Month: April 2021

WrestleMania 37 Predictions: Night #2

Posted on by nwadeblogs_

Everything about last night, from Vince McMahon making a rare public appearance to welcome the fans back to a live setting to Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks overcome with emotion at the start of their main event match made me incredibly emotional. It has been a LONG year. While it was incredibly frustrating to see MANY fans not adhering to the mask requirement throughout the night, it was great to see them back in the building and giving genuine ovations to the guys and girls that have worked so hard to keep the WWE machine moving during the pandemic era. I hope tonight exceeds expectations as well. 

Match #1: Kevin Owens vs Sami Zayn 

Sami Zayn deserves all the credit in the world for making the most out of this mad scientist/conspiracy theorist-type character he’s been dealt with. It’s a far cry from the Sami Zayn who delivered the match of the year with Shinsuke Nakamura at TakeOver: Dallas a few years ago, which saddens me, but at least he’s taken the opportunity and ran with it. Kevin Owens is coming off a high-profile program with Roman Reigns that was, unfortunately, never going to be anything more than a placeholder feud leading up to Mania, but he did an amazing job. 

I’m not a huge fan of Logan Paul so I wasn’t particularly excited for his involvement. He hasn’t exactly added much to the Zayn/Owens program, but he has done a surprisingly good job of staying neutral in the situation and not going over the top. 

I was lucky enough to see Owens and Zayn wrestle at the post-Mania 34 RAW in New Orleans a few years ago and they, even in that low stakes scenario, tore it up together like only they can. These two wrestling on a Mania stage is a scary, scary thought for anyone else on the card. While Zayn’s change in character changes up his wrestling style too, I’d like to think that the bright lights will bring out a glint of the Sami Zayn of old. Owens has gotten the upper hand in the majority of the buildup to this match, so I can honestly see Zayn winning. 

Prediction: Sami Zayn  

Match #2: Riddle vs Sheamus- United States Championship match 

A triple threat between Bobby Lashley, Drew McIntyre and Sheamus could have easily been booked for Mania. It appeared like it might have been heading in that direction, but once they started having Sheamus in multiple matches with Drew on RAW, I knew he wouldn’t be a part of the Mania scenario. Instead, he’s thrown into a US title match with Riddle, who he’s gone back and forth with over the last few weeks. I’m a big fan of Riddle in general so I’m not keen on the idea of him losing the title, but Sheamus really should walk away with it. 

Prediction: Sheamus 

Match #3: Asuka vs Rhea Ripley- RAW Women’s Championship match

As great as Charlotte and Asuka’s matches are, I was not excited at the prospect of Charlotte, likely, beating Asuka at Mania for the second time. It is very unfortunate that she tested positive for COVID and has been involved in whatever backstage politics have occurred since, but this is a worthwhile solution. 

Mick Foley himself tweeted that WWE needs to go all in with Rhea Ripley on the main roster and that is exactly what they’re doing right now. I think a victory for her is a little less likely after Bianca Belair’s win last night…..I can’t see WWE wanting to strip titles from two major players in the women’s division in the same weekend. It IS a possibility…..we saw what they did with Paige back in 2014, but I’d hold off on strapping the rocketship to her back entirely until, say, Summerslam. Regardless, Asuka will make Rhea look like a million bucks in there. 

Prediction: Asuka  

Match #4: Big E vs Apollo Crews- Intercontinental Championship match- Nigerian Drum match 

I have no utter clue what a Nigerian Drum match is. Apollo Crews and Big E are both fantastic in-ring workers and don’t need any sort of gimmick to have a great match if they’re given the time for it. Based on Crews’ recent-ish character change, him winning the title would be a good way to show that they have an actual plan for him. 

Prediction: Apollo Crews

Match #5: Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler vs Natalya and Tamina- Women’s Tag-Team Championship match 

As winners of last nights Tag Team Turmoil match, Natalya and Tamina get a chance at Nia and Shayna for the Women’s Tag titles. I must ask….is this REALLY the best they could do? They could have done this on ANY episode of RAW and it would have been fine. An open challenge answered by an NXT team would have been far more interesting and WrestleMania worthy. However, this is what we’ve got. Nia and Shayna win, easy. 

Prediction: Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler 

Match #6: The Fiend vs Randy Orton 

For as long as this thing has gone on for, it is still genuinely interesting. The Fiend himself doesn’t need tons of screen time when you have Alexa Bliss serving as both the bait and the predator, which is great. He doesn’t need to be having squash matches every week on RAW, he should only be there when he needs to be. 

