411’s PPV Preview: The Road to Wrestlemania 23

KANE VS. THE GREAT KHALI

Background: After crushing the Highlanders on the February 19th RAW the Great Khali demanded better competition from Jonathan Coachman. He sought it out himself on Smackdown that Friday by attacking Kane in his streetfight with Booker T. On the February 26th RAW the Great Khali answered the Masterlock Challenge. It never got underway as Kane appeared seeking revenge. On the March 5th RAW the Great Khali interrupted a match between Carlito and Ric Flair just because. Kane made the save. Kane lost to Batista on the March 9th Smackdown. Khali attacked him in the back after the match. Khali subbed for Edge against Jeff Hardy on March 12th. Kane appeared with his hook and chain from See No Evil and almost took Khali’s head off, but instead destroyed the announce table. Kane faced Khali’s former manager Daivari on the March 16th Smackdown. Kane drug Daivari to the back with his hook and told him to deliver his message to Khali. Khali again for no good reason came out on RAW on March 19th to choke slam Ashley. Jerry Lawler stopped him and was choke slammed. That Friday on Smackdown Kane promised Khali great pain at the end of his hook. Khali brawled with Flair on March 26th. Carlito tried to save Flair from a choke slam on the ring stairs and was beaten up too. Finally Kane showed up to turn the tide. Khali subbed for Edge against Matt Hardy on the last Smackdown with Kane appearing on the Titantron and promising a victory on Sunday.

Match Up: Throw any illusions of a classic wrestling match out the window. Both men are rough, tough, mean and angry. A double disqualification or double count out shortly into the contest is not out of the question. Khali is the only man on the WWE roster bigger and stronger than Kane. However, Kane has faced off with the Undertaker enough times to know how to deal with a phenom. Kane is also a seasoned veteran while Khali is very green and directionless sans his former manager Davari.

Outcome: Khali’s push has been hot and cold. He’s shifted brands a few times. His feud with Undertaker petered out. His feud with Cena never got started. Going over Kane at Wrestlemania would show great faith and commitment to him and poise him for a stopgap WWE title feud, much like Umaga got earlier this year. Kane received a renewed push thanks to See No Evil, but he can absorb a loss to Khali. Look for one man to win and the other to beat the other down big time, or possibly a double DQ or count out leading to a wilder brawl and bigger blow off down the road.

LUMBERJILL MATCH
ASHLEY VS. MELINA FOR THE WWE WOMEN’S TITLE

Background: Melina won the Women’s Title on the February 19th RAW over Mickie James. In a post match interview she took exception with Ashley stealing her press the week before due to her Playboy shoot. Melina stated that Playboy tried to get her several times, but that the common peon didn’t deserve to see her naked. On the February 26th RAW Ashley pushed her Playboy shoot more while Melina complained more about Ashely stealing her thunder. Melina got out her frustrations by squashing Maria. Ashley beat Jillian on the March 2nd Smackdown. Melina retained the Women’s Title over Mickie James in a falls count anywhere match on March 5th. Ashley was the guest ring announcer and begrudgingly gave Melina back her title after the bout was over. Ashley appeared on Miz TV on March 9th to be interrupted by Melina. She put herself over as too classy for Playboy. Ashley then challenged Melina to a Women’s Title match at Wrestlemania. Melina wanted to make an example to Ashley and took out former Playboy cover girl Torrie Wilson on the March 12th RAW. The March 16th Smackdown had Ashley teaming with Brian Kendrick and Paul London against MNM. Melina gets a low blow on London leading to the Snapshot for the loss. Melina faced Playboy cover girl Candice in a bra and panties match on March 19th. She won, but was stripped by Ashley post match. On the March 23rd Smackdown both ladies seconded their tag teams in a title match with London and Kendrick going over MNM. On the March 26th RAW Ashley, Candice and Torrie defeated the team of Melina, Jillian Hall and Victoria. On the March 29th Smackdown Ashley, Maria, Candice, Torrie and Mickie James defeated the team of Melina, Jillian, Victoria, Kristal and Michelle McCool.

