Shayna Baszler dominates the other five women in the Elimination Chamber to make her WrestleMania 36 match against Becky Lynch for the Raw Women’s Championship 100% official
Baszler is a very Credible Opponent who seems at this point to have an excellent chance at taking the Championship from Lynch
It was smart of Mr. McMillion to stick with his original pick to face The Man at Mania in Shayna Baszler. I know he wasn’t crazy about the reaction she received from the WWE universe on the March 2 edition of Raw, but she ended up getting a solid reaction at Elimination Chamber, similar to the reaction that Samoa Joe consistently gets.
When you think about it, there was never much of an alternative anyway. The leading candidate to replace Shayna would’ve been Asuka. She faced Becky at Royal Rumble in January, and in my opinion, it feels kind of redundant to book a champion to face their will Royal Rumble opponent at WrestleMania.
The Miz & John Morrison retain their SmackDown Tag Team Championship in the Elimination Chamber, although Heavy Machinery is the Team that the WWE Universe was Clearly most Behind
It’s blatantly obvious WWE wants the storyline between Otis, Dolph Ziggler and Mandy Rose to play out as dramatically as possible. Otis and Tucker are quickly being turned into full-fledged superstars. They are being given plenty of time to show that they have the ability to go deep into a match and they are showcasing their passion for sports entertainment.
The momentum Heavy Machinery is building this year going into Mania is very reminiscent of the momentum that Kofi Kingston built with KofiMania. Heavy Machinery hasn’t had an 11-year journey in WWE, but they did last an extended amount of time in a gauntlet match which they did not win (just like Kofi last year). They were also heavily supported at Elimination Chamber.
At the end of the day, it was a smart decision to keep the titles on the champions Miz & Morrison (they just won them 10 days ago). The New Day and The Usos have so much credibility at this point that they don’t need titles to be taken as a serious threat. The New Day is getting very close to the WWE record of 10 tag team championships, which would obviously cement them as the greatest tag team in WWE history.
Aleister Black defeats AJ Styles with the Assistance of a Surprise Attack on AJ by The Undertaker
An appearance by The Deadman is always a welcome sight. This attack will serve as a build for the match in Tampa between Taker and Styles. AJ is so established that a loss here does nothing to discredit him. It makes perfect sense for him to put over a new star in Black. It also makes sense because Aleister is one of the several superstars that Paul Heyman has on his agenda to push very hard on Monday Night Raw in 2020. What better way to begin that push than with the biggest victory in Black’s career thus far?
I wonder if Mr. McMahon has considered including Black in The Undertaker match at WrestleMania 36. Now that I think about it, his vision might be to have The Undertaker pin AJ Styles this year and have a retirement match for Taker next year at WrestleMania 37 in Los Angeles in which he takes a loss to The Harbinger of Fury. Aleister Black presents that same type of aura, so why not put him in that role? WWE tried to do it a few years ago with Bray Wyatt and make him the new face of fear but the company decided against it.
Braun Strowman loses the Intercontinental Championship to Sami Zayn in a 3-on-1 Handicap Match
This was the only one of Mr. McMillion’s Elimination Chamber decisions that felt out of place. He must see some sign of immaturity from Strowman behind the scenes that makes him hesitant to put a major title on him and make The Monster a face of the company. Strowman would be the man otherwise. His unique combination of size, speed, power, agility, and charisma are everything Vince McMahon typically look for in a sports entertainer.
Instead, he loses his first singles championship (which it took him 4 ½ years to win) roughly 6 weeks after he won the strap.
It might be safe to assume that Zayn’s shoulders are feeling healthier, considering that’s why he has been in a managerial role rather than a wrestling role for the last several months: good timing because it is just in time for Mania.
The Street Profits retained the Raw Tag Team Championship against Seth Rollins and Murphy
Good call here to keep the titles on The Street Profits. They have a deep connection with the WWE universe, and Rollins and Murphy at this point feel like old news when it comes to tag teams on Raw. Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins feel fresh.
Of course, some steps toward WrestleMania 36 were also taken. Kevin Owens showed up during the match and gave Rollins a stunner, which will set up a Mania clash between the two men and made Seth and Murphy lose their titles. The Viking Raiders also attacked The AOP, which will likely lead to a match between the two teams on the WrestleMania 36 kickoff show. This should be a fantastic encounter even though it won’t get a whole lot of attention.
Daniel Bryan defeats Drew Gulak
It sort of feels like Daniel Bryan put over Gulak despite beating him; for Gulak, merely sharing the ring with a superstar the caliber of Bryan (whom his style virtually mirrors) puts him on a significantly higher level in the eyes of the WWE universe. Perhaps this will be a step towards getting Drew out of a comedy role in which all he does is make PowerPoint presentations and where he could be taken as an actual threat.
Andrade has lost a little steam since returning from his suspension. It was the right decision to book him to retain his United States Championship against Humberto Carillo because Carillo is so early in his WWE run that he doesn’t have quite enough momentum yet to carry a title. However, Andrade may need to drop the title at WrestleMania so he can pivot and start fresh. There’s no doubt that the future is prosperous for Andrade, and those prosperous days may begin sooner rather than later.
WWE focused more on building toward the future with the Elimination Chamber Pay-Per-View as the company often does. It was refreshing to see, because the company focused on nostalgia acts in Saudi Arabia last month – namely Bill Goldberg.