10 Early Wrestling Predictions For 2017

3. Brock Lesnar Will Face...

Eva Marie
WWE.com

...Finn Balor at WrestleMania 33. He will lose to him, too.

According to the venerable Dave Meltzer, Lesnar's opponent for the Show of Shows has been locked in for some time. Trying to identify the mystery man is a reasonably straightforward process of elimination.

His feuds with the Undertaker, John Cena, and Triple H are played out. Roman Reigns, too, has faced him twice already. As intent as WWE remain on pushing the man, irrespective of fan disillusionment, novelty usually trumps stubbornness at the Grandaddy of Them All.

Seth Rollins, too, has twice dated the Beast - and he looks nailed on to go toe to toe with Triple H in Orlando. There isn't much clamour for a Lesnar Vs. Randy Orton Pay Per View sequel - even less for another date with Dean Ambrose, given the turgid quality of their 'Mania 32 outing. A Kevin Owens face turn feels like miles away, even in this ADHD era. It's more probable that Owens will injure Jericho out of the storylines, to excuse his Fozzy duties, facilitating a WrestleMania battle between the former best buddies.

That leaves Balor, really, and the rocket strapped to his painted back suggests that WWE are sufficiently serious in their push of the Irishman to promote a match of this magnitude. They are completely enamoured with his entrance, and they're not going to waste it on just anybody in Orlando.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!