Hey, folks – Owen here, otherwise known as Heel Heat in the comments section. It’s been too long since I’ve posted an article, but I’m planning to slowly get back into it. What’s a better way than to start off with some bold predictions for the thirty-fourth annual WrestleMania — which will take place this Sunday in New Orleans on the WWE Network. My goal was to keep it short and sweet and straight to the point. Enjoy. Let’s get started, shall we?
Pre-Show
Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Okay, first off, I honestly and personally couldn’t care less about this match and it’s outcome. Nothing valuable comes out of it, why the hell should I even remotely care? The winner of the match is rewarded absolutely nothing. Battle Royal’s can actually be exciting, though, if done properly and if you add some stakes to the match – except that’s not what WWE does with this. They do it so everyone has an opportunity to get paid that WrestleMania cash.
Let’s take a quick glance back at some winners and their path just months after winning the battle royal…..Cesaro, he failed as a Paul Heyman guy, big mistake from the get-go. Aside from that, all I can remember is Jack Swagger destroying the trophy; Big Show, I honestly don’t even remember what happened with him afterwards, which goes to show how much it meant. Baron Corbin was next. I guess he received a bit of a push with the money in the bank briefcase, but we all know he failed to cash-in right before SummerSlam, so again, nothing significant. And finally, my personal favorite – Mojo Rawley! How exciting was that, guys?! Boy, what a memorable moment with Jinder Mahal and Rob Gronkowski! They at least could’ve had Jinder win it, since he actually became WWE Champion later on. Whereas Mojo had nothing but a lame heel turn shortly after.
Anyway, enough of that nonsense, let’s get to the prediction. We have the likes of Matt Hardy and once again, Baron Corbin, along with possibly Bray Wyatt and perhaps a few returning superstars that could very well be victorious in this one, but I have a feeling we’re all going to be walking with Elias after this years men’s battle royal. Why? I don’t know, he just sticks out more than the field to me. Hopefully they do something big with him going forward, he’s a talented dude.
Prediction – Elias
Woman’s Battle Royal
I don’t have enough thoughts to offer for this match, besides the fact that Bayley vs. Sasha Banks should be taking place instead. The entire roster being on the card is unnecessary – only the ones who truly deserve it should be a part of WrestleMania, that goes for men and women. This match is just like the Andre battle royal, it’ll presumably lead to nothing, so who cares.
If WWE is smart, they’ll have it come down to Sasha and Bayley and they’ll do something with them to further advance their feud. I take it we’ll likely see the Bella Twins and perhaps some similar faces like we’ve seen at the Royal Rumble, but I don’t think any of those girls will win. It’s a flip of a coin – I choose either Bayley or Sasha Banks.
Prediction – Bayley or Sasha Banks
Cruiserweight Championship:
Mustafa Ali vs. Cedric Alexander
The tournament on 205 Live was pretty good, with some great matches – at least the ones I’ve been able to catch. It all culminates this Sunday as Mustafa Ali and Cedric Alexander battle it out. Both guys are great talent, but I really like Ali in this one.
Prediction – Mustafa Ali
Now, to the main card. Note: Although it’ll most likely happen, I will not be touching on the Cena/Taker match or any other impromptu matches, strictly the confirmed matches.
Here we go……
Main Card
RAW Women’s Championship:
Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Nia Jax
One of the most boring, dull storylines going into ‘Mania. The build consisted of Nia getting bullied over and over again – that’s literally it. Nothing to really dive into or divulge concerning this match. Who do I want? Alexa Bliss. Who do I predict, however, Nia Jax.
Prediction – Nia Jax
SmackDown Tag Team Championship: The Usos (c) vs. Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day
Finally, the Usos are on the main card, right? Well, they deserve it, and they have been constantly proving that on PPV’s. The New Day and the Usos usually put on some decent matches together, now add the former Wyatt Family members, Harper and Rowan, and we have the formula for a pretty physical bout. I think this tag match will be one of the best matches of the night, no doubt. I can genuinely see anyone win this one, however, I’ll go with my gut and pick the Usos to retain. Where they go from here, I don’t know, we’ll see, but I don’t think the Usos are ready to let go of the championships just yet.
Prediction – The Usos
RAW Tag Team Championship:
The Bar (c) vs. Braun Strowman & ????