Match Up: Both women show great potential as future top women’s wrestlers and are doing their best to fill the void in the division left by Trish Stratus and Lita. Ashley’s spunk should be enough to trump Melina’s cocky arrogance. However, several recent losses to Ashley in tag team matches might have her plotting. The lumberjills actually work against Melina as it negates Johnny Nitro from interfering. Not that Kendrick and London wouldn’t have Ashley’s back. Then again, the girls at ringside could provide Melina with needed distraction to cheat to win.

Outcome: Ashley is getting pushed thanks to being a Playboy cover girl. Other diva cover girls haven’t won the Women’s title, but Ashley is certainly the best wrestler of that bunch. Melina is intermittently in the WWE doghouse and her winning the title seemed like a transitional reign to get the belt on Ashley when she won it. You can argue that Ashley is on Smackdown and the Women’s Title belongs to RAW, but does that really matter? Ashley’s teams going over leading up to Wrestlemania would logically lead to Melina retaining the title, but not necessarily if the company has soured on her and really wants to get Ashley over. If Ashley does lose look for her to strip Melina after the match. The lumberjills are just for eye candy and expect some clothes ripping hijinks from them.

CHRIS BENOIT VS. MVP FOR THE US TITLE

Background: Chris Benoit teamed with the Hardy Boys to face MVP and MNM at No Way Out. Benoit won for his team with a crossface on Joey Mercury. Chris Benoit and MVP both lost out on a Money in the Bank match slot in a triple threat with Finlay on March 2nd. MVP formerly challenged Benoit for the US Title on March 9th. MVP wanted to prove he was worthy of being US Champion by beating champions of other countries. On the March 16th Smackdown he defeated Honduras champion El Grande Latte. MVP then wanted an answer for his challenge from last week. Long gave him the match and brought out Benoit. The two brawled with Porter able to block the crossface and escape to the back. On March 23rd MVP faced the Liechtenstein champion in another quick squash. He promised Benoit that his name would go down in history as the first person to drop a title to MVP at Wrestlemania. Benoit later beat Shane Helms. MVP beat the champion of Ethiopia the following week and once again claimed he would take the title at Wrestlemania.

Match Up: MVP might seem brash and arrogant, but that’s just smokescreen for a man shaping up to be a crafty ring general. Yet, he can’t stand up to the master ring general that is Chris Benoit. MVP will try to play Benoit early, but he won’t stand for it. He’ll take the match to Porter early and wear him down for the submission. MVP will just need to weather this storm and then regroup. Benoit doesn’t let his guard down, so Porter will have to use his brain more than his wrestling skill to create a situation to throw Benoit off and allow him to steal the US Title.

Outcome: MVP entered WWE as a joke, but many feel he is poised to break out as a future superstar. He really hasn’t been able to showcase himself yet, which a match with Benoit should allow him to do. Benoit is a good employee and has shown himself adapt at putting over up and comers. Win or lose, this will be a coming out party for MVP.

ECW ORINGINALS (ROB VAN DAM, SABU, SANDMAN AND TOMMY DREAMER) VS. ECW NEW BREED (MATT STRIKER, KEVIN THORN, MARCUS COR VON AND ELIJAH BURKE)

