WrestleMania 35: What if Kofi Kingston really isn’t challenging Daniel Bryan?

#2 Daniel Bryan retains

Daniel Bryan may retain his title if he's paired with a new challenger.

If Kofi Kingston were to be denied his WrestleMania title opportunity, then there’s truly no one set up to take the tile off of Daniel Bryan. Moreover, there is no one—shy of a truly shocking and well-loved legend—who could be built into a credible new champion with just two weeks of TV left to go before WrestleMania.

And so it follows that Bryan would end up retaining the title at the biggest show of the year to further his reign. That choice has some merit. Bryan is performing exceptionally well in his role and WWE reportedly wants to protect him as a long term top heel. Moreover, Bryan holding onto the title fits with the broader story that WWE wants long title reigns to enhance the credibility of its top championships.

If Bryan is going to retain anyway, is it just as well for Kingston not to challenge for the title, and risk deflating the stadium crowd when he gets pinned? It’s a debatable point, though it would seem most fans want to see Kingston in this match, regardless of the outcome.