Night Two of “the granddaddy of them all” is almost here! WrestleMania 37 emanates on from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL on in a few short hours and air exclusively on Peacock. Before you keep reading, I need to be transparent about my predictions from last night. I went 3-4 for the evening.
RAW WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP – ASUKA VS. RHEA RIPLEY: WWE has a second chance to make a first impression with Rhea Ripley. “The Nightmare” lost to Charlotte at last year’s WrestleMania in a move that many felt was a fool’s errand. People forget it was a work visa issue with Ripley that gave the writers no choice but to have Charlotte go over. Fast forward to today, Rhea demanded a title match on her first night as an official member of the Raw roster. While this is one of the most anticipated matches of the show, there is only one way to go. Rhea needs to win; otherwise, it diminishes her character. Rhea losing would be the equivalent of Babe Ruth calling his shot and striking out during his first major league game.
Winner: Rhea Ripley
UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP – RIDDLE VS. SHEAMUS: Sheamus and Riddle had three excellent matches against each other on Raw. IF they’re given enough time, they will have the best match of the show. Sheamus has lost a lot of matches lately to help heat up Lashley and McIntyre for their match. Beating Riddle for the title will give Sheamus some much-needed shine as a loss here wouldn’t hurt Riddle as his “space cadet” character takes everything in stride.
Winner: Sheamus
INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP – BIG E VS. APOLLO CREWS: Apollo challenged Big E to make this match a Nigerian Drum Fight. WWE hasn’t revealed the rules, which leads me to believe it’s another way of saying no disqualification. It’s safe to say Big E will go on to bigger and better things on the horizon. However, he needs to take the L here. Apollo Crews has lost to Big E four times in a row. For Crews’ new heel gimmick to keep its credibility, he needs to leave WrestleMania with the IC Title. Admittedly, I’m not as confident in my pick as I was 24 hours ago. Seeing the heel WWE Champion cleanly beat the babyface to retain the title threw my prediction game through a loop. Nevertheless, I will stay the course.
Winner: Apollo Crews
WOMEN’S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP – SHAYNA BASZLER & NIA JAX VS. TAMINA & NATALYA: I picked Carmela and Billie Kay to win on night one and win the titles on night two.
Yep, I was wrong.
I honestly didn’t think WWE would book this match. It’s a unique setting with two heel teams while putting the champs, Jax and Baszler in a rare situation where they can’t bully their opponents. In the end, WWE has gotten as much mileage as they’re going to get from Jax and Baszler and it’s time for a new team to feature.
Winners: Tamina & Natalya
KEVIN OWENS VS. SAMI ZAYN: Zayn believes there is a conspiracy against him and is upset that Owens doesn’t see it. Owens and Zayn have wrestled each other worldwide in several different promotions for over a decade. Tonight will be their biggest match with each other in what could easily be the match of the night. YouTube star Logan Paul will play a role as the invited guest of Zayn. If Zayn loses, he can still claim there is a conspiracy while Owens moves on to another opponent.
Winner: Kevin Owens
THE FIEND VS. RANDY ORTON: Remember what I said about the cage match? Same applies here. I could care less about this one. All of the supernatural gimmickry made me check out a long time ago. The Fiend has returned after being “burned to death” in December. Now, it’s Orton’s turn to suffer some won’t of tragedy.
Winner: The Fiend
UNIVERSIAL CHAMPIONSHIP – ROMAN REIGNS VS. EDGE VS. DANIEL BRYAN: As good as a singles match between Roman Reigns and Edge would be, Daniel Bryan’s inclusion makes it even better. Reigns is one of the hottest heel champions in recent memory, while Edge returned from injury to win the 2021 Royal Rumble. Bryan gained entry into the match after getting screwed out of a title match after making Reigns tap out at Fastlane.
I don’t believe it’s time for Reigns to lose the title. He’s on an incredible roll that we might never see again. However, WrestleMania always (Save for 2000) has a happy ending. My head says Daniel Bryan takes the title. However, my heart says Edge makes his comeback complete and leaves Raymond James Stadium as Universal Champion.
Winner: Edge
Ringside Logic 