The Bookie Wins Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punter For WrestleMania 37

The Bookie won the Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs Punter prediction contest for WrestleMania 37.

The winner scored seventy-three points with a win-loss rate of 9-4. Three of the losing selections appeared right at the start of The Bookie's list which paved the way for a pick up of higher priced points when the results began to pile in his favour.

I finished one point behind the winner. My 13-point gamble on Braun Strowman to beat Shane McMahon came in, but it was not enough when all was said and done.

The Punter tied with me with 8-5 when it came to predicting the winners. Point distribution worked against The Punter bringing in a score of fifty-eight to place him third overall.

Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punter: WrestleMania 37

With the biggest night(s) on WWE's calendar taking place this weekend, I thought I'd get in touch with 'The Bookie' to see if he would be up for another round of Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punter.

For those who don't know what I am on about - Bookie .vs. Blogger is a series that started a few years ago in which myself and a bookmaker, nicknamed 'The Bookie', would compete against each other in a prediction contest. We later added extra players (friends of the blog) to the game to make it Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punter/s.

The rules go like this: each player predicts who is going to win each match on a card and then places each selection in order. One point is given to the selection they feel less strongly about right up to the final selection which has the most points. If the selection wins, the player gets the points they have applied to their pick. Once the event is over, all points are added up to determine the winner.

For WrestleMania 37, we've covered thirteen of the fourteen matches that have been announced for the show. The bout that has been excluded is the women's tag team turmoil match as it has the potential to include additional teams that weren't advertised when we made our picks. We do have the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship match, however. For the game, we had to choose 'Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax' or 'Tag Turmoil Winners'.

The previous editions of Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punter had a four nations theme. This time, 'The Bookie' suggested our colours represent the three main brands within WWE. The Bookie wanted to be Raw, so I thought I'd go in the order of TV schedule with the middle player - yours truly - representing NXT and The Punter taking on the blue colour of Smackdown.

Here are our selections. Below the table are thoughts from each of us about some of our picks.

The Bookie

I went with Bad Bunny and Damian Priest as my thirteen-point pick because I doubt they will have either guy beaten. Priest has been booked strongly, so adding him and Morrison to the match makes it even more likely Bad Bunny and Priest will hop to victory.

One point was given to 'Tag Turmoil Winners' to beat Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. It's difficult to guess which team could win on Saturday. It could be Lana and Naomi to give Lana a WrestleMania moment. It could be any of them winning on night one, to be honest. Maybe even a surprise team. How about Billie Kay and Carmella? It would be nice to add to Billie Kay's resume.

I've chosen Bobby Lashley (5 pointer) over Drew McIntyre because Drew won in last year's main event. It's easier to set up a post-WrestleMania program for Lashley with Keith Lee, Riddle or a returning/debuting babyface.

Shane McMahon (2 pointer) winning against Braun Strowman could be from assistance to set up Braun Strowman's next feud (speculation on my part: maybe Karrion Kross if he loses tonight?).

Kevin Owens (9 pointer) beating Sami Zayn makes sense to me because I think he will jump from the pirate ship and think a loss for Zayn will further play into his conspiracy theory angle.

I have chosen Daniel Bryan (3 pointer) to win the Universal Title match in what I believe will be the main event as it's all Reigns does at WrestleMania (unless it's Rousey, Lynch and Flair). A babyface winning in the main event could set up a program with Edge moving forward.

The Blogger

In the spirit of competition, I decided to go all-in with my top picks.

Bad Bunny and Damian Priest were my thirteen-pointers, but I sensed that The Bookie and The Punter would also have the team as their highly-rated selections. Therefore, I decided to run with a wrestler I had a feeling would not rank high on their lists: Braun Strowman.

Strowman has been made to look, and I quote, 'stupid', throughout this feud with Shane McMahon. In my opinion, the only way this can be remedied is to have him get the last laugh at WrestleMania.

There are a couple of things that might work in my favour - one is the fact that the babyface was the person who announced the match stipulation and secondly, on this past Monday's episode of Raw,  Strowman dedicated his win to anybody who has ever been called 'stupid'. 

If Strowman does lose, I guess that'll make me the stupid one for giving him the 13 points.

The Fiend was my second pick, but - just like with Bad Bunny and Damian Priest - I sensed he would also be second-favourite to at least one of the other players, so I chose the person I believe will close night one with a title win: Bianca Belair.

In other picks, I have gone with Bobby Lashley (6 pointer) to beat Drew McIntyre. Mainly because it seems to me that they're building McIntyre's WrestleMania moment to be the pop he gets as the first man out in front of a live crowd on Saturday. McIntyre's promo on Monday night did not fill me with confidence - in regards to my gamble on Lashley - but I am sticking with the champ. I'm hopeful that The Hurt Business split will turn out to be a swerve and that it'll all make sense on Saturday.

As noted, I had Bad Bunny and Damian Priest as my top picks before I decided to gamble. They're not going to lose, so I think that's a safe ten points. The celebrity involvement from Logan Paul should help me get eight points for the babyface - Kevin Owens - in his Sunday night match against Sami Zayn. 

I have chosen to bet against Cesaro, by giving two points to Seth Rollins, because the build to their match has been all about Cesaro giving Rollins the swing. A record swing attempt could - and will - be achieved, but that doesn't necessarily mean Rollims has to lose, right? Right??

Fading AJ Styles and Omos - by giving The New Day three points - was from something that I saw in a promo that stood out to me. In it, they teased that Styles and Omos hardly know each other and I feel that could become something that'll explain a loss. The story has also pointed out that this is Omos' first match, so that could pave the way for a rookie mistake to cost them.

I have put one point on the 'Tag Turmoil Winners' to win against Baszler and Jax on night two. I have a feeling that Bayley and Charlotte Flair could be the two added to the match. It's a travesty of justice that Bayley has nothing to do considering the work she has put in for the past few years, so it makes sense to me to have her involved in the turmoil match. Charlotte Flair, if medically clear, could easily be added to this match as well. Seems like a perfect spot for Bayley and Flair considering their conspicuous absences from the card at this late stage.

Now that I've seen both of my friends' have gone for Daniel Bryan to win on Sunday, I am even more keen to see Roman Reigns win the triple threat match to add seven points to my tally. I had Reigns to win against Edge before Daniel Bryan was added to the match. I am sticking with the titleholder and I think he'll do it with Edge as the fall guy to tease those who think Bryan might be in the match to lose the fall.

The Punter

I have given the 'Tag Team Turmoil Winners' six points to win against Baszler and Jax on night two as I believe the team will be Naomi and Lana to play off the Nia/Lana feud from months ago.

As soon as the steel cage stipulation for Braun Strowman .vs. Shane McMahon was announced, my instincts were that Shane would win by Braun either throwing him off the top of the cage or throwing him through the cage. I have softened on that stance recently, but I've elected to stick with Shane as my pick and have given him two points. Either way, Shane is being carried out of the stadium. I could see a scenario play out where Shane is on the pirate ship celebrating his win with Ryker and Elias below him, Strowman emerges from behind Shane and launches him to the floor so Strowman stands tall. However, I believe there are two guarantees in the match: Shane takes a big bump and Braun stands tall at the end.

Sheamus (1 point) is my pick to beat Riddle as I feel he deserves a reward for his recent career resurgence. Riddle was not the first choice to be the US Champion either, so I could see Vince McMahon switching the title here to give Sheamus a well-earned victory.

I chose Cesaro (3 points) as it's his first WrestleMania singles match and I think he could do with a win more than Seth Rollins. With that said, I am worried that this match is too focused on the swing aspect and not enough on the win aspect, so Rollins winning wouldn't surprise me.

