Let’s Speculate! What Will “Kickoff” WWE WrestleMania 34?

Speculation has been a part of professional wrestling since the industry we love first intersected with the medium we love–the internet. Our intention at The Chairshot is to use those powers for good, and today we do just that…by speculating on what matches will be on the Kickoff show at WWE WrestleMania 34!

Before we can speculate any match placement, we must first look at both the confirmed and rumored card.

Confirmed:

• WWE Universal Championship: Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Roman Reigns
• WWE Championship: AJ Styles (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
• Kurt Angle & Ronda Rousey vs. Stephanie McMahon & Triple H
• Intercontinental Championship: The Miz (c) vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor
• Smackdown Women’s Championship: Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Asuka
• WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
• Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn (rumored to have involvement from Shane McMahon and/or Daniel Bryan)
• Cruiserweight Championship: Cedric Alexander vs. either Mustafa Ali or Drew Gulak (championship vacant)

Rumored:

• John Cena vs. The Undertaker
• United States Championship: Randy Orton (c) vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Bobby Roode
• Raw Women’s Championship: Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Nia Jax (possibly vs. Sasha Banks and vs. Bayley)
• Raw Tag Team Championship: The Bar (c) vs. Braun Strowman and possibly a partner (but also possibly not)
• Smackdown Tag Team Championship: The Usos (c) vs. The New Day vs. The Bludgeon Brothers
• Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

That gives us 14 matches total, but you know these can’t all happen on the main card. Even with a likely 5 hours to play with, between entrances and video packages, it would never work with 14 matches.

So what do you do? You put matches on the WrestleMania Kickoff!

And that’s where the fun comes in. What could potentially end up on the kickoff? Well, first we need to see some numbers.

• WrestleMania 30: 8 total matches, 1 match on the Kickoff
• WrestleMania 31: 9 total matches, 2 matches on the Kickoff
• WrestleMania 32: 12 total matches (11 scheduled plus The Rock vs. Erick Rowan), 3 matches on the Kickoff
• WrestleMania 33: 13 total matches, 3 matches on the Kickoff

Two major trends immediately stick out: the overall size of the card has grown each year dating back to WrestleMania 30, and as the card has grown the number of matches on the Kickoff has also grown. WrestleMania 32 featured 9 matches (8 real matches) on the main card and three on the Kickoff. WrestleMania 33–the longest in the event’s history–featured 10 matches on the main card and 3 on the Kickoff.

WrestleMania 34 is rumored to give us 14 total matches, and as that number grows I think it’s entirely possible we see 4 matches on the Kickoff for the first time ever.

But what four matches? That is a process of elimination…

We know the world title matches are on the main card, so we can cross those off of the list. The Ronda Rousey and John Cena matches are going to be on the main card, so that brings our list to four. We have six more to go.

The Usos and The New Day are capping off an amazing year together at WrestleMania, and The Usos being on the main card is part of the story. I am going to consider them main card material. Plus I can see their triple threat with The Bludgeon Brothers being a Ladder or TLC Match. Braun Strowman is the hottest act in the company, and thus his Raw Tag Team Championship Match with The Bar will be on the main card.

That leaves us with eight matches to consider:

• Intercontinental Championship: The Miz (c) vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor
• Smackdown Women’s Championship: Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Asuka
• WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
• Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn (rumored to have involvement from Shane McMahon and/or Daniel Bryan)
• Cruiserweight Championship: Cedric Alexander vs. either Mustafa Ali or Drew Gulak (championship vacant)
• United States Championship: Randy Orton (c) vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Bobby Roode
• Raw Women’s Championship: Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Nia Jax (possibly vs. Sasha Banks and vs. Bayley)
• Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

Asuka won the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble, and her vs. Charlotte is a match some think has an outside chance at going on last. I don’t think it does, but it’s not kicking anything off either. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn could get Kickoff treatment as part of their storyline, but it’s more likely that Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan are involved. Thus, it will be on the main card.

We have two more matches to add to the main card. The Intercontinental Championship match features The Miz, likely the best overall performer in the entire company. Seth Rollins and Finn Balor are former world champions (along with their aforementioned opponent), and this match is being built as a marquee showcase. I see it being on the main card. The WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal is a big deal, and after the ordeal of the name of the match, I can’t see WWE risking potential backlash and putting it on what’s perceived by many as a “preshow.” So that gets the final nod from me.

What does that leave for the Kickoff?

Cruiserweight Championship: Cedric Alexander vs. either Mustafa Ali or Drew Gulak (championship vacant)
I honestly thought this had a chance at being on the main card, used as filler before the night’s final match. But as loaded as this event is, that “honor” likely goes to the Women’s Battle Royal. Alexander is expected to face Ali in the finals, and they’d probably get more time on the Kickoff.

United States Championship: Randy Orton (c) vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Bobby Roode
Randy Orton on the Kickoff? It sure seems that way to me. Less than a year ago Orton and Mahal were battling for the WWE Championship, but now their United States Championship likely triple threat with Bobby Roode seems destined for the Kickoff. They could add Rusev and/or Dolph Ziggler (but please not Baron Corbin) and make this a 5-Way Ladder Match. If so, it moves to the main card. But as it stands today, this looks to be on the Kickoff.

Raw Women’s Championship: Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Nia Jax (possibly vs. Sasha Banks and vs. Bayley)
Look, I know you’re sitting in your basement wondering if WWE would do this to these women. Alexa Bliss is one of their best performers, but with three total women’s matches on the show (assuming we don’t get Bayley vs. Sasha Banks, and we still could), one of them is ending up here. Well it’s not Asuka’s match, and it’s probably not the WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal thanks to the fuss around it. Thus, it’s this.

Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Assuming it happens (it hasn’t really been mentioned), the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal seems destined for the Kickoff for the second straight year. It’s a shame Rusev’s big WrestleMania win will come on the Kickoff!

What do you think? Will we see four Kickoff matches? Will we see less? And once you have your number, what matches will they be?