The road to WrestleMania is coming to a halt in a matter of time. It won’t be long before the show of show is upon us. This is the first WrestleMania since the brand extension back in July, and it will truly be a test of how the brand split has worked so far.
The last WrestleMania faced a tremendous problem in the form of injuries. Top stars such as John Cena, Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, and Cesaro all were out with injury, and WWE was forced to alter plans severely change plans. There was a lack of momentum going in, and the overall card itself did not deliver as it should have. WrestleMania also faced a problem of having gone on too long, which does not appear to be changing this year.
This year, on the other hand, the injury plague does not seem to be nearly as heavy. Seth Rollins, though injured, is expected back in time for WrestleMania, Finn Balor should be returning very soon, and one of the biggest positives about WrestleMania 33 is the influx of stars from NXT. This year’s WrestleMania will see many fresh faces, and that can only be a positive in the New Era.
The New Day are officially the hosts of WrestleMania 33
Here is the list of confirmed WWE Wrestlemania 33 matches
| Participants | Title/Match |
| Neville(c) vs Austin Aries | WWE Cruiserweight Championship – Kickoff show |
| Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal | 30-Man Battle Royal for the ATGMBR Trophy – Kickoff show |
| Goldberg(c) vs Brock Lesnar | WWE Universal Championship |
| Bray Wyatt(c) vs Randy Orton | WWE Championship |
| Chris Jericho(c) vs Kevin Owens | WWE United States Championship |
| Bayley(c) vs Charlotte Flair vs Sasha Banks vs Nia Jax | Fatal-4-Way Elimination Match for the WWE RAW Women’s Championship |
| Alexa Bliss(c) vs Becky Lynch vs Natalya vs Carmella vs Mickie James vs Naomi | Six-Pack Challenge for the SmackDown Women’s Championship |
| Gallows & Anderson(c) vs Sheamus & Cesaro vs Enzo & Cass | Triple Threat Ladder Match for the WWE RAW Tag Team Championship |
| Dean Ambrose(c) vs Baron Corbin | WWE Intercontinental Championship |
| Roman Reigns vs The Undertaker | Singles Match |
| AJ Styles vs Shane McMahon | Singles match |
| John Cena & Nikki Bella vs The Miz & Maryse | Mixed Tag Team Match |
| Seth Rollins vs Triple H | Non-sanctioned match |
Kickoff Show
Neville(c) vs Austin Aries
The rivalry between the two began in an odd manner. Austin Aries was out for a few months after fracturing his orbital bone at an NXT live event. He transitioned into the commentary team for 205 Live and Cruiserweight matches while he was recovering, and openly stated that he would be getting into the Cruiserweight division once he returned to action.
After Neville’s championship defence against Rich Swann on the RAW after Fastlane, Neville told Austin Aries, who was interviewing him, that there was no one on his level. The crowd immediately began chanting “Austin Aries” while Aries hinted at himself.
Neville insulted Aries, which led to The Greatest Man That Ever Lived to make a statement by striking Neville with the microphone and clearing the ring. Aries made his main roster debut the following night against Tony Nese and made his RAW debut the next week against Ariya Daivari.
On the March 14th edition of 205 Live, Aries won a Fatal-5-Way elimination match to become the #1 contender to Neville’s Cruiserweight Championship.
Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
What is now an annual tradition, only Mojo Rawley and Apollo Crews have announced themselves for the battle royal. Dolph Ziggler teased that he will be appearing in the Battle Royal. Big Show was announced to be part of the Battle Royal on the March 13th edition of RAW.
Curt Hawkins was announced as an entrant, and on the go-home RAW before WrestleMania, Sami Zayn earned his way to the battle royal by defeating Kevin Owens. Braun Strowman later announced his entry as well.
Braun Strowman is rumoured to win the match. Will The Monster Among Men follow the footsteps of Cesaro, Big Show and Baron Corbin?
