WrestleMania 41 Predictions: Will John Cena Make WWE History?

WWE will have what is, on paper, one of the biggest matches in modern history, but the build to WrestleMania 41 hasn’t made it feel like it.

When Paul “Triple H” Levesque took over creative control from Vince McMahon following the former chairman’s allegations and lawsuits against him, WWE’s public perception was overtly positive. However, there seems to be cracks in Levesque’s booking armor as evidenced by a lackluster build to the biggest show in the company’s yearly calendar.

John Cena turned heel for the first time in his career at “Elimination Chamber: Toronto” in what was a great angle. However, his follow-up promo was a generic “you people” promo, and the weeks of confrontations between Cena and Cody Rhodes didn’t feature or mention The Rock (and of course, Travis Scott). Cena’s offered a milquetoast reason for turning heel since the people he mentioned are either not watching WWE anymore or moved on to watching AEW. Rhodes was bloodied and beaten down, but didn’t show any fire whenever he went face-to-face with Cena.

Now, Rhodes and Cena have the ability to make this an in-ring spectacle. But it feels like there isn’t as much hype around this match as there should be.

Then you have the main event of Night 2. CM Punk, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins are main eventing because Punk used his favor to have Paul Heyman make it happen, right? No? Wait, his favor is just to have Heyman in his corner? And hold on a minute, Rollins wants a favor from Heyman, too? There’s just a lot going on that hardly anyone who doesn’t bleed WWE could care about.

Instead, Reigns and Punk made headlines this week by putting their foot in their mouths. At the top, WWE president Nick Khan was busy taking shots at AEW, and Levesque wants everyone to stop complaining about his bad booking. Woof.

Can WrestleMania 41 still be fun? Sure. There’s enough talent on the show to help deliver a fun experience, which will be needed since WWE didn’t do enough to get you excited about the 13 matches booked this weekend.

Who will win those matches? Well, NESN.com isn’t going to go through every match since those results, quite frankly, don’t really matter. We’ll go through the main events and the two women’s title matches and offer our takes on who wins.

WWE Women’s Championship: Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Charlotte Flair
Jason Ounpraseuth: Tiffany Stratton — It’s clear Charlotte is checked out at this point. She’s been through a lot in her personal life, and it seems like she’s looking for one last payday. She’s done so at the expense of Stratton, who seems miscast as a babyface champion. The Performance Center didn’t do her any good responding to Charlotte shooting at her in promos. Still, Charlotte has had great matches at WrestleMania, and if she’s up for it, she could carry Stratton to a good match. If not, let’s hope that the slopfest is funny.

Keagan Stiefel: Tiffany Stratton — It’s Tiffy Time! WWE has long had an affinity for Charlotte, but given the awkward promo segment between these two and the veteran’s knack for derailing the builds to her feuds, that might be ending. Stratton has everything you’d want out of a division headliner, so try not to cut her feet out from under her at her first WrestleMania.

Mike Cole: Tiffany Stratton — The build for this feud has been a little bit of an adventure, to put it kindly. They’re both heels, but they’re also kind of not? It’s confusing. I’m confused. As such, I really have no feel as to who might or should win, so that’s a good thing, I guess? Charlotte winning might cause a riot, so let’s just go with Stratton. I guess.

Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk (with Paul Heyman) vs. Seth Rollins
Jason: CM Punk — Reigns’ Vanity Fair feature grabbed headlines when it was revealed he voted for Donald Trump. Another noteworthy thing about the feature was that it seemed like a launching pad for an acting career, which probably means he’s taking another break after Mania. Rollins has always looked like a geek in big spots, so Punk it is, since WWE could treat this as a No. 1 contender match for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Keagan: CM Punk — I don’t know, man. It’s easy to decipher the story that will be told — Heyman will present a weapon in the middle of the ring between Punk and Reigns, we won’t know who he is trying to help and Rollins will take advantage. Is that how it ends, though? Punk should be closest to the title picture after WrestleMania, so we’ll take him to go over.

Mike: Seth Rollins — This is another one where there’s a really good feud you could have coming out of this that doesn’t involve the winner. I think we’d all love to see a Reigns-Punk feud, and Rollins could sure use a big win. Maybe he aligns with Heyman. Maybe he doesn’t. Regardless, I could see him having a full heel turn, winning the match and then challenging for the title while the other two build to something on their own.

Women’s World Championship: Iyo Sky (c) vs. Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley
Jason: Bianca Belair — WWE will tell you Sky is a big star, but it doesn’t often treat her as one. She’s been an afterthought in the build, and SHE’S THE CHAMPION. It’s a bad look to reward Ripley after being a crybaby to insert herself into this match. Belair should be a big star, but WWE doesn’t know how to book her properly. Maybe giving her the title will help.

Keagan: Bianca Belair — Belair has never lost at WrestleMania. Ripley is the biggest star in the women’s division. Sky has been presented like an afterthought, and that’s exactly why she should win. I just don’t like how many times they’ve already told that story, which has me thinking there’s some sort of twist coming our way on the night of this match. Belair probably wins to keep the streak alive.

Mike: Iyo Sky — Looking ahead, it feels like there’s money in a Ripley-Belair feud. And while that feud could be for the title, it doesn’t need one, either. Based on the build, it kind of feels almost over-the-top how much they’ve tried to minimize Sky, so her coming out on top here would bring that all together.

Undisputed WWE Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. John Cena
Jason: John Cena — Would not be surprised if The Rock played into the finish in some way. Even if he doesn’t, Cena has to win this, unless WWE wants to tell the story of how Cena can’t win world title No. 17 by taking shortcuts. He has to do it the “right way.” Belt up Cena and let him do the nostalgia tour over the summer.

Keagan: John Cena — Cena doesn’t need the title to have all these dream matches we’ve been talking about, but the motivation for him to keep going has been tied directly to it. Cena gets No. 17, while Rhodes’ feud with The Rock officially gets underway with some sort of outside involvement.

Mike: John Cena — It’s kind of cool that I have no clue how they’ll get there, but Cena winning his 17th world title at his final WrestleMania makes way too much sense. It also gives the company some options moving forward with a potential new chaser to elevate next to Cena, or Rhodes gets a shot in the arm by going back to chasing.

Bonus Predictions
Jason: Donald Trump will be at WrestleMania 41. It seems like WWE is trying to normalize this by inviting the likes of Tony Hinchcliffe and having wrestlers open up about politics. The United States president is no stranger to UFC events, he could make a stop to Las Vegas instead of focusing on more important things.

Mike: Randy Orton still has a match, and it’s against some returning wrestler who’s back for another full-time WWE run.