Background: Vince McMahon made his first ECW appearance on January 31st. He stated that all the original ECW wrestlers sucked as did everything about the original ECW, but his ECW was superior. To prove this he introduced the man who would be the epitome of the new breed in ECW, Elijah Burke. Sabu, Sandman, Tommy Dreamer and Balls Mahoney stormed the ring and attacked Burke. On February 6th McMahon summoned the ECW Originals to the ring and booked them in individual matches against his ECW New Breed. Matt Striker as guest referee helped Kevin Thorn beat Tommy Dreamer. Striker played the guest timekeeper for Marcus Cor Von against Balls Mahoney. Mahoney was in a neck brace from a match with Umaga on RAW the night before. Striker then served as the guest ring announcer for Rob Van Dam vs. Elijah Burke with Cor Von on commentary and Thorn playing the timekeeper. Thorn rang the bell as Van Dam lined up the frog splash. The referee attempted to figure out what was going on and that allowed Burke to hit a low blow for the win. The New Breed beat up Van Dam. On February 20th Van Dam with the Originals fought Thorn with the New Breed. The two factions brawled and were sent to the back. Left alone, Van Dam pinned Thorn with the frog splash. On February 27th Mahoney vs. Striker ended in a no contest when Snitsky interfered. Later Thorn and Cor Von teamed to beat RVD and Dreamer by cheating. Van Dam beat Burke the following week. The two forces clashed again with the Originals holding the ring. Dreamer challenged the New Breed to a Wrestlemania match. They accepted.

All eight men locked up in a battle royal on the March 13th ECW episode. Tommy Dreamer got the upset win by eliminating Striker and Burke while he was outnumbered. Mick Foley then came out to plug his book more and stated he would be rooting for the Originals at Wrestlemania. On March 20th Burke got his win back over Dreamer while Cor Von and Thorn beat RVD and Sabu. RVD then beat Burke on March 27th.

Match Up: All of the men have squared off a lot lately and know each other well. You can’t say that any one team really has an advantage with all the varied talent. The Originals are older and slower, but more experienced. The heels are crafty and hungry. Look for the heels to go after Dreamer as team captain and the most physically broken down of the Originals. They will isolate him and use cheating to neutralize his team. Yet, we all know Dreamer has heart and guts, but then again so do all the Originals. Will that win out?

Outcome: The New Breed is getting a good push and we all know McMahon’s real disdain for old school ECW. It looks like the New Breed will win by cheating and this could help set up several matches for One Night Stand in June. CM Punk could get involved with how he’s played into storylines, but he will be tied up with the Money in the Bank ladder match. This really should have been a Wargames match.

MONEY IN THE BANK LADDER MATCH
EDGE VS. RANDY ORTON VS. MATT HARDY VS. JEFF HARDY VS. FINLAY VS. KEN KENNEDY VS. KING BOOKER VS. CM PUNK

Background: The two former Money in the Bank winners faced off in the first qualifying match on the February 19th RAW with Edge winning. CM Punk qualified the next night on ECW against Johnny Nitro. On the February 23rd Smackdown Booker T qualified over Kane in a streetfight. On the February 26th RAW Jeff Hardy went over Shelton Benjamin. On the February 27th ECW Ken Kennedy got into the match over Sabu. On the March 2nd Smackdown Matt Hardy qualified over Joey Mecury while Finlay got in via a triple threat match with MVP and Chris Benoit. Carlito and Ric Flair went at it for the last slot on the March 5th RAW, but were beat down by the Great Khali. The next week Randy Orton weaseled his way into a rematch and won. This didn’t sit well with Edge and he talked Vince McMahon into putting Orton into a match with Lashley on ECW the next night. If he didn’t compete he would lose his slot in the match. Orton lost. The next RAW Orton tore into Edge for leaving him high and dry. He convinced McMahon that it was Edge who let him down and got him to put Edge’s slot in the MiB match on the line in a last chance battle royal. Edge was allowed in the match, but looked out early due to a knee injury. It included Ric Flair, Carlito, Shelton Benjamin, Johnny Nitro, Super Crazy, Charlie Haas, Viscera, Val Venis and Kenny Dykstra. Flair tossed Carlito to seemingly win, but Edge appeared out of nowhere and tossed Flair. The injury was a fake and just a way for him to lay back and not get eliminated. Edge hosted all the Money in the Bank participants on the Cutting Edge on March 26th. Edge got all the men fighting and tried to sneak out, but they followed him. Edge, the Hardy Boys and Punk teamed to face Finlay, Booker, Orton and Kennedy the next night on ECW. Edge walked out on his teammates. The match broke down and in the end the Hardys wound up staring at each other from the top of a ladder.

