the champion's "demon" persona, which changes the game.
Whenever Balor puts on the paint, WWE upgrades his clout. That gimmick has been protected rather well, having lost one match in NXT and none on the main roster as The Demon.
That record points in the direction of Balor retaining the title here, even if Andrade is meant to win the championship on the following episode of SmackDown Live or at Stomping Grounds on June 23.
Prediction: Balor wins
Universal Champion Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin
With the looming threat of Brock Lesnar's Money in the Bank cash-in hovering like a black cloud over Seth Rollins, dealing with Baron Corbin is almost an afterthought.
The cash-in is the only thing that really matters here, so there are only two feasible outcomes: Rollins retains the title or The Beast Incarnate cashes in while the match is in progress and wins the belt that way.
However, fans should be wary that Lesnar coming for the Universal Championship might be a red herring, and he could challenge WWE champion Kofi Kingston instead.
In that scenario, Rollins is in a much safer position Friday, as he's not going to lose the title to Corbin.
Essentially, if a new universal champion is crowned, it will be Lesnar; if the Money in the Bank isn't used on Rollins, The Beast Slayer will remain top of the food chain on Raw.
Prediction: Rollins retains the title over Corbin
WWE Championship Match: Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler
Dolph Ziggler attacked Kofi Kingston out of jealous rage, feeling as though all of the WWE champion's recent success should have been his.
The Showoff is in for some bad news, though, as thinking you deserve something doesn't always mean you're going to get it. And he'll be coming up short in his quest to take the title at Super ShowDown.
Kingston is far too fresh in his reign to drop the belt now, and even if he were in danger of doing that, the next champion would be someone like Kevin Owens.
However, KO opted out of performing at this event, which is where Ziggler stepped in as the replacement challenger, making it even easier to forecast who will come out on top of this match.
Given their talent and history of great matches in the past, this may be the best segment on the entire card, and it will end with the fans rejoicing as Kingston retains the belt.
The only downer to this would be if Lesnar cashed in his Money in the Bank contract and stole the title from Kingston. This may well happen, as WWE loves faking out audiences and could be planning on making The Beast Incarnate a big focal point for SmackDown come the switch to Fox in October.
Prediction: Kingston defeats Ziggler
50-Man Over-the-Top Battle Royal
This will be the third Saudi Arabia event to have a special gimmick attached to it, after the first two included the Greatest Royal Rumble and the WWE World Cup.
At Super ShowDown, the largest Battle Royal in WWE history will take place as 50 men try to somehow fit inside the ring.
This could turn out be a travesty of monumental proportions or one of the most fun things to happen in WWE this year, but a lack of build has already hindered this match.
The company has put zero effort into promoting this. Despite it being announced early, no competitors were advertised and it wasn't even listed on the official lineup until a few days ago.
There has been no indication the winner of this match will receive anything other than bragging rights, which means anybody from Raw, SmackDown, NXT, NXT UK or 205 Live could win with no ramifications.
With so many people possibly in the mix, such as Bray Wyatt, Cedric Alexander, Cesaro, The Miz, Robert Roode, Ali, Matt Hardy, Rusev and even NXT's Mansoor who hails from Saudi Arabia, it's pretty much impossible to say who has the edge.
If there is a political agenda to this, Mansoor stands out as the top contender, but if preferential treatment isn't given to him based solely on his home country, watch out for a Drew McIntyre win to illustrate how much of a threat he is to the rest of the roster.
Prediction: McIntyre or Mansoor wins
The Undertaker vs. Goldberg
Considering The Undertaker's recent performances and Goldberg's total in-ring time over the past decade, fans should be wary of hyping this up to be anything other than extremely long entrances followed by a handful of maneuvers.
There is no chance this will be a 15-minute display of wrestling skills equivalent to something like the WWE Championship match, so don't get your hopes up.
As far as a winner goes, it's tough to predict the company's booking strategy, as both men are legends who rarely lost matches.
Of the two, The Undertaker has taken more pinfalls, though, as Goldberg's entire gimmick was his undefeated streak. In fact, only six wrestlers have beaten Goldberg in his entire career.
It wouldn't be out of this world for The Deadman to become the seventh, but when in doubt for a pick, going with the person who has the better win-loss record is the only way to decide.
Prediction: Goldberg wins
Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.