BERLIN, GERMANY - AUGUST 31: (L-R) WWE Undisputed Universal Champion Cody Rhodes is introduced by announcer Samantha Irvin during the WWE Bash in Berlin Premium Live Event at Uber Arena on August 31, 2024 in Berlin, Berlin. (Photo by WWE/Getty Images)
On the heels of a superb Bash in Berlin premium live event that saw championships retained, feuds escalated, and a bit of revenge for some of WWE's top babyfaces, the top company in professional wrestling now turns its attention to Bad Blood on October 5 from Atlanta.
Hometown hero and undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes figures to be a major part of the card, but in what form, and which other Superstars will gear up for battle at an event that first debuted back in October of 1997?
Find out with these too-early match card predictions.
CM Punk may have won the latest battle against Drew McIntyre, outlasting him in a grueling Strap Match Saturday in Berlin, but the war between the two feels unfinished.
Both have won a match in their rivalry, leaving room for a rubber match. What more appropriate setting than a premium live event known as Bad Blood, in a match made famous at the first pay-per-view of the same name back in October of 1997, Hell in a Cell?
The intensity of the rivalry is befitting the specialty match and it would certainly be a contest that does not need a championship to headline an event of that magnitude. The star power is there, the dislike between competitors is, too, and the fans in Atlanta would eat up the opportunity to see the return of the gimmick bout after a two-year hiatus.
While Punk did insinuate in a post-Bash in Berlin interview that he would be watching Gunther vs. Randy Orton closely because he was interested in the outcome and the World Heavyweight Championship, there is no chance in hell that McIntyre lets him strut into championship contention after everything they have been through without some greater sense of finality.
That can be achieved inside the unforgiving confines of WWE's most storied speciality match.
Nia Jax defeated Bayley to win the WWE Women's Championship at SummerSlam after a distraction from Tiffany Stratton, who feigned cashing in Money in the Bank.
The Role Model missed several weeks of television after that crushing defeat but returned Friday night during a Street Fight between Jax and Michin for the title. Her return did not prevent the champion from retaining but it did set in motion a rematch between the two.
While Bayley would benefit from chasing the title a bit longer, the real money in Jax's reign is in Stratton's eventual cash-in and whatever feud Triple H and the creative team have in store for the two of them.
A match between Bayley and Jax gives the title a spot on a premium live event card for the first time since their match at the beginning of August and reignites a rivalry that is unfinished. Bayley never got her contractual rematch, nor did she get any sort of revenge on Jax and Stratton for ending her storybook reign.
Perhaps that was for the best as it allowed her to return Friday with more heat and purpose than she did during her entire run with the title.
A rematch heightens the card's significance for the company's return to Atlanta and takes pressure off of Triple H to run the Rhea Ripley-Liv Morgan rematch so quickly when there is plenty of story to stretch that one out for a few months.
Bron Breakker's path to the Intercontinental Championship, which he won from Sami Zayn at SummerSlam, began at the expense of Ilja Dragunov.
Breakker never defeated The Mad Dragon to advance to his championship match. Instead, he was unable to continue after a nasty mid-air spear left him motionless on the arena floor. Thus, there is plenty of bad blood existing between the two, with a showdown at the PLE of the same name being the perfect setting for the rekindling of their epic rivalry.
With Dragunov slated to compete in the No. 1 contender's tournament Monday on Raw, it feels like the perfect time for the German-born competitor to earn his shot and finally make his main roster PLE debut.
A hard-hitting, intense match between two exports from NXT would be a contender to steal the show if their previous matches are any indication.
The first match-up between Cody Rhodes and Solo Sikoa did not necessarily inspire much in the way of excitement among fans and the idea of the second clash occurring in Atlanta, the undisputed WWE champion's hometown, does not either.
But, as Michael Cole stated on commentary after The American Nightmare defeated Kevin Owens in the opening match at Bash in Berlin, the self-proclaimed Tribal Chief has got next.
If that is the case and Cole did not misspeak, it is difficult to imagine how that match plays out. We already saw Bloodline Rules in Cleveland and there is no way Triple H and Co. put that match out in front of the fans in Atlanta to die as a basic one-on-one encounter.
It needs a special gimmick but Hell in a Cell is much more suited for Punk and McIntyre, leaving questions about what direction Rhodes vs. Sikoa II could possibly take.
Maybe we get a basic Street Fight, but that would be far too similar to the Bloodline Rules match. Could it be a Tables Match or, perhaps, a rare traditional ladder match? Possibly.
Whatever stipulation is thought up and written into existence, the match will have its work cut out for it based on what we have already seen from the two as late as August's SummerSlam main event.
Luckily, Rhodes is one of the best big-match performers in the game today and has been extraordinary in his title defenses to this point. Fueled by his hometown fans, it would not be surprising whatsoever for him to will the rematch to greatness.
