This weekend's WWE WrestleMania 39 will cap off what has arguably been the most unique period in company history.
This year's event is taking place under a cloud of uncertainty the likes of which WWE has never dealt with before. It’s not fully clear who is booking the show and it's even less clear who will own the company in the coming months.
Simply put, we don't know who has the pencil for this year's WrestleMania. There are only two people who know for sure how much influence Vince McMahon still has on WWE creative, and they are Paul “Triple H” Levesque and McMahon himself. It's doubtful we'll ever get the real story out of either.
An even deeper mystery concerns if WWE will be sold in the near future and what that means for its management structure. While a sale is not a certainty, It feels very likely that this weekend will be the final WrestleMania under the current ownership.
All of this is to say, enjoy this year’s WrestleMania because it just might be the last of its kind.
However, their uncertain future doesn’t change that the build to this Mania has actually been one of the best in recent memory. With hot storylines and a new top babyface about to be crowned, WWE WrestleMania 39 has the potential to be one of the most memorable events of the modern era.
Let's get into some predictions and previews.
WWE United States Champion Austin Theory defends against John Cena
Theory should win as there is little benefit to having Cena beat him.
The idea is for Cena to put Theory over as a blue chip prospect on his path to something bigger. How Theory wins might be a bigger question. Does he win clean or does he cheat? If you’re trying to build him up, one idea would be to have him win clean and then do something unsportsmanlike or morally wrong after the match to keep his heat.
Prediction: Austin Theory
Seth “Freakin” Rollins vs. Logan Paul
As much as everyone loves singing Rollins’ theme song, it feels like Paul should win.
In his most recent promos on WWE programming, Paul has been leaning into being the bad guy, something that hadn’t been happening in his first few appearances. This is the Logan Paul WWE wants. He should beat Rollins, but he should cheat or do something somewhat underhanded to do so.
I imagine this feud is probably continuing with a match in Saudi Arabia later this year, so I’m not expecting the finish to be clean but Paul should win.
While there have been reports that Paul’s WWE deal is up after Mania, I’m expecting him to remain in the company for many years to come.
Prediction: Logan Paul
Trish Stratus, Lita & Becky Lynch vs. Damage CTRL
I have no idea who is going to win, but I’m pretty confident that Damage CTRL will come out of the feud looking strong.
The most likely conclusion to the rivalry as a whole is that Damage CTRL debuts at least one new member who then helps them pick up the victory in the feud’s blowoff. The question is whether that happens at Mania, the Raw after Mania, or further down the road.
However, there’s already a bunch of heels that I expect to go over at Mania, so I’m going to predict the babyfaces get the win here. Damage CTRL will then get their heat back and a fresh new member or two in the days that follow.
Prediction: Lita, Becky Lynch & Trish Stratus
Brock Lesnar vs. Omos
Lesnar should walk away as the winner from this super heavyweight clash.
You could argue that if they want to build Omos up to be a monster, you could do it in one night with a win over Lesnar. I just don’t think they have that kind of faith in him. This match wasn’t even supposed to happen, so I’m not expecting them to go with any surprise booking. Lesnar will win in a quick, super heavyweight style match and MVP will get his comeuppance as well.
In terms of match quality, I am not expecting Dave to give out five stars here but if you like big guys tossing each other around and an aura of "somebody might get really hurt here," this will be for you.
Prediction: Brock Lesnar
WWE Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair defends against Asuka
Asuka is going to win the Raw Women’s title the day after The Great Muta goes into the Hall of Fame, and we are going to see an even more Muta-inspired version of Asuka when she does so.
Asuka has been going heel on house shows as of late, turning on Michin at an event last weekend. She’ll pick up the win via underhanded tactics, something like the poison mist — only more dastardly.
It was a great Mania to Mania title run for Bianca, but her story for the next year is going to be chasing a heel Asuka, perhaps leading to a rematch at WrestleMania 40.
Prediction: Asuka
WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair defends against Rhea Ripley
It should be interesting to hear the fans’ reaction to this match.
Flair as a babyface seems to be teetering. Crowds were behind her shortly after her return but as things have continued, she just comes off as such a natural heel that I don’t know how much longer they can run with her in this role. Flair’s reaction to the “What?” chants last week was evidence of this.
On top of that, Ripley is more over now than she ever has been as part of the Judgment Day. The fans are going to cheer for Ripley over Flair here. We could then get a “because of the fans” heel turn promo from Flair in the weeks that follow. Jim Valley will not be pleased.
I just can’t see WWE having Flair go over Ripley at WrestleMania again. They probably shouldn’t have done it the first time either.
Prediction: Rhea Ripley
WWE Intercontinental Champion Gunther defends against Sheamus and Drew McIntyre in a three-way
This will be WWE’s tribute to the “banger” matches all three have been involved in of late.
Levesque and Gunther have re-established the Intercontinental title as the worker's belt and that’s what will be on display here. The three men involved will be trying to steal the show Steamboat vs. Savage style and will probably succeed.
To put into perspective what Gunther has meant to WWE in terms of workrate, consider that he has had four WWE matches awarded five stars by Dave Meltzer since signing with the company in 2019. There have only been 16 matches in WWE history to get five stars or better and he has already been in 25% of those.
