10 Big WWE Predictions For The Road To WrestleMania 33
7. Finn Bálor Doesn't Return... Yet
Though widely rumoured to appear in the 2017 Royal Rumble, Finn Bálor's in-ring return is still a while away. Bálor underwent a medical examination last week, but he still hasn’t been cleared to return, and it looks like those initial projections of a March/April recovery were accurate after all.
As fun as it is to paint situations like this as a work, there’s little chance of him returning on the 'Road to WrestleMania. WWE have become increasingly wary of bringing wrestlers back before they’re fully-healed in recent years, and will often take an extra month or two just to be safe (see: Seth Rollins). Thus, it’s extremely likely that they’ll hold-off Bálor’s long-awaited return until April, possibly on the first Raw after WrestleMania, which is typically one of the biggest weekly shows of the year.
Finn will likely hit the ground running when he comes back. He never truly lost the Universal Championship, and might still be champion today if not for his injury. There’s every chance his targets will be locked onto the belt, but the title should be all tied-up during WrestleMania season. There’s very little for him to do should he walk through the door ahead of time, and fans shouldn’t expect him to show up on Raw anytime soon.