B/R Wrestling Staff Predictions for WWE WrestleMania 41 Match Card

It's that of year again when the men and women of WWE prepare for the biggest show on the calendar, WrestleMania.

This year's event with be the 41st 'Mania and will take place at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Continuing the trend from the last five years, the PLE will take place across two days.

As of Friday morning, 13 matches have been confirmed for the show, but one more for Randy Orton is expected to be added during SmackDown.

As always, our panel of contributors is here to offer predictions.

—Chris Mueller (CM) (@BR_Doctor)
—Graham Matthews (GM) (@WrestleRant)
—Donald Wood (DW) (@RingRustRadio) 
—Erik Beaston (EB) (@ErikBeaston)
—Jeff J (JJ)  (@JeffJSays)  

Here is the lineup as it currently stands for both nights of WrestleMania.

Saturday:

—War Raiders vs. New Day (World Tag Team Championships)
—Rey Mysterio vs. El Grande Americano
—Jade Cargill vs. Naomi
—LA Knight vs. Jacob Fatu (U.S. Championship)
—Tiffany Stratton vs. Charlotte Flair (WWE Women's Championship)
—Gunther vs. Jey Uso (World Heavyweight Championship)
—CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins

Sunday:

—Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez vs. Bayley and Lyra Valkyria (Women's Tag Team Championships)
—AJ Styles vs. Logan Paul
—Bron Breakker vs. Penta vs. Dominik Mysterio vs. Finn Balor (Intercontinental Championship)
—Damian Priest vs. Drew McIntyre (Street Fight)
—Iyo Sky vs. Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley (Women's World Championship)
—Cody Rhodes vs. John Cena (WWE Championship)

Who is most likely to leave with the title and why?

EB: Belair is undefeated at WrestleMania, undergoing a change in attitude and is potentially in store for a big heel turn. She is leaving with the title and a renewed singles run in WWE.

What would be the most entertaining way for this match to end? Who wins and how do they do it?

EB: The most entertaining would be for the company to recreate the Doink-Crush finish from 1993, but using Gable and El Grande Americano in the same ring at the same time. The heel wins and gets his "I told you so" moment, even if we knew all along that Gable and Americano are one in the same.

With Kevin Owens out of action, who would be the best opponent for Randy Orton at WrestleMania?

EB: Solo Sikoa. Bringing back Rusev or Aleister Black to lose would be a mistake right out of the gate. Nick Aldis' in-ring return should have more build and interest in it rather than being a last minute addiiton to the card.

Orton has history with The Bloodline so going one-on-one with Sikoa gets the heel on the roster and ensures Orton a momentum-building win, even if it is the least interesting option available.

What role do you see Heyman playing in the outcome of this match, who wins and who does he leave with at the end of the night?

GM: The heavy emphasis on where Heyman's allegiance lies between Reigns and Punk would seem to suggest that Rollins will find a way to win and potentially even leave with Heyman in his corner, especially with Heyman now owing Rollins a favor after what happened on the April 7 edition of Raw.

Rollins standing tall on Raw recently might indicate otherwise, but if Rollins is sticking around post-WrestleMania, he has more to gain from this win.

What would be the most satisfying outcome to this match? Does anyone turn on their partner? If so, who should it be?

GM: Bayley and Valkyria are the definition of a makeshift team and have no business winning the tag titles, though they do work well together as partners. Valkyria's focus should firmly be on the Women's Intercontinental Championship.

It's possible dissension between Bayley and Valkyria will lead to them having a rematch in the coming weeks, but regardless, Morgan and Rodriguez should retain.

Why must LA Knight win this match?

GM: Fatu can afford losing his first singles match at WrestleMania to a star of Knight's caliber. The ongoing tension between Fatu and Solo Sikoa doesn't need to involve the United States Championship, hence why it makes more sense for Knight to go over, retain the title and avoid getting lost in the Samoan shuffle.

Lay out how you see this match going. Who wins and how do they do it? Does anyone else get involved like Jimmy Uso or Ludwig Kaiser?

JJ: I can see Jey struggling early, going through similar beats to their previous matchups. Jey will stumble, make mistakes, and doubt himself until he's forced to face his fear and overcome Gunther's onslaught of power moves.

I can see him Yeeting up in this match, drawing strength from the fans. Jey will use a combination of crafty moves and Vintage Uso offense to seal the deal and finally beat Gunther.

Why is it important for Cargill to win this match?

JJ: I think its important for Jade to win because she benefits more from the retribution that Naomi does a victory. I love this heel version of Naomi and think she has a fascinating path to elevating this persona.

