5 thought-provoking ways Wrestlemania 34 can conclude 

Kayfabe is one word that is a deep-rooted pillar at the epicentre of WWE’s key founding principles and has been the unseen glue that has held the fictional world of professional wrestling together for decades. However, over the past few decades, that invisible glue has started to fade away, which now raises an important question, what keeps the kayfabe sport of professional wrestling exciting, stimulating and most notably interesting?

The answer has been a bookers solution for decades now, it a simple mix of captivating characters, the right amount of exhilarating in-ring action plus an emotionally gripping narrative, those factors have kept the essence of wrestling intact for years.

The combination of those three elements has been enough to create magic in the squared circle, and that magic has resulted in dream matches becoming 5-star classics, breakout superstars becoming legends and scripted narratives going from a simple storyline to a worldwide phenomenon.

The only reason those instances of truly captivating storytelling stay in the memories of wrestling fans for decades is due to two key factors; the amount of interest it generated and if the company had executed it at the most opportune time, and when discussing fan interest and golden opportunities, there is no other wrestling event on the planet that garners more attention than “the show of shows”, Wrestlemania.

Since its inception, Wrestlemania has served as the conclusive pinnacle for many of WWE’s narratives, as the closing match of the “show of shows”, in theory, is the wrapping up of the company’s calendar year and while WWE has ended the past few editions of Wrestlemania on a monotonous note, the company has thrown in the odd curveball at its own rock-solid plans which no wrestling fan or critic could’ve foreseen. These alternate creative decisions take the company in a whole new direction, that ultimately define the success of their new calendar year, as fresh rivalries, brand new narratives and thought-provoking innovative ideas all bank on one point to have a successful start, the main event of Wrestlemania.

However, over the past decade, WWE’s ‘creative’ plans to close out the most important match of the entire year has either fallen flat, lacked excitement from their fanbase and has capped off Wrestlemania in a lacklustre fashion. Instances such as the Wrestlemania 32 bout of Roman Reigns vs Triple H was a bland encounter and John Cena vs The Miz for WWE Title match at Wrestlemania 27 was disappointing, those two examples are evidence of some of the terrible creative decisions taken WWE’s writing team, even though there were more intriguing options available. However, this year WWE once again have all the right cards in their hand to cap of Wrestlemania 34 in spectacular fashion that truly changes the landscape of the company, creates a new main eventer and most importantly brings back the unpredictability to Wrestlemania.

#1 Reigns turns heel to finally overthrow Lesnar

Reigns vs Lesnar is not just about giving “the big dog” another Wrestlemania main event

There are certain things a wrestling promotion can’t fully achieve in the modern era of professional wrestling, first would be the inability to please every single wrestling aficionado in their fan base, the success rate of every narrative they produce would be second and last but not least, the effort in keeping a massive surprise a secret is nearly impossible as rumours have often ruined the element of surprise in wrestling. Therefore, with the above being said, it is definitely no secret that WWE’s Wrestlemania 34 main event plans have become heavily publicised over the past year, and as the rumour goes Roman Reigns will challenge Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title at the “show of shows”.

As the booking of Lesnar is akin to a runaway freight train bulldozing its way through white-hot stars such as Samoa Joe, Braun Strowman and AJ Styles, that rumour is well on its way to becoming a spoiler. Therefore, Lesnar has dominated the best Raw has to offer him and has a clear path to Wrestlemania, and WWE has cleared Reigns path by having him drop the Intercontinental Title so that he can do what many wrestling critics and fans have forecasted, and that win the elimination chamber match and go on to confirm this speculation at Wrestlemania 34. However, while WWE has laid down a concrete plan to have the two baddest men in the company squared off in what should be an excellent match, they have made one mistake with that solid plan and that is the monster building of Brock Lesnar.

“The Beast” has been the most protected WWE superstar over the last year, with an advocate who sells his invincibility on the mic, his booking sells his invulnerability in the ring and the impact of his finisher sells the credibility of his aura. Therefore, theoretically speaking that is a roadblock for “the big dog”. As Lesnar has done what Paul Heyman preaches on the mic, he has victimised, conquered and dominated every single behemoth WWE has sent his way and he has done all that with just one F5. When Lesnar hoisted Samoa Joe up on his shoulders and defeated him with one F5 fan were shocked, people were outraged when he did the same to Braun Strowman and when he put Kane down the WWE Universe already predicted that scenario.

