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2023 WrestleMania 39 Predictions: Will Cody Rhodes dethrone Roman Reigns?
All signs point to Roman Reigns’ historic run as champion coming to an end this weekend at WrestleMania 39 in Los Angeles.
Emanating from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood this Saturday and Sunday in front of over 100,000 fans each night, WrestleMania 39 will be one of the most-attended shows in WWE history.
I’ll be on the ground all weekend, interviewing Superstars before, during and after the event, but to hold you over on WrestleMania content until we get there, here are my predictions for the announced matches.
Austin Theory (c) vs. John Cena — United States Championship
Kicking off a "WWE Goes Hollywood" event with a legend who has crossed over into the mainstream as an actor was smart. Since this match is for the United States Championship, however, I can’t see a scenario in which John Cena wins.
The last year of Austin Theory’s career has been building to this moment, and a loss at WrestleMania to his idol would send him back to square one.
John Cena accepts Austin Theory's challenge to a huge WrestleMania matchup
Instead, my gut tells me Cena is coming back to put Theory over and hopefully launch his career to the next level.
PREDICTION: Theory retains via pinfall
Seth Rollins vs. Logan Paul
This feud has been a highlight of the road to WrestleMania.
The way these two played out their issues over social media, in press interviews and on WWE TV was a great use of all platforms.
I’ve also enjoyed seeing Logan lean into being a heel more throughout the program. His cocky attitude is much more on-brand.
Since Rollins has been playing the part of WWE defender against Paul, a part-time performer in the company, I think he has the edge here when it comes to winning. Plus, Logan has gotten the better of him twice in the buildup.
PREDICTION: Seth Rollins via pinfall
Trish Stratus, Lita and Becky Lynch vs. Damage CTRL
Damage CTRL has been a central part of the women’s division since arriving on the scene, but this doesn’t appear to be their moment.
The moment, instead, will seemingly belong to Becky Lynch, as she teams with two iconic legends that helped kickstart a revolution a decade before.
Over the weekend, Lynch also teased the idea of defending the Women’s Tag Team titles on Night 2 — and I doubt they’d do so after a loss — so that heavily swayed my judgement here.
PREDICTION: Trish Stratus, Lita and Becky Lynch via submission
Braun Strowman and Ricochet vs. The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford) vs. Alpha Academy (Chad Gable and Otis) vs. The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar)
There hasn’t been enough buildup here to form an educated guess on where this might go, but if I had to guess, I’d say Alpha Academy have the advantage.
They’ve been a key part of Raw since Triple H took over as head of creative, and they’re the only team currently involved in a storyline.
PREDICTION: Alpha Academy via pinfall
Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez vs. Natalya and Shotzi vs. Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler vs. Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green
Similarly, this program hasn’t given me a lot to go off of here, but the smart money is always on Ronda Rousey.
As I stated earlier, Becky Lynch has teased the idea of defending the tag belts on Night 2 – so I could a scenario where Ronda Rousey and Shayna win the four-way, then challenge Becky and Lita to an impromptu match.
Another face-off between Rousey and Lynch has been a long time coming, so hopefully we see it this weekend.
PREDICTION: Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler via submission
Brock Lesnar vs. Omos
Omos tosses Brock Lesnar over the ropes ahead of the WrestleMania showdown
This one should be a fun spectacle.
Brock Lesnar wrestling someone bigger than him will be a nice change from what we’re used to seeing with "The Beast." It’ll also be an impressive sight if he’s able to lift the 7-foot-3, 400-pound giant on his shoulders.
The ultimate outcome, though, is inevitable.
PREDICTION: Brock Lesnar via pinfall
Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio
The match between these two might be the most difficult for me to predict.
My wrestle-brain tells me Rey needs to get his comeuppance on Dom after having his son turn on the family, invade their holiday parties at home, disrespect the Mysterio legacy and ultimately goad him into a match against his wishes.
Rey Mysterio accepts Dom's WrestleMania challenge after he disrespects his mother
At the same time, however, I know that a win for Dom over Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania could solidify his heel character and set him up to continue being a villain with tons of heat for the next few years.
So, which is more important? Well, that’s been my struggle. But here’s where I ultimately landed…
PREDICTION: Dominik Mysterio via underhanded tactics/pinfall
Edge vs. Finn Balor — Hell in a Cell match
This is another difficult one.