11 points has gone to a Kevin Owens win over Sami Zayn as I think Logan Paul will be involved in the finish leading to Zayn's defeat. This will give Sami more fuel to his conspiracy theory character going forward. I wouldn't be surprised to see Owens stun Logan post-match.

Even though I have given five points to Apollo Crews, I am concerned that Big E could win in his hometown of Tampa. I have picked Crews to take the Intercontinental Title as I feel Big E is destined for bigger things on May 16th.

I have picked Drew McIntyre (9 points) over Bobby Lashley as I feel Vince McMahon wants to crown him again at Mania, but in front of fans this time. McMahon has even sabotaged his own champion lately by breaking up Lashley's faction and temporarily aligning him with Baron Corbin - a move which I believe was carried out in an attempt to quell any favourable crowd response for Lashley on Saturday. It used to be 'they do it all for Roman', now I see it as 'They do it all for Drew'.

Daniel Bryan is my pick to win the Universal Title as I think they could go for a feel good Mania ending while protecting Roman Reigns by not having him involved in the decisive fall. Also, I like the irony of Reigns becoming champion in a triple threat match and then losing said title in another triple threat match.

* * *

Thanks for reading and special thanks to The Bookie and The Punter for taking the time to play along.

Scotland Wins Rumble 2020 Edition Of Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters

It seems somewhat fitting that, on the weekend of Burns Night and Drew McIntyre's Royal Rumble win, that Scotland won the 2020 Royal Rumble edition of Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters.

The contest saw a bookmaker, myself and two frequent visitors of this blog predict which wrestlers would win the Royal Rumble matches along with guessing certain propositions that occurred within the matches.

I thought up the proposition element for this month's contest. It turned out to be much harder than I envisioned.

The Bookie - who was representing England - came out of the competition with zero points. His seven point prediction was on Sasha Banks to be the iron woman in the battle royal. Banks was not in the match after all.

Ireland came third with two points. In his two-point spot, the Emerald Isle's representative predicted that Drew McIntyre would last the longest in the men's Royal Rumble. McIntyre's thirty-four minutes and change secured the points.

Positioning our picks is the key part of these contests and this is evident by the fact that my points were also scored with Drew McIntyre's iron man performance. I placed McIntyre in fourth spot.

During the match, McIntyre eliminated Brock Lesnar. This feat was predicted by the winner of the contest. He felt strong enough to place the 'Lesnar Eliminator' proposition in the six-point section of his entry.

All of our entries, along with the final scores, can be viewed in the table below.

The correct plays were:

Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters: Royal Rumble 2020 Edition

Frequent visitors to this blog will likely remember a series that I dust off for most major PPVs on the WWE calendar called Bookie .vs. Blogger.

Well, we're back again for the 2020 WWE Royal Rumble and - just like with the last couple of Bookie .vs. Blogger posts - friends of WWELeaks.org are also competing in the four nations themed competition.

For this weekend's show, I've changed things up slightly. 

We haven't selected who we believe will win all of the matches on the card. Instead, we've gone the prop bet route and have guessed who will win the two Rumble matches, who will be the iron persons in the two matches, who will get the most eliminations in the respective bouts and - as an additional prop - we've guessed who will eliminate Brock Lesnar from the men's Royal Rumble.

Just like usual, our predictions are ranked in order of strength. We give one point to the proposition we are not as confident on all the way down to the seven-pointer which should be the gamble we like the most.

Once we know all of the results, we add up the points for any of the selections that have won and then total them all up to see which one of us has the highest score.

For those new to this, the bookie is representing England, I'm donning the colours of Wales while Ireland and Scotland are the two punters.

Here are some results from previous Four Nations contests:

- The Bookie won for SummerSlam 2019

- Scotland Was Victorious For The WrestleMania 35 Edition

England Wins Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters SummerSlam 2019 Edition

England was the winning player in the SummerSlam 2019 edition of Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters.

For those who haven't been following, 'England' is represented by The Bookie in this four nations version of Bookie .vs. Blogger that we've played a couple of times now.

In these games, four of us make our predictions for upcoming PPVs and rank our picks based on how strong our opinions are. The wrestler/s we believe have the most chance of winning their match are given the most points while the wrestler/s we feel have the lowest chance of winning get one point.

Once the PPV is over, we tally up the points to find a winner.

England  - AKA The Bookie -  finished off with fifty-four points, I was next (Wales) with 46 and then the WrestleMania 35 winner - Scotland - finished third. Ireland's huge gamble on Ember Moon to win the WWE Smackdown Women's Championship resulted in him finishing fourth.

The Bookie's only loss came with his one point play - Randy Orton. 

During the PPV, Orton and Kofi Kingston fought to a double countout in the WWE Championship match so all of us lost on that match. 

The results table can be viewed below.

Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters: SummerSlam 2019

On the Friday before this year's WrestleMania, I published a Bookie .vs. Blogger post in which a bookmaker, myself and two regular visitors to this blog made our predictions for the show.

We've all decided to have another go for SummerSlam.

Just like last time, we're representing our home countries with the bookmaker flying the flag for England, I'm Wales and my two friends are playing for Ireland and Scotland.

The rules are simple - we select the ten wrestlers we believe will win their bouts on Sunday night and we rank them in order of strength. Therefore, the selection we feel has the best chance of winning is given ten points all the way down to the wrestler we're not 100% sure of getting one point.

Once the event is over, we'll count up how many points each player has received to determine the winner.

Scotland won the WrestleMania edition, so he's the guy to beat.

Scotland Wins Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters WrestleMania 35 Special

Last week, I reintroduced a special WrestleMania 35 edition of Bookie .vs. Blogger where the Bookie not only took on myself but also two frequent visitors of WWELeaks.org.

As all four of us live in different countries, I thought it would be good to have us represent the four nations. The bookie was England, I was Wales and the two other competitors were Ireland and Scotland.

Then, as is the rules of Bookie .vs. Blogger, we ranked our picks from the fifteen matches that were confirmed at the time of our entries with the person - or persons - we felt had the strongest chance of winning getting fifteen points all the way down to the wrestler/s we thought had the least chance of winning getting one point.

After all the match results were tallied up, Scotland came out a winner with 88 points. Next up was the other punter - representing Ireland - with 79. I was next with 77 followed by the bookie with 69.

All of our picks - along with how many points we gave to them - can be viewed in the table below.

Bookie .vs. Blogger .vs. Punters: WrestleMania 35 Special

For the past few years, I've occasionally published a series of blog posts titled 'Bookie .vs. Blogger' in which a bookmaker and myself compare our predictions for major WWE PPVs. There has been an occasion or two where time has got in our way and we've competed against frequent visitors of WWELeaks.org instead.

I thought I'd go one better this year and get the Bookie to compete not only against myself, but also against the two friends who have been following this blog for years and have played roles in previous Bookie .vs. Blogger posts.

Seeing as all four of us are from different countries, I thought I'd do a four nations theme. I'm representing Wales, The Bookie is England and the other two competitors are representing their homes of Ireland and Scotland.

For those checking in for the first time, we have made our picks for the fifteen WrestleMania matches that were confirmed as of 12PM yesterday afternoon. We give one point to the pick we feel the less confident in and work up to the selection we strongly believe will win. This gets 15 points.

Once WrestleMania is over, I'll go back and tally up all the points and work out which country won.

Here are all of our picks along with some reasoning. I feel the need to preface that these selections aren't 'tips' as we have not all bet on our predictions.

1 Point Picks

Ireland: This is a tricky one, but I'm going with Baron Corbin to beat Kurt Angle. Time-honoured tradition and all that. So, I see Angle losing his last match. I'm not confident at all.

