Story

So why didn’t Charlotte and Rhea wrestle in the main event? Rhea Ripley won the Royal Rumble to earn a title match against a champion of her choosing at WrestleMania, doesn’t that mean she gets to be in the main event? Paul “Triple H” Levesque addressed this during the WrestleMania 39 press conference by saying there was more “emotion” in the Usos versus Sami and Kevin match. The tag match was more “story-driven” than the Charlotte and Rhea match and it felt more like a main event for that reason. Many fans were okay with this statement because it was true, Charlotte and Rhea did not have as much emotion and story built up as the tag match that year. But what about this year?

One of the main storylines in the WWE is the formation and transformation of Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai, Bayley, Iyo Sky, Asuka, and Kairi Sane). This is not a story that has been told in just a few weeks leading into WrestleMania, but it is a story that has been told since the debut of the faction at SummerSlam in 2022. Even though the break-up of Damage CTRL did not happen until the Smackdown after the Royal Rumble, it is a story that has been building since the debut of the faction. This break-up storyline takes heavily from when Batista broke away from Evolution by choosing to challenge Triple H at WrestleMania 21 instead of choosing JBL. So the story is there for Bayley and Iyo Sky to be in the main event of WrestleMania 40, right? RIGHT?

Royal Rumble Winner

Ever since the 1993 Royal Rumble, the prize for winning the Royal Rumble match has been a title match at WrestleMania, and starting in 2004, the Royal Rumble match winners could choose which title they wanted to challenge for. Occasionally, a championship was defended in the rumble match itself, but usually when the winner selects the champion they wish to challenge, that match becomes the main event of WrestleMania. In 2018, WWE established there would be a Royal Rumble match for the men’s roster and the women’s roster.

History

There have been two matches (three if Charlotte versus Ronda Rousey is counted) that have been the main event of WrestleMania that has included the Women’s Royal Rumble winner. History was made in 2019 by having women in the main event for the first time at WrestleMania 35 when Becky Lynch beat Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey for both women’s championships. The next time the women’s Royal Rumble winner was in the main event of WrestleMania was at WrestleMania 37 when Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks made history by being the first Black Women to be in the main event at WrestleMania. 

In 2022, Ronda Rousey challenged Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 38 and they were the main event of night one. Or they were until Kevin Owens and Stone Cold Steven Austin had an impromptu match to end night one of WrestleMania 38. Technically speaking, the last time women were in the main event of WrestleMania was in 2021 at WrestleMania 37. Over the past couple of years, when doing the introduction for the women’s Royal Rumble, the ring announcer would simply say, “The winner receives a title opportunity of their choosing at WrestleMania.”

Now

Even though fans wanted women in the main event of WrestleMania, it wasn’t as big of an upset because it was not established they would receive a main event match. That changed at this year’s Royal Rumble when Samantha Irvin, during the introduction, announced the winner of the Royal Rumble would not only choose which champion to face but would also be in the main event of WrestleMania 40. So once again, that means Bayley and Iyo Sky will be in the main event of one night of WrestleMania 40, right? 

Road So Far

The winners of the Royal Rumble this year were Bayley and Cody Rhodes. Both winners decided to announce who they were going to challenge during the same episode of Smackdown. Bayley, along with Damage CTRL (except for Dakota Kai), came to the ring for Bayley to make her announcement. The segment was great! Bayley chose Iyo and stated she was not dumb and knew the rest of Damage CTRL had been making fun of her for a while. Damage CTRL then tried to beat down Bayley after her announcement but Bayley turned the tide by grabbing a weapon and defending herself. A fantastic wrinkle to an already stellar story.

Later in the night, Roman Reigns cut a promo about Seth Rollins, the World Heavyweight title, and Cody Rhodes. Cody came out to the ring to interrupt Roman and make his decision. Cody cut a passionate promo about his story and how he needs to finish it by tearing Roman down, “But not at WrestleMania.” Then Cody said that he has also been seeking special counsel and brought out Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to the ring. The Rock and Roman had a staredown while Cody vanished back to the backstage area and Smackdown went off the air. That means Cody gave up his spot and now Roman and The Rock will be in the main event of one night and Bayley and Iyo will be in the main event of the other night at WrestleMania, right?  

