OORick
Intellectual Savior of the Masses 
Posts 3403
Registered 12-27-2001 Location - The Birthplace of Aviation Member Is Offline Mood: Flyered Up
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 02:08 AM |
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PPV DISCUSSION: WWE WrestleMania 32 (April 3, 2016)
It's only the biggest show of the year... so let's get this thread started: WrestleMania 32, baby!
The official card:
Triple H vs. Roman Reigns (WWE Title, No DQ)
Shane McMahon vs. the Undertaker (Hell in a Cell, Control of RAW and Taker's Career on the Line)
Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar (Street Fight)
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Miz vs. Stardust vs. Sin Cara vs. Zack Ryder (Ladder Match for the IC Title)
AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho (Old Fashioned Grudge Match)
The New Day vs. the League of Nations (Handicap Match)
Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks (Women's Title Match)
Kalisto vs. Ryback (US Title Match)
20-Man Andre the Giant Battle Royale
The Usos vs. the Dudleys (Preshow)
10-Woman Total Divas Match (Preshow)
The big story, same as it was last year, is WWE's abject failure to prepare Roman Reigns for his spot as the alleged babyface hero, seeking to
relieve an allegedly hated villian of the WWE Title.
It's truly not Reigns fault; nothing about his objective talent level or skill set disqualifies him from being that kind of top-of-card
superstar... but WWE has simply done wrong by him at nearly every turn over the past 16 months. And now, that leaves two options: cut bait on Reigns
for the second year in a row and do a reset, or forge ahead with the title change with the full advance knowledge that it will flop with a mighty
thud.
From the sound of things, WWE may reposition the Title Match to the middle of the show. It won't change the fundamental insubordination from the
fans, but it would likely mute it down to a dull roar, and allow the show to re-build up to an actual satisfying conclusion, rather than ending with a
chorus of entirely the wrong kind of boos.
That likely means Shane/Taker's Cell Match takes the main event slot, with is just fine, considering what is on the line, and all the bells and
whistles such a match is apt to contain... not just crazy highspots, but the potential for extracurriculars and run ins (from Vince, Steph, Cena,
Sting, who the hell knows?), too.
We shall see...
A few thoughts/predictions:
- I see Reigns as a strong favorite, simply because the company is unlikely to keep a part time worker on as champ for as long as it would
take to set up yet another challenger. If there were a MitB holder in the wings like last year, or somebody else ready as an insta-challenger to HHH,
it'd be different. But WWE's kinda painted into a corner.... now, all that said, I don't consider a lock that Reigns is set to begin
a pure 100% babyface run as champ. He'd benefit from a heel turn, and I gotta believe that if the past 2 months hans't FINALLY convinced
WWE of this simple fact, then there's something historically wrong with them. [Remember: the Rock is supposed to do SOMEthing at WM32, and if
Reigns shunned his cousin, that could go a long way to jumpstarting a heel turn. Also, I vote the Usos join him, so we can do Reigns/Usos vs. the New
Day!] Regardless, the addition of a No DQ stip will help them to have an objectively excellent match, but none of that changes the underlying Reigns
Problem.
- I also got Shane as a strong favorite, simply because you can't dangle the prospect of a change of authority like that, and then not do
it... and as a bonus, a bunch of artwork from WWE's parterns/licensees seems to hint at a revival of the RAW/SD brand split, which would only
occur if Shane "wins" RAW and the "establishment" hunkers down and makes the best of SD. While Vince has made a "Taker Must Retire" stipulation,
that's the easiest thing to undo if Vince is no longer in charge. So again, much like the title match, I think it's way easier to pick a
winner than to decide HOW the win plays out. Run-ins, turns, all kinds of wacky stuff can happen if you're completely re-aligning the roster for
a brand split... should be a ton of crazy fun.
- Lesnar isn't gonna lose, right? Not only would it ring a bit false (no matter how many awesome toys Ambrose has), but this is one of those
beautiful situations where a guy can actually win by losing. Just being on this stage, against a stud like Brock, Ambrose can come out ahead on the
whole deal just by putting up the kind of fight that convinces everybody that he fits, he belongs. Only wild cards: the Wyatt Family. They seem to be
a lock to interfere; I don't really want them "ruining" things by causing the outcome (which is the only way Ambrose could really win), but
dicking with both guys and pouncing AFTER the match? Yeah, that works. A memorable Sports Entertainment Spectacle seems all but inevitable.
- Kevin Owens retains the IC Title, and that match might steal the show. The "build up," basically amounted to Owens not wanting to defend his IC
Title against top shelf competition, and now, he's forced to fight 7 guys. The logical pay-off is that he sticks it to all the fans by winning,
anyway. Wouldn't be surprised if it's a bit underhanded, and that it positions Zayn as the break-out #1 Contender.
