WWE WrestleMania 36 will take place on Apr. 5 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT live on the WWE Network with the kickoff show beginning at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT. With only seven matches declared official for this WWE event, the following will address match card predictions as well as the winners for each match almost three weeks away from the grandest stage of them all.
WrestleMania 36! The Showcase of the Immortals and potentially the very first WrestleMania without a live audience. Nonetheless, there are many exciting bouts to look forward to for the biggest PPV of the year. Per WWE’s official website, the following is a preview of the official WWE WrestleMania 36 Match Card thus far:
"WWE Championship Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Drew McIntyre Universal Championship Roman Reigns (c) vs. Goldberg Grudge Match John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt Raw Women’s Championship Becky Lynch (c) vs. Shayna Baszler NXT Women’s Championship Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair Grudge Match Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins Grudge Match The Undertaker vs. AJ Styles"
Just like in WWE WrestleMania 35 last year, it is foreseeable that the two battle royals are usually locks for the kickoff show. Let’s start predicting the card with the women’s battle royal, which will hopefully be renamed the Chyna Memorial Battle Royal.
Chyna Memorial Battle Royal [Free-For-All]
Nia Jax should be returning soon and winning the Chyna Memorial Battle Royal would set her up for a championship opportunity post-WrestleMania. Thanks to her immense Royal Rumble experiences and All-Women’s Evolution PPV battle royal victory, winning this battle royal at WrestleMania should not be a tough task for the irresistible force.
As a former Raw Women’s Champion, she should be in the title picture upon her return and a rivalry with the likes of Shayna Baszler, Rhea Ripley, Charlotte Flair, Bayley, or even revisiting her memorable face-breaker rivalry with Becky Lynch would do wonders for her return to in-ring action. Dominant superstars should win these battle royals, and Jax is nothing but dominant.
Prediction: Nia Jax
Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal [Free-For-All]
Speaking of dominance, it seems that Bobby Lashley’s storyline with Lana and Rusev has been dropped and he can finally focus on his singles career. Since he has no clear rival on the road to WrestleMania 36, winning the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal for the first time in his career will set his dominance in the right direction and set him up for a championship opportunity post-WrestleMania.
As a former United States and Intercontinental Champion, Bobby Lashley should be in the main card title picture by now and be in rivalries with the likes of Drew McIntyre, Roman Reigns, Goldberg or more importantly Brock Lesnar. He has been reportedly requesting a match with Lesnar ever since he returned to the WWE and his momentum as of late won’t warrant a match with the Beast Incarnate unless he secures a big win, like this battle royal.
Prediction: Bobby Lashley
Kabuki Warriors (c) vs. Bliss Cross Applesauce [Women’s Tag Team Championships]
Considering that Asuka cost Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross a tag team victory on Friday Night SmackDown against Bayley and Sasha Banks, it’s pretty evident that Kabuki Warriors will be defending their Women’s Tag Team Championships against Bliss and Cross in a WWE Hell in a Cell 2019 rematch. Bliss and Cross have been aspiring to become the first ever two-time Women’s Tag Team Champions and the ideal time to accomplish that moment is at WrestleMania.
Defeating The Kabuki Warriors would be more meaningful and redemptive for the babyface tandem since they lost their first Women’s Tag Team Championships to the Kabuki Warriors in the first place. Although the Kabuki Warriors have been entertaining Women’s Tag Team Champions, they have held the championships for almost six months and only had two title defenses, one of which was the WWE TLC 2019 Main Event against Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.
This could be a sign that Kabuki Warriors have exhausted their rivalries with the women’s tag teams in the division or simply because the WWE’s creative team is too ignorant, lazy, or negligent to book women’s tag team championship matches on a consistent basis. The representation of the women’s tag team championships matter in encompassing the women’s evolution in the WWE and a title change would hopefully elicit more title defenses in the near future so that the women’s tag team division thrives as it should.
Prediction: Bliss Cross Applesauce
The Dirt Sheet (c) vs. The Usos vs. The New Day [SmackDown Tag Team Championships]
When John Morrison and The Miz retained the SmackDown Tag Team Championships inside Elimination Chamber, the last three tag teams left standing included Usos and The New Day. With Lucha House Party remaining the jobber tag team of the SmackDown Tag Team Division and Heavy Machinery and RooDolph invested in their Mandy Rose love storyline, it seems that there are not that many options left when it comes to the potential SmackDown Tag Team Championship match at WrestleMania 36.