Match Up: A unique blend of eight men makes this an interesting bout. Edge and the Hardy Boys are ladder match veterans while Booker T, Finlay and Orton seem more inclined to standard matches. Punk is the wildcard as he’s been in WWE less than a year, but his style and personality would seem to make him a good ladder match contender. Edge has his win streak at stake and has proven himself a crafty, thinking heel. Edge will lay back and wait for the right time to strike. That is, if Orton lets him. They could take each other out early and make the match wide open. Kennedy is a strong contender and mixes the right amount of in ring smarts, ring skill and risk taking to be a major threat.

Outcome: Edge has his vaunted win streak going. Edge could lose the match and still claim that he’s never been pinned, but that cheapens his streak. Edge also brags about never losing a ladder match at Wrestlemania. Edge vs. Undertaker with pure win streaks intact will be a big match a few years down the road if not next year. A lot of people are tapping Kennedy who is on the cusp of breaking out as a legitimate title contender in the main event. Punk is a dark horse and the guy that would most benefit from the win. The Hardy Boys are always ladder match threats, but they are there just to fill the match out. Booker T and Finlay are also-rans, but counterbalance the style of the Hardys. Orton could win to really grind Edge, but it would be more logical for him to cost Edge the win.

BATTLE OF THE BILLIONAIRES HAIR VS. HAIR MATCH
BOBBY LASHLEY WITH DONALD TRUMP VS. UMAGA WITH VINCE MCMAHON AND FEATURING GUEST REFEREE STEVE AUSTIN

Background: To cash in on the public feud of Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump, Vince McMahon booked a match between the two on the January 8th RAW. The two were played by imposters with the faux Trump winning. The following week McMahon attempted to call the real Trump, but could not get through. Vince was doing so because of a letter he received from the billionaire not just trashing the sketch from the previous week, but claiming that McMahon did not have the best interest of the fans at heart. McMahon further tried to humiliate Trump by making Torrie Wilson pose as Miss USA, who Trump left off the hook for alleged drinking and carousing. Carlito made the save and told McMahon that the fans paid to see people fight, so Vince sacrificed him to the Great Khali. On January 22nd, McMahon made a formal rebuttal to Trump’s letter, which was just more grandstanding by him. John Cena interrupted and tricked Jonathan Coachman into badmouthing Vince. McMahon booked Coach to face Cena later that night. January 30th was fan appreciation night on RAW. McMahon showed one fan appreciation by giving her a blown up picture of his Muscle and Fitness Magazine cover. Donald Trump appeared on the Titantron and showed the fans some real appreciation by dropping money from the ceiling. Trump sent a second letter to McMahon on the February 5th RAW stating he had a business proposition, while McMahon had one of his own for Trump to join his Kiss My Ass Club.

Trump and McMahon went nose to nose on the February 15th RAW. Trump challenged McMahon to a match at Wrestlemania, but he refused. It was then suggested that the two pick representatives to fight for them. Trump accepted that, but wanted it to be a hair vs. hair match between the two billionaires. McMahon thought Trump had something up his sleeve, but agreed. On the February 19th RAW McMahon announced Umaga as his representative. He immediately won the IC title from Jeff Hardy. On the February 23rd Smackdown Rey Mysterio returned to his hometown of San Diego. He got interrupted by Vince McMahon. Mysterio backed Trump in the hair vs. hair match. McMahon had Umaga thrash the still injured Mysterio. McMahon used photo wizardy to make fun of Trump on the next RAW by showing what he would look like with various haircuts. However, Vince wasn’t laughing when the Donald pulled a trump card of Bobby Lashley as his Wrestlemania man. Umaga and Lashley brawled. On RAW of February 26th McMahon was informed that the WWE board of directors wanted a special guest referee for the match. The next night on ECW McMahon made the title cage match between Lashley and Hardcore Holly a beat the clock match. Yet, a five minute time limit was nothing Lashley was unable to conquer. Umaga ran out and Lashley headed him off by jumping into the cage wall and knocking it down onto Umaga.

