WrestleMania 33 will take place on April 2, 2017, at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. It will be the second WrestleMania to be held at this venue, which hosted WrestleMania XXIV in 2008, and the third to be held in the state of Florida.
It is now only six weeks away, however, only one match has been officially announced. The rest of the card can currently only be hypothesised based on strong hints, speculation and unconfirmed rumours.
As it stands, many are speculating and debating what several major Superstars will be doing on the night, with the possibility that some could be left in underwhelming spots, with so many matches already on rumoured to be on the card.
I take a look at what’s fact, what’s certain, what’s rumoured and what I think the WrestleMania 33 card will be.
What’s fact?
The only fact we know so far is that Goldberg will face Brock Lesnar. The WWE has yet to announce any other match on TV. Even Bray Wyatt’s defence against Randy Orton has recently taken a new twist to occupy television time en route to WrestleMania.
Official Card:
Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar
What’s certain?
Goldberg will defeat Kevin Owens at Fastlane, making the Goldberg vs. Lesnar match for the Universal Title, freeing up Kevin Owens to face Chris Jericho. Roman Reigns and The Undertaker sowed the seeds for their match-up at the Royal Rumble, while the Andre the Giant Battle Royal is seemingly a WrestleMania mainstay these days.
Certainties card:
WWE Universal Title Match: Goldberg (Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar
The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns
Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho
The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
What’s rumoured?
Rumours having been running wilder than ever, since the injury of Seth Rollins, with Triple H being linked to several new opponents, the main one being Shane McMahon. This would mean Shane would be unable to have his rumoured match with AJ Styles.
However, Seth Rollins is now said to be likely to be cleared to face Triple H, while the WWE has dropped subtle hints for the Styles vs. Shane match, meaning both matches are likely to feature at WrestleMania 33. Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton are still likely to face off, and rumours regarding a triple threat match aren’t coming from credible sources.
The Big Show vs. Shaq has been pencilled in for some time, while over on Smackdown, Baron Corbin and The Usos have emerged as contenders for the Intercontinental Title and Tag Titles respectively.
Over on Raw, Dave Meltzer reported back in January, that Raw was planning a 4-way match for the Women’s Title and has recently reported that Neville will defend his Cruiserweight Title against Austin Aries. In the most surprising match on the card, John Cena is likely to team with Nikki Bella in a mixed tag team match against Miz and Maryse.
Rumoured card:
WWE Universal Title Match: Goldberg (Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar
WWE Title Match: Bray Wyatt (Champion) vs. Randy Orton
The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns
Seth Rollins vs. Triple H
AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon
WWE United States Title: Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho
John Cena & Nikki Bella vs. Miz and Maryse
Intercontinental Title: Dean Ambrose vs. Baron Corbin
The Big Show vs. Shaquille O’Neal
WWE Raw Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Nia Jax vs. Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Tag Team Title Match: American Alpha vs. The Usos
Cruiserweight Title Match: Neville vs. Austin Aries
My thoughts
I agree that everything listed in the card above will happen, although, I personally don’t prefer the US Title being on the line in the Owens vs. Jericho match. With talents like Rusev, Cesaro, Sheamus and Sami Zayn not featured on the card, the WWE could easily vacate the US Title due to Jericho’s injuries and put it on the line in a Ladder Match.
Kofi Kingston and Big E could also feature in the match. This is not based on any information given to me, just my preference. Samoa Joe would also be a viable candidate for the match and a suitable winner, however, I think Joe is the only viable opponent for Finn Balor, who I feel will return in time for WrestleMania.
My sources have told me that Enzo and Cass will leave WrestleMania weekend as the Raw Tag Champions, be it after WrestleMania or the post-WrestleMania Raw.
I think the women of SmackDown will need to do something different as compared to their counterparts in the red brand rather than just book another fatal 4 way, so I think we may see Naomi defending in either a gauntlet match, the long-forgotten Championship scramble or a six-pack challenge.
I think we are likely to see Braun Strowman win the Andre the Giant Battle Royal.
My projected card:
WWE Universal Title Match: Goldberg (Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar
WWE Title Match: Bray Wyatt (Champion) vs. Randy Orton
The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns
Triple H vs. Seth Rollins
AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon
Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho
John Cena & Nikki Bella vs. Miz & Maryse
Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe
Vacant US Title Ladder Match: Sami Zayn vs. Rusev vs. Cesaro vs. Sheamus vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Big E
WWE Intercontinental Title Match: Dean Ambrose vs. Baron Corbin
Big Show vs. Shaquille O’Neal
WWE Raw Women’s Title Match: Charlotte vs. Nia Jax vs. Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
WWE RAW Tag Team Title match: Gallows & Anderson vs. Enzo & Cass
WWE Smackdown Women’s Title Match: Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Mickie James vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella vs. Natalya
WWE Smackdown Tag Team Title Match: American Alpha vs. The Usos
Cruiserweight Title Match: Neville vs. Austin Aries
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