TJRWrestling WWE Bash In Berlin 2024 Preview
It’s WWE Bash In Berlin featuring Gunther-Randy Orton, a Drew McIntyre-CM Punk strap match, some mixed tag team action, and plenty more.
The Bash in Berlin PLE is a first-time-ever live WWE Premium Live Event from Germany. They have obviously had a lot of events in Germany over the years, but they are usually live events. It’s a cool thing for the fans to get a PLE show from Germany. That also means it’s a Saturday afternoon show for me, which I don’t mind especially with multiple fantasy NFL drafts for me to do all weekend. Anyway, they are doing the five-match card that has become the norm for these PLE shows that aren’t major events like SummerSlam earlier this month, which had seven matches.
I like the card with Gunther-Randy Orton as the likely main event while the CM Punk-Drew McIntyre rivalry continues with a Strap Match. The rest of the card is solid as well. Let’s jump into it.
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Women’s Tag Team Championships: Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn (c) vs. Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill
It took over two months for Belair & Cargill to get a rematch for the Women’s Tag Team Titles after losing them to Fyre & Dawn in a match where Belair & Cargill weren’t pinned because it was a triple threat. I remember going into that match thinking a title change was possible, but my expectations were that Belair & Cargill would have a longer title reign. Now we sit here at Bash In Berlin with Belair & Cargill having a chance to win back the titles.
I think if Fyre & Dawn retain it will be because of a cheap finish. Another option is to have Fyre & Dawn win due to Cargill & Belair accidentally making a mistake, which leads to Fyre & Dawn capitalizing to keep the titles. I’m going with a Cargill & Belair win and I think they’ll keep the titles for the rest of the year or near the end of the year. After that, they can have issues in January leading to a split around the Royal Rumble and it could lead to a Cargill-Belair match at WrestleMania next year. I know I’m jumping ahead with that prediction, but it’s important to tell you what I’m thinking in terms of long-term direction.
Winners AND NEW Women’s Tag Team Champions: Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill
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Strap Match: Drew McIntyre vs. CM Punk
For the second straight WWE PLE, the most personal and arguably best feud going into the show is the rivalry between Drew McIntyre and CM Punk. McIntyre won at SummerSlam in a controversial match with Seth “Freakin” Rollins as the special guest referee. Punk lost his focus by hitting Rollins with a GTS and McIntyre capitalized with a Claymore Kick to get the win. That finish led to Punk challenging McIntyre to a Strap Match, which makes sense since the loser should be the one to issue the challenge and want another match.
When it comes to a winner for this match, it’s important to look at the Bad Blood PLE in early October which will likely feature a third McIntyre-Punk showdown that could be a Hell in a Cell match. That’s why I’m going with Punk to win this Strap Match, which is a match where you win by touching the turnbuckles four times in a row rather than winning by pinfall or submission. Punk can win the match by hitting the turnbuckle while McIntyre can complain that he didn’t get pinned and he didn’t submit in the match. That will lead to the Hell in a Cell to determine the ultimate winner in the feud. It should be an excellent match with Punk continuing to get healthier after having his first singles match in the year just four weeks ago.
Winner: CM Punk
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The Terror Twins – Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley vs. The Judgment Day – Dominik Mysterio & Liv Morgan
This is a matchup that has a very good story as well due to the history of Dominik Mysterio with Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley in The Judgment Day group for the last two years. The story has worked very well with Dominik turning on Rhea to join Liv while Priest & Ripley are getting some of the loudest ovations out of anybody in WWE. It’s great to see because it tells us that the storyline is working really well.
I’m going with Priest pinning Dominik to win because Dominik is a cheap heel who fans want to see get his ass kicked. Priest should look strong in this match while Dominik is the kind of cowardly heel who might be running away a lot. They could use the rest of The Judgment Day group to have them cheat to help Dom & Liv come close to winning, but I don’t see Dom & Liv picking up the victory. It could be Ripley beating Liv as well because then it would set them up for another Women’s World Title match between them. I just think Priest pinning Dominik makes more sense for this match. It should be a fun match to watch with a hot crowd.
Winners: The Terror Twins – Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley
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Undisputed WWE Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Kevin Owens
This matchup between two good babyface friends should lead to some spots in the match where we see Owens tease going back to his old heel ways, but I don’t think he’ll embrace it. Instead, Cody should get the win due to Owens perhaps not being as aggressive as he used to be, and then Cody will find a way to hit the Cross Rhodes for the win. These two guys are outstanding performers who always have great matches in a big setting, so I expect it to be an entertaining match.
I think the WWE Title picture will go back to the Cody Rhodes-Solo Sikoa rivalry and maybe that will lead to Roman Reigns coming back again. That could lead to Cody becoming a tag team partner of Reigns against Solo & Jacob Fatu or something along those lines. Cody wins here to remain the champion.
Winner: Cody Rhodes
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World Heavyweight Championship: GUNTHER (c) vs. Randy Orton
I think this World Heavyweight Title match should go on last. Gunther is from Austria, but he spent a lot of his life in Germany as a resident and he wrestled there many times. This crowd knows that and they are going to cheer Gunther throughout the match. That doesn’t mean that Randy Orton is going to be hated because I think the Berlin crowd will love him and show Randy a lot of respect as well. I just think Gunther may get the louder crowd reactions. With that said, it should be a hot crowd for the entire match.
At King and Queen of the Ring back in May when they met for the first time ever in the King of the Ring finals, I rated that match at ****1/4 out of five. That means it was one of the best WWE matches of the year. Considering that was their first match together, I think this is going to be an even better match with a hotter crowd. My guess is that Orton hits the RKO once and possibly twice, but it won’t be enough to put Gunther way. Maybe we’ll see Gunther get his foot on the rope or roll out of the ring to prevent a cover. I think Gunther winning is very likely since he’s only been World Heavyweight Champion for four weeks, so it’s not like he is going to drop the title this early into his reign. I can see Gunther as a guy who carries this title into WrestleMania next year, so it’s still very early into his title reign.
This is my pick for the best match of the show and it could be one of the best matches of the year. Is the result predictable? Sure, but I think the match quality will be very strong and I’m looking forward to it immensely.
Winner: Gunther
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WWE Bash In Berlin BONUS TOPICS
The Match I’m Looking Forward To The Most
The Gunther-Randy Orton match should be incredible again.
The Match I Care About The Least
Women’s Tag Team Championships: Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn vs. Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill – It’s not a bad match. I just think the other matches have been built up better.
Longest Match
Gunther vs. Randy Orton going about 25 minutes. The Punk-McIntyre match could go over 20 minutes too.
Shortest Match
The Terror Twins – Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley vs. The Judgment Day – Dominik Mysterio & Liv Morgan going around 12 minutes.
Excitement Level on a Scale of 1-10 (1 being low, 10 being high)
I’m at 7.5 out of 10 for this show. Most WWE PLEs are very good, and this one should be too. The Gunther-Orton match will likely be one of the better matches of the years, so as long as they get the time, they should absolutely crush it. The rest of the card is solid and I don’t think there is anything that bad on it. I just think there is some predictability with four of the matches while the Women’s Tag Team Title match could go either way. Also, I’m happy for the German fans getting a WWE PLE show. They will have a great time and I think they will be one of the better WWE crowds this year.
I’ll be back with a review of WWE Bash In Berlin on TJRWrestling.net on Saturday, so check that out live or after it’s over. You can also tweet me on X/Twitter at @johnreport as well.
If you want to send an email, send it to me at mrjohncanton@gmail.com. Thanks for reading.