Jim Ross has shared his booking predictions for WWE Clash in Italy on May 31, telling Grilling JR that he would put the Undisputed WWE Championship on Gunther over Cody Rhodes, pick Oba Femi over Brock Lesnar, and keep the World Heavyweight Championship on Roman Reigns over Jacob Fatu.
The booking conversation came up across the back half of the Grilling JR episode, with Ross offering his read on each of the three top Clash in Italy matches.
On the Cody Rhodes vs Gunther WWE Championship match, Ross would make the title change.
“I put the belt on Gunther. It’s a change, it’s a change for the better. Gunther has got a lot of credibility, and he’s over. A big win against Cody in a hell of a match. This strengthens the roster, it gets another guy over, and so then you can start fresh to Gunther and his opponents. There are plenty of them, and I’m trying to think who I’d go with early, but they got a lot of good young talents, and they need exposure to these young talents.”
He talked about the broader booking logic around the title change.
“I like Gunther a lot, as you could tell, but I think I just want to stir things up a little bit, and what I suggested isn’t outlandish or ridiculous. Cody is a made man. Him getting a big win is a good thing, so I had a hard time remembering those shows.”
On the Brock Lesnar vs Oba Femi match, Ross picked Femi.
“Oba. Well, Brock’s over, and it’s not going to kill you for him to have a loss, especially against a monster of a man like Oba. So I would probably be building for the future. I go with a young guy in a tight, close, hard-hitting match, and then take it from there. If we see that these two guys have chemistry, then it didn’t really matter a hell lot who goes over, but if I were booking it, I would go with Oba. He looks great, he’s a big guy, new, he’s fresh, and wrestling fans like new and new matches and new marriages, so I hang my black hat on Oba to get a win here.”
Femi defeated Lesnar at WrestleMania 42, with the Clash in Italy rematch giving him the opportunity to close the door on the program with a second consecutive win. Cody Rhodes separately picked Femi to win on ESPN Unsportsmanlike.
On the Roman Reigns vs Jacob Fatu Tribal Combat match, Ross kept the title on Reigns.
“I’ll stay with Roman, and I expect Roman to make Jacob Fatu a star. They got all the tools, physically, mentally, motivationally. So I’m going to go with Roman now. Don’t take any of this information like I have insider dirt, of course I don’t. I don’t want somebody saying, well, I used JR’s picks, and I lost every damn match. So be aware, gamblers, beware.”
The Reigns pick puts Ross in contrast with Cody Rhodes, who predicted on ESPN Unsportsmanlike that he thinks Fatu’s night might be coming. Ross’s read is that Reigns is the better long-term booking option as the wrestler who can elevate Fatu to a star through the program rather than through a single title win.
Clash in Italy airs May 31 from the Inalpi Arena in Turin, Italy. The full card includes Cody Rhodes vs GUNTHER for the Undisputed WWE Championship, Roman Reigns vs Jacob Fatu in Tribal Combat for the World Heavyweight Championship, Brock Lesnar vs Oba Femi, and Rhea Ripley vs Jade Cargill for the Women’s Championship.
If you use quotes from this article, please credit Grilling JR and include a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