- AJ Styles beats Jericho, because that's what Jericho comes back to do: get new guys over. Maybe it doesn't always work (*cough*
Fandango *cough*), but I think Mission Styles is gonna end up being one Jericho can be proud of. We've already seen a trilogy of matches from
these two, and they haven't been given any fresh or interesting stipulation, so this may run the risk of being lost in the shuffle... but
hopefully the smarky-wanker crowd isn't too proud to just boo the shit out of Jericho to create the necessary atmosphere for this one to not get
steamrolled by the rest of everything.
- The women's title match ought to be damned fine, with Charlotte already guaranteed to bring Ric, and rumors abounding about Sasha bringing
Snoop. Becky's only gonna be that much more of my absolute favorite if she has to play the underdog role by running solo, too. Should add all
the sizzle in the world to what was already gonna be a generous serving of steak. Four months ago, it seemed like WWE decided this was gonna be
Sasha's breakout win (Becky getting over was entirely an accident, because she's that good), so I figure that's still the plan.
- New Day vs. League of Nations could go either way, based on whether they need a feel good babyface win in a certain spot on the card, or if strong
heels are more necessary, going forward. The tag titles aren't on the line, so the value of Sheamus/ADR/Rusev as top-line heels may trump all
else, while the New Day can immediately shift over to refocusing on their titles after the 3-on-4 loss.
- Ryback beats Kalisto. Kalisto was almost as much of a happy accident as Becky, and he's made it this far as a viable singles champ... but
Ryback's rapidly running out of chances to make it as a singles star.
- The Andre Battle Royale? They haven't even announced a full line-up, so who the hell knows? It seems like, as it stands, it comes down to
Big Show/Kane (faces) and the Wyatts (heels) as the most likely winners... but it could also wind up being somebody unexpected. John Cena has been
tweeting about showing up at Mania; former winner Cesaro is set to return to action in 10 days on the Euro Tour, and could come back early; and
imagine the pop Titus would get if WWE just admitted it was retarded for suspending him, and brought him back....
So that's my take. The show is 4 hours long, starting at 7pm (eastern), so I expect we'll all be assembled for real-time
results/bitching/moaning. Possibly earlier, as the preshow starts at 5pm (the first hour will be entirely worthless, though, as WWE will put anything
of value on the second hour, which is also being simulcast on the USA Network).
Until then, the floor is yours for all the predictions and prognostications you can come up with. What say you, OO Nation??!!??
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First 9
Man of a Thousand Holds 
Posts 1818
Registered 1-22-2013 Member Is Offline Mood: Doing the Emma Dance
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 03:50 AM |
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First thing's first, how cool is it to finally get a ''complete'' WM with all the Champions having matches that have
some build up to them? Felt we haven't had that in more than a decade.
The IC Title match will be fun. These multiman Ladder matches are always worth watching but are rarely memorable. Hope Ryder gets to do a big spot.
I'm going to go with Owens retaining. So that Zayn can keep chasing and of course being WM, there won't be that many heel victories.
AJ vs Y2J might be Jericho's last chance to have a noteworthy WM match, hope he comes out guns blazing and AJ has the best WM debut since The
Hardyz and the Duds set the world on fire in their first Ladder match.
New Day vs LON has to go to the LON right? Being Non-Title was a weird decision.
Andre Battle Royal will have a suprise. Moving up to the main show means either a big star is winning(and the only big star without a match of his own
is Bray) or somebody is coming back.
The Women's Title match will be fantastic. I'm going with Becky over Sasha for no good reason.
Reings vs HHH better have something more to it or it'll be another sad, better left forgotten WM World Title Match like HHH vs Jericho, or HHH
vs Booker, or HHH vs Orton or HHH vs Orton and Cena...yeah they better have something up their sleeve.
Shane vs Taker will be just entertaining. Who knows how the fuck it'll go but everything about it feels like we'll get the classic
Attitude Era Over the top, overbooked wildcard that you can't help but watch.
Now, Ambrose vs Lesnar. Match will be great and everything but I'll be dissapointed if Ambrose loses. He lost the Rumble after making it to the
final two, he lost the triple threat, he lost the Title match, I want to see my favorite wrestler get a big win already! I don't want to cheer
somebody on to see them ''look strong'' or some other bullshit.
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by First 9]
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DKBroiler
SpeciASSl CUMedian
Posts 1200
Registered 1-25-2008 Location One Inch Right of Philly on a Map Member Is Offline Mood: Old
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 05:15 AM |
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First day of baseball, WrestleMania and The Walking Dead season finale is an unbelievable day of television. I will get fatter. It will be glorious.
Get off my lawn.
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Jumbie
Showstopper
Posts 737
Registered 9-22-2010 Member Is Offline Mood: Hopeful
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 06:50 AM |
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Also the world cricket T20 final...
um, yeah, moving on.
What's an 'old fashioned grudge match' stipulations-wise?
"I'm a team player."
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janerd75
The Rowdy One
Posts 2392
Registered 1-28-2013 Location Bix Nood Avenue Member Is Offline Mood: Aerogigantic
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 08:20 AM |
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Like DK wrote, I dunno how I work watching WM around That Guy borrowing Foley's Ambrose's version of Lucille to make us all sad pandas on
the Walking Dead, but I suppose I'll hafta do my stretches, lube up, and jam it all in somehow.
