WWE WrestleMania 34: Daily DDT Staff Predicts Results
By Bryan Heaton
Photo Source: WWE.com
Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Jack Clayton: Last year, the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal just served as a match for everyone to be a part of. But that’s not what it’s supposed to be. Instead, it should be able to push the career of a mid-carder who needs it. And the superstar who needs it right now is “Woken” Matt Hardy. He just finished a mediocre feud with Bray Wyatt, and needs somewhere to go now. This is the perfect place for it. His feud with Wyatt was the introduction of his character, and the Battle Royal would be the next step in his story. It can give him the momentum to go for a singles title, or even just show the dominance he had in TNA in WWE. Woken Matt needs his WrestleMania moment, and to see him “delete” everyone else in the Battle Royal would be DELIGHTFUL!
Bryan Heaton: With a whopping 13 offical matches on the card, there aren’t a whole lot of superstars left for the battles royal without dipping into the ranks of NXT, or a big return from injury. Since I think an NXT superstar could win the Women’s Battle Royal, I figure the ATGMBR will go to a surprise return. This guy isn’t returning from injury, but he’s been off TV since falling into the Lake of Reincarnation during The Ultimate Deletion. That’s right, a new and improved Bray Wyatt will win this one, and set the course for the next few weeks of his career.
Liam Hoofe: I wish I had something to say about this match but at this stage, who really cares about the outcome? A returning Big Cass would make for an interesting winner, but don’t expect it to have any long-term effect on his career.
Christopher Jeter: I wish I cared more about this, but I don’t. The winners never get a sustained push, rendering the battle royal pretty pointless. Hopefully, WWE does something with the winner this year since the Andre HBO documentary comes out later this month. I have no idea who’s winning this thing. None of the confirmed entrants look like realistic winners, so maybe a surprise entrant or an NXT call-up gets the nod this year. I guess they could have Mark Henry win it a day after his Hall-of-Fame induction.
Trace Johnson: This match has become nothing more than a reason to get the undercard superstars on the card, but hopefully it gives the winner a deserved push, unlike the past few winners. It would be cool to see Matt Hardy win, so I’ll pick the Woken One to delete the competition.
Joe Soriano: It’s hard to find a reason to care about this battle royal, because it ultimately means nothing. Last year, we got a nice celebrity pop from Gronk, but the match did a whole lot more for Jinder Mahal than Mojo Rawley. I could see the WWE giving Dolph Ziggler a cheap victory here after he dropped the United States Championship, and Ziggler’s first real WrestleMania moment will probably do a grand total of zilch for his career trajectory. Which, you know, is par for the course for this battle royal.