Change of Plans

After the Smackdown where Cody announced he would not be facing Roman at WrestleMania 40, there was a massive uproar from fans for Cody to be in the match instead of The Rock. Fans went online and said, “Cody needs to finish his story” and “It’s not fair that The Rock can just come in and take Cody’s spot.” As of now, it seems like the “outrage” from the fans may have changed the plan to Cody versus Roman at WrestleMania 40. After the WrestleMania 40 Kickoff event in Las Vegas took place, two matches have been speculated to take place at WrestleMania 40, Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes versus Roman Reigns and The Rock one night and Cody versus Roman the other night. It would appear that fans will be getting exactly what they want but there is still a problem. What happens with Bayley versus Iyo?

Even though I am glad WWE seems to be listening to the fans, it is disheartening to think that once again the winner of the Women’s Royal Rumble match will be overlooked and not receive a main event match at WrestleMania. Especially when it was announced beforehand that the winners of both Royal Rumble matches would be in main event matches at WrestleMania 40. I try not to be a stickler for “kayfabe” reasonings when it comes to wrestling, but this year it just makes even more sense for Bayley and Iyo to be in the main event. Did one of the participants in the match win the Royal Rumble? Yes, there is. Is there a captivating story? Absolutely! On top of that, Bayley is the only member of the Four Horsewomen to not be in the main event of a WrestleMania and she deserves that accomplishment.

What can fans do?

The Cody situation has proven that if enough fans want something bad enough, there is a way to get it done. This is where my criticism is going to come out. Cody Rhodes, the son of Dusty Rhodes and the most popular babyface in all of wrestling, will be fine. There is absolutely no need for fans to make hashtags and have such an outcry for someone who has been pinned all of ONE TIME since re-joining WWE at WrestleMania 38.

Wrestling fans could rally behind the very real-life situation of Janel Grant (Justice for Janel Grant and other victims by the way), the treatment of minorities in wrestling, and the lack of awareness of how women are treated in wrestling. But even if we are to keep it to a “fun and light-hearted” reason to band together, there are better things to come together for than Cody Rhodes needs to main-event WrestleMania AGAIN. 

Talk about it

If wrestling fans were to pay half as much attention to the women’s division as they do a “battle of the Nepo-babies”, then maybe JUST MAYBE there would start to be some actual change in wrestling. No, I am not saying that Bayley and Iyo being in the main event of WrestleMania will completely change the foundation of professional wrestling, but it has to start somewhere. One of the biggest fan support hashtags happened years ago with #GiveDivasAChance.

This led to the women’s division in WWE having a revolution and the women’s roster began to get opportunities to show off what they could do in the ring. Fans have made an effort to place Cody Rhodes in the main event of WrestleMania at any cost, which includes the issuing of death threats to other wrestlers. Even if that includes Cody and Seth facing off against Rock and Roman in the main event night one and Cody and Roman can be in the main event night two. 

Spread the word

Show the same support and outcry for Bayley and Iyo. There is no reason and no excuse why they should not be in a main event match at WrestleMania 40. They are in a high-profile story, Bayley won the Royal Rumble, and if you are wondering about viewership, guess what? Over the past year, the women’s division has had the highest-rated segments and matches on wrestling television. The only “story” The Rock has “ruined” since coming back has been the one of Bayley and Iyo being in the main event at WrestleMania. So wrestling fans that are active on social media, I propose this, do the same thing you did with Cody (minus the trash behavior like death threats). Make your voices heard and spread the word with #BayleyVsIYOmainevent , #MainEventBayley , and help Bayley out by using  #ParamoreForMania .

