The Road to WrestleMania is nearing its highly anticipated conclusion at Levi’s Stadium on March 29. But,
before that date WWE is moving into the Fast Lane, the penultimate PPV event
prior to WrestleMania 31. Yet, from the look of the card on offer, they are not
exactly shifting into the fast lane, and more accurately taking a rest stop
before the show that everybody is waiting for. If anybody feels like this will
be enough to lure subscribers to the WWE Network during the free month of
February, then they will be sadly disappointed. As are most fans considering
what’s on offer.
Of course, there are a number of
positives to look forward to on the card, but even the most promising bouts are
not safe from criticism. First, there is the presumed main event between Roman
Reigns and Daniel Bryan, the winner battling Brock Lesnar for the WWE
Championship at WrestleMania. This should be an excellent match between these
two great superstars, Bryan being one of the finest performers today and Reigns
developing into a great hand in the ring. This match has also been built
remarkably well on RAW and SmackDown, with a mix of respect between the pair
tempered with a fervent desire to show who is best.
Sounds worth watching the PPV
alone doesn’t it? Not exactly, as I feel WWE has backed themselves into a
corner as far as this match is concerned. In all likelihood the crowd will be
firmly in the corner of Bryan, whilst Royal Rumble winner Reigns will be given
a rough treatment. Maybe not to the extent of the bitterness the Philadelphia
crowd in January felt, but he will be most people’s second favorite here. So if
Reigns wins, he will become even more unpopular than before for taking away
Bryan’s chance to main event WrestleMania again.
But it’s even worse if Bryan
wins, because then what do you do with Reigns? The WWE clearly selected him to
be the guy to battle Lesnar by having him win the Rumble, so it would be
unlikely they have any alternatives for him on the card. All this leads to the
probable finish of somebody interfering to cost Bryan the match (Seth Rollins,
Sheamus, Kane, etc.) to save Reigns face, or a draw scenario leading to a
triple threat match at WrestleMania. Whilst both scenarios work, it isn’t
exactly the most satisfying way to end a PPV with a false finish.
The rest of Fast Lane is also
riddled with potential greatness riddled with issues. John Cena vs Rusev sounds
like an excellent prospect on paper, both superstars far more proficient in the
ring than most give them credit for. Also, the aggression Cena demonstrated on
RAW indicates this match will be incredibly intense. However, the problem
here is that this match is almost guaranteed to also be taking place at
WrestleMania.
Thus, it is virtually assured
that this will also have a false-finish associated with it to give a reason for
the rematch to take place on the Grandest Stage of Them All. I imagine
something like Lana slapping Cena when he has Rusev locked in the STF, or both
getting counted out or disqualified when action spills outside the ring. Rusev
will likely end up standing tall by the conclusion, allowing Cena to get his
revenge at WrestleMania to end Rusev’s long undefeated streak. Yawn.
Speaking of yawns, prepare yourself for what will be at the very least a fifteen-minute “confrontation” between Triple H and Sting, building up to their inevitable clash at WrestleMania. These promos featuring the head of the Authority are long-winded enough on RAW, and fans have already grown sick and tired of them taking up the first half-an-hour of every edition. After what will seem like an eternity of discussion and insults, it will conclude with either a Scorpion Death Drop or Pedigree that might be enough to wake up the audience.
Bad News Barrett/Dean Ambrose and
Goldust/Stardust are matches that scream screwy conclusions, as they are both
feuds that will be extended into WrestleMania due to the combatants having
little else to do. Goldust and Stardust in particular is ridiculously taking
place first on this show rather than being saved for the big event. Hopefully
as long as Goldust comes out as the clean winner, the feud can be rescued into
a retirement match in a month.
Nikki Bella vs Paige should be
okay, but due to the far better quality of match in NXT women’s division, it
will not be given any real time or attention from the crowd. And the six-man
tag team match between the Authority representatives of Seth Rollins, Kane and
Big Show opposite Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan has been hastily thrown
together to get these six superstars on the card. Whilst it won’t be an awful
match, it does smack of a match you would get as a SmackDown main event rather
than on a live special.
Really, only one match on the
card has few drawbacks associated with it, that being the Tag Team Championship
match pitting The Usos against Cesaro & Tyson Kidd. Though it hasn’t been
given a great deal of time on television, the ability of all participants in
the match means this should be a fun and exciting contest, with a very real
possibility of a title change due to the chemistry between the Cesaro and Kidd.
The pre-show is also not much to
shout about, although it rarely ever is. A MizTV segment featuring Paul Heyman
will feature one of the advocate’s usually faultless promos, but is little more
than what would occur on television. And there’ll likely be a match thrown on
at the last minute between The Ascension and the Prime Time Players. Whilst it
is great to see the PTP back together, any match featuring the Ascension at the
moment is not exactly anything near PPV quality.
So, I guess in a way it is good
that new subscribers are getting access to the WWE Network for free this month,
as they are basically receiving a glorified episode of RAW. Fast Lane has been
built to be considerably slow, and by its conclusion will provide the main
roster even more unflattering comparisons to the NXT shows especially after the
unbelievable Takeover: Rival. Fast Lane is taking the term “filler” to a whole
other level with the humble offerings presented here.
If anything, the only effect this
has had on the Road to WrestleMania is provide a number of spoilers and bumps
to the celebrated conclusion. With so many matches likely to be re-done at the
show and the false finishes likely to be littered all over Fast Lane, prepare
yourself for disappointment and hopefully you won’t suffer too greatly.
