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Day 1 of WrestleMania 36 is just a few hours ago at this point and excitement is pretty high, despite the show being pre-taped. WWE have had to make a lot of changes to their plans because of restrictions imposed by the Coronavirus pandemic but we're confident that the company won't disappoint at the Show of Shows.
WWE could have some surprises in store for us tonight so that the show doesn't become too predictable. Could a top tag-team cost The Undertaker his match against AJ Styles? Could we see Braun Strowman come from nowhere to leave Mania as the Universal Champion? We have all this and a whole lot more so read on.
#5 AJ Styles becomes only the third person to beat The Undertaker at WrestleMania with Gallows and Anderson's help
AJ Styles will face The Undertaker in one of the marquee matches at WrestleMania 36. Styles and Taker will not go one-on-one in a traditional match but the match has instead been deemed a Boneyard match. We don't yet know what a Boneyard match exactly entails but we do know that it will most probably take place from a closed set. Reports also suggest that the match could take place in a graveyard setting with a buried alive stipulation in place.
Although the Deadman will be the favorite heading in, simply because he is The Undertaker, fans may see WWE giving us a big surprise here. At least, there is a decent chance that Styles wins this. There have been rumors that a victory for Styles could lead to a further character refresh for Undertaker and there could be some truth to this.
The Undertaker also invited Styles to bring former tag-team champions Gallows and Anderson to the Boneyard with him and if Styles ends up winning the match, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson will definitely have a part to play.
#4 Brock Lesnar and Drew McIntyre ends in a no contest
WrestleMania 36 was supposed to be Drew McIntyre's crowning moment. He was supposed to vanquish 'The Beast' and finally win the big one in from of thousands of fans. It started at the Royal Rumble where McIntyre eliminated Lesnar from the men's Rumble. McIntyre went on to win the Rumble and then challenged Lesnar for the title.
The feud between the two has been built up well since then but the big problem here is regarding the restrictions in place due to Coronavirus. Will Drew McIntyre beating Brock Lesnar in front of an empty arena have nearly the same effect? WWE could have a back-up plan in place here to defer this title change to a later date after all this is over and fans are allowed back into buildings.
The only feasible way for WWE to do this would be for this match to end in a no contest or a DQ. There is no way Lesnar can beat McIntyre without destroying his momentum. Now it depends on if WWE would rather crown Drew now or take the risk of waiting this out a little. Although this finish would disappoint some fans, it may be the right thing to do here.
#3 Charlotte beats Rhea Ripley to win the NXT Women's Championship
WrestleMania 36 will see the first time an NXT title has been defended at the Show of Shows. NXT Women's Champion Rhea Ripley will defend her title against 'The Queen' Charlotte Flair. It was Charlotte who challenged Ripley for the gold after winning the 2020 edition of the women's Royal Rumble.
Despite Charlotte being one of the most protected stars on the roster, a lot of fans expect Rhea Ripley to win the match, myself included. However, this all depends on WWE post-Mania plans.
WWE could decide to throw us a curveball and have Charlotte Flair win the NXT Women's Championship one more time. Although this scenario wouldn't see Ripley going over (because she needs the win more than Charlotte does), it could still be done if WWE's plan is to temporarily move 'The Queen' down to the black and yellow brand in an effort to get more eyeballs on the NXT product. NXT hasn't done too well in their ratings battle with AEW Dynamite so far and a big name like Charlotte moving down temporarily could help.
#2 Mandy Rose turns on Otis to side with Dolph Ziggler and Sonya Deville
The storyline between Otis, Mandy Rose, and Dolph Ziggler has been one of the most compelling on WWE tv in recent months. It started with Otis' infatuation of Mandy followed by some really well-booked spots and moments that helped their storyline romance get over with fans.
On the Valentine's Day episode of WWE SmackDown, Otis and Mandy Rose were supposed to meet for a dinner date but a message from Mandy told Otis she would be late. When Otis turned up he saw Mandy with Dolph Ziggler. This led to SmackDown last night where we finally found out that the text sent from Mandy's phone to Otis was sent by Sonya Deville. We also so further plans made by Sonya Deville and Dolph Ziggler, with the former also seen deleting messages from Mandy's phone.
Even though everything is pointing towards Mandy siding with Otis in this situation, we could definitely see a swerve with Mandy deciding to side with Sonya Deville and Ziggler.
#1 Braun Strowman beats Goldberg to leave WrestleMania as the WWE Universal Champion
Goldberg was initially supposed to defend the WWE Universal Championship against Roman Reigns in a battle of the Spears. However, with Reigns pulling out of WrestleMania at the last minute because of the Coronavirus pandemic, he was replaced by Braun Strowman. Although there has been no build to this and Roman wasn't even written off tv on SmackDown, I can still see WWE surprising us here.
Yes, Goldberg will be the favorite going in but this again depends on what WWE wants post-Mania. Reigns was supposed to beat Goldberg at WrestleMania and get the rub from him but if WWE does it right, they could quickly pivot to pushing Strowman. WWE could have Strowman quickly steamroll Goldberg to win the Universal title. Although it will happen without any fans or without much of a build, Strowman could still be positioned as a top guy. We all know Braun has it in him and he was really popular with fans a couple of years ago until WWE fed him to Roman Reigns. Strowman winning could easily lead to another Strowman versus Reigns feud in the future.