Since it would be criminal to leave The Usos and The New Day off the WrestleMania card, a triple threat match for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships would be suitable. Since getting drafted to SmackDown, both The New Day and The Dirt Sheet have had their moments as SmackDown Tag Team Champions.
However, The Usos have not won any tag team championships since returning to in-ring competition. With Roman Reigns slated to become Universal Champion, don’t be surprised if Usos also win the SmackDown Tag Team Championships so that they can celebrate with their cousin, Roman Reigns, on the SmackDown after WrestleMania.
Prediction: The Usos
Street Profits (c) vs. Viking Raiders [Raw Tag Team Championships]
Since Street Profits dethroned Seth Rollins and Buddy Murphy to become the new Raw Tag Team Champions, it would have made sense for Authors of Pain to get revenge on Rollins and Murphy’s behalf by targeting Street Profits for the Raw Tag Team Championships. However, Rezar of the AOP is unfortunately injured and that match is no longer possible.
Although this is unfortunate for AOP, there is always a plan B in the WWE and a Raw Tag Team Championship match is still possible. Since Viking Raiders won a kickoff match against Hawkins and Ryder at WWE Elimination Chamber 2020, they would be fitting for a Raw Tag Team Championship match against Street Profits.
The Street Profits have capitalized on Kevin Owens’ assistance at ringside for both of their Raw Tag Team Championship matches. Defeating the dominant Viking Raiders at WrestleMania will prove their valiance and capability of winning title matches independently.
Prediction: Street Profits
Aleister Black vs. Buddy Murphy [Grudge Match]
The only reason Buddy Murphy joined Seth Rollins’ faction was because he was frustrated with his continuous losses to Aleister Black and wanted a new direction in his career. Considering how cruiser-weights have been booked on the main roster, it was quite refreshing to see Murphy in a main event role with Rollins.
Now that he has established himself as a tag team champion alongside The Monday Night Messiah and learned the error of his ways (i.e. sins that he had committed in the past… pun fully intended), he could finally be ready to fight Aleister Black at WrestleMania 36. However, that persuasive shtick won’t be enough to defeat the very strongly booked Aleister Black, who is slated to become the next world champion post-WrestleMania.
Last week on Raw, Seth Rollins offered Aleister Black a spot in his faction, but Black rejected the offer. This is a sign that Black could revisit his ‘fight forever’ rivalry with Murphy at WrestleMania 36 and get revenge against Murphy for eliminating him in the Royal Rumble match that could have guaranteed him a spot on the WrestleMania card with a world championship opportunity in the first place.
Prediction: Aleister Black
Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins [Grudge Match]
This match is already official and could be the sleeper pick to steal the show at this year’s WrestleMania. Their revisited rivalry began at the post-Survivor Series Town Hall Meeting and will culminate at the WWE Performance Center, where they plan to make happy memories.
This match was supposed to happen on the Raw after Survivor Series but it gradually turned into weekly eight-man tag team matches involving Rollins’ new faction with Buddy Murphy and AOP against Kevin Owens and as many tag teams as he can find to help him (i.e. Viking Raiders, Street Profits, Samoa Joe and Big Show). Although injuries and repetitive booking turned this rivalry into a mess, some credit must go to the superstars for keeping this storyline as long-term as possible.
This bout may seem like only six months in the making but let’s not forget that these two superstars defined the Universal Championship picture after Finn Balor relinquished it in 2016. Back then, Owens was the heel and Seth Rollins was the babyface with Owens getting the upper hand as Universal Champion with AEW’s Chris Jericho at his side.
Now, the roles are reversed and the winner of this bout could very well become the true leader of Monday Night Raw. Although Owens got the upper hand in 2016, he has lost the majority of his eight-man tag matches with Rollins and his faction in this six-month build up, so he should get the win against Rollins at WrestleMania 36 to redeem himself from those losses and prove to Rollins that he is not as second-rate as Rollins classified him to be at the Town Hall Meeting in November.
Besides, hasn’t Rollins won a match at every WrestleMania thus far? His track record seems too good to be true and it’s clear he does not need a win at this year’s WrestleMania against Kevin Owens, who was left off the card from last year’s WrestleMania.
