When in Rome XXVIII - Wrestlemania Predictions Extravaganza
Submitted by romans_3:23 on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 11:04 PM EST



Welcome to When in Rome, the column that wants to wish you a Happy Easter. He is risen indeed… I hope all of you take advantage of the holiday to spend time with family or friends and enjoy a great banquet of chocolate goodness. As a real chocoholic, I know I will. I have a lot to talk about today, so let’s get this started with a bit of…


Apocrypha

I really enjoyed the Ric Flair/Vince McMahon Streetfight which took place this past Raw. On the face of it, this match kind of came out of nowhere storyline wise. Yes, Vince is the guy who issued the “win or retire” edict, but he has not had any role in this story since the beginning. Why would he interject himself now, especially in an actual match?

I think Vince wanted this match because deep down inside, he is a mark just like the rest of us. Vince knows that Ric’s career is coming to an end very quickly and I believe he wanted to get in there with quite possibly the greatest wrestler ever to live one final time. Vince’s markdom is one of the things that gives him an advantage over his competitors like Ted Turner. Don’t get me wrong, Vince loves making money, but he does truly love sports entertainment – and Monday was a prime example of that love.

March Madness is here! My final four: North Carolina, Kansas, Texas, UCLA. Yes, I realize that’s a lot of favorites, but I’m not really feeling any of the lower seeds to pull a George Mason this year. But, take my predictions with a grain of salt – I don’t really pay a ton of attention to college ball because I’m more of an NBA guy. Speaking of the NBA, last night’s Sixers/Nuggets game was a joy to behold. Andre Miller and Allen Iverson had a great duel and the upstart Sixers emerged with a 115-113 win. I really thought that Iverson was going to sink the game winner – he had a great open look at the end, but didn’t make it. Just an awesome back and forth game – a great appetizer for tomorrow’s “Madness.”

Well, that’s enough basketball – it’s time for some Wrestlemania predictions…


A Prophetic Word


BunnyMania
WWE Women’s Champion Beth Phoenix & Melina def. Maria & Candice Michelle

Well, yet again WWE is making sure to include the divas at Wrestlemania. This year’s divas match seems to be filler and only on the card to showcase the WWE’s latest Playboy cover girl, Maria. This match is also a vehicle for Snoop to promote his new album and to give Santino an opportunity to have some comedic moments as well. It’s become commonplace over the past few years for WWE to focus a women’s match around the current Playboy model – outside of WM 22’s excellently booked Mickie James/Trish Stratus championship feud. Both the Women’s title and the Women’s champion Beth Phoenix are only afterthoughts in this match, and that’s a shame because Phoenix has been a dominant champion who deserves better.

I believe that WWE will rectify its ignoring of Phoenix by allowing her to dominate the actual match at Mania. The build up to the match has been all about Maria – she has even overshadowed the returning Candice Michelle. Maria and Candice’s entrance should delight the male viewers, as should Melina’s but once the match begins it’ll be the Glamazon’s time to shine. I figure this match will be short, probably no longer than five minutes in duration in which Phoenix will run roughshod over the Playboy cover girls. Maybe WWE will move towards Candice and Beth restarting their feud over the Women’s title, but I doubt that will be the focus here. The focus will be on the cover girls’ entrance and attire and then on Phoenix re-establishing her dominance.


24 Man Interpromotional Battle Royal

The winner of this battle royal is slated to receive a shot at Chavo Guerrero’s ECW championship later on the WM 24 card. The clear favorite to win this battle royal is Smackdown’s Kane. I don’t believe that anyone on the ECW roster who may potentially take part in this match will win. Kofi Kingston will probably look good. ECW original Tommy Dreamer will probably last close to the end of the match, but fall short. Most of the eligible Raw Superstars, guys like Hardcore Holly, Cody Rhodes and Val Venis, will just be happy to be part of WM 24 and aren’t going to win. I assume that guys like the Great Khali, Chuck Palumbo and Jamie Noble will represent Smackdown – they won’t win either.

The only question is if anyone will upend Kane in this match. I see only two alternatives to a Kane victory. One is the return of Matt Hardy in this battle royal. If Hardy makes a return in this particular match, I could see him coming out on top. The other alternative is a Paul Burchill victory. I think that WWE would be well served to place Burchill on ECW. He will probably quickly get lost in the Raw shuffle, but he could easily become a main event player on ECW. I don’t see this happening however since Burchill appears to be a heel and I don’t think the live crowd would be all that excited for a Burchill/Chavo match.

As for my prediction, I have to say that I believe Kane will win – unless Matt Hardy is in the match. If Hardy is in the match, he’s my pick, but I think there may be another (more logical) spot on this card in which Hardy makes his return. So, I’ll go with Kane as the winner.


