This year the big event hits the quarter century mark and at least on paper, it has a chance to be one of the best Wrestlemanias ever.

Chris Jericho vs. Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat and Jimmy Snuka (with Ric Flair) – Handicap elimination match

Jericho has been as good or better than he’s ever been with this clean cut anti-Y2J character.  What started as a feud with Mickey Rourke ended up as a feud with Ric Flair, who was retired after losing a match at last year’s Wrestlemania.  Since Flair is retired, three legends will fight for him: Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat and Jimmy Snuka.  I think it’s about time that Jericho moved back up to the main event, and I don’t expect this match to finish without at least a little bit of of Ric Flair in the ring, and while Flair might get the better of Jericho, the match will end with the three Legends defeated.  Jericho eliminates them all.

John “Bradshaw” Layfield (c) vs. Rey Mysterio – WWE Intercontinental Championship

Coming off of a feud with Shawn Michaels, he put out an open challenge for his Intercontinental Belt.  Rey Mysterio accepted JBL’s offer.  This match feels thrown together in a short time, and I originally thought that the Shawn Michaels feud should have ended at WM, however, they have better things planned for Shawn at WM25, so JBL gets the man from area code 619.  These two have had a few feuds in the past, which means maybe they don’t actually need to build the match up as they might between two other wrestlers.  Two years ago, Rey beat JBL to send him into a temporary retirement.  Much like their match on this past Raw, I expect JBL to beat the tar out of Rey but the underdog once again comes out on top.  Rey is the new Intercontinental Champion.

The Colóns (Carlito and Primo) vs. John Morrison and The Miz – Tag team Lumberjack match to unify the WWE Tag Team Championship and World Tag Team Championship

While I really like the feud between the two teams, I’m not so sure about unifying the tag belts.  Since the rosters are for the most part separated during nine months out of the year, the two different championships give tag teams something to shoot for on their respective shows.  With only one belt, I imagine that they’ll jump around either as champions without a particular show, or one show will be out of luck.

The Colóns have held their belts for the third longest reign since the belts were introduced in 2002.  Paul London and Brian Kendrik held it for nearly a year.  The other team, who held it for 250 days, is their opponents at WM25 and current holders of the World Tag belts, Miz and Morrison.  Along with their feud, there is the feud between the Bella Twins.  Nikki is with Miz and Morrison, and Brie is with Primo and Carlito.  I’m sure the Bella Twins will have an impact on this match.  I think these two teams will continue to fight it out well after Wrestlemania, so it doesn’t really matter who wins here; the other team will not give up.  I can also see the match ending in DQ and both retaining.  Being that it’s Wrestlemania, the chances are probably greater that the ‘good guys’ win, so I’ll have to stick with that.  The Colóns become new Unified Tag Team champions.

Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy – Extreme Rules match

This match might have been rushed so that it could be on the Wrestlemania card, but big face-offs like this one should be on the big shows.  Since it is fairly early in what could be a really long feud, this match will settle nothing.  It could be a spot-fest, but they may also hold back for the eventual end of the feud match.  I don’t think Jeff gets his revenge today.  Matt Hardy wins.

25-Diva battle royal – Winner will be crowned “Miss WrestleMania”

This one should be the comedy match of the night, since I’m sure Santino Marella will make an appearance.  As far as the divas go, I have no clue who should be the winner.  I always thought Melina was better as a heel, so maybe she should win and then become full of herself.  Melina crowned Miss Wrestlemania.

Edge (c) vs. The Big Show vs. John Cena – Triple Threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship

Edge has been pushed to the side a little bit to allow Big Show to take more of the attention from Cena, which should extend the Edge/Cena story for a while longer.  If WWE wanted to really mix things up, they would have Big Show beat Edge cleanly for the belt and force Vicky to pick between the two; her husband and the new figurehead of Smackdown.  However, Cena will likely get the pinfall over Big Show, making him the odd-man out while resuming the feud with Edge.  Cena is the new World Heavyweight Champion.

