As it stands, the full card for WrestleMania 39 has yet to be settled in more ways than one. Not only do we not know at least a handful of matches that are yet to be confirmed, but we also don’t have any matches definitively set for either particular night.
When you factor in the possibility WWE treats the SmackDown prior to WrestleMania as another “WrestleMania SmackDown” episode and almost a third night in and of itself like the previous two years, that complicates things even further.
But seeing as how WWE has done such little to promote the Hall of Fame ahead of time and is rushing at the last minute, it wouldn’t shock me at all if we don’t learn the full lineup for Night 1 and Night 2 of WrestleMania 39 until just a few days beforehand—if not on the Friday prior.
Working with what we currently know, what we can assume will be on the card, and some of my random fantasy booking suggestions that may not necessarily be in the works, here are my suggestions for how to balance out WrestleMania Weekend 2023.
Matches Yet to Be Announced / Confirmed
- It seems like they’re sticking to this Bobby Lashley vs. Bray Wyatt nonsense, despite how the feud has no storyline, nor any heat to it. I’m incorporating that on the card, even though if I were running things, this naturally never would have been an idea.
- Dominik Mysterio vs. Rey Mysterio seems like a lock.
- Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn vs. The Usos has to happen.
- I’m expecting Drew McIntyre and Sheamus to have a Triple Threat against Gunther.
- The Ronda Rousey situation has me perplexed. Do they do double-duty with Rousey and Shayna Baszler fighting Becky Lynch and Lita on whatever night the six-woman tag doesn’t happen? Well, I have an alternate suggestion.
- I’m not expecting anything else to be announced as far as matches go. Triple H supposedly wants a smaller card, and when last year had 7 and 9 matches (but some were shorter), that means we’re looking at 6-7 matches per night at most.
Friday Night SmackDown
I do expect the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal to return on the SmackDown prior to WrestleMania, rather than to be on the card itself. They don’t even seem like they want to do kickoff matches anymore to put it on there, sadly. Check out my fantasy booking breakdown of that match if you’re interested in specifics of what I’d do with people like Solo Sikoa (my pick to win), Damian Priest, Karrion Kross, Santos Escobar, Otis and more.
I would also suggest having Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler beat Becky Lynch and Lita for the tag team titles on this show. Damage CTRL interferes and costs Becky and Lita the match to give even more heat to their six-woman tag. This also frees up Rousey and Baszler to fight other women at WrestleMania to get other names on the card.
Who? Well, I think on top of all the other promos that would be peppered in for the 2 hours, one of them should be Adam Pearce settling on 3 other teams to fight Ronda and Shayna. In my ideal world, it would be Liv Morgan and Tegan Nox together, Natalya and Raquel Rodriguez together, and Carmella with Chelsea Green. Nattie and Tegan seem like a unit lately, though, so let’s just say Nattie/Tegan, Liv/Raquel and Carmella/Chelsea. Fatal 4-Way for the tag titles added to the card. Alternatively, just slot in the Ronda/Shayna vs. Becky/Lita thing and nix the other names.
Night 1 and Night 2 Main Event Options
- Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes absolutely has to go on last for Night 2.
- The way I see it, the two main options for the main event of Night 1 are A) Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens vs. The Usos or B) Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley. My ideal scenario would be the tag title match, but I could very easily see WWE thinking they need to put Flair/Ripley on to avoid criticism of not having a women’s match in one of the two main events.
- Logan Paul vs. Seth Rollins and John Cena vs. Austin Theory are two other matches that could go on for the finale of Night 1, but I think those aren’t as likely or justifiable compared to the other two.
- Assuming the women’s match goes on last for the first night, I would think the next best spot for the tag title match would be the opener of Night 2 to get the crowd hot.
SUGGESTED LINEUP – NIGHT 1
- Opener = Intercontinental Championship Triple Threat Match: Drew McIntyre vs. Gunther vs. Sheamus
- Dominik Mysterio vs. Rey Mysterio
- Brock Lesnar vs. Omos
- Six-Woman Tag Team Match: Damage CTRL vs. Becky Lynch, Lita & Trish Stratus
- Whatever Gimmick Match They’re Planning: Bobby Lashley vs. Bray Wyatt
- SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley
- Promo Segment featuring LA Knight
- Main Event = Tag Team Championship Match: Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. The Usos
Start off hot. I think Sheamus wins the belt by pinning McIntyre to keep Gunther from looking weak. A title change to kick off Mania is always a good idea, particularly after what I’m sure will be a great brawl between those three.
