Now that we've had time to process everything we saw over two nights at WrestleMania 36, our thoughts turn toward the future. We're all hoping that by this time next year, the biggest wrestling event of the year will return to normalcy with legions of WWE fans descending on the Los Angeles area for WrestleMania 37.
So what could that show look like? Our contributors each took a stab at how one major match or aspect of the annual showcase could turn out.
Ronda Rousey vs. "The Man" finally happens -- with McGregor in Lynch's corner
Do you really think WWE would bring WrestleMania to Los Angeles and not have hometown girl Ronda Rousey on the card?
Chief brand officer Stephanie McMahon said at a recent news conference that it's not a matter of if Rousey returns, but when. What better time than what is fixing to be an enormous WrestleMania under the bright lights of Hollywood?
The story will be a pretty easy one to tell. Rousey has unfinished business with Becky Lynch, who pinned Rousey to win both WWE women's titles at WrestleMania 35. Lynch still holds the Raw women's title today. Let's say she loses it at some point in 2020 and then gets it back. Rousey returns at the 2021 Royal Rumble in January, wins that match and challenges Lynch for the belt at Mania. It would be a huge match with a long backstory -- and likely one of the main events of the night.
Rousey is one of the most popular female combat sports athletes of all time. Lynch has transcended what it means to be a WWE women's champion. It's hard to believe the two have still not had a singles match against each other. In preparation for the battle, Lynch will return home to Ireland to get some MMA training in at Straight Blast Gym under coach John Kavanagh. And she'll bring someone special back to LA with her to be in her corner: "The Notorious" Conor McGregor.
How's that for a WrestleMania moment? -- Marc Raimondi
The Undertaker will face "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt in a cinematic match
We've seen pre-taped, cinematic matches in WWE before, from WrestleMania 12's Hollywood Backlot Brawl to Matt Hardy's Ultimate Deletion, to the not-so-well-received House of Horrors match between Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt, but this year's WrestleMania saw the medium taken to a whole new level.
Night 1 saw The Undertaker take on AJ Styles in a Boneyard match that felt more like a revenge flick than wrestling contest. The Undertaker hasn't felt so threatening and legitimate in years. Night 2 saw "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt face John Cena in a Firefly Funhouse match. The segment was easily the highlight of WrestleMania weekend as Wyatt flaunted his creative genius in a psychedelic dream sequence that saw Cena begin at his "Ruthless Aggression" days and end as a member of the nWo.
The success of both pre-taped segments makes a matchup between 'Taker and Wyatt at WrestleMania 37 a no-brainer. The Undertaker at 56 years old in 2021 wouldn't be capable of making an in-ring match with Wyatt interesting, even with the enormity of both of their characters. But a cinematic sequence taped weeks, if not months, in advance would be, as "Mr McBossman" would say, "such good s---!" -- Michael Wonsover
John Cena will win his 17th world championship, surpassing Ric Flair for most all time
Despite the obvious spotlight on the future coming out of WrestleMania 36 as both Drew McIntyre and Braun Strowman now hold the top men's titles, we likely haven't seen the last of Cena. At next year's WrestleMania, Cena will have his ultimate career moment and surpass the great Ric Flair in total world title reigns.
Should that happen, the stage would have to be massive and there's no grander stage than WrestleMania. But why this WrestleMania, you ask? While Cena hasn't shown signs of slowing down, performance-wise, he is certainly toward the back end of his in-ring career. A world title win at WrestleMania 37 would bring his career full circle. The show is dubbed 'WrestleMania Hollywood'. The last time WrestleMania "went Hollywood" was in 2005 at WrestleMania 21. At that event, Cena won his first world championship from JBL.
There are some who would argue that out of respect for Flair, the possibility exists that Cena would sit at 16 reigns for the rest of his career. Doing that, however, would prevent us from seeing what could potentially be one of the greatest WrestleMania moments of all time. Records are meant to be broken, right? -- Sean Coyle
Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair get the "cinematic match" treatment
It doesn't matter if you're sick of it: "The Man" vs. "The Queen" remains perhaps the easiest money feud in the WWE. Frankly, by the time WrestleMania 37 arrives, there might be enough downtime in this rivalry to refresh it before a proper build. And what's the payoff from that build? Giving the WWE's two most iconic women in wrestling the "cinematic match" treatment.
Obviously there's nothing super-spooky about these two, which means we're not going to see them fight in a "boneyard" or pin each other in a Halloween mask. That's a good thing!
These cinematic matches need variety. By putting Flair in her natural role as antagonist, and theming the match to "The Queen" aesthetic, you could set it up so that maybe Lynch has to fight through a bunch of hired henchwomen to get to Charlotte Flair, "The Raid" style. Or, better yet, take the best part of the Cena vs. Wyatt match -- the unflinching deconstruction of Cena's career and character -- and apply that torment to Lynch.
There are a lot of possibilities here, and they all come back to two basic things: Charlotte and Becky still have a feud worth rekindling, and they've already shown an ability to work magic together. -- Greg Wyshynski
CM Punk will be in the main event
Nothing is forever when it comes to the WWE. Bret Hart hugged Shawn Michaels. Diesel, Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair and countless others left the company with a bad taste in their mouths, but came back. Heck, Eric Bischoff worked for Vince McMahon.
