WWE Hell in a Cell 2015 airs this Sunday, October 25, live on WWE Network. The show is headlined by a pair of Hell in a Cell matches, including the “final” match between The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar. The WWE World Heavyweight, United States, Intercontinental, Tag Team and Divas Championships will all be defended on the show, as well.
Here’s your Hell in a Cell 2015 card breakdown:
– Kickoff Match: Neville, Dolph Ziggler & Cesaro vs. King Barrett, Rusev & Sheamus
1. United States Championship Open Challenge: John Cena (c) vs. TBD
2. Intercontinental Championship Match: Kevin Owens (c) vs. Ryback
3. Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day (c) vs. The Dudley Boyz
4. Divas Championship Match: Charlotte vs. Nikki Bella
5. WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Kane (if Kane loses, he loses his Director of Operations job)
6. Hell in a Cell Match: Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt
7. Hell in a Cell Match: The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
And now, as always, our analysis and predictions. We’re like to remind you that these picks are official and legally binding, and any disagreement with our rundown will result in immediate dismissal from the website.
Nah, I’m kidding. Let us know what you think will happen in our comments section below. Ridiculous guesses for Cena’s mystery opponent are encouraged. I think Missy Hyatt will accept the challenge!
Kickoff Match: Neville, Dolph Ziggler & Cesaro vs. King Barrett, Rusev & Sheamus
What Should Happen: There’s too much damn wrestling talent in this match for it to be as expendable as it is. Neville is exciting and an OG representative of that cool version of NXT that got popular. Cesaro is the unheralded, unappreciated super-worker the crowd desperately wants to love. Ziggler was almost beating John Cena two weeks ago, and last year was the big hero of WWE. Barrett is the King of the Ring, Sheamus is Mr. Money in the Bank for God’s sakes, and Rusev is my dude. Why can’t this be spectacular? It should be.
What Will Happen: We saw this exact match on Raw with the heels working together to win, so I imagine the Hell in a Cell kickoff will be that match extended a little, with a cooperative babyface victory. Barrett was born to take the pinfall here. I’ll predict Ziggler gets it, to get the crowd rolling for the show proper.
Staff Picks:
David D. – This might steal the show. In the end, Rusev gets the pin because why not?
Jessica Hudnall – I’m not looking for much out of this match. A fastball special between Cesaro and Neville would be nice. Beyond that, Rusev winning the match over Ziggler would be cool, which is weird for me to type, because at least 35 percent of my brain is devoted to yelling “CESARO & CESARO & CESARO & CESARO” all the time. That being said, King Barrett will probably take the L when he gets into a sneezing fit and Neville rolls him up out of nowhere for the win.
Danielle Matheson – I like how this is just the trios match equivalent of the “… and the rest!” version of the Gilligan’s Island theme. Can I hope for everyone to form one massive European union and just kick Ziggler for 10 minutes? Like that’s totally plausible, right? Uhhh, I guess whichever side Cesaro is on, because Cesaro.
Austin Heiberg – Sheamus still has Money in the Bank, right? I think that still disqualifies him from winning anything for at least a few months. I’ve got Neville, Dolph, and Cesaro.
United States Championship Open Challenge: John Cena (c) vs. TBD
What Should Happen: Everyone knows Cena’s taking time off after Hell in a Cell, right? This should be a closing of a chapter in his story as United States Champion, and gives us an ending we deserve.
The first thing you do is have Heath Slater finally accept the challenge. It has to happen. You don’t do his story on WWE.com and not pay it off somewhere. All you have to do is have him grandstand to Cena, get one Attitude Adjustment and lose. Cena can say the challenge is still open, allowing a second guy to show up and actually wrestle. I’d like Slater to wrestle and be great, but we’re being realistic here.
The second guy’s important, because they’re the one you assumedly want to defeat Cena and/or put him on the shelf. I’d love for it to be someone wild like Finn Balor or Tyler Breeze and for it to end with a guy getting made, but it’s more than likely one of the guys from the kickoff match. Cesaro’s a great choice, but really any of them would work. Give us our story payoffs, give us a great match — Cena’s run deserves to end with one — and don’t cop out on the ending. Somebody, anybody, beats Cena and fulfills his “one day somebody’s gonna step up and defeat me” prophecy. You know, besides Kevin Owens.