Triple H (c) vs. Randy Orton – WWE Championship

Randy Orton is the best heel in the business right now.  Cold and calculating — and talented.  A loss to HHH at WM25 should make him crazed.  Moreso than he already is.  He should drop DiBiase and Rhodes to fend for themselves and really, they’re ready to cut their own path.  Let Orton get even more rabid in his pursuit of the championship and destruction of HHH and the McMahon family.  However, a win by Orton over HHH at WM25 could take him closer to heights seen only by others of the elite WWE circle.  The Rock.  Steve Austin.  Bret Hart.  Ric Flair.  Kurt Angle.  Only time will tell if he could be as big as Hulk Hogan.  This match could be the next big step.  I foresee a Rock-like face turn in the next couple years, just in time for the next rise in wrestling popularity.  In the meantime though, a championship run is probably in the cards.  He’ll continue on with an expanded Legacy covering his ass while feuding with the McMahon Clan.  I’m leaning toward an Orton win for this one, one of the few times a heel wins the belt from the face champion.  Randy wins his third WWE Championship and the new era of the WWE beings.

Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Winner gets title shot anytime in the next year

This match contains eight men who could easily be pushed to the main event level:  CM Punk, Kane, Mark Henry, Montel Vontavious Porter, Shelton Benjamin, Kofi Kingston, Christian, and Finlay.  They have been in many matches together over the past few weeks on all of the shows. It seems that Kane keeps coming out on top (except for the last ECW), so you have to like his chances to win.   I think the other two most likely winners are MVP, Mark Henry and Christian.  MVP has been pushed a lot since coming off of his losing streak.  If he gets the title shot, he’ll probably wait until winning a high profile feud with another top of the mid-card group before cashing it in.  Mark Henry could use it to insert himself into the Smackdown title shot, and would probably become the first Money in the Bank winner to lose after cashing it in.  Christian also could use it to get into the Smackdown main event against former tag partner Edge.  The good thing about this title shot is that they have one year to use it, giving the WWE writers enough time to put the pieces in place for a big surprise, meaning whoever wins would have a year to become believable main eventer.  MVP climbs the ladder literally and figuratively.

The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels

This match will probably close the show out.  These two have probably been the most associated with Wrestlemania than any other superstars, so it seems fitting.  They are both getting older and nearing the end of their careers, but don’t let that stop you from expecting a performance that will likely be one of the top five matches of the year.  Everyone in the locker room should be hovering around the television screens to learn something.  There is definately something to learn from these two masters of wrestling psychology.  We’re going to get many nearfalls, failed finishers, and desparate moves on the way to the final pin.

HBK’s entrance on Smackdown a week ago, similar yet opposite of Undertakers, was awesome to see and I think the light and dark should have been pushed weeks earlier.  The crowd will have a tough time figuring out who to cheer as neither one has been pushed as the bad guy and neither has been pushed as the good guy.

Shawn Michaels has been getting to much of the upper hand on Undertaker of late, and also got the big payoff after last year’s Ric Flair retirement match.  I expect the Dead Man to go 17-0.  The Undertaker is Mr. Wrestlemania.

—

So those are  my predictions for tomorrow evening.  It should be a fantastic event full of memorable Wrestlemania caliber moments.  Feuds will be put to rest and hopefully seeds for new rivalries will be sown.  Enjoy the show!

Trying to predict the Royal Rumble winner often involves trying to predict what the WWE wants to do for Wrestlemania.  When there was only one belt, the winner went on to get that belt and predicting it was easier.  When there was a wrestler that was being held down by Mr. McMahon, the best bet was on that wrestler to win the Rumble and go on to win the title at Wrestlemania.  With the brand extension, there are two more belts, but it seems like many more options.  One brand can work with the Rumble winner as challenger for the title while the other brands get an extra month to figure out who to push at the champion.

Other Matches

The four non-Rumble matches are each for a championship.  Rarely does someone in one of these matches compete in the Rumble in any major extent, though I suppose it would set up a neat surprise to have someone lose the match and come back and immediately earn a new shot.  We have to take a look at them since the results of these matches might have an affect on who wins the Rumble.