Here is the list of participants for the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
| Serial No. | Name | Brand |
| 01 | Mojo Rawley | SmackDown Live |
| 02 | Apollo Crews | SmackDown Live |
| 03 | Big Show | RAW |
| 04 | Curt Hawkins | SmackDown Live |
| 05 | Braun Strowman | RAW |
| 06 | Goldust | RAW |
| 07 | R-Truth | RAW |
| 08 | Primo | RAW |
| 09 | Epico | RAW |
| 10 | Curtis Axel | RAW |
| 11 | Bo Dallas | RAW |
| 12 | Jinder Mahal | RAW |
| 13 | Sami Zayn | RAW |
| 14 | Fandango | SmackDown Live |
| 15 | Tyler Breeze | SmackDown Live |
| 16 | Dolph Ziggler | SmackDown Live |
| 17 | Rhyno | SmackDown Live |
| 18 | Heath Slater | SmackDown Live |
| 19 | Jason Jordan | SmackDown Live |
| 20 | Chad Gable | SmackDown Live |
| 21 | Jey Uso | SmackDown Live |
| 22 | Jimmy Uso | SmackDown Live |
| 23 | Mark Henry | RAW |
| 24 | Killian Dain | NXT |
| 25 | Tian Bing | NXT |
| 26 | ||
| 27 | ||
| 28 | ||
| 29 | ||
| 30 |
Main Card
Goldberg(c) vs Brock Lesnar – WWE Universal Championship
The two titans faced off at Survivor Series in 2016, where Goldberg squashed Lesnar in 86 seconds. This was arguably the most shocking moment of 2016.
After the bout, it was reported first by Pro Wrestling Sheet that Goldberg had signed a contract extension before his Survivor Series match for an appearance at the Royal Rumble. This led to the conclusion that it would be to blow-off at Wrestlemania 33.
The night after Survivor Series, Goldberg announced that he would be in the Royal Rumble match, and the next week on Raw, an emotional Paul Heyman revealed that Brock Lesnar would be in the Royal Rumble match as well.
At the Royal Rumble, Goldberg made quick work out of Lesnar yet again, eliminating him within seconds of entering after hitting a spear on The Beast Incarnate. This prompted Lesnar to challenge Goldberg one last time at WrestleMania the night after the Rumble. A couple of weeks later, Goldberg accepted the challenge.
When Goldberg accepted the WrestleMania challenge, he was in the ring with then-WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens, who he challenged for the Universal title at Fastlane. Goldberg squashed Kevin Owens within 22-seconds to win the Universal Championship, thus making his bout against Lesnar for the Universal Championship.
This match is rumoured to be the main event of WrestleMania 33.
Bray Wyatt(c) vs Randy Orton – WWE Championship
In what will be SmackDown’ s marquee match, this is a storyline that has played out since the end of August after Summerslam. At first, the feud seemed to be quite lacklustre with the crowd not showing much interest between the two rivals. However, things took a turn when Randy Orton turned on his then-ally Kane after No Mercy and became a member of the Wyatt Family.
While it looked like a short-sighted, predictable plot, the storyline played out longer than most anticipated, with Orton and Bray even becoming SmackDown Tag Team Champions. However, this was very brief, as Luke Harper, the third member of the Wyatt family, did not get along too well with Orton, and viewed him very suspiciously. This resulted in them losing the tag team championships to American Alpha, and subsequently their rematch.
The dissent within the Wyatt family led to Bray setting up a match between Randy and Harper, which Randy won. After this, Bray appeared to have excommunicated Harper from the Wyatt family, giving him a Sister Abigail.
Randy Orton went on to win the Royal Rumble, whereas Bray Wyatt won the WWE Championship two weeks later at the Elimination Chamber. Randy Orton vowed to Bray Wyatt that as long as Wyatt was the master and Orton was the servant, he would not challenge him for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania. This caused quite the confusion on SmackDown Live and resulted in a 10-Man Battle Royal being made to determine a new contender for Bray at ‘Mania.
Luke Harper and AJ Styles had a stalemate at the Battle Royal, as both their feet seemingly did not touch the floor at the same time. A match was made next week between Harper and Styles to determine the #1 contender for the WWE Championship, which Styles won.
