WWE burning questions heading into WrestleMania 41: Who wins the Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber and more

The beginning of every new year leads to the most exciting time of the year for wrestling fans: The road to WrestleMania. With WrestleMania 41 approaching, minds are racing with the possibilities of what could happen at the biggest event of the year.

Of course, there are some important stops before WrestleMania 41 lands at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on April 19-20. World title challengers will be determined at the Royal Rumble on February 1 and at Elimination Chamber on March 1. series of some of the biggest events on the wrestling calendar.

With all that in mind, the wrestling experts at CBS Sports sat down to make five predictions about what we’ll see leading up to and during WrestleMania 41. Read on to see what we can expect in the coming months.

1. Who is going to win the Royal Rumble?

I’m going to say Cena gets the win here. It feels like a given that he’s in a world title match at WrestleMania and, sure, wwe could choose to play into the “losing streak” storyline and let him come up short in February and have a “last chance” at Elimination Chamber, but I think having Cena win and promoting his title match during Netflix appearances makes more sense. Of course, some of that is due to an old-school mentality based on the “need” to create matches to increase live gate numbers and PPV buys, two things the wwe machine doesn’t have. problems (or that are not relevant). in the case of PPV). Still, Cena’s final run, which includes standing tall as the Royal Rumble winner, feels like an image they want to block and is also an avenue that presents less risk of injury than an appearance inside the Elimination Chamber. –Brent Brookhouse

My world title favorites for WrestleMania 41 are Gunther vs. John Cena and Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton. If we must omit Cena from contention, there is only one direction it would go. Orton likely won’t match Cena’s world title reign record, but he can match “Stone Cold” Steve Austin by winning his third Royal Rumble. Rhodes vs. Orton can draw a lot of source material from Orton’s mentorship of Rhodes in the Legacy faction. wwe should take advantage of the opportunity before the injury bug bites Orton again. –Shakiel Mahjouri

2. Who is going to win the Elimination Chamber?

Based on the assumption that Cena will challenge Cody Rhodes for the undisputed wwe Championship, we need to line up a challenger for World Heavyweight Champion Gunther and that challenger should be CM Punk. It has always been a sticking point for Punk that he was never given the opportunity to main event WrestleMania. That could change if Punk wins in the Elimination Chamber. Gunther and Punk also combine well in terms of in-ring styles. Age has slowed Punk down a bit and he is at his best in hard-hitting fights, a style in which Gunther also excels. Seeing an excited Punk take aim at arguably the most dangerous man on the roster ahead of the WrestleMania main event that has long eluded him is an easy story to tell, and one that would be a joy to watch. – Brook House

Cena stated on the January 6 episode of wwe Raw that winning a 17th world title is “not in the cards” for him. Cena acknowledged that he had not won a singles match in 2,466 days, or more than six and a half years. Failing to win the Royal Rumble further increases Cena’s doubts, which makes it that much sweeter when he defies the odds and becomes the number one contender inside the Elimination Chamber. – Mahjouri

3. How much will the new women’s mid-card titles be featured before and during WrestleMania 41? As new titles, will they be introduced or left feeling as pointless and lumped together as the women’s tag team title shows?

My biggest concern is that wwe isn’t giving the right amount of attention to make these titles feel truly meaningful. On the SmackDown side, they have a great performer with the United States Championship in Chelsea Green. Honestly speaking, I don’t think wwe will feature the two new titles at WrestleMania beyond short matches and possibly give Green some sort of comedy segment. – Brook House

WrestleMania, which takes place over two nights, provides space to present the United States and Women’s Intercontinental Championships. But I am not convinced that these fights are going to be fundamental. Booking exciting storylines in the women’s divisions is not a strong point for the current wwe regime. I’m not convinced that the women’s midcard titles will fare much better than the tag team division, even with Chelsea Green’s wonderful performances. The only silver lining of Raw and SmackDown expanding to three hours means more time can be invested in these titles. Still, I hope the new women’s belts get lost in the shuffle. – Mahjouri

4. What is a major WrestleMania match that is not currently on the radar but will take place in the coming months?

Maybe this is stretching the idea of ​​a “major match,” but I’ll give the idea of ​​Pat McAfee vs. Dominik Mysterio a chance. wwe loves to bring McAfee to their big events and even throw him in the ring here and there, albeit in less intense matches than in his past. McAfee attacks Mysterio often while commentating and it’s a safe combination that doesn’t need to overstay its welcome while also exciting the live crowd. McAfee can put Mysterio through in five minutes and it will be a good time for everyone involved. – Brook House

Dame Tiffany Stratton vs. Charlotte Flair for the wwe women’s championship. Flair has been out for 13 months after tearing his ACL, MCL and meniscus in a match. The timeline for recovery from the ACL (arguably the most serious of the three knee injuries) typically reaches nine months. Stratton’s first main roster title reign presents her with plenty of challengers, including Nia Jax and Bianca Belair, but it doesn’t particularly move me. The SmackDown women’s division could take advantage of the jolt of energy that 14-time world champion Flair brings. – Mahjouri

5. What will be the four main title matches at WrestleMania 41?

wwe Undisputed Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. John Cena
World Heavyweight Championship: Gunther (c) vs. CM Punk
wwe Women’s Championship: Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Charlotte Flair
Women’s World Championship: Rhea Ripley (c) against Becky Lynch
– Brook House

wwe Undisputed Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Randy Orton
World Heavyweight Championship: Gunther (c) vs. John Cena
wwe Women’s Championship: Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Charlotte Flair
Women’s World Championship: Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Liv Morgan vs. Becky Lynch
– Mahjouri