WWE 2018 PPV Calendar - MITB joins the big leagues as a dual-brand show

[slik]

credit: PWInsider

5 RAW ppvs, 4 SD ppvs, 5 dual-branded shows (including MITB). No word yet if MITB will be treated like 'the big 4' and have a Takeover and RAW/SD in the same arena yet.


Here is the schedule:


* January 28th: Royal Rumble, Philadelphia (RAW/SD)

* February 25th: Elimination Chamber, Las Vegas (RAW)

* March 11th: Fast Lane, Columbus (SD)

* April 8th: WrestleMania 34, New Orleans (RAW/SD)

* May 6th: Backlash, Newark (RAW)

* May 27th: Payback, Baltimore (SD)

* June 17th: Money In the Bank, Chicago (RAW/SD)

* July 15th: Battleground, Philadelphia (RAW)

* August 19th: SummerSlam, NYC (RAW/SD)

* September 16th: Extreme Rules, San Antonio (RAW)

* September 30th: Hell In a Cell, Nashville (SD)

* October 21st: TLC, Boston (RAW)

* November 18th: Survivor Series, Los Angeles (RAW/SD)

* December 16th: Clash of Champions, San Jose (SD)

[#1-norm-fan]

RIP Great Balls of Fire

[Jordan]

RIP Great Balls of Fire

:wavesad:

[Evil Vito]

Seems weird that it's a full 4 months between SmackDown-exclusive shows. Feel like from Extreme Rules and on should be switched so that the specialty PPVs will alternate so Raw would get MITB this time, etc. No need to see Shane dive off a cell for the 3rd year in a row.

[RP]

Most likely they stopped GBF because of the reference to a song made by a child rapist.

[Sepholio]

Good. MITB needs to be dual brand IMO.

[Destor]

MITB needs to not be annual

[XL]

Mixed feelings on this. I’m a sucker for even-handedness so I don’t like SDL having one less brand specific show than Raw, and I think having 2 (or 3 with the Women’s Match) MITB matches diminishes the importance of the concept.

I also think it was kind of a cool quirk that the gimmick PPVs would switch brand every year.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Boston gets tlc again

[Evil Vito]

I think having 2 (or 3 with the Women’s Match) MITB matches diminishes the importance of the concept.

I'd say the odds are good that there end up being two MITB ladder matches - a men's and a women's with both being interbrand and the winner being able to cash in on any champion.

It'll give them another excuse to have someone switch shows mid-year if they want to.

[RP]

No PPV's for Indy. Fuck WWE!

[slik]

2 PPVS for Philly tho

[slik]

I wonder how many of these ppvs will be headlined by:

Roman Reigns vs. Jinder Mahal
Roman Reigns vs. Baron Corbin
Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Roman Reigns vs. Roman Reigns. Roadblock: Attack of the Clone.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

NXT will have more PPVs than Smackdown.

[Destor]

NXT will have more PPVs than Smackdown.
NXT doesnt do PPVs

[Destor]

#STD'd

[XL]

I'd say the odds are good that there end up being two MITB ladder matches - a men's and a women's with both being interbrand and the winner being able to cash in on any champion.

It'll give them another excuse to have someone switch shows mid-year if they want to.

Hmmmm. Sounds interesting but then they wouldn’t be able to say “Survivor Series; the only time in the year that Raw and SmackDown go head-to-head in in-ring competition”.

[Shisen Kopf]

RIP Great Balls of Fire

Goodness gracious

[Shisen Kopf]

Nothing in Florida? That ain't right

[Mr. Nerfect]

MITB needs to not be annual

Amen.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Nothing in Florida? That ain't right

They might get WrestleMania the next year. Detroit is rumored, but it's often not in the rumored place.

[Mr. Nerfect]

My OCD kicks in when after SummerSlam the PPVs stop alternating and are allocated to the same brands as they were this year.

[XL]

Not just me then.

[Evil Vito]

No it definitely kicks in for me too. I mean HIAC was a Raw PPV last year, then SmackDown got it, and now SmackDown gets it again?

[Evil Vito]

Hmmmm. Sounds interesting but then they wouldn’t be able to say “Survivor Series; the only time in the year that Raw and SmackDown go head-to-head in in-ring competition”.

Sure they can, and they probably will. They kept throwing out that tag line this year despite the Rumble being in 2 months.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I actually like the idea of alternating the shows each year. I mean, given how the rosters change, it's likely it won't keep things that fresh, but it just means that it's two years before a Raw-branded Hell in a Cell or a SmackDown-branded MITB.