I'm down for all the matches, especially the ladder match, Jericho/Styles, and the Women's Title match, but these three here are my ones
with strongest potential cases of The Repercussions:
Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar
As others have mentioned elsewhere in other threads, as well as the bOOsman in this one, Dean can do no wrong even in a loss. Kinda has the potential
to go Austin/Hart redux times eleventy billion should they so choose to have Ambrose take the beating of a lifetime and go out on his shield (heh)
unbeknownst to him as his head would have been caved in by then and his pants Brown and Strong, man.
Obtuse Mirrorverse: Wyatt Family Fuckery
Triple H vs. Roman Reigns
Sweet Fancy Moses what a pickle this one is. In a vacuum (that specifically targets the reason centers of my addled mind), I don't mind either
guys. I think Haitch would have been better served doing a Cena-esque U.S. Title elevation on a guy like Dean if he was adamant aboot holding the
title as I think he can still go, but here we are with Reigns instead. Yes, injuries and whatnot, but still...The Roman Empire. *sigh* Ultimately, I
hope to see a Shield reunion at some point, but the Bucky Fuckery Playdoh Factory has smooshed a decent big man with a great look, serviceable broham
wrasslin' skeeyuls, daddeh, and subpar mic work into becoming the avatar and dictionary definition for unholy tone deaf WWE mega pushes
far surpassing anything they ever did with Orton and Cena. Double *sigh*.
I fear that the Warden Norton and his enforcer Byron Hadley that is Vincent K. McMahon and Kevin "The Whiner Soldier" Dunn, respectively, are
actually that fucking obtuse to put Reigns over easy peasy Japanesey after an otherwise decent and brutal match that will no doubt be
accompanied by Teh Booz eclipsing that of Goldbrick/Landshark in the long, long ago. However, one aspect of the match gives me pause...
Obtuse Mirrorverse: The No DQ stipulation. Whether it's a little nonsense now and then relished by the wisest men of Haitch or Steph or StepHHH
calling down the thunder and lightning from the LON or ???, or The Rock rolling down to ringside to Haka his cousin to greatness, I think the hope for
all us sinners that didn't buy into this Reigns horseflop lies in the no DQ stip. Extra bonus unexpected
magnanimous-beer-break-while-tarring-a-roof is Roman winning and punking out his cousin to the rightly aligned boos welcoming his newly minted heel
turn.
Shane McMahon vs. the Undertaker
I don't see how Shane loses this one unless the Vinman and Bukkuky have really gone off the rails and Shane was only ever supposed to be around
up until WM only to disappear agayn for a cynical, "hey, see, times they are a' changin'...LOLFAYGZ *rug pull* no they're not,
here's some more Authority you gullible smarks!"
Dunno exactly how they pull it off, but Shaynamac wins here. Fuckery, fo' shizzle, but I'm not exactly sure how. It's in the Cell,
FFS, so anything can happen and anyone can show up to assist. Speaking of which...
Obtuse Mirrorverse: If they are really going to go all out and salvage the show from the potential disaster of Haitch/Reigns and leave us with The
Rick's Infamous Last Taste of The Night Influencing All Future Endeavors and have a memorable run-in to save Shane from Taker sending him into
death, there is but one man for the job.
I don't think it would involve him doing the IWC's Infamous Perennially Demanded Heel Turn either. Just him finally (and ironically)
denying the Authority any further storylines for the foreseeable future by aiding Shane in beating Taker. His reason for abetting Shaynamac being as
simple as not wanting Vince and Co. around no mo. Deep respect for Taker abounds, but he did what he had to do, do you know what I am saying, dog? And
Shane being the only McMahon with the face gene and taking over Raw with a win would radiate stink waves of faceocity towards anyone assisting in
banishing Vince and StepHHH, at least for a while, and the next night on Raw an immediately reinstated Taker can look forward to the megamatch either
at Summerslam or next year's WM.
�If only Africa had more mosquito nets, then every year we could save millions of mosquitoes from dying needlessly of A.I.D.S.� - Jimmy Carr
As per Count Zero's lovely transciption:
Jericho: "You better watch it."
Owens: "Yeah? Watch what?"
Jericho: "...It."
Evil Canadians 4 Life!
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First 9
Man of a Thousand Holds
Posts 1818
Registered 1-22-2013 Member Is Offline Mood: Doing the Emma Dance
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 08:29 AM |
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So, hey this is the first WM without Cena and Orton since WM19. That's a nice milestone, right?
Especially since instead of hating on the trifecta of Cena/Orton/Batista, it's now just one guy, Reigns. Progress!
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Count Zero
Man of a Thousand Holds 
Posts 1125
Registered 1-29-2013 Location Canada East Member Is Offline Mood: splitting brandache
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 08:30 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Jumbie
Also the world cricket T20 final...
um, yeah, moving on.
This might actually be the high-point of my day, depending on how WM32 pans out later on.
