WWE Vengeance 2011: Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton Will Steal the Show

With all the talk about John Cena's last man standing match against Alberto Del Rio and the mammoth tag team battle that pits The Miz and R-Truth against Triple H and CM Punk, it will be Randy Orton and Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes who steal the show.

Since Orton lost to Mark Henry at Hell in a Cell, his feud with former protege Rhodes has been highly entertaining. And when you consider some of the other matches on the pay-per-view card, it should be the best pure wrestling match of the night.

The highly touted tag bout will be close, but it's hard to imagine either team winning clean as the build up to Survivor Series continues.

Orton ignited the feud by smashing Rhodes' head with a ring bell and followed it with an RKO on the announce table. Rhodes got revenge by bagging Orton on RAW, which was a surprising sight to say the least. Usually the WWE would save something like that for a PPV.

Since bringing back the Intercontinental title with a white strap, it's clear the WWE is trying to pump some life back into the belt, which was a necessary move.

It's not the only belt on the rise, though. The Tag Team Championships (Air Boom) and United States Championship (fan favorite Ryder's push) are both getting more publicity of late. The company finally realized it was putting too much focus on the two main belts, which have been dominated by Cena and Orton anyway, and were killing any momentum of mid-card performers.

Hopefully those days are behind the WWE universe, because as fans love a great storyline, wrestling is important too. And it's not uncommon for those mid-card title matches to outshine the main event from a wrestling perspective and Vengeance will be another example of that.

As for what will happen in the match, it's a toss-up (another intriguing factor). It would seem like Rhodes' momentum would carry him past Orton on Sunday. However, he already bagged Orton and that would normally be a signature move saved for the end of a feud.

Orton could come out looking for payback after being humiliated and overcome the odds to secure victory (something we've seen a lot with him). With Sheamus' recent push, Orton might be stuck in limbo for awhile until the Survivor Series dust settles if he doesn't win here.

All things considered, Rhodes should prevail on Sunday. Both guys get a great reaction from the crowd, so that isn't a problem for the Intercontinental champion like it has been for past mid-card title holders, and his gimmick is entertaining right now.

No matter who walks away victorious, it should be an awesome match.