The post Bayley and Iyo Sky should main event at WWE WrestleMania 40 appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Fan Perception

  Fans have been saying that for Cody to finish his story, he needs to beat Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 40. Cody needs to be in the main event of Wrestlemania 40 and the show needs to go off the air with him holding the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship above his head as the confetti rains down. Sure, that all sounds great, but that is not the story. The story doesn’t have to end at Wrestlemania, it does not have to end with Roman Reigns, and it does not have to happen in Philly. Everyone is concerned with the reintroduction of The Rock, Cody will not be able to face Roman at Wrestlemania 40 for the title. Fans feel that it will be Roman versus The Rock at Wrestlemania for the title. 

In the build-up to Wrestlemania 39, Sami Zayn faced Roman Reigns at Elimination Chamber. Before that match took place, Cody told Sami that regardless of who went to Wrestlemania as the champion, he would still face them for the title. If Sami had won the title at Elimination Chamber, Cody would still have gone on to face him for the title at Wrestlemania. If that match had taken place and Cody won, Cody would have finished his story because he would have won the WWE Title. This story has never been about Cody beating Roman. The story has always been about winning the WWE Title because his father never won it. 

Roman Chapter

Roman is the current champion, so Cody’s focus would be on him. If anyone else were to be champion, Cody would shift his focus to them. It is not a matter of “Cody has to beat Roman for the title,” it is “Cody has to beat anyone for the title.” Whether the champion is Jey Uso, Sami Zayn, or even Karrion Kross, Cody’s story “finishes” when he wins the WWE Championship. Even if Cody were to beat Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship, it would not be the ending to his story. It would be a cathartic moment for Cody, I’m sure, but it would not be finishing his story.

Dethroning Roman Reigns for the title is a completely different story. Anyone can dethrone Roman and become a new top star. There is a story within the Bloodline of who is the rightful Tribal Chief. Roman has a claim to being the Tribal Chief because he is the champion and “providing” for the rest of the family. Regardless of who Roman loses the championship to, he will still try to claim he is the Tribal Chief. Once Roman loses the WWE Championship, someone like Solo Sikoa or Jey Uso could challenge Roman to a match to determine the true Tribal Chief. No need for the WWE Championship to be involved, just members of the Anoa’i family battling it out for the spot at the head of the table.

What I Think

I think Cody losing at Wrestlemania 39 was the right call. The thing I would have changed would have been Cody challenging Roman and winning at either Summerslam or in a match at Madison Square Garden. Cody finishing his story at MSG would have been a full-circle moment for finishing the story. With the talks of Roman versus The Rock, that match could take place at the Elimination Chamber event and Roman could still win. This would make Roman an even larger-than-life persona so Cody beating him would increase Cody’s stock. But if The Rock beats Roman for the WWE Championship, Cody would still be able to finish his story against The Rock because it is about the title and not the wrestler. Cody will finish his story by becoming WWE Champion, who he will win it off of is irrelevant. 

The post Let’s talk “Cody’s Story” heading into WWE Wrestlemania 40 appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Last year’s was my first WarGames. It was one of the better PPVs/PLEs of 2022. Really glad it was on a Saturday.

Let’s all be thankful Ari Emanuel is keeping Vince’s greasy mitts away from creative.

I do have other thoughts I need to vent about.

The Judgment Day

Can they please take the Women’s title off Diet Chyna now? I can’t think of a meaningful thing she’s done with it since. Rhea Ripley being the real leader of the JD is all good, but by now that gold is only there to symbolize how dominant they are. 

Speaking of, are we gonna see an Evolution situation once Damian Priest cashes in? Perhaps Finn Balor or Ripley will get annoyed with Priest claiming the neo Big Gold belt, say he’s too big for his boots. Or Priest will kick Balor and McDonough out and feud with them.

The faction will need to go through an evolution soon unless they wanna risk going stale.

The Bloodline

A group that has all but run its course. 

