WWE Fastlane preview & predictions: ‘So you’re saying Nakamura has a chance’

While WWE Fastlane might not look the strongest on paper, it could end up being a solidly decent pay-per-view/premium live event.

WWE has both a Saudi Arabia event and Survivor Series next month, so anything big the company has planned is going to be saved for one of those two shows. Fastlane is definitely a B-level PPV, but there will be some good matches and likely some significant storyline developments as well. 

Whatever happens with John Cena Saturday should be interesting. It feels likely that he will be at Crown Jewel on November 4th, so what happens on Saturday could build to his match on that show. 

It’s also possible that we see someone win their first World title in WWE on Saturday. While Shinsuke Nakamura might not be the favorite to win his match with Seth Rollins, it’s also not impossible he walks away with the belt. “It could happen” seems an accurate way to describe his chances.  

Fastlane will likely set the stage for Survivor Series as well. As far as anyone knows, WarGames is coming back again this year and it appears WWE has been building an angle for the men’s match in recent weeks. A Judgment Day team featuring Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh vs. Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Cody Rhodes & Jey Uso is the likely direction and a significant chapter in that story could be written Saturday.

Here’s a preview, predictions and some odds for Saturday’s event from Indianapolis, Indiana:

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins (-500 favorite) defends against Shinsuke Nakamura in a Last Man Standing match

It’s unlikely that Nakamura beats Rollins to win the title, but it could happen. The oddsmakers aren’t ruling him out, and he’s not even the biggest underdog of the night.

It feels early for Rollins to drop the title, but he could lose the belt to Nakamura only to regain it at Crown Jewel, Survivor Series, or even just on a Monday night when WWE really wants to pull in a good rating.

Several factors will impact whether or not Nakamura wins the belt here. The first and foremost of those is whether it’s Vince McMahon or Triple H booking the show as it’s tough to get a handle on who really has the final say right now. It feels like the shows are mostly Paul Levesque, but with a little Vince sprinkled on top from time to time.

Another factor is what the long-term plan is for the angle that Rollins has been wrestling through a significant back injury. It could be to allow him to lose the title to Nakamura while “fighting valiantly against the odds” thus keeping him strong. Another possibility is this is the start of a larger story where the physical toll of being a fighting champion continues to wear him down. This would be similar to Orange Cassidy’s run with the AEW International title where he gradually got more beat up with every title defense.

I’m not going to go as far as to say I think Nakamura is going to win. It’s still more likely that Rollins retains. Stranger things have happened, though. Nakamura’s definitely got a chance. 

Prediction: Rollins

John Cena & LA Knight (-5000 favorites) vs. Jimmy Uso & Solo Sikoa

To put this in perspective, the betting world feels Cena and Knight are 10 times more likely to beat Uso and Sikoa than Rollins is to beat Nakamura. I don’t know if that’s more of a comment on Nakamura having a chance to win the title or The Bloodline not having any chance at all, however.

Everything here is lined up for a feel-good babyface win. WWE is not going to have Cena get pinned when he’ll likely have a big match in Saudi Arabia next month. It would also be a pretty questionable call to have Knight eat a pin or submit right now. Meanwhile, Uso and Sikoa not seeing eye-to-eye and it costing them the match fits snuggly with their storyline. 

The real interesting part of this match will be how the Bloodline story advances. The result is not in question.

Prediction: Cena & Knight

WWE Women’s Champion IYO SKY (-300 favorite) defends against Charlotte Flair (+400) and Asuka (+400) in a three-way

Flair is never without a title for long and I imagine she’s going to walk away from Fastlane as the champion. If she does, it will be her 15th world title win, inching her closer to both her father and Cena.

WWE is all about monumental achievements and historical championship runs at the moment. With Gunther, The Usos, and Roman Reigns, the story has been about historically long reigns. With Flair, it’s about chasing the total number of times she’s won the belt. This, of course, makes no sense from a sporting perspective but it’s a stat WWE has traditionally said is important.

The logical question is why would a champion be rewarded for frequently losing a title rather than having a lengthy reign consisting of many successful defenses? Regardless, WWE believes this to be an important statistic, and putting the title back on Flair as soon as possible allows them to play it up as something special.

Prediction: Flair wins the title

LWO (Rey Mysterio, Santos Escobar & a mystery partner) vs. Bobby Lashley & The Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) (-1000 favorites)

On the surface, a win for Lashley and the Street Profits seems a lock here. After all, it’s a new faction that WWE will want to build up by winning their first big match together, right?

I’m not so sure what the direction is for Ford and Dawkins with Lashley. I’m also worried WWE doesn’t really know either.

They’ve already teased that Ford and Dawkins won’t go to the dirty underhanded lengths Lashley will to get a win. I wouldn’t be shocked if Ford and Dawkins don’t end up staying in this group and are possibly replaced by some other guys who align with Lashley. I’m not sure trying to turn the Street Profits heel was an altogether great idea as it doesn’t feel like the fans want to cheer against them.

I don’t see Lashley and the Profits winning as the slam dunk the oddsmakers do, but I do think they’ll likely win. Still, I feel it’s more likely that Ford and Dawkins end up feuding against Lashley in the long run than staying aligned with him. 

And then, there’s the intrigue about the mystery partner for the LWO. Who could it be?

Prediction: Lashley & Street Profits

WWE Undisputed Tag Team Champions The Judgment Day (Finn Balor & Damian Priest) (-300 favorites) defend against Cody Rhodes & Jey Uso

This match could go either way, but I think it’s more likely Priest and Balor retain the titles. 

There have been teases that Judgment Day is a little unstable right now but I’m not expecting anyone to leave the group or there to be any type of split until, at least, after Survivor Series. 

The real fun part about this will be how it potentially builds to WarGames. Last year’s men’s match was pretty fun and it’ll be interesting to see what Triple H has planned for this year. It feels like Judgment Day will play a similar role in the double ring cage match to what The Bloodline did last year. This is assuming he has creative control at the moment, of course, and that WarGames is being brought back this year.

I’m expecting Balor and Priest to retain, probably with some help from JD McDonagh, which would then motivate Priest to finally accept him into the group officially.

Prediction: Judgment Day