WWE Hell In A Cell 2018: 5 storylines to look out for after the PPV

With the 2018 Hell In A Cell pay-per-view just around the corner, over 20 WWE Superstars are preparing to compete on the match card of this year’s event.

As of the time of writing, eight matches have been announced for the show, including Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman (Hell In A Cell Universal Championship match w/Mick Foley as special referee) and AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe (WWE Championship).

Both women’s titles will also be on the line, with Raw Women’s champion Ronda Rousey facing Alexa Bliss and SmackDown Women’s champion Charlotte Flair facing Becky Lynch, while Jeff Hardy will go one-on-one with Randy Orton inside Hell In A Cell.

Elsewhere on the show, three tag matches will take place: Drew McIntyre & Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins (Raw Tag Team Championship), The New Day vs. Rusev Day (SmackDown Tag Team Championship) and Daniel Bryan & Brie Bella vs. The Miz & Maryse.

Competition for PPV places is tougher than ever since the introduction of dual-brand monthly events earlier this year, so several current rivalries from Raw and SmackDown Live will not be featured on Sunday's show.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at five storylines that could be kick-started on WWE programming after Hell In A Cell.

#5 Kevin Owens vs. Bobby Lashley

Reason for Hell In A Cell absence: Kevin Owens sensationally ‘quit’ WWE after losing to Seth Rollins a fortnight ago. One week later, he made a surprise return to Raw, attacking Bobby Lashley as payback for injuring Sami Zayn, but there hasn’t been much time to build towards a PPV match between the two men.

Chances of appearing on the show: Given that only eight matches have been announced for Hell In A Cell, it’s not impossible that WWE adds Owens vs. Lashley to the event at the last minute. If they don’t, KO and Lashley's most likely chances to appear will be in the Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman match if the rest of the Raw roster gets involved.

Possible future storyline: All signs point towards Owens feuding with Lashley until Super Show-Down, where they’ll be involved in a tag match with Elias and John Cena. Beyond that, KO will almost certainly reunite with Zayn when he returns from injury.

#4 Bray Wyatt's return

Reason for Hell In A Cell absence: Bray Wyatt’s tag team partnership with Matt Hardy came to an end in mid-August and he hasn’t been seen on WWE television since. He tweeted last week that he is “going away to find himself”, while he has hinted that he could return with new entrance music.

Chances of appearing on the show: Bray isn’t involved in the storyline with The Shield and Braun Strowman, Drew McIntyre & Dolph Ziggler – the only male rivalry from Raw which is featured at Hell In A Cell – so it would be a surprise to see him make an appearance on Sunday.

Possible future storyline: There are dozens of Superstars on Raw and SmackDown Live who Bray is yet to have a meaningful rivalry with. Provided he returns as a good guy, as has been rumoured, it’d be great to see him finally feud with the man he brought to WWE’s main roster, Braun Strowman.

#3 New direction for Finn Balor

Reason for Hell In A Cell absence: Finn Balor has been involved in what has felt like a never-ending rivalry with Baron Corbin over the last few months. After back-to-back PPV wins over the acting Raw GM, the Irishman has been left without a meaningful opponent for Sunday.

Chances of appearing on the show: Despite not being booked in a match, Balor is still likely to appear in some capacity. If he’s not involved in a segment on the kickoff show, perhaps he could interrupt Elias – the man he defeated on Raw this week – and they could have another impromptu match.

Possible future storyline: The chances of Balor re-entering the Universal Championship picture are slim following his defeat to Roman Reigns in August. We’re more likely to see him involved in mid-card matches on Raw heading into November’s Survivor Series PPV, where he will probably be part of the 5-on-5 match. Or if WWE is feeling daring, how about Balor versus a returning Kurt Angle?

#2 Asuka's alliance with Naomi

Asuka is set to feud with Billie Kay & Peyton Royce

Reason for Hell In A Cell absence: Asuka lost back-to-back PPV matches against Carmella for the SmackDown Women’s Championship during the summer and she only recently made her return to WWE television, aligning with Naomi in her battle with The IIconics.

Chances of appearing on the show: It’s unlikely. “The Empress of Tomorrow” was involved in a backstage segment with Naomi on Tuesday but there hasn’t been enough build-up in their rivalry with The IIconics to warrant it being added to Hell In A Cell.

Possible future storyline: It has already been announced that Asuka & Naomi will face Billie Kay & Peyton Royce at Super Show-Down on 6 October. After that, the longest-reigning NXT Women’s champion in history will hope to get a featured spot on the card at the first women’s PPV, WWE Evolution, on 28 October. How does a match against Ember Moon sound?

#1 Shinsuke Nakamura's United States Championship reign

Shinsuke Nakamura has been United States champion since July

Reason for Hell In A Cell absence: Shinsuke Nakamura has barely featured on WWE programming since he retained the United States Championship against Jeff Hardy at SummerSlam. His only match since then took place on this week’s SmackDown Live against Jeff, but it ended in a disqualification when Randy Orton attacked “The Charismatic Enigma”.

Chances of appearing on the show: Unless he is involved in a last-minute United States title match on the kickoff show, the only realistic way Nakamura can appear on Sunday is if he interferes in the Jeff vs. Orton Hell In A Cell match. He has already beaten Jeff twice, though, so even that would be a bit of a surprise.

Possible future storyline: There aren’t many singles competitors on SmackDown Live who are without a storyline and close to Nakamura’s level, so it’s difficult to see where WWE will go next with the United States Championship. Perhaps they could look to the stacked tag division and have a member of The Usos, The Club or The Bar face "The King of Strong Style"?

Edited by Prathik R