ECW Championship Match
Kane def. Chavo Guerrero to win ECW title

I believe that if Kane wins the battle royal, he will go on to defeat Chavo and become the new ECW champion. Many have speculated that Kane is winding down his career, looking to retire in the next year or two. While nowhere near as prestigious as a WWE or World Heavyweight title victory, an ECW championship run for Kane would still be a nice parting gift for an extremely loyal employee who has been willing to do whatever WWE has asked of him. Also, a Kane victory would set up a potentially sweet scenario in which the “Brothers of Destruction” both leave WM 24 as champions if Undertaker goes on to defeat Edge for the WHC. Who knows? Maybe WWE will look to have a WM 20 Eddie/Benoit type moment with Taker and Kane. Chavo is a close associate at the moment with Taker’s opponent, Edge, and it would make sense long term for Chavo and Kane to continue to feud after WM 24, leading to some Taker/Kane vs. Edge/Chavo matchups as well.


Belfast Brawl
Finlay def. JBL

This match should be pretty entertaining if kept reasonably short – ten minutes tops. JBL has not looked impressive in the ring since his return to active competition. However, the brawl stipulation should mask his shortcomings. Finlay also has the skills to bring a quality match out of JBL, so I think the match quality will be fine. Obviously, Hornswoggle will get involved in this match to take his revenge against JBL, but I wonder if Vince will also interject himself into this match. As of late, Vince has distanced himself a bit from this feud and JBL has become the major heel force. I doubt that Vince will have any involvement here and I look for this match to play out pretty predictably. Hornswoggle will get his revenge and allow Finlay to emerge victorious. I don’t see any swerves like a Horny heel turn happening. This match will be a feel good match for the fans as JBL will receive the beatdown he deserves.


Brand Superiority Match
Umaga def. Batista

Typically, faces dominate the big matches at Wrestlemania’s, but the crowd must be cooled down at some point. I figure this is a good match for a heel to gain a victory, so I’m going with Umaga. I wouldn’t be shocked if Batista came out on top since he is still a true main event player in WWE, but I think that Umaga is going to get the rub here that elevates his character to an even higher level. I believe that this will be an excellent match, probably about ten minutes in duration because Umaga and Batista both seem to step up their performance in big matches.

Umaga, despite being a capable monster who puts on great matches, has not had a victory over a top talent for a long time. He’s lost to Triple H, Jeff Hardy, Bobby Lashley and John Cena over the past year or so after debuting with a massive unbeaten streak. Umaga needs to pick up a quality win soon, lest he lose any more credibility. He’s shown that he is far above mid carders, but he has not proven that he can beat main event players in big matches.

Batista, despite losing plenty of title matches last year, is much more secure at the top of the card than Umaga at this point. Like I said, Batista is a true main eventer, and a loss will not hurt his character much. In fact, a loss to Umaga here could ignite a long term feud and Batista needs something to do. He’s pretty much fought everybody on Smackdown, and a feud with Umaga could easily stretch until the next WWE draft or whatever WWE does this year to shake up the rosters a bit. I don’t really see any drawbacks to an Umaga win at all.


Career Threatening Match
Shawn Michaels def. Ric Flair

Some people are starting to believe that Flair will emerge with a win over HBK to continue his career, but I still think that WM 24 will be Flair’s final match. It just makes sense for Flair to go out at the biggest event of the year in a classic match against someone he legitimately respects, than for Flair to win here and lose at a lesser event to a lesser opponent. I expect this match to go around twelve minutes. I think that the match will start off at a slow “feeling out” pace and then build to the climax. I see HBK winning the match with “Sweet Chin Music.” Flair is going down to HBK’s best shot, not some fluky roll up or anything like that.

Will this match go down as one of the best ever? Probably not, but it will be good. The aftermath may end up being the defining moment of WM 24, as I fully expect HBK and Flair to share an emotional handshake and hug while the 80,000 plus crowd gives the “Nature Boy” a standing ovation. Ric will cry – that’s a given, and I doubt that there will be a dry eye in the Citrus Bowl after this one. This might be the match I’m most looking forward to – Flair is my all time favorite wrestler and I want to see him get that last great response from the crowd before retiring. I can’t picture a better finish to an incredible career.


Floyd Mayweather def. Big Show

If you read my previous column, you’re well aware that I don’t think Floyd is worth a $20 mil payday. Now, Floyd’s probably not really making that much, but if he is that’s an insane amount for a celebrity appearance. I figure that Mayweather has to come out victorious here since most celebs win at Mania. Realistically though, Floyd should stand no chance against someone the size of Big Show, unless he plays the cat and mouse game perfectly and lands a quick, lucky shot to fell the giant.

