WWE: Who will Edge pick to face at WrestleMania?

Who will Edge face when WrestleMania 37 is upon us? 

Edge, “The Rated-R Superstar,” survived the 2021 Royal Rumble, picking up his second victory in the monumental match. Now, the focus swings over to which champion will Edge challenge. The multiple-time champion is looking to strap that belt around his waist one last time, nearly ten years to the day when he had to relinquish the title and retire. With three champions boasting gold belts, there’s reason to see that Edge could potentially challenge any of those individuals.

When Edge won the Rumble the first thought was that Drew McIntyre would be the man to face him at WrestleMania. But that should not be a foregone conclusion. Roman Reigns is putting on a career-defining act as the biggest heel in the company. And do not forget about Finn Balor, whose current run as the NXT champion has revitalized his tenure in the WWE. Balor was not even a part of the conversation until Tuesday when Edge posted on social media that NXT needs to get “Rated R.” So that leads to this debate about who Edge should face at WrestleMania 37.

Finn Balor

Let us start with the dark horse in the race. Balor has continued to put on exceptional matches as this iteration of “the Prince” that harkens back to his time in New Japan. He and Kyle O’Reilly put on two of the best matches in the WWE in recent memory. Now he has Pete Dunne breathing down his neck and Karrion Kross not too far off from there.

It is harder to see Balor as the opponent to Edge because that Kross match is demanding to be made. The WWE positioned Kross to be the big, bad final villain for NXT when he defeated Keith Lee and unfortunately, that shoulder injury forced him out of action. It is more believable to see that victory coming over Balor, rather than coming over Edge. A match between Finn Balor and Edge would be fantastic, but it does not need to happen under these standards.

Roman Reigns

“The Tribal Chief” is sitting on the SmackDown roster, doing whatever he pleases to make sure that everyone remains in their place. He and Kevin Owens continue to beat each other senseless but Owens has failed to get his hand raised against the former member of the Shield. Where does Reigns go from here? The dream match against The Rock does sound enticing, but much harder to achieve in the current climate of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Perhaps that is something to build to in 2019. But a potential match against Edge is something we can see sooner, rather than later.

The promos between these two men would be amazing to experience. Edge is fighting for the last chance to obtain the glory that slipped through his fingers when his body almost failed him. Then there’s Reigns, who has put everything into keeping that title and his place at the top of the pecking order. WrestleMania season should be about emotion and these two men facing off would exude that at every moment.

Drew McIntyre

Drew McIntyre’s title run has been enjoyable in a sense, but there seems to be a lot left on the table. His title run has consisted of matches with opponents who are not top tier opposition. Men such as Dolph Ziggler and Randy Orton received multiple title shots against McIntyre. Then there’s Sheamus, who is up next – even though he has not had a strong singles run of late. And let us not get started about Bill Goldberg. McIntyre promised to be a champion that faced worthy contenders, but that has not been the case. Edge can help fix this.

Just as with the Reigns opportunity, a feud between Edge and McIntyre would be an emotional ride. Edge is one of the last kings from a prior time that has found his way back into the ring. McIntyre would surely respect that, but he would still desire to put Edge down like he has done everyone else. Doing so would perhaps be the biggest name other than Brock Lesnar on his championship run. And defeating Edge on the grandest stage of them all could be the starting point to seeing a different side of McIntyre that could help him develop into something new for the fans to enjoy.

Edge has three men prime to stand across from him as opponents at WrestleMania 37. Who will he choose as the day’s past is still an open conversation? But each man comes with pros and cons as the “Rated-R Superstar” looks to regain a title to make up for the lost time.