But back to MITB, how many people do you think it helped? I'd say that Edge is an obvious one. CM Punk's second MITB was a real launchpad for him too; but there is still that first one to his name. Daniel Bryan got a nice little boost out of it. Well, I enjoyed his heel run. Dolph had a great time as MITB holder, and his cash-in was a great moment, but overall it has amounted to nothing. Seth Rollins was also great when he had the briefcase, but was then booked terribly as champion.

Beyond that, I think everyone who got the briefcase was either a bust or a wash. The only guys that I would say it helped are Edge, CM Punk (the second one), Daniel Bryan and, you know what, I'll give you Rob Van Dam, if he didn't fuck it up. Everyone else probably would have benefit more from just being pushed differently, or not getting it at all. I think what it really says about the gimmick is that main event talent get over with it, but other talent doesn't. Now I've tricked myself, because at first I was against it, but now I think that maybe it's a good gauge to see who is actually worth it and who isn't.

NOTE: I am not talking about kayfabe achievements. Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio both won the World Title four times each, but no one cares about that.

[Mr. Nerfect]

No it definitely kicks in for me too. I mean HIAC was a Raw PPV last year, then SmackDown got it, and now SmackDown gets it again?

Shane's got to jump off it, right?

[Cool King]

RIP Great Balls of Fire

"WWE Let's Twist Again" will probably take its place.

[Evil Vito]

Money in the Bank 2011 is one of, if not my favorite PPVs of all time. It's a rare PPV I can honestly say I've watched in its entirety multiple times.

The SmackDown Money in the Bank was just oodles of fun. Some really innovative spots, my favorite being Justin Gabriel hitting a 450 off of a ladder bridge that had been balanced in the corner. They mixed some storytelling in there amongst people who had had beefs with one another, and actually did a nice tease with Barrett convincing Gabriel and Slater to help him win only for them to be like "nah fuck you" at the last minute. Barrett felt like the clear winner only for Bryan to knock him off last minute for the win, which was a genuine shock at the time since they were doing nothing with Bryan around that time.

The Kelly/Brie match was a clear piss break, but I didn't mind the piss break to recharge after the emotional high of a 25 minute opener.

Henry/Show was only 6 minutes which is the perfect amount of time for them, and they actually displayed really good chemistry and rattled off a string of surprisingly really enjoyable matches that year.

Raw's MITB paled in comparison to SmackDown's but there was still some fun stuff. Everybody starting the match with a ladder actually in hand made for a fun visual. Del Rio pulling off Rey's mask was unfortunately botched, but still I loved Del Rio winning at the time. I thought they'd fucked up spectacularly by not putting him over at WM27 but when he won this match I thought they had a chance to right the ship with him. Boy how wrong I was.

Christian/Orton had several excellent matches this year and this one was no exception. And again I marked out huge at the outcome.

Punk/Cena was pretty much anything you could ever want in a wrestling match. Great wrestling, a compelling story, a crowd genuinely into it, and excellent drama. If I could make a 10 match DVD to try to sell someone on wrestling, this is one of the few matches of the past decade I'd include without hesitation.

God I loved that show. Every MITB since then has really paled in comparison and I'd have been just as happy to see the concept of the PPV get retired after 2011.

[Mr. Nerfect]

MITB '11 was a great show. Punk/Cena, Christian/Orton and then the SmackDown MITB Ladder Match. Three worthy matches, the Raw one didn't even need to deliver after that. But I imagine it did well enough (I honestly cannot remember anything about it). But that's enough to tick it into great PPV territory.

[Emperor Smeat]

Hope they stick to the idea of just 1 MitB case each for men and women while the matches themselves are co-branded for competitors.

Last thing needs WWE is the roster to get bloated again with too many former WWE/Universal champions and rushed title pushes.

[Destor]

Mitb should be an interbrand match atleast...

[Droford]

Payback 2 days after my birthday in Baltimore but the Orioles are in Tampa which takes all the fun out of it .

[slik]

Survivor Series is the one show a year where RAW and SmackDownLive talents go head-to-head

[DAMN iNATOR]

"WWE Let's Twist Again" will probably take its place.

"WWE Johnny B. Goode" would be neat, too. Or maybe "WWE Enchantment Under the Sea".

[Danny Electric]

Can see them not doing MiTB women's match and just doing one each for Raw and Smackdown male roster.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Survivor Series is the one show a year where RAW and SmackDownLive talents go head-to-head

Except for the Royal Rumble. And WrestleMania. And Money in the Bank.

[Evil Vito]

And the 25th Anniversary of Raw

[slik]

Except for the Royal Rumble. And WrestleMania. And Money in the Bank.