On the March 2nd Smackdown McMahon gave Lashley a chance to get out of the Wrestlemania match, but he refused and got physical with McMahon. Ken Kennedy then asked McMahon for an ECW title shot that night. McMahon granted it by allowing Kennedy to participate under extreme rules, but Lashley had to toe the line. It didn’t matter as Lashley won. On the March 5th RAW McMahon announced that he had sent his son Shane McMahon to the board of directors to be named the special guest referee. McMahon took the ring to announce his son, but got Eric Bischoff instead. Bischoff just wanted to say that he hoped McMahon would get shaved bald. He gave way to Mick Foley who plugged his new book and teased being the referee. Shane then appeared, but he didn’t look happy. Finally the guest referee came out in the persona of Steve Austin. Austin promised to call the match down the middle and he wouldn’t take any guff. He also promised that someone was walking out of Wrestlemania with their head shaved. Elsewhere, Umaga retained the IC Title over Jeff Hardy. On ECW for March 6th McMahon put over that he liked Austin as the referee. He also said that Lashley apologized for roughing him up on the last Smackdown. Lashley came out and did apologize to Vince…for not kicking his ass more. Later on Austin came out to talk more about the match and poll the crowd on what they thought would happen in the hair vs. hair match. On the March 12th RAW the Rock appeared via a pre-tape to put down McMahon and reveal that Umaga in Samoan meant “shriveled up monkey penis.” A contract signing between the billionaires was held with Austin maintaining order. Trump finally got revenge for weeks of bald pictures of him with a bald picture of McMahon. Trump then challenged McMahon to bring it. Vince obliged and got shoved over the contract-signing table by Trump to a huge pop from the fans.

Edge didn’t like that Randy Orton got into the Money in the Bank ladder match and convinced McMahon to book Orton vs. Lashley for ECW. If Orton didn’t take the match he would lose his slot. Orton showed up, but then Edge got himself tossed from ringside allowing Lashley to score the win. Lashley showed up on RAW on March 19th to take the Masterlock Challenge. He became the first man to break it. McMahon congratulated him by kicking Lashley out of the building. Eugene happened by and spilled a drink on McMahon. He booked him against Umaga for it. After getting crushed, McMahon shaved Dinsmore’s head. Masters went to ECW the next night seeking revenge on Lashley, but was defeated in a real match. McMahon opened the March 23rd Smackdown to book Lashley in a handicap tables match with Randy Orton and Ken Kennedy. Lashley put both men through tables to win. McMahon fed up with Lashley finally booked himself against the man for RAW. McMahon used Cade and Murdoch, Masters and Umaga to soften up Lashley before he pinned him twice. McMahon then asked Donald Trump what he thought about that, which was Eugene in a Trump wig. On ECW the next night McMahon and Lashley had a war of words via satellite with Vince at WWE headquarters.

Match Up: Lashley and Umaga is the classic encounter of the unstoppable force against the immovable object. Look for a wild brawl to start with neither man giving an inch. Lashley has the more wrestling skill and can utilize that against Umaga effectively, but his strength and tenacity could counteract that as could Vince McMahon and Estrada in his corner giving instruction. The outside forces in this match are huge and will certainly provide distraction. Trump has to be careful not to be a hindrance to his man Lashley and do what he can to help him outside the ring. Steve Austin makes a great guest referee for this bout as he won’t take crap from anyone involved and can mix it up if he has to. Austin will be key in providing a fair match and making sure the best man wins.

Outcome: No one is predicting Donald Trump to get his head shaved. Even though McMahon is an egomaniac, he’s always lost the big matches to put the other guy over and properly payoff angles. McMahon can easily get his head shaved and then drop out of site until it grows back. They could swerve and have no one getting their head shaved, but that would result in a huge backlash thanks to the tremendous media coverage the match has received. On the wrestler side, Lashley has been properly built up as a monster and the greatest superhuman face WWE has had since the glory days of Hulk Hogan.

