WrestleMania 34: Why Asuka vs Charlotte should be the main event
WrestleMania 34 promises to be a wild affair with a packed card including headline-grabbing matches. As of now, 13 bouts have been officially announced without taking into account the rumored dream match between The Undertaker and John Cena.
With so many great main event caliber matches on the card the question arises, which bout should have the honors?
Multiple main event possibilities
As previously mentioned, WWE has got a lot of options when it comes to selecting this year’s main event. Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns is the likeliest one followed by the dream match between AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura
There are other matches that could potentially be the main event for this year’s Mania too such as the Kurt Angle and Ronda Rousey vs Triple H & Stephanie McMahon match or Charlotte taking on Asuka.
The matchup involving Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon as tag team partners with both eyeing revenge on Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn can be a far-fetched choice too!
Time for a change
For the past three years, WWE has had Roman Reigns main eventing the show of shows; he does not need another main event under his belt. And if WWE wish to avoid a fan backlash towards Roman they’d not let him main event this year.
Despite the build-up to his match with Brock being excellent it still doesn’t feel like a big clash due to the outcome being predictable.
Weighing the options
Let’s take a look at every single potential main event clash mentioned before and why it should or why it should not be the main event for this year’s WrestleMania:
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns: A premeditated affair
WWE has been building towards this match ever since last year’s WrestleMania and they’ve made tremendous efforts to make both the competitors look strong before their match.
That being said, Roman and Brock’s paths haven’t crossed in the past year and this feud lacks the intensity it should given the fact that WWE has been building towards it ever since their original showdown at WrestleMania 31.
The template to their match should be similar to the one between Brock and Goldberg from WrestleMania 33. A short high octane bout would be the best option and get the crowd fired up.
AJ Styles vs Shinsuke Nakamura: A half-cooked feud
Styles vs Nakamura is ‘The Dream Match’, a match that seemed impossible a couple of years ago inside a WWE ring. The build-up to this match has been underwhelming to say the least but it’s still gonna be an amazing encounter.
The only thing that can hamper the match is the pressure and expectations everyone has from it and being the main event is just gonna make things worse. It is the match we deserve but not necessarily as the showstopper because of the relative inability of the WWE to hype up the entire ordeal.
Kurt Angle and Ronda Rousey vs Triple H & Stephanie McMahon: A predictable ordeal
This one is a strange matchup as it is really hard to believe that Stephanie could possibly beat Ronda. And this match has been hurt by Ronda’s obvious deficiencies in the ring and on the microphone.
Triple H and Kurt Angle would have to carry the match which doesn’t sound promising as they are both entering the twilight of their illustrious careers.
The outcome of this match is predictable as there’s no way WWE will let one of their biggest ever acquisitions lose in her debut match against a non-wrestler.
All things point towards this being a disjointed and slow match and the involved parties do not require the added pressure of being in the main event spot.
Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon vs Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens: A fitness facade
Storyline-wise it would make sense for this match to be the main event since it is the same venue that hosted WrestleMania 30, which is fondly remembered as the night Daniel Bryan overcame The Authority.
But the doubts regarding Shane McMahon’s medical conditions and Daniel Bryan suffering from ring rust prevent a great match from happening.
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens have been excellent the past few months and deserve the spotlight but this feud lacks the big match feel and would be an underwhelming main event despite the raucous ovations Daniel Bryan might receive.
Asuka vs Charlotte: A clash involving the cream of the crop
This is [erhaps the only match that isn’t so predictable and also happens to be a heavyweight clash between two of the best female competitors in WWE currently.
Charlotte has been dominant in the main roster ever since her debut back in 2015 and Asuka is undefeated ever since signing with WWE. It seemed inevitable that their paths would collide but it wasn’t expected to happen so soon.
Given the monumental year this has been for the women’s division with the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble and the first ever Women’s Elimination Chamber match, now seems like the perfect time to pull the trigger on the first ever WrestleMania main event featuring women.
Asuka vs Charlotte already feels like a big match and if their brief encounter at the Mixed Match Challenge final is any indication, they would do justice to the main event spot.
Conclusion
Given how unremarkable the past two WrestleMania main events have been it would represent a monumental change in the landscape of WWE if these two were to be in the main event this year.
WWE will probably play it safe and go ahead with the rumored main event featuring Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, but it would be a nice surprise and a welcome move if they let Asuka and Charlotte close out WrestleMania 34.