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Even though the status of WrestleMania 36 on April 5th in Tampa is still in limbo, the current storylines leading up to the show need to have certain outcomes at The Show of Shows. 'Mania has often been the end game of many angles in the past as one star conquers another while others put down their most fierce competitors.
Last year, Kofi Kingston and Seth Rollins slayed their respective dragons in Daniel Bryan and Brock Lesnar. The Beast is once again an obstacle although for a different challenger in Drew McIntyre. Some Champions just won their titles while others, like Bayley, have held on tightly to their belts for a lengthy reign.
A big part of WrestleMania is the potential to crown new Champs. Last year's show saw all but two titles change hands (SmackDown Tag Team titles and US Championship). This year could see a repeat of that result. There are some current title holders who should retain their titles at the Showcase of the Immortals but others that seem destined to fall.
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Here are three current Champions that should lose their titles at WrestleMania 36 and three Champs that should retain their belts in Tampa.
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#3 Retain title - Rhea Ripley
Once Ripley dethroned former Champion Shayna Baszler, she cemented her status as the face of the NXT women's division. She had previously started that journey by captaining NXT against both RAW and SmackDown as well as by leading a team against Baszler at WarGames.
Booking Charlotte Flair to win the Royal Rumble put the WWE in a corner due to Flair's numerous matches against Becky Lynch and Bayley over the last two years. They didn't want to run those feuds back again so instead they decided to have her do something historic by challenging Ripley.
Ripley is clearly a star of the future and someone that the company will build around. It will be her first match at WrestleMania as well as the first match ever featuring an NXT title at the Show of Shows.
The Nightmare must retain her title for many reasons. One is that she just won it recently. Losing it after one major defense would hurt her title reign. Another reason is that if a main roster star, even one with the standing of Flair, beats an NXT star, it hurts the yellow and black brand more than it helps it.
The third reason is that Flair doesn't need to win the title. As is the case with a lot of other stars (Reigns, Rollins, Cena, Lesnar), she doesn't need a title to maintain her top-dog status. It would be a mistake to take the title off of Ripley just to give it to Flair. Ripley has actually worked her way up over the last year to earn the top spot in NXT. It shouldn't be taken away by anyone just yet and not by Flair at any time.
#3 Lose belt - Goldberg
Goldberg winning the title from The Fiend was more about the next Champion rather than Goldberg himself. Folks backstage might have been worried about the reaction that the person who beat The Fiend would get and that fear was confirmed on SmackDown in Boston. The WWE Hall of Famer was met with a chorus of boos after taking the Universal Championship from Bray Wyatt.
The reason why the title was switched was never for Goldberg to have a lengthy reign. It was to get the belt off of The Fiend and onto Roman Reigns without Reigns suffering from boos. He would have been better received a little better than Goldberg had he been the one to dethrone the Fiend, but they did what they did and we are where we are.
Roman Reigns doesn't lose at The Show of Shows and this match won't be any different. The Big Dog has been slowly built back up to title challenger with his lengthy feud with King Corbin. The likely ending of the Universal Championship match was Reigns winning anyways so it probably won't change since the title holder changed. In order for SmackDown to move forward after 'Mania, Goldberg needs to fall to the Big Dog.
#2 Retain titles - the Miz and John Morrison
The duo of The Miz and John Morrison just won the SmackDown Tag Team titles at Super Showdown. They were then forced to defend them in the Elimination Chamber after other matches were teased for the women (Lacey Evans in a promo) and by Sheamus via promo.
The SmackDown Tag division is mainly comprised of face teams (New Day, The Usos, Lucha House Party, Heavy Machinery), the Champs and the pairing of Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode. There aren't a lot of other heel teams and we've seen plenty of runs atop the division by the New Day and The Usos. Regardless of their challengers, Miz and Morrison need to retain their titles if 'Mania goes down as planned.
They've displayed comedic charisma just like the New Day but also can back it up in the ring. With the potential of another face team joining the ranks in Daniel Bryan and Drew Gulak, it makes complete sense for the Champs to leave the Show of Shows with their belts. If a different team wins them then it would seem like
Creative didn't trust them atop the division. As The Miz has proven many times before, he can make feuds interesting when facing the right opponents. Morrison adds to The Miz's arrogance so well that it would almost be counterproductive to take the titles from them so soon.
#2 Lose belt - Bayley
Bayley won the SmackDown Women's Championship at Money in the Bank. She would go on to hold the title for 140 days before she lost it to Charlotte Flair once SmackDown moved to FOX. As has been the case with most of Flair's most recent title wins, she only held the belt for five days before the former Hugger recaptured the title on October 11th, 2019. She's held it ever since.
Throughout being featured as the top female star on the blue brand, Bayley has defeated Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Lacey Evans, Ember Moon, Carmella and Naomi. Outside of "heels" like her ally Sasha Banks, Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville, that's practically the entire active roster for SmackDown.
There have been rumors that the current Champ will defend her title in a multi-star match at the Show of Shows. That would mean that any one of her possible opponents could win the title without pinning Bayley. Her heel run has rejuvenated her career and the current character is a stark contrast from her former time as the ultimate babyface.
It's well past time for someone new to get a chance atop the women's division of Friday nights so Bayley needs to drop her title.
#1 Retain titles - Street Profits
Just like The Miz and John Morrison, the Street Profits recently won the titles. After a brief feud with Seth Rollins and his minions, they captured the belts in their "last chance ever." It's a little weird for that mantra to already be used. It wasn't specific regarding if it was the last chance at Rollins and Murphy or at the titles.
Regardless, Dawkins and Ford won the titles and sent the Monday Night Messiah back to the drawing board. The Championships have been mainly swapped between the Viking Raiders, Rollins and Murphy and now the Profits. It seems like AOP is likely in for a shot in the near future now that their compatriots lost the titles.
While that may be the case, it's too soon for the new fan favorite team to drop the titles. They need some more defenses to solidify the reign as legitimate. That would mean retaining the RAW Tag Team titles at 'Mania and possibly at least for the next two months. The tag titles are the ones to change hands the most in WWE but the Profits' current reign is just getting started.
#1 Lose belt - Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar always seems like he's walking into the Showcase of the Immortals as a Champion. He did so last year against Seth Rollins and again a few years ago against Roman Reigns. The one time in the last few years he wasn't was when he won the Universal Championship from Goldberg.
Creative might like to have some of its biggest stars walk into the big PPV as Champions. It recaptures the attention of casual fans who may have stopped watching the product. The fashion in which the Beast squashed Kofi Kingston in order to win the WWE Championship, however, didn't sit well with a lot of people.
After dispatching the likes of Cain Velasquez, Rey Mysterio and Ricochet, Lesnar faces perhaps the biggest threat to his reign in Drew McIntyre. The Scottish Psychopath not only eliminated The Beast from the Royal Rumble but he also won the whole thing.
In the weeks following the Rumble, both men have had their chance to get the upper hand. McIntyre, however, has slowly been built up as a main-event player and the man to dethrone Lesnar.
Since McIntyre is a full-time star and has been more than ready to run with the ball on RAW, it makes complete sense for the Beast to lose his title to McIntyre. We've seen the "Lesnar atop a brand" multiple times before over the last few years. The story is rarely different. This time, however, it needs to conclude with a Superstar winning his first-ever major title by beating The Beast.