The thing I’m most interested about in this match is the crowd reaction. I assume that the crowd will be solidly behind Big Show, even though he is supposed to be playing the heel. Mayweather just has not connected at all with the WWE audience. He is just too cocky to be a face in wrestling. I understand that cockiness sells in boxing, but Floyd just comes off as a complete jerk in WWE. Another item for interest is Mayweather’s posse. Will they cause trouble at Mania and get into legit fights with any wrestlers, or even Shane or Vince behind the scenes? Mayweather’s posse is another reason that he seems so heelish. What face needs so much backup? It just seems out of place in wrestling where stables are usually comprised of heels.

Well, I’m predicting that Mayweather wins. Show will play the cocky giant and toy around with Floyd too much, allowing him to get in a good knockout shot in a no longer than ten minute match. I bet the match will actually be closer to six or seven minutes and that the entrances and hype will be mad long in comparison. I don’t think that Show will suffer much from a loss here because he can play it off as a fluke and use it as motivation to go on a tear afterward. I’m expecting Show to have a great year and this loss will just be a bump along the way. I don’t expect the crowd to react positively to a Floyd win, unless the knockout blow looks good. If it looks weak, the crowd is not going to be happy at all – hopefully the finish is well though out and practiced in advance. If not, this match could end up being an embarrassment.


Mr. Kennedy wins Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Well, this is the match that should’ve featured the defining moment of WM 24 – Jeff Hardy’s cementing of his main event status. Instead, Jeff is out serving a 60 day suspension for Wellness Policy violations and this match has become quite unpredictable. I think that one could make a good argument for any of the seven participants in the match, but after much thought I believe that Kennedy will come out a back to back MITB winner.

I do wonder if anyone will fill the eighth spot which Hardy vacated. WWE has seemingly decided to make this match a seven person affair, but I think that Matt Hardy stands a really good shot of making his return here and taking Jeff’s spot. It just makes way too much sense not to occur – Matt could restart his feud with MVP and take over for his brother. The only way I see Matt not wrestling here is if he truly is still physically unable to wrestle, or if WWE decides to have him win the ECW championship. If Matt is healthy, I see him having a somewhat major role at WM 24, but I do not think that he will win MITB – WWE is not going to give him Jeff’s push.

While saying that one can make a case for any of the seven announced combatants, I believe that the three favorites are Kennedy, CM Punk and MVP. I don’t believe that Shelton Benjamin or John Morrison have a great chance, nor do I believe in Chris Jericho’s chances. While Jericho is the biggest name in this match, I don’t see WWE making him the MITB winner and IC champion concurrently. I do think it would be awesome if Jericho jumped to Smackdown and competed for the WHC, but I think WWE is going to run with Jericho as IC champ for a long while. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him hold that title for the majority of this year, so no MITB for Jericho.

Punk has a good shot at winning and then jumping up to Smackdown to wrestle for the WHC. MVP would be a solid winner who could legitimately challenge for either the WHC or WWE championship. But, I think that WWE is going to go with Kennedy here, despite the problem of Kennedy promising that he will cash in MITB at the end of WM 24. I say this is a problem because all indicators pointed to Hardy winning MITB and Kennedy making good on his promise would force WWE to re-write the ending to WM 24 (more on that later.) Nevertheless, I see Kennedy winning here, but it won’t be nearly as memorable as Jeff’s win should’ve been.


World Heavyweight Championship Match
The Undertaker over Edge by DQ
Taker remains unbeaten at WM; Edge retains WHC

Yes, I realize that no WM World title match has ended on with a DQ since WM 10, but that streak will come to an end at WM 24 – Taker’s WM win streak won’t, however. Why do I see a DQ finish here? Well, most title matches at WM culminate feuds, but in many ways the Taker/Edge feud is just beginning. They have had some interaction over the past year, but this is the first time that they are actually going to go one on one for the belt (outside Edge’s cashing in MITB against a weakened Taker) and I believe that Edge will live up to his whole “Ultimate Opportunist” persona and get DQed and keep his title. I see this feud continuing into Backlash and possibly beyond – I fully expect to see a no DQ type re match at Backlash between these two as a result of this finish. Also, I just don’t see Edge (or any heel) ending Taker’s WM streak. The guy who has the best shot at ending the streak is John Cena – and I see that happening at WM 25.

