This weekend fans will witness the final PPV stop on the road to Wrestlemania when the stars of RAW and Smackdown look to gain important momentum at Elimination Chamber.
Wrestlemania matches will be cemented, new champions could very well be crowned, and fuel will be added to the fire of several storylines and rivalries heading into the biggest wrestling event of the year. Today we are going to be running down the Elimination Chamber card for this weekend and predicting the possible end results and ‘must happens’ for what is a vital PPV on the wrestling calendar.
Elimination Chamber, Smackdown Tag Team Championships: The Miz & John Morrison (C) vs The New Day vs Heavy Machinery vs Robert Roode & Dolph Ziggler vs The Usos vs Lucha House Party
A tag team Elimination Chamber math really does have plenty of potential. Fans can expect to see a chaotic, entertaining, action-packed match up here on the road to Wrestlemania which looks to declare who will walk into the biggest wrestling event of the year the Smackdown tag team champions. Current title holders Miz and Morrison have a huge task at hand with this one and the odds are most certainly stacked against them. Personally, I would love to see more from their reign and so seeing them walk out still the champions would be a great end result but again, the competition is so incredibly high in this bout.
This stipulation does allow the current champs to use their sneaky tactics to their advantage and we know how impressive Morrison can be inside the Chamber. Teams most unlikely to score the win here are Heavy Machinery and Roode and Ziggler but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a great showing. This is an excellent opportunity to see Heavy Machinery, in particular, have a huge breakout performance that takes them to the next level and cements them as future champions. There will be a great focus on tensions between Roode and Ziggler and Heavy Machinery with one team sure to eliminate the other.
The New Day and The Usos, of course, have so much history and so much experience working together and that too is sure to be a focal point here in this match, however, fans are so used to seeing the titles on these two teams that it would be refreshing to see Miz and Morrison retain the titles for the sake of something different heading into Mania. Of course, there is speculation amongst fans that Miz and Morrison will collide one on one but that appears to be more likely for after Mania at this point and so we can most likely expect to see the titles remain on the current champs.
Prediction: The Miz & John Morrison
Intercontinental Championship: Braun Strowman (C) vs Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro & Sami Zayn
After winning the title from Nakamura in singles action Braun Strowman finally scored his first singles title in his WWE career but could we be about to see that reign come to an early end this weekend? Now, what this match does (in my opinion) is show the lack of effort being made with the mid-card titles heading into Wrestlemania. All the names involved in this match are such incredible talents but the booking here is an odd one that is set up to either see an unfair fall for Strowman or a performance that showcases his dominance and power.
Despite the numbers being against the ‘Monster Among Men’ we all know that Braun is a total powerhouse who could so easily walk out still champion despite the odds being against him being able to overpower and outsmart each name involved. Heading into Wrestlemania I do believe a triple threat between the superstars pitted against Braun makes for a more of a promising and must-see match, but it seems unlikely Strowman will lose the title so early into his reign. With that being said this is one of the most unpredictable bouts of the evening and while there isn’t that big of an interest from fans with this one it could set up a huge must-see at Wrestlemania.
Prediction: Braun Strowman
No Disqualification Match: AJ Styles vs Aleister Black
This past week on RAW fans was incredibly excited to see the must-see first-ever match between Aleister Black and AJ Styles but things didn’t go as expected and after an unfair loss to Styles Black has a second opportunity at the phenomenal one with a no DQ stipulation attached. Now, after what we saw on RAW just a few days ago something has been taken away from this match and the loss Black suffered has taken away a lot of momentum and a great deal from his character build and so this one on one at Elimination Chamber is an important collision for the former NXT Champion.
There is no denying the amazing potential this match has and it could so easily go down as one of the standout matches of the entire year. What is important here is the WWE make up for what we saw on Monday and give these two time, avoid too much involvement from Anderson and Gallows and make sure the storytelling is a key focus point in this encounter. We can expect some outside involvement, but Black is sure to look to take out The OC in full after what we saw go down on RAW.