Jade needs payback for getting slammed on a car like a Looney Tunes character. Jade has established herself as a powerhouse who's vulnerable to attack. I think if she leans into the vulnerability, she can create another layer for her character work.

Naomi can do more post-loss than Jade, who would be pursuing revenge on Naomi incessantly. Plus, we can get more matches if this one impresses.

Who benefits the most from a win in this bout? Do you think they will win in the end?

JJ: This is one of the rare moments where I think both would benefit in some ways from a win. McIntyre exacts his twisted version of self-inflicted vengeance on Priest, thereby righting the wrongs of last year's mania.

Priest racks up another win on McIntyre and solidifies himself as a terror in the heavyweight division. I do think The Scottish Psychopath wins to setup a stipulation match at Backlash where he and The Archer of Infamy can end the feud, with McIntyre accomplishing what he couldn't against Punk.

There's so many interesting ways this feud can go, and neither way is a bad option.

Who do you see winning this match based on how WWE has built this feud? Why them?

DW: After making her triumphant return to WWE programming, Flair set her sights on Stratton and the WWE Women's Championship. While the build has been far from perfect, Stratton has been portrayed strong, leaving the door open for Flair to steal the show and the title.

Eventually, Stratton can return to the championship scene with a reinvigorated character and defeat Flair.

What are the pros and cons of Logan Paul beating AJ Styles at the biggest show of the year?

DW: While there is little doubt that Paul has performed better than expected, he can’t hold a candle to the career and respect earned by Styles in WWE. Paul will win, though, as he holds the mainstream notoriety that WWE adores.

Expect Styles and Paul to put on an awesome match, with the veteran carrying the workload, but Paul will earn the win and give the company the viral moments it desires.

Which of the three challengers has the best chance to win the IC title the most?

DW: Penta. After being a star at every previous stop in his career—including Mexico, Lucha Underground, Ring of Honor and AEW—the veteran has showcased his talents to audiences who adore him.

While Breakker retaining his title is likely, Penta deserves the victory the most and should be booked as a top star at WrestleMania.

Does John Cena win his 17th title at WrestleMania?

CM: With this being Cena's final year with the company, there are only so many chances left for him to make history and break Ric Flair's record of 16 world titles. It's not quite now or never, but it's close.

While there is an interesting story to be told with Cena losing, the way this has been built makes a title change make the most sense. This is the first time Cena has worked as a heel in almost two decades, so WWE needs to make the most of it.

This will be a fun match with a lot of near-falls, but with The Final Boss lurking in the background, the odds are stacked too heavily against The American Nightmare.

What team is most likely to win based on how this story is being told?

With Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods looking to rebuild themselves as heels after a few years without gold, this is the perfect time for them to regain the titles.

The War Raiders are a great tag team, but WWE hasn't made their reign feel special in any way. They almost feel like an afterthought going into their own title match, which is unfortunate.

The New Day will win the tag titles this weekend and celebrate without Big E for the first time, which is going to be heartbreaking for fans of the trio.

With Kevin Owens out of action, who would be the best opponent for Randy Orton at WrestleMania?

CM: This would be the perfect spot for a young guy like Carmelo Hayes to have a breakout performance against a lauded veteran.

The Miz could be at ringside to take an RKO or two while Hayes and The Viper put on a fun show in the ring. Other than Him, Andrade, Rey Fenix, Sheamus and Ludwig Kaiser would all make great candidate.

B/R Wrestling writers' predictions are represented by their initials:

—War Raiders vs. New Day (CM, GM, EB, DW, JJ)
—Mysterio (CM, EB, DW, JJ) vs. El Grande Americano (GM)
—Cargill (CM, EB, DW, JJ) vs. Naomi (GM)
—Knight (GM) vs. Fatu (CM, EB, DW, JJ)
—Stratton (JJ) vs. Flair (CM, GM, EB, DW)
—Gunther vs. Uso (CM, GM, EB, DW, JJ)
—Punk (CM, DW, JJ) vs. Reigns vs. Rollins (EB, GM)
—Morgan and Rodriguez (CM, GM, EB, DW, JJ) vs. Bayley and Valkyria
—Styles (CM, GM, JJ) vs. Paul (EB, DW)
—Breakker (EB) vs. Penta (DW, CM) vs. Mysterio (GM, JJ) vs. Balor
—Priest vs. McIntyre (CM, GM, EB, DW, JJ)
—Sky (JJ) vs. Belair (CM, GM, EB, DW) vs. Ripley
—Rhodes vs. Cena (CM, GM, EB, DW, JJ)