GO WINDIES~~!!!! 
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Matte
"Family Man" 
Posts 8609
Registered 12-16-2008 Member Is Offline Mood: YES!
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 03:43 PM |
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You can add Kalisto/Ryback to the preshow group with Usos/Dudleys and Total Divas. Source is the WWE Mania Twitter.
EDIT: And for anyone interested in what the crowd might sound like for Reigns/HHH, here's the crowd reaction to the promo package for it at the
HOF.
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by Matte]
"I'm a professional. I know exactly what I'm doing." - Jeff Hardy
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Paddlefoot
Rocco Rock of Jabroni
Posts 5548
Registered 1-19-2008 Location in my safe space, damn you! Member Is Offline Mood: obsolete aryan
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 04:30 PM |
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You could almost feel Vince wincing to the music of it all. Boo! Yay! Boo! Yay!
"It's gonna be a turkey shoot!" - Jim Garrison, JFK
You are a bastard. A daughter-fucking wildling bastard.
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DKBroiler
SpeciASSl CUMedian
Posts 1200
Registered 1-25-2008 Location One Inch Right of Philly on a Map Member Is Offline Mood: Old
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 04:30 PM |
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Matte, that was the best find ever. Hahahaha!!!!
"The Challenger ... RomaBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
It's so easy to hate that guy. I wish there was a way to capitalize on someone who gets booed all the time. ... um ... 
Get off my lawn.
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S Kid J E T S 48
The Immortal One 
Posts 4117
Registered 10-12-2007 Location New York Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 04:48 PM |
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Preshow:
Ryback vs. Kalisto
I guess Ryback meant this will start off the whole show when he spoke last night. Just looking at the card, we'll probably be a little
short of heels winning matches, and there seem to be an influx of faces around and returning in the next few weeks, so it makes sense to put the title
on Ryback. The accidental value they got out of Kalisto will be good going forward - a sneak preview of their long-term latino star - and we
can buy our time until Rey Mysterio returns and he can fully pass the torch along.
Total Divas vs. Team BAD and Blonde
I don't really buy the idea that WWE absolutely believed Eva Marie was coming back to a huge face ovation. The reaction by the other Divas in
the ring was mild at best and they aren't doing that on their own. Either way, I see this ending with Eva as a heel, whether turning on the
Total Divas or costing them the match and getting beat up by them. This is a tough answer because I don't think she can pull off the acting
needed in a heel turn and I don't think she can sell well enough to make 4 divas beating her up look good. Hmm...okay...I'll just go with
her turning on the TD and helping TBAB win.
The Usos vs. The Dudleys
Seems like a very safe place to call an Usos win. Last match on the preshow, need to get revenge on the Dudleys, and if they're going to
be involved at all with a Roman Reigns heel turn (maybe), they have to over strong here.
Main Card:
The New Day vs. League of Nations
The League of Nations should be better than they are. These are four heels people generally like as such and all could theoretically be far higher on
the card than they are. Something's been missing but over the past month or so, it seems like they've been building a character in a
similar way to The New Day, but in a far less obvious way.
Even as such, and even that they're probably up for a win in this feud, I'm not sure a win does much to change their fortunes going
forward. Perhaps a brutal feud with something like a debuting Bullet Club would give these guys a correct (and serious) feud to build on. Either way,
this seems all about The New Day, between their entrance, and possibility of The Rock making one of his appearances here, and continuing their
face turn without neutering their dominance at this point.
Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
The list of contenders seems to be short, pretty much made up of surprises.
John Cena could make a return after hinting as such all week. Cesaro is close and him winning it for the second time would pump some energy into the
match (please return with new music please?). Wyatts haven't been mentioned in their yet and obviously a Bray loss in this thing makes no
sense, so that could be here. I think a Samoa Joe win makes a ton of sense here (especially if he too might join up with a possible Roman Reigns turn
as I alluded to in the rumors thread). I think it's between Cena (who has jokingly entered himself into this twice before and would instantly
make the match actually matter again) and Joe. I'm going with Samoa Joe getting off to a big start with the main roster.
But keep an eye on a bit of a dark horse. As we know, this is probably Mark Henry's last WM. WWE has a penchant for giving older vets random
wins and he could get it here as a goodbye.
AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho
Everything says Jericho puts Styles over here. This is what Y2J returns to do and he's looked quite strong this time around with the heel turn,
so he could deflect it the best way he's ever had to after this.
But Jericho is going to be around till April, and every Mania seemingly has one really weird result. Literally no one ever thought Sting would lose
last year...and guess what? AJ Styles is not a WWE guy.
There is literally no way Styles should be losing today. I'll go with Chris Jericho winning in a mindfuck.
Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks
This is one of the better built feuds for Mania and probably one of a handfull of most important matches in WWE women's wrestling history, so
I'm expecting them to get a ton of time. They've built this up in a way that we really don't know who is going to win. Charlotte
could easily be the dominant champ. Sasha is undefeated since coming up. Becky has had a burgeoning of fan support since the Rumble. Any of them
coming out of here would make sense and be great.