The end result to this one is a difficult one. Black is in need of regaining momentum after his loss, but its important Styles scores a big victory on the road to Wrestlemania and his huge match there. Neither man can really afford the loss here and so the end result will be interesting, to say the least. The involvement of Anderson and Gallows is most likely to assist Styles in another win on Sunday. I’m also hoping we see a focus on the wrestling between these two and not too much use of foreign objects that fit the no DQ stipulation for the wrestling is what’s key and most promising here; these two do not need tables and chairs and kendo sticks to provide an epic match.
Prediction: AJ Styles
RAW Tag Team Titles: The Street Profits (C) vs Seth Rollins & Murphy
The Street Profits captured the gold the second time around this past week on RAW, dethroning the ‘Monday Night Messiah’ and his head disciple after an unsuccessful attempt at Super Showdown. Rollins and Murphy were quick to demand a rematch, and it was granted for this Sunday.
In spite of this quasi-Punkish persona Rollins has adopted, this has done wonders for former Cruiserweight Champion Murphy. He has gone from also-ran to focal point of the show, and he has proven worthy of that spotlight. The Street Profits deserve their spot on top, being one of the most entertaining acts in WWE today and that’s not even because of Montez Ford’s ‘mad hops’.
This will be an athletic showcase that, if given time, could surprise a number of people that will be a bit apathetic to this due to the fact it’s the third time around. For me though, the champions retain to allow Seth Rollins to face Kevin Owens at WrestleMania. I just hope Murphy gets a prominent spot on the show too, not just at the right hand of Rollins.
Prediction The Street Profits
United States Championship: Andrade (C) vs Humberto Carrillo
There has been a lot of build to this match and some solid storytelling here. Humberto does struggle to showcase a lot of charisma but he is a great in-ring talent and so we can expect a strong match up here that showcases the strengths of both superstars. This is one match we can be sure there won’t be a title change but it will be interesting to see if Angel Garza plays a role in this bout and what the end result means for Wrestlemania. Give these two enough time and we can have a great fast-paced match here with plenty of back story and an important win for Andrade. Hopefully, we see the WWE show some tension between Garza and Andrade here too.
Prediction: Andrade
Daniel Bryan vs Drew Gulak
For some fans, this may not seem like a must-see match but here we have two rather evenly matched incredible wrestlers. If the WWE are smart and give these two time we could so an amazing match that actually goes down as a highlight of not only the night but of the year and could be a career-changing performance and evening for Gulak. Bryan is sure to score the win here.
This is an interesting card. Elimination Chamber is such an entertaining and important PPV on the road to Wrestlemania and we have some great matches to look forward to. There is potential for title changes as well as career-changing performance and potential match of the year candidates.
Prediction: Daniel Bryan
Elimination Chamber Match, Number One Contendership for RAW Women’s Championship: Asuka vs Natalya vs Shayna Baszler vs Liv Morgan vs Sarah Logan vs Ruby Riott
This has got to be the most pointless Elimination Chamber match we have ever seen. Everyone and their mother is sure we will see Shayna Baszler walk out the victor here and the new number one contender to Becky Lynch’s RAW Women’s Championship, however, the names involved make for smart booking and set up some excellent moments for everyone involved. While Baszler is sure to get the win in this chamber match the WWE have some amazing collision to focus on during this bout. Its important Baszler has a moment in the ring with Asuka. Both women have gone down as two of the best champions in NXT history and their collision is a huge must-see.
We can expect more from them in the future but a taster this weekend is sure to get the crowd fired up and excited. Baszler also has great chemistry with Natalya and so that should be a focal point too. What we need to see with this match is not just a win for the Queen of Spades but a dominant performance involving eliminating most of the women in this match.
All three former members of the Riott Squad are also involved in this match and so that’s another great angle for the WWE to focus on come Sunday. We’ve seen a lot from these three women in recent weeks and inside the chamber, fans can expect to see more from them and it will be interesting to see who the last of these former friends is left standing.
Prediction: Shayna Baszler
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