3 Things I want for Royal Rumble 2019

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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The Royal Rumble is still weeks away and I know odds on favorite are already pointing at Seth Rollins. However, I'm going to use this post to do a little fantasy booking. I know what I'm wishing for are most likely not going to happen and probably won't even get the thumbs up from most fans, but here goes.

Courtesy: WWE

1. Becky Lynch wins the Women's Royal Rumble. This has to be a no-brainer right? I think most fans are hoping for a Ronda Rousey-Becky Lynch battle at WrestleMania. I maintain this could be the main event of the 35th installment of the show. Rousey and Lynch have had a great 2018 on their respective shows. The canceled Survivor Series matchup between the two disappointed many, myself included. However, this fresh contest can be revived and built up with Becky winning the Rumble.

Courtesy: WWE

2. Matt Riddle wins the Men's Royal Rumble. I know, I must be high bro, right? No, no. Hear me out. Riddle or someone else unexpected would certainly shake things up. Given Riddle's MMA background, I'd love to see him in a match against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 35. Not only that, I'd like to see Brock drop the belt. I don't dislike Lesnar. However, I've grown bored of him being on top. New blood will probably not fix the rating problems but I really don't see it hurting anything. 

3. No Legends required. I love when the Legends make an appearance from time to time. However, with the talent pool being so deep these days, I'm not sure there should be three or four Legends taking a spot in this match. 

What are your wishes for the 2019 Royal Rumble? Am I crazy with my thoughts? Comment here or on the My 1-2-3 Cents Facebook page.

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My 2019 wish for the WWE Women's Division

Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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WWE has come a long way over the past few years in terms of women's wrestling. I know some will point out how it's long overdue. I agree with that sentiment, but that's not the point of this blog. Instead, I'm going to address the talk of creating WWE Women's Tag Team Championships. 

I haven't seen it reported, so I don't know if it has but I'm assuming each brand will have the championships, just like there's a SmackDown and Raw women's champion. However,  as a fan, here's how I'd like to see the Women's Division treated in 2019.

1. Create a Women's Divison show for the Network. Much like 205 Live and NXT, this could bring more eyeballs to the Network. I'd also add a couple more women's only pay-per-views or Network specials.  Women would still compete regularly on Raw & SmackDown as well and the big four for sure. (I get that there are so many hours in a week to get something like this accomplished so I'm not holding my breath.)

2. On this Women's show, there would be one WWE (or World's) Champion, an Intercontinental Champion and the Tag Team Champions. I don't believe there are enough women on the current roster to support two separate women's divisions with champions on both shows. 

3. Give us Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch for the main event of WrestleMania 35. This can happen. It needs to happen. I can't imagine a better never-before-seen match for WrestleMania than this one. Please, please save these two. Don't let them have any physicality until the bell rings at MetLife Stadium in April. 

I know most of this is wishful thinking, but that's the point of having a blog. What do you want to see happen in the women's division in 2019?

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VIDEO: #RealMenWearPink prize contest

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By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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I'm excited to be participating in the American Cancer Society's #RealMenWearPink fundraiser this year. Because I am a pro wrestling fan and I have a lot of supporters who are too, I've decided to do a giveaway at the end of the month.

Watch the video below for all the details. Simply donate $15 or more here and you will be eligible. For each $15 you give, you'll get another entry. If you've already donated, you're already entered. Thanks again.

TLC 2016 Predictions

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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In all honesty, I'd forgotten tonight is the annual TLC pay per view. SmackDown Live Superstars will be battling it out on this event. I have not kept up with the blue brand (or Raw for that matter) like I should be. The last couple of weeks have been chaotic and I've not made the time to watch the DVR. I blame the Simpsons marathon on FXX for part of this. But anyway I digress. Here are my quick picks for the TLC.

AJ Styles will retain the WWE Championship in the Tables Ladders and Chairs match against Dean Ambrose. This will be a crazy match, I have no doubt. I just hope no one is seriously hurt.

Alexa Bliss will win the SDL Women's Championship from Becky Lynch in a tables match. This will be like the first time Sheamus beat John Cena for the gold. Simply going through a table protects Becky.

The Miz will retain the Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match against Dolph Ziggler. I see no point in putting it back on Dolph just weeks after having him lose it. But this is the one match I'm not 100% certain of.

Kalisto will beat Baron Corbin in a chair match. This will be the match I leave my chair for and go do something else.

Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton will win the SDL Tag Team Championships from Rhyno and Heath Slater. I like the pairing of Wyatt and Orton and having them win the gold would be an interesting dynamic to this partnership. As of this writing, that match is the only one without a gimmicky.

Carmella will beat Nikki Bella in a no DQ match. I usually never bet against John Cena or his female counterpart, but I am this time. Natalaya will help Carmella win, revealing she's the Survivor Series attacker. 

SURVIVOR SERIES: The champion should be captain

Captain Nikki
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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In recent months I've tried to be more positive in my posts. This one, however, is going to take a negative tone. I'm not just letting my lack of excitement of Nikki Bella dictate my feelings here as I would be writing this same post had Natalya won the captain's spot for the SmackDown Live Survivor Series women's team.