England: I don't know if Kurt Angle .vs. Baron Corbin will take place or if it''ll finish so I might as well have Kurt Angle as my bottom pick.

Wales: I know Lacey Evans is the favourite to win the women's battle royal, so I'm going with an outside shot and pick Alexa Bliss because other favourites like Asuka and Mandy Rose were meant to have been in the Smackdown Women's Championship match (ie, they weren't going to win this originally). I've written in previous posts that I've had an idea of Bliss adding herself to the match seeing as she's the host of WrestleMania. I don't know if the match being on the pre-show helps or hinders my idea...

Scotland: I'm backing Tony Nese to beat Buddy Murphy. I don't follow 205 Live all that closely, but just gone with the title change for WrestleMania factor.

2 Point Picks

Scotland: I'm picking Samoa Joe to win here because, if the match doesn't happen due to Rey Mysterio's injury, I'm not blowing big points away!

Wales: I'm giving my two points to a controversial pick. Becky Lynch really should win the main event, BUT.. as I've written numerous times, I cannot shake off the feeling that Ronda Rousey will walk away from Mania with the W.

England: Kevin Owens was supposed to be in the WWE Championship match, so maybe they'll give him a win in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. I hope they don't go with Gronk who - if he's in it - will win it otherwise there's no point in him being a participant. It could also be one of the Saturday Night Live guys...

Ireland: Braun Strowman is the obvious choice to win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but since it's not a match he has to be pinned clean, there's always a chance he may not win. I see the Saturday Night Live guys being the reason Braun gets thrown out and this will lead to a bunch of backstage segments throughout the rest of the night with Strowman causing chaos in an effort to find where they are hiding. So, I'm going to risk it and say Ali wins. I think it could elevate him and it would be a way for Vince to give him something seeing as Kofi Kingston replaced him in the Smackdown gauntlet match and look where that led him to!

3 Point Picks

Ireland: I could see Asuka being given the win here as a make good for dropping the title to Charlotte, but I'd rather they gave this to someone in order to elevate them. Asuka doesn't need this in my opinion. Lacey Evans is another possibility, but I'd have her interrupt Elias instead and maybe have her win Money in the Bank next month. I'm going with Mandy Rose though. She was originally going to be Asuka's Mania opponent had she kept the title. That tells me they have plans for her. I could also see her posing with the trophy with a wide-eyed Corey Graves behind her photobombing at the announce table.

England: I cannot see anyone other than Asuka winning the women's battle royal. I would love to see Nikki Cross win and it. She would be my dark horse as I'd love to see what she would do with the trophy calling it her precious!

Scotland: The segment from this week's episode of Raw has convinced many that Brock Lesnar is winning against Seth Rollins, but I'm sticking to my guns on Rollins. I have moved him down my list just in case. On the flip side, the other thing needed to consider is will the 'Big 3' faces in title matches (Rollins, Kofi and Becky) all win? I've gone for it, but one will likely lose and this will probably be the most likely.

Wales: I'm going to make another low number play on one of the major matches of the night and pick Seth Rollins to beat Brock Lesnar. One of the three faves has to stumble somewhere. This is why Rollins only gets 3.

4 Point Picks

Wales: This is another safety play. Samoa Joe would have been high on my list before Rey Mysterio injured himself. The match is still confirmed as of right now.

England: I'm going with AJ Styles to beat Randy Orton. Orton normally takes time off after Mania. It also could be time for Styles to say 'Bye' to the house he built.

Scotland: I would have penciled in Braun Strowman to win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal higher up my list, but I cannot shake off the feeling that - after he eliminates Jost and Che, they will distract him which causes someone else to win. No clue who that could be, so I'm sticking with Strowman as he needs to win it either way.

Ireland: I'm going with Tony Nese to beat Buddy Murphy in the Cruiserweight Championship match. Murphy has had a nice run with the title.

5 Point Picks

Ireland: F5 countered into a curb stomp in the Universal Championship match. Clean as a whistle. New Champ! Seth Rollins wins.

Wales: Shane McMahon is usually the guy who does the job at WrestleMania, but I have a feeling this could be the time it doesn't happen. Miz can get his revenge at a later date. It could even be in Saudi Arabia where this entire Miz/Shane thing started to form.

England: I'd like Rey Mysterio to beat Samoa Joe. Then I'd like Andrade to take it off him on Tuesday night and he gets moved to Raw and the Intercontinental Championship goes to Fox/Smackdown.

Scotland: I'm picking The Usos to retain the WWE Tag Team Championships. I'm going with the champs here, but feel one of the champions may lose in one of the 4-ways.

6 Point Picks

Scotland: Boss N Hug Connection. See above!

Wales: I have Kofi Kingston winning against Daniel Bryan as my sixth pick. 

Ireland: AJ Styles .vs. Randy Orton is the match I've been waiting months for. My WrestleMania main event. A motivated heel Randy Orton up against AJ Styles? I cannot wait! I don't care who wins, but for the purposes of this, I'll go with Randy Orton seeing as I don't have many heels going over. It would also open up Orton as a potential challenger to Kofi Kingston during the summer.

England: I'm picking Brock Lesnar to win against Seth Rollins. I think one of the three babyfaces in big title matches will lose. I might change my mind after this post is published, but I'm sticking with Brock and maybe Reigns takes it off him on Monday Night then we can get the whole Lesnar farce over and done with.

7 Point Picks

Scotland: I'm picking Randy Orton for my seven-pointer. Did they blow the winning spot on Tuesday so Styles wins? Nope, I don't think they did. Think they just told people that the obvious RKO finish won't happen but rather than having Styles win, they'll find an even better RKO finish outta nowhere!

Ireland: I think it's too early to take the US Championship off Samoa Joe and it's his first WrestleMania. I think he'll retain.

Wales: Aleister Black and Ricochet get my seven points. They didn't win the Raw titles on Monday, they might not win the NXT tag straps at TakeOver so this will be a perfect spot for the commentators to go on about how this is 'third time lucky' or 'third time's a charm' if they end up becoming Smackdown Tag Team Champions.

England: Kofi Kingston for the win. I'm happy for Kofi and it's a great story. I just don't know if WWE believe or I believe enough that they give him the title.

8 Point Picks

Scotland: I'm going with Lacey Evans to win the women's battle royal. I had three possible winners in mind, but - with this being confirmed for the Kick Off, I've ruled out the other 2 and chose Lacey.

Ireland: I'm aware that The Usos have inked new deals, but I have them going to Raw in the Superstar Shakeup. So, for that reason, I think they'll drop the titles here. I see Ricochet and Aleister Black dethroning them. They'll have fought for all three sets of tag titles in one week. I think they'll fall at NXT TakeOver but succeed at Mania.

England: I was fighting whether or not to move The Usos further up or to choose Aleister Black and Ricochet. This could be outdated by Friday night!

Wales: The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal is Braun Strowman's to lose. Think about this: He has been protected a lot and has been booked poorly the past few months. He is now in a 'feud' with two comedians. Do you really think Vince McMahon and company is going to allow Strowman to lose this match just to get two comedy acts over for one night? This is how I think it'll go - they'll need a few guys on the outside to catch them, so they'll end the match with Strowman launching both guys overhead to the waiting crowd - or crowds - below. 

9 Point Picks

Scotland: The more I wrote this list, the more I kept moving Shane McMahon up. I did have him start off at 2 or 3. The card is packed full of possible babyface winners and here's definitely one where I can see the heel winning and Miz getting his revenge at a later date. I think someone helps Shane.

Wales: I have Tony Nese to win the Cruiserweight Championship match as my ninth pick of the comp.