Randy Orton is a total gem. He has these highlight reel years so often that we should really stop acting surprised about it. He has done a great job of working with Alexa and slowly building to this match, which might, like with John Cena last year, be in some kind of cinematic form. That would only benefit them both, even if The Fiend can definitely still carry himself in a regular match. Whatever it is, Orton will need to try and overcome both The Fiend AND Alexa Bliss, which I can’t see happening. Hopefully, this will right the wrong from Bray Wyatt’s loss to Orton at WrestleMania 33 and be the definitive end to what has been a well-written yet still very, VERY drawn-out storyline. 

Prediction: The Fiend 

Match #7: Roman Reigns vs Edge vs Daniel Bryan- Universal Championship match 

What a match this is, even on paper. And who would have thought we would ever see this scenario? Edge and Daniel Bryan, both thought to have been retired due to “career-ending” injuries, back in the main event spot (where they belong) and Roman Reigns, who is, whether you like him or you don’t, the top guy in the business right now. No doubt. It would have been fine as just Reigns vs Edge, but it only makes sense to add Bryan in as well if this is, as they say, his last big moment.

Truly, even with Bryan in the match, I think we can write him off as the winner here. He’ll go out there and do what he does best better than anyone, but it really all comes down to Edge and Roman. What do you do? Do you allow Edge the complete full circle moment? He never did lose that title of his when he retired in 2011, so it really makes for an amazing feel-good story. And honestly, this moment cannot and should not happen anywhere else. It needs to happen at WrestleMania. There’s no doubt he’d want to work a champions schedule, so it’s a fair possibility that it may happen. However, Roman Reigns has finally found the inner beast we’ve all wanted him to be for years. He has beaten the best already, but he’s on a different level now. He’s up against the two people who can take him to the limit, so it’ll be a tough hill to climb. 

Honestly, I want it to go to Edge. So badly. The guy has been perfect in every aspect since he has been back and it has been inspiring to watch. I don’t need a year-long title reign for the guy, buy my God, just let him have the moment. 

Prediction: Edge 

Photo Credit: CNET.com

WrestleMania 37 Predictions- Night #1

Posted on by nwadeblogs_

By Noah Wade 

Tonight marks the first main roster WWE event with fans in attendance in over a year. It is the second time WWE will split WrestleMania into two nights, a decision they may stick with going forward. I think it’s a good one, since previous Mania’s, especially ones that I have been to, have been way too damn long. On a serious note, I’m thrilled and very emotional about the fact that they’re working for a live crowd tonight. This has been a tough year for us all and, while we may not be entirely back to normal yet, this is a really, really good start.

Match #1: Bobby Lashley vs Drew McIntyre- WWE Championship match 

WWE has officially announced this as the opening match of the night. That makes a McIntyre win almost inevitable, but it’s a head-scratcher. On one side you have Bobby Lashley, who has looked like an absolute monster for the last few months and on the other side you have Drew McIntyre, who hasn’t had a real title coronation with fans in attendance due to COVID. All signs seem to be pointing to McIntyre walking out of Mania with the belt, but if the only purpose for it is to get a live crowd reaction then what is the point? 

I’m not a fan of flip-flopping the title like it has been recently. From McIntyre to Miz to Lashley then potentially back to McIntyre and then back to Lashley again is just too much. As awful as it is that Mcintyre has had to carry the brand during the majority of the pandemic with no huge crowd moment, even if he has certainly earned it, they need to keep moving. Clearly, they decided that Lashley was their guy, so they should stick with him. McIntyre will get many, MANY more chances for it later. They owe him. 

Either way, this is going to be a great match. These are two big guys who know how to sell and have more stamina then guys half their size. If we’re gonna get a feel-good moment, I’m glad it’ll be a hard-fought one unlike the Rollins/Lesnar opener from a few years ago.  

Match #2: Seth Rollins vs Cesaro 

Normally, this would be the perfect match the start the show with. Let these guys go in there for 20-25 minutes and just have at it. That unfortunately won’t be the case, but these are two of the most technically gifted wrestlers in WWE so it’s pretty much guaranteed that they’re going to tear the house down

Seth Rollins’ track record at WrestleMania is pretty incredible to think about. He has won an Intercontinental Championship, beaten Triple H and Brock Lesnar in singles competition and essentially stole the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 31, cashing in his Money In The Bank at the most opportune time during the Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar main event. Cesaro on the other hand really hasn’t had a big WrestleMania moment since winning the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 30. However, stats from one show shouldn’t matter, and they don’t. Cesaro could, and should, get the win here. We’ve seen Rollins lose at WrestleMania and go straight into a major title feud and he could easily do so again. Cesaro does not yet have that luxury but could really benefit from a win over a huge star like Rollins. 

