On the road toWWEWrestleMania 41, most of the attention is being focused on the heavyweight title picture. Royal Rumble winners Jey Uso and Charlotte Flair have officially made their choices to face atWrestleMania. Uso will face the World Heavyweight Champion Gunther, and Flair, meanwhile, has chosen WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton for her Championship match.
In addition to that, the biggest storyline is whetherJohn Cenawill win his record-breaking 17th world title. Rightfully so, but what about themidcard title picture? At the moment, they almost feel like an afterthought, but more attention should be shown towards them as we get closer to The Grandest Stage of Them All. Shinsuka Nakamura is the biggest name of all the midcard holders, but there are so many different stories that can be told with the midcard picture. Here’s how they should shake out…
What Should The First Midcard Title Matches Be For WrestleMania 41?
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Last year atWrestleMania 40, there were two midcard title matches. On Night 1, Sami Zayn dethroned Gunther to capture the Intercontinental Championship to end his 666-day title reign. On Night 2, Logan Paul defeated Randy Orton and Kevin Owens in a triple threat match to retain the United States Championship. Even with the Cody Rhodes/Roman Reigns match, Zayn’s title win was one of themost memorable moments of the PLE.
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For this year’sWrestleMania, the longest tenured midcard champion is Bron Breakker at 176 days and counting. After taking the title back from Uso back in October, Breakker has put together an impressive second run as the Intercontinental Champion. He was also the guy that beat Zayn for the title. Since he has held the title the longest of the four, he should be the first focus. And if you watched last week’sMonday Night Raw, it appears that WWE is already on the mission.
A quick staredown between newly acquiredRawsuperstar AJ Styles and Breakker indicated there would be a match between the two. Breakker versus Styles is too big for a weeklyMonday Night Raw, so that would be a perfect match for’Mania.
How Can WWE Add More Prestige To Women’s Midcard Titles?
Women’s Midcard Belts Need More Attention
Back in December, Chelsea Green made history by becoming thefirst woman in WWE history to hold a midcard title. After a tournament, Green defeated Michin in the finals onSaturday Night Main Eventon December 14th to become thefirst ever Women’s United States Champion. Since then, Green has won just one match, losing a match to Naomi and failing to qualify for the women’sElimination Chambermain event match. Since this is a first time title, WWE Creative has to figure out a way to build the belt’s prestige.
Michin and B-Fab both appear to have their eyes on the belt, but Michin has already had a rematch for the title and lost. And B-Fab versus Green isn’t aWrestleMania-level match quite yet. Green adding another member to her court would give her current title reign some more excitement. And a welcome challenger could introduce themselves afterElimination Chamber.
Lyra Valkyria is coming off an incredible 2024 rookie campaign on the main roster. Immediately after being called toRaw, she entered theQueen of the Ring tournament, in which she reached the finals and ultimately lost to Nia Jax. She then had to regroup and prepare for what was coming for her.
A month after Green won her title, Valkyria became thefirst ever Women’s Intercontinental ChampiononRawby defeating Dakota Kai in the finals of the tournament. Since she won the title on a normalRawand not on a PLE, the prestige of her title is already lower than the Women’s US belt. She is currently in a feud with American Made’s Ivy Nile, who wants a shot at Valkyria’s title. Again, this isn’t likely a match forWrestleMania. If WWE decides against Iyo Sky facing Rhea Ripley for the Women’s World Championship, she would be agreat opponent for Valkyria atWrestleMania 41.
Who Should Walk Out of WrestleMania 41 With The Midcard Titles?
Who Should Come Out On Top After WrestleMania
When it’s all said and done,both women midcard titleholders should walk out of Las Vegas still champions. It is too risky and too early to have one or both of them drop a belt they just won. Whoever they wind up facing, unfortunately, will have to take the fall if WWE wants to build prestige for those respective titles.
For the men’s, United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura could defend the title in a multi-superstar match. Much like last year’s triple threat match, a Fatal 4-way match that includes Andrade, Carmelo Hayes, or LA Knight would be a classic match. It doesn’t have to be a TLC match or anything crazy. These men can all wrestle and there would be tons of memorable spots. This would bea great opportunity to crown a new champion in Andrade or Hayes, who have both been working towards a title run. It’s a chance to create a new star in Hayes, or restore Andrade’s legacy.
Finally, for Breakker, there aren’t many options for him. He has already run through most of Raw’s roster to retain the title with wins over Ludwig Kaiser, Sheamus, Zayn, and Uso. Styles is a formidable competitor that would bring the best out of Breakker. In the end, Breakker should walk out ofWrestleMania 41having retained the Intercontinental belt.WWEhas a chance to really build him as a force to be reckoned with, and after playing some hot potato with the title, it’ll be nice to stay with a young, promising star for a while. He is clearly the future of the company, so there is no reason to rush the title off him just yet.
