How the '3 Stages of Hell' match could affect the Payback PPV

John Cena and Ryback will now face off in a ’3 stages of Hell’ match at Payback

On Monday Night RAW, we learned that the original plan for the WWE Payback main event has been changed, and a new match looks to be in the works. Originally, John Cena was scheduled to defend his WWE Championship against Ryback in an Ambulance Match, in a rematch from Extreme Rules that saw both men fail to answer the standing ten-count in the Last Man Standing Match. Well, that match will still happen, but it will only be one-third of the overall match.

For the first time since The Bash in 2009 (Randy Orton vs. Triple H for the WWE title), a WWE pay-per-view will feature a 3 Stages of Hell Match.

It has been nearly four full years since the last one of these took place, so let me explain how this works. Essentially, it a Best-of-3-Falls contest, but each fall has its own stipulation. Cena revealed the three stipulations on RAW, and they go as follows: the first will be a Lumberjack Match, the second will be a Tables Match, and the third fall (should it be needed) will be an Ambulance Match. While the Ambulance Match could still be pretty disappointing (let’s face facts: we all know this match is going the full three falls), the fact that Cena and Ryback have a little bit more to work with, and two more matches to do, should give them a little more time and freedom to attempt to make this a creative and enjoyable contest.

The other big news for Payback coming out of RAW is that it appears we may be getting CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho, which, should it happen, will be a fantastic contest (Wrestlemania 28, anyone?). I say “should”, however, because we haven’t actually heard from Punk yet, as he has not been seen on WWE television since the night after Wrestlemania 29. Jericho more or less accused Punk of being a crybaby and a sore loser before issuing a challenge for Payback, and Punk’s representative Paul Heyman announced he would accept the match on his client’s behalf.

I am honestly very curious to see where this goes, especially with the rumoured Punk face-turn and feud with Brock Lesnar. I could potentially see the match going through with Heyman calling for Lesnar to interfere towards the end and cost Punk the match, with Heyman citing Punk’s loss of the WWE title to The Rock and his loss to The Undertaker as Punk letting him down as a client for the reason. I guess we’ll have to wait until Payback to see how this plays out.