Prediction: Cesaro 

Match #3: Bad Bunny and Damian Priest vs The Miz and john Morrison 

Yep, you read that right. Bad Bunny, one of the biggest stars in music right now, has a match at WrestleMania. He’s teaming with Damian Priest, a total stud of a “rookie” who was called up to the main roster from NXT way quicker than is usually scheduled against the veteran team of The Miz and John Morrison. 

Normally, this kind of thing would scare me. An untrained celebrity getting involved in a high profile storyline? What could possibly go wrong? I mean….we remember Snookie at Mania 27, right? In all seriousness, though, I think Bad Bunny will shock a lot of people. He has been a wrestling fan for most of his life, has been legitimately training for this and has shown some promise with the little bit of offense he has showcased on TV, so, really, it might not be bad at all. 

As awful as I feel for The Miz after his embarrassingly short run with the WWE Championship recently, I think that he needs to be the one to take the pin in this match. Preferably to Priest, just for, you know, legitimacy reasons, but Bad Bunny should, of course, be heavily involved in the finish. 

Prediction: Bad Bunny and Damian Priest 

Match #4: Lana and Naomi vs Dana Brooke and Mandy Rose vs The Riott Squad (Ruby Riott and Liv Morgan) vs Natalya and Tamina- Tag-Team Turmoil match (Winners receive a Women’s Tag Team Championship match on Night #2)

The winners of this one will face Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler for the Women’s Tag Team Championship match the following night. Now, as we know, the issue with the tag women’s division is that there aren’t enough of them to keep things fresh. These are the same four teams we see all the time. I’m very happy they’re all getting a WrestleMania check, but I would have loved for this to be an open challenge type thing. You could have had NXT teams, surprise teams from the past or dream pairings come in for the night. 

With that being said, I can see Lana and Naomi winning here. They are easily the most relevant team of the bunch and I, personally, think Lana deserves a big moment after all the work she has put in over the last year or so. She has really rose to the challenge. 

Prediction: Lana and Naomi 

Match #5: The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) vs AJ Styles and Omos- RAW Tag-Team Championships match 

I don’t particularly like AJ Styles being thrown into a random tag match a year after a main event match with The Undertaker, but this match is essentially more of a vehicle for Omos than anything. Why? I have no idea. He hasn’t shown much promise or, despite his stoic big-man Diesel-type character, any genuine personality, so I question WWE’s logic here. Kofi and Xavier will have to try, possibly very hard, to make him look good the same way they’ve had to do for the guys from Retribution. The stakes don’t feel high enough to be on WrestleMania and, quite frankly, Kofi and Xavier deserve better for no other reason than all their time dealing with Retribution, but at least they’re on the card. 

Prediction: AJ Styles and Omos 

Match #6:  Braun Strowman vs Shane McMahon- Steel Cage match 

Man, I am not here for this one. Shane’s Mania matches always end up being the big spectacle we expect them to be, but the build to this match has been drawn out and eyeroll worthy. Who in their right mind believes that he has a chance against Braun Strowman locked inside of a cage? Strowman has significantly cooled off since losing the Universal Championship, but there’s no reason for him to be chasing Shane around in the manner that he has. I hope they get whatever they want out of this and move onto something better for Strowman, even if the small window of opportunity he had seems to have past. 

Prediction: Braun Strowman 

Match #7: Sasha Banks vs Bianca Belair- Smackdown Women’s Championship match 

WWE has officially announced that this match will serve as the main event and it is well-deserved for both ladies. Sasha Banks has served more time as champion during COVID times than she ever has previously and Bianca Belair, despite a slow start on the main roster, has proven that she can hang with the best of the bunch. 

The build for this hasn’t been great. Sasha was the ideal opponent for Belair to choose after her Royal Rumble victory, but the face/face dynamic going into it limited what they were able to do in the build to tonight. Either way, the first main event of WrestleMania between two women of color is both inspiring and historic no matter what. So hats off to these two for being the legitimate badasses they are to have gotten to this point. 

WrestleMania having fans in attendance is a big deal. I don’t think it means fans will be back at every show going forward, but it has been a long time coming and I’m sure the guys and girls are craving it just as much as we are. Therefore, I think Belair needs to win this one. A new, fresh face as champion would a perfect way to celebrate the occasion. Bianca is more than ready, 

Prediction: Bianca Belair 

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Photo credit: WrestlingInc.com