Clash of Champions is fast approaching and the card for WWE’s late-September event is beginning to take shape. The main event has been known for weeks. Randy Orton will get another opportunity to prise the WWE Championship off the waist of Drew McIntyre. (Although it is the type of match we could picture Vince McMahon sanctioning, there won’t be a prising-a-belt-off-the-waist element to this bout.) McIntyre successfully defended his belt against Orton at SummerSlam but we have to assume that vipers are hard to kill because WWE’s resident venomous snake keeps coming back for more. Not satisfied with his 13 previous title reigns, Orton has been flicking through his book of dirty tricks to antagonise McIntyre. He could have followed up that SummerSlam defeat with a gracious handshake. Instead, he delivered three punt kicks to McIntyre’s head after a trademark ambush. Orton earned another shot at the title by winning a triple threat match against Keith Lee and Seth Rollins.
This was an achievement that Orton wanted to talk at length about, aiming his braggadocious monologue at McIntyre, who was supposedly (so the story went) nursing injuries at home. Thinking the injury story was factual, Orton was caught off-guard when McIntyre entered the arena in an ambulance. A beating to Orton was delivered that left him potentially injured (but not really) for Clash of Champions. With all this talk of injuries and hospital stays, it’s apt that the match was later given the ambulance match stipulation, wherein victory can only be achieved by putting your opponent in the back of an ambulance. Oh, and both doors must be closed. Expect this battle to feature more door-pushing than a sad episode of Game of Thrones.
The other headlining bout of Clash of Champions is without gimmicks, but could be called a Family Match by fans thirsting for stipulations. Defending WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns takes on his cousin Jey Uso in a singles match and the fixture hasn’t caused any animosity between the pair as of yet. Reigns, who now has Paul Heyman by his side, has only had words of congratulations for Jey, telling him he’s ‘earned his shot’. Jey, in return, has been as cordial, speaking fondly of how their childhood dreams were now becoming a reality. It’s touching stuff. So, what’s the catch? Reigns is a heel now but hasn’t shown his teeth when interacting with his kin. Will he bear and sink those choppers into Jey’s neck when they face off? Or will it be ‘nothing but love’ after the three-count? Fans are speculating about this being the dawn of a dominant faction within the WWE. We wait with bated breath.
For fans of the women’s division, there are a number of fights locked in on this card. Bayley will defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against Nikki Cross. Another Scottish performer in the WWE, Cross wishes to drape the belt in tartan after fighting her way past Alexa Bliss, Lacey Evans and Tamuna. The virtually present crowd will be cheering on the challenger and hissing Bayley, who cemented her heel status with a callous attack on tag partner Sasha Banks. Speaking of the tag division, Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler will put their Women’s Tag belts on the line against The Riott Squad. Ruby Riott and Liv Morgan are a fearsome pair and earned the shot with a win over The Ilconics. It could go either way and the same could be said for the other matches we’ve previewed. Those of you interested in the odds for Clash of Champions should click this link to check out the bonuses available for new betting customers examined by the experts of Sportytrader. Expect a few new champions to emerge from the clashes on offer.