England: I'm picking Roman Reigns to win against Drew McIntyre. The latter has been dominant on TV most of the time. The only reason why I'm not giving Reigns more points is in case Dean Ambrose has decided to stay with WWE and will then interfere to set up a program. 

Ireland: I'm not sure on this one, but I'm going with Kofi Kingston to beat Daniel Bryan for the feel good win in the WWE Championship match. No reason to halt his momentum, Kofi wins.

10 Point Picks

Ireland: I have Boss N Hug Connection retaining in the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship match. There's a slight chance Beth Phoenix and Natalya win with the Hart Attack given that Natalya's dad will enter the Hall of Fame, but I'm sticking with Sasha Banks and Bayley to pick up the win.

Wales: Is it too soon to have The Boss N Hug Connection to lose their straps? I think so.

Scotland: I'm taking Kofi Kingston with my ten-pointer. Can't see KofiMania being derailed here, should - and hopefully will - win.

England: The Miz has to get his own back for the beating he took from Shane McMahon at Fastlane.

11 Point Picks

England: The Boss N Hug Connection has to be the winners of the Women's Tag Team Championship match. The only team I am scared off is Beth Phoenix and Nattie, but surely they'll keep the titles on Bayley and Sasha.

Scotland: Kurt Angle - this match probably won't last long, much like this summary!

Wales: I have had Randy Orton to beat AJ Styles ever since the match was announced. I'm refusing to stand down and am willing to put 11 points on him.

Ireland: Gotta send the fans home happy after the main event. Becky Lynch becomes the champ champ. Never in a million years did I ever foresee a person born in my hometown that would go on to main event a WrestleMania. I couldn't be happier for her. She's genuine. Becky wins.

12 Point Picks

Ireland: I have George Mizanin interfering to help his son to defeat Shane McMahon in the falls count anywhere match. The Miz wins.

Wales: Kurt Angle has promised to submit Baron Corbin. We've had the visual submission on this week's Raw, so that could work against me. Still, I'd like to hope that Angle makes short work here and gets a nice send-off.

Scotland: This will be Roman Reigns' first match back and hasn't once gotten the better of Drew McIntyre who's been built up strongly. Don't think it looks good in the headlines either that leukaemia survivor loses first match back on the biggest show!

England: Triple H has never beaten Batista and I don't know how long Big Dave is staying around for, so I have to go for Hunter.

13 Point Picks

England: I'm picking Buddy Murphy to win in the Cruiserweight Championship match. I don't watch 205 Live, so this could be a gamble. Tony Nese doesn't seem like a guy to build the division around after Murphy, so I'm hoping they build up another babyface to take it from him.

Ireland: Drew McIntyre has beat down Roman Reigns numerous times now, so I see Mania as the place for Reigns to gain revenge and pick up the win.

Wales: Roman Reigns should not lose here. The entire build up to the match has been in favour of Drew McIntyre, so Reigns has to get something back.

Scotland: I'm going with Becky Lynch for thirteen points. I just can't imagine them risking the meltdown that would ensure should she not win (even though it would be funny to see!)

14 Point Picks

England: Becky Lynch would be my fifteen point play if not for 'The Demon'. I backed Lynch to be the next Raw Women's Champion ages ago and I cannot see any other result in the main event.

Scotland: All the stars are aligned. Is it possible that it's too predictable? Possibly, but I cannot see anything other than a Triple H win over Batista.

Ireland:  Finn Balor .vs. Bobby Lashley reminds me of Naomi .vs. Alexa Bliss before WrestleMania 33 where they belted the face before Mania and then realised that they should have saved it for Mania so they changed course. Couple that with Finn Balor as The Demon and I see him regaining the IC Title.

Wales: Batista not having lost to Triple H should be planted in your brains by now. There's a reason for that.

15 Point Picks

England: I'm picking Finn Balor. They're not bringing out 'The Demon' to lose.

Wales: There is no way Finn Balor - as The Demon - should lose to Bobby Lashley. Therefore, it's getting my fifteen points.

Scotland: If Finn Balor doesn't win as 'The Demon', WWE may as well just get rid of him.

Ireland: The Triple H .vs. Batista match is based on the fact that Batista has said Triple H has never beaten him. With Batista cast as the villain and with HHH's career on the line, this can only go one way for me. Triple H wins.

And that's all for now. Here's a table showing an at a glance look at our picks.

I'll write an update in the days following the event.

Thanks to all who took part!

... .vs. Blogger: Survivor Series Edition

Last week, I mentioned in the comment section in one of my posts that there would be a Bookie .vs. Blogger post for this weekend. Unforeseen circumstances have resulted in The Bookie not being available this week, so I won't be able to do a proper edition for Survivor Series.

What I will do as a make good is show you what I would have entered had we been able to do this.

For those checking in for the first time - in Bookie .vs. Blogger, myself and a bookmaker who follows pro wrestling meet up for the major shows on the WWE calendar and compare our picks. We've recently began to play against each other by placing confidence points next to our picks. The selection with the most points is the person/team we have the strongest feeling will win and so on.

Here they are starting with the least amount of points and working upwards. We had both decided to only do the Raw .vs. Smackdown matches for this show. Therefore, the Cruiserweight Championship match is exempt.

1 Point Pick - Smackdown Tag Team
When I first started drafting my picks and order, I had all of the elimination matches being won by the Smackdown brand but I kept finding myself trying to make a case for the Raw team. I forced myself to stick with Smackdown winning this because it has - in my opinion - the stronger lineup of teams.

2 Point Pick - Raw Men's Team
This is the hardest match to call of the weekend. This is why I've put it as close to the bottom as I can. On Raw, Stephanie pointed out that Team Raw has beaten the Smackdown team in two consecutive years when she was making the deal with Braun Strowman.
The deal between Stephanie and Strowman is another thing that kind of points to Team Smackdown as I can't shake off the feeling that Baron Corbin will cause the team to lose just so Strowman doesn't get the match against him. However, I could see Stephanie being mad at Corbin and still giving Strowman the Corbin match as payback for making Team Smackdown win.
As I noted above, I had Team Smackdown winning all three elimination matches and I had to change one and this was it.
 I can see Strowman and Drew McIntyre being the survivors (not sole survivors, Michael Cole!) and this could be a hint for WrestleMania 35.

3 Point Pick - AOP
The AOP needs this as we haven't really seen them face proper competition on Raw.

4 Point Pick - Smackdown Women
This one is pure fantasy booking, but I think the reason why the company didn't announce the fifth participant on Team Smackdown is because they're hoping Becky Lynch is cleared in time.
There's a method behind my reasoning. You know Ronda Rousey and her PPV opponents always go to the Performance Center to work out matches and everything before their bouts? Well, I have a feeling the decision to move from Becky Lynch to Charlotte Flair might have been because Lynch wouldn't have been cleared to do the rehearsing at the PC from Wednesday onwards and that's why the company had to move quickly to the new match.
Becky would still need to be cleared for Sunday, though.
Oh, and if my guess works out, the obvious end is Becky eliminating Nia Jax somehow. Possibly not by submission as they need Nia strong for the Ronda match.

5 Point Pick - Shinsuke Nakamura
This match has Dean Ambrose costing Seth Rollins all over it. That's really all I can write about it.

6 Point Pick - Ronda Rousey
I wrote a bit about this one earlier today. In my opinion, Ronda Rousey shouldn't be losing at any point until WrestleMania 35 or later. Especially if she's going to be one of the headline attractions of the April event.