As many might have noticed the one person missing from Lesnar’s F5 victims in 2017 is Roman Reigns himself, as Reigns was also conquered with one F5 at Summerslam 2017. So how does WWE book Lesnar’s defeat at the hands of “the big dog”? With taking Lesnar’s booking, the number of powerhouses he has defeated and the fact that Reigns will go over against Lesnar at the “grandest stage of them all”, the only possible way Reigns can believably beat Lesnar for the Universal Title is for him to not achieve it as a valiant babyface but as an aggressive heel. WWE has been adamant about producing Hulk Hogan type babyfaces for decades now and they have replicated that success with John Cena, and now the successor to Cena is Reigns.

However, this time fans have seen right through WWE’s masterplan and ended Reigns babyface run the night it had started. If WWE had been paying attention to the last 5 years of Roman Reigns career they should’ve noticed that Reigns being booked as a no-nonsense bada** was what got him over. Therefore, the only way to tap into that natural charisma again is for “the big dog” to turn heel, discover his true personality and carry those traits over into his eventual babyface persona just like many legends before him. At Wrestlemania 34 WWE can have Reigns beat Lesnar in his superman fashion which does nothing for “the big dog" moving forward or they can have Reigns become the bada** heel that truly ushers in a new era in the company.

#2 Styles defeats Nakamura in unexpected fashion

AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura will steal the show but their programme must lead to a bigger angle

For over the past decade WWE have overlooked the WWE Universe's opinions by underutilising the wrestlers they hold in high esteem, booking feuds that have been universally rejected and consistently selecting the incorrect superstar to win the prestigious Royal Rumble match.

However, the 2018 edition of the men’s Royal Rumble match was booked to perfection, as it saw a fan favourite win the 30-man battle royal for the first time in almost a decade. Fans had become accustomed to the idea of an unwanted Wrestlemania main event as they had to endure that idea for the past couple of years but when Shinsuke Nakamura hurled Roman Reigns over the top rope, the WWE Universe knew what that win meant for the WWE Title and Wrestlemania 34.

Moments after his historic win, Nakamura had confirmed at Wrestlemania 34 he will challenge AJ Styles for the WWE Title The dream match was created and now Wrestlemania 34 might have one of the greatest matches of the modern era on its card, provided Styles overcomes the odds at Fastlane 2018 makes it the “grandest stage of them all” as WWE Champion.

The only reason why the potential match of Nakamura vs Styles might be regarded as the best match WWE can produce in 2018 is all due to their Wrestle Kingdom 10 masterpiece for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship which saw “the king of strong style” go over. Therefore, their rematch will definitely ensure an emotionally satisfying wrestling classic, but narratively, this match needs to take a solid turn of events which gives this feud white-hot momentum and that can only happen at Wrestlemania.

Nakamura is one of the best to step inside the squared circle and his NJPW tenure has seen him produce excellent in ring and character work which was a combination of hard strikes and a rare charisma. Therefore, he was given the nickname of the “king of strong style”, but Nakamura’s run in WWE has not seen him perform on the elite level as he did in Japan.

That is due to the company misusing his excellent in-ring ability’s in wasteful feuds, misinterpret what made him popular and re-brand him as a “Rockstar” instead of portraying him as the bada** hard striker that he is. Therefore, WWE must use this dream feud with AJ Styles to redesign Nakamura’s character, make his character motivations more defined and give him a clear direction for the rest of 2018.

WWE can achieve that and so much more by making one factor essentially central in the build-up to Styles vs Nakamura at Wrestlemania 34 and that is the fundamental theme of doubt, and the superstar that will have that theme attached to his character is AJ Styles.

As mentioned earlier AJ Styles failed to defeat Nakamura for the IWGP Intercontinental Title in their first ever match, and with WWE not shy to allude to wrestlers NJPW history, this theme shouldn’t be hard to slowly build on every week on Smackdown Live. As Nakamura placing doubt in Styles head and Styles fear of history repeating itself thereby causing him to lose his WWE Title should result in unexpected turn of events.

Therefore, at Wrestlemania 34 the pressure gets to Styles and he collides with his Bullet Club members of Gallows, Anderson and even Balor to help him to defeat Nakamura for the WWE Title.

This thought-provoking finish to one of the most anticipated matches of the year will allow WWE to have countless angles to choose from going forward, it will establish The Club as a defiant force on Smackdown Live, it will give Balor a career rejuvenation alongside AJ Styles and most importantly the hottest superstar coming out of this scenario will be Nakamura as he now has a clear motivation for the first time in his WWE career.

#3 Ambrose makes his emphatic return and destroys Reigns

Seth Rollins was the strategist, Roman Reigns the silent powerhouse and Dean Ambrose the crazed wildcard.

