We've reached the final WWE pay-per-view event of 2020 as the annual TLC show goes down on Sunday from inside the ThunderDome at Tropicana Field in Tampa, Florida. TLC not only marks the final major event of the year, but it also signals that WrestleMania season is on the horizon with the Royal Rumble looming in January.
The event traditionally features one or two Tables, Ladders and Chairs matches along with tables matches, ladder matches and other gimmick bouts including the same weapons as featured in the eponymous match. The stage is still being set for the event and many more matches are set to be made official in the coming weeks, along with the stipulations assigned to those matchups.
The show will stream live on WWE Network beginning at 7 p.m. ET following a one-hour kickoff show at 6 p.m.
Let's have a look below at what we know -- and what we expect -- for WWE TLC.
WWE TLC card
Universal Championship -- Roman Reigns (c) vs. Kevin Owens (TLC Match): After a blistering performance by Owens on the Nov. 27 edition of SmackDown in beating down Jey Uso while demanding Reigns come out to face him, it was clear this match was going to happen. Owens eventually threw down the challenge for not only a match but a TLC match and Reigns agreed -- though he declined to let Owens get his hands on him ahead of the bout.
WWE Championship -- Drew McIntyre (c) vs. AJ Styles (TLC Match): Styles punched his ticket to a title shot by winning a mini-tournament, defeating Riddle and Keith Lee in the triple threat semifinal match. McIntyre looks to be done with Randy Orton (for now) but is still dealing with the threat of Mr. Money in the Bank, The Miz. In addition, Sheamus has seemed close to turning on McIntyre and could play a factor either in the build to TLC or in the match itself.
SmackDown Women's Championship -- Sasha Banks (c) vs. Carmella: Carmella attacked Banks for several weeks in a row, leading Banks to eventually grant a title shot at the pay-per-view. Carmella's angle is that while Banks has had to work hard for everything in her career, Carmella simply walked into the Performance Center and became a star, having a longer title reign than all of Banks' reigns combined.
"The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton: This story has done a lot of calling back to the feud between the two in 2017, a feud that was largely a meme-creating disaster. Still, Orton burned down the Wyatt compound in 2017 and that has provided some fodder for the storytelling here -- the House of Horrors match from the same year, not so much. Orton has found The Fiend's weakness in threatening an attack on Alexa Bliss. WWE has created a sort of standard path for Wyatt feuds where you get one match with Wyatt in his standard "personality" before another in the following month where The Fiend emerges. That seemed like the route WWE would go with this match to stretch things out to Royal Rumble, but they instead have announced that it will be "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt in action.
Women's Tag Team Championship -- Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Asuka & TBD: Jax and Baszler had tormented Lana, putting her through the announce table as a weekly ritual for more than two months. Lana then was the fluke sole survivor in the women's Survivor Series elimination match, infuriating Jax. She then teamed with Asuka for two weeks to score wins over Jax and Baszler on Raw. Lana managed another victory over Jax in singles action, only to be attacked by Jax and Baszler after the match. As a result of the attack, Lana was removed from the match and Asuka will have to find a new partner.
Raw Tag Team Championship -- The New Day (c) vs. The Hurt Business: Things are clearly not over between The New Day and The Hurt Business. Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods have been getting the better of Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander, but the Hurt Business members have gotten in their own wins as well, even in questionable situations, like Alexander beating Kingston just moments after Kingston finished defeating Benjamin.
Big E, Daniel Bryan, Otis & Chad Gable vs. Sami Zayn, King Corbin, Cesaro & Shinsuke Nakamura (Kickoff show): This kickoff match featuring the plethora of SmackDown talent was announced hours before the PPV on Sunday.
