WWE Elimination Chamber 2023 Preview
WWE Elimination Chamber is set to take place this Saturday, February 18, emanating from the Belle Center in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Historically, this premium live event is important in terms of building to WrestleMania. The event feels even more special this year, given the main event between Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns and hometown favorite Sami Zayn.
There's been a lot of speculation around Zayn's rise to main event level status and whether this will impact the WrestleMania main event, with Reigns defending the title against 2023 men's Royal Rumble winner, Cody Rhodes.
As usual, the following article previews what promises to be an exciting and newsworthy show, along with predictions for each match. Starting Monday, the WrestleMania event will really start to take shape.
1. Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match
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In the main event, Sami Zayn challenges Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. As seen on the latest episode of SmackDown, Zayn is wildly popular with his hometown crowd, and given that the plan seems to be Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania, it will be interesting to see how the creative team books the finish to this match in a way that sends the fans home happy.
The likely outcome will have something to do with Jey Uso, who hasn't pledged allegiance to either competitor since the Royal Rumble. It is probable that he will ultimately side with his family and cost Zayn the title.
In doing so and in a way to make it up to the Montreal crowd, expect another hometown favorite, Kevin Owens, to emerge and reunite with his former friend. This will set up Owens and Zayn challenging the Usos for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania.
Prediction: Roman Reigns will retain the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
2. Men's Elimination Chamber match
The men's Elimination Chamber match to decide the United States Championship will feature the current champion, Austin Theory, along with Seth Rollins, Johnny Gargano, Bronson Reed, Damian Priest, and Montez Ford.
This should be an exciting match with a good opportunity for all participants to be featured prominently. Expect Theory to retain the title, as it looks like he will defend the title at WrestleMania against former champion and future WWE Hall of Famer, John Cena.
Prediction: Austin Theory will retain the WWE United States Championship
3. Women's Elimination Chamber match
The women's Elimination Chamber match will feature Carmella, Nikki Cross, Raquel Rodriguez, Asuka, Natalya, and Liv Morgan. The winner will challenge WWE Raw Women's Champion Bianca Belair at WrestleMania.
Of the six competitors, the only two that have a chance of winning are Asuka and Rodriguez. And of those two, The Empress of Tomorrow is the likely winner, given that she has recently returned from a long layoff.
The former NXT Women's Champion has repackaged herself with her KANA character, which she used during her time in Japan. Asuka doesn't have a long history with Belair, making for a fresh WrestleMania matchup.
Prediction: Asuka will win the Women's Elimination Chamber match.
4. Mixed Tag Team Match
The feud between Edge, Beth Phoenix, and Judgment Day has been going on for almost a year. This match likely won't end the feud, as it is rumored that Edge will face Finn Balor in a Hell in a Cell match at WrestleMania.
As Rhea Ripley's stock is on the rise in WWE, with her challenging Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women's Championship at WrestleMania, fans can expect her to look strong in this match and earn a pinfall over Phoenix to win the bout for her team. To protect the babyface team, fans should not be surprised to see interference from Dominik Mysterio to factor into the outcome.
Prediction: Rhea Ripley and Finn Balor will defeat Edge and Beth Phoenix.
5. Grudge Match
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This is the rubber match between Bobby Lashley and Brock Lesnar, with each having a victory over the other. Interestingly, they are having this bout at this event, as it was believed that their third encounter would be featured at WrestleMania.
While that could still happen, it now looks like Bray Wyatt is next in line to face either Lesnar or Lashley. If that ends up being the case, expect Lesnar to win the match here.
With Lashley, it is possible that a reunion with MVP, Shelton Benjamin, and Cedric Alexander will happen down the road, which could impact their role at WrestleMania.
Prediction: Brock Lesnar will defeat Bobby Lashley