I'll eliminate Charlotte from the win - it made sense for her to win if WWE was bringing up someone dominant tomorrow that would look like a
stronger opponent than their other two best combined. That doesn't smell like Bayley, who walking in and being a title contender doesn't
line up at all with her character, and no shortcuts can be had with her character if she is going to work. Asuka would have made sense to come out
and just destroy Charlotte, but she's now champion.
So that leaves Becky and Sasha, who would both get great reactions from the crowd. I think Becky is a little more over with the non-hardcore fans and
in an arena like that, is a threat to get a similar reaction to Sasha, but I they've been building to this crowning moment for Sasha
Banks and I don't see much of a reason to shy away from it now.
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Zack Ryder vs. Stardust vs. The Miz vs. Sin Cara
As like many, I was hoping Owens-Zayn would be the singles midcard match on this card, but I've outlined how it makes sense to branch it off in
the coming months when it can get far more attention. I wouldn't mind seeing an out-of-nowhere win for someone (Zack Ryder obviously would make
me pop like hell, but even a Stardust/Cody Rhodes deserves better than his position), but I think it's between Owens and Zayn for this one.
Owens could easily survive because he is seen and is one or two steps higher than everyone else here and there will be plenty of foils going
forward.
But Sami Zayn desperately needs something to push himself out of the pool of midcarders if he's going to be taken seriously instead of falling
into the Tyler Breeze abyss. Zayn Daniel Bryan's the hell out of this one and becomes champion.
Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose
Brock is still seen as WWE's cash cow, and they'll do anything to make sure he continues looking strong.
But this is what he is here for and sometimes you just need to go with a guy. I've been saying for months this is the year of Dean
Ambrose's ascent to the top and nothing is different here. Whether the Wyatts are the cause of a Brock loss or not, is to be seen, but this
should be Wrestlemania moment for Ambrose, and I'm hoping he gets a win by the gimmick and not by some other means.
Shane McMahon vs. Undertaker
It's really hard to predict what will happen in the final two matches since we have no idea what order they're going to go in. If the
title match is first, that eliminates any cross-breeding between these two matches, since Shane won't be in charge yet. If this goes on first,
HHH is suddenly in a position where he has to win to keep his job.
Either way, I think they wind up being sterile of each other. Shane McMahon has to win somehow and the three prevailing ideas of how seem to be:
1. Lights go out and Sting costs Taker the match (pretty much goes away with last night's very real announcement).
2. John Cena returns to rid the WWE of Vince McMahon...and sets up the Taker-Cena dream match for next year.
3. Undertaker beats Shane so badly that Vince has regrets, gets eliminated for good by the Undertaker and Shane rolls him up to get the shocking
win.
I was leaning towards option 3 until this week and all the talk from Cena that we've all discussed. Setting up a Taker-Cena match a year in
advance would be a nice start to the Shane campaign on Raw, so I can see that being the way this goes. And no, this isn't a heel turn*.
*copy and paste indefinitely forever
Roman Reigns vs. HHH
Wow. We're here. There's been a lot of words spewed and a trail of internet fan tears on the road to this match and we're finally
going to find out what WWE decides to do.
I outlined a pretty reasonable way to turn Reigns tonight off of a Goon idea in the rumors thread that I won't copy here due to this
post's length, so it can be read there. Even with it making a lot of sense, I can already sense the overbooking of it overwhelming some, even
if the result is favorable.
So I'm instead going to look at it a different way. Let's get this out in front to start. Roman Reigns is becoming champion
tonight. There's no other scenario around that.
But the result of such is up for interpretation. I'm not fully seeing the full turn happening tonight, but you need that big moment to really
tell the story of his heel turn. He's been generally but unevenly booed by fans over the last few months and while it's been somewhat
obvious, it's not enough to base everything off of.
You need that turning point, and at what is supposed to be his crowning moment, at the biggest Wrestlemania of all time, getting universally booed is
a moment that can really be used to set him off. Letting him walk off "waiving" off the fans at the end of it while walking out could be a
foreshadowing to tomorrow, where the boos will sound worse. When he finally gets frustrated with them on Raw, have anyone from Rock to Shane to
Ambrose come out to calm him down and your big post-WM Raw hook being Reigns Spearing a face there and making the full turn.
No clue if that's going to happen. They could continue with the Reigns experiment. I believe the boos will be far less strong once we get
outside of the Rumble-WM bubble, as what happened last year, but just looking ahead at the multitude of faces you'll be able to throw at Reigns
- from Ambrose to Cena to Cesaro to Orton to eventually the mega-match with a returning face Seth Rollins - it makes all the sense in the world to
have him as a heel going forward. So we'll see how it goes.
As I've been saying from the start, whatever our feelings are on this main event, the Mania card itself looks fairly full of potential. As
showed last year, even with the lack of storyline behind everything, it could wind up pulling off an exciting card without it. Hell, nothing is
Nakamura-Zayn here from a non-storylined affair winding up amazing (though we knew it would), but we do have freaking Steen and Generico in a ladder
match [at holy shit how are they] at Wrestlemania[?!?], so who knows what kinds of things could happen.
