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We are still 164 days away from WrestleMania 31, which will take place in Santa Clara, California at Levi’s Stadium. This doesn’t mean we can’t speculate on what could take place with so much time remaining.
Right now, many think that the main event for the show is set. While it very well could be, there are still plenty of other spots on the card that have to be filled. Being months away from WM 31 also does not guarantee that the speculated main event will stay like it is. With Vince McMahon running WWE, plans could change while you’re reading this post.
With all that said, let’s take a look at how the WrestleMania 31 card could look on March 29.
*Due to Daniel Bryan’s current status, he will not be included in this post.
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Adrian Neville vs. Bad News Barrett – Intercontinental Championship
Bad News Barrett was having a good run with the Intercontinental Championship, until he was injured via an attack from Jack Swagger on an episode of SmackDown in June. The former leader of Nexus has been out ever since, but is expected back before the end of the year.
It would not be crazy to think that WWE could throw the ICC back on Barrett once he returned. While his reign was good, the company was very high on his “Bad News” gimmick and the crowds loved him. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them continue support for him.
Then there’s Adrian Neville, who currently holds the NXT Championship.
The British star is one of the best high-flyers that we have seen in WWE in years. His athleticism, alone, puts on a show for the fans. You can also check out his Red Arrow finisher, which looks spectacular.
There’s no doubt that Neville will be up on the main roster before WrestleMania 31. If he’s not by March 29, then his call-up will be well overdue. Seeing him up by January could be realistic, as he’s going to work the next NXT live special in December and also needs the work on his character.
If WWE wants to throw him into the fire, place him in a feud with Barrett for the ICC. Barrett has always been a solid in-ring worker and is phenomenal on the microphone, so he could easily put Neville over. This could also be declared the “Battle for Britain,” or something along those lines since both stars are from England.
Putting the ICC on Neville would give him immediate relevancy on the main roster and a good chance at working his way up the roster. Doing this at WrestleMania wouldn’t be a bad start, either.
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Bray Wyatt and The Ascension vs. Dean Ambrose, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan
Bray Wyatt is supposedly allowing Luke Harper and Erick Rowan to be “set free.” What this exactly means has yet to be seen. Will they go into singles competition? Will the two continue their tag team?
With Harper and Rowan expected to leave the Wyatt Family, rumors have swirled that Konnor and Victor of the Ascension, who are both currently in NXT, could take their spots. If this happens, seeing these two sides feud would not be a surprise.
You may then be asking for the reason why Dean Ambrose is in on this. Well, he’s going to need something to do. You’ll see that as you continue through the slideshow. However, he has a fit in this feud.
Harper and Rowan have not had a great deal of time on the microphone. The former has been solid when given the chance, but that has been in taped segments, which are in a controlled environment. Having Ambrose there as their voice could work out very well against Wyatt and the Ascension. Their promos could be a lot of fun to watch as we go through WrestleMania season.
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Gold and Stardust vs. The Usos vs. Finn Balor and Hideo Itami
Right now, Gold and Stardust and the Usos are the only credible tag teams in the WWE. With the low-card teams that fill out the rest of the division, these duos stand on top and very well may until the spring. They could trade the Tag Team Championship along the way like Dolph Ziggler and the Miz recently did with the Intercontinental Championship.
Eventually, there’s going to be a need for fresh opponents for the titles – that’s where Finn Balor and Hideo Itami enter the fray.
For those who don’t know who Balor is – he was formerly Prince Devitt in New Japan Pro Wrestling. He recently made his debut at an NXT taping (which we technically aren’t supposed to know about) a few weeks ago.
If you don’t know who Itami is by now – check out his debut and matches on the WWE Network. He was also formerly known as KENTA in NJPW.
If what happened at the NXT taping sticks, then these two could very well form a tag team in the long-term. It was also reported by Wrestling Rumors that these two could be up in WWE sooner than later due to their plethora of experience in the wrestling business.
Upon arrival, it wouldn’t be a surprise if they were thrown into the fire. Both former NJPW stars could make it immediately known that they want WWE gold. How the rivalry for it goes from there is anyone’s guess, but the payoff would be them getting a WrestleMania moment together. Fresh champions will be much-needed by then, so they could get a decent reign following this.