What Will Happen: It seems like a given that someone will beat Cena here, but I’m not sold on it happening. We could just as likely get another Cena win against someone like Ziggler (or Owens, trying to unify the secondary championships) and do an angle on the next night’s Raw to “take Cena out.” Or hell, Cena could just win and say “I’m taking a few months off, see you in January” and keep the belt. They’ve done it before.
I’ll cover the spread and say Cena beats whoever this is. I hope it’s someone super shocking. Drew McIntyre or something. Austin Aries. Cena could pick up Austin Aries with one finger.
Staff Picks:
David D. – In my heart of hearts, I want Big E Langston to pop up and get the belt from Cena, so the New Day can end the year with three belts. But I’m not sure how possible that is. I think that the guy ends up being Brom Stroman. He takes Cena out of commission for a few months and Cena gets to ruin his career in 2016.
Jessica Hudnall – I want $A$HA BANK$ to challenge King of the Simps, John Cena, and pull his square jaw off his face with the BANK$ $TATEMENT, but I know that will never happen, which is mega unfair. My for realsies pick for Cena’s opponent is TYLER DING DANG BREEZE. Cena loses because he can’t bring himself to harm something so beautiful. All hail the reign of Breeze.
Nate Birch – A lot of folks are predicting Tyler Breeze wins the belt here, but that doesn’t strike as quite right. Whoever wins here will also likely be the guy who takes John Cena out for the next two months so he can go do his reality show or whatever, and I don’t see Breeze doing that. This would be a good place to rehab Rusev. Have him come out in FULL RUSSIAN MODE with his betrothed, win the title and take this thing full-circle. Or maybe Kevin Owens finally gets his win and both midcard belts. Or Cena just wins, shrugs and jump shots the title into the garbage can on the way out the door. I guess I have to narrow it down to one prediction, so uh, we’ll go with Rusev, because that’s the one I want to see.
Danielle Matheson – Oh man, this could be like any one of 10 people and I think I’d be mad at all of them? Let’s go off board and say this is the triumphant return of Del Rio. It makes sense, right? Who could legitimately write Cena off of TV? And what better way to apologize for being totally racist by being like HERE BE CHAMPION OF OUR ENTIRE COUNTRY THAT MAKES IT BETTER RIGHT HEY ALSO HERE’S A BASKET OF MINI MUFFINS. I assume every champion gets mini muffins. If not, Jesus Christ, WWE, if you won’t offer health insurance, at least pony up some tiny baked goods.
Austin Heiberg – Um… well, kind of a wild card, isn’t this? I mean, of course I’ve got Cena here, but is that really the question we’re asking here? The interesting part is the challenger, right? Screw it, I’m saying Tyler Breeze. It’s way too good to actually happen, but then again, Tyler is too good for us all.
ntercontinental Championship Match: Kevin Owens (c) vs. Ryback
What Should Happen: Owens confidently defeating fresh undercard dudes like Kalisto and Mark Henry (that may be the first time we’ve ever called Mark Henry “fresh”) has been great, and important to restoring the prestige of the Intercontinental Championship. All you really have to do to rehabilitate it is keep it steady, keep it on a guy you can count on to be there every week and have him win matches against diverse opponents. Owens should win here, and that should continue.
What Will Happen: I absolutely do not see the point in giving the belt back to Ryback, so I’ll pick Owens.
Staff Picks:
David D. – Ryback got pinned clean on RAW, but nobody watched, so it might not really have happened. I think Owens is getting a real championship run here that will last until WrestleMania. I think it’s actually happening, guys.
Jessica Hudnall – Owens should counter The Ryback’s garish singlets with friggin’ tassels EVERYWHERE. Even if he doesn’t make the obvious sartorial choice, Medium Kev’s gonna retain the title. Post-match gnawing of The Ryback’s bones is optional, but with it being in the middle of autumn, the QUEBEC KODIAK will need to turn his attention towards the looming winter and hibernation.
Nate Birch – Woof, this is still going? This is the ultimate argument against the mandatory rematch clause. Sometimes a dude wins a championship because he’s obviously, unmistakably the better wrestler, in which case you should just move the f*ck on. Owens wins.
Danielle Matheson – Owens retains. Is… is there any point to giving the belt (ry)back to Ryback? It’s no SECRET that man, there really isn’t.