Like a Zack Ryder WM title win. Come on WWE...you know you want it.
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Paddlefoot
Rocco Rock of Jabroni
Posts 5548
Registered 1-19-2008 Location in my safe space, damn you! Member Is Offline Mood: obsolete aryan
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 04:49 PM |
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Anyone know when they started banishing hyped-for-WM matches to a non-viewable pre-show limbo? All three of those matches put together won't
take more than forty minutes to complete, maybe even less as the women's match has WM 25 Diva's battle royal written all over it in terms
of "just get it over with potential", with a bunch of hot tags and a fast finish in under ten minutes. They have their own network now where they
don't have to answer to anyone, and a show being run on dedicated PPV-specific cable channels where they aren't pre-empting or
over-running on another show's time. So, for better or worse, why not just show it all as part of the official broadcast? There's a lot of
talent in those three matches that have all been basically told "you made it to Wrestlemania! (but not really)".
You are a bastard. A daughter-fucking wildling bastard.
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S Kid J E T S 48
The Immortal One
Posts 4117
Registered 10-12-2007 Location New York Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 04:59 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Matte
Just to add to this, this was literally the same exact sequence *every* time the promo played at Raw in Brooklyn Monday, so we know where he's
standing with fans. Barring the outdoor stadium eating the boos in the air (which certainly won't happen on Raw tomorrow), Reigns is getting
booed...and HHH is actually going to get a pretty unexpectedly good face reaction (by default, but true).
quote:
Originally posted by Paddlefoot
Anyone know when they started banishing hyped-for-WM matches to a non-viewable pre-show limbo? All three of those matches put together won't
take more than forty minutes to complete, maybe even less as the women's match has WM 25 Diva's battle royal written all over it in terms
of "just get it over with potential", with a bunch of hot tags and a fast finish in under ten minutes. They have their own network now where they
don't have to answer to anyone, and a show being run on dedicated PPV-specific cable channels where they aren't pre-empting or
over-running on another show's time. So, for better or worse, why not just show it all as part of the official broadcast? There's a lot of
talent in those three matches that have all been basically told "you made it to Wrestlemania! (but not really)".
Preshows are generally free and used as a last minute way to entice casual fans into buying a WWE/Network. It's less powerful these days, but
I'm sure there's still places in this world where it works well. They do have the last hour of the preshow airing on USA this year, so
there's definitely more reason to have some of the matches there, just as they used to shoot angles on WWE Heat. Either way, expanding this
card to 6 hours seems a bit unreasonable to ask people to watch as "all even". Talented guys or not, someone's going to be left off the card
and a lot of these people (divas especially) in a normal year with full depth, would be in the Battle Royal as best. Now they get to have 20 minutes
each to be focused on, which especially with tag matches in WM preshows (the 2 on 2 kind), tends to have good results.
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by S Kid J E T S 48]
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the goon
Sister Act
Posts 5713
Registered 3-13-2004 Location Charlotte, NC Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 06:44 PM |
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So even if this year's card isn't the best, I still can't help but mark out and just be a fan for WrestleMania every year, so
I'm looking forward to tonight's show. One positive thing I will say is that there is a lot of unpredictability regarding the top matches,
so that at least makes tonight interesting.
My picks:
Triple H vs Roman Reigns: Like everyone else, I'm looking forward to this match for the crowd reaction and it looks like Roman is in for
even bigger heel heat than he got last year against Brock. I'm going to go with Reigns winning here, because as I've been fairly vocal
about in another thread, Triple H really doesn't need to be anywhere near the WWE title at this point in his career. Side note: if Reigns wins
and they don't pull a heel turn with him, tomorrow night is going to be really interesting. Because I really don't see how you can have
Roman come out and cut a promo as the new WWE champion while 10,000 fans are booing the hell out of him.
The Undertaker vs Shane McMahon: I was once thinking that Taker was going to intentionally lay down for Shane so that he could screw over
Vince, but now I'm not quite so sure about that. Either way, there has to be some kind of screwy finish here, because I really
don't see either guy winning the match outright. I'm picking Shane to win, but I have no idea how we get there.
Brock Lesnar vs Dean Ambrose: This one is really hard to pick, because a valid argument can be made for either guy winning. But like First 9
mentioned, Dean Ambrose has lost way too many big matches in the past year, so I'm picking him to win and get a WrestleMania moment by
conquering the beast (though what will probably happen is a Lesnar victory and Ambrose looking strong in defeat).
IC Title Ladder match: Owens and Zayn are really the only viable options here as far as winners go, but I'll pick Owens to retain. I
think there's definitely a chance Zayn could get the belt (especially with the momentum he has after the awesome match with Nakamura), but it
just fits with Owens' gimmick if he were to sneak in and grab the belt at the last moment to win the match.