Alexa Bliss & Becky Lynch
Courtesy: WWE

The original challenge made by Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan said "our five best vs. Raw's five best..." That being said the Women's Champion, whether it's still Becky Lynch or Alexa Bliss, should captain the team. It should be that way across the board. It's my understanding Heath Slater and Rhyno are the SmackDown Live tag team elimination match. 

The other issue I have is that Natalya isn't even on the team now, or at least for the time being. To imply she isn't one of the best on the SmackDown Live roster is ridiculous. Once again Nattie gets the shaft. I'm reminding myself to not judge these latest developments until the story plays out, but from the way things look now, I respectfully disagree with the choice in captain and the lack of Nattie in this match.

I hope this doesn't mean Kevin Owens, New Day and Sasha Banks won't be captains of their teams should they still be the champs by Survivor Series...

Quick Picks: No Mercy predictions

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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Another WWE pay per view is set for this weekend. SmackDown Live is putting on No Mercy. No doubt the in-ring performances will shine as they always do. From top to bottom there will be plenty of great moments Sunday night. It's what happens next that's important in the storytelling process. But before that happens, here are my quick picks for the show.

AJ Styles will retain the WWE World Heavyweight title against John Cena and Dean Ambrose. I do think eventually Cena will win the gold again, but it won't happen this weekend. Rumor has it, he's taking another break. If that's the case, AJ should get the win on Cena and further the program between the champ and Ambrose.

I'm still split on the Intercontinental Championship match. If Dolph loses he retires. If Miz loses they take a lot of the momentum away that's been growing with the champ and his wife, Maryse. I don't want either scenario to happen, but my gut tells me The Miz wins this one.

The Usos will capture the SmackDown Live tag team titles from Heath Slater and Rhyno. The point of Slater winning was to get him on the show. However, I could see the makeshift team winning this one and the Usos getting the gold in the near future.

Becky Lynch will retain the SmackDown Live Women's title against Alexa Bliss. Becky rocks. I'm curious to see who her next opponent will be. Outside of Natalya, the female heel pool isn't too deep.

Nikki Bella will beat Carmella. Bella has put over Carmella in different matches in the weeks leading up. I'm only picking her based on that fact.

Bray Wyatt needs to beat Randy Orton, but as we've discussed before you never beat against Orton (unless it's against Brock Lesnar).

Baron Corbin will beat Jack Swagger in the pre-show. I'm not a huge fan of either guy, but I like how the match between them ended on SDL with the "tap-out." 

Curt Hawkins will be "in the ring" that night too. I'm more than curious to see what WWE is going to do with the returning Superstar. 

What are your thoughts? Who wins this Sunday? Share your thoughts here.

I'm still banking on Charlotte

Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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Sasha Banks has once again dethroned Charlotte as the Raw Women's Champion. I'm not going to lie, I'm disappointed to see this happen. Charlotte is without a doubt the most talented woman on the roster and I would argue one of the best overall Superstars. Maybe I've drunk too much of the Ric Flair KoolAid, but Charlotte stands tall in among her peers, both female and male.

I'm not surprised Sasha won the gold back. I was actually more surprised Charlotte regained the title at SummerSlam. I would have rather seen her hold on to it before the first loss, but I'm not going to be overly critical of creative because I don't know what's going to happen next. But for My 1-2-3 Cents on the situation, here ya go...

Chad and I discussed this on our draft podcast. We agreed women should have stayed on one show. This would have added depth to the roster and allowed WWE to come up with some compelling storylines that involve more than just the champion and the number one contender each month. Imagine Becky Lynch, Bayley, Natalya, Nikki Bella and the rest of the women all on the same show. Amazing stories could be told each week and ahead of each pay per view. It would also make the women's division more special. But I understand the desire to have women on both rosters. 

While I think the brand split has been overall a good thing, we're still getting a lot of the same when it comes to women's matches on both Raw and SmackDown Live. Now that Emma is returning from injury and Eva Marie's suspension should be coming to an end there's a new woman on each show to add to the equation.

As I continue thinking and typing at the same time, I like the idea of Charlotte becoming a modern day version of her father. Ric Flair was at the top of the NWA for many years, dropping the title only to win it again and in most cases, he was a bad guy doing it. While I'm all for legacy Superstars finding their own niche, the parallels between Charlotte and Naitch are undeniable. 

Enjoy the gold while you have it Sasha. I'm still banking on Charlotte to be the woman one more time. Woo! 

I was wrong about AJ's victory

AJ wins the gold
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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Last week I wrote about AJ Styles NOT winning the WWE World Championship over the weekend at Backlash. Of course he did the exact opposite and beat Dean Ambrose for the championship. Good for AJ, years of hard work around the world has paid off with the ultimate prize in the wrestling business.