When WWE had created the blueprint for The Shield they had decided to put three young superstars with distinct personalities in one group and when “the hounds of justice” started making an explosive impact on the roster, wrestling aficionados got to understand their diverse characters better. As Seth Rollins was the strategist, Roman Reigns was the silent powerhouse and Dean Ambrose was the crazed wildcard. Therefore, when The Shield’s initial partnership had run its course the company could now develop these three young superstars into future World Champions.

To the creative’s credit they had done just that as Rollins fitted perfectly into the Authority’s posse, Reigns had ascended to the main event scene but the unhinged nature of Ambrose had been lightly touched on but never fully explored, and for almost two years, “the lunatic fringe” was not awarded the same main event spotlight, World Championship opportunities and overall protection from WWE’s writing team. Therefore, as Ambrose had famously said he had to “crawl through a mile of crap” from the bottom of the card to the main event scene, and when he finally achieved the glory he had worked tirelessly for, WWE handled his WWE Title reigns in such a poor manner it obviously fell flat.

Although Ambrose enjoyed a main event tenure on the newly revamped Smackdown Live for many months, his supposed ‘lunatic’ persona had become stale and uninteresting, that is why his move to Raw post Wrestlemania 33 was going to be the resurgence of the “lunatic fringe”. As the prospect of a reunification with his Shield brethren was exciting enough to make Ambrose relevant once again and thus he was set to enjoy a successful re-run with “the hounds of justice”. However, an injury had struck the group and Ambrose is now reportedly out of action long enough to miss Wrestlemania 34. However, WWE has a long history of exaggerating superstar’s comeback dates to maximise the full impact of that superstar’s explosive return, Ambrose could indeed make his empathic return before Wrestlemania 34 to ignite a programme just in time for the show.

While most predict that a Wrestlemania programme between Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose would be the ideal and narratively correct route to take following “the lunatic fringes” return, there is a much better use of the former WWE Champion come Wrestlemania 34. WWE need three things to ensure a successful conclusion to Wrestlemania 34, the first being a classic wrestling match, secondly, a moment that caps of the night in huge way, and finally a cliff-hanger that makes the next episode of Raw must-see TV, and there is no bigger cliffhanger than Ambrose making a thunderous return.

However, the most realistic way WWE would close off Wrestlemania 34 would be the sight Reigns holding the Universal Championship while an insane number of fireworks go off in the background. However, WWE has given the WWE Universe that ending for the last 3 years and it has become predictable, to say the least. However, a returning Ambrose laying Reigns out with thunderous dirty deeds will not only close Wrestlemania in an unpredictable way, that decision will set up an untapped rivalry for the rest of 2018. As WWE has booked Ambrose vs Rollins and Reigns vs Rollins in lengthy feuds before, but a rivalry between an unhinged heel Ambrose and Reigns is an intriguing feud WWE has under their belt.

#4 Balor reclaims the title he never lost

WWE is missing a huge opportunity in wasting Finn Balor by not having him reclaim his Universal Title

When WWE had booked the Wrestlemania 33 match card they had cleverly booked the pay-per-view in a tactical manner. A way where at least one match would appeal to each member of their audience in attendance and millions watching worldwide. Therefore, matches such as the soap opera drama angle of John Cena finally proposing to Nikki Bella, the slobber knocker of Goldberg vs Brock Lesnar and the emotional retirement of The Undertaker were all diverse programmes that worked for the “show of shows”. However, when the dust had settled and Raw rolled along the following night, a white-hot post Wrestlemania crowd chanted for only one man to step up to Brock Lesnar and that was Finn Balor.

To WWE’s credit, they were actually pushing a superstar the wrestling world wanted in the main event scene, as throughout 2017 the interactions between Balor and Paul Heyman were all meant to achieve two things; the first goal was familiarising the WWE Universe with obvious seeds being planted for this eventual blockbuster showdown and second, was WWE’s task of building up Balor as a formidable force which Heyman had done remarkably well.

However, the company had surprisingly backed out from marketing this supposed dream match, as the chairman of the company had convinced himself that Balor was not over enough, even though Balor was one of the most popular wrestlers in the world that was athletically gifted and was a top merchandise seller. Therefore, Balor had earned his place in the match with Lesnar.

Instead, WWE had Balor move down the card, where poor booking had placed Balor in awful feuds and matches that wasted his Rockstar power. Finn Balor is a type of superstar that WWE should be building a brand around as he is the total package in WWE’s ‘sport entertainment’ era. Evident from his 2016 push into World Championship glory, Balor has shown signs becoming a megastar that WWE needs. However, while Balor may boast the qualities of becoming a top-tier talent in WWE, his booking over the past year suggests otherwise, as Balor might be left participating in a throwaway mid-card feud come Wrestlemania 34.

