WrestleMania 35: Analyzing and predicting the three big matches after this week's RAW and SmackDown Live (1st - 7th April 2019)

#2 Kofi Kingston v Daniel Bryan (c) for the WWE Championship

Daniel Bryan and Kofi Kingston will square off at WrestleMania. Who will win?

Recap:

In February, Kofi Kingston got inserted into an Elimination Chamber match for the WWE chamber match, after Ali got injured. After witnessing Kofi perform for over an hour in a gauntlet match, the New Day member received a standing ovation for his performance after pinning Daniel Bryan, Jeff Hardy, and Samoa Joe.

While he came short at the Elimination Chamber after a gutsy display, he continued to perform in more gauntlet matches. He was repeatedly tested by Mr. McMahon until Big E and Xavier Woods won a gauntlet last week to earn him a WWE title shot.

Analysis:

Daniel Bryan and Kofi Kingston have both played their part extremely well in this feud. I have to admit that the insertion of Vince McMahon himself into this, has helped to get Kofi over even more with the fans.

Kofi (much like Becky Lynch) got himself over with the crowd organically. He was certainly not planned by management to be in this position, however, his performance in his first gauntlet match got him a standing ovation from the audience.

Had Kofi not been in this match, Ali would probably have done that sort of performance. I doubt he would have got as big a reaction as Kofi, due to the New Day member being a veteran in WWE and being well respected by everyone.

That is not a knock on Ali or his work, as he is a tremendous athlete. Kofi's narrative about being with WWE for 11 years and paying his dues, while not getting any world title shots, was a story that many could relate to. It has been told beautifully by creative so far. How they actually managed to not mess it up, is anyone's guess.

The only criticism I could probably make about this storyline would be the number of gauntlet matches involved. I don't mind watching them, however, they certainly aren't for everybody, and can become tedious if they get drawn out for too long.

Having one gauntlet match is fine, however having them in back to back weeks gets a little bit tiring. It also makes creative look lazy for not thinking of other ways to stack the deck against the New Day. This match has the potential to be an absolute barn burner at WrestleMania and I'm sure it will deliver.

Prediction: Kofi Kingston becomes the new WWE Champion