However, later that same night, Orton burned down the Wyatt compound, Bray’s temple, and what supposedly had Sister Abigail buried beneath it. He then declared his intention to challenge Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania 33 for the WWE Championship.
This match is exemplary of the effect of long-term storytelling done right. There has not yet been a clear distinction as to who is the face and who is the heel in this match.
Chris Jericho(c) vs Kevin Owens – WWE United States Championship
This is one of the long-term storylines that started around the beginning of August, where Kevin Owens offered to be Chris Jericho’s partner to take on Enzo & Big Cass at Summerslam. The duo was successful at the biggest party of the summer, and their friendship saw them help each other out over the course of many months.
Kevin Owens became Universal Champion over a week after Summerslam(due to Finn Balor vacating the Universal Championship), and throughout his reign, it was Chris Jericho who helped him retain the title against the likes of Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins through nefarious means. However, the duo was well loved by the WWE Universe primarily due to their comedic schticks, including “The List Of Jericho”.
The friendship had bumps around December, but they got back together, but that only lasted up until February, when the Festival of friendship came around at Las Vegas. Earlier that night, Triple H, the man who helped Kevin Owens become Universal Champion was seen having a private conversation with Owens.
During the Festival of Friendship event, after all the flashy gifts, showgirls and magicians, Jericho expressed his gratitude towards Owens and his friendship with him in what was a very heartfelt speech. Owens then gave a “gift” to Jericho, which was a new list. Jericho seemed happy at first until he realised that his name was on the list, and upon lifting the list, it was revealed to be “The list of KO”. This led to a vicious assault by Kevin Owens, who turned on his best friend and brutalised him.
Owens took a serious approach after that, calling Jericho a burden. While Y2J was out for a few weeks, he returned at Fastlane for Kevin Owens’ match against Goldberg. The distraction saw Goldberg squash Owens in 21 seconds to win the Universal Championship.
The next night on RAW, Jericho came out as a babyface and called out Kevin Owens. Jericho challenged Owens to a match at WrestleMania. Owens accepted but told Jericho that since Jericho took his title from him at Fastlane, Owens wanted to take Jericho's title from him, making it for the United States Championship
Bayley(c) vs Charlotte Flair vs Sasha Banks vs Nia Jax – Fatal-4-Way Elimination Match for the RAW Women’s Championship
Bayley won the RAW Women’s Championship at Las Vegas on February 13th from Charlotte Flair, a 4-time RAW Women’s Champion. She defeated Charlotte at Fastlane in a rematch, ending her PPV undefeated streak at 16-1. However, both her wins over Charlotte were due to help from Sasha Banks.
On the RAW after Fastlane, Sasha announced her intention to challenge Bayley for the Women’s Championship at WrestleMania, but Charlotte interrupted and declared herself to be a victim of all the shenanigans that Sasha participated in to help Bayley defeat her. Stephanie McMahon announced that Charlotte would be part of the Women’s Championship match at WrestleMania, but Sasha would get an opportunity too.
It was RAW GM Mick Foley who stood up for Sasha Banks against Stephanie McMahon, who was belittling The Boss. Stephanie told Sasha Banks that she would have to defeat Bayley to enter herself into the Women’s Championship match at WrestleMania. Despite an attempt at interference by Charlotte and Dana Brooke, Sasha prevailed, making the match a triple threat.
On the 2nd last RAW before WrestleMania, Nia Jax defeated the champion, Bayley to get added to the match and make it a Fatal 4-Way. The day before the go-home RAW before WrestleMania, Mike Rome announced on WWE’s social media that it would be an elimination match
Alexa Bliss vs Becky Lynch vs Mickie James vs Natalya vs Naomi vs Carmella – Six-pack challenge for the SmackDown Women’s Championship
After regaining the SmackDown Women’s Championship, Alexa Bliss is set to defend it at the showcase of the immortals against tremendous odds. After proclaiming herself to be the best, General Manager Daniel Bryan announced that Bliss would defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against every available woman on the SmackDown Live roster.
