There are many showcase events in pro wrestling, but simply put, none are bigger than the most important showcase in sports entertainment each year. WWE WrestleMania 37 has nearly arrived, and given the circumstances, this should be one of the more memorable editions of the "Show of Shows" that we've seen in quite some time. Last year's WrestleMania 36 was forced to emanate from an empty WWE Performance Center due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, however, a semblance of normalcy will return as fans will be allowed at a limited capacity.
WWE WrestleMania 37 goes down on Saturday, April 10 and Sunday, April 11 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. The main shows will likely begin at 7 p.m. ET and stream live on Peacock with kickoff shows starting the festivities also at a time to be determined. So let's have a look now at the WrestleMania 37 matches that have been confirmed as well as break down what else could be added to the match card based on current weekly television direction.
WWE WrestleMania 37 matches
Night 1 -- Saturday, April 10
WWE Championship -- Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Drew McIntyre: McIntyre successfully defended the WWE championship inside the Elimination Chamber, but a post-match attack by Lashley left McIntyre open for Miz to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase and win the title. Lashley claimed the title from Miz just one week later in dominant fashion, and two weeks later, it was announced that McIntyre would challenge Lashley for the title on the card. McIntyre defeated Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin in a handicap match with the stipulation that both would be banned from ringside at WrestleMania.
SmackDown Women's Championship -- Sasha Banks (c) vs. Bianca Belair: Belair made it official that she will use her Royal Rumble win to challenge Banks for the title at WrestleMania. Banks and Belair teamed at Elimination Chamber to challenge for the women's tag titles but lost when Reginald interfered in an attempt to give Banks the edge. They will again team together to challenge for the titles at Fastlane, but after that, we'll be gearing up for what has the potential to be one of the best matches on the biggest card of the year.
Bad Bunny vs. The Miz: It only made sense to finish playing out the Bad Bunny story that has been steadily advancing since Bunny performed at the Rumble. Damien Priest had been the muscle for Bunny, and they had beaten Miz and Morrison at nearly every turn both in and out of the ring. Miz finally got his revenge on Bunny, hitting him with a guitar on Raw. The following week, Miz laid out a challenge for WrestleMania and Bunny responded with his own guitar shot before accepting the match.
Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins: Rollins made his return after the birth of his daughter with fellow superstar Becky Lynch and immediately told the WWE locker room to follow him into the future. Cesaro laughed off the idea and in the following weeks, used the Cesaro Swing to humiliate Rollins. Rollins has since had his sights set on Cesaro and finally made the challenge for a match at WrestleMania ... only to fall victim to the swing once again.
Raw Tag Team Championship -- The New Day (c) AJ Styles & Omos: The New Day regained the tag team titles from the Hurt Business on Raw, and shortly after, Styles and his muscle were out to make the challenge. New Day quickly accepted, and this will mark the in-ring debut of Omos on the main roster.
Shane McMahon vs. Braun Strowman (Steel Cage Match): This feud has been brewing for quite some time, and given McMahon's recent verbal attacks on Strowman in which he calls out the "Monster Among Men's" supposed stupidity, these two seemed destined to clash inside Raymond James Stadium. After a one-year hiatus, WrestleMania will again showcase a match featuring McMahon -- which usually tends to deliver some sort of memorable moment. After McMahon told Strowman he could pick any match type for Mania, leading Strowman to choose a cage match to prevent interference by Elias and Jaxson Ryker.
Night 2 -- Sunday, April 11
Universal Championship -- Roman Reigns (c) vs. Edge vs. Daniel Bryan: Edge waited to pick his opponent following his Royal Rumble win, playing head games with the champs across NXT, Raw and SmackDown. Those games bothered no one more than Reigns, who was always believed to be Edge's target. At Elimination Chamber, Edge finally made his move, putting Reigns down with a spear while the champion celebrated his victory over Daniel Bryan, who had won a grueling chamber match minutes prior. After the spear came the WrestleMania sign point, and the challenge was official. Bryan didn't go away, however, getting another shot at Reigns at Fastlane. Bryan made Reigns tap out during the match, which featured Edge as special enforcer, but the referee had been knocked out. An enraged Edge attacked by Bryan and Reigns, allowing Reigns to score the pin and retain his title. Bryan was able to successfully petition for one more shot at the belt, being inserted into the WrestleMania main event.
Raw Women's Championship -- Asuka (c) vs. Rhea Ripley: Ripley made her debut on Raw, and she went out of her way to make it a memorable one. After Asuka had defeated Peyton Royce in a non-title match, the former NXT women's champion emerged. Wanting to make an immediate impact, Ripley challenged Asuka for the Raw women's title at WrestleMania, and the champion quickly accepted.
"The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton: Since Orton set The Fiend on fire, Alexa Bliss has repeatedly made Orton's life miserable. All the while, Bliss has promised that The Fiend would be reborn. That finally happened at Fastlane, when The Fiend returned to help Bliss beat Orton. The next night, The Fiend struck again, leading to the match being made official for night two. It's not clear if this will be a "normal match" or a return to the "cinematic" approach of many of Fiend's matches over the past several years.
Intercontinental Championship -- Big E (c) vs. Apollo Crews: Big E and Crews have had an extended rivalry that saw Crews turn heel and attack Big E with the ring steps when he failed several times to win the intercontinental title and Big E refused to continue granting him opportunities. Big E won their Fastlane match, but Crews beat him down once again after the match, leading to yet another showdown on the biggest stage possible.
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn: Zayn has been crying conspiracy ever since losing the intercontinental championship, going so far as to hire a documentary crew to film the "situation." Zayn petitioned old friend Owens to participate in the documentary before striking him with a Helluva Kick when Owens refused. Owens would eventually lay down a challenge for WrestleMania, which Zayn accepted before Owens attacked, officially renewing a rivalry that has spanned nearly the entire careers of both men.
United States Championship -- Riddle (c) vs. Sheamus: With Sheamus out of the WWE title picture, but on a great run, WWE needed to find a spot for him to land. On Raw, Sheamus attacked Riddle with Riddle's own scooter, seemingly setting both men up with a program for WrestleMania after Riddle seemed to put his issues with Mustafa Ali and Retribution behind him. Sheamus attacked again the next week before beating Riddle in singles action to set up the WrestleMania showdown.
WWE WrestleMania 37 predictions
SmackDown Tag Team Championship -- Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode (c) vs. The Street Profits: The Profits have been waiting for their opportunity to get a rematch after losing the titles to Ziggler and Roode. They've been told by Sonya Deville that they'll get their shot when the time is right -- so when is the time ever more right than WrestleMania?
Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal: With two days of WrestleMania to fill, the return of the battle royal would serve as good filler as well as an opportunity to showcase more of the roster under the brightest of lights. The field will largely be driven by who does and does not have an active storyline heading into the event, but the return of a WrestleMania tradition makes sense.
Women's Battle Royal: For reasons similar to the men's battle royal, there's plenty of reason to feature the return of the women's battle royal. This is doubly true with the sad fact that women, while an increasingly core part of WWE shows, still get far less featured spots on pay-per-view events than the men. With so many talented women needing a chance to shine, WWE will likely load up the ring with a trophy on the line.
"time" - Google News
March 30, 2021 at 08:19AM
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2021 WWE WrestleMania 37 card, matches, dates, predictions, start time, news, match card, rumors, location - CBS Sports
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