Prediction: Kevin Owens
Bayley (c) vs. Sasha Banks vs. Naomi vs. Lacey Evans vs. Carmella vs. Dana Brooke [SmackDown Women’s Championship: 6-Pack Challenge]
Only two superstars should win this rumored 6-pack challenge for the SmackDown Women’s Championship: Bayley and Sasha Banks. They have been booked the strongest in the SmackDown Women’s Division, especially after defeating all of them in both tag team matches and championship matches.
Although Bayley is the best SmackDown Women’s Champion in history and she should solidify her championship run with a win at WrestleMania 36, Sasha Banks should use this opportunity to earn her first WrestleMania victory for she is the only Horsewoman without a victory on the Showcase of the Immortals. She does not even need to pin Bayley to win the championship, but it would be even more clever if Bayley intentionally allowed Sasha Banks to pin her just so none of the other superstars win her championship (similar to how Carmella pinned her best friend, R-Truth, for the 24/7 Championship in September).
Based on how Banks and Bayley have been acting lately, it’s not just Bayley’s SmackDown Women’s Championship. Like LayCool in 2010, Banks and Bayley are acting like heel co-champions who care about keeping the championship in their grasps and maintaining superiority over the women’s division for as long as they can.
At some point, tension, envy, and greed will arise between Bayley and Banks. WWE SummerSlam 2020 can feature the high-demand championship match between Bayley and Banks in Banks’ hometown as a testament to Banks’ ability to retain the women’s championship for the very first time in her career since she has always been known for losing her women’s championship in her first title defenses.
Prediction: Sasha Banks
Sami Zayn (c) (w/Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro) vs. Daniel Bryan (w/Drew Gulak) vs. Braun Strowman vs. Elias vs. King Corbin vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus [Intercontinental Championship: 8-Man Ladder Match]
Since there is no clear rival for the new Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn, an eight-man ladder match would suffice. There are many great options in the SmackDown mid card division to win the Intercontinental Championship, but the one superstar who stands out is Daniel Bryan.
Although Sami Zayn’s miraculous success epitomized altruism, Daniel Bryan has a legitimate reason to dethrone Sami Zayn and it all ties back to their significant altercation in October, when Sami Zayn persuaded Daniel Bryan to end the Yes Movement and join his faction with Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro. Bryan rejected that offer and proceeded with The Yes Movement, which failed him in his quest to dethrone Bray Wyatt for the Universal Championship.
Ever since then, Bryan has gone on a downward spiral and has been booked in meaningless grudge matches every week with the likes of Heath Slater and Curtis Axel until he got in the ring with Drew Gulak at WWE Elimination Chamber 2020. After defeating Drew Gulak, he noticed that Gulak truly took him to his limits and actually knows the weaknesses in his arsenal well enough to counter them at every moment in the match.
Now, he wants Drew Gulak to teach him how to be less formulaic and more spontaneous in the ring so that his opponents don’t spot his weaknesses, like Gulak did, especially when pertaining to Bryan’s roundhouse kick that is repeatedly countered or dodged in every match (since his opponents always see it coming to their heads after the Yes Kicks are delivered to their chests). Henceforth, Drew Gulak should help Daniel Bryan do what he couldn’t do against Bray Wyatt on two separate occasions: win a high stake championship match.
Arguments can be made for the other superstars quite reasonably: Braun Strowman needs to obtain his revenge from WWE Elimination Chamber 2020 and win the championship back from Sami Zayn, Elias needs to win his first main roster championship since his push is long overdue, for King Corbin to win his first Intercontinental Championship especially after his loss of momentum in his rivalry with Roman Reigns, Jeff Hardy needs to win a championship upon his epic return as a tribute to his brother, Matt Hardy, who left the WWE, and Sheamus needs to win the Intercontinental Championship to become an Ultimate Grand Slam Champion.
However, an Intercontinental Championship victory for Daniel Bryan would be more meaningful from a storyline standpoint. It would be a great deja vu moment from his Intercontinental Champion ladder match victory at WrestleMania 31 five years ago, and he would finally be able to win back the Intercontinental Championship he never lost.
Prediction: Daniel Bryan
Andrade (c) vs. Rey Mysterio [United States Championship: Title vs. Career]
At WWE Elimination Chamber 2020, Andrade defeated Humberto Carillo to retain the United States Championship. Afterwards, Rey Mysterio defeated Angel Garza on last week’s Raw and even Andrade in a non-title match on this week’s Raw.