JOHN CENA VS. SHAWN MICHAELS FOR THE WWE TITLE

Background: Undertaker threw out Shawn Michaels as the last man in the Royal Rumble. Michaels then started RAW the next night stating that he wanted the title shot at Wrestlemania against John Cena if Undertaker didn’t take it. Michaels was interrupted by Randy Orton and Edge who both thought they should have the shot. Vince McMahon then appeared and booked Rated RKO to put their tag titles on the line against Michaels and Cena in the main event. Michaels was later asked about teaming with Cena and all he could say was that he was no Triple H. Ric Flair then went to Cena and warned him to keep an eye on Michaels. The pair won the tag titles. Michaels seemed poised to hit Cena with a super kick, but Cena caught him. They were then interrupted by an appearance by the Undertaker. On the February 2nd Smackdown Batista took the ring and demanded an answer from the Undertaker. However, he got John Cena instead and then Michaels came out. Vince McMahon finally showed and booked the men from RAW against the guys from Smackdown in a tag match for No Way Out. On the following RAW Undertaker confronted Cena, Batista and Bobby Lashley in the ring. He chose to face Batista and then choke slammed him. Michaels felt that gave him the title match against Cena at Wrestlemania. However, McMahon booked him to face Orton and Edge in a triple threat match that night for the spot. Michaels won. On the February 12th RAW Batista, Undertaker, Cena and Michaels had to coexist and go against Orton, Edge, MVP and Kennedy. They won, but there was tension. Both teams established their dominance on the February 16th Smackdown. Cena and Michaels beat Ken Kennedy and MVP while Batista and Undertaker defeated Rated RKO.

Michaels and Cena won at No Way Out. The next night on RAW Cena faced Randy Orton. He won by DQ when Edge got involved. Shawn Michaels made the save, but then teased turning on Cena. Cena and Michaels were ready to kick off the February 26th RAW against Rated RKO, but they said they weren’t ready for the bout yet. Instead they showed footage of Michaels turning on all his former partners to scare Cena. It didn’t work as the faces retained their titles with Edge thinking that Orton turned on him after Michaesl hit him with a tag belt. The champs glowered at each other before playing to the crowd. On the March 5th RAW Michaels told Cena that he didn’t need his help. However, Cena ran in for the save when Rated RKO attacked Michaels after Michaels beat Orton in a match. Later that night Edge backed out of a match with Cena. He was replaced with Johnny Nitro. Joe Mercury attacked Cena to draw the disqualification. Shawn Michaels ran out for the save, but then turned around. He gave it another thought and finally saved Cena. Cena called Michaels out on March 12th and wanted to know what was going on with them. Coach complicated matters by booking the tag champs in a gauntlet match. They beat the World’s Greatest Tag Team in the first match, Cade and Murdoch in the second and MNM in the third inside a steel cage. The two men conflicted through the gauntlet and Cena almost hit Michaels with a chair, but wound up leveling Charlie Haas with it.

The March 19th RAW was Wrestlemania reversal night as Cena and Michaels would go against opponents from the others Wrestlemania past. Michaels drew JBL, but he refused to come out of retirement for the bout. Layfield laid into Michaels for being an egotistical has been. The response by Michaels was a super kick. Michaels sat in on commentary as Cena beat Chris Benoit cleanly. Shawn teased a super kick on Cena afterwards. Then Cena teased an FU. JBL broke up the action by announcing a No Way Out rematch for the next week. Michaels finally turned on Cena with a super kick to give Batista and UT the win in that bout.

Match Up: The friendly rivals will probably start out trading some wrestling maneuvers back and forth to feel each other out. Cena will want to get the match over early, while Michaels will prove more patient. He’ll let Cena control the middle portion of the match to tire him out and get a feel for his game plan. Look for Michaels to make a late surge. It will all come down to timing and reflexes. Can Michaels flip out of the FU? Can Cena dodge the superkick? The man who does that will win.

