by Rob Goodwin @REALRobGoodwinEven though when William Regal sauntered to the ring to establish order amidst the chaos of the three brawling teams during NXT 418 we knew what was coming, it still got the TV viewers in a state of delirious joy...and the reception from the Full Sail faithful told you everything you needed to know... WAR GAMES IS BACK! The staple of NWA and WCW for so long is finally making its much anticipated return, and it has its own PPV (technically!) Don’t get me wrong, I’m cautious in my anticipation, WWE have an unfortunate knack of bungling the simplest of things (Bayley, Bobby Roode and the main roster debut of Pete Dunne to name but a few) but on the other, more optimistic hand, it’s NXT, when do NXT ever put on a bad show? Sidenote: I’m still incredibly annoyed at the choice of pre-show match, but I’ve bemoaned this decision a lot since I found out so I’m simply going to state that I believe PETE DUNNE will retain his UK Championship and quietly move on to the rest of my predictions... Match #1 - Kassius Ohno vs. Lars SullivanI’m really hoping that I can see past the fact that this is quite possibly the match keeping Pete Dunne vs. Johnny Gargano off the main card. The match itself has had very little build, Ohno wants to be seen as more of a main event player as he embarks on a small winning streak and wants to prove to General Manager William Regal that he is capable of being the face of NXT - to do this, he wants to go through Lars Sullivan. I feel like the story is definitely there more for SULLIVAN to come away from this as the victor for several reasons; the first being that Ohno is an established name and it certainly won’t hinder him if he eats a pin. Secondly, Sullivan is at the fledgling stage of his singles career, having turned viciously on all his previous tag partners, he now needs a victory over an established name. Ohno is that name! Both Ohno and Regal sold Sullivan’s power and the fact he is “like a battleship” well in their promo and I feel this only adds to the fact that Sullivan will walk away with the victory! Match #2 - Aleister Black vs. The Velveteen DreamThis feud has proven me completely wrong! From the moment Black walked to the ring for the first time, I thought he lent himself to being a star - a not-so-future NXT Champion. What I couldn’t see was how, after great matches with Hideo Itami and Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas, a feud with the camp and untried Velveteen Dream would aid his character! Oh how wrong I was! Patrick Clark, the man behind the second prettiest flying elbow in NXT, has oozed so much charisma during this feud, has been so intense in his stand-offs with Black and has been so unflinching in his desire for Black to see him as an equal, that his stock has risen tenfold in my eyes. As for Black, he still looks like a dominant force, and his kick to take the microphone from the hand of Dream was simply beautiful! Don’t get me wrong, ALEISTER BLACK is winning this, he has to! He’s not going to suffer his first loss in WWE to The Velveteen Dream, but it will be an excellent match, one in which Black will continue his impressive trajectory toward the NXT Championship, and Velveteen Dream can walk into his next feud with his head held high! Match #3 - Peyton Royce vs. Kairi Sain vs. Ember Moon vs. Nikki Cross |