WWE’s partnership with Saudi Arabia continues to strengthen on an annual basis. The 2024 Crown Jewel will take place in Riyadh on Nov. 2. A few tweaks have been made to this year’s show — potentially to boost viewership a bit for those stateside.
Whether the WWE wants to admit it or not, many matches at this specific PLE do cater to those in Saudi Arabia. We’ve seen some awful matches with over-the-hill wrestlers and ones which were utterly boring featuring foes that didn’t make a whole lot of sense.
To combat that, presumably, new stakes were introduced by Paul Levesque aka Triple H. The Champions of RAW will square off versus the Champions of SmackDown in single title matches. Neither of their actual titles will be on the line. However, the winner will get a special Crown Jewel belt which will only be recognized at this event. So, in other words, these are one-off matches for a singular belt. The results will likely have no bearing on the storylines moving forward.
Three matches are currently on the books. You can expect a handful more to be announced — potentially tonight on SmackDown — before Crown Jewel takes place. Surely, you’ll see something involving The Bloodline. One can also expect Rhea Ripley and her ongoing feud with the new version of The Judgment Day to be explored. With that out of the way, let’s make some predictions on the expected card.
Seth Rollins vs. Big Bronson Reed
Rollins has done a terrific job at getting Reed over. The big man out of Australia was rewarded by the company with this recent push. It was fully cemented when he assaulted Rollins with six Tsunami splashes off the top rope. After Rollins took some time off, he came back with a vengeance — attacking Reed multiple times. This past Monday on RAW saw the two go at one another on three separate occasions whether in the ring or backstage.
Rollins likely will win here based on the fact he’s the bigger name. But make no mistake about it…Reed has officially arrived as a real threat to win a single’s title sooner than later. We’ve not even scratched the surface of how good he is on the mic yet.
Winner: Rollins
Liv Morgan vs. Nia Jax
I don’t really know what to make of this match. The dichotomy between both wrestlers will be fascinating to watch. Liv is tiny, whereas Jax is far more physically imposing.
Jax won the Queen of the Ring tournament when in Saudia Arabia last. It doesn’t seem like the belt will be held by Morgan much longer, whereas Jax has the look of someone with a longer reign. Also, optics-wise, if you’re pushing Jax as a wrestler who mauls her opponents, having her lose to someone far tinier doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. It would in essence wear away at the persona she’s built up.
Winner: Jax
Gunther vs. Cody Rhodes
This should be the main event of the evening. You’ve got one of the biggest stars in the company versus a rising star — and one that has the look of a future Universal Title winner. The technicality in this match should be on full display. Rhodes sells with the best of them, and you’re going to feel those chops by Gunther come through the television screen with the way Rhodes will surely react to them.
As much as I’d like to see Gunther take the win here, it would hurt the aura around Rhodes. Rhodes will eventually drop the belt — most likely to Roman Reigns once again. You can’t have him getting pinned cleanly here. Unless…there’s some sort of interference. If not, Rhodes likely wins this unique belt.
Winner: Rhodes
