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WrestleMania 34 is about a week away and the show is already looking like it’ll be a marathon of an event. As of this writing, there are 13 scheduled matches, with the much-hyped Undertaker-Cena match rumoured to be made official on the April 2nd episode of RAW. This’ll be a monumental event filled with big matches and historic moments.
However, as with every big wrestling event, there are flaws in its booking and presentation. One of the show’s biggest issues (at least from a booking perspective) is that many of the marquee matches will be focused on part-timers and ageing veterans. These wrestlers are ones that are being promoted in the biggest matches, despite the fact that many of them aren’t likely to be on WWE programming on a regular basis once WrestleMania has ended.
In fact, for some wrestlers, WrestleMania 34 might be their last. Whether it’s due to nagging injuries and multitude health issues, backstage issues, or even problems with their WWE contracts, the wrestlers mentioned in this list are likely to see their final WrestleMania matches on April 8th, 2018.
#6 Shane McMahon
At 48 years old, Shane McMahon is one of the oldest performers currently scheduled to wrestle at WrestleMania 34. Shane was brought back to add some intrigue to WWE’s on-screen product; however, that intrigue hasn’t led to as much widespread success as he and WWE’s bookers might’ve hoped for.
Aside from a few insane moments and jumps, Shane hasn’t done very much in WWE. Most of his big appearances have been centred on him doing stupidly high-risk jumps off tall things, while his weekly work as SmackDown’s Commissioner has left A LOT to be desired.
Given of this, there is enough evidence to suggest that Shane’s continued involvement at high-profile WWE events – especially WrestleMania – isn’t worth the time or the money. Given his age, injury history, and lack of intrigue surrounding his on-screen character, Shane might be making his final appearance at WrestleMania 34, before moving into a different role in the company.
#5 John Cena
WWE has gone to great lengths to sell the idea of John Cena as a ‘free agent’, meaning that he can come and go to whichever brand he chooses to. The reason for this is to give him the freedom to enter feuds with ease, while also allowing to make the most of his increasingly-limited schedule.
As much as WWE’s bookers wouldn’t want to admit it, Cena is a fully-fledged part-timer, and even that might change as well. While he won’t admit it, Cena has been dealing with nagging injuries for quite some time now and has also begun to focus on other, non-wrestling-related projects.
While Cena likes to claim that WWE is his home, the lucrative calls of acting and other projects might be far too tempting for him, especially since WWE’s travel schedule is so taxing on all performers. Furthermore, WrestleMania 34 will feature Cena wrestling in possibly the biggest match of his career, against the Undertaker. Once that match has concluded, there won’t be anything left for Cena to do in WWE.
As such, win or lose, there is the possibility – however remote – that Cena could have his last WrestleMania moment at WrestleMania 34.
#4 Brock Lesnar
Lesnar has been one of WWE’s most protected stars for years now and has benefitted from ‘special’ status for such a long time. Some have argued that Lesnar only returned to WWE because he retired from MMA, but that is no longer the case, as he has been allowed to fight in MMA matches while also being a WWE wrestler.
Going forward, however, there might not be anything left for Lesnar to do, and so he might return to MMA after WrestleMania 34 has concluded. While Lesnar might’ve made a considerable amount of money as a WWE superstar, the allure of being an MMA draw again might be too tempting for Lesnar to refuse.
Because of that, Lesnar could very well be making his final WrestleMania appearance in New Orleans on April 8th.
#3 Daniel Bryan
Daniel Bryan made a monumental announcement recently, revealing that he has been medically-cleared to compete for the first time since 2016. While this is excellent news for the upcoming WrestleMania 34 event, it might not be too good for Bryan himself long term.
Sure, WWE might’ve sanctioned him to wrestle, but you can be sure that every time he steps into the ring, he’ll have to sign numerous forms, undergo extensive medical tests, and will likely be shoehorned into ‘gimmick’ matches that wouldn’t allow him to wrestle at his full potential. WWE will likely do this so that he can wrestle, but they likely won’t let him wrestle in the same way as he did before.
Given Bryan’s incredible passion for wrestling, he might not be the type to accept such a fate. As such, Bryan could find himself wrestling for a different company before WrestleMania 35, depending on how much freedom he’s given in his upcoming match at WrestleMania 34.
If Bryan isn’t allowed to be the same wrestler he was before his retirement ceremony, Bryan could go wrestle elsewhere and be happier wrestling fewer matches with no restrictions as opposed to wrestling regularly with WWE while having numerous rules and restrictions forced upon him.
#2 Triple H
This might be hard for some to believe, but Triple H has appeared at every single WrestleMania since WrestleMania 12, with the sole exception being WrestleMania 23. He has been one of WWE’s biggest stars for almost twenty years and has been booked in high-profile matches almost every year at WrestleMania.
However, there is the possibility that WrestleMania 34 might be Triple H’s last WrestleMania. Not because of any injuries, but because he simply might not have time in the future. Aside from being an on-screen villain on RAW storylines, Triple H has numerous responsibilities outside of the ring as well. He’s the mastermind behind the NXT brand, and also has numerous other roles in WWE’s corporate environment as well.
Moreover, there are rumours that Triple H’s day-to-day responsibilities will increase in the coming years as Vince McMahon shifts his focus away from the daily grind of managing WWE.
As Vince begins to deal with old age and shift his attention to the XFL, Triple H is being groomed to take over many of the tasks that were/are on Vince’s shoulders. Because of this, there simply might not be any time in in the coming years for Triple H to wrestle and promote a storyline for future WrestleManias.
#1 The Undertaker
Last year’s WrestleMania closed with the sight of the Undertaker ‘retiring’, or at least, retiring the ‘Deadman’ persona by leaving his coat, gloves and hat in the ring as he left the arena. This symbolic image led to the widespread belief that the Undertaker was indeed retired and done with wrestling (especially since he had hip surgery shortly thereafter).
However, based on the recent booking of RAW, the Undertaker seems to be getting ready for one final showdown, this time against John Cena. This match was supposed to happen at WrestleMania 32 but never materialized, so now WWE appears to be going all in with this planned dream match. Once this contest happens, there will definitely not be any further need of the Undertaker on regular WWE programming.
He’ll have faced the last wrestler with whom he could have a dream match, and won’t have any reason to return next year. Indeed, ‘Taker’s last and final WrestleMania is likely to be coming up within the next week.
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