HeadLocker–Jay Shannon
Early Wrestlemania Predictions!
Our ringside philosopher sets the “early line” for WrestleMania 24!
The Granddaddy of all Pay-Per-Views, Wrestlemania, is about 2 months away, now, and nothing has yet to fall into place. With rumors of returns, exits and confusion about the brands, it’s going to be extremely hard to figure what is going to happen. What I’m going to try to do in this edition of HeadLocker is to put forth a combination of the most logical of angles, with a bit of personal wishes.
It’s time to unite the tag team belts
Having tag team champs of both shows (Raw and Smackdown/ECW (yes, I think of it as one show these days) is a bit silly. There are a limited number of actual teams on the two shows, so we get to see Holly/Rhodes battle Carlito/Santino for the umpteenth time, while Miz/Morrison is stuck facing Shannon Moore and Jimmy Wang Yang until the cows come home. I’d like to see Holly and Rhodes take the fight to Miz and Morrison. If Miz and Morrison can go back and forth between ECW and Smackdown, then why not just make another trip over to Raw? I say Miz and Morrison, because I think they would be the better choice for tag champs. Rhodes should be focusing on individual gold, such as the Intercontinental title. I have thoughts on the I-C title, but I’ll get to that in a moment.
Having only one top team could bring a bit more excitement to the tag team ranks. Do we really want to see two tag team title matches at Wrestlemania? I’ve looked through older Wrestlemanias in my collection and the crowd reaction to a second tag title defense was always subdued.
The women’s title match
Beth Phoenix is a sure-shot future Hall of Famer. She has the right look and she’s got the skills in the ring. The problem with her being the WWE champion is that she really doesn’t have much in the way of competition. Mickie James is great, but Beth has dominated her so much that it wouldn’t seem to make sense to have them fight on the biggest stage of them all. If not Mickie, then who? Ashley seems more interested in being ring art than in-ring performer. Maria would be so over-matched in the bout. Torrie, Kelly Kelly, Jillian Hall, Layla and Lena are all out of their league with Beth. I only see two possible candidates: Victoria and/or Melina. A three way match between Beth, Victoria and Melina would be a large step up from the typical Bimbo Bout that the WWE sandwiches in between the top matches of the night. That would be a top match where a surprise or two could happen. Victoria could catch Beth napping and pin Melina to steal the title.
The Intercontinental Title
Jeff Hardy needs to be allowed to go one path or the other. Having him stranglehold the I-C title is weakening the title. Jeff needs to drop the strap before No Way Out. Kennedy would be the perfect person to put the belt on, right now. I could see a Kennedy vs. Hardy match just before No Way Out. Kennedy could then lose a non-title match to Ric Flair at No Way Out. At Wrestlemania, Flair could face Kennedy for the I-C title. Flair could then spend several months defending the I-C strap before losing it to Cody Rhodes in an extension of the Rhodes vs Flair rivalry. This could also lead to the introduction of Reid Flair, who would go for revenge and rekindle the family feud for another generation.
Money in the Bank
This match has become the break-out match of the year for many stars. I think that they need to have a mix of newer and older stars in this one. My dream line-up would feature: Rey Mysterio, Shelton Benjamin, “Kwik” Ron Killings, Matt Hardy, D.H. Smith, and Kofi Kingston. The event needs more speed and excitement. Bogging it down with a Big Show (who is rumored to be ready to return), or Kane would be counter-productive to the event. Anyone of those six would be a great future title contender. The mix of speedsters would help elevate the entire group. This match would be almost impossible to call, but it would be filled with excitement.
What to do with Hogan, if anything?