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Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins
A Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins feud is something that has been teased over the past few weeks.
Since Rollins joined the Authority following the Payback PPV, there have been small hints of Orton being upset with him. Much of it has been when RKO and Kane have had to clean up Mr. Money in the Bank’s problems with Dean Ambrose. They’ve been presenting their frustrations about this to the Authority, but Triple H and Stephanie McMahon have shown support for Rollins each time.
What we saw this past Monday was the potential for a big program between Orton and Rollins. Whether that feud happens between the two by next month or by WrestleMania season remains to be seen. If WWE wants to maximize this feud, they’ll put it in Levi’s Stadium in March. Everyone’s eyes will be on it and it would give Rollins a big time match with a future member of the WWE Hall of Fame. A win would establish him as a dominant force in WWE for years to come.
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Sting vs. Triple H
To push this out of the way first – I don’t think that the Rock will return for WrestleMania 31. He has too much on his plate with movies, so he could hold off on a match with Triple H until next year.
I also don’t think that the Undertaker will return for another match. After the injuries that he suffered from the hands of Brock Lesnar, I can’t see the Dead Man wanting to risk getting banged up again.
The main focus of this is the Icon – Sting.
As everyone knows, Sting is probably the most notable former WCW star to never appear on WWE TV since the company was bought by Vince McMahon in 2001.
With this deal that has him in their Mattel toy collection and in WWE 2K15, he’s bound to agree to a separate deal to give him his one WrestleMania match. Not seeing him at WM 31 would be a pretty big upset.
For the Icon to be in Santa Clara, he’ll need an opponent. He has stated already that if Undertaker decides to not come back, he wants to face Hunter Hearst Helmsley.
Seeing Triple H and Sting lock up at WrestleMania would be fantastic. A legend of WCW’s greatest era vs. a legend of WWE’s Attitude Era would draw a lot of eyes and check off some fans’ “dream match.” Stinger would end up beating HHH and finally get his WrestleMania moment in front of nearly 100K fans to cap off his legendary career in the ring.
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John Cena vs. Rusev
This is going to make many fans roll their eyes because of what happened between John Cena and Bray Wyatt last year, but at some point, Rusev is going to need bigger challenges. The leader of the Cenation would be perfect for that – unless Vince McMahon feels that he needs another big WrestleMania victory.
Through his first six months on the main roster, the Bulgarian Brute has tore through his competition of foes like Xavier Woods, Jack Swagger, and Mark Henry. Fans are ready to see him take on more credible, higher-card opponents. If anything, seeing him in the same ring with the Rock guaranteed that Rusev will be moving up the card in the future.
Need another reason why this could happen? It was reported that by the Wrestling News Observer that a Cena-Rusev feud could be in the works.
"Mark Henry and Rusev closing out last night’s RAW may have had something to do with preparing Rusev for a feud with John Cena soon."
WWE is setting up the hero of the Russian federation for big things. WrestleMania 31 could be where that all begins.
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Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns – WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Here is your potential main event, folks.
Like it or not, Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship seems like the direction that WWE is going in whether the former Shield member is ready or not.
Putting Reigns in a match with Lesnar for the title is the necessary move for WWE to do. The company backed themselves into a corner with the Beast Incarnate as their champion because of how strongly they’ve booked him. No one is going to believe that someone like Seth Rollins, who is much smaller than Lesnar, will take him down for his title. Dean Ambrose may be the hottest babyface in the company right now, but no one is going to believe he could beat the one in 21-1. It’s just the product of the “smart fan” in today’s era where everything has to be realistic.
Reigns has the build to beat Lesnar to become the WWE World Heavyweight champion. Fans would believe it if he could best him in the main event of WrestleMania 31. Overpowering him with his strength and spearing him would be acceptable to the crowd. This would lead to Reigns getting his WM moment, which will be seen as something that’s way too early in the minds of many fans, but it’s something that everyone will have to deal with.
From there, it’s up to Reigns to capitalize and turn his career into a great one. WWE is surely opening up the path for him to do
It’s time for the FanSiders to leave their input – what are your predictions for the WrestleMania 31 card at this point?