And the new fb series they are considering, WWE MATCH-UP

[Mr. Nerfect]

And the 25th Anniversary of Raw

Well, to be fair, we don't actually know if there will be any Raw vs. SmackDown action on that show. I mean, there probably will be, but maybe everyone will stay separate, because brand pride isn't on the line.

[XL]

I did find it amusing that a week after (I think) SmackDown put Raw under siege they were advertising that the SDL would be on the 25th anniversary show. Like, why would Raw let SmackDown anywhere near their show after they just pushed their shit in?

[Anybody Thrilla]

Mitb should be an interbrand match atleast...

I like this idea. One case holder on either Raw or Smackdown.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I did find it amusing that a week after (I think) SmackDown put Raw under siege they were advertising that the SDL would be on the 25th anniversary show. Like, why would Raw let SmackDown anywhere near their show after they just pushed their shit in?

It bothers me how much overlap there is. The New Day invade and their music plays? Why would that be lined up?

[XL]

C’mon Noid, everyone knows entrance music plays automatically when you arrive close to the arena.

[Mr. Nerfect]

They've got them rasslers chipped.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to the Observer, WWE currently considering between 2 to 4 MitB matches for next year's co-branded event.

They are currently leaning on 2 MitB matches but would consider 4 matches if they decide for each brand to have their own Men's and Women's MitB case winners.

[Evil Vito]

Jesus Christ, 4 MITB matches in one night would be absurd amounts of overkill.

Which means it will probably happen.

[TSI]

Jesus Christ, 4 MITB matches in one night would be absurd amounts of overkill.

Which means it will probably happen.

The Risk for injury alone makes 4 MITB matches sound dumb

[Cool King]

I think I can see why four is being considered but like Vito said, that would just be overkill.

Instead of having four, why not just keep it at two, with the winner of the men's MITB match being allowed to cash in on any men's championship he wants, instead of just the WWE and Universal Championships.

That would add a lot more interest into the MITB match and the winner themselves, as we would never know when they're going to cash-in, whereas right now, it's gotten to the point where we all have a feeling when a cash-in is going to take place. We just need to wait for a world champion to be on his back or stumbling around the ring for around fifteen minutes.

With the MITB winner being able to cash-in on any championship, we could see an unexpected cash-in on the Intercontinental Champion from a SmackDown Superstar in the middle of a match on a Raw PPV, or a cash-in on the Tag Team Champions on a random episode of SmackDown from a Raw Superstar who brings his own partner with him from Raw or even better, from SmackDown.

To me, that sounds so much better than what we have now or the possibility of four MITB matches.

[Bad News Gertner]

No PPV's in Canada. Christ.

[DAMN iNATOR]

They might get WrestleMania the next year. Detroit is rumored, but it's often not in the rumored place.

Yeah, but Vince does love him some WrestleManias in shiny new arenas...:-\

[Mr. Nerfect]

I can see them doing a men's match for one brand and a women's match for the other. If they want to do a third one, maybe they do a tag team one too.

[screech]

Oh man, a tag team MITB match would be a complete mess

[Fignuts]

Fucking retarded. Having one briefcase holder that could challenge either champ would add so much more to the gimmick, and the possibilities within.

[Evil Vito]

I actually could get behind a tag team MITB. I'd probably cap it at only two teams per brand because anything more than 8 participants is a mess and a half.

[Evil Vito]

https://i.imgur.com/FXOG1ea.png

If only there was a Great Balls of Rusev :(

[Cool King]

Only Lana gets to see that PPV.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Oh man, a tag team MITB match would be a complete mess

It'd just be like the TLC Matches. Well, not as exciting because a lot of it has been done before, but it'd be similar in theory. If you do SmackDown then you have The Usos vs. The New Day vs. The Bludgeon Brothers, or whatever, and if you do Raw then you do Sheamus & Cesaro vs. The Hardy Boyz vs. Ambrose & Rollins, or something like that.

[Evil Vito]

Heavyweight Title MITB

Women's Title MITB

Tag Team Title MITB

I'd rather not have three MITBs, but if they do I'd want them all dual-brand. WWE can't seem to resist themselves with having wrestlers change rosters mid-year so this will at least give a kayfabe explanation for someone jumping ship.

[Frank Drebin]

Always liked the ideas Cool King talked about. Would be different to have the MITB winner have a blood feud with the IC/US champ and hate them so much they cash it in on that title rather than the top belt. Goes in the same vein in that I thought a good twist for the winner of the Rumble would be to have him request a match with the Undertaker at WM rather than a title shot (not now, but while the streak was going anyway).

[Mr. Nerfect]

The thing is you're always going to be expecting a cross-brand cash-in whenever the schedules overlap.