JBL vs John Cena (C) for the World Heavyweight Championship - I hope that Shawn Michaels doesn’t turn on JBL just yet.  We’re still watching his character suffer during the fight between doing what is right and doing what his employer says.  The story hasn’t reached it’s peak, though I expect we may see some cracks in Shawn Michaels loyalty leading up to a Wrestlemania match between the two.  I think this match is mainly for those two, so Cena retains. 
Edge vs Jeff Hardy (C) for the WWE Championship – This is the match with the most interesting possibilities.  The main rumor is that Christian Cage is making his WWE return and will be revealed as the person behind Hardy’s troubles of the past couple months.  Tomko is also performing in dark matches, and if Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins are involved, I see a formidable stable being formed.  Though I really like Hardy as champion, Edge wins the belt.
Matt Hardy vs Jack Swagger (C) for the ECW Championship – I still don’t really understand why Matt Hardy lost the belt, and to Jack Swagger at that.  I do like the Jack Swagger character but as they do, the WWE stuck a belt on a character early to see how the crowd reacts and the wrestler deals with the pressure.  Now that Swagger has the belt, it should stay on him until at least Wrestlemania.  Should Hardy win it back then?  Perhaps.  Or perhaps he is slated for better things.
Melina vs Beth Phoenix (C) for the WWE Women’s Championship – I like the story with Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella, so I don’t really care what happens with this match as long as they stay a couple.

The Royal Rumble

This year, I don’t see any real clear-cut favorites being shoved down our throats.  Yes, there are a lot of superstars who would be legitimate Rumble champions, but I don’t see a forced favorite in the storyline like certain years have had.

I’m going to also assume that if the wrestler wasn’t announced as an entrant, then they aren’t going to win.  That would have been a bad assumption last year, as John Cena was surprise entrant #30 to win the whole thing.   I don’t see anything that points toward doing that again this year.  One of the favorites, had he been back from injury would have been Batista, but he is out of competition due to a hamstring injury. It’s possible but not likely that the WWE has been delaying his updates to make him seem like he’s still a ways off from returning when in fact he’s closer than we think.

The Longshots

Let’s get the people out of the way who have little to no chance of winning.  I’ve coded their color to their brand (Red=Raw, Blue=SmackDown, Gray=ECW)

Kofi Kingston
Ted DiBiase
Cody Rhodes
Santino Marella
R-Truth
The Brian Kendrick
Carlito
The Miz
Chavo Guerro

These eight wrestlers are either too new or currently wouldn’t be legitimate Wrestlemania main eventers.  I think a few of them, if pushed right, could show up in the main event of Wrestlemania over the next few years.  The best chance of these worst chance guys is probably.. ah, who am I kidding? None of these guys have a chance.

The Dark Horses

The next few wrestlers could win the match and be considered adequate main eventers (in physical stature and character build) for Wrestlemania:

Rey Mysterio
Kane
CM Punk
The Big Show
Vladimir Kozlov
Shelton Benjamin
The Great Khali
Finlay
Mark Henry
John Morrison

Most of these ten wrestlers are former world champions (Mysterio, Kane, Punk, Show, Khali, and Henry) and would be believable going for the title.  Vladmir Kozlov has been involved with Triple H, Jeff Hardy and Big Show recently and is still undefeated.  Shelton Benjamin holds the United States championship and it shouldn’t be a large jump for him to compete at the main event level. CM Punk just won the Intercontinental belt and probably isn’t going to be sent back to the main event level for some time.   The only thing standing between these men and a title is a good push and interesting storyline.  The most likely at this level would be Kozlov or Kane.  John Morrison would be my pick if the WWE decided to shake things up and allow an ECW superstar to win.

The Most Likely

These next four superstars are the ones that have the best chance to win the Rumble.  They’ve been in the top eschelon and have proven themselves in match after match or are always fan favorites:

Triple H – He is in a feud with Vicki Guerrero who is using Big Show as muscle.  I think they’re shooting for a Big Show-Triple H match at Wrestlemania.

The Undertaker – I think Undertaker is due one last Wrestlemania championship win before he heads off into the darkness in the pine box.  The only problem is, I don’t see anything that tells me he’ll be done this year.

Chris Jericho – I’m not really sure where the feud with Stephanie McMahon is headed.  I originally thought that there would be a secret romance between the two but it looks to be headed in another direction.  After having to apologize to the fans and slink away from the ring last Monday, it seems like the WWE wants us to cheer him on against an evil Stephanie.  A Jericho win in the Rumble would probably lead to two months of back and forth between the two.  I’m not sure I like a Jericho face since he is such a great heel, but perhaps there is a swerve in the future.  Having the crowd cheer him for two months only to reveal that they’re actually be in cahoots would make him hated even more.  It would have been neat to see him hired by John Bradshaw Layfield, though, and build up a stable.