Since Carillo and Garza have been losing quite a bit lately, they should no longer be considered for a United States Championship opportunity. However, Rey Mysterio earned his championship opportunity by defeating Andrade on this week’s Raw.
This is a sign that Mysterio could revisit his ‘fight forever’ rivalry with Andrade at WrestleMania 36 and avenge Andrade for taking away the United States Championship from him in December. However, don’t be surprised if Mysterio puts his career on the line to officially pass his torch to Andrade at this year’s WrestleMania.
Prediction: Andrade
The Undertaker vs. AJ Styles [Grudge Match]
At WWE Super ShowDown 2020, The Undertaker stole the Tuwaiq Mountain Trophy from AJ Styles by entering the match at the last-minute and defeating Styles with the Chokeslam. At WWE Elimination Chamber 2020, Undertaker cost AJ Styles a No Disqualification Match match against Aleister Black, allowing Black to pick up the pinfall victory with the Black Mass.
Although WrestleMania is essentially Undertaker’s playground, it is quite clear who needs to obtain revenge and get a win back and that’s AJ Styles. Many WWE fans resonated with AJ Styles’ promos on The Undertaker pertaining to The Undertaker being a broken, old man who desecrated a beautiful moment at WrestleMania 33 (i.e. the placing of his coat and hat in the middle of the ring to signify his retirement) by continuing to compete for the past three years.
Styles made it even more personal by suggesting that The Undertaker is has only been competing in the past three years to attend to the beck and call of his wife, Michelle McCool. As a heel, Styles is doing a good job at making the WWE Universe hate him for his comments about the legendary Undertaker, whom they have looked up to for over twenty years.
Although he has made some bold statements in the past few weeks, Styles was a bit of a coward on this week’s Raw during the contract signing when he sent Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows to deliver the contract to the Undertaker while he hid in the backstage area. Whether this was a cowardly move or a mind game, Styles seems to have gotten in Undertaker’s head well enough to earn a victory at WrestleMania 36.
The mystique behind Undertaker’s WrestleMania victories is gone, and there is no need for Undertaker to win at Mania anymore. If he is going to continue returning for WrestleMania matches that he does not need to be in at this stage of his career, he should be giving back to the business by pushing younger talent, like Styles.
Consequently, although The Undertaker has a lifetime contract with the WWE and he should win the match as payback for the comments Styles made about his wife, the 21st century Shawn Michaels should defeat The Undertaker, take his soul, and put the nail in his coffin at WrestleMania 36 because everything he said about Undertaker is true. Whether the Undertaker’s American Badass gimmick comes back or not, Styles needs to do what the real Shawn Michaels failed to do at WrestleMania 26 ten years ago.
Prediction: AJ Styles
Randy Orton vs. Edge [Last Man Standing Match]
This week on Raw, Edge brought up his Royal Rumble altercation with Randy Orton and challenged him to a Last Man Standing Match. Indeed, Edge eliminated Orton from the Rumble but Orton took things too far and retaliated by delivering a Con-Chair-To to Edge’s neck and an RKO to Edge’s wife, Beth Phoenix, three weeks ago on Raw.
The match has not been made official yet because Orton is advertised to respond to Edge’s challenge next week on Raw. Evidently, Randy Orton vs. Edge should be happening at WWE WrestleMania 36 because they have been building up this rivalry for weeks on end.
However, Orton should not do the expected, which is accepting the challenge next week on Raw. Instead, he should stick to his word and protect Edge (like a brother) from any further harm by rejecting his challenge at WrestleMania.
This will invoke Edge’s fury to a further extent, allowing him to finally get his hands on Randy Orton and force him to accept the challenge on the go-home show before WrestleMania. This will help show that Edge is not playing any games and is truly as Rated R as he is billed to be.
However, this match is bigger than that and it is not just about Edge returning to in-ring competition after nine years and getting a big win over Randy Orton with grit. This is also about Randy Orton establishing his future Hall of Fame status by defeating a current Hall of Famer (i.e. Edge) and showing that he truly is the Legend Killer he is billed to be. As can be indicated by his remarkable mic work in the past few weeks, it is evident that he deserves this victory.
