5 bold WWE predictions for January 2018

It’s an exciting time to be a wrestling fan. Not only is WrestleMania season about to kick into gear but January 2018 promises to be one of the most newsworthy months that wrestling has had in a very long time.

The beginning of the month will see Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega battle in a dream encounter at NJPW’s Wrestle Kingdom 12 event on 4 January, and then it’s all eyes on WWE to see what they deliver on Raw’s 25th-anniversary episode and at the Royal Rumble.

Will the future of The Undertaker be any clearer by the time the month is over? Will we see any more title changes on Raw or SmackDown Live? How about some news on the Hall of Fame?

In this article, we make five bold predictions about what might happen in WWE during the first month of 2018.

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#5 Roman Reigns loses the Intercontinental title

Roman Reigns is currently feuding with Samoa Joe

Roman Reigns joined a select club of Grand Slam winners in WWE when he defeated The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship in the main event of Raw in November 2017.

As great a job as both of those men have done to elevate the title during their respective reigns, you have to imagine that “The Big Dog” will lose his championship in the not-too-distant future.

He is expected to challenge Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 34, which would make his IC title feel meaningless, while The Miz has just finished filming The Marine 6: Close Quarters and has made it clear on social media that he will target Reigns when he returns.

Whether “The A-Lister” wins the title for the eighth time or Reigns’ current rival, Samoa Joe, claims his first title since moving to the main roster, don’t be surprised if “The Guy” is no longer Intercontinental champion by the end of January 2018.

#4 Two SmackDown Live heel turns

Shane McMahon has been teasing a heel turn recently

WWE is seemingly on a mission to turn as many SmackDown Live Superstars heel as they possibly can before WrestleMania 34. It all started with Sami Zayn in October, then Mojo Rawley in November, and now three people look to be on the verge of switching from good to bad.

Shane McMahon and Randy Orton have long been rumoured to be turning heel, with Shane especially showing signs of that recently, while Tye Dillinger attacked fellow babyface Sin Cara before their match even started at a live event this week.

Of those three names, Shane O’Mac and Dillinger are likely to turn heel before Orton, who has already announced his participation in the 2018 Royal Rumble match and isn’t involved in a major storyline right now.

WWE has tested the waters with heel turns at live events in the past and not gone ahead with it in a storyline, but with Dillinger having no direction ever since his call-up to the main roster last April, you’d have to assume that “The Perfect 10” is going to be a bad guy on television before long.

#3 The Undertaker announces he will have one last match

The Undertaker is expected to make an announcement on Raw in January

Many fans thought they’d seen the last of The Undertaker following his defeat to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33. However, ever since he was advertised for Raw’s 25th-anniversary show on 22 January 2018, rumours persist about him having one final match.

Will his appearance on the milestone episode of WWE’s flagship show lead to his retirement, potentially with a Hall of Fame induction to follow? Or will he confirm that he will have his last match at WrestleMania 34?

While it might not be the boldest prediction, we reckon his appearance on Raw will set up the long-rumoured match with John Cena at April’s “Show of Shows” in New Orleans, bringing an end to ‘Taker’s iconic 27-year career. He could even face another returning star worthy of the marquee.

WrestleMania 34 will take place in the same arena where ‘The Streak’ was ended by Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania XXX, so it would be the perfect setting for “The Deadman” to lay his career to rest.

#2 Goldberg headlines the WWE Hall of Fame

Goldberg hasn't been seen in WWE since April 2017

Goldberg hasn’t officially retired as a WWE in-ring performer. In fact, his last words to fans the night after WrestleMania 33 were “never say never”, which hinted that he could one day lace up his boots again.

For many years, there seemed to be an unwritten rule in WWE that Superstars were only inducted into the Hall of Fame once they had retired from in-ring competition.

However, with Kurt Angle returning to the ring in 2017 following his HOF induction, it’s not impossible that the former Universal champion could be inducted and still have a few more matches in the future.

Bam Bam Bigelow, Ivory, the Dudley Boyz and Kid Rock are also rumoured to be heading into the Hall of Fame in 2018, but the star name – usually announced first by WWE in mid-January – would undoubtedly be Goldberg.

#1 The women’s match goes on last at the Royal Rumble

The first-ever women's Royal Rumble will take place in January

Admittedly, this is unlikely to happen, but these are bold predictions and it’s not entirely impossible that WWE could decide to have the first-ever women’s Royal Rumble match main-event the whole show on 28 January.

As great as the Women’s Evolution has been in WWE over the last 2-3 years, the company’s female Superstars have still only main-evented one pay-per-view in that time (Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks, Hell In A Cell 2016).

The women’s Rumble match will be the most-anticipated match of the night in Philadelphia and, unless WWE goes down the legends route again for the men’s Rumble match, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t go on last.

Many of WWE’s female performers say that their ultimate goal is to main-event WrestleMania one day. While that seems unlikely at this stage, it’s not out of the question that WWE could announce in advance that they will headline WWE’s second-biggest show of the year.