For the first time in five years, the WWE is bringing back the King of the Ring tournament with a field of eight Superstars looking to conquer the throne and wear the crown.
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The King of the Ring has been a stepping stone for many stars since its inception in 1985 and has been hosted on-and-off throughout the years.
Hall of Famers such as "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Bret "Hitman" Hart, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Edge and Booker T have won the honor in the past while legendary names like Owen Hart and Triple H have also been kings.
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The WWE will air Round 1 on Monday Night RAW this week and the semifinals and finals will air especially on the WWE Network on Tuesday.
The 2015 @WWE #KingOfTheRing Tournament kicks off TONIGHT on Monday Night #Raw! More details: https://t.co/Dwh7m3Ysq2 pic.twitter.com/gM4p8AA49d
— WWE (@WWE) April 27, 2015
It's a bit of a shame that this was slapped together with little to no buildup, but that pretty much is how it's always been ever since the pay-per-view stretch for the event from 1993-2002 came to an end. Still, it's nice to at least see the WWE embracing history.
The WWE could have added more intrigue to this bout with actual buildup and qualification matches while it also would have been nice if they found a way to draw seeds to make the matchups more meaningful, possibly by having a battle royal to determine the seeding.
The company has instead randomly released the matchups as Dolph Ziggler will battle Bad News Barrett, Stardust will take on R-Truth, 2010 King of the Ring winner Sheamus will clash with Dean Ambrose and Neville will go head-to-head with Luke Harper.
Here are our round-by-round predictions:
Round 1 -- Quarterfinals
Ziggler vs. Barrett
This should be a fun match between two former Intercontinental Champions and should get the tournament off to a nice start assuming that the WWE is going in the order that they released on the bracket.
Ziggler has been buried a lot by the WWE and Barrett could be in line for a big win after falling to Neville at Extreme Rules, but it seems better for "The Showoff" to go far in this tournament.
The Pick: Ziggler.
Stardust vs. R-Truth
This one can pretty much go either way as both men have sort of been floundering around the midcard. The WWE still seems to be big on Stardust, so he'll likely advance to the second round.
The Pick: Stardust.
Sheamus vs. Ambrose
Sheamus is defending his 2010 crown and he suffered a loss to Ziggler at Extreme Rules which was surprising considering he just turned heel, so it's likely he'll win. Ambrose is a great talent, but he is constantly misused by the company as his win over Harper at Extreme Rules was his first pay-per-view win since The Shield split up last June. The WWE will likely go with a Sheamus win here.
The Pick: Sheamus.
Neville vs. Harper
Neville has been a breath of fresh air in the WWE and continues to impress every time he is in the ring while Harper has sort of been struggling to break out from the middle of the pack. Seems like a no-brainer that Neville should advance here.
The Pick: Neville
Round 2 -- Semifinals
Ziggler vs. Stardust
Ziggler will have the crowd behind him and he's been on a huge role, so it would make sense that he'd overcome Stardust to get to the finals.
The Pick: Ziggler
Sheamus vs. Neville
The WWE is likely building toward an Extreme Rules rematch with Sheamus and Ziggler, but it should really consider putting Neville vs. Ziggler in the finals as it would totally steal the show. While I'm almost certain "The Celtic Warrior" will meet "The Showoff," I can't turn down a Neville win here.
The Pick: Neville
Round 3 -- Finals
Ziggler vs. Neville
This pairing could put together a Match of the Year candidate and though these two wrestled a few weeks ago, it was interrupted by Sheamus. If these two could get 15-20 minutes to do their thing it would make for a memorable final. Neville is probably too new to win the match, but the WWE owes it to Ziggler to make up for his constant burial by awarding him the 2015 King of the Ring.
The Pick: Ziggler
A new king will be crowned and join the legends of King of the Ring lore this week in the WWE.
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