WWE Fastlane 2015 Predictions

When the WWE completely did away with the Elimination Chamber event concept, many fans were left skeptical of its replacement, Fast Lane. However, in my opinion, the company has done an effective job in both promoting this show as a big event and making the match card pay-per-view worthy- something that cant be said for some of the 2014 events. Here are my match-by-match predictions for the last event before WrestleMania 31.

 

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Tag Team Championship Match: The Usos (C) vs. Tyson Kidd and Cesaro

A match that seems tailor made as an opening bout to get the crowd excited, both the Usos and Kidd and Cesaro will put on a show inside the ring on Sunday. The Usos have long been viewed as the class of the tag team division, as their charisma, in-ring ability and passion shine in their work each week on WWE television. The Usos newest opponents, the team of Kidd and Cesaro, made it to this match in a different way. There is no arguing that both Kidd and Cesaro are two great in-ring workers. However, whether it was not connecting with the crowed or lack of faith from the higher ups, both men weren’t very successful as singles competitors. Once they formed a team, the men have flourished in both personality and, of course, wrestling. Both teams have a unique chemistry, so expect an opening match that will be talked about as one of the better matches on the show.

Winners: The Usos

Although many fans would like to see Kidd and Cesaro leave Fast Lane with the Tag Team titles in tow, the time doesn’t seem right; while they may seem deserving, the Usos seemed primed to enter WresleMania as a team that would drop the titles to “give the rub” to another team. Expect the duo to meet again at the showcase of the immortals, either in a rematch or a tag team gauntlet match, adding possibly The Ascension and the newly (re)formed Prime Time Players.

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Goldust vs. Stardust

When Goldust and Cody Rhodes formed their tag team, it was a feel good story for the WWE Universe; they were able to overcome the Authority and fight for each others jobs. However, after a long run as a successful team, tension has grown between the duo. When fans were first weary of Cody Rhodes turning into Stardust, if anything, Rhodes has proved he can do the best with what has been given to him. He simply ran away with the gimmick and embraced it, which made it even more special. The fact that Dusty Rhodes, the sons Hall of Fame father, got involved in the spat on last weeks Raw was just icing on the cake for this feud. The two may not live up to the mastery of the Bret vs. Owen brother showdown at WrestleMania 10, but the Runnels Brothers will have an entertaining match that the fans will be into.

Winner: Goldust

Okay, hear me out. Many people feel Stardust will win so Goldust can ride off into the sunset at Levi Stadium next month. Although Goldust doesn’t have much left in the tank, one would believe he lives by the mantra to go out by putting someone over. Who better than his brother, who can go even crazier leading up to WrestleMania, while also slowly turning back into Cody Rhodes in the process.

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Divas Championship Match: Nikki Bella (C) vs. Paige

Fans who want to see a match along the lines of the NXT Takeover: Rival womens match, you may need to wait until the next NXT special for that. It’s not that these Divas aren’t capable; Paige was one of the founding mothers of the NXT womens division, while Bella has made leaps and bounds of progress in her reign as Divas Champion. While both Paige and Bella will do their best to provide the WWE Universe with a great match, a lack of time and, frankly, care from the WWE creative team will make this match seem like a filler, ala Raw or Smackdown.

Winner: Nikki Bella

With help from her sister Brie, it wont be surprising to see Bella retain on Sunday Night. With Brie interfering, it keeps Paige strong in a losing effort, while continuing her chase for the Divas championship heading into WrestleMania.

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Seth Rollins, Kane and the Big Show vs. Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan

When this match was added after Thursday night’s Smackdown broadcast, one thing was made clear; the creative team has no idea what to do with this group of guys. The combination of the Authority and Ziggler, Ryback and Rowan have been going at it since November’s Survivor Series, and it has been the main reason for the decline of both Ryback, and especially Ziggler. After being the sole survivor of the tag team match, big things were on the horizon for the Show Off; but after bad booking in the Royal Rumble match amongst others continued the trend of his start and stop push. Other than Rollins, who is the wildcard on weekly television due to his Money in the Bank briefcase, this match is merely a match to give each man something to do on the card.

Winners: Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan

I’m going to go out on the limb here and predict the triumphant and long awaited return of Randy Orton. Orton has been out since November and it seems unlikely that, as one of the biggest stars in WWE, he is not a part of the WrestleMania card. With Orton costing the Authority the match and resume his feud with Rollins, Ziggler, Ryback and Rowan will escape victoriously.

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Intercontinental Championship Match: Wade Barrett (C) vs. Dean Ambrose

When the Shield split back in June, it was Dean Ambrose that had the true admiration of fans once he became a solo act. Whether it was his unorthodox in ring ability, his tantalizing promos, or his knack to come off as an everyday individual really set him apart from Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. After two impressive feuds with Rollins and Bray Wyatt, Ambrose, like Ziggler, suffered from both the Royal Rumble match and losses continuing to pile up. Although the connection is still there, Ambrose just doesn’t seem as over as months prior. On the other hand, Barrett returned from injury and quickly recaptured his forfeited Intercontinental title. But he too, however, has suffered from continuous losses week after week.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

This match should be a physical one, and expect Ambrose to walk out as champion. Although this feud has seemingly come out of nowhere, sometimes, that’s okay; both men impress in the ring and on the mic, and both will put on a potential show-stealing match. However, although Ambrose walks away with gold, his status for WrestleMania is still unclear. The same situation can be said for Barrett, except he will have no gold to defend come March, which could make his position even bleaker.

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United States Championship Match: Rusev (C) vs. John Cena

It has been one year since Rusev made his WWE debut. This one year has been filled with complete domination, as Rusev has profoundly steamrolled over everyone put in front of him. As time went on, it was made known that he will be the next monster heel that has one more task in front of him…beat John Cena. The buildup for this match has been done very well. For weeks, Cena and Rusev’s manager Lana have been at a war of words while also brawls between Cena and Rusev have taken place throughout arenas. This high profile showdown seemed primed for WrestleMania, but with the decision to make this match take place at Fast Lane made the outcome a little more obvious.

Winner: John Cena by disqualification

With Cena providing Rusev with his biggest challenge to date, it wont be surprising to see Rusev become over exuberant and attempt to break the rules to put out Cena for good. This match just seems too good to not give Rusev a WrestleMania moment, so expect this match to show enough to entertain the fans, but make them wanting one more matchup.

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Number 1 Contenders Match: Roman Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan

The 2015 Royal Rumble will go down as one of the more controversial WWE events in recent memory. In what was supposed to be Roman Reigns coming out party, he was booed-heavily-by the Philadelphia crowd. The reason behind the boos? Daniel Bryan’s early elimination from the match. One could say the creative team reacted too quickly, but they decided to find a way to make the fans happy by putting together this number one contenders match. The buildup has been entertaining; with the Authority finally out of the main event picture, the dynamic between two fan favorites (depending on which city they’re in) has been stellar. The brawl to end Raw was the perfect setup to the Sunday Showdown.

Winner: Roman Reigns

I had a hard time choosing a winner for this match, but two things that made me decide Reigns was because A) it would show that the WWE messed up the WrestleMania main event two years in a row and B) would kill any momentum Reigns has going for him. I, along with many fans, would love to see a Bryan/Brock Lesnar showdown, but the right decision will be for Reigns to take on the Beast Incarnate. The real question will be…where does Daniel Bryan go from here?

With a solid card, coupled with the long awaited Sting/HHH showdown plus another possible hint at a Bray Wyatt/Undertaker match, Fast Lane will prove to be a great building block leading to WrestleMania 31.

What do you think? Comment below with your thoughts, opinions, feedback and anything else that was raised.

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