WWE Fastlane 2016: Odds, Final Picks and Predictions for All Matches on the Card
The odds are in and the predictions are aplenty as WWE Fastlane 2016 is upon us.
Sunday night, the Superstars and Divas of World Wrestling Entertainment will invade Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena for the final pay-per-view before WrestleMania 32 on April 3.
The show, headlined by Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar in a Triple Threat No. 1 Contender's match, figures to play a major role in setting up feuds and matches for the Showcase of the Immortals.
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With an undercard featuring AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho, Dolph Ziggler vs. Kevin Owens for the Intercontinental Championship and United States champion Kalisto vs. Alberto Del Rio in a Best 2-out-of-3-Falls match, there is potential for a hell of a wrestling show to boot.
Now, just hours away from the extravaganza, broadcast on WWE Network as well as more traditional pay-per-view outlets, gear up for the show with these last-minute predictions and odds (courtesy of our friends at OddsShark.com) for each of the night's most important bouts.
| Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar | Roman Reigns (-600; The Field; +400) | Brock Lesnar (+640; The Field; -1320), Dean Ambrose (+800; The Field; -1700) |
| Brie Bella vs. Charlotte | Charlotte (-530) | Brie Bella (+350) |
| Dolph Ziggler vs. Kevin Owens | Kevin Owens (-900) | Dolph Ziggler (-500) |
| Kalisto vs. Alberto Del Rio | Kalisto (-300) | Alberto Del Rio (+220) |
| AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho | AJ Styles (-675) | Chris Jericho (+425) |
| Big Show, Ryback and Kane vs. The Wyatt Family | The Wyatt Family (-420) | Big Show, Ryback and Kane (+300) |
| Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks vs. Naomi and Tamina | Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks (-900) | Naomi and Tamina (+500) |
Triple Threat No. 1 Contender's Match: Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns
WWE Creative has done a fine job of creating doubt in the minds of fans that Reigns will actually leave Cleveland as the No. 1 Contender to Triple H's WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
It has presented Ambrose as the anti-authority underdog, and Lesnar is always a threat to emerge victorious, but make no mistake about it: The main event of Sunday's show will see Reigns cash his ticket to the biggest match of the year, against the man who has been responsible for screwing him out of the WWE title on more than one occasion.
Barring some unforeseen circumstance involving an injury or rash change of plans, the leader of the Roman Empire picks up the win here and moves on to his second consecutive WrestleMania main event.
Prediction: Reigns
AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho
The rubber match in the competitive rivalry between Styles and Jericho figures to be one of the best matches on the card, at least based on the strength of the two previous bouts between the celebrated in-ring competitors.
Sunday night's match represents Styles' first opportunity to wow the WWE Universe on a grand stage. At Royal Rumble, he shocked the world with his debut in WWE owner Vince McMahon's company, but now, the spotlight will not be shared by 29 other Superstars. It will shine brightly on him and his opponent. A misstep and a disappointing performance are magnified in the moment.
Jericho picked up his win to even the series at one apiece, but Sunday's match is about putting Styles over and allowing him to move onto whatever it is WWE Creative has planned for him at WrestleMania.
Prediction: Styles
Ryback, Big Show and Kane vs. The Wyatt Family
This Six-Man Tag Team match was made official just this past Thursday night on SmackDown, three days after Kane popped out from underneath the ring and attempted to drag The Wyatt Family to hell as if it were 2003 again.
The feud has been fairly nonexistent, with Bray Wyatt and his followers beating their Fastlane opponents down in singles match, only to find themselves on the receiving end of a concentrated effort by Big Show, Kane and Ryback to end their dominance thus far in 2016.
After eliminating Lesnar from the Royal Rumble and costing him the opportunity to regain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Wyatt figures to battle The Beast Incarnate at WrestleMania. If that is indeed the course the company takes with The Reaper of Souls, he will need a strong and decisive victory to put him over as a credible threat.