Chris Jericho vs AJ Styles: Like I mentioned a few weeks ago, I think I'd be more psyched for this match if we hadn't already seen
it three times (with AJ winning 2/3 matches, so in theory the mini-feud should have ended after the rubber match), but otherwise I'm not
complaining about seeing Jericho and Styles go one on one at WrestleMania. Hell, just seeing AJ Styles compete at WrestleMania is going to be a pretty
mark-out worthy moment. AJ seems like the obvious winner here, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Jericho wins via some kind of
nefarious means.
Charlotte vs Sasha Banks vs Becky Lynch: You could flip a coin here, but I'll pick Becky to get the surprise win. And hopefully they give
the ladies a decent amount of time to work with, because this could be a great match.
New Day vs The League Of Nations: I'm still not quite sure if this is going to be 4 against 3 or why it's not for the tag titles,
but hey, whatever. But since it's not for the titles, I'm picking the League of Nations to get the win and then maybe that sets up an
actual tag team titles match tomorrow night on RAW.
Kalisto vs Ryback: Kalisto actually has a victory over Ryback from back in November (which I doubt anybody even remembers), so I have a feeling
he returns the favor here and Ryback becomes the new US champion.
Andre the Giant Battle Royal: I have no idea who is even in this match, but I'll go with Braun Strowman.
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CCharger
The Rowdy One 
Posts 2699
Registered 7-21-2010 Member Is Offline Mood: Obtuse
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 10:37 PM |
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Triple H vs Roman Reigns:
Roman wins. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I was obnoxiously vocal about this same outcome last year and ate shit for it. But this year there is no MITB winner to
call an audible on. They've spent too much time building this as the blow off match to the Reigns-Authority feud, that other than some weird
stunt booking, there is no other alternative. My hope as a dickhead, is that Reigns goes over clean and the crowd showers him with boos, just to stick
it to the Man.
The Undertaker vs Shane McMahon:
Shane wins. As The Rick mentioned, you can't tease a massive change and then not deliver. You can't bring back Shane to a huge ovation
just to have him disappear again a month later. I expect lots of shenanigans and high spots galore.
Brock Lesnar vs Dean Ambrose:
Brock goes over, but Dean wins. I mean that Brock will win the match and put a beating on Ambrose, but Dean won't quit and will get over as a
tough guy with huge balls. I expect blood.
IC Title Ladder match:
Kevin Owens wins. As others have pointed out Owens and Sami are the only real options here. zayn is still too new tot the fans (in Vince's eyes)
to put the belt on him. Owens wins with a lot of cheating. Zayn gets his rematch later on.
Chris Jericho vs AJ Styles:
Styles wins. Jericho exists to put new guys over. They want to push Styles and a big win over legend like Jericho would accomplish that.
Charlotte vs Sasha Banks vs Becky Lynch:
I think Sasha wins it, but anyone wouldn't be a surprise. I'll be rooting for Becky.
New Day vs The League Of Nations:
New Day wins. They are hugely over, and L of N will break up soon when Barrett departs this summer. Makes no sense to interrupt New Days momentum.
Kalisto vs Ryback:
Ryback wins. Rumors abound that Ryback is set for a big heel push. Would make sense for Goldberg to return at this point and make the save setting up
Ryback vs. Goldberg down the line.
Andre the Giant Battle Royal:
I would have picked Strowman as a lock here a few days ago. I'm still picking him but I wouldn't be surprised if Mark Henry wins as a send
off since rumors are this is his last Mania.
ETA: not for nothing but Renee Young looks stunning on the pre-show. Janerd, please be prepared to create a nip slip gif for me.
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by CCharger]
When it Reigns, it bores.
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Flash
The Rowdy One
Posts 2781
Registered 4-22-2005 Location Brantford, Ontario Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 10:44 PM |
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I think this years Wrestlemania is less about the matches themselves, and more about what's going to come out of tonight.... namely, Shane in
power, and what happens with Roman.
Lot's of solid stuff in there... some of it is hard to get really excited about other than it's Wrestlemania, as the outcome either
doesn't change much, or it's pretty expected.
So Roman and Shane.....
I'll leave poor Roman alone, as by this point there's a whole thread devoted to it.... I hope he does well, and I really do feel they
should on last as the title match, but I get why it doesn't make sense to given that HHH and Reigns are going to have to fight right out of the
gate just to be given a fair chance.... which is why I think Reigns interrupting HHH big entrance is the way to go... catch people off guard instead
of the inevitable boo's for Roman entering to, or standing around to.
Honestly, for as obtuse as the WWE is, I can't believe that they are going to just gamble on HHH and Reigns winning the crowd over by work
alone.... this will be heavily booked, and I'm genuinely interested in seeing what they have up their sleeve....
.... and of course how the crowd is going to react to it.
Shane versus the Undertaker is interesting... you've got a couple of graybeards who are still more than capable of putting up some big spots,
being given probably the WWE biggest novelty match to play in. Still.... the ending of this one is funny.... any other PPV and I think you can do a
bit of a cliff-hanger OMG Taker lost, or so long Shane, or heel turn Shane.... the promise of this match feels bigger, and that might be what hurts it
in the end, and why I don't know that I'd put this one on last.