Austin Heiberg – Owens is holding the title until WrestleMania so he and the newly-healed Sami Zayn can have an instant classic. Again, too good to be true, but I’ve never been the Realistic Predictions guy.
Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day (c) vs. The Dudley Boyz
What Should Happen: The title change seemed obvious at Madison Square Garden but didn’t happen, so it’s gotta happen here. I’d love for the belts to stay on the New Day, God bless them, and all you have to do to keep the Dudleys interesting is have someone get tabled after they lose, but there’s no point in doing another match if you aren’t doing the switch. Give the Duds their nostalgia run, continue to light a fire under TND to keep them from drifting into Adam Rose territory and move forward into something cool for SummerSlam. A tag team tables match or something.
What Will Happen: That, I think. The Dudleys win here, because they should win a few of the important matches if WWE wants to keep them believable and relevant. They’re a nostalgia act, but not a slow one, you know? There’s still a place for them.
Staff Picks:
David D. – The Dudley Boyz have to get a championship run at some point. But not today. They’re here to put over the young guys and New Day is smoking hot. Keep the momentum and have them get a cheap win.
Jessica Hudnall – NEW DAY, YOU DORKS. ALWAYS AND FOREVER, THE NEW DAY. I don’t have anything witty or humorous to add (so it’s no different from my other predictions), just enthusiasm for THE NEW DAY.
Nate Birch – It’s time to sh*t or get off the pot with The Dudleyz, and besides, The New Day already have plenty of brass, so they can give up the penny belts for a couple months. Dudleyz win.
Danielle Matheson – Haha, if I pick The New Day for every other PPV, this is where I have a stroke and pick against them, right? I mean this has to be where they lose to the Dudleyz, but I just can’t do it hahaha NOPE NEW DAY FOREVER SUCK IT EVERYONE ELSE *claps into oblivion*
Austin Heiberg – If this was an actual Cell match, I’d be going straight to the Dudleys. That feels like more of their preferred environment. But interestingly enough, I think they’ve got it either way. New champs here, and the one designated Fun Rivalry that Raw can sustain continues.
Divas Championship Match: Charlotte vs. Nikki Bella
What Should Happen: Sasha Banks should take Nikki’s place. Better yet, Sasha should be awarded the championship backstage, and the Divas segment should be her dancing in the ring with the belt and waving at everybody.
What Will Happen: More of the same. We’ve gotten used to the Divas Revolution match by now … it’s the old Divas match with the distraction finishes and jealousy stories, but longer and with some actual wrestling moves thrown in. I don’t think Charlotte’s a bad champion, but there isn’t even a conversation when she’s champ. With Nikki, we were at least talking about whether she did or didn’t deserve it, what she was gonna do, how she got there, how long she was gonna hold it, etc. What’re we saying about Charlotte? Anything? She has jewels on her face?
I say give it back to Nikki. The build people want to see is Sasha, right? Sasha/Charlotte on the main stage would be better, but Charlotte doesn’t mean here what she meant at NXT. Nikki “means” a lot, so having the underground fan favorite take her out is the story they should be telling.
Staff Picks:
David D. – WE WANT SASHA CLAP CLAP CLAPCLAPCLAP. The more I’m watching these other divas, the more I’m realizing that Sasha Banks is really the straw that stirred the drink for the Divas who got called up. Nothing else works as well without her. Charlotte wins. Paige gets involved. And I don’t care until Sasha shows up.
Jessica Hudnall – I’m a fan of the Four Horsewomen (the good version, not Ronda Rousey and her Glue-Factory Gal Pals) and all that, but Nikki Bella has been putting in work for a hot minute. She should forearm Charlotte’s teeth out and reclaim her belt. And that prediction is only 80 percent because I want $A$HA BANK$ to win it and I think BO$$ versus Bella is an intriguing match-up down the line.
Nate Birch – I hope this is a definitive win for Charlotte, and we see some sort of storyline development that moves us away from our current “The Bellas must be either champs or challengers, and always the focus” status quo. I like Nikki Bella, but Nikki shouldn’t be the John Cena of the Divas division. Have Sasha make a statement, have Natalya finally lose her sh*t and kill everybody or do something unexpected. Send Nia Jax out there. Make this feel like a vibrant division full of possible contenders, because, well, that’s exactly what it is.
