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Wrestlemania Shaping Up to be a Good Show on Raw’s End

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Last night’s WWE Elimination Chamber was a predictable, but fun show that saw Raw’s Wrestlemania plans taking shape. While the match outcomes and predictions have come true, that doesn’t mean the Raw side of Wrestlemania is any less exciting.

For starters, Roman Reigns won the men’s elimination chamber match to challenge Brock Lesnar for the WWE Universal Championship at Wrestlemania.

Fans have known the plan of Reigns-Lesnar II for quite some time. It wasn’t a surprise to see Reigns win, however after a dominant performance by Braun Strowman – where he eliminated all but Reigns – the Big Dawg’s victory was underwhelming to some fans.

However, their match at Wrestlemania 31 was brutal and physical – up until Seth Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase – and this year’s Wrestlemania bout will be just as physical.

Alexa Bliss retained the Raw Women’s Championship to seemingly solidify her spot on the card. I write seemingly because it is unclear if 2018 Women’s Royal Rumble winner Asuka will challenge her at the Showcase of the Immortals.

If the Empress decides to challenge Charlotte Flair for the Smackdown Women’s title, it will have Bliss without a challenger for the event.

There is speculation that Bliss will face Nia Jax for the title while Asuka will face Charlotte. Had Jax defeated Asuka at Elimination Chamber, she would have earned a spot at Wrestlemania. There is still a chance Jax could win a match of some sort where the stipulation is a Raw Women’s title shot.

Then there’s the 900 pound gorilla that is Ronda Rousey’s Wrestlemania debut. The former UFC women’s bantamweight champion signed her WWE contract at Elimination Chamber. During the segment, she tossed Triple H through a table and was slapped by Stephanie McMahon. Prior to being Rousey’s throwing dummy, Triple H said Rousey would have a match at Wrestlemania, but it would not be for either the Raw or Smackdown women’s titles.

The segment set up what will probably be a mixed tag team match between Triple H and McMahon against Rousey and a partner of her choice. Potential partners for Rousey include Raw General Manager Kurt Angle, WWE Legend The Rock and former world champion Seth Rollins.

There are a few other Wrestlemania bouts in the works. Intercontinental Champion The Miz will potentially face Strowman. The seeds for the feud were planted when they teamed together for WWE’s TLC event. Things have escalated in the last couple of weeks after Strowman eliminated Miz in both the gauntlet match on the Feb. 19 episode of Raw and the Elimination Chamber.

John Cena doesn’t have his Wrestlemania match at the moment, but there’s a chance he could face The Undertaker or Finn Balor.

There is also the finals of the 205 Live WWE Cruiserweight championship tournament. While 205 Live is a seperate show, the cruiserweight division is exclusive to Raw.

Wrestlemania is a month away and Raw’s creative staff have more than enough time to give good build up to all of these matches.

As for Smackdown Live, only one match is confirmed so far – Shinsuke Nakamura challenging for the WWE title. Whether he faces current champion A.J. Styles or one of the other four men challenging the Phenomenal One at Fastlane – Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Dolph Ziggler or Baron Corbin – remains to be seen.

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Former WWE Star Lanny Poffo Dies at 68

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Lanny Poffo

Former WWE star Lanny ‘The Genius’ Poffo has reportedly died at the age of 68, according to his close friend “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, although no cause of death has been given at the time of this writing.

Poffo made his in-ring debut with the All-South Wrestling Alliance back in 1974, and also wrestled for a number of promotions such as the National Wrestling Alliance where he won a tag-team title with his father, Angelo.

Poffo debuted for WWE back in 1985 where he would be known as “Leaping Lanny Poffo” and “The Genius.”

Poffo would return to WWE back in 2015 to induct his brother, ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage, into the WWE Hall of Fame in a touching induction ceremony ahead of WrestleMania 31.

“With a very, very heavy heart, I’ve been asked to let everyone know about the passing of our friend and colleague Lanny Poffo, The Genius,” Duggan said on Twitter.

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Braun Strowman Talks Brock Lesnar Shooting On Him at Royal Rumble

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WWE superstar Braun Strowman has had a number of memorable moments during his career at WWE, but none are quite like the 2018 Royal Rumble where Brock Lesnar got upset with Strowman for catching him with a knee.

Lesnar didn’t take to kindly and immediately hit Strowman with a flurry of legitimate punches, including a right hand to his jaw.

“Shit got real” Strowman said, during an interview with BT Sport.

“I mean, at the end of the day it’s two scary guys, two dominant males, not wanting to give an inch to either one, and we took it from each other. Things happen. We’re not playing, we’re not ballet, we’re not badminton. We’re physical. He’s [Lesnar] 300lbs, of just unadulterated animalistic beast and I’m a 385lbs monster. Things happen. At the end of the day, we made one hell of a segment, that’s what really happened.”

“I pat myself on the back. I think I’m the only person in history to take an overhand right from Brock Lesnar and not get knocked out. Anytime you get in the ring with “The Beast” and mix it up, the bigger the challenge the better. If you’re not wrestling the best, then who’d you beat?”

 

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Ex-NJPW Star Karl Fredericks Signs with WWE

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NXT 2.0

Former New Japan Pro Wrestling star Karl Fredericks has officially signed with WWE following the conclusion of his four-year tenure with NJPW. Fredericks announced on social media back in summer 2022 that he would not re-sign with NJPW.

Fredericks was initially linked to WWE last September, when he was reportedly spotted at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida.

According to PW Insider, Fredericks has officially signed with WWE and will be a part of the NXT brand initially.

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