Seeing as WrestleMania 35 is on the horizon this Sunday, I decided I’d dedicate some time this week to predicting who I think will win all of the currently announced matches on the show. As of me writing this on Monday night, this was the most up to date card I had to hand.
Raw Women’s Title (And possibly Smackdown Women’s Title too if they decide to put that on the line as well)
Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair
As of me writing this prior to Raw on Monday night, currently only the Raw Title is on the line here, but Charlotte won the Smackdown Title last week, so there’s every chance that could be put up on the line in this one as well.
Plenty have complained over Charlotte getting added to this match when the issue was ultimately between Rousey and Lynch, and Asuka was also without an opponent. However, the fact remains that Charlotte is indeed part of this match, so we might as well accept it and get on with things.
I think the match itself should be good as all three wrestlers are talented and you’d hope that they’d be given a decent amount of time to craft an exciting Main Event.
As for my prediction, I can’t shake the feeling that they’ll go for a SWERVE ending and have one of Ronda or Charlotte win. Logically Lynch should take the Title, but logic and WWE don’t tend to mix very well so I’ll try and pre-empt the lunacy by predicting that Charlotte wins whilst poor Becky weeps away on the outside.
MIKES PICK: CHARLOTTE FLAIR
Universal Title
Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins
This is one of the colder male Main Events in recent Mania history, as Rollins hasn’t been booked especially strong and Lesnar hasn’t been on TV that often to heat things up. Personally, I’m sick of the Universal Champion not being a regular roster member, as not having the Champ on the show leaves a vacuum at the top of the card. For that reason alone, I’d like Rollins to win here.
However, since Roman Reigns returned to the WWE following his bout with cancer, I can’t see any other outcome than Reigns being the one to eventually topple Lesnar and claim the Title, and for that poor Rollins must be sacrificed here, which is what I think will happen. It’s harsh on Rollins, as he’s busted his backside for months, but it just doesn’t feel like his time. Hopefully I’m wrong
MIKES PICK: BROCK LESNAR
WWE Title
Daniel Bryan vs. Kofi Kingston
Kofi’s unlikely ascent up the card has been one of the few more enjoyable occurrences in WWE recently, as it was a completely organic movement started by the fans who appreciated all the hard work Kofi had been putting in for over a decade.
Enjoyable as it’s been however, I can’t see WWE putting a major singles Title on Kofi, especially as Bryan has been doing such a fine job as the Champion recently. I also can’t shake the feeling that Vince McMahon will be unable to resist the urge to troll his fan base once again, so for that reason my money is on Bryan, although I’d be delighted to see Kofi triumph
MIKES PICK: DANIEL BRYAN
No Holds Barred (Triple H must retire if he loses)
Triple H vs. Batista
This one is a big load of meh for me, as I would have much rather seen Batista work with Brock Lesnar, just because it would hold more intrigue. It shouldn’t be forgotten that, outside of their corking Hell in a Cell bout, the matches in the previous Triple H Vs Batista were bang average at best, and that was when they were both 14 years younger and in much better physical condition than they are now.
If WWE is willing to live up to the stipulation, then I’d be fine with Triple H losing here and stepping away from in ring action. Physically he’s fallen away drastically since his classic bout with Daniel Bryan and WrestleMania XXX and it’s starting to become kind of sad watching him try to live up to a standard he just physically can’t reach anymore.
Contrary to other areas of the internet, I quite like Triple H and I rate him highly as a wrestler, so I’d like him to go out with his head held high rather than damaging his legacy with more disappointing bouts. Simply put, he doesn’t need to do this anymore. He’s given us enough and he deserves to be allowed to step away gracefully.
As for Batista, I hope he finds the closure he’s looking for here and can leave the wrestling business with his thirst quench. Fair play to him for stepping away from his cushy acting role to beat up his body again, but I’d be happy if this is the last time we see both men in the ring going forward.
MIKES PICK: BATISTA
Retirement Match
Kurt Angle vs. Baron Corbin
So, this is an underwhelming way for Kurt Angle to bow out isn’t it? That being said, Angle is in the same camp as Triple H and it genuinely is time for him to hang up the boots. Having him destroy Corbin in a couple of minutes is probably the best use of him at the moment, and that’s what I think they’ll do.
MIKES PICK: KURT ANGLE
Falls Count Anywhere
Shane McMahon vs. The Miz
I couldn’t care less about this match but I’m glad that Miz is making the most of his push. That being said, I don’t think he’ll win here, just because Shane hasn’t won a big singles match in a while and he’s only just freshly turned, so they’ll probably want him to win for the purposes of HEAT. Someone might even run in to help him considering the rules allow it. Maybe Lars Sullivan will finally debut as Shane’s muscle perhaps?
MIKES PICK: SHANE MCMAHON
AJ Styles vs. Randy Orton
This is a very intriguing match because both men are very talented and it’s a match that feels fresh on the grand stage. Again, due to this being the first match in what will probably end up being a 3-4 pay per view series, I’ll go with Orton sneaking a win via dastardly means, thus meaning THE FEUD MUST CONTINUE!!!
MIKES PICK: RANDY ORTON
André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
They’ve been doing something with Braun Strowman and some guys from Saturday Night Live, so I imagine that’ll get paid off somehow and Braun will win due to him desperately needing to win something.
MIKES PICK: BRAUN STROWMAN
United States Title
Samoa Joe vs. Rey Mysterio
Joe has only just won the belt and Rey’s nemesis Andrade Cien Almas will probably be lingering in the shadows, so I’ll go with Joe retaining. The match probably won’t get a lot of time but hopefully it gets enough for them to tell a story in there.
MIKES PICK: SAMOA JOE
Intercontinental Title
Bobby Lashley vs. Finn Bálor
I think we see The Demon here and that leads to Bálor picking up a relatively quick win to regain the Title.
MIKES PICK: FINN BALOR
Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre
This is Reigns’ big pay per view singles return following his battle with cancer and they’ve built up Drew nice and strong to prime him for eating a Spear, which is fine if Reigns is the direction they’re going with. A big clean win here for Reigns should get him nice and ready for a challenge to Brock Lesnar.
MIKES PICK: ROMAN REIGNS
Women’s Tag Titles
The Boss ‘n’ Hug Connection (Bayley and Sasha Banks) vs. The Divas of Doom (Beth Phoenix and Natalya) vs. The IIconics (Billie Kay and Peyton Royce) vs. Nia Jax and Tamina
I can’t see past the Champs retaining here, because none of the other teams would be a better option as Champions. Still, if they pull a SWERVE and stick them on The IIconics I won’t be too shocked or anything. The match will probably be rushed, but hopefully they’ve been working on it together and it’s as good as it can be.
MIKES PICK: BANKS AND BAYLEY
WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
Seeing as Asuka just dropped her belt, I see her winning here to “make up for it”
MIKES PICK: ASUKA
Cruiserweight Title
Buddy Murphy vs. Tony Nese
Murphy consistently has great matches and has been a solid Champion, so I don’t really see any point in taking the belt off him right now, especially as it’s possible that KUSHIDA could be waiting in the wings to challenge him at any time. For that reason I’ll go with Murphy. This will probably be early on in the pre-show, but hopefully they get given some time and the fans are responsive
MIKES PICK: BUDDY MURPHY
So that’s my picks. We can all reconvene next week to see how I did as well as a recap of the show itself. You can watch WrestleMania 35 this Sunday by visiting www.wwe.com/network . They usually give you a month free if you’re a new subscriber, so it’s worth a looksee if you’re intrigued by the line-up. (This is NON-SPON btw, but I thought I might as well mention it)
Thanks for reading and I’ll hopefully see you all next week!