WASHINGTON — It’s known as “The Showcase of the Immortals.”
And this Sunday, “Wrestlemania 31” brings yet another year of memorable matches.
Earlier this week, Roman Reigns joined WTOP to discuss his main event against Brock Lesnar.
We also ranked the Top 30 superstars of the Wrestlemania era.
Now, as the big day arrives, it’s time for WTOP’s Chris Cichon to handicap the matches:
Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Championship Match
Tyson Kidd & Cesaro
The Usos
The New Day
Los Matadores
The Tag Team division is certainly WWE’s weakest, so I don’t see how the Cesaro/Kidd combination can lose the titles to these particular opponents. The Usos had their time as Tag Team champions for much of the past year, and lately their act has felt stale. The New Day has talent, but I think they’re hurt by the fact that they have three members. Who would be the two champions out of the group of Big E, Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston? Finally, Los Matadores are to the tag team title picture as Jack Swagger is to Monday Night Raw…nothing but a filler to build up their opponents.
Winner: Tyson Kidd & Cesaro
2nd Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Damien Mizdow
Sheamus
Ryback
Mark Henry
Big Show
Curtis Axel
Kane
The Miz
Erick Rowan
Titus O’Neil
Fandango
Goldust
Heath Slater
Jack Swagger
Sin Cara
Zack Ryder
Adam Rose
Darren Young
Konnor
The WWE has a nice opportunity to take #AxelMania to the next level, which has surprisingly caught some pop after Curtis Axel was never officially eliminated from the Royal Rumble back in January. The idea of Damien Mizdown turning on the Miz would be too obvious an outcome, and I don’t think anyone is really ecstatic over the return of Sheamus. Axel will be victorious and will continue to interrupt superstars with his “don’t change the channel” opening liner as he boasts about his victory.
Winner: Curtis Axel
Singles Match
Seth Rollins
Randy Orton
There are bigger plans for Seth Rollins than this match against Randy Orton. The WWE will please the fans as J&J Security will try to sabotage the match, only for The Viper to RKO both of them and set his sights on an exposed Rollins. Unfortunately, it will be too late as Rollins will have escaped the vicinity, and the Apex Predator will have earned the DQ victory.
Winner: Randy Orton
Tag Team Match
A.J. Lee & Paige
The Bella Twins
While many have argued the validity of the hit reality show “Total Divas” (myself included), I really do believe that we may at least have one Bella take a hiatus from the WWE. It won’t be Nikki, who is in the midst of a nice run as the Divas Champion. It’s clearly evident that Brie wants to start a family with Daniel Bryan, so a Wrestlemania victory would be a nice sign off before venturing down the road of temporary retirement. The Bellas will win the match, the “Frenemies” AJ Lee & Paige will turn on each other after the loss, and will face each other on Monday Night Raw to be No. 1 contender to face Nikki for another title shot.
Winner: The Bella Twins
United States Championship Match
John Cena
Rusev
This has to be one of the easiest to predict out of the Wrestlemania card. Rusev still has yet to be officially defeated via pinfall or submission. Who better to break that streak than the ultimate face of the WWE (love him or hate him) John Cena? There is an interesting twist as well with Rusev’s manager, the Ravishing Russian Lana. Rusev has been coming to the ring without her in his last few appearances, and I believe she is ripe to turn on him once the Bulgarian Brute taps to an STF.
Winner: John Cena
Singles Match
The Undertaker -450
Bray Wyatt +325
This is the second easiest match to pick a winner. In the quest to make Brock Lesnar a mega superstar and iconic champion, the WWE needs to keep the legitimacy of his victory last year over the Undertaker, when he broke the Deadman’s 21-0 winning streak. I don’t see how Bray Wyatt — the heel that the WWE bores us with every week with over-the-top promos — makes it two losses in consecutive years for Undertaker.
Winner: The Undertaker
Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match
Daniel Bryan 1/1
Dean Ambrose 11/4
Dolph Ziggler 8/1
Bad News Barrett 9/1
Stardust
R-Truth
Luke Harper 35/1
I believe the WWE has some bigger plans for Dean Ambrose. His feud with Seth Rollins (who is in the WWE Heavyweight Title picture) was so effective, and with Roman Reigns already part of the top tier group, the Shield could all be back on the main stage together again competing for the top prize.
Daniel Bryan has boasted how much winning the Intercontinental Championship would mean to him since it’s the only belt he has not captured since he first entered the WWE in 2009. I think at the end of the match we’ll have the three faces in Bryan, Ambrose and Ziggler going to war in an epic battle, with Bryan overcoming the odds like it’s 2014 all over again when he climbs the ladder and wins the IC title.
Singles Match
Sting
Triple H +400
This match has Stephanie McMahon interference written all over it. Or X-Pac. Or the New Age Outlaws. Or Ric Flair. Someone is going to come out when Sting is about to lay the Stinger down on The Game and cause a distraction, leading to a counter move and a Pedigree. This way, the WWE can set up a rematch for Payback or Money in the Bank where Sting will finally get a WWE victory after staying away from the company for 14 years once WCW destructed. However, I don’t see the head of the Authority losing two years in a row on WWE’s biggest stage, so look for Triple H to earn the controversial victory.
Winner: Triple H
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match
Roman Reigns -105
Brock Lesnar -135
The main event features the WWE’s new biggest face, Brock Lesnar, against Vince McMahon’s personal favorite, Roman Reigns, who failed to capture the crowd after the Royal Rumble. What gives? I think at this point the WWE will let Reigns continue to fall out of favor with the crowd, then make him a mega heel when Paul Heyman turns on Brock Lesnar in a few months and sides with Reigns. But this won’t be a one sided bloodbath like Cena-Lesnar at Summerslam. The two warriors will go to blows and give it all they have, before Lesnar hits Reigns with multiple German suplexes and pins him. Shortly thereafter, Seth Rollins will slide into the ring to cash his Money in the Bank opportunity, hit Brock with the briefcase as he’s celebrating his victory, and finish him off with a curbstomp. Wrestlemania 31 will end in Santa Clara to the tune of 75,000 boo and a new champion holding WWE’s grandest prize.
Winner: Brock Lesnar, with Seth Rollins the new WWE champion