Don't rule out that CM Punk and WWE can come to an agreement that includes the one thing that eluded him in his entire WWE career: a WrestleMania main event.
With the potential that any year could mean several big-name talents, including The Undertaker, John Cena and even Brock Lesnar realistically working their final WrestleMania, WWE will be looking for a top-money draw to headline WrestleMania. Enter CM Punk, who became a bigger name with how he exited WWE and his lackluster UFC run, not to mention his critical tongue.
Paint this return with the same basic setup as the Edge return. A shocking Royal Rumble entrant, with a storyline born at the event. I could see a win, and then a matchup with a former Shield member that he helped bring to the limelight, whether that be Seth Rollins or Roman Reigns.
Unlikely? Maybe a little, but a heck of a lot less unlikely than it was just one year ago. -- Matt Willis
Drew McIntyre will still be champion
Not surprisingly, the results from WrestleMania 36 shook up the landscape of the WWE. Four titles changed hands, not including the 24/7 championship, which switched twice and ended up on Rob Gronkowski as it continued its whirlwind run through the roster.
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross, Charlotte Flair, Braun Strowman and Drew McIntyre all walked away with new gold. But in a year's time, only the last of that group will still be holding his respective belt. McIntyre is a generational star. He's a five-tool player who can walk the heel or face rope with equal aplomb. If you saw his emotional "Chronicle" documentary on the WWE Network, you'd gain that much more appreciation for a performer who "tasted the bitter taste of disappointment" more than once to get where he is today.
His journey is inspiring. It's safe to say the majority of today's performers have had their share of travails, but McIntyre was born to be a star. You can feel it when he walks to the ring. Unlike Strowman, who feels very much like a transitional champ who is more caricature than character, McIntyre is going to be one of two or three names who will carry the WWE on their backs for the foreseeable future.
I couldn't tell you with any degree of certainty whom McIntyre will face in 2021, but he made his breakthrough Sunday night. Next year, he'll Claymore Kick the stuffing out of some unlucky opponent in front of tens of thousands of fans and have a genuine WrestleMania moment. -- Matt Wilansky
Wrestlemania will happen in front of 200,000 people
OK, not actually that many, but with so many of these predictions taking the cinematic angle (and rightfully so, as that should be a staple in the WWE presentation arsenal from now on), I'll take a different approach. Here is my hopeful, optimistic outlook on WrestleMania 37:
It's March 28, 2021. The world is back to normal, social distancing is distantly behind us. But the memory of a WrestleMania almost one year ago presented under the most unique of circumstances is still fresh in our minds. The WWE fan base craves a WrestleMania experience like the one they look forward to every year.
The storylines and matches are intriguing, and fans are flocking to Los Angeles in droves with a voracious appetite. This kind of event and circumstance would have even sold out the LA Coliseum in 1991, but SoFi is more than adequate to handle the rabid WWE Universe. Pack the stadium with extra seats, as you're going to need it -- this will be one of the biggest WrestleMania parties of all time. It might even last a month, rather than just a week.
At least that's the hope. After all of this, I hope WWE fans get two years' worth of a WrestleMania week experience next year. -- Arda Ocal
Keith Lee will win the 2021 men's Royal Rumble and challenge for a world title
Fans got a healthy dose of Keith Lee in late 2019 and early 2020. He showed out in a big way on NXT TV, eventually becoming the North American champion. Lee was one of the NXT stars showcased on Raw and SmackDown in the lead-up to Survivor Series, and he made it to the final two in the men's match.
And though his time in the 2020 Royal Rumble match was brief, he went nose-to-nose with Brock Lesnar and didn't look a hair out of place under the brightest lights WWE has to offer. He was robbed of a WrestleMania weekend NXT TakeOver showcase, but the rest of 2020 in NXT should be a Keith Lee-heavy show.
It's hard to say who will be the world champions nine or 10 months from now, but it would be foolish to dismiss the possibility of Lesnar regaining that spot at some point. Building off their brief exchange in the 2020 men's Royal Rumble match would be very smart, and an opportunity to position Lee as an elite big man and a major player going forward. -- Tim Fiorvanti
Adam Cole challenges Brock Lesnar for the WWE championship
That's right, Bay Bay! Adam Cole has proven to be one of the hottest commodities in professional wrestling. And Brock Lesnar? Nobody is going to hold him back from getting another push and a showcase match in the biggest event of the year.
So how do we get there? Well, McIntyre, whose title reign struggles because of the challenges due to the pandemic and no fault of his own, gives up the title to Brock at Survivor Series when he makes his return. The match will be a much more drawn-out bout than the finisher fest we saw at WrestleMania 36, which still provides McIntyre with a tremendous showcase.
Cole, who has since split with the Undisputed Era, earns the title shot at the 2021 Royal Rumble, and just like that we have a match. Selling Cole won't be hard as he remains a fan-favorite heel, and that momentum will keep the bout from feeling like another version of what we saw this year. -- Andrew Feldman