He will get it here as the heels bowl over their midcard babyface opponents.
Prediction: The Wyatt Family
Divas Championship Match: Brie Bella vs. Charlotte
The Divas title match at Fastlane has benefited exponentially from the retirement of Daniel Bryan, husband of top contender Brie Bella. Charlotte, a true heel, exploited the heartbreak experienced by the happy couple in an attempt to play mind games with her challenger.
But Bella had none of it, instead unleashing her fury on the champion with a series of kicks right out of her significant other's arsenal.
WWE Creative has expertly created sympathy for Bella by using Bryan's retirement but not overdoing it as to make the match all about the former world champion. Instead, the spotlight has remained on the Divas, and as a result, their match is significantly hotter than it would have been otherwise.
While the company has always been a sucker for the feel-good moment, there is no way Bella leaves Cleveland with the title. She is over with fans thanks to her role on Total Divas, but she is not a key member of the Divas Revolution that will continue on well past her retirement this summer, which WWE.com reported on following an appearance on Good Morning America.
Too much has been invested in building Charlotte into the top heel in the division to spoil it just for one last brief run by Bella.
Prediction: Charlotte
Intercontinental Championship Match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Kevin Owens
Initially, the "feud" between Ziggler and Owens consisted of the Superstars trading wins back and forth seeing as how WWE Creative had nothing else better for them to do. Then, on this past Monday's episode of Raw, Owens defeated Ambrose and three other Superstars in a Fatal 5-Way match to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship, and suddenly, his program with The Showoff has stakes attached.
Sunday night, Owens will defend against the man that has been responsible for the majority of his recent defeats.
With little else in the way of story behind the match, WWE Creative is clearly hoping that the two immensely talented wrestlers can win over the crowd with their skills alone. If their previous bouts are any indication, that will not be difficult.
The counters and reversals they have exhibited to this point have created drama and led to many a hot finish. Expect them to save their best for last when they take to the squared circle for their PPV clash and for Owens to retain the title he just won six days ago.
Prediction: Owens
Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks vs. Naomi and Tamina
Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks have become the reluctant partners forced to band together to combat a common enemy, and Sunday night, they will look to put an end to the thorn in their side known as Team B.A.D.
Naomi and Tamina have taken turns beating down the former NXT Divas, their betrayal of Banks really setting in motion the events that would lead to Sunday's match.
Lynch and Banks, portrayed as enemies on the main roster, do have experience as a team dating back to their days competing in Full Sail University for the company's developmental brand. They were two of the lead heels in the Divas division, mixing it up with the likes of Bayley and Charlotte, and having considerable success doing so.
The question is whether they can set pride and ego aside to dispatch of their opponents and, perhaps, put themselves in position for a championship opportunity in the very near future.
They will win, in what is the biggest foregone conclusion this side of Reigns' win in the main event, but only time will tell what WWE Creative has in store for them in regards to the title and the Showcase of the Immortals.
Prediction: Lynch and Banks
Best 2-out-of-3-Falls Match for the United States Championship: Kalisto vs. Alberto Del Rio
The rivalry between Del Rio and Kalisto has been surprisingly one-sided, the masked luchador upsetting Del Rio on multiple occasions, most notably at Royal Rumble to capture his second United States Championship in a month's time.
They will jump-start Sunday night's festivities on the pay-per-view Kickoff show, quite the demotion for a program that was one of the more significant ones of last month's Rumble broadcast.
Given the talent of the men involved, the match has the potential to set the stage for a great night of wrestling and maybe even steal the show if they can channel the chemistry that has been missing in their previous bouts.
Kalisto will win, if only because switching the title again would not only devalue it but also kill all of the masked Superstar's heat as a singles competitor. Del Rio is stale, is trapped in the deep dark abyss of creativity known as the League of Nations and does not need another reign with the title to enhance a resume already bloated with unnecessary championships.
Prediction: Kalisto wins, 2-1
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