Two of its members can actually say they’ve beaten John Cena one on one, but what’s left? Solo winning the U.S. title? Tag titles again? 

Perhaps they shouldn’t wait until Philly for the story to be finished, not if they’re aiming for Roman Reigns vs. The Rock. 

The next Royal Rumble is to be in a stadium. As good a place as any for Cody Rhodes to get the gold. Some of you would consider it blasphemous not to win it at WrestleMania, but I don’t. Cody can only spin his wheels so much before the time comes.

WarGames

Not a deal-breaker, but here’s my dream scenario.

Rey Mysterio does an Eddie Guerrero tribute on the 11/10 Smackdown, but Dirty Dom chooses that moment to push daddy’s buttons. Except he pushed the wrong one and Rey makes a statement. “Dominik, I’m joining Sami Zayn’s team in Chicago. This time you can’t run away like the scared boy you are!”

What could really happen is Drew McIntyre turns and takes up the Eradicator on her offer. This leaves Team Sami – since he’s “leading the charge” – looking for a fifth man. It could be John Cena because he’s good like that. Perhaps Rey if my scenario comes true. L.A. Knight since he needs the push. How ‘bout Kevin Owens?

Of course. I know who you’re all thinking of. It’s in Chicago. 

WWE has a LONG history of putting grudges to bed, and nine years is a long time to hold onto this one. Let’s say it is CM Punk. How long before the novelty wears off and the smart fans are back to groaning about him again? Will he be able to keep his ago in check for once?

Or what if the fifth man is Brock Lesnar? I know, but hear me. Team Sami alludes to a fifth man, and the JD doesn’t know until that countdown timer ticks to zero. “Here Comes the Pain” hits, and Balor, Priest, Dominik, McDonaugh, and their fifth standing there looking like they wanna run. 

“Cult of Personality” blaring in the Allstate Arena would send Chicago into a frenzy, but so would Lesnar. The thought of the Judgment Day getting the ever loving hell beaten out of them would clinch it for me.

There we go. Still a few weeks away. 

Don’t mess with the X.

The post The X-Factor: WarGames, and other things appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

As was stated in my previous article, Roman Reigns is rumored to hold the WWE Universal Championship until at least Wrestlemania. Roman is also rumored to be taking some time off after SummerSlam. Factor those two things together and it’s not feasible for Jey Uso to win the Championship at this time. Nor do I think Jey is actually ready to do so just yet. After SummerSlam without the title and with Roman gone, what will Jey do? That’s why the betrayal of Jimmy was a plausible theory in my mind. This feud would fill the gap during that time while giving some direction to both Jimmy and Jey while maybe Solo Sikoa struggles with whom to support. Jey and Jimmy have both stated their dream match would be to face each other at Wrestlemania and this will be a feud to determine who is the better man to take over for Roman Reigns as Tribal Chief. Their feud could culminate at Wrestlemania being the “rubber match”.

Paul Heyman made a statement on yesterday’s Smackdown and then Michael Cole reiterated, almost verbatim. I am quoting Michael Cole here: “there will be a declarative winner ruling no doubt left who will run the family, after tomorrow”. This is an ambiguous statement without stating the possibilities of either Roman or Jey. This could very well mean that the Rock returns after the match is over, possibly while they are presenting the Samoan Ula Fala to Roman. Rock can declare he is the true Tribal Chief and we have the Wrestlemania match setup between the Rock and Roman Reigns we were supposed to get last year.

Bloodline Civil War 2

These theoretical predictions would make a portion of Wrestlemania a Samoan Bloodline Civil War with Rock and Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship and true Tribal Chief (ending with Rock losing and officially “passing the torch” to Roman) and brother versus brother Jey Uso vs. Jimmy Uso to determine who is next in line to be the Tribal Chief.

Final Thoughts

Again, this is only a predictive theory, but what do you think? Do you agree? Disagree? Sound off in the comments below!

The post The Rock Returns to Claim Tribal Chief from Roman Reigns? appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

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