7 Point Pick - Brock Lesnar
When I mentioned that I was going to have a Bookie .vs. Blogger post last week, I stated that Brock Lesnar was going to be given one point. This was obviously before his opponent was changed from AJ Styles to Daniel Bryan. I now have him at the top. I think this will be like Lesnar's match with Braun Strowman at Crown Jewel with Lesnar not taking any offence and just beating up his opponent.

And there we have it. I plan to publish a post sometime next week where I'll go through the picks and point out where I went right and wrong.

Here are the points shared out in descending order:

7 - Brock Lesnar
6 - Ronda Rousey
5 - Shinsuke Nakamura
4 - Team Smackdown Women
3 - AOP
2 - Team Raw Men
1 - Team Smackdown Tag Teams

More Survivor Series Markets From Sky Bet

Sky Bet has added another Survivor Series match market to its coverage of next week's PPV.

The new market is for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship match. It'll see Buddy Murphy defend his strap against Mustafa Ali.

As of the time of writing, the bookmaker has the champ as a 2/5 favourite. Ali is 7/4.

There have also been Survivor Series RequestABet selections installed.

The current specials available to customers are:

AOP, Smackdown 10v10 Tag Teams and Ronda Rousey all to win  their scheduled matches 5/4

AOP, Ronda Rousey, Shinsuke Nakamura and Brock Lesnar all to win their scheduled matches 5/1

Without writing too much as there is a fairly good chance there'll be a Bookie .vs. Blogger post for Survivor Series next week, I've taken the 5/1.

Bookie .vs. Punter: SummerSlam 2018 Results

The first Bookie .vs. Punter turned out to be quite a close contest with the Bookie winning by two points.

For those of you who may have missed it, a friend of mine who works in the betting industry and I occasionally get together to compare and contrast our wrestling betting picks. He came up with an idea for SummerSlam where we would rank our picks of the thirteen matches on last night's card in order with the selection we thought had the strongest chance of winning given thirteen points and the one we were the least confident in being successful one point.

I shared this idea with another friend (who doesn't work in the betting industry!) and he came up with some cool ideas. I thought it was only fair if he took on the Bookie and so Bookie .vs. Punter became what it is.

I managed to get both of their picks in ahead of the weekend and published THIS POST on Friday with the two players' selections and reasoning behind the placement of their picks.

Here are the results.

It was very close, if I say so myself. Both players correctly backed the right winners in their top seven picks. Then, it started to go awry for the Punter as he stumbled on his final few picks following a tie in losing with their six-point plays.

The final result, as you can see in the table, is 80 points for the Bookie and 78 for the Punter.

Thanks once again to both for taking part.

Bookie .vs. Punter: SummerSlam 2018

Whenever there is a major WWE PPV on the horizon, I get together with a person who works in the betting industry and we butt heads over the upcoming matches. Then, I go ahead and publish a post where I share how our opinions compare or contrast.

When we were discussing what to do for SummerSlam, the Bookie came up with an idea of having a competition where we would go head-to-head and rank our picks in order of strength. Then, when the show is over, we'd go back and tally up how our picks did and work out a score.

It - in my opinion - was a fabulous idea. I shared the concept with a friend of mine who reads WWELeaks.org and he too thought it was great. Following on from that, my friend told me a few ideas he had for some of the matches. As I thought the few ideas he shared with me were quite good, I thought I'd ask him to take my place in the SummerSlam edition of Bookie .vs. Blogger. 

I give you Bookie .vs. Punter.

There are thirteen matches scheduled for Sunday's event. Both the Bookie and the Punter have ranked their winners on strength with one being the selection they have the least confidence in leading up to their top pick, which is worth 13 points. They have also added a few notes on why their selection is placed in the position they're in. 

So, without further ado, let's see this head-to-head. I've tossed a coin to see who goes first and it has gone in favour of the Bookie. Typical that the bookie wins a coin flip, eh?!

Number One Picks

Bookie: Daniel Bryan's contract situation means I don't know which way this match will go. Even though I think he has signed, it's still unconfirmed. I want Bryan to win but I also want the feud to continue. Part of me is gutted it's not taking place at WrestleMania for a title. I think The Miz has to win to set the feud up for the future. So, unfortunately, I'm picking THE MIZ.

Punter: I don't follow 205 Live as much as I used to, so I don't have much of a real view on the Cruiserweight Championship match. If I had to guess, I'd go with DREW GULAK as Cedric Alexander has held the title since WrestleMania and it might be time for a change.

Number Two Picks

Punter: The mixed tag team match could go either way really. I'll go with RUSEV AND LANA with Aiden English managing to finally help successfully.

Bookie: The Smackdown Tag Team Championship match is hard to predict in my eyes as either could win and feud with the stacked Smackdown roster. I think the way The Bludgeon Brothers have been built makes it hard to believe The New Day will win clean, but I also can't predict where The Bludgeon Brothers go from here. I am taking THE BLUDGEON BROTHERS as my number two selection.

Number Three Picks

Bookie: Before I get people asking why I have chosen CARMELLA, I'd like to explain that I do think she is the worst wrestler on the Smackdown roster. However, I think they've only added Charlotte Flair to this match to add star power and give another excuse for Carmella to go over. Also, a friend gave me a scenario that I felt I should mention but it does contradict my pick on Carmella. The champion could win here due to interference from the Four Horsewomen of MMA to cost Charlotte and Becky the match and set p a match at Evolution or Survivor Series. It could also explain the reason why they've put Sasha Banks and Bayley back together. But, with that said, Alexa Bliss would have to win the Raw title match for this to happen.

Punter: SHINSUKE NAKAMURA should and likely will win, but something seems strange to me about this match. This is why I've rated it so low.

Number Four Picks

Punter: Daniel Bryan .vs. The Miz is a difficult match to call for a number of reasons, but I'd lean slightly on DANIEL BRYAN (I had sided with The Miz originally). It should be the first match in a long feud which - in theory - should see the heel winning. However, Miz seems to be getting the better of Bryan verbally on a weekly basis, burying his return a 'complete bust' amongst other things. So, Bryan taking an L here kind of proves that correct which isn't what you want. Unless he's leaving, of course, which is the caveat here.

Bookie: For me this is another heart ruling the head call. I might be on my own, but AJ Styles' title run hasn't excited me. He is a brilliant wrestler, but the feuds haven't been the best. SAMOA JOE is the best heel in the company at the moment and a title run could be brilliant so he's my number four pick.

Number Five Picks

Bookie: This will probably be higher on other lists, but I haven't watched 205 Live for a few months as I have been busy. I will go CEDRIC ALEXANDER even though he bores me.

Punter: I'm picking SETH ROLLINS to beat Dolph Ziggler in the IC Title Match. This pretty much comes down to whether you think Dean Ambrose will help or cost his Shield teammate. I think it's best to let it play out for a bit rather than pull the trigger straight away. Ziggler has also pinned Rollins multiple times, so feel Seth is due one.

Number Six Picks

Punter: If the Smackdown Women's Championship match remains a triple threat, I'd go with CARMELLA. I'm expecting tension between the two babyfaces to allow Carmella to sneak out with the title.

Bookie: I won't be the only one thinking this. I believe Dean Ambrose - back with a heel look - will turn on Seth Rollins and cost him the Intercontinental Championship match. Also DOLPH ZIGGLER and the Scottish Psycopath (I love that nickname) Drew McIntyre have been really good together and have made Ziggler relevant again. The other reason why this is in the position it is on my list is because it's an upset and could potentially mean getting a decent amount of points in this competition.

Number Seven Picks

Bookie: It's got to be ROMAN REIGNS winning the Universal Championship match. We have been playing this dance between he and Brock Lesnar for years. With Lesnar standing tall on Raw, it has to be Reigns' time to win the Universal Title and get us out of the limbo we've been in since WrestleMania 33. The booking of the feud has made this lower on the list than it should be.