Danielle Matheson – Charlotte wins. WWE pats themselves on the back for another job well done, everyone writes a jerkoff anti-Bella thinkpiece and the rest of us sit on our hands and wait for WWE to stop running down Sasha Banks in whatever weird ULTIMATE UNDERDOG storyline they’re building up to. It’s fine. Sasha’s great. She’s a star. Just do the thing and treat it like real wrestling instead of trying to coddle and convince an audience who’s already ready for the thing you say you’re doing, but aren’t really following through with. It’ll be totally fine, promise.
Austin Heiberg – Taking the championship off Charlotte seems like just enough of crappy thing that might actually happen during the middle of a Hashtag Divas Revolution, but I think Charlotte’s still got this. I would ask where the Bellas go from here, but I find myself not caring. WE WANT SASHA (clap clap clap-clap-clap).
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Kane
What Should Happen: A re-do of the very first Hell in a Cell, between Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker. Do the exact same match, with the blood and the fall off the side of the cage and everything. Move for move. Shot for shot. Then, for the Kane debut at the end, have Corporate Kane run out. Blow everybody’s minds. Do it Parent Trap style if you have to.
What Will Happen: Do you have an expected level of whelming? Prepare to be slightly under that.
Expectations are pretty low for this, I think, so let’s hope Rollins gets a strong win and gets out of it in one piece.
Staff Picks:
David D. – Seth Rollins wins. I hate this. The end.
Jessica Hudnall – Rollins obviously wins, because nobody wants the title on Kane. HOWEVER, I hope there’s an interesting plot twist where Corporate Kane is fired as Director of Operations, but Demon Kane gets the position (Because The Authority likes to promote from inside the company), and now there’s mandatory safety training and a new section in the employee handbook about the dangers of brimstone.
Nate Birch – Oh God, I hope Kane wins. Kane wins and USA just cancels Raw on the spot. Next day, you see Vince McMahon on the street panhandling, collecting the change in an old Kane mask. You know what? Whatever, that’s my official prediction.
Danielle Matheson – SETH ROLLINS RETAINS is written in permanent marker on the whiteboard of my heart, and I’m okay with it here. I just want more of an outcome than “oops okay now he’s demon Kane again.” Like, what if he went through all of the actual stages of unemployment depression? Fruitless job searching. Convincing himself that it’s totally okay going back to being a supervisor at Starbucks. Drinking $8 wine from his “World’s Greatest Director of Operations” mug and teaching himself how to juggle because he has nothing better to do and he thinks it’s a really good idea that will also impress people at parties. I mean, busting out juggling skills with those decorative and ultimately useless twine balls people put on their coffee tables is both impressive and way safer than conjuring fire in the Howard’s living room and ruining a perfectly lovely Easter brunch and never being invited back… or so he hears.
Austin Heiberg – At a certain point, the question becomes “Can Rollins hold the title until WrestleMania?” And if he keeps getting opponents like Kane, the answer is an emphatic yes. Champ retains, despite Kane doing Kane Things. Things involving fire or under-the-ring hell dimensions.
Hell in a Cell Match: Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt
What Should Happen: Want to make Roman look strong? Have him run into everything Wyatt used to beat Dean Ambrose and John Cena, and withstand it. Have Wyatt disappear and be replaced with a smoking ghost latern, then have Roman just shrug, pick it up and bash Wyatt in the head with it in the darkness. Exploding monitor? Have Roman throw it at Wyatt like a fireball. Mysterious, singing ghost child? Superman punch. Tell me you wouldn’t love Roman Reigns after that.
What Will Happen: The end of the story, I hope. That’s what I’m looking forward to most at Hell in a Cell: the end of these stories that’ve been going on forever, and the beginning of something new. Whether it happens or not is beside the point. Roman/Bray, Cena’s open challenges, Rollins/Kane, Shield/Wyatts, the Divas, all the relationships in the kickoff match … just end them all. Fresh start on Monday. Get people talking, and get those ratings up.
That said, Roman has to win this, right? Bray doesn’t actually beat anybody.
Staff Picks:
David D. – Roman Reigns is going to win here and this match is going to tear it up. I’m really excited about this match because these two will be the guys in a couple of years. It reminds me of seeing Rock and Triple H in the ladder match at SummerSlam that was a precursor to their main-event run. It’s just cool to see them have a chance to make or break themselves.