Okay, here we go, folks. Who’s Braun Strowman’s partner? Does he have one, or is he going to go in alone even though the executives said he needed a partner in order to be eligible to compete for the Raw Tag Titles?
Let’s break it down….
My initial thought or prediction was Elias, since he and Braun had a little feud going just before the Bar got involved. Looks to me like Elias is entering the Andre Battle Royal, and as I stated, I think he’s winning it.
So, who does that leave?
Well, I heard the likes of Goldberg stepping up, assuming he’d still be in New Orleans after getting inducted into the hall of fame a couple nights prior. But I don’t think so, it would make zero sense. It’d make it pretty evident that The Bar is retaining, as I’m 99.9% certain Bill wouldn’t stick around to defend the titles. Goldberg is completely out of the question if you ask me. Not even worth contemplating, it’s just a messy situation. Okay, again, then who? Bray Wyatt? No, he’s at the bottom of a lake. Bobby Lashley? It would be a sight to behold, but nope. Samoa Joe? Perhaps, but I don’t see Joe in this match, personally. Big Cass? Nah. Try, Big Show. Yes, Big Show is my pick. I’m sure I’m not the only one choosing him as it’s been exceedingly obvious the past week or so. Show signed a new multi-year contract and it’s been rumored he’d be Braun’s mystery partner ever since. Thus, I’m siding with the majority on this one, Big Show. He and Strowman mesh well together as opponents, will they work just as well as tag partners? I think we’ll get the opportunity to see exactly that.
Prediction – Braun Strowman & Big Show
United States Championship:
Randy Orton (c) vs. Bobby Roode vs. Rusev vs. Jinder Mahal
All right, yeah….this one’s my piss break. I have no interest in this match whatsoever. Randy Orton can be good when he wants to be, but he’s been boring for how long now? Bobby Roode, man, that dude needs to be a heel, this whole babyface thing is not working out. Jinder, WWE Champion not too long ago, now finds himself in the United States Championship hunt – where he belongs – in the mid-card. And finally, Rusev, who’s been praised like crazy the past few months – deservedly so, the guy is good. He was added recently in an attempt to bring some sort of excitement to the match, because let’s face it, nobody cared initially. Perhaps people still don’t….like me, but I don’t speak for everyone. By all means, if this is the match you’re most looking forward to, kudos to you, have fun watching it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of Bobby Roode and Rusev, and at times Randy Orton, but I just can’t find myself eagerly anticipating this fatal four way.
With all that said, who walks out of New Orleans with the United States title? Jinder Mahal. Why? Because it just makes sense and it fits, I guess. I don’t care enough about this story to elaborate. Moving on.
Prediction – Jinder Mahal
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. Shane McMahon & Daniel Bryan
Daniel Bryan is back! And I am absolutely stoked for him. One of the best wrestlers in the world gets to shine once again. This is one of the most intriguing matches of the weekend and there are many questions leading into it: How will Daniel Bryan do? Will Owens and Zayn remain fired? Will Shane do something stupid and dangerous that may or may not kill him? Hell, who will be the new Smackdown GM after all this? Many unanswered questions.
I have to say, I’m looking forward to this one. It makes all the sense in the world for Bryan to be victorious being that it is his first match back and all, but if he wins, what happens with Owens and Zayn? Well, Raw is always an option for the duo, which I think is what will transpire if they are defeated, because obviously they aren’t legitimately fired from the company. Although, there is one thing that has always clicked with Bryan, and that’s a chase – a chase for victory. Thus, if he suffers defeat, his fans aren’t going anywhere, no need to be in a hurry to hand him a win. Owens and Zayn will come out on top, SmackDown needs them, they’ve been carrying Tuesday nights on their backs for who knows how long.
Prediction – Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn
Intercontinental Championship:
The Miz (c) vs. Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins
Honky Tonk Man currently holds the record for being the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion in WWE history at an impressive 454 days. I foresee Miz winning this match and breaking that record with his current reign in due time – he deserves that recognition. I can’t envision Seth Rollins being the triumphant winner, because WWE notoriously has the loser of said match stand tall the week before the PPV event, which is what Rollins did this past Monday on Raw. And I just can’t see the company handing the title off to Finn Bálor at this time – simple as that. If it was entirely up to me, as a big fan of his work, I’d choose Bálor, but as an unbiased spectator, I have to go with Miz on this one.