Randy Orton – Shortly after Jericho was reinstated, Orton came out and slapped, booted and punted Mr. McMahon.  It should set up the biggest fued leading into Wrestlemania, but we haven’t seen yet who Mr. McMahon will pit against Orton.  Other than Bradshaw and maybe Regal, there aren’t any other main event level heels on Raw.  Out of those, Orton seems like he might be the best to go up against Cena, if Cena still has the belt by then.

Wildcards

There are usually some surprise and unannounced entrants.  Since only 23 are announced so far, there is room for seven more.  We’ll probably see Goldust, some of the tag teams like Cryme Tyme, Jesse and Festus, Jim Duggan and other popular faces.  There are a few others that could possibly show up and go for the title shot.

Christian Cage – I’ve already mentioned him above.  I don’t think he’ll show up in the actual Rumble, but it’s always possible that something happens in the Edge/Hardy match that leads to Christian showing up here.

Mr. Kennedy – His dislocated shoulder should be healed by now.  Though he has been on TV recently and will probably be in a feud with MVP, he would still be a legitimate contender.

Umaga – The vignettes say he’s coming back to SmackDown.  I don’t see any reason why he can’t come back at the Rumble.  Don’t think he’d win though.  Too early to push him to the main event of Wrestlemania.

“Stone Cold” Steve Austin – He’s being inducted into the Hall of Fame this year and it would be great to see him in one last match, perhaps kick started by eliminating someone from the Rumble.   Chris Jericho maybe?

Rumble Prediction

I’m pretty certain that the WWE wanted to do Batista vs Cena at Wrestlemania, but that will have to wait for another year.  I think they deserve more than a two month build up and giving them another year helps give them the time to build it up.

SmackDown has a great feud with Edge and Hardy, and possibly the addition of Christian, Tomko, Ryder and Hawkins.  Now that Matt Hardy doesn’t have the ECW belt, he could show up on Smackdown and help his brother.  I think that works against the Undertaker and Triple H, so the two wrestlers with the greatest chance to win are Randy Orton and Chris Jericho.

Either of those two would be a good pick and would make a great main event for Wrestlemania.  Both of them are very good at getting the fans to hate them, and that is what is needed in an opponent to Cena.  John Cena is one of those guys that polarize fans to one extreme or the other.  They either hate him or love him.  Having an opponent that draws fans ire only helps Cena out.

However, I have to pick one of them as the 2009 Royal Rumble winner, and I pick Randy Orton.  I had been leaning toward him for the past few weeks, but the final deciding factor was the punt to Mr. McMahon’s head last Monday night.  That kick puts him sqarely into the main storyline and probably the target of Stephanie McMahon’s revenge.  Staying heel at that point might be a tall order, since Stephanie doesn’t really come off as a fan favorite and might make fans feel pity for Orton, but they can always switch her out for her brother Shane.

Well, that’s it.  I hope you’ve enjoyed my rambling and no matter who wins tomorrow, it looks like it should be a good show.

24-Man Battle Royal – Winner faces ECW Champion Chavo Guerrero

Who Should Win:  Jamie Noble
Who Will Win: I said either of Tommy Dreamer, Hardcore Holly, Kane or Jaime Noble would have a good match with Chavo.

I actually didn’t get to watch this match, so I can’t tell you much about it.  If I was watching this match as it evolved and wrestlers were eliminated, I would have never expected it to finish the way it did.  It came down to two big men, Kane and Mark Henry, which I wasn’t really surprised to see, with ECW recently focusing on powerful large guys.  Normally, I would have expected Henry to win, since Kane never really ever seems to get any kind of legitimate title shots.  I figured they would make Henry their challenger, even if it was heel against heel.  But I was pleasantly surprised and Kane came out on top.  I can’t really take credit for this one since I basicly said four guys.  Winner: Kane (0-0) 

Belfast Brawl -  Fit Finlay vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Who Should Win: Finlay
Who Will Win: FinlayThis was a pretty good and basic hardcore match.  They used weapons, but didn’t stray from the ring.  Each of the men beat each other silly.  I don’t care a whole lot for JBL, but he’s got a very good focused attitude when he wrestles that comes across the television well.  Every time Finlay gets into a ring with a table, I think about the time his leg went through poorly gimmicked table top in WCW and sliced through to the bone, putting him into retirement.  I was glad this was a simple match.  It didn’t really need to be a fancy hardcore match because WWE has been taking it easy with these things so that they mean something more when they actually do happen.  I’m not sure where they are going to go with JBL winning, but I’m going to guess that their feud isn’t done yet. Winner: JBL (0-1)

Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Mr. Kennedy vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Chris Jericho vs. Carlito vs. Montel Vontavious Porter vs. CM Punk vs. John Morrison

Who Should Win: Mr. Kennedy
Who Will Win: Mr. Kennedy  

This was a pretty good ladder match, but you could expect that with the level of talent they had in there.  The surprise of the match was a returning Matt Hardy getting his revenge on MVP as he went to grab the briefcase.  I thought that they would give the title shot to Mr. Kennedy because he seemed like the most main-event ready performer in the match.   As I was watching the match though, I realized that having an ECW wrestler win the title lets them not have to worry about working it into the main storylines in their top two shows.  Of course, if they wanted to really throw a wrench in things, they should have C. M. Punk use the contract to go after either the RAW or Smackdown champion.  Winner: C.M. Punk (0-2)

SmackDown vs. Raw: Batista vs. Umaga

Who Should Win: Umaga
Who Will Win: Batista

I don’t really care much for either of these wrestlers, so I didn’t pay much attention to their match.  It went about as I expected.  Batista didn’t need the win to be seen as a main eventer, but Umaga does.  Instead of trying to build up a top heel, they went the easy route. Winner: Batista (1-2)

Chavo Guerro vs Kane (ECW Championship Match)

I didn’t predict this one, though I did say that Kane could have a good match against Chavo.  It wasn’t a good match, but it definately was an interesting match.  Kane appeared in the ring while Chavo was looking up the ramp and then he chokeslammed the champion to the canvas pretty forcefully and got the pin 1-2-3 with no resistance.  Since C.M. Punk had the belt taken from him not that long ago, and he now holds the title of Mr. Money in the Bank, I imagine he’ll be using it to face Kane.  Winner: Kane

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (Career Threatening Match)

Who Should Win: Ric Flair
Who Will Win: Ric Flair

A great match between two great workers.  And before the ref had even counted three I was trying to think of a way they could reverse the decision and get Flair out of that retirement stipulation.  The reaction of Michaels right after the match and of the crowd and Flair’s kids was definately touching.  I still think that there had to have been a better way to have Flair retire rather than having him lose to another legend on the backside of his career.  I’m certain we haven’t seen the last of Ric Flair, but that’s material for another entry.  Winner: Shawn Michaels (1-3)

‘Playboy’ BunnyMania Lumberjack Match featuring Snoop Dogg – Ashley & Maria vs. ‘The Glamazon’ Beth Phoenix & Melina

Who Should Win: Maria
Who Will Win: Maria

As far as women’s matches go, this was pretty good.  I don’t see why they had Maria lose though.  It didn’t make much sense.  Jerry Lawler clocking Santino was ok, but I don’t want to see a feud between the two.  Maria should pick someone else to represent her White Knight and teach Santino to respect her.  Snoop did end up getting a little taste of Maria afterward.  Winner: The Glamazon and Melina (1-4)

Triple Threat Match for the WWE Championship – Triple H vs. John Cena vs. Randy Orton

Who Should Win: Randy Orton
Who Will Win: John Cena Having the marching band play Cena entrant’s music was a really unique touch.  I was really surprised with the results of the mobile text voting.  I figured that HHH (40%) would have a higher percentage than Orton (52%) and I didn’t think that Cena would have such a low number (8%).  Will WWE finally realize that forcing Cena as a face is a bad idea?  I can see his career parallel the Rock’s (albiet with a lower level of electricity) if they turned him heel and let the fan’s cheer him back to a face.  Lots of good action in this match.  Orton won in a way that was very Orton-like, with a kick to the head of HHH while he was going for the pin.  Maybe they will be changing Cena’s character since he wasn’t a factor at the end of the match.  HHH goes on to feud with Orton while Cena starts to terrorize anyone in his way, ala Stone Cold?  Winner: Randy Orton (1-5)

Floyd “Money” Mayweather vs. Big Show

Who Should Win: Big Show
Who Will Win: Floyd Mayweather

This was a better match than I expected.  Big Show is a great sport to lose to Mayweather.  He showed a lot of power and spent a good deal of the time throwing that power around.   I think Mayweather did a pretty decent job in the ring and if he wanted to give up boxing, he’d be an entertaining full-time cruiserweight wrestler.  How do they procede with Big Show now that he lost to a non-wrestler?  Winner: Floyd Mayweather (2-5)

