Betting on Wrestlemania 35: Set to make history, amidst confusion

It seems a bit ironic that there are betting odds on professional wrestling because the results are pre-determined, but there are. However, two weeks out from Wrestlemania 35, the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) is ready to make history, as, for the first time, three women will be in the main event of the show, as RAW champion Ronda Rousey faces Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair in the most anticipated women's match in the lore of professional wrestling.

Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair

As of now, Lynch, despite being "injured" with a bad knee, is the prohibitive favorite at wrestling gambling sites (-500), while Rousey is at +250 and Flair is at a lofty +800. While the match could fall three distinctly different ways (detailed below), the fact that the Wrestlemania promotional poster and the card itself are dominated by these three women is unprecedented and historic.

As recently as a year ago, to think that three women would be headlining the WWE's crown jewel event seemed virtually impossible, but women have made great strides in the business over the last two years. The "women's revolution" traces back to 2015 when the only women's match on the Fastlane pay-per-view card lasted just 30 seconds - to the dismay of the 20,000 fans at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The result was a spontaneous Twitter campaign (#GiveDivasAChance) that trended for the next three days. WWE opened its eyes to that surge of fan sentiment and responded.

In the four years since, WWE females transformed from being called "Divas" to simply women wrestlers. The groundswell of popular support for women's wrestling took off at WWE's developmental arm NXT, where Lynch, Flair and fellow NXT talents Sasha Banks and Bayley became known as "The Four Horsewomen" - an homage to Flair's Hall of Fame father (Ric Flair) and the infamous Four Horsemen faction of the 1980s-90s in WCW.

As these four and other talent helped build and expand the women's roster, the role of women in WWE has become much more pronounced and high-profile rather than mere eye-candy and the age of "bra and panties" matches, setting up the first Wrestlemania main event to feature female talent.

So, who's going to win? That's a question that, given the current confusion in WWE storylines, is very much up in the air.

Lynch is viewed as the prohibitive odds favorite (-500 is steep) because, over the last six months, Lynch has played an anti-authority character mindful of the rise of Stone Cold Steve Austin. She has taken to calling herself "The Man" and, while playing a hard-nosed heel character, has become a fan favorite (just like Austin), something that began organically and grew outside of the anticipated storylines. The WWE tends to give its fans what they want in a Wrestlemania main event and the fans have made it clear they want Lynch to win.

Rousey came to WWE in early 2018 and was immediately given a huge push by the company because of her UFC fame and she was an instant fan favorite. However, as fans jumped on the Lynch bandwagon, Rousey unexpectedly became a heel - much to the surprise of Rousey and the WWE brass. Her contract is coming up and, if she is going to continue a full-time role in WWE, it's likely Vince McMahon would deem she keep the title and prolong the storyline with Lynch and/or Flair.

Flair has also been turned heel by fans because she has had numerous in-ring battles with Lynch, the new WWE badass babyface. Her odds (+800) make sense, but McMahon and Executive V.P. of Talent, Live Events and Creative Paul Levesque (Triple H) both have a soft spot for Ric Flair, who has been battling significant health issues the last couple of years. It wouldn't be beyond them to tip their hat to The Nature Boy and put his daughter "over" in their marquee event because he may not see many more.

PREDICTION: As of now, our money is on Lynch. Give the fans what they want and keep the potential for multiple storylines with Rousey and Flair moving forward. But, Rousey's contract future is the wild card.

PAGE 2: Other Wrestlemania 35 Matches Currently Set

PAGE 3: Wrestlemania 35 News & Notes: Is it WWE or WTF?

OTHER WRESTLEMANIA 35 MATCHES CURRENTLY SET

WWE Universal Championship - Champion Brock Lesnar (+170) vs. Seth Rollins (-250)

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP/Getty Images

The WWE has upset fans by keeping the belt on Lesnar for all but 64 days since Wrestlemania 33 (Roman Reigns carried the belt 64 days prior to a leukemia diagnosis) because Lesnar has wrestled just 15 times over the last two years, while Rollins has been a workhorse.

With Lesnar making overtures of a return to UFC, that could dictate the result of the match, although Vince McMahon has been tone-deaf to fan reaction to his "big fight-feel" champion.

The fact the betting line is so strong in the favor of the undersized (by comparison) challenger speaks to the feeling of the WWE Universe, although Lesnar will get a lot of action if that number holds. PREDICTION: Rollins.

No Holds Barred Match - Triple H (-250) vs. Batista (+170).

Batista (known best now for his roles in The Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy franchises) is currently filming Dune, so this has all the appearances of a "one-and-off" scenario to pad Triple H's Wrestlemania resume.

In that case, no storyline would be served by Batista winning. PREDICTION: Triple H.

Farewell Match - Kurt Angle (-250) vs. Baron Corbin (+170)

Angle has stumbled his way through occasional matches over the last year - injuries have taken such a toll that he looks like a question mark in the ring - but they want to give him a nice sendoff.

