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With Round One of the WWE Mixed Match Challenge officially in the books, we look ahead to the 2nd round of the Mixed Match Challenge that will begin February 27th, 2018 on Facebook Watch. Before we look at the 2nd round match ups, let's take a look at the first round predictions that were made.
Sasha Banks and Finn Balor vs Shinsuke Nakamura and Natayla.
Prediction: None
Winner: Boss Club
The Miz and Asuka vs Carmella and Big E
Prediction: The Miz and Asuka
Winner: The Miz and Asuka
Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss vs Sami Zayn and Becky Lynch
Prediction: Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss
Winner: Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss
Goldust and Mandy Rose vs Jimmy Uso and Naomi
Prediction: Jimmy Uso and Naomi
Trending
Winner: Jimmy Uso and Naomi
Elias and Bayley vs Lana and Rusev
Prediction: Elias and Bayley
Winner: Lana and Rusev
Apollo and Nia Jax vs Bobby Roode and Charlotte Flair
Prediction: Bobby Roode and Charlotte Flair
Winner: Bobby Roode and Charlotte Flair
4 for 5 is not too shabby if I do say so myself. Check out the full article here.
Second Round Summary
In the second round we will be seeing Boss Club (Finn Balor and Sasha Banks) take on Awe-ska (The Miz and Asuka), which is sure to be exciting. We will also see Team Little Big (Alexa Bliss and Braun Strowman) take on Day Glow-ish (Jimmy Uso and Naomi), and Ravishing Rusev Day (Lana and Rusev) go against the Robe Warriors (Bobby Roode and Charlotte).
We have an even split of Raw teams (3) and Smackdown teams (3), so that could factor into future booking decisions. WWE will probably follow the pattern they had in the first round and keep the number of Raw and Smackdown teams as even as possible. We can assume this will lead to a Raw vs Smackdown final.
With that in mind, let's begin.
Round 2: First Match, February 27, 2018 - Boss Club vs Awe-ska
Our first match up will see the Boss Club taking on Awe-ska. The two teams have some history with each other. Asuka and Sasha Banks faced off on Raw recently, as did The Miz and Finn Balor. Let's take an in-depth look at the teams.
On the men's side: The Miz pinned Finn Balor in the gauntlet match leading up to the Elimination Chamber. This would seem to give The Miz the edge, except for the fact that The Miztourage gave him the win via distraction. In first round match of the MMC, The Miztourage was nowhere to be seen.
This implies that outside help will not be a factor in these matches, further proven by Aiden English's absence in the Rusev Day match. Given that The Miz will be in the Elimination Chamber match first on Sunday, he will be battered from the match.
I think Finn Balor has the edge in a matchup with The Miz, despite The Miz's standing as the Intercontinental Champion.
On the women's side: Asuka defeated Sasha Banks previously on Raw, and will not be in the Elimination Chamber match. Sasha, on the other hand, will be in the chamber match, likely lasting quite a while.
WWE will probably play up any injuries taken in the chamber and that could be used as the reason for Sasha to lose. Asuka has the decisive edge in this matchup.
Overall team match up: It is important to note that Asuka is still undefeated in WWE, whether in tag team competition or singles matches. Technically, she did lose a Battle Royal in NXT, but we can pretend that never happened.
Balor only slightly edges out The Miz. The edge is only because The Miz enters the chamber first. If Balor is in the chamber second or third, his advantage over The Miz will be a moot point. With that said, the winner becomes clear.
Prediction: Asuka submits Banks with the arm bar.
Round 2: Second Match, March 6, 2018 - Team Little Big vs Day Glow-ish
The second round matches up will see Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss take on the husband-wife duo of Jimmy Uso and Naomi. This match marks a first in WWE as Braun and Jimmy have never faced off against each other in any fashion. So, how do the teams match up?
On the men's side: Braun Strowman is currently one of the most popular babyfaces on the entire WWE roster. His charisma and character work has captured the audience's attention and love.
Jimmy Uso, on the other hand, is currently one half of the Smackdown Tag Team champions and enjoying one of the best runs of his career.
They match up quite well with each other in terms of popularity and booking protection, but Jimmy does have a drawback. Singles stars are typically higher up on the booking hierarchy than tag team wrestlers. Despite Jimmy Uso being the champion, Braun should be favored in this matchup.
On the women's side: Naomi and Alexa Bliss have some history together. Naomi won her first and second women's title from Bliss, giving her a clear advantage over Bliss. Not only that, but WWE seems to value Naomi over Bliss. Bliss has started taking losses more frequently on Raw and may lose her title in the Elimination Chamber Sunday.
She is not in the best standing right now. Despite how talented Bliss is, Naomi has the edge in this matchup. However, if Bliss still has her title after Elimination Chamber, Bliss will have the edge.
Overall team match up: Team Little Big is probably the most over team in the entire mixed match challenge, with Day Glow-ish not too far behind. Jimmy and Naomi were a surprising highlight of the tournament against Goldust and Mandy Rose (If you haven't seen the match, I recommend you go watch it).
The match is harder to call than anyone would expect, but given that WWE will want two Raw teams to face-off in the semi-finals, I'm going to have to go Raw over Smackdown.
Prediction: Alexa Bliss pins Naomi after a twisted Bliss from Braun's shoulders.
Round 2: Third Match, March 13, 2018 - Ravishing Rusev Day vs The Robe Warriors
The Robe Warriors, Charlotte and Bobby Roode, will be facing two members of the most 'over' stable in wrestling. This will be the second match in the tournament where two teams of the same brand will square off, giving us much better insight about how they match up since they are on the same show and have squared up off before.
On the men's side: Rusev and Bobby Roode have squared off quite recently. Rusev unsuccessfully challenged Bobby Roode for his United States Title. As of this writing, Roode has been on a winning streak as of late with a strong United States Title reign. Rusev, on the other hand, was not even on television this Tuesday.
There is one thing to consider though, Rusev is very much 'over' with the crowd and could be used as a Cinderella story. If there was an upset in store for the tournament, this would be it.
On the women's side: Charlotte is the current Smackdown Women's champion and it looks like it will stay that way until Wrestlemania. Lana has been losing a lot, butshe did just get her first ever win; in the MMC no less.
Lana has gotten her quite over with "Lana is the best, Lana number 1" *clap* *clap*. Similar to the men's match-up, this could very well be another case of a Cinderella story.
Overall team match up: If there was going to be an upset in the tournament, this would be where is happens. I did not choose Rusev Day in my previous predictions as I did not believe in them. As much as I love Rusev Day, I just cannot see the Robe Warriors losing this early in the tournament. Perhaps Rusev Day will receive the fan choice vote, and return for a rematch. Until then...
Prediction: Charlotte pins Lana after a natural selection
Ex WWE writer blasts Liv Morgan HERE