Dom and Rey aren’t going to have the best match, but it is still an interesting segment. Keep the crowd somewhat hot, but dip them down.
Lesnar and Omos are DEFINITELY not going to have a long or complicated match. This is a potential bathroom break for some people and you can bookend it with promos and commercials to make that even more so. But Lesnar will do his big moves and pop the crowd and then, likely, leave the arena, since he likes going on early for Night 1.
Reward the crowd for sitting through that segment by giving them the legends and the six-woman tag. This has more time, for sure.
I’m assuming Lashley vs. Wyatt will be some sort of gimmick match like the Pitch Black thing. I also assume it will be garbage. So let’s use that as the definitive bathroom break for people wanting to walk away for a moment.
Semi-main goes to Flair vs. Ripley. Boooo, we have a new champion. But also, yaaay we have a new champion. I don’t think the crowd reaction is going to be super hot for this, so I don’t think it is smart to have it as the main event of Night 1 or an opener.
Judging by the reaction he got in Madison Square Garden this past weekend, I think you need to have a promo segment with LA Knight. Ideally, this is the rumor that Stone Cold Steve Austin will do something with him (likely give him a stunner and that’s about it). Huge pop for the crowd. Not something they HAVE to see as far as matches go. It allows people to calm down a bit while also hyping them up for the main event.
Main event goes to Zayn and Owens winning the tag titles. Everyone’s happy and looking back on the night with fond eyes because you left them with a good lasting impression and a good opener.
SUGGESTED LINEUP – NIGHT 2
- Opener = Hell in a Cell Match: Edge vs. Finn Balor
- Raw Women’s Championship Match: Bianca Belair vs. Asuka
- Logan Paul vs. Seth Rollins
- Promo Segment = The Miz
- Women’s Tag Team Championship Match: Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler vs. either Becky Lynch and Lita OR 3 other teams (Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez, Natalya/Tegan Nox, and Carmella/Chelsea Green)
- United States Championship Match: Austin Theory vs. John Cena
- Hall of Fame Parade
- Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match: Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes
Start off hot again. Well, as hot as you can get. Brood Edge against Demon Balor inside Hell in a Cell is something that doesn’t deserve a full year of a build in my mind, but on paper, people will lose their shit over it, I’m sure. Plus, you can set up the cage the night before and that saves time on the card you can give to other matches, instead of needing some downtime filler bumper stuff.
There is ZERO heat to Belair vs. Asuka other than that we all know how great they are. Shame on WWE for not building this whatsoever. All they keep doing is staring at each other. So despite how awesome both Superstars happen to be, they cannot be treated like this is Andre vs. Hogan or whatever. This is a good spot for them in my mind where they can show off their talents and not be in a death spot.
Logan Paul and Seth Rollins will probably have a great match. I’m expecting some bumper segments beforehand, so this will effectively kick off hour 2 (minus the kickoff hour, of course).
Ideally, The Miz has a segment here as the host that involves a legend. In my mind, I’d love to see The Rock show up and then, factor that into the main event.
Women’s tag team title match is next. Whether it’s a Fatal 4-Way or just Becky and Lita pulling double-duty, I think this is in a similar semi-death-spot like Wyatt vs. Lashley. Sorry, but it just isn’t going to be the highest priority.
Ramp things back up to Theory against Cena for the United States title. This is going to get some boos when (hopefully) Theory retains. But you need to allow yourself a disappointment before the main event. Also, since Cena’s there, it wakes up anyone who wasn’t interested in the women’s title match, as there unfortunately just are people who will immediately write off a women’s division match as boring no matter what.
Buffer segment before the main event is the Hall of Fame parade. It acts as a bathroom break for people who don’t want to miss Cody against Roman, but it also brings in some smiles after Theory winning beforehand.
Finally, the night ends with Cody Rhodes beating Roman Reigns. In my ideal scenario, we see Zayn, Owens and The Rock help fight off The Usos and Solo Sikoa, and we end WrestleMania with everyone celebrating and pulling a WrestleMania 10, holding up Cody like Bret Hart was received.
What do you think the lineup should be for these nights? Drop your ideas in the comments below!
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