Prediction – The Miz
SmackDown Women’s Championship: Charlotte (c) vs. Asuka
This match is going to be great. Probably the two biggest names in the women’s division today, competing for the SmackDown Women’s Championship. There’s a number of outcomes that are possible: An obvious and predictable Asuka victory; Charlotte just straight up defeats Asuka; Carmella cashes in and becomes champion. There are some scheduled post-WrestleMania live event cards floating around that shows Charlotte going up against Carmella for the title, which may indicate that we’re going to witness an Asuka loss. Of course, as always, the card is subject to change – and I think that’s the case here. Asuka is winning that title and holding it until next years WrestleMania where she’ll defend against the 2019 Royal Rumble winner, Ronda Rousey. But that’s in the future. As far as this Sunday goes, she’s walking out as the champ and will perform on the Smackdown Live brand moving forward.
Prediction – Asuka
Kurt Angle & Ronda Rousey vs. Triple H & Stephanie McMahon
This is another one I’m, to an extent, looking forward to. I’m interested in how Rousey will do in her first match in WWE. However, I don’t see her doing much, she’s going to be heavily protected, as she should be. Triple H and Kurt Angle will work the majority of this match for obvious reasons. However, in the end, it’ll come down to Rousey and Stephanie, and my bold prediction is Rousey will “break” Stephanie’s arm to earn her first victory. She’s been loud about doing just that, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t go through with that angle.
Prediction – Ronda Rousey & Kurt Angle
WWE Championship:
AJ Styles (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Seemingly everyone’s favourite match on the card. I can’t quite say it’s mine, but it’ll be good nonetheless. The build to this bout hasn’t really been all that special. All they truly did was attempt their respective signature moves on one another only to hold back, along with a few worthless, meaningless tag matches in between. Like I said, though, it’ll still be a good match and I’ll enjoy it.
This may rub some people the wrong way, but Shinsuke Nakamura’s main roster run has been utter trash and lackluster to say the least, he’s not a believable champion to me at this point in time. Therefore, AJ is keeping the title – and rightfully so. That’s my opinion, how I’d book it, and I think that’s what the company will do as well.
To add, the only person that should be taking the WWE title from AJ Styles anytime soon is, in my honest opinion, Kevin Owens. No one else on the current SmackDown Live roster is believable enough.
Prediction – AJ Styles
WWE Universal Championship:
Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Roman Reigns
Plain and simple, Roman Reigns will win. Brock Lesnar is on his way out and will likely find his way back to the UFC. A Reigns victory – that’s all it will be. Bobby Lashley isn’t – nor is anyone else – attacking Roman after the match, like some folks were clamoring for, nothing. Reigns is winning and celebrating with the Universal Championship to close the show. Will they have a good match? Sure, perhaps. But it’s the most predictable match on the card, not really exciting, nothing to look forward to – it’s just your standard, typical, ordinary match. Nothing noteworthy will occur besides the fact that a full-time Universal Champion will emerge.
Prediction – Roman Reigns
Before I go, just for fun, I’ll predict the order of the matches, along with some additional comments.
For the first match, they tend to start off with something hot – so to speak – to get the crowd going. My bets on the Intercontinental Title match opening the show.
1. The Miz vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Bálor
Now, after the first match they’ll cool off the crowd a bit with a sleeper, so in comes the Raw Women’s Championship match.
2. Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax
The next match should be another one with a hot crowd
3. The Usos vs. Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day
Another sleeper after that one – the United States Title fatal four way match.
4. Randy Orton vs. Bobby Roode vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Rusev
5. Danial Bryan/Shane McMahon vs Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn
6. Braun Strowman/???? vs. The Bar
7. Charlotte vs. Asuka
To the “main events” we go.
8. AJ Styles vs Shinsuke Nakamura
9. Kurt Angle/Ronda Rousey vs. Triple H/Stephanie McMahon
10. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns
Thanks for reading, folks. Try to have fun this weekend. With various wrestling shows going on, there should be something in store for us all to enjoy, no matter what kind of fan you are. Take it from me, as long as my kids are happy and enjoying the show, I am too for the sake of them. If you’re in New Orleans, have a blast and be safe. That’s a wrap – Goodbye.
