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WrestleMania 37 will be the first time in 13 months that WWE will have a crowd present. Although it will be limited to a reported 45,000 fans per night, that's still a big upgrade for the atmosphere of the show.
Several matches are WrestleMania-worthy, but as with every year, there are more than a few missed opportunities. Here are five matches that should have happened at WrestleMania 37 but didn't:
#6. Bobby Lashley vs. Brock Lesnar - Once in a lifetime opportunity for WrestleMania no more?
When Bobby Lashley won the WWE Championship from The Miz right at the start of March, many hoped that a dream encounter against Brock Lesnar would be on the cards. With The Miz already occupied by Bad Bunny and Damian Priest, it was clear that he wasn't going to be in the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania.
With less time to WrestleMania, it was evident that Lashley was going to be the defending WWE Champion at the event. There was no news about Lesnar's return to WWE, and he has been sitting quietly without a WWE contract for more than half a year now.
WWE decided not to bring back Lesnar in the pandemic era, and as a result, The Beast Incarnate will be missing WrestleMania for the first time since his return in 2012.
It's a shame because this was perhaps the only chance that WWE had at booking Lashley vs. Lesnar at WrestleMania. It would have been one of the biggest WrestleMania main events that WWE could have presented.
Bobby Lashley even admitted that he returned to WWE in 2018 to face Brock Lesnar. It seemed like a program for SummerSlam 2018 was in the works, but that wasn't the case. While Drew McIntyre is deserving of getting his WrestleMania moment in front of a crowd, one can't help but ponder at the missed opportunity.
#5. Bayley vs. Becky Lynch - WWE's 2020 MVP doesn't get a spot on the WrestleMania card
Perhaps the biggest shame of all in WrestleMania 37 is the fact that Bayley won't be competing. She was WWE's MVP during the pandemic era, alongside the likes of Drew McIntyre, Sasha Banks, and Asuka.
Bayley was the SmackDown Women's Champion for more than 10 out of 12 months in 2020 and dropped the title to a deserving opponent in Sasha Banks at Hell in a Cell.
Given how important Bayley was to WWE last year, it's sad to see that she isn't going to be at WrestleMania 37 despite pitching several ideas. Given that she doesn't have anything for WrestleMania, the least that WWE could have used her for was to re-introduce Becky Lynch.
Although Lynch was on RAW and Bayley is on SmackDown, it could have been a short-term program to get The Man back in the mix. Becky Lynch could have likely been ready by now, though we wouldn't be surprised to see her return right after WrestleMania.
#4. The New Day vs. Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin - A WrestleMania-worthy Tag Team match
This would have been an ideal WrestleMania match for the RAW tag team titles. The New Day and The Hurt Business were feuding for a while before Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin won the RAW Tag Team Championships. It was the right timing and they should have been heading into WrestleMania holding the titles, but that isn't the case anymore.
Alexander and Benjamin dropped the RAW tag team titles back to The New Day, and immediately after, AJ Styles and Omos came out. While Styles has only been in high-profile singles matches at WrestleMania for his last five appearances, this time is different.
WWE seemed to have no plans for him and decided to put him and Omos in the RAW tag team title picture instead. The Hurt Business breaking up was a controversial move, and it shouldn't have happened. If there were no such plans, The Hurt Business vs. The New Day at WrestleMania could have stolen the show.
#3. Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus - A show stealer at WrestleMania?
There's little doubt as to who has been the best WWE Superstar since WrestleMania 36. Drew McIntyre has essentially carried Monday Night RAW on his back for the past year and has arguably been one of the best WWE Champions in years. He had two reigns with the title, and he will be competing for it again on Night One at WrestleMania 37.
While he deserves the spot, Sheamus has been having a fantastic run on RAW in 2021, and a match against McIntyre at WrestleMania could have been one of the best matches on the show.
Instead, they concluded their feud at Fastlane, with both men going different directions. This could have been a great non-title match for Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania 37.
#2. Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode vs. Alpha Academy vs. The Street Profits vs. Rey and Dominik Mysterio
The SmackDown tag team title feud looked certain to culminate at WrestleMania. Instead, it's happening on free TV in the "WrestleMania special" edition of SmackDown - one day before the event.
This was the perfect set-up for the stipulation match, and it would have marked Dominik Mysterio's WrestleMania debut. That was a big missed opportunity, and a surprising one - especially given the direction it was going in.
#1. AJ Styles vs. Triple H at WrestleMania 37 - A good farewell for The Game?
We're not sure when Triple H will retire. For all we know, he may have quietly retired in 2019. When talking to ESPN in 2020, Triple H said that he was glad to be missing out on the WrestleMania 36 card - calling himself a "full-time office guy" now.
It makes sense that Triple H would want to take a step back, especially given the work he has put into making way for the future via NXT. The Game has helped put over a few superstars in the last few years, but if he were in a short-term program, AJ Styles would have been a great opponent at WrestleMania 37.
AJ Styles vs. The Undertaker didn't have a big or great build either, but the match was good enough to justify being on the main event of WrestleMania 36 Night One. Triple H vs. Styles would have been a good match checked off the bucket list, and potentially even a retirement for The Game.