World Heavyweight Champion Edge vs. Undertaker

Who Should Win: Undertaker
Who Will Win: Undertaker

This match was a sort of best-of-both-worlds.  Edge got to work over Undertaker pretty well, but he also took a lot of punishment.  Loads of near-falls to get the crowd riled up.  I think it cements Edge’s place at the main event level even though Undertaker gets the win and keeps his undefeated 15 win record at Wrestlemania.  Both men left it all in the ring and they definately showed that they deserved the closing match on Wrestlemania.  Fans went home happy, as it should be.  Winner: Undertaker (3-5)

Final Record: 3-5

Not horrible, but not good either.  While watching the matches I realized that there were probably some good reasons to go with the other guy that I didn’t think of the first time around.  I promise to try harder next time.

How’d you do?

The card for the show doesn’t seem quite as spectacular as shows they’ve had in the past.  Perhaps they’re saving their extra special ideas for the 25th anniversary show next year, or perhaps they just don’t have the same level of talent.  Or I just don’t get the same entertainment from these guys as a whole than I did from the guys a few years ago.  Anyway, let’s get on with the predictions.

24-Man Battle Royal – Winner faces ECW Champion Chavo Guerrero

This is the ‘we want to give these guys something to do but we don’t really have anything else’ match.  I think the four guys with the best chance of winning this are Tommy Dreamer, Hardcore Holly, Kane, and Jamie Noble.  Dreamer is always a good choice to go up against ECW bad guys whether he beats them or not.  Holly has the respect from the fans and also would be a good guy to throw up against a hated champion.  Kane has to have a legitimate chance, as he’s been involved in matches with ECW wrestlers for the past couple months.   Noble has just turned face again during a feud with Chuck Palumbo and deserves the boost of a run at the title. 

Who Should Win:  Jamie Noble
Who Will Win: Any of those previous four would have a good match with Champion Chavo Guerrero.

‘Playboy’ BunnyMania Lumberjack Match featuring Snoop Dogg – Ashley & Maria vs. ‘The Glamazon’ Beth Phoenix & Melina

A women’s Lumberjack match should make this interesting, as will the inclusion of Snoop Dogg.  Champion Beth Phoenix will probably destroy whoever is in the ring with her, but I think Maria is going to get the win, since it is a Playboy match, and she’s on the cover this month.  The next contender for Beth’s championship will probably come out of this match, I’m guessing Ashley.  I’m also predicting that at least four girls will have their costumes ripped off.  Snoop will get smothered by boobs.

Who Should Win: Maria
Who Will Win: Maria

Belfast Brawl -  Fit Finlay vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

It has been revealed that Fit Finlay is the real father of Hornswoggle, not Vince McMahon.  JBL put the little leprechaun in the hospital and Finlay wants to hurt him for it.  I hope they take this fight all over the arena; through the stands, past the merch tables and into the bathrooms.  It will probably be bloody and both men will expend themselves.  JBL might be working on a way to trick his opponent, but Finlay isn’t dumb.  I expect he will drag JBL into a trap of his own so a little short man can pull off a splash and set JBL up for the losing side of a 1-2-3 count, end of feud.  Finlay takes Hornswoggle home for good to retire the angle, and JBL finds someone else to pick on until he’s ready for one last championship chase.

Who Should Win: Finlay
Who Will Win: Finlay

SmackDown vs. Raw: Batista vs. Umaga

I don’t really care much about this match, or maybe I just don’t care much for Batista or Umaga.  Batista came back from his time off a little too close to Wrestlemania, so they are using this match to give him a decisive victory over a ‘monster’ and propel him directly to the championship level again.  Umaga could probably use the rub of a win better than Batista, however.