Punter: THE B-TEAM is just getting started and their match with The Revival is on the pre-show, so they should retain.

Number Eight Picks

Punter: Baron Corbin will be in the same position whether he wins or loses against FINN BALOR. Balor needs the win and to move on.

Bookie: ANDRADE 'CIEN' ALMAS AND ZELINA VEGA receive my eight point gamble. WWE (or should I say Vince?) doesn't appear to want to push Rusev Day and looks like he wants to split he and Aiden English up, which I believe to be a mistake as a stable of three works. Also, Almas - since his NXT Championship run - is a character that works and Vega with him could be ready for big things. 

Number Nine Picks

Bookie: I'm giving BRAUN STROWMAN nine points. His match against Kevin Owens - to me - is to give them both something to do, and fight over, on the card. Personally, I think the Money in the Bank briefcase would be better with Owens, but Strowman having it works. As for the match - it has been played up that Strowman could lose the briefcase easily, so I don't think he will. With that said, it wouldn't be a shock if we get the other result.

Punter: Originally, I thought SAMOA JOE would win the title here, but - with the personal direction the feud has gone - I can't see Styles dropping the strap just yet. I can still see Joe winning the match, however.

Number Ten Picks

Punter: I'm not sure what the point is of the WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championship match is if THE NEW DAY are losing again. They could have gone with The Bar if this was set up just to give The Bludgeon Brothers another successful defence. The slight worry I have of The New Day winning is a lack of fresh opponents, but I think the Bludgeon Brothers' reign has run its course.

Bookie: I know that THE B-TEAM isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I find them funny and want their t-shirt, so this is my heart putting them high on my list. What also works in my favour is this match is on the pre-show so the faces need a win on it. The Revival hasn't been built up strong enough for this to be their first title win. I predict B-Team wins and then go on to lose to the Authors of Pain at the next PPV.

Number Eleven Picks

Bookie: This has to be SHINSUKE NAKAMURA as Jeff Hardy is in a feud with Randy Orton that doesn't need the title. With that said, it wouldn't shock me if they did have the feud over the title. This was my top selection, but I've moved it down a few places because I am struggling to think what Nakamura's next feud could be.

Punter: If RONDA ROUSEY didn't have the championship match at Money in the Bank, I could possibly see Alexa Bliss escaping with her title on a disqualification, but would be surprised at having Ronda be unsuccessful twice. The only worry I have is how close Bliss came to losing against Ember Moon on Monday's Raw.

Number Twelve Picks

Punter: The disqualification or count-out stipulation exists in Braun Strowman .vs. Kevin Owens to make people believe that Strowman could lose, and we've already seen him lose by both methods to Jinder Mahal to illustrate this point that anything could happen. BRAUN STROWMAN has to win.

Bookie: Alexa Bliss has to be the best talker in the women's division and done what Carmella couldn't do and improved in the ring since her call up. That being said, RONDA ROUSEY has been brilliant since WrestleMania and - even though  she doesn't need the title - the women's division needs her heading into the Evolution PPV. Having her as champion could be a way to promote the women's only event to the mainstream audience.

Number Thirteen Picks

Bookie: I can't really see what a win over FINN BALOR will do for Baron Corbin. He is killing the Constable role  so a victory isn't needed for him as much as it does for his opponent. I can see Balor winning and then move up maybe to fight Dolph Ziggler.

Punter: The Brock Lesnar .vs. Roman Reigns feud has to end with ROMAN REIGNS getting the win over Brock Lesnar. The stuff with Brock and Paul Heyman did have me second guessing, but can't see anything other than a Reigns win. It's now or never.

* * *

If we were to look at this from match to match, they are opposing each other on five of the bouts. Not that this matters entirely because the point of this game is how the competitors have ranked their picks and applied the points to said picks. The table below shows both of their rankings.

I'll publish a follow-up post in the days following SummerSlam to see who won.

I'd like to thank both The Bookie and Punter for helping me with this Bookie .vs. Blogger spinoff. This was the Bookie's idea so I want him to get all the credit for thinking this up.

Good luck to both...

Bookie .vs. Blogger: WrestleMania 34 Edition

Welcome to the WrestleMania 34 edition of Bookie .vs. Blogger - a special where a bookmaker and myself go head-to-head comparing our picks for this Sunday's card.

Below are our selections along with our reasons why. Neither of us are making any recommendations or tips. All this is is a bit of fun where we contrast our thoughts with the plan to look back following the event.

WWE Universal Championship
In what will likely be the main event of the evening, Brock Lesnar will defend his WWE Universal Championship against Roman Reigns.

Bookie: Roman Reigns is my pick because Reigns overcoming Lesnar has been Vince's three year plan.

Blogger: I agree. This has been the plan for quite some time. Lesnar killing everyone with one F5 for the past year leads one to suspect Roman Reigns will kick out of Lesnar's finisher before going on to win the strap.

WWE Championship
The 2018 Royal Rumble winner, Shinsuke Nakamura, will take on AJ Styles for the WWE Championship in another big match scheduled for Sunday night.

Blogger: As many of you know, I found WWE's booking of Shinsuke Nakamura to be quite a letdown since he was brought up to the main roster. I was very unhappy with how his WWE Championship feud with Jinder Mahal went. Since January, however, Nak has been rehabbed with the Rumble win. I think he has to win this otherwise everything that has been done would have been for nothing.

Bookie: Has to be Shinsuke Nakamura especially if AJ Styles needs to take some time off for the injury he suffered recently. I could also see Styles move to Raw post-WrestleMania, so losing the title here would allow the WWE Championship to stay on Smackdown.

WWE Smackdown Women's Championship
In one of three women's matches on the card, 2018 Women's Royal Rumble winner - Asuka - will take on WWE Smackdown Women's Champion, Charlotte Flair.

Bookie: Asuka's streak isn't ending at WrestleMania.

Blogger: If you've been following WWELeaks lately, I am sure you would have read that I thought Asuka would win this match by disqualification in order to set up Carmella cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase on Charlotte. After this week's episode of Smackdown, which saw Carmella tease a cash-in and Corey Graves speculated that there could be a cash-in on the Smackdown Women's Champion, I'm back to predicting that - whenever Carmella executes her contract - it'll be done for Raw's title.

WWE Raw Women's Championship
Alexa Bliss will defend her WWE Raw Women's Championship against Nia Jax on Sunday's card.

Blogger: If Asuka wins the Smackdown Women's Champion, then my idea of Carmella cashing in on the Raw Women's Champion - whenever it happens - would allow for Carmella to replace Asuka on Raw and vice versa.... I'm struggling to think which wrestler wins this match, because I cannot shake off the thought that Carmella will make this a triple threat and walk away as the winner. It might be a controversial pick, but I'm going with my instinct and saying neither Bliss or Jax will win this.

Bookie: I'm going with Alexa Bliss by disqualification. I think Carmella will cash-in her Money in the Bank contract on a prone Alexa after Nia destroys her.

WWE Intercontinental Championship
WWE Intercontinental Champion, The Miz, will defend his title in a triple threat match against Seth Rollins and Finn Balor.

Bookie: This is a match where I could see any of them winning. However, I believe The Miz so he can go on to beat the record of longest days as IC Champ that is currently held by Pedro Morales. I can also see Miz move over to Smackdown so he can enter a feud with Daniel Bryan ahead of SummerSlam.

Blogger: I also believe Miz should retain and go on to break the record.

WWE United States Championship
A fatal four-way match will see Randy Orton defend the WWE United States Championship against Ruev, Bobby Roode and Jinder Mahal.

