Here’s the link for my Smackdown and ECW preview:

No Way Out 2009 Smackdown and ECW Preview

Which covers:

-The ECW Championship match between Jack Swagger and Finlay

-The WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match

Here is the link for my Raw Preview:

No Way Out 2009 Raw Preview

Which covers:

-JBL Vs. Shawn Michaels in a All or Nothing Match

-Randy Orton Vs. Shane McMahon in a No Holds Barred Match

-The World Heavyweight Championship Elimination Chamber Match

Additional Content

Lacking Matches?

I’m personally surprised that both Smackdown and ECW only have one match each on the card. This is the norm with ECW, but for Smackdown to only have the one match is a little strange. It’s true that not much is happening on SD other than the title picture but there has been a little rivalry surfacing between MVP, Chavo and Shelton Benjamin so I wouldn’t be surprised if a match featuring those three made it’s way onto the card or the dark match.

Another surprise is the absence of both a Diva’s match and a Miz & Morrison match. The Women’s championship match has been bumped to Raw the following night and there has been no mention of a Diva’s championship match. Not that I’m complaining but when are fans meant to go to the toilet or grab a drink during No Way Out now?

The answer to this question could well come in the form of a segment featuring the aformentioned Miz & Morrison, as they won a date with the Bella Twins on Smackdown and this surely has to be covered at some point during the night.

I’m also still expecting a Tag Team Title unification match but that’s not going to happen at such short notice so here’s hoping for Wrestlemania.

Will Legacy Expand?

At one point it looked like Randy Orton’s ‘Legacy’ was all set to be a super-group the like of which haven’t been seen in the WWE since the all out war between The Ministry and The Corperation (Yes there was the Invasion, but everyone seems to ignore that as much as possible, I personally enjoyed it.)

However, Orton seems to have been over selective in who he has let into Legacy, Ted DiBiase is looking like a good choice but I can’t work out why he has selected Cody Rhodes throughout and excluded Sim Snuka and Manu. At No Way Out I have a rather outlandish prediction that this could change.

I boldly predict (and there is every chance I’ll be wrong) that at some point during the match Manu and Sim Snuka will come to the ring looking like they have a bone to pick with Orton. Then in yet another swerve they will turn and attack Shane, joining Legacy and putting another McMahon out of commision for the forseeable future.

There are a lot of second generation stars coming through the ranks at the minute (Nattie Neidhart and Harry ‘Bulldog’ Smith to name just a couple) and it will be interesting to see who the creative team deem worthy of joining Legacy, that is if they choose to expand it at all.

Shawn Michaels to lose?

Aside from the Smackdown Elimination Chamber this was the hardest match for me to predict, and I’m still not sure I made the right decision choosing JBL. It seems like it would be too easy for HBK to just win the match and then we hear nothing more about it, so I plumped for the option that JBL would win and rule Shawn for the month leading up to Wrestlemania, where they will meet again for pretty much the same purpose, but on a much grander stage.

Of course there’s every chance Shawn will win this match, then go on to face The Undertaker at Mania, in a similar premise to his match against Flair last year, except this time he’ll come incredibly close to ending The Deadman’s streak then lose anyway.

Jack Swagger Vs. Finlay

I said pretty much all I had to say about this one in my formal preview. Christian is sure to make an appearance at No Way Out, either in this match or in some sort of backstage meeting with his estranged brother Edge.

Finlay doesn’t have much chance in my opinion, but then the last time I said that he ended Jack Swagger’s unbeaten streak so you never know.

Raw’s Elimination Chamber

Cena surely has to win this one. Everyone else in the match is either tied up in other feuds or so unlikely to get the title it is almost laughable they are in the match in the first place.

I’m a big fan of Kofi (he’s even in the banner up there), but I don’t think he has any part in this match. He’s been on Raw just under a year in which time he’s held the Intercontinental Championship and the Tag Titles once with no real feuds of note, so why the creative team think we’ll buy him as a title contender and possible Wrestlemania XXV main eventer I have no idea.

The same goes for Mike Knox pretty much, except with less title credentials. He and Kane seem to be forming a powerhouse tagteam so the title doesn’t really fit into this picture, which looks likely to also involve Rey Mysterio and possibly Evan Bourne, which leaves us with just two candidates.

Jericho is surely going to face Flair or Rourke at WMXXV, leaving Cena as the only viable winner. But then as I’ve said many times, I’ve been wrong before and I’m perfectly willing to accept that I could be wrong again.

Smackdown’s Elimination Chamber

Of all the matches on the card this is the one I’m looking forward to the most, as it is the one that could go in a number of different ways.

If anything I’d have liked to see Vladimir Kozlov or The Big Show removed and Matt Hardy introduced in place as there is clearly unfinished business between him and Jeff and this would have been a great jumping off point for their feud.

I can’t quite decide who’s going to win this one, but Edge is probably the best bet, so I’ll stick my neck on the line and say him.

This concludes my additional content on No Way Out 2009. Live results will be published Here as they happen, so please check back with us, bookmark that page, join the mailing list or add the RSS to your reader!

JayD