Many people have reported that Taker is in line for a long WHC run and that he will be soon feuding with Big Show post WM, but I don’t think that is going to happen. Making Taker the champion may happen down the line, but only after the Edge/Taker feud deservingly runs its course. I think a Taker title win would short circuit what could be an excellent long term feud for Smackdown. And, I would find it odd for Big Show to move directly from getting knocked out by Mayweather to challenging for the WHC – I see Show challenging for the World title at some point this year, but not immediately. I think he will win a feud or two to establish his dominance before moving into a feud with Taker.

There is another possibility that I want to speak about – that Mr. Kennedy would cash in MITB against a weakened Edge at WM. I think this has a really decent shot at happening, but then again, it would short circuit the Edge/Taker feud. Storyline wise, it would be nice to see Kennedy extract some revenge against Edge, who took the MITB away from Kennedy last year. Kennedy could come full circle, but for predictions sake, I will say that I don’t see Kennedy cashing in against Edge in Orlando. I will touch on Kennedy again a bit later in this column.

Will fans be disappointed with the DQ finish to Taker/Edge? Yes, they will, but in the long run it will pay off because Taker/Edge has the possibility of going down as an all time great feud – but only if Edge escapes WM with the title.


WWE Championship Match
Triple H wins WWE title by pinning John Cena

I’ve stated in a previous column that I don’t prefer triple threat main events, but I have enjoyed the build up to this match and find myself looking forward to it a great deal. I’m probably in the minority in that I don’t hate any of the three wrestlers in this match. Most people seem to have strong opinions about Trips, Cena and RKO (usually negative) but I like all three of these guys and would have no problem with any of them leaving WM as champion.

I’m predicting a Triple H victory, but I do want to clarify this by saying that I am picking Trips because I do not believe that he will have the dreaded “last advantage” after next Monday’s Raw leading into WM 24. Typically, whoever has the last laugh going into a big title match comes out the loser and I firmly believe that will hold up here as well. If next Monday’s Raw ends with Trips standing tall over Cena and Orton – then I’m changing my prediction to Cena. But, I don’t see Trips as having the “last advantage.” In fact, I see RKO looking strong going into WM – that helps his character and makes it harder to pick between Trips or Cena winning.

Some people have started purporting that RKO will retain here, but I do not see that happening, especially with my predicting that Edge is escaping WM with the WHC. No way will two heels leave WM as World Champion. So, Trips or Cena must win here. Why am I going with Triple H over Cena? I believe that Triple H is due to have another run with the WWE title and that he needs to come out on top in a big match involving Cena, lest it become apparent that Cena completely owns him. In the last three big matches in which Trips and Cena squared off (WM 22, Backlash 06 and Royal Rumble 08) Cena has gotten the better of “The Game.” I still think there is big money to be made in a Trips/Cena II singles match, but only if H evens up the score a bit.

I don’t just believe that Trips will be the guy to get the victory here, but that he will pin Cena to win the title. I think it’s far too predictable for Orton to take the fall here, but I think WWE will move to have a Trips/RKO feud post WM 24. RKO will have the benefit of claiming that he lost the WWE title without ever being pinned and I see a Backlash match between Trips and Orton taking place.

But, where will that leave John Cena after WM 24? Well, remember, I predicted that Mr. Kennedy will win the MITB match, but I don’t think he will cash in his chance at WM 24 despite saying that he will do so. (Could you imagine how funny it would be if Trips dropped the belt to Kennedy right after winning the triple threat match? How could it even be possible that Trips’ twelfth world title reign would be shorter than his eleventh?) I envision Kennedy’s music hitting and Kennedy coming down to the ring after this match ends, seemingly to face Triple H, only to climb the steps and say something like “not yet” and walk away. I think this would be a great if after each WWE title match on PPV if Kennedy would come out and act like he was about to cash in, but keep putting it off. It would be an interesting way to lead to an eventual Triple H/Kennedy match – that’s for sure. But, until cashing in MITB I see Kennedy feuding with Cena. This will give Cena something to do near the top of the card, but it will allow him to go off and film his next movie as well.


Well that’s my Wrestlemania predictions. Be sure to drop me an email at romes_writings@yahoo.com and let me know what you guys think about them.


Before you go, stop to read a…


Proverb

The happy man fills his basket with chocolate and other sweet goodies like Skittlez’ – Taste My Rainbow 16: All Brands Were Created Equal (Just Kidding)



You’ve just finished reading the uninspired, fallible, opinion only word of Rome. Take it for what it’s worth. I’ll be back in two weeks to analyze what actually went down at WM 24, but while you wait for that be sure to check out the LOP Columns Forum . Read a few columns; write one of your own – you won’t be disappointed if you do.


Also, don’t forget to email me, romans_3:23 , at romes_writings@yahoo.com.


Later all












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