Given the above two I'm kind of wondering if we get something out of the blue.... a 2nd title match? An addition or two to the title match? A
huge post HITC spot with Shane and Taker taking out the authority garbage.... I dunno.
Curious about Dean and Brock.... this is probably your big anchor match... the solid one we can count on, even if the ending feels a bit
inevitable.....
Looking forward to it when the cynicism falls by the wayside for a even a few minutes, and your childhood joy for this stuff kicks in.... it's
wrestlemania!
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Count Zero
Man of a Thousand Holds
Posts 1125
Registered 1-29-2013 Location Canada East Member Is Offline Mood: splitting brandache
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 10:58 PM |
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Preshow Result #1:
KALISTO~! retains.
Loo \o
Cha o/
Loo \o
Cha o/
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janerd75
The Rowdy One
Posts 2392
Registered 1-28-2013 Location Bix Nood Avenue Member Is Offline Mood: Aerogigantic
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:11 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by CCharger
ETA: not for nothing but Renee Young looks stunning on the pre-show. Janerd, please be prepared to create a nip slip gif for me.
Best I could do in the time allotted, bud. And now here it is, YOUR tepid but NSFW Renee Young Nip Slip.
�If only Africa had more mosquito nets, then every year we could save millions of mosquitoes from dying needlessly of A.I.D.S.� - Jimmy Carr
As per Count Zero's lovely transciption:
Jericho: "You better watch it."
Owens: "Yeah? Watch what?"
Jericho: "...It."
Evil Canadians 4 Life!
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S Kid J E T S 48
The Immortal One
Posts 4117
Registered 10-12-2007 Location New York Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:14 PM |
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There was like 20,000 of 90,--- and it sounded great during the Kalisto-Ryback match. Can't wait to hear how the crowd sounds when everyone is
there.
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Count Zero
Man of a Thousand Holds
Posts 1125
Registered 1-29-2013 Location Canada East Member Is Offline Mood: splitting brandache
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:18 PM |
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Pre-Show Result #2:
BRIEEEE MOOOODE with the YES-LOCK for the victory!
Team TWOONDAVE (or whatever the proper acronym is).
--------
Pre-Show Sorta-News #1:
Lita Unveils a New Ladies' Title!
It doesn't look like a butterfly, and no longer is the "Divas" belt. "Women's Champion" is the term, from here on out.
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by Count Zero]
Originally posted by williamssl
"That hasn't stopped us from doing this shit before!"
"Checkmate, sir. Checkmate"
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Cherokee Jack
Man of a Thousand Holds
Posts 1262
Registered 2-24-2009 Location New Orleans, LA Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:37 PM |
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It's basically the same as the world title with a different color scheme (thankfully not all pink or something).
But did Lita really say that whoever won tonight would be the "first recipient of the WWE Women's Championship"? Are we just pretending that
the belt that was around before the butterfly belt (the one that Lita herself held several times) never existed?
I'm Cherokee Jack!
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kiez
Fella 
Posts 457
Registered 10-23-2002 Location Nottingham, England. Member Is Offline Mood: Bitchin'
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:38 PM |
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Good finish to women's match.
Great looking belt. The last belt was in WWF not wwe?
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by kiez]
We fight like men, but bitch like women.
John "Realest of the Real" "Thug Life" "True Soldier" "Stone Rock-a-Mania" Cena -BlackDragon
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Ortonmustdie
And I am AWESOME
Posts 215
Registered 6-30-2008 Member Is Offline Mood: Plotting
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:38 PM |
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bye bye purple vagina belt, we hardly cared about you!!
Since technically, it was referred to as the WWE Divas Championship, and before that it was the WWF Womens' Title....Lita's statement is
correct....
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by Ortonmustdie]
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kiez
Fella
Posts 457
Registered 10-23-2002 Location Nottingham, England. Member Is Offline Mood: Bitchin'
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:42 PM |
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Usos vs Dudleys next.
Predicting Dudleys go over.
Entrances seem fast. Behind on time already?
We fight like men, but bitch like women.
John "Realest of the Real" "Thug Life" "True Soldier" "Stone Rock-a-Mania" Cena -BlackDragon
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Cherokee Jack
Man of a Thousand Holds
Posts 1262
Registered 2-24-2009 Location New Orleans, LA Member Is Offline Mood:
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| posted on 4-3-2016 at 11:42 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by kiez
Great looking belt. The last belt was in WWF not wwe?
The last womens belt lasted well into the WWE era. The divas belt was introduced so that Smackdown could have its own women's champion
during the brand split. If memory serves, it wasn't unified into the divas title till around 2010-11 or so.
Edit: Per Wikipedia, the belts were unified when divas champ Michelle McCool defeated womens champ Melina at Night of Champions 2010.
[Edited on 4-3-2016 by Cherokee Jack]
I'm Cherokee Jack!
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