Blogger: Before Rusev was added to the match, I thought Orton would retain by pinning Jinder Mahal as a way to get back something from their feud last year. Now, however, I believe the winner has to be Rusev.

Bookie: There will be revolt if it's anyone but Rusev. Although, if for any reason this match is moved to the pre-show, like they did with the Intercontinental Championship at the last minute last year, I wouldn't be surprised if they go with Orton.

WWE Raw Tag Team Championship
In the Raw Tag Team Championship match of the night, Cesaro and Sheamus will defend the straps against Braun Strowman and a mystery partner.

Bookie: I'm unsure on this, but think they might have Braun or Samoa Joe in the main event scene against Roman Reigns post-WrestleMania. Therefore, if it is Joe as Strowman's partner, I could see them turn on each other and lose. I'm taking Cesaro and Sheamus.

Blogger: One thing I'd like to point out is the fact that - on April 27th - at the Greatest Royal Rumble event, Cesaro and Sheamus are scheduled to defend the straps against The Hardys. Samoa Joe is also set to tangle for the Intercontinental Championship on that card, so there could be something to what the Bookie is thinking.
Everything is telling me to go against Strowman and whoever he's teaming with, but my instinct is telling me to fade the champs. I'm going with Strowman and his team-mate. The Saudi match could easily be switched to a three-way.

WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championship
The Usos will defend the WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championship against The Bludgeon Brothers and The New Day in a triple threat match.

Blogger: I've bet on The Bludgeon Brothers. It would be kind of backwards to have them lose after everything WWE has done with them lately.

Bookie: The Bludgeon Brothers haven't lost since they've been repackaged.

WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The final of the Cruiserweight Championship tournament is another bout that will take place on Sunday. It'll see Cedric Alexander go up against Mustafa Ali.

Bookie: I would love to see Ali win this, but don't think he will. I believe they'll go with Cedric Alexander because I get the feeling they wanted him to beat Enzo Amore anyway.

Blogger: Just to add a bit of drama, I'll side with Mustafa Ali. I won't be betting for real, though.

Kurt Angle and Ronda Rousey .vs. HHH and Stephanie McMahon
The mainstream match of the night will see Ronda Rousey team up with Kurt Angle to take on the team of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon.

Blogger: As I've written a few times, there is NO WAY Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle lose this match. Ronda is coming into WWE after losing two legit fighting contests in succession. These two losses have been covered by the mainstream sports news and were brought up to Ronda when she was doing media work promoting Mania. There is NO WAY the company hands the media another Ronda loss story this week. It would be very short-sighted if it does. This match is all about having Ronda armbar McMahon for the win. And the press it'll garner.

Bookie: Rousey and Angle aren't losing unless there is interference from NXT representatives and I'm not talking about Shayna Baszler.

WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal
The WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal will be another match on Sunday's card. It'll feature talent from not only Raw and Smackdown, but also NXT.

Bookie: I'm going with Bayley to win this by eliminating Sasha Banks to enhance their feud that should progress to the pair meeting at SummerSlam.

Blogger: With ladies from NXT being involved, I think I'll go for an outside the box pick like Ember Moon, If I could choose 'Anyone from NXT', that would be my pick!

Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
The Fifth Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal will see another wrestler claim the Andre the Giant Memorial Trophy.

Blogger: As I wrote the other day, early favourites have never won this match. I could make a case for so many people, and none of them will end up winning it. I'm just going to blindly pick a name and move on - Samoa Joe.

Bookie: I think it would be perfect with the HBO Andre the Giant documentary coming out to have a new big man to push.

Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon .vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
Daniel Bryan will make his return to the squared circle as he teams up with Shane McMahon to take on the team of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. If the latter wins the match, they are reinstated by WWE.

Bookie: It's hard with two unsanctioned matches taking place on the weekend (referring to NXT's Johnny Gargano .vs. Tommaso Ciampa on Saturday). The NXT match might change my pick, but I think there might be some shenanigans that will see Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon lose. I can't have Bryan lose his first match back from retirement, but a McMahon costing him again with Shane saying he has had enough of Bryan overshadowing him by coming back.

Blogger: The stipulations on Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are hard to ignore, so I'm going to have to back the heels here.

The Undertaker .vs. John Cena
Blogger: I am unconvinced that this is going to be a match. If it were, I'd go with The Undertaker.

Bookie: I think it's too close to call, but I also cannot see The Undertaker lose at two WrestleManias in a row. Maybe they don't have a match at all and this is a segment where The Undertaker chokeslams Cena to set up a match for Wrestlemania 35?

And there you have it. Here's a table pointing out the selections we've backed.

We're against each other on the following bouts:

- WWE Raw Women's Championship

- WWE Raw Tag Team Championship

- WWE Cruiserweight Championship

- WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal

- Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal

There will be a post a few days after WrestleMania where I'll take a look back at our picks to see where we went right... And wrong!

More Bookie .vs. Blogger posts are planned beyond WrestleMania, so please leave any feedback or ideas you might have in the comments section.

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Bookie .vs. Blogger: Rumble 2018 Retrospective

As regular visitors to WWELeaks.org will know - in the months leading up to the 2018 WWE Royal Rumble, myself and a bookmaker ran a series of posts where we ranked our top five selections to win the battle royal. Now that the match is behind us, and we know who actually won it, it's worth taking a retrospective look to see how we both did.

You can see how our top fives changed from November 13th all the way to three days before the event in the table below.

The 2018 Royal Rumble winner, Shinsuke Nakamura, appeared in my top five in a few of the weeks where a Bookie .vs. Blogger post was published. However, I never once had him in the top of my list. He was removed from my list a couple of times due to the reports that the Fast Lane main event would include Nakamura in a fatal five-way for the WWE Championship. I felt that the WrestleMania main eventer wouldn't be challenging for the title a month beforehand.

The Bookie, despite also reading of the rumoured Fast Lane main event, stuck to his guns. Nakamura remained at the peak of his list from day one until moving the eventual winner down to second in the final post where we locked in our selections on January 24th.

For those keeping score at home, that is 1-0 to The Bookie.

We've been discussing other 'Bookie .vs. Blogger' ideas for future events. If you have any suggestions, we're welcome to seeing them. You can leave them in the comments section.

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Bookie .vs. Blogger: Locking In Our Top 5 Rumble 2018 Picks

In mid-November, a bookmaker and myself decided that it would be interesting to run a series here at WWELeaks.org where we would compare our top five picks to win the 2018 Royal Rumble and see how TV and other news stories might switch our opinions in the weeks leading to this year's pay-per-view.

After eight installments, and now that this is Rumble Week, we have nothing else to do but lock in our final picks.

Usually, these posts are structured in a way where we take it in turns with our picks. This time, I would like 'The Bookie' to have the final say, so will list our top fives individually.

So, starting with mine..

The Blogger's Picks

5. John Cena
I removed John Cena's name a few weeks ago. This was after it was reported that he and The Undertaker were pencilled in to wrestle at WrestleMania. After Raw, when The Undertaker hinted he was done (or something!), I went back to entertaining the idea of Cena winning the Rumble and - instead of challenging for a title - asking Taker to come out of retirement.

4. Finn Balor
Balor was third on my list last week. He was lowered because he was standing tall on Raw along with The Club and DX. For those of you who may be new to these posts, I have Balor on the list in case WWE books him to win and then move over to Smackdown to challenge his former Bullet Club colleague, AJ Styles.