Who Should Win: Umaga
Who Will Win: Batista

Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Mr. Kennedy vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Chris Jericho vs. Carlito vs. Montel Vontavious Porter vs. CM Punk vs. John Morrison

The Money in the Bank Ladder Match is one of the best gimmick matches that the WWE has come up with in the past few years.  The winner of the match not only beats six other near-main eventers, but they constantly remind everyone of that fact by carrying around a briefcase containing their contract.  One of the neat things about the contract is that it is good for the next year, so the WWE doesn’t have to immediately send the winner into a championship match.  They can wait until the time is right and spring it on us at the most surprising moments.  Out of the contenders, I think only two have a legit chance: Mr. Kennedy and Chris Jericho.  The others aren’t quite up to the task of going up against a world champion just yet.  But that’s part of what makes this gimmick great.  If the WWE has a good plan, they could pick any of these guys, and baring an injury, push them to a believable position so they can use their title shot.  However, at the moment it’s Kennedy and Jericho.  Based on what I heard WWE wanted to do with Kennedy last year, I think he’s the winner here.  He’s very entertaining both on the mic and in the ring and I think he is the type of wrestler that can be on the top for many years to come.  Jericho just came back from a long layoff and needs a few more months before getting a legit title shot.

Who Should Win: Mr. Kennedy
Who Will Win: Mr. Kennedy

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (Career Threatening Match)

Flair’s career is on the line here.  The next match he loses will be his last.  I really like this angle.  I don’t know where they are heading with it, but as long as he loses to someone who uses the rub to take themselves to the highest level of the sport, I’m fine with it.  Shawn Michaels, however, is not the right person to end Flair’s career.  Michaels already made his name and doesn’t need anyone or anything to make him a legit challenger to a title, so I don’t see him going over Flair here.  It’s probably Flair’s last Wrestlemania as a wrestler and beating someone of the caliber of Shawn Micheals is special.  Flair will lose before the end of 2008, but it won’t be here.

Who Should Win: Ric Flair
Who Will Win: Ric Flair

Floyd “Money” Mayweather vs. Big Show

A few years ago, Vince McMahon said that they didn’t need to bring in stars from other places anymore to get people to watch Wrestlemania; the wrestlers were the superstars.  I guess the current batch of superstars aren’t so super, so they brought in welterweight boxer Floyd Mayweather.  He’s entered into a feud with 400-pounder Big Show, who is returning after 100 pounds and 14 month away from the ring.  Mayweather has brought a little bit of extra attention to Wrestlemania, but not nearly the amount that Mike Tyson did a decade ago.  The funny thing about this match is that the crowd doesn’t seem to care much for Mayweather.  Maybe it’s his ‘I’m the greatest’ attitude, or the fact that he’s an outsider, but I think this was a waste of cash by the WWE to bring him in.  Big Show trained to become a boxer at within this past year, but I guess he thought better of it and came back to the wrestling.  If Big Show doesn’t win then his returning momentum is stunted and he’ll have to fight harder to get it back over the next few months. 

Who Should Win: Big Show
Who Will Win: Floyd Mayweather

World Heavyweight Champion Edge vs. Undertaker

Undertaker has a 15 and 0 record at Wrestlemania.  If this were last year, I would say that Edge had a shot at the win and could use it to vault up the company ladder.  Since last year, however, he’s won the title twice.  The first time was from cashing in his Money in the Bank contract for a match with the Undertaker in his weakened state right after a draw against Batista.  I think he’s a good main event heel and can get a title shot later on this year without having to prove himself.  Undertaker is nearing the end of his career and will probably get one last title run before calling it quits next year at Wrestlemania 25, not to mention getting his revenge.

Who Should Win: Undertaker
Who Will Win: Undertaker

Triple Threat Match for the WWE Championship – Triple H vs. John Cena vs. Randy Orton

This match is the hardest to predict, and that’s probably how the WWE wants it.  Each one of these guys has been able to one-up the other two over the past three weeks.  Triple H doesn’t really need a title right now.  He is better used building up some young stars and I think a belt would hinder that.  The young stars don’t have a legit reason to be going after the belt yet so it’s easier if he doesn’t have it.  Randy Orton is a good heel champion.  I don’t think he’s fully solidified himself as a perennial championship contender just yet and it would do him good to hold onto the belt for awhile longer and perhaps take on some challengers who haven’t been at the top yet.  John Cena still gets a pretty split reaction from the crowd.  Half the people like him and half the people hate him.  As long as the crown hates to love someone more than they love to hate Cena, he’ll be ok.  Giving him the belt won’t do him any good as I think being the underdog helps him more than holding the belt will in the crowd’s eyes.   Knowing the WWE though, they’ll give the belt to Cena because they like shoving him down our throats to prove that they know what is best for us.

Who Should Win: Randy Orton
Who Will Win: John Cena 

We’ll check back in next week to see how my predictions fared.