WWE has had 5 weeks to build Night of Champions. I think they've done a relatively good job, and I have a good amount of interest in all of the main matches. Of course, I think it is far too early to be doing HHH vs CM Punk, but this was not the original plan. CM Punk was slated to face Kevin Nash, but that had to be canceled after Nash failed his physical. Time is short, so let's get to the card.
Kelly Kelly (c) vs Beth Phoenix - Divas Championship Match
Kelly Kelly is a terrible champion. She's beat Beth once. Beth shouldn't lose to her twice.
Prediction: Beth Phoenix - New Divas Champion
Air Boom (Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne) (c) vs The Miz and R-Truth - WWE Tag Team Championship Match
This one is a toss up, and as they are really the only tag teams in WWE, the program will probably continue. Miz and Truth were great a few weeks ago, but have now turned into more of a comedy than a serious act. Having Miz and Truth win the titles to be able to go to Smackdown would help the show, but I just think the faces go over here because they are pretty over with the crowd.
Prediction: Air Boom - Retains Tag Team Titles
Alex Riley vs Dolph Ziggler (c) vs John Morrison vs Jack Swagger - United States Championship Fatal Fourway Match
This is really based around trouble between Ziggler and Swagger with Vickie involved. I don't see Riley or Morrison as having any shot. My predicted finish is that one of the faces has Ziggler beat, but Swagger throws the face out of the ring and gets the pin on Ziggler to win the title. Ziggler and Swagger can continue their feud (even though it is a stupid program).
Prediction: Jack Swagger - New United States Champion
Cody Rhodes (c) vs Ted Dibiase - Intercontinental Championship Match
I have not watched Smackdown recently, so I really am not sure what has led to this match. However, it's an important match for both men. Dibiase has been buried for a long, long time, so regardless of if he wins the title or not, this is his chance to show what he has on PPV. I don't have any official numbers, but I would guess that that Dibiase hasn't been in a singles match on PPV in probably about 2 years. If he can shine here, it may finally give him the bump he needs to start to move up the card. Rhodes face mask and paper bag gimmick is incredibly stale. So I am going to say that Dibiase wins, his face push starts, and Rhodes drops the face mask to become a more serious heel.
Prediction: Ted Dibiase - New Intercontinental Champion
Randy Orton (c) vs Mark Henry - World Heavyweight Championship Match
Mark Henry has been awesome leading up to this match. He's been pushed like a monster. He's cut awesome promos. He has a great look. The only problem is, he probably won't have a good PPV match. Regardless, this is the time to give him the strap. If they don't do it now, they never will. With how often the titles change, there is no reason to not give Henry a run. Orton has publicly said that Henry is the person he likes working with the least, so hopefully he doesn't try to sabotage this match because it will be blamed on Henry if he does.
Prediction: Mark Henry - New World Heavyweight Champion
Alberto Del Rio (c) vs John Cena - WWE Championship Match
They have been doing this match on house shows with Del Rio getting DQ'ed, so Cena wins but Del Rio keeps the belt. I have not liked the build to this match. Cena lost his title to Punk, and Del Rio cashed in MITB on Punk to win the title. This outraged Cena, so he challenged Del Rio. He has insulted Del Rio each week for renting cars. That's about it. Del Rio needs to have the title with the tour of Mexico coming up. However, Hell in a Cell is in two weeks, so he may lose it tonight and win it back at Hell in a Cell. However, I'll predict that Del Rio gets the win here with the help of Ricardo Rodriguez which sets up Del Rio and Cena in the cell so no one can interfere.
Prediction: Alberto Del Rio - Retains WWE Title
CM Punk vs HHH - No Disqualification Match
If HHH loses, he must step down as COO. It will be interesting to see how HHH looks, as this is only his 2nd match in 18 months. It should be a good match and will certainly have a lot of heat. My quick prediction is that Nash comes out, looks like he's going to attack HHH, but instead attacks CM Punk to allow HHH to get the win. HHH, Nash, and Laurinaitis then celebrate as a new corporate heel faction.
Prediction: HHH