One of the biggest weekends of the pro wrestling year is upon the fans. WWE’s Clash at the Castle stadium show will be the talk of the UK on Saturday, before a noteworthy NXT When Worlds Collide event effectively closes the door on NXT UK on Sunday. Sunday night, AEW promotes a PPV with a great deal of intrigue around it in All Out.
The weekend is ripe for big happenings that could shift the wrestling landscape. Here are 5 bold predictions for this weekend:
Bray Wyatt Shows Up Somewhere
Ever since his shocking release from WWE last year, Bray Wyatt has been the most talked about free agent in the business. Not only is he a former WWE Universal Champion, but he’s one of the most unique talents of his generation for his creative vision and character work.
There’s no official word about Wyatt’s future in wrestling (or if he even has one). However, the stage is set for it to make a lot of sense for him to return to the national scene this weekend.
On the AEW side of things, Tony Khan has alluded to the roster having more talent than ever after this Sunday, and signing someone with The Fiend’s name value would certainly contribute to that effort and add a fascinating new dimension to the top of the card.
Meanwhile, in WWE, the company seems to have booked itself into a corner. All indications are they want Roman Reigns to continue his historic reign atop the company. However, Drew McIntyre losing in front of a UK stadium crowd risks sending fans home completely deflated.
One of the few ways to defuse that situation in satisfying fashion would be a huge return, and there’s no bigger return they could book at this moment than Wyatt. While the rumor mill suggests Braun Strowman has re-signed, and he’s probably the next best option, he simply doesn’t have the level of fan investment The Eater of Worlds does, and the crowd would surely recover and pop huge if Wyatt appeared.
CM Punk And FTR Launch A New Heel Faction
There has been no shortage of speculation about CM Punk turning heel coming off his quick, decisive loss to Jon Moxley. The rematch scenario invites him to use underhanded means to reclaim his title in front of a rabid crowd that would probably love him just as much (and maybe more) for playing the villain.
One of the more interesting angles for a Punk heel turn, though, would be for him to not only play the villain, but do so with henchmen at his side, in the faction-rich AEW roster. He and FTR have expressed their pleasure in working together on and off screen. Once the duo finishes their business with Jay Lethal and company earlier in the night, they could transition to this new role at Punk’s side.
Pete Dunne Confronts Bron Breakker
Fans have taken some pleasure in seeing Butch slowly morph into something more like his old self as Pete Dunne in recent weeks, including wearing his old ring gear, and appearing on NXT television to acknowledge his past there this week. Now, Dunne feels like one of the most under-utilized talents for WWE’s big weekend centered around the UK.
One way of remedying that situation would be for Dunne to take a bigger step away from the Butch persona, and show up at When Worlds Collide. He’d be an immediately credible challenger to Bron Breakker after he presumably beats Tyler Bate. With even a short run in the main event picture—maybe gearing up to challenge Breakker at Halloween Havoc—WWE could reboot this special talent before he comes back to the main roster with Sheamus and Ridge Holland, or else out on his own.
AEW Sets Up Samoa Joe Vs. Wardlow
With Samoa Joe done filming Twisted Metal for Peacock, and rumored to return to AEW action soon, it would only make sense for him to make a surprise appearance at All Out, taking revenge onJay Lethal and company for the kayfabe injury they dealt him. However, fans gave this angle a tepid response in the first place, so it’s probably best AEW not linger on it for too long.
In getting himself involved in the six-man tag team match pitting Wardlow and FTR vs. Jay Lethal and The Motor City Machine Guns, Joe could naturally get intertwined in a story with Wardlow. Maybe the big man wouldn’t want Joe’s help, or maybe’s Joe’s attempts at intervening could backfire and hurt Wardlow’s team. Regardless, Wardlow vs. Joe could be a fun next step in the young TNT Champion’s evolution, and a fresh, compelling matchup to throw Joe into.
Gunther Vs. Sheamus Steals The Whole Weekend
Between the lines ups WWE and AEW have drawn up for the weekend, there’s no shortage of prospective match of the year candidates that could come up. One matchup fans might sleep on, that may wind up not only stealing the show at Clash at the Castle, but emerge as the best bout of the weekend is Gunther vs. Sheamus.
This is a bout between two extremely talented big men, both comfortable working a stiff style, both likely to enjoy a boost from the UK crowd. While NXT and NXT UK fans have seen Gunther put on classics with Ilja Dragunov and Pete Dunne, main roster-only fans may not know what they’re in for here, and this maybe the perfect storm to set up one of the best performances of The Celtic Warrior’s career.
It’s hard to imagine this weekend not being a great one for wrestling fans, who are sure to encounter their share of surprises. That might include ones listed here, or some very different directions for WWE, NXT, and AEW alike.