However, it is not too late for to WWE can create a legitimate star and while Finn Balor’s booking may have had him jump up and down the card but his character has to progress back into the Universal Title picture. While most would say a Finn Balor Universal Title match has come and gone, Balor is owed a rematch for the Universal Title as he had to vacate it due to an injury. However, WWE has seemed to ignore this rule and had once again booked him in controversial losing fashion to John Cena in a qualifying match for the no.1 contender elimination chamber match. However, he's been added in what is now a 7-man Elimination Chamber.

But as the original Wrestlemania plans go, Roman Reigns is the superstar that is going to face Lesnar but Balor’s excellent Royal Rumble booking, his history with the Universal Title and the need for a solid fan favourite in the main event suggests anything, WWE can still book Reigns and Lesnar in a slobber knocker but with the inclusion of Balor. As many Wrestlemania World Title matches bouts such as Rey Mysterio vs Kurt Angle vs Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton vs Batista were outstanding triple threat matches, which saw the underdogs prevail and there is a no bigger underdog on Raw right now than Balor himself.

#5 Strowman conquers his biggest challenge by finally defeating Lesnar

Strowman is the hottest superstar heading onto Wrestlemania

It is truly once in a millennium that WWE creates the idea for a blockbuster talent, grooms them brilliantly to become main roster material and have that superstar produces critically acclaimed performances which result in widespread commercial success with their tough fanbase on the main roster.

That wrestler turned megastar is none other than Braun Strowman. Ever since Braun Strowman had debuted on the main roster, the man has only gotten better in the ring, more confident on the mic and has added different dimensions to his character that many wrestlers lacked in the modern era of WWE. From the black sheep of the Wyatt Family to “the monster among men”, Strowman has evolved into the main event player that is a strong draw for the company.

And the reason Strowman has already become one of WWE’s greatest big men in such a short time due to his uncanny ability to succeed in big money programmes and in 2017 “the monster among men” had proved this by contesting a rivalry of the year feud with Roman Reigns, contesting a monster vs monster showdown that clicked due to the excellent chemistry between both men and having an overall positive impact on Raw when the red brand was most creatively stifled.

Therefore, after destroying entire arena’s, running through the biggest wrestlers on Raw and being a constant highlight reel for WWE, the company had decided to finally pit the unstoppable force of Braun Strowman against the immovable object that was “the beast” Brock Lesnar.

Over two years ago, when Braun Strowman was rumoured to wrestle a match against Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania 32, fans were outraged and were not grown accustomed to that idea. However, with Strowman’s unreal ability to grow as a performer over the last year he single-handedly transformed this bout from a universally rejected encounter into a bona fide dream match. Taking into consideration the fact that WWE built Strowman up as the most dangerous man in the company for almost a year, fans expected this colossal main event match to be similar to the slobber knocker between Goldberg and Lesnar at Wrestlemania 33. However, fans could’ve not foreseen that this highly anticipated dream match would be an immense disappointment with an anti-climactic finish.

Ever since Braun took that fateful F5 at No Mercy 2017 and was pinned clean in the centre of the squared circle a huge portion of Strowman’s impeccable aura has unfortunately faded, and by WWE’s booking standards their plan to help Strowman regain that lost momentum at the hands of a clean Brock Lesnar defeat was to make Strowman destroy more arena’s, manhandle more veterans and be an even bigger imposing force on Monday nights. While WWE’s master rehabilitation plan had worked wonders for the “monster among men”, the company had essentially brought Strowman back to square one by booking Lesnar to go over him in the triple threat Universal Title match at the 2018 Royal Rumble PPV, and that threat match was perfectly set up for a Braun Strowman Universal Title reign.

However, through all Strowman’s shortcomings against Lesnar, WWE is telling the WWE Universe that the company isn’t willing to commit to the big man because short-term destruction plus defeats that affect a wrestler’s aura in the long term doesn’t sound best for business. Although WWE’s ultimate plan to push Reigns is inevitable, a Wrestlemania blow off match between the two most bada** superstars in WWE will create a new dimension to this heated rivalry, as similar to Lesnar having to wipe his embarrassing loss to Goldberg at Survivor Series clean off his slate, Strowman needs to drill Lesnar into the mat for the pinfall and finally prove "the monster among men" has arrived in WWE.