By Don Murphy, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@DonThePredictor)
The biggest event of the year is upon us. WrestleMania 41 takes place this weekend, emanating from Las Vegas, Nevada at Allegiant Stadium. We’ll give each night its own preview to make it a bit easier on the eyes.
I’m at a seven out of ten in terms of level of enthusiasm for this show. And that seven is purely based on the fact that it’s WrestleMania. Getting me to the eight-to-ten range would require them to get me invested in the stories that they’ve built, and sadly, they missed the mark. Once the bell rings, the matches will be fine, but there are too many multi-person matches because “we need to get everyone on the show.” It took away the importance of the show for me and has diluted what could have been a highly anticipated event. Let’s run down the card for night one.
Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk (w/Paul Heyman) vs. Seth Rollins in a Triple Threat. This could have been something special. I could have bought in to just about any combination of these three as a one-on-one match. But making this a triple threat has not only taken away from the match, but it’s also devolved into a custody battle for Paul Heyman. It looks fairly certain that by the end of the night, Heyman is not aligned with Roman Reigns. And if the goal was to make Reigns appear sympathetic when Heyman turns on him, they didn’t succeed as Reigns has been a jerk to Heyman ever since Heyman agreed to be in CM Punk’s corner.
Then there’s Punk. They told a great story of how his primary goal was to main event WrestleMania. They then manufactured this scenario where they made this match the main event of the first night of the show, expecting me to believe that this was what Punk had wanted all along. I’m not buying it. I do think he will also be betrayed, so they’ll be able to say that Heyman broke his heart by stealing his main event moment.
Finally we have Rollins. He’s being built as the heel, but is the only one making any sense. The reasons he laid out to Heyman as to why Reigns and Punk didn’t have his back were spot on. If Heyman screws Reigns and Punk and joins Rollins, can you really blame him given the way the story was laid out. I don’t think you can, and that’s a bit of a problem since Heyman and Rollins are supposed to be big heels coming out of this.
Don Predicts: Seth Rollins defeats CM Punk and Roman Reigns in a Triple Threat.
Gunther vs. Jey Uso for the World Heavyweight Championship. So much for the Royal Rumble winner being in the main event. I know they’re billing it as such, but to most fans, the main event is the match that goes on last, whereas this will likely open the show. The added time between the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania hurt the build, as there were several weeks where they basically ran the same angle. Uso’s promo two weeks ago was fun, and the “I’m not afraid anymore” triggered visions of the movie Home Alone. The match itself will be fine, and it will be interesting to see how each fares coming out of it. How will Uso fare as a champion? Will Gunther stay a heel, or will they try him as a babyface? Time will tell.
Don Predicts: Jey Uso wins the World Heavyweight Championship.
Tiffany Stratton vs. Charlotte Flair for the WWE Women’s Championship. Well, they managed to get people talking, but probably not in the way they wanted to. What a weird build, and it’s probably all to have Charlotte win yet another championship. But, I’m going to hold out hope that they see something in Stratton beyond a transitional champion. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Stratton gets the big win with the story being that Charlotte underestimated her. Charlotte will eventually win the title, but I’m betting that WrestleMania won’t be the day.
Don Predicts: Tiffany Stratton retains the WWE Women’s Championship.
“War Raiders” Erik and Ivar vs. “New Day” Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods for the World Tag Team Titles. Happy to see Erik and Ivar get spotlighted here. Woods and Kingston have found new life since turning heel and I think it’s time to put the titles on this version of New Day and put the babyface teams in chase mode.
Don Predicts: The New Day wins the World Tag Team Titles.
LA Knight vs. Jacob Fatu for the U.S. Championship. I’m curious to see what they do here. Knight doesn’t need the title, so a loss won’t impact his popularity. With Fatu, I think he’s about to go on a babyface run. The question is, how do they get there? Does Fatu win the title, and Solo turns on him in the next couple of weeks? Or does Solo “accidentally” cost Fatu the chance to win the title and causing the breakup? I’m holding out hope that it’s the first scenario, as I think Fatu would benefit from a title run at this stage.
Don Predicts: Jacob Fatu wins the U.S. Championship.
Jade Cargill vs. Naomi. I still think Bianca Belair will be revealed to be behind the attack on Cargill. But Naomi has done a nice job as a heel to get back a little interest in this match after being beaten down regularly early on. I’m curious to see how Cargill fares in a longer-form singles match. She has the look. Does she have the ability?
Don Predicts: Jade Cargill defeats Naomi.
Rey Mysterio vs. El Grande Americano. Poor Chad Gable can’t get a match at WrestleMania, but a newcomer can? Disgraceful. In all seriousness, this will be fun, and I don’t think we’ll see Gable revealed as Americano yet. In fact, I see someone else playing the character and Gable interfering to give him the win.
Don Predicts: El Grande Americano defeats Rey Mysterio.
Make ProWrestling.net your home for live reviews of NXT Stand & Deliver and both nights of WrestleMania 41.
7/7 and you nailed the Seth Rollins heel turn. Great job