Edge needs a big win in order to build toward one final run at the world title, but the tease of an appearance from "The Demon" has me hesitant to choose "The Rated-R Superstar" as the winner of the match.
If Triple H has creatively made a decision for Balor to start bringing the Demon character back at times, I doubt it’s to lose.
He was a big proponent of Balor’s Demon in NXT and understands the importance of making that version of Finn nearly unbeatable.
PREDICTION: Finn Balor (as The Demon) via pinfall
GUNTHER (c) vs. Sheamus vs. Drew McIntyre — Intercontinental Championship
These three are sure to put on the most hard-hitting match of the weekend and my gut tells me the triple threat element allows GUNTHER’s nearly 300-day reign to end without "The Ring General" taking a pinfall.
That would free him up to move into the world title scene without having been pinned, and also make for a big moment when one of his challengers wins.
PREDICTION: Sheamus via pinfall over Drew McIntyre – NEW CHAMP!
Bianca Belair (c) vs. Asuka — Raw Women’s Championship
As disappointing as the build may have been for this, I’m still looking forward to the match itself. These two always bring it.
Bianca seems to be the favorite, as there’s no reason to take the title off her at this point, especially when it’s unclear what this new version of Asuka is about.
My bold prediction is for what takes place after.
Before this program, Bianca was locked into a feud with Alexa Bliss who appeared poised to return to her old Dark Alexa character.
This was seemingly dropped though to allow Alexa time to appear as a contestant on "The Masked Singer." Now that her run on the show is over, I could see her making a grand return with Uncle Howdy at her side to resume where things left off.
PREDICTION: Bianca Belair via pinfall
The Usos (c) vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn – Undisputed Tag Team Championship
It’s still unconfirmed which night this will take place, but if it’s on Night 1, it’s the main event, regardless of position on the card.
The Sami Zayn/Bloodline story has been the best WWE storyline in years and fans are just as invested in this as they are the undisputed world title match.
Ending Night 1 with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn dethroning The Usos would make for a great lead into Night 2, as it would show the first signs of The Bloodline possibly losing their grip on WWE and feel like a big win for fans.
These are the moments WrestleMania is made for.
PREDICTION: Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn via pinfall – NEW CHAMPS!
Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Rhea Ripley — SmackDown Women’s Championship
This year’s WrestleMania feels like the start of a new beginning in WWE and Rhea Ripley appears poised to be a key part of that.
Triple H has been molding Ripley for success since she first stepped foot in the Performance Center and having her defeat the woman at the top of the mountain in WWE is the right way to get her there.
Especially considering the way their last match at WrestleMania played out and how he had expected it to help Rhea in the end.
Now that they have the chance to do it again, in front of a ridiculous amount of fans, I can’t see Charlotte getting the win this time. She’s had plenty of career moments at WrestleMania, but this one belongs to Ripley.
PREDICTION: Rhea Ripley via pinfall
Roman Reigns (c) vs. Cody Rhodes — Undisputed Universal Championship
For nearly two years, it felt like there was no Superstar in WWE who could believably defeat Roman Reigns. He was just too damn good on every level.
Then Cody Rhodes returned last year at WrestleMania and everything changed.
This wasn’t the same Rhodes that had grown up in front of WWE audiences and left to make something more of himself. This was "The American Nightmare," a man on a mission to finally claim the WWE Championship for his family legacy.
Even a major injury setback couldn’t derail the momentum he had, as his Royal Rumble return was just as electric as his return at WrestleMania 38.
Fans are ready to see what Cody can bring as champion. He’s got all the momentum and is ready to prove his worth at the top. It’s time to capitalize on this and let Rhodes finish his story on "The Grandest Stage of Them All."
Roman, on the other hand, has held the company on his back for nearly 1,000 days and deserve some time off. His legacy has been sealed.
Let him rest his body and come back in a few months to challenge Cody again at another big show like SummerSlam.
PREDICTION: Cody Rhodes via pinfall
Ryan Satin is a WWE analyst for FOX Sports. Satin previously appeared on FS1's "WWE Backstage" and founded Pro Wrestling Sheet, where he broke countless news stories as editor-in-chief. Follow him on Twitter @RyanSatin.