Corbin has little to no legitimate heat with fans (he wears a vest!) and many have been vocal in saying this would be a horrible way for Angle to go out - against a mid-card jobber. The outcry has been loud enough that WWE is considering changing opponents for him, but, as of now, it's still Corbin. PREDICTION: Angle (if he faces Corbin).

WWE United States Championship - Champion Samoa Joe (-300) vs. Rey Mysterio (+200)

This one had no buildup - Mysterio announced on Smackdown Live last Tuesday that he would be challenging Joe.

Really? Okay.

Joining Mysterio was his son Dominic, who is preparing to start his own wrestling career. With no real heat for this match, it would appear the storyline will be the son turning on the father and setting up a feud for the kid to get his feet wet in a bunch of matches against his old man (whether in WWE or elsewhere). PREDICTION: Samoa Joe.

WWE Cruiserweight Championship - Champion Buddy Murphy (-500) vs. Tony Nese (+300)

If you don't watch 205 Live (you have to subscribe to WWE Network to see it), this match means little to nothing to casual fans who are used to high spots from cruiserweights. PREDICTION: Murphy.

Singles Match - A.J. Styles (+125) vs. Randy Orton (-165)

Orton has been a part-time wrestler over the last year-plus. Having him as the favorite is hard to understand since WWE has heavily touted Styles and put the WWE title on him for more than a year (ending last November).

Putting a loss on the grandest stage to Styles doesn't make sense and, from the booking side of things, shouldn't happen unless they're planning an extended program of matches between Styles and Orton. PREDICTION: Styles.

Singles Match - The Miz (-400) vs. Shane McMahon (+250)

One thing you can say about the McMahons - they take their beatings like men at Wrestlemania. Vince famously had his head shaved by Donald Trump (before he was president and a Twitter sensation) and Shane has done some incredible high spots for a front office guy. They routinely absorb punishment in front of 80,000 fans. Expect the same this time around. PREDICTION: The Miz.

PAGE 3: Wrestlemania 35 News & Notes: Is it WWE or WTF?

WRESTLEMANIA 35 NOTES: Is It WWE or WTF?

With just two weeks left until Wrestlemania, many of the primary matches on the card have yet to be officially finalized - unprecedented given the lack of time to generate steam or excitement for those matches.

There are rumors that there could be as many as 17 or 18 matches (five hours?) and most of them haven't been finalized. Here are storylines that need to be made official:

WWE Championship Match - Champion Daniel Bryan vs. Kevin Owens (or Kofi Kingston?)

The WWE has danced around this one the last few weeks, as Vince McMahon handed a title shot to Owens, who had been out for months due to injury, and forcing Kingston to compete in handicap and gauntlet matches that end up with Kingston getting worn down.

Given the push Kofi is getting from fans (not necessarily from WWE), that should be the angle that ends up happening, but it hasn't been made official yet.

WWE Intercontinental Championship

Champion Bobby Lashley is likely to defend against former champion Finn Balor, who is expected to break out the seldom-used Demon King character, which, for some reason, always results in a win. Maybe that's why they've held off announcing it officially, because, once they do, the suspense is over.

Smackdown Tag Team Championship

The Usos have been around for years, but have only had one Wrestlemania match. There has been talk of having a four-way match with the tag teams of Shinsuke Nakamura/Rusev, The Bar and The Hardy Boyz, but there are also rumors that this match might be scrapped to get more combatants in the battle royal, which leads us to…

The Andre the Giant Battle Royal

This has served as a way to get 30 wrestlers on the annual Wrestlemania card since 2014, but, with two weeks until WM35, only Braun Strowman has said he's in the match - to date, there's nobody else to "Get these hands!" The same goes for the women's battle royal, which made its debut last year with a similar purpose.

Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre

This is expected to go down, but, to date, all we've seen is McIntyre call out Reigns. Expect this to get finalized Monday night on RAW and McIntyre to lose in two weeks.

Smackdown Women's Championship

In all the hoopla of Rousey vs. Lynch vs. Flair, the Smackdown champion Asuka has been buried by the company. Both Lynch and Flair are technically with the Smackdown brand, but have both abandoned Team Blue to go after RAW champion Rousey. What's left is Asuka apparently taking on Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville with little to no buildup, enthusiasm or reason to think she'll lose.

Women's Tag Team Championship

Only recently created, champions Sasha Banks and Bayley have apparently (but not officially) been booked for an another awkward "four-way dance" with Beth Phoenix/Natalya, Nia Jax/Tamina Snuka and The IIconics (no explanation given for the first two I's in IIconics). Again, it seems like decisions are being made on the fly with no purpose or logical rationale to push or promote a match.

Where Are John Cena and The Undertaker?

Over the last month, both Cena and 'Taker have been teased as potentially having Wrestlemania matches, but, with the days dwindling, neither of them has even been mentioned in a storyline that makes sense, which no longer seems to be a Wrestlemania prerequisite.

The WWE has 14 days to finalize the card for its premier event of the year and, as the clock ticks down, a shocking number of matches remain unresolved, which, as the McMahon's won't want to say, can't be "good for business."

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