Elimination Chamber 2021: Ranking the build-up to every match

WWE's Elimination Chamber is set to take place this weekend in WWE's ThunderDome, as the road to WrestleMania is well underway. At the time of writing, there are five matches currently on the card, along with Roman Reigns' eventual title defense.

At this weekend's Elimination Chamber, fans are set to see two of the gimmick matches. The WWE Championship is being contested in the Elimination Chamber, and a number one contender for the WWE Universal Championship will also be decided within the structure. The winner will be facing Roman Reigns later on in the night.

Also, a Triple Threat Match for the WWE United States Championship is planned to take place, between current champion Bobby Lashley, Riddle, and former NXT Champion Keith Lee.

In the women's division, there are currently two matches on the card. Asuka is set to be putting the RAW Women's Championship on the line, and WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax will be defending their titles against Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair.

Here is the build-up to every match at WWE Elimination Chamber, ranked.

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#5 WWE Women's Tag Team Championship match at Elimination Chamber

The state of the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is more than a bit confusing right now. Two teams who have earned themselves a number one contendership will not be facing Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax for the championships as expected. Instead of seeing Lana and Naomi, or Dusty Classic winners Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzlez challenging the title holders, current SmackDown Women's Champion Sasha Banks and Royal Rumble winner Bianca Belair will be facing them at Elimination Chamber.

This match was made last-minute on the go-home show of SmackDown, during a "Ding Dong, Hello!" segment with Bayley. Instead of elevating the teams in the women's tag team division, the belts feel like they are currently being used to accelerate singles fueds. This match certainly feels like something that is there to ignite a rivalry between Sasha Banks and her potential WrestleMania challenger Bianca Belair.

#4 RAW Women's Championship match at Elimination Chamber

Like the build-up to the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship match at Elimination Chamber, the RAW Women's Championship match is one that has also felt like a bit of an afterthought. Despite Lacey Evans announcing her pregnancy on the go-home edition of RAW, and her announcement apparently being true, she is still listed on WWE.com as the opponent for Asuka this weekend at Elimination Chamber.

The RAW women's division is brimming with talent, so it seems strange that there has been no replacement announced yet to face Asuka. If the match is still even happening at Elimination Chamber. It is a shame that a division with a champion as talented as Asuka has been relegated like this - Asuka was one of the shining stars of WWE last summer in the Performance Center.

Hopefully, a surprise is in store for viewers of Elimination Chamber. Fans may see a shock replacement to step up and face Asuka for the RAW Women's Championship. The possibilities for this are endless. Multiple-time champion Charlotte Flair, who narrowly missed out on a title opportunity, may end up challenging Asuka. Or the much-anticpicated RAW debut of Royal Rumble standout Rhea Ripley could finally happen at Elimination Chamber.

#3 Triple Threat for the WWE United States Championship at Elimination Chamber

Over the past few weeks building up to Elimination Chamber, Bobby Lashley has been at war with Riddle. Lashley has been on a tear so far in 2021 and seems as though he is destined for something big as the year progresses. Which is a far cry from this time last year, when he was involved in the bizarre romance angle with Lana, Rusev, and Liv Morgan.

The rivalry between Bobby Lashley and Riddle has been intense, and it will be interesting to see the pay-off at Elimination Chamber. Former NXT Champion Keith Lee has also been involved, but not to the extent of the other two participants. This is mainly due to Lee being away from television sporadically over the past month or so.

It is still unknown whether Keith Lee will still be a part of the match for the United States Championship at Elimination Chamber this weekend. The three men are all great talents, with their own unique styles that could come to the forefront during the title match. This match is also one where the outcome is difficult to predict.

#2 WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match

In one of the two Elimination Chamber matches of the night, Drew McIntyre will be defending his WWE Championship against five former champions. It is still unclear who Drew McIntyre's WrestleMania opponent will be, as it appears that Edge will be closing in on Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship on the Grandest Stage Of Them All.

There have been a few developments on the way to Elimination Chamber. The Miz was originally set to be a part of the match, but later gave up his spot in the hopes of using his Money in the Bank contract on the eventual winner, after a grueling match. The Miz was then replaced by Kofi Kingston.

As well as this, Sheamus, who seems to be Drew McIntyre's biggest rival on RAW right now, won the gauntlet match to enter the Elimination Chamber last.

The build to this match has been the focal point of RAW following the Royal Rumble, and it will be a great set-up for the WWE Championship picture as WrestleMania draws closer.

#1 WWE Universal Championship number one contender match/ Universal Championship match at Elimination Chamber

Going into Elimination Chamber, Roman Reigns is still one of the most dominant characters on SmackDown. In the Elimination Chamber match to determine the number one contender for the Universal Championship, there are a handful of competitors who are going into the event with great momentum. Most notably Cesaro and Kevin Owens.

The involvement of Jey Uso in the match could also lead to conflict with Reigns and his competitors. Could the former Tag Team Champion be torn between his forced loyalty to Head of the Table Roman Reigns and his desire for a championship shot?

Managing to get himself out of defending the Universal Championship in the Elimination Chamber is a classic heel move from Roman Reigns. This leaves him likely to become victorious in his title defense later in the night. As unlikely as it is that Roman Reigns will lose the championship, the story that he is currently telling with Paul Heyman at his side is one of the most multi-faceted in WWE. It will be exciting to see how it unfolds at Elimination Chamber.