You could potentially have Sheamus pin McIntyre or vice versa to get the belt off Gunther without him being pinned, but it feels more likely that he’ll just continue his title reign.
Prediction: Gunther
Edge vs. Finn Balor in a Hell in a Cell match
Much like with Cena and Theory, this is about a part-time legend putting over a full-time member of the roster.
Edge has been hinting that he’s just about done. He very likely doesn’t have many WrestleMania matches left after this, if any. WWE isn’t about to have him beat "The Demon" version of Balor.
What this match could do, and definitely should do, is elevate Balor back to main event status. Edge has said his goal with the Judgment Day and this feud has been to elevate performers he believes deserve it. So far so good, but WrestleMania is an opportunity to push Balor all the way back up to top guy status.
Prediction: “The Demon” Finn Balor
Shotzi & Natalya vs. Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville vs. Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez vs. Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler
I don’t think the result here is really in question.
This match will be all about showcasing the team of Rousey and Baszler. Rousey pushed to be included in this division and her star power does have the potential to give the Women's Tag Team titles a little more prestige. A Ronda & Baszler vs. Lita & Becky Lynch feud coming out of Mania could be the end result here.
Prediction: Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler
Braun Strowman & Ricochet vs. The Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy vs. The Viking Raiders (w/ Valhalla)
I think the Raiders should win here because they are the only team I feel WWE is motivated to give a push to right now.
I don’t know what the future holds for the Street Profits as a tag team. The long-term plan must be to move Montez Ford into singles action but hopefully, they find a way to do this that doesn’t break up his team with Angelo Dawkins, or at least keeps the two as allies/friends. It doesn’t feel like there is any appetite at all from fans to see them feud. Dawkins is a good wrestler, and very likable, but Ford is what world champions are made out of, and at some point, he’s moving into singles action.
Alpha Academy has its own little storyline going on with Otis and the Maximum Male Models, so they likely aren’t winning. Ricochet & Braun Strowman don’t feel like a long-term team so I’m not sure what the motivation would be to have them win. So by process of elimination, The Viking Raiders win!
Prediction: Viking Raiders
Dominik Mysterio vs. Rey Mysterio
On paper, a father-and-son rivalry seems extremely difficult to pull off but they’ve done exactly that.
I’m really shocked at how good this program has been. The success of it rests primarily in Dominik’s performances, I believe, although everyone involved has played their roles perfectly. Eddie Guerrero’s presence looms over this story in a very positive way as well.
As much as we all want Dominik to get his comeuppance here, he won’t. Dominik is going to defeat his father and it will give him something to brag about in interviews for years to come. It will be a good night for him and Mami.
Prediction: Dominik Mysterio
WWE undisputed Tag Team Champions The Usos defend against Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn
In storyline, this is the most important WWE Tag Team Championship match of all-time.
It’s not the most important tag team match in company history, however. Vince McMahon had gambled all of his resources on the first WrestleMania being a success and if it wasn’t, who knows if the company would even exist today? No match will ever top what Roddy Piper & Paul Orndorff vs. Hulk Hogan & Mr. T did in terms of importance to WWE’s business. In terms of tag title matches, however, The Usos vs. Owens & Sami is absolutely the biggest one ever.
The Usos are in the middle of the longest tag team title reign in company history and are about to defend them at the biggest event of the year. I have seen some arguments that the TLC matches in the Attitude Era were bigger than this, but I disagree. This is the 1B storyline in WWE right now heading into WrestleMania and no other tag title feud or match has accomplished that ever. The tag titles have never meant more to the company than they do right now.
Owens and Sami will win the titles, celebrate in the ring together, and create a feel-good WrestleMania moment that is relived through documentaries and highlight packages for decades. The moment could even live on for centuries or longer depending on wrestling's longevity and the possibility of total societal collapse.
Prediction: Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Cody Rhodes
Rhodes is going to finish the story at WrestleMania 39.
He actually won the title months ago. Rhodes won the title when he returned to WWE and his segments drew big numbers. He won the title when his merchandise sold in large quantities. Without a doubt, Rhodes won the title when he wrestled a five star match against Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell with a torn pec. He has checked all the boxes to prove that he’s the guy that can beat Reigns.
Cody has mentioned how Dusty Rhodes used to say the only thing real in wrestling is the world title. While that might be a debatable point in many cases, it's absolutely true here. Cody is winning this title because of very real choices he's made throughout his career.
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Now don’t get me wrong: you could have Reigns win here. In fact, I wouldn’t mind seeing it. A lot of people thought Drew McIntyre was going to beat Reigns at Clash at the Castle. Then again, a lot of people thought Sami Zayn was going to beat Roman at Elimination Chamber. Why not keep the disappointment train rolling and have him beat Cody too? Then the story basically becomes “dreams don’t come true” thanks to Roman Reigns.
But Cody is the right guy and it's the right time.
What happens after Mania will be the real fun. Rhodes will be in the famous, and sometimes infamous, role of WWE’s top babyface. Some have thrived and others have crashed hard in the same spot. He’s got the fans and WWE management behind him, but the work doesn’t end when he beats Reigns, it’s actually just beginning.
Prediction: Cody Rhodes