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Full WWE 'Night of Champions' predictions

Sports Mole gives its predictions for WWE Night of Champion in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday, where every title in the company is up for grabs.

WWE presents its eighth edition of the Night of Champions pay-per-view at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday.

Headlining the only event on the WWE calendar when every single title in the company is guaranteed to be on the line, Brock Lesnar defends against John Cena in a rematch of their one-sided SummerSlam bout.

Elsewhere on the eight-match card, not fighting for gold but for pride, revenge and their country, Randy Orton takes on Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns battles Seth Rollins and Mark Henry tries to stop Rusev.

Below, Sports Mole casts its eye into its crystal ball to predict the winners and losers.


Sheamus (c) vs. Cesaro - United States Championship match

Sheamus desperately needs to drop the United States title. The Irishman's reign has done nothing for him or for the diminishing status of the belt.

Having him lose to Cesaro this Sunday would free Sheamus of the mid-card championship shackles and allow WWE to use him in more a meaningful way.

With Daniel Bryan and Dean Ambrose injured, the company are short of top faces and know that Sheamus can deliver in main-event or secondary feuds.

Ideally, his rejuvenation would come as a heel, though, and there is room for WWE to experiment with a double turn at NOC, with Cesaro apparently having been in line for a change for some time.

The Swiss superstar's alliance with Paul Heyman didn't work because fans want to cheer for him, so give him the US belt and see if he can do better with it than his opponent in Tennessee.

Prediction: Winner and new champion: Cesaro

Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. The Miz - Intercontinental Championship match

Unlike with Sheamus, holding a mid-card belt has actually done wonders for Dolph Ziggler, who was in no-man's land before he beat The Miz at SummerSlam.

WWE's movie star has got another rematch in Nashville, but it would make little sense for him to recapture the belt at the expense of a popular superstar who is on the rise again.

Miz's gimmick means that he does not need the Intercontinental Championship to be involved in storyline material, but January to June 2014 showed that Ziggler is nothing without the title in WWE's eyes.

'The Show Off' got a clean pinfall victory over Miz on RAW this week, which is sometimes an ominous sign, but he is still expected to retain at NOC.

Prediction: Winner and still champion: Dolph Ziggler

The Usos (c) vs. Goldust & Stardust - Tag Team Championship match

There is a growing feeling that the time has come for The Usos to drop the Tag Team Championships.

The Samoan twins have held the belts for over six months and have successfully defended them in some of the most memorable tag matches of the last few years.

Their feud with The Wyatt Family in particular brought the best out of the second-generation superstars, who have deservedly climbed the WWE ladder with their entertaining and dynamic ring work.

But they are quickly running out of opponents. They have beaten everybody else, so if Goldust & Stardust cannot conquer them, then there is a danger that they will be left with little to do and could lose momentum.

A heel turn for the Rhodes brothers suggests that WWE have long-term plans for them and have not just cobbled this match together, so expect them to win their "cosmic key" and have The Usos chase them down towards the end of 2014.

Prediction: Winner and new champions: Goldust & Stardust

Paige (c) vs. AJ Lee vs. Nikki Bella - Divas Championship Triple-Threat match

Twelve months ago, it seemed impossible that there could be this level of interest in the Divas Championship.

Credit must go primarily to AJ Lee, who is perhaps the most popular Diva of the last five years, and also to rookie Paige, for producing a believable feud over the belt.

Adding the Bella Twins and their serious sibling issues into the equation gives this match another intriguing layer, but the script seems fairly easy to predict.

Brie interferes to attack sister Nikki, costing her a pinfall defeat to Paige, who retains the title without beating AJ, whose credibility remains intact.

That may be wildly inaccurate, but both of the individual feuds within this storyline still have legs and this appears to be the smart way to further them.

Prediction: Winner and still champion: Paige

Randy Orton vs. Chris Jericho

This is a match conjured up from virtually nothing, but it should still work because of the calibre of the superstars involved.

Orton and Jericho have a detailed history, which WWE have been doing their best job of reminding us of since 'The Viper' attacked Jericho in the trainer's room two weeks ago.

This is a case of creative putting two veterans together because they have little else to do. It is unlikely that this will be a rivalry which continues to the next PPV and thus there will probably be a definitive result.

It is a difficult one to predict as neither will be hurt by the loss and yet could do with the win considering the recent defeats that they have suffered.

Based on the shortage of top faces in the company right now, Jericho could be in line for a go at Lesnar and the WWE title before long and for that reason, he might pick up the victory.

Prediction: Chris Jericho

Mark Henry vs. Rusev

Rusev has crushed just about everybody that has been put in front of him so far and has a 100% record when it comes to PPV matches.

The Bulgarian Brute has knocked off Big E and Jack Swagger twice, but WWE have invested a serious amount of time into making sure that people realise that Henry is his biggest test yet.

There was no real need for these two to close RAW this week, and in fact the segment may have even damaged the feud's momentum going into NOC, so flat an ending to the show it was.

Either way, Henry will not be waving Old Glory at the end of what is sure to be a hard-hitting fight on Sunday. There will be a time when Rusev meets his match, but it won't be Henry, and it won't be for a while yet.

Prediction: Rusev

Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins

Rollins battles a former Shield brethren for the fourth PPV in a row, but this time it is Reigns and not Ambrose who is after retribution.

Reigns wants to avenge friend Ambrose for the injuries inflicted to him by Rollins and Kane, who memorably used concrete cinder blocks to sideline the Lunatic Fringe last month.

Traditionally, these cases usually end up with the fan favourite getting his own back on the devilsome villan, but that payoff was already witnessed on RAW when Reigns gained a clear pinfall over Rollins.

So where to go from here? Reigns is WWE's success story for 2014, but they have put a lot of stock into Rollins too and they are unlikely to have him lose two weeks in a row to someone of roughly the same status.

Reigns versus Triple H is probably still planned somewhere down the line and so count on The Authority costing Reigns victory in Nashville.

Prediction: Seth Rollins

Brock Lesnar (c) vs. John Cena - WWE World Heavyweight Championship match

Rarely has there been a feud between two genuine A+ players, as Triple H would describe them, with such an unentertaining build-up.

Heyman cannot be bettered as a mouthpiece, but his segments with Cena have been clumsy and lacked the X factor, and it was not until Lesnar's appearance on RAW this week that business picked up.

Such was the beating that Cena took at the hands of Lesnar at SummerSlam that it is almost impossible to imagine the 15-time WWE champion being able to turn the tables.

But that is exactly why he has a fighting chance, and exactly why he is a 15-time champion; because just when you think the odds are insurmountable, WWE booking proves that nothing is to Cena.

Having said that, reports suggest that Lesnar is going to be in the main event at WrestleMania XXXI and, considering his part-time schedule, he is highly unlikely to lose the championship and then win it back before then.

Prediction: Winner and still champion: Brock Lesnar

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Joe Fish
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MMA fighter Brock Lesnar walks in the garage area during practice for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 13, 2010
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