In my post last week I stated AJ would win the belt before the end of the year, I just didn't think Sunday night was the right time for it. My reasonings may have been weak, including the crownings of first time tag team and women's champions. My fear was an AJ title win would get lost in the shuffle. Plus I wanted Ambrose to have a little more time on the top of the mountain. 

AJ in motion
Courtesy: WWE

But clearly I was wrong and I'm cool with that. AJ's victory, although not "clean", was well-deserved. Up until SummerSlam I wondered if Styles would be one of the Superstars added to the list of guys who never won "the big one" while in WWE. I'm glad that is no longer the case.

Becky Lynch wins!
Courtesy: WWE

While my pick was wrong in the main event, I did nail the tag team title match with Rhyno and Heath Slater winning and I wavered between Becky Lynch and Natalya winning the new women's title. I'm satisfied that a deserving Becky is champ. I'm not going to lie, I worry about the future for Bray Wyatt. While Kane is no chump, Bray needed a win Sunday night more than the Big Red Machine. The Miz continues to shine and is quickly moving onto my shortlist of Wrestler of the Year for the Centy Awards. Yeah, I said it...

The future looks bright for the SmackDown Live brand. I'm excited to see what happens next with AJ, Becky, The Miz, Rhyno & Slater all holding the belts.

They are women, hear them roar

The revolution begins 7/13/15
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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One year ago the Divas Revolution officially kicked into high gear. Sasha Banks, Charolette and Becky Lynch all made their main roster debuts. I wrote about it the day after in this post. Some people on social media have been critical of the evolution of the women's division since last year's coup. The change was overdue and the division continues to improve.

The only thing I'll be critical about the women's division is the inability to have more than one angle occurring at a time. That was a huge problem with the Divas. It was almost always a storyline with the champion facing a challenger and then moving on after said feud ended. Or creative would just throw them all in some sort of gimmicked battle royal, just so you could see them all at once. The situation has improved with the Charolette-Sasha rivalry brewing as Becky and Natalya engage in combat.

Women's wrestling will continue to evolve in WWE. Removing the term Diva and giving the women more time and better placement and promotion for pay per views has done wonders. There are plenty of hungry talent on the main roster and several ladies ready to make the jump from NXT. However, there are a few familiar faces and a fresh one I'd like to see added to the division first.

Courtesy: WWE

I've wanted Kharma to come back since the second she left WWE several years ago. She's a huge missed opportunity. The company needs to do whatever it takes to bring her in, but they tend to only go with one "dominate" force in that division at a time and it looks like Nia Jax is filling that role.

Courtesy: WWE

The same could be said for Beth Phoenix. She was the total package of women's wrestling. Motherhood is treating her well and while it's doubtful she'll lace up the boots again, it would be nice to see her back even on a short term basis. The women in both NXT and WWE could learn a lot from her as they have from Natalya. 

Courtesy: WWE

Tessa Blanchard is a young, up and coming women's wrestler. She's made a name on the indy scene and has the training of both her famous father Tully Blanchard and step-dad Magnum T.A. Tessa has had a few matches on NXT. With some more seasoning, she will be no doubt be a future WWE Women's Champion. How sweet would a feud against Charolette be?

Don't read too much into this. I'm not discrediting Bailey, Aska or Nia. These women will all eventually be called up to the main roster too. I just wanted to bring in some established talent and a new face to help keep the division viable and growing.

Hello Ladies

Charlotte, Becky and Sasha join the Divas Revolution

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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For months fans have been waiting for an overhaul or at least an update in the WWE Divas division.  I think it's fair to say that's exactly what happened on the July 13 episode of Raw.  Three of the best from NXT appeared on the big stage as a part of Paige's Divas Revolution. As I write this Tuesday afternoon, Charlotte, Becky Lynch and NXT women's champion Sasha Banks remain on the NXT roster on WWE's website and are not listed as WWE Divas.

Putting these three young and talented women on the main roster is a breath of fresh air in a often forgotten division.  During the segment on Raw, Michael Cole said "take a look at the future of women's wrestling!"  That statement spoke volumes to me because rarely do you hear the words "women" (it's usually Divas) and "wrestling" (it's usually sports entertainment) on WWE programming.  I don't think the company is abandoning its trademarks, but it was nice to hear a brief break from the norm.

While the presumed transfer of these three women to the main roster is exciting for the division, I do have some concerns.  I hope the moves mean WWE Creative will put more thought into the Divas division, as it seems they focus on just the champion and a particular challenger most of the time.  I also hope that the likes of Natalya and Emma aren't lost in the shuffle.  

Finally, if Charlotte, Becky and Sasha are all leaving NXT, what's next for the few women left there?  Overall that group is so talented but the division is small on NXT.  I understand they're just doing an hour a week as opposed to the five hours the main roster does, plus specials on the WWE Network.  Will Sasha do double duty or drop the NXT Women's title and move on completely?  Time will tell.  I'm going to remain optimistic that it'll be a win-win for everyone involved and hopefully before the end of summer there's a new Divas champion.  Wooo!