Road to WWE Wrestlemania 34: Week 5
This week on the Road to Wrestlemania reality set in on the mic and on potential history that could be made within the coming weeks. I thought this week took on a more serious tone and it finally felt like WWE was really starting to build towards Wrestlemania. Before I begin with the my thoughts for the week here are the results on this week’s Road to Wrestlemania:
Monday Night Raw
Asuka/Bayley/Sasha Banks defeated Alexa Bliss/Mickie James/Nia Jax
Seth Rollins defeated The Miz
Finn Balor defeated The Miz
The Bar defeated Titus Worldwide
Braun Strowman defeated Elias
WWE Smackdown Live
Baron Corbin defeated Sami Zayn
Ruby Riott defeated Naomi
Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Aiden English
John Cena defeated AJ Styles
205 Live
Cedric Alexander defeated TJP to advance in the Cruiserweight Title Tournament
Roderick Strong defeated Kalisto to advance in the Cruiserweight Title Tournament (Match of the Week)
NXT
Velveteen Dream defeated Tyler Bate
Adam Cole defeated Cezar Bononi
Shayna Baszler defeated Kairi Sane
The biggest news coming out of all WWE this week is what to place on Raw. Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns were suppose to come face to face in preparation for their match at Wrestlemania. The one problem is that Lesnar did not show up. Reigns ended up cutting the promo of his life and laid the harsh truths that regard Lesnar being in the WWE. There has been much debate whether this was scripted or not. Whatever you think about it the one thing that is for sure is Roman’s words were very true. One thing that is also real is the Ronda Rousey is now in the WWE and she is already fighting The Authority. I thought Rousey looked much better on Raw then she did at the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber. She looked more intimidating and kept her words short and sweet. I think this feud involving Angle, Triple H and Steph is going to put her in such a great spot going forward. My personal interest on the Road to Wrestlemania is Cesaro and Sheamus and who could be facing them in five weeks time. I feel like these guys deserve a huge Wrestlemania moment for being an awesome tag team. I personally would love to see them in a Triple Threat Match against The Revival and The Good Brothers.
In WWE, John Cena goes where he wants and does what he wants. This was obvious by his actions Monday Night Raw and Smackdown Live. On Monday, Cena teased a huge monumental match against The Undertaker and then let everyone down by saying it wasn’t going to happen. He then said his Road to Wrestlemania would head over to Smackdown and make something happen. Well he made something happened by defeating AJ Styles to get a spot in the WWE Title match at FastLane. Speaking of the WWE Title and Main Event scene on Smackdown, Lana has sparked some controversy with a few tweets she sent out. She basically said that Rusev should be in the Main Event of Wrestlemania and not Reigns, Styles or Nakamura. To Lana’s credit she has proof of that claim considering Rusev is neck and neck in merchandise sells with Elias on WWE Shop. I feel both Rusev and Elias should have a major part in Wrestlemania considering how over they are with the WWE Universe. Speaking of Nakamura, it was good to see him back in the ring this week after not competing since the Royal Rumble. As of right now he does not have a match on Fastlane which is kind of pathetic considering he is suppose be a big part of Wrestlemania.
One thing that I hope is a big part of Wrestlemania is the Cruiserweight Championship Tournament Final. Roderick Strong has been having some epic matches and this week was no different. He and Kalisto tore the house down, which was hard to do after a great match between Cedric Alexander and TJP. The booking for 205 Live has been so much better but there is still one problem. Fans are still leaving once Smackdown is over and that’s not a good look for the show. I think WWE needs to open the doors at 6:15 and have 205 Live an hour before Smackdown. It would look better to viewers and potential advertisers to have people coming in rather then heading out during the show. WWE closed out the week with NXT and we finally got some indication of what might happen at Takeover: New Orleans. Shayna Baszler dominated Kairi Sane, which makes me believe that she will be challenging Ember Moon once again. The show concluded with Andrade “Cien” Almas bragging about forcing Johnny Gargano out of NXT. Before Almas could leave the arena, Aliester Black and Killian Dain came to the ring to square off as Almas watched. I have a gut feeling that Black and Dain will be squaring off for the right to face Almas for the NXT Championship at Takeover: New Orleans. The intensity for Wrestlemania is starting to heat up and it’s only going to get hotter with FastLane next Sunday. We are rapidly approaching Wrestlemania so buckle up and enjoy the ride. Until next week, remember Controversy Doesn’t Come Without Criticism!