The WWE really blew it with the 20th anniversary of Wrestlemania III, last year. The show should have featured a Hogan vs Big Show match. That match actually went down a few weeks later, at an independent show in Memphis. A match against Big Show would help to re-establish the Big Show’s power and dominance. The nostalgia crowd would love the match. I could even see a surprise run-in by Randy Savage, who might go to either side. Savage and Hogan were one of the best makeshift teams of all time. The Mega-Powers were dominant and enjoyable to watch. The reunion of the two could send buy-rates for Wrestlemania through the roof. The shaky alliance could be the fodder for rumors for many months to come. It could even lead to a huge Hogan vs Savage match at SummerSlam. There are just dozens of different ways that this one could go, if it were to happen. There are a lot of giant egos involved here, so this one just might not happen. If Hogan isn’t in a scheduled match, I hope he stays home for the night. Hogan is often a disappointing distraction when he does one of his run-ins. The run-in at the 15th Anniversary Raw Special looked to be awesome, but it simply fizzled out.
The World (Smackdown) Title
The World title has been losing a little steam, as of late. The entire Batista/Edge/Undertaker feud is actually getting a bit stale. If Edge were to face either Undertaker or Batista, the crowd would boo unmercifully. Wrestlemania is the launching pad for new stars and new feuds. I would prefer to see Punk vs Edge for the World title. Unfortunately, it looks like Punk will remain locked in his feud with Chavo Guerrero. Since the ECW title is becoming a secondary title in the WWE,these days, I’d love to see Punk take the title back from Chavo and then move to unite the ECW and the World titles. A lot of fans would likely object to the elimination of the ECW title, but I think that boat has sailed. I love ECW but the show has just become a glorified extension of Smackdown. There are rumors that ECW is facing the chopping block from the Sci-Fi Network, so why not unify the titles, just in case. If Sci-Fi were to pull the plug, then ECW would end up being another Heat, available only on the official WWE site. I would rather see the stars of ECW become incorporated by the other two brands and let the third brand just fade into oblivion.
What about the Undertaker?
This one is really hard to call. Undertaker has faced most of the top contenders in the company. There is really nowhere for ‘Taker to go, this year. He’s been locked in a feud with Big Daddy V and Mark Henry, so that seems the most logical angle. I could see a tag match between The Brothers of Destruction and Mark Henry/Big Daddy V. The only other option that I see would be a 2-on-1 Handicap match pitting ‘Taker against Henry and Big Daddy V. This would be rather redundant. ‘Taker fought Albert (Giant Bernard) and Big Show in an impromptu Handicap match at Wrestlemania XIX.
The other option that I could see would be a Undertaker vs Big Show match-up. ‘Taker needs a good brutal match, this year. Big Show could use a high-profile match to help his comeback, assuming he does return to the WWE. If Big Show isn’t going to face Hogan, then it would make sense to pit him against Undertaker. With either match, Undertaker would likely make it 16-0.
The WWE (Raw) title
This match seemed pretty cut and dried, and then came No Way Out. Cena will take on Orton for the WWE title at No Way Out, while six men fight in the Elimination Chamber to become the number one contender. The marketing people are pushing Jeff Hardy, hard, in the media. They’ve teased a double title reign for Hardy. If Hardy were to win, I could see a future battle between Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy for the WWE title.
I expect the WWE to play it safe. Cena will not win the title at No Way Out due to shenanigans by Orton. Since the match ended up in contraversy, Cena would get his rematch at Wrestlemania. Add to the mix the winner of the Elimination Chamber match and it turns into a Three Way Championship Match. Who would be the third man? While Jeff Hardy might seem the logical choice, I think that WWE is going to put Triple H in the match. It would be a re-match from Royal Rumble. The crowds would eat up the match. It could actually convert Cena to a full-time heel. If Cena were to up-end Triple H, the crowd would be ready to rip Cena apart. Remember the Cena vs RVD match from One Night Stand? The crowd was livid and threatened to riot if Cena won. Cena would do well to take a turn as a monster heel.
In Conclusion:
Wrestlemania XXIV is rapidly approaching and, so far, there aren’t even the slightest hints as to what will go down in March. Wrestlemania needs some surprises and shocks to make it the top Pay-Per-View of the year. Right now, things are looking bleak, but there is still plenty of time.
–Jay Shannon
Boxworld@SBCGlobal.net
(1/30/08)
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