What is interesting is how carefully worded this was by Bryan. The competitors who are a lock for the match to challenge Bliss are Becky Lynch, Mickie James, Natalya and Carmella. Nikki Bella won’t be in this match as she is currently involved with John Cena in a feud against The Miz & Maryse.
On the final SmackDown Live before WrestleMania, Naomi made her triumphant return and declared herself as an entry into the title match to regain the championship she never lost.
Gallows & Anderson(c) vs Enzo Amore & Big Cass vs Sheamus & Cesaro - Triple Threat Ladder Match for the RAW Tag Team Championship
The three-way rivalry started since after the Royal Rumble, and the three times have constantly been pitting against each other.
Enzo & Cass faced Gallows & Anderson at Fastlane but were unsuccessful. Enzo & Cass then had to face Sheamus & Cesaro in a #1 Contenders match on RAW, but the match was interrupted by the champions, who looked to make a statement.
RAW General Manager Mick Foley was left with no choice but to make the match into a triple threat.
On the final episode of RAW before WrestleMania, there was the use of ladders between all 3 teams to attack each other, hinting that it could possibly be a ladder match. It was announced the following day by WWE that it would indeed be a ladder match
Dean Ambrose(c) vs Baron Corbin – Intercontinental Championship
This is an interesting match-up. Corbin is one of the fastest rising stars on SmackDown Live, who continues to prove every week why he belongs in the main event picture. His feud began with Ambrose at the Elimination Chamber when Ambrose eliminated him via a roll-up pin. This led to Corbin viciously assaulting Ambrose in the chamber, leading to Ambrose getting eliminated by The Miz.
In the weeks following, the two had continued their heated rivalry, leading to Corbin eventually assaulting Dean Ambrose and trapping him with a forklift. Dean Ambrose would return a couple of weeks later in a forklift, cost Corbin his match against Randy Orton, and accept Corbin’s challenge for the Intercontinental Championship match at WrestleMania.
The Undertaker vs Roman Reigns
At the Royal Rumble, The Undertaker seemed set to win, until Roman Reigns entered at #30. The Undertaker still continued to clear house and eliminated until he took his eyes of Reigns for a second, which led to Reigns eliminating him. Reigns proclaimed to The Undertaker “This is my yard now!” while The Undertaker seemed to indicate that things weren’t finished between them.
On the RAW after Fastlane, Braun Strowman, who was furious after being defeated by Reigns the previous night, had called him out for a fight. Instead of Reigns, The Undertaker had come out, which led to Braun fleeing. Right as The Undertaker was leaving, Roman Reigns came out and told The Undertaker “with all due respect” that Strowman called him out and not The Undertaker, and once again proclaimed that it was his yard.
This led to The Undertaker and Roman having a stare down and looking at the WrestleMania sign, and The Undertaker chokeslammed Reigns. It was announced some days later on social media that the two would battle it out at the grandest stage of them all.
Shane McMahon vs AJ Styles
The seeds of this had been planted since after Royal Rumble, where AJ Styles has constantly complained of unfair treatment in the hands of the SmackDown Live commissioner.
While many fans are not crazy about the idea of this match, it will undoubtedly be a marquee match on the card. Not to mention, AJ Styles has yet to have a bad match in WWE. It won’t be surprising to see the crowd behind The Phenomenal One at WrestleMania.
AJ Styles had to jump several hoops and felt that he was “screwed out” of the main event of WrestleMania. First, he never got his singles rematch for the WWE Championship, but a triple threat against Bray Wyatt and John Cena instead. In this match, it was Cena who was pinned, and not Styles.
The following week, AJ Styles was in a 10-man battle royal to determine Bray’s WrestleMania opponent after Randy Orton seemingly gave up his guaranteed title shot. At the battle royal, he was one of the final two along with Luke Harper, and the dusty finish saw both competitors eliminated at the same time.