Outcome: Cena is the new standard bearer of WWE. He’ll be in the title picture for as long as he’s around. Michaels is on the other side of his career and probably won’t get another world title run. Like other veterans, Michaels is a great asset in getting younger guys over. It’s not that Cena needs help getting over or legitimizing himself. What Cena does need that Michaels can provide is the type of legendary bout for Cena’s resume that vaults him up there into future hall of fame status. This match will be a benchmark in Cena’s career.

BATISTA VS. UNDERTAKER FOR THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Background: Undertaker threw out Shawn Michaels as the last man in the Royal Rumble. On the February 2nd Smackdown Batista took the ring and demanded an answer from the Undertaker on who he would face at Wrestlemania. However, he got John Cena instead and then Michaels came out. Vince McMahon finally showed and booked the men from RAW against the guys from Smackdown in a tag match for No Way Out. On the following RAW Undertaker confronted Cena, Batista and Bobby Lashley in the ring. He chose to face Batista and then choke slammed him. On the February 9th Smackdown Undertaker made an example out of the Miz while Batista held onto his title against Ken Kennedy. On the February 12th RAW Batista, Undertaker, Cena and Michaels had to coexist and go against Orton, Edge, MVP and Kennedy. They won, but there was tension. Both teams established their dominance on the February 16th Smackdown. Cena and Michaels beat Ken Kennedy and MVP while Batista and Undertaker defeated Rated RKO.

Batista took a walk on Undertaker after hitting a spinebuster on him at No Way Out to give the RAW faces the win. Batista opened the next Smackdown by stating he was not afraid or intimated by the Undertaker and his Wrestlemania record. Batista said much the same thing again on the March 2nd show. Undertaker responded from a graveyard and promised that Batista would rest in peace. Batista made a statement by beating Kane on the March 9th Smackdown. Undertaker later took out Finlay. Batista appeared on Miz TV the next week. Miz had the lights turned out to spook Batista that Undertaker was coming out. Batista thought that was very funny, so funny that he gave Miz a Demonbomb. Batista sat in on commentary later as Undertaker fought Booker T. He won by DQ when Finlay attacked with his shillelagh. Undertaker fought both men while Batista didn’t move. UT threw Finlay at Batista to wake him up and then choke slammed Booker T. Undertaker and Batista were booked to face Finlay and King Booker on March 23rd. The heels took out the champ in the back leaving UT alone. Batista finally came out, but threw Finlay at Undertaker like what happened to him the week before and the match ended in a sort of no contest. Undertaker and Batista managed to hold it together on the March 26th RAW to beat Cena and Michaels. Batista and Undertaker went nose to nose on the March 30th Smackdown. They brawled with Batista laying UT out, but he did his famous sit up to close the show.

Match Up: Undertaker will resort to his standard strategy of pummeling brawling and methodical wearing down with power moves. A motivated Undertaker is a dangerous Undertaker and nothing will motivate him more than a title bout at Wrestlemania. Batista will be able to stand toe to toe with UT and take his standard barrage better than anyone he’s faced since Kane. Batista might try to take control of the match early, but you can’t do that against the Undertaker. He will take dominance and control the flow and pace of the match. Batista has to be careful not to get hot under collar and lose his head. Undertaker will take advantage of that. Batista could get fed up and knock out Undertaker with a chair or even take a walk to preserve his title, but that’s not what either man wants deep down.

Outcome: The Undertaker does not lose at Wrestlemania. Period. His win streak vs. the World Heavyweight Title puts matters up in the air a bit, but UT is certainly a legitimate champion. The way storylines and characters have been built it seems likely for Undertaker to win the title. He has more challengers in the wings than Batista as champion with Batista having already squared off with Booker T, Finlay and Kennedy in recent times. Undertaker could win by DQ or count out, but that cheap victory would just not sit right as the main event of Wrestlemania.