Prediction: Randy Orton
Bray Wyatt vs. John Cena [Grudge Match]
Although losing the Universal Championship hurt his momentum, Bray Wyatt’s epic rivalry with John Cena en route to WWE WrestleMania 36 is a blessing in disguise and will solidify his position as a main event star. If it wasn’t for Cena defeating Wyatt at WrestleMania 30, Bray Wyatt would have never gone on this downward spiral and need some brilliant repackaging into The Fiend character.
At WrestleMania 30, the rivalry was about John Cena’s legacy; at WrestleMania 36, the rivalry is now about Bray Wyatt’s legacy. This rivalry is six years in the making and will definitely be a testament to Bray Wyatt’s advancement to the next level.
In fact, his promo with John Cena last week on Friday Night SmackDown already showed why he is so adept at effective storytelling. All he needs is a well-earned victory over the face that runs the place at WrestleMania 36 to redeem himself from losing to him at WrestleMania 30 and from losing the Universal Championship to Goldberg at WWE Super ShowDown 2020.
Prediction: Bray Wyatt
Goldberg (c) vs. Roman Reigns [Universal Championship]
Speaking of Goldberg, he is scheduled to defend the Universal Championship against Roman Reigns in the Battle of the Spears. This title match was evidently booked to allow Roman Reigns to win back the Universal Championship he never lost since he relinquished that same championship when he had to depart WWE for leukemia treatment.
Whether one loves him or hates him, Roman Reigns is one of the most polarizing figures in the WWE and his time to win the Universal Championship and possibly retire Goldberg is now. Thankfully, there is no one in attendance to boo his victory but the condition of the TV screens could be in jeopardy.
Prediction: Roman Reigns
Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair [NXT Women’s Championship]
Charlotte Flair won the Royal Rumble and is the first superstar to challenge for the NXT Women’s Championship at WrestleMania. This match is solely making history because this will be the first time an NXT Championship will take place on the grandest stage of them all.
Since Charlotte has never defeated Rhea Ripley, it is totally plausible for her to defeat Ripley at this year’s WrestleMania. This victory would represent a move to NXT for Charlotte Flair that would do wonders for NXT ratings against AEW ratings on Wednesday nights.
Although Ripley deserves a longer NXT Women’s Championship reign, Charlotte Flair is better for business. Having NXT win at Survivor Series was clearly not enough because they still need the star-power to maintain competition with AEW. Charlotte has already exhausted all of her rivalries on the main roster, so a move to NXT could do wonders for her career as well.
Prediction: Charlotte Flair
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Shayna Baszler [Raw Women’s Championship]
This rivalry began when Shayna Baszler defeated Becky Lynch and Bayley in a triple threat main event match as NXT Women’s Champion at WWE Survivor Series 2019. After Baszler made Bayley pass out to win the match, Becky Lynch delivered a post match attack on Baszler to stand tall at the end of the show.
After losing her NXT Championship to Rhea Ripley and failing to win the Royal Rumble after getting eliminated by Charlotte Flair, Shayna Baszler made her way to the main roster by biting Becky Lynch’s neck like a vampire from the Twilight series. She then won an Elimination Chamber Match by eliminating everyone in that match to earn the opportunity at battling Becky Lynch for the Raw Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 36.
This week on Raw, Becky Lynch declaimed that she aims to prove that Shayna Baszler’s life is a lie. Knowing that Lynch has held the championship for an entire year, she may be getting a bit too cocky and may have ‘bitten’ off more than she can chew because the Queen of Spades is no joke and Lynch may not realize that until WrestleMania 36 when she passes out to the Kirifuda Clutch.
Indeed, Baszler needs to solidify her transition to the main roster with a championship victory because she is a top star who needs to be seen as a dangerous, untouchable threat to the women’s division. Defeating The Man will do just that.
Prediction: Shayna Baszler
Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Drew McIntyre [WWE Championship]
Who will send Royal Rumble Winner Drew McIntyre to Suplex City at WrestleMania 36? Brock Lesnar. Who will kick out of the Claymore at two? Brock Lesnar. Who will F-5 Drew McIntyre to pin him for the three count and retain the WWE Championship? Brock Lesnar. Who will make ‘Broken Dreams’ a reality for Drew McIntyre?
Brock Lesnar. That’s not a prediction. That’s a spoiler.
SPOILER: Brock Lesnar