Yes, on both accounts:
1) That, is one hell of a god-awful poster for a wrestling Pay-Per-view (PPV).
2) It is time for yet another edition for our regular wrestling PPV preview as we take on quite likely the WWE show with the worst buy-rate of the year, Capitol Punishment.

Taking place tonight at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.. WWE presents Capitol Punishment, following what we called one of the worst titled WWE PPV ever, Over the Limit. Has business picked up ever since the mostly dreadful show?

Christian is still chasing the World Heavyweight Title back from Randy Orton, while Ezekiel Jackson is still facing Wade Barrett for the Intercontinental Title. Taking a further step into nauseating nostalgia, CM Punk take on Rey Mysterio yet again for those who are actually keeping the score (which is something along the line of 2368-3429), while Dolph Ziggler faces Kofi Kingston again for another secondary title of the show.

That said, we got R-Truth in his first-ever WWE Title shot against reigning champion John Cena while Alex Riley turns on his former mentor for one hell of a grudge match. And in an interesting development no one really saw coming, the announced match-ups in this PPV actually consisted of zero gimmick matches, with a total of seven straight one-on-one wrestling matches.

So, while things might not looked as bad as it initially seemed, the atrocious fake Obama press conferences and the commentators's unbearable way of reacting to them has been a reliable source of despair throughout the month. Just so you know how glad we are to have the PPV getting over and done with.

Incidentally, Over the Limit brought WWE PPVs to a new low, with a dismal 65,000 domestic pay-per-view buys, just 10,000 more than the lowest domestic buyrate in WWE history at December to Dismember. Will Capitol Punishment continue the worrying decline or are we looking at a rebound from WWE in this one?

We scored a cool 7 out of 8 prediction for our prediction for Over the Limit. Will we continue our winning ways with Capitol Punishment?

All these insipid questions and more will be answered as we move on with the show (by the way, we are doing yet another bare-boned version of our regular preview as we are still in the midst of belated coverage on E3).


WWE Champion John Cena vs. R-Truth

R-Truth has truly (pardon the pun) brought his A-game in his effort to evolve his character into a strangely entertaining heel which makes for some compelling TV. Probably the single most intriguing character development that WWE currently is working on, R-Truth has catapulted himself into the World Title picture. While the match should be at worst serviceable, we fully believe that this one will be better than what the previous Miz-Cena angle offered us.

Predicted Winner: John Cena
While R-Truth's gradual fall from grace has been interesting to watch, I still opined that it is still yet too soon for him to face Cena for the World Title. So it goes without saying that it is yet too soon for him to have his first World Title reign.


World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton vs. Christian
Without a doubt, the most anticipated match of the night. While this is the second sequel of the match-up that started on the first Smackdown after Christian won the title, I suspect we are not getting the fatigue of the match-up, especially after the stellar performances of both Orton and Christian at Over the Limit. Although the fact that Orton suffered a concussion just last week will not doubt affect the overall quality of the match, there are little doubt that this is going to be the match of the night.

Predicted Winner: Randy Orton
While Christian's heel turn expectedly happened, it surprisingly did not work out all that well for the fact that the fans still supporting the Captain Charisma.

With Orton's concussion, it is actually very likely that WWE will hand the title to Christian for his second title reign, picking on the smaller-time faces while allowing Orton to recuperate till a final confrontation at August's SummerSlam. However, with Money in the Bank in the corner next month, we can't help but agreed that Christian is likely the person to win the Smackdown MITB and take on Orton from there.


Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk

Yes, I could have almost sworn we have seen this match before... until I realized the fact that we actually did... for like the better part of the year 2010.

Nevertheless, based on the frequency of how both Mysterio and Punk faces each other, I bet they could done this one in their sleep. Which means that a well-executed match can be expected.

Predicted Winners: CM Punk
Probably the one result that we are most uncomfortable about. Both are currently running out of momentum but Punk has his New Nexus to take care of.


Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett vs. Ezekiel Jackson

While the match-up is a direct rematch from Over the Limit, Barrett is now officially Corre-less and can only work out a win by screwing over Jackson. While last month's match-up is far from being a classic, it is functional and this one should have no problem surpassing themselves.

Predicted Winners: Ezekiel Jackson
Barrett's credential has been hurt badly in recent times, ever since the formation of The Corre. And it would be even worse if the title switch were to happened in round one of the feud. I wouldn't say the same for round two though.


United States Champion Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler

For those who enjoyed Ziggler and Kingston's feud over the Intercontinental Title, you might be thrilled to know WWE is rebooting the same storyline with one notable difference: It is set in Raw instead of Smackdown and this time round, the secondary title is United States Championship. This should be good.

Predicted Winners: Dolph Ziggler
It makes perfect sense for Ziggler to rise from mediocrity for the last couple of weeks at Raw.


Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio

With both Big Show and Alberto Del Rio having no particular role this month, they have been arranged for a match-up, buying time for the inevitable Cena vs. Del Rio to happen at SummerSlam.

Predicted Winners: Alberto Del Rio
One way or the other, Del Rio is keeping his momentum till SummerSlam.

Alex Riley vs. The Miz

Perhaps the most story-driven match-up that had surprisingly won over the fans. We have yet to see Riley perform at such a stage, so expect him to bring his A-game to the show.

Predicted Winners: The Miz
While The Miz has been the "beatable" champion during his notable title reign, it is highly unlikely for a relative rookie like Riley to defeat him at such a stage, taking away all the hard-fought credibility that he earned before WrestleMania.


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The Rundown

That above is an awkward video, just like how this is an awkward show. Thankfully we have Part 3 of Christian vs. Orton to look out for. Mysterio vs. Punk, while certifiably cool, has lost its freshness back when it got certified. All in all, this is not a PPV we are really keen about.