This finish resulted in a singles match between AJ and Harper, which AJ won to earn his spot at the main event of WrestleMania. However, it was that very night where Randy Orton turned on Bray Wyatt and declared his intentions to face Bray Wyatt for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania.
Due to the fact that Randy had a guaranteed title shot since he won the Royal Rumble, Shane McMahon felt that AJ should have gotten the title shot, while Daniel Bryan supported Randy Orton, believing in the tradition of the Royal Rumble winner getting the main event of WrestleMania.
The disagreement between the two authority figures resulted in them setting up a match between AJ Styles and Randy Orton to determine a final opponent for Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania.
As things turned out, Randy Orton prevailed and defeated The Phenomenal One. AJ felt screwed out of his spot, and after the match had a verbal heated confrontation with Shane at gorilla position, and had to be separated by Road Dogg and Michael Hayes, the producers.
The following week, AJ Styles was waiting for Shane McMahon backstage to arrive nearly the whole show, and when the commissioner finally did, AJ viciously assaulted him, smashing him against the walls, against a car, and finally smashing his head into a car, breaking a window.
Shane was backstage being looked after until he finally came out at the end of SmackDown Live and declared that he would be AJ Styles’ opponent at WrestleMania
John Cena & Nikki Bella vs The Miz & Maryse
After losing his WWE Championship to Bray Wyatt at the Elimination Chamber and subsequently his rematch, he had another shot at facing Bray Wyatt, but he was eliminated from the battle royal by The Miz, the man who he had earlier eliminated.
Nikki Bella, on the other hand, had two unintentional encounters with Maryse during her feud with Natalya. The first instance saw powder accidentally poured over her, while the second instance saw Maryse getting knocked down during Nikki and Natalya’s 2-out-of-3-falls match. Maryse had enough and began assaulting Nikki, which helped Natalya win the match.
The next week on SmackDown Live, John Cena and The Miz had a heated verbal exchange on Miz TV, and Maryse insulted Cena before he departed, even slapping him. Cena told Maryse she made a huge mistake, and this was the cue for Nikki to come out and clear the ring. This marked the first time the couple were together on WWE television.
On the March 14th edition of SmackDown Live, Daniel Bryan made the mixed tag team match official. Thus, the couples with a grudge will face off at the showcase of the immortals.
Nikki is rumoured to be transitioning into a more part-time role post-WrestleMania, while Cena will take time off once more to go pursue his outside projects. The match is also rumoured to be the stage where John Cena proposes to Nikki Bella.
Gallows & Anderson(c) vs Enzo Amore & Big Cass vs Sheamus & Cesaro - RAW Tag Team Championship
The three-way rivalry started since after the Royal Rumble, and the three times have constantly been pitting against each other.
Seth Rollins vs Triple H – Non Sanctioned match
Some might say that the seeds of this match were planted on the second Raw after Summerslam when a returning Triple H turned on Seth Rollins to help Kevin Owens become Universal Champion. However, the seeds were actually planted long before, when they had their alliance in the Authority.
Triple H returned on the RAW after the Royal Rumble and called out Seth Rollins to “meet his destroyer”. Samoa Joe was unleashed upon Seth Rollins and Monday Night RAW. In his debut, while assaulting Rollins and finishing him off with the coquina clutch, an awkward landing saw Rollins re-injure his knee.
There is still uncertainty over the match because Seth Rollins vowed to be at WrestleMania, and Triple H told him not to come and call him out. In the initial few weeks, it was being advertised more as “Seth Rollins calling out Triple H at WrestleMania” and not a match itself.
However, on the 2nd last RAW before WrestleMania, Triple H called Seth Rollins out to come on the final RAW before WrestleMania that he would need to sign a “Hold Harmless Agreement” to have a match against him at WrestleMania. This agreement would ensure that Seth Rollins would not be able to sue anyone for getting injured at the hands of Triple H at WrestleMania.
On the go-home RAW before WrestleMania, the contract was signed, making it a “Non-sanctioned match”.
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