Jessica Hudnall – Oh gee, a cell, I bet giant lump o’ meat Braun Strowman won’t be able to rip the door off its hinges to get inside and ruin Roman’s entire everything. Wyatt won’t win, thought, because he never wins.
Nate Birch – Not a whole lot of witty things to say about this one. It will be the best match on the show, and Roman will win. Hopefully they really let them cut loose, because if they do, I think this could be a real breakout match for Roman. The match where people stop thinking of him as this green guy, and start seeing him as the pretty boss worker he’s slowly transformed into. We shall see.
Danielle Matheson – Bray Wyatt wins when Roman Reigns’s actual daughter runs out in a sheep mask and Supergirl punches him in the nerds. Or Roman wins and we blow this off and move on to literally anything else.
Austin Heiberg – Congratulations, WWE. An honest-to-God HELL IN A CELL MATCH that I care nothing about. Just for kicks, I’ll take Wyatt.
Hell in a Cell Match: The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
What Should Happen: Part 3 of the TOUGH AND DYIN’ COWBOYS story these guys are super into telling. If it’s as cool and violent as their original Hell in a Cell match, I’m in. If it’s just the SummerSlam match with a cage around them, I’m … less in, but hey, it’s still Lesnar and Taker. Even at its worst, it’ll have everyone talking.
If Taker had come back all noble to get his revenge on Lesnar for winning (fairly) at WrestleMania, that’d be one thing. Instead, he came back as this dick-booting jerk and cheated to win at SummerSlam. Now, he’s suddenly the face again, fighting because Lesnar “took everything” from him. I dunno. I feel like this would really benefit from some consistency.
What Will Happen: I don’t see this having a clean ending either way. Lesnar got a win over Taker everyone thought was a mistake, Taker got a win over Lesnar that WAS a mistake, and part 3 ends with both guys just mistaking into each other as hard as possible and ending the story.
Staff Picks:
David D. – I really wish this match weren’t happening. Undertaker had such a great showing at SummerSlam, but they’re tempting fate here. Especially since we saw Sting collapse in the middle of his match just a month ago. I think Brock wins and we move on to… what exactly?
Jessica Hudnall – Normally, Undertaker has an advantage in Hell in a Cell matches, because he basically invented them. However, Lesnar is super used to fighting inside a chain-linked enclosure. In a perfect world, the match starts with dueling nut shots, and never deviates from that path until one guy keels over, dry heaving. What’ll really happen is Brock will pulp Undertaker’s old ass.
Nate Birch – Both guys go to the dick-kicks early and often, then spend 20 minutes rolling around on the mat like Hans Moleman. I seriously have no idea how they’re pull this match off, considering I fear Taker’s going to tear every part of his body every time he ducks through the ropes. It’s going to be a spectacle of one kind or another. Ultimately, I’m picking Brock to win. Having Brock beat Undertaker at ‘Mania, but having Taker “win the feud” is pointless, as the win at ‘Mania is the only match that really matters. Undertaker could beat Brock 10 times in a row, and Brock would still be the real winner for pinning Taker at WrestleMania.
Danielle Matheson – OH NO HECK IN A CAGE! I dunno, man. I got really obsessed with that tweet that compared The Undertaker to Frasier and now I can’t really take anything seriously? For the record, Niles is Edge and Finlay is their dad. Eddie is… Aiden English, maybe? Nobody is Lilith because Bebe Neuwirth has zero contemporaries. Nobody is Roz because Roz is the worst. I guess if this thing keeps going, Brock Lesnar has to win, but also do we want to keep this thing going? Are we simply out of stories for Undie? Maybe he can lose and then move in with Kane and be sad bachelor underworld bros. Oh my god, can you even imagine him walking in on Kane trying to juggle? Proofreading each other’s Tinder profiles? Sorting their recyclables and debating getting a compost bin? Do I even care about wrestling anymore now that this idea is in my head? I might not! Schmoz finish for the match, killing a bottle of bourbon and writing out the pilot for Kane’s funemployment for me. fantasy casting Daphne in the comments below for you.
Austin Heiberg – I’m hoping this turns out at least a little bit like their SummerSlam clash, minus the weird ending. It was the match we wanted at WrestleMania, it just showed up on our doorstep late due to a shipping error. I’ve got Lesnar barely escaping with the victory. And this is probably where I would have thrown Sting into the mix, had he not almost died last month. It’s a young man’s game, folks.