3. Baron Corbin
Unlike Balor, Baron Corbin was left laying on Smackdown following an RKO from Randy Orton.

2. Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns has been on the list continuously. This is due to the reports that he'll be the one who faces Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. One way to get to this match is to have Reigns overcome the field and win Sunday's battle royal. Another way is to have him become a number one contender with a victory inside the Elimination Chamber in February. Reigns stays near the top in case they go with the former.

1. Dolph Ziggler
In the most recent Bookie .vs. Blogger, I mentioned that Dolph Ziggler - who made it to my list earlier this month - was on shaky ground because of the US Championship situation. I didn't know whether he would return to confront new titleholder, Bobby Roode.This hasn't happened. Therefore, I am going to stick to my guns and lock in Ziggler.
As many of you are aware, Ziggler relinquished the US Championship and walked out of WWE (Kayfabe) in December. He hasn't been seen nor talked about since. A surprise return at the Royal Rumble would immediately put him in the WWE Championship picture and give him the excuse that he was bigger than the US  Championship and wanted to go for the premier title.

Now, it's over to The Bookie for his final five...

The Bookie's Picks

5. Roman Reigns
I'm walking the Big Dog back into my top five. He could win to help Vince McMahon troll the Internet Wrestling Community. This time, he won't have The Rock in his corner for the Philly crowd.

4. Rusev
Rusev wasn't pinned in the six-man tag team match on Smackdown Live, which is good. I still think he's a wild card.

3. Braun Strowman
I expect Strowman to have a strong showing and expect him to be in the final four.

2. Shinsuke Nakamura
After having Nakamura at number one since we started, I have now moved him down. I think WWE hasn't done a good job with him in the Rumble build. Another thing is he is one of the participants in the match at FastLane.

I have finally done it. A new number one! The guy who was hanging out with the legends at the Manhattan Center on Monday night getting the rub from Triple H and Shawn Michaels..

1. Finn Balor
As I wrote in other Bookie .vs. Bloggers, I would like to see Balor move over to Smackdown Live following a win in the battle royal.

I think it's very close this year. There could have been other names that made it into my top five along the way. I cannot wait to sit back with a beer and watch it on Sunday night. I hope you enjoy it and cheers for reading!

Bookie .vs. Blogger: Comparing Our Rumble Top 5s (21/1/18)

With this being the go-home week of television before Sunday's WWE Royal Rumble, myself and 'The Bookie' have been in contact for the first of two Bookie versus Blogger installments where we share our top five selections to win the men's battle royal. The edition you're reading today has been done ahead of tonight's episode of Raw. We plan to compare our lists for one final time once we've watched both Raw and Smackdown.

Here are our lists as of today.

The Bookie's Picks

1. Shinsuke Nakamura
Has been my favourite all along, but I'm waning on his chance of winning. I'm sticking to my guns, though.

2. Braun Strowman (Replaces Roman Reigns)
David and I have discussed this and we have came up with a way where Strowman wins the Rumble, but doesn't go on to challenge for either championship at WrestleMania.

3. Finn Balor (Replaces Dolph Ziggler)
Finn Balor is a new entry. I want to agree with the speculation that Balor and The Club could turn heel and go to Smackdown Live. It will help Finn greatly.

4. The Miz (Replaces Rusev)
Another Raw defection. Have The Miz, The Miztourage and maybe even Elias move. Smackdown would be greater.

5. Rusev (Replaces The Miz)
Once again, it would be great to see Rusev finally given what the fans and he deserve, but I doubt it'll happen.

No John Cena and now no Roman Reigns on my list. I don't want Reigns to win and don't think WWE really will troll Philadelphia by having him win the battle royal, so I am happy to take him on and be wrong.

This is the most wide open Rumble for years. I can't wait to sit with a a few beers and watch it on Sunday. Hope you enjoy it and cheers for reading.

Blogger's Picks

1. Dolph Ziggler
With Bobby Roode now US Champion, Dolph Ziggler's position at the top of this list is beginning to concern me. I would like to see how Tuesday's episode of Smackdown plays out (is Mahal getting a rematch? Will Dolph return? Etc).

2. Roman Reigns
Not much to add that hasn't been written before. He could win now, or WWE could hold off until the Elimination Chamber and have The Big Dog book his ticket to Mania with a win inside the Chamber.

3. Finn Balor
As The Bookie wrote above, we've both entertained the idea of Balor jumping to Smackdown following a Rumble win.

4. Braun Strowman (Replaces Baron Corbin)
Another thing The Bookie mentioned in his part is that we've both handicapped a way where Strowman wins the Rumble, but ends up not getting a title shot. This would involve Triple H to set up a meeting between the two at Mania.

5. Baron Corbin (Replaces Shinsuke Nakamura)
There was a toss-up between putting Baron Corbin or Shinsuke Nakamura in this spot. I still cannot see how Nakamura earns a Mania title shot at the Rumble and ends up in a fatal five-way for the belt at Fast Lane (if all the advertising ends up going the way it's looking). Therefore, I've gone with the person who isn't listed for the Fast Lane 5-way despite not being so high on his chances considering he has only recently been in a feud with WWE Champion, AJ Styles.

As noted, we plan to return once we've both watched Raw and Smackdown.

Bookie .vs. Blogger: Comparing Our Rumble Top 5s (15/1/18)

The 2018 WWE Royal Rumble is looming. Therefore, myself and 'The Bookie' decided to meet up a week earlier than planned in order to discuss - and contrast - our top five picks to win the men's battle royal.

So, without further ado...

Number 5

Bookie: The Miz is coming into fifth position this week. He and The Miztourage could easily jump to Smackdown after winning the Rumble and be main event level now that Miz has been in the mix with top Raw stars like Roman Reigns. There are too many three-man factions on Raw, let them go to Smackdown where there are more opportunities.

Blogger: Number five is the toughest slot to pick because there are a handful of names that strike me. I've removed John Cena completely from my list. This is due to the reports that his WrestleMania opponent is likely going to end up being The Undertaker.
I made the call to remove Shinsuke Nakamura last week. I don't regret making this move. I'm still unconvinced that he's winning the Rumble. I still believe that Nakamura will square off against Randy Orton in April. However, they did that segment with both Orton and Nakamura teasing wanting to go for AJ Styles' championship during Smackdown and I cannot overlook this. I'm moving him back in for now, but am still not sold hence the second-guessing whether to have him back in or not.
For what it's worth, I seriously thought about putting Shane McMahon in this position just in case the WWE Championship match ends up going the way of Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens.

Number 4

Blogger: Baron Corbin drops from third to fourth.

Bookie: Rusev has also dropped from third to fourth in my top 5. The reason why is because he jobbed to Breezango on Smackdown.

Number 3

Bookie: Dolph Ziggler moves up from fourth to third. As I wrote on December 28th, the Rumble is where we could see him again after walking out after winning - and then throwing away - the United States Championship at the end of 2017.

Blogger: I lowered Baron Corbin because I like the idea of Finn Balor winning the Rumble and then moving over to Smackdown to take on AJ Styles.

Number 2

Blogger: I have moved Roman Reigns down to second place. He has to be considered, but I think there is a better chance of him winning the Elimination Chamber match to earn a title shot against Brock Lesnar.

Bookie: My top two are miles apart from the rest of my list. Roman Reigns is also in this position on my top five. They could troll Philadelphia again by having him win the battle royal.

Number 1

Bookie: Shinsuke Nakamura remains my number one pick.

Blogger: Dolph Ziggler makes it to the top of my list for the first time. I can't shake off the thought that WWE will have Ziggler return, win the Rumble and state that he relinquished the US Championship because he wanted to aim higher and challenge for the WWE Championship.

You can see how our top 5 selections have changed and contrasted since we first started doing Bookie .vs. Blogger in mid-November in the table below:

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