WWE.com and Pat McAfee Show contributor Mark Kaboly gives his predictions for WWE’s Saturday Night’s Main Event live from the Bell Center in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Saturday at 8e/5p on Peacock in the United States.
Undisputed WWE Title No. 1 Contender’s Fatal 4-Way Match
Randy Orton vs. Trick Williams vs. Damian Priest vs. Sami Zayn
What a main event for, well, the aptly named Saturday Night’s Main Event. But seriously, it doesn’t get much bigger than a legend like Randy Orton, a fan favorite, especially in Montreal, like Sami Zayn, a former Heavyweight Champion like Damian Priest, and an up and coming Superstar like Trick Williams, all with a date with Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble a week later on the line. You can sit here and make a strong argument for any of the four coming away with the win, but a lot of times it takes a fortunate event to take place to win a Fatal 4-Way Match. That in itself evens the field so that each one of the Superstars has a legitimate chance of getting their hand raised in victory. To me, Orton jumps off the page to me as the odds-on favorite to come away with the win that would allow him to have a chance to become an 11-time Undisputed WWE Champion and grab his first singles title in more than five years. If you can even get a version of their Ambulance Match back during McIntyre’s last run, then sign me up. While Orton makes all the sense, what we all should have learned long ago is to never count out Zayn, especially in his hometown of Montreal and especially how he’s been beat down in the past (0-11 all-time) by the ‘Scottish Warrior.’ The payback factor could push Zayn to get to that Rumble title match with Drew. It’s too early for Trick and too soon for a revisit of Priest/McIntyre rivalry,
Prediction: Sami Zayn pins Randy Orton
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Match
Rhea Ripley & IYO SKY (C) vs. Liv Morgan & Roxanne Perez
Don’t get blinded from the fact that Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY won the tag titles just a few weeks ago and SNME will be their first title defense. We’ve seen titles change hands a lot quicker than that before, so don’t be surprised if we see it again. However, RHIYO might have found something here organic sort of like Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair did some months back. If that’s legit then we will see that at SNME. If there is one match that includes some shenanigans, it’s going to be this one. It’s hard to me to fathom that Liv doesn’t have some suppressed feelings about Roxanne’s advances on "Dirty" Dom Mysterio when she was out dealing with a shoulder injury. Liv doesn’t seem like a person to let bygones be bygone and we could see Liv taking out her frustrations on Roxanne that either costs them the victory or an old-fashioned beat down after the loss. This won’t be a cut-and-dry match in terms of that.
Prediction: RHIYO defeats Morgan/Perez
Grudge Match
Cody Rhodes vs. Jacob Fatu
Cody Rhodes losing two matches in a row? Come on now. Since The American Nightmare returned to WWE four years ago, he’s lost back-to-back matches – regardless of the kind type or constellation of the match -- only once, so what makes you think it will all of a sudden happen now? That’s my mindset. Rhodes lost his WWE Championship at the 3-Stages of Hell Match against Drew McIntyre with some inadvertent interference from The Samoan Werewolf (it seemed very advertently to me) that allowed this match to be made. That matters not, and neither does the receipt that Cody promised to hand out to Fatu, because there is one true enemy here, and he just happens not to have a match schedule – McIntyre. Whether he takes part in this match is the biggest question, but with the Fatal 4-Way determining his next opponent and not Rhodes or Fatu, it doesn’t make sense, which is all the reason it should happen. We will see McIntyre. Bank on that. But will we see a winner? I am not so sure about that.
Prediction: No contest
AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
A late addition to the card has all the potential to steal the show. Old-time rivals AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura while face off against one another in a singles match for the first time in a little more than five years under the pretense that match will prepare The Phenomenal One for his retirement match at the Royal Rumble a week later against Gunther. The same Gunther that retired both Goldberg and John Cena last year. I am not sure how a match against Shinsuke gets Styles ready for Gunther or how AJ can lose, but this has all the makings of being quite entertaining and has every opportunity for McIntyre to somehow get involved. Based on SmackDown on Friday, we know McIntyre will be lurking around the arena.
Prediction: Shinsuke defeats Styles with help from McIntyre
