Tossing Salt Presents:
Wrestlemania 38 – Night One
Thoughts & Predictions
April 1, 2022
DougMaynard.com

It’s the biggest weekend of the year as WWE presents, live from Dallas, Texas, two nights of Wrestlemania, available for your viewing pleasure on Peacock and The WWE Network. And of course, that means it’s prediction time. So let’s do this. It’s Night One.

WWE Smackdown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey.

This match was exciting two years ago, but now, this time around, it’s kind of blah at best. I do not doubt that it’ll be a good match, with lots of back and forth and plenty of near-falls. But at this point, who cares? The build has been okay, but the whole match is just less than exciting to me. I think WWE will go with Ronda taking the win and the title. It’s great publicity and the papers will be waiting.

Winner and NEW WWE Smackdown Women’s Champion: Ronda Rousey

WWE Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair.

Do I even have to say it here? Bianca is the golden child for WWE right now and the current apple of Vince’s eye. Becky was that person, but Bianca has slipped in there and stolen her spot. Look for Becky to be so focused on cutting hair, in retribution for her new haircut this past week, then keeping and defending her title. It’ll be a good match, but the outcome isn’t in any doubt.

Winner and NEW WWE RAW Women’s Champion: Bianca Belair

WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin on the Kevin Owens Show.

Look for Kevin Owens to talk shit about Texas. I expect to see cameos from JBL and Booker T, both local heroes and Texans, and when Steve Austin finally comes out, we’ll get middle fingers, lots of “What?” chants, and in the end, we’ll get Owens eating a stunner and then Austin and friends will drink some beer. And there you go.

Winner: “Stone Cold” Steve Austin

Edge vs. AJ Styles.

This one can go either way and I can’t really call a winner here. I think Edge needs a win here much more than AJ Styles. Edge won the less than impressive program with Miz & Maryse that no one remembers, but since then, he just vanished. And now he’s back, he’s covered in blue light, and he’s a bad guy. AJ just seems to be going through the motions and he’s there, but has he done anything important lately? Not really. We’ll just flip a coin on this one. Heads, it’s Edge, and tails, it’s AJ. Heads!

Winner: Edge

The Miz & Logan Paul vs. Rey & Dominick Mysterio

They’re bringing in a “big star”, so it’s not likely he’s going to lose, but truthfully, what is the point of this whole angle? If it’s just a way to get Paul on the show, teaming with Miz, I get that, but to be honest, Rey and Dominick deserve better and this match is just just a waste of space and filler, at least in my opinion. Rey and Dominick should win, but that buries the big guest star… unless, we get a swerve. How about we finally see Dominick do the heel turn and walk out on his day, allowing Miz and Paul to steal a tainted win, plus giving us a story where Dominick falls under the guidance of Miz to become his own man. That sounds good to me.

Winners: The Miz & Logan Paul

Drew McIntyre vs. Happy Corbin.

A year ago, Drew was main eventing and fighting for World Championships, and now, he’s here fighting a guy named Happy. Baron Corbin is a good wrestler and this will be a good match. Of that, I have no doubt, but just look at where both of them are on the roster? This is a match for RAW or Smackdown, not Wrestlemania. Oy vey! Look for the Claymore and a pin as Drew takes that big trip to the pay window after getting the 1-2-3.

Winner: Drew McIntyre

WWE Smackdown Tag Team Champions The Usos vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Rick Boogs.

I like Shinsuke and Boogs, but are they really a tag team that’s on the same level as The Usos? Really? Maybe they’ll surprise me, but I seriously doubt it. Look for the Bloodline to keep their titles here.

Winners and STILL WWE Smackdown Tag Team Champions: The Usos

New Day’s Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods vs. Sheamus & Ridge Holland.

Hey, don’t forget about Butch. He’ll be in the corner of Sheamus and Holland, and I expect to see him play a big part in the finish. I don’t really expect anything big from this match and it’ll be just another run-of-the-mill tag match, used as filler, but it should be okay to watch and have some okay moments. And I think that Butch will be the deciding factor as his presence will allow Sheamus and Ridge Holland to walk out with the big win.

Winners: Sheamus & Ridge Holland w/ Butch

Seth Rollins vs. Vince McMahon’s handpicked Mystery Opponent.

The first question is, who is the mystery opponent? Is it Shane McMahon? WWE has brought him back for the weekend so it’s a big possibility. Nah, it’s not Shane. Is it Great Khali? I doubt that as well. Chris Masters noted on Twitter that he’s free and if Vince wants an opponent for Seth, he’s ready and available. Seth versus Masters? That one could actually be pretty good, but I doubt that’s it either. Let’s just say it. It’s Cody Rhodes. And Seth will go the shocked-face bit, we’ll have a great match, and Cody will win in the end. And there you go.

Winner: Cody Rhodes

And there you go. My predictions for Night One of Wrestlemania 38. So what do you think? Who do you pick as the possible winners and losers of the evening? Let me know in the comments, along with any other thoughts or questions you may have. And thank you for your continued support. I guess that’s all for now. I’ll be back later with my predictions for Night Two. Stay good and be awesome, my friends. I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!