WWE WrestleMania 34: Way-Too-Early Predictions for Top Matches on the Card

The Road to WrestleMania usually begins at the Royal Rumble. But the bricks that comprise that road are laid long before that.

WWE will broadcast Survivor Series live on WWE Network on November 19. It's being promoted as a cross-brand competition, a more elaborate version of Bragging Rights. But a savvy viewer will be watching the internal conflicts on each brand—who cost their team the match or who turned on their tag team partners. The plot twists will tell us a lot about where this story is headed come WrestleMania.

Here are some early predictions for WrestleMania 34's card. But as fans know, injuries, politics and CEO Vince McMahon's impulsiveness can change anything at the last minute.

Kurt Angle vs. Triple H

This is a sure thing at this point; WWE has been laying groundwork in ways both big and small for almost a year.

The friendly competition between Raw general manager Angle and SmackDown Live Commissioner Shane McMahon recently turned violent with the #UnderSiege attack on Raw. And then Raw Commissioner Stephanie McMahon dressed Angle down in the middle of the ring, threatening that she would fire him from his position if he didn't get his act together.

The Olympic champion is on the outs with two members of the McMahon family. It is hardly a leap to assume Angle will find a way to tick off Stephanie's husband. The two of them have history, going back to their love triangle with Stephanie back in 2000 and his street fight against Shane in 2001.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles

We may finally get the Wrestle Kingdom 10 dream rematch that we have wanted since these two men signed to WWE. Unfortunately, we may not see them fight it for the world title.

Nakamura tried (and failed) to capture the universal title from Jinder Mahal. His rep is far diminished from where it was three months ago. And AJ Styles may be the champion, but his latest victory was sudden and surprising; it's entirely possible he could lose it right back to Mahal or someone else just as easily.

As much as WWE pushes and promotes AJ Styles, the company does not utilize him as the go-to guy for main event matches. At WrestleMania 32, he fought Chris Jericho and lost. At WrestleMania 33, he fought Shane McMahon, who's barely even a wrestler.

WWE has been dropping enough hints that Nakamura and Styles will collide. But they will have to settle for being the show-stealers rather than the main event for the time being.

John Cena vs. Jinder Mahal

Jinder Mahal recently lost his WWE title to AJ Styles. But he has two Singh brothers in his employ; he could easily gain the title back before WrestleMania. The company still has a tour of India in December, after all.

And meanwhile, John Cena is looking for his record-breaking 17th world title. A storyline with Mahal could culminate in New Orleans and turn Cena's career-defining achievement into a WrestleMania moment.

The Patriotic American versus Evil Foreigner playbook is pretty stale at this point. But it is reliable, especially with big enthusiastic crowds like the ones at WrestleMania.

Samoa Joe vs. Braun Strowman

Brock Lesnar will be occupied at WrestleMania 34 because he's probably not going to drop the title before then. Roman Reigns will be similarly occupied. And that means Samoa Joe and Braun Strowman, the other two monsters in the division, will have nothing to do.

So why not just put them together in a match?

It'll be a classic monster-movie showdown. Strowman can usually pick up and rag-doll his opponents, but he will have a much more difficult time fighting Joe. This fight could even be for a mid-card title if WWE plans far enough in advance.

Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

There's no more logical main event than this. The only question is how WWE writers will book this. Will they stick to the current plan and let Reigns get booed out of the building? Will they finally turn him heel, which is what fans have wanted for years? Will The Shield provide a last-minute assist, which is probably their only hope on getting Reigns over as a face?

The Big Dog is the man who retired The Undertaker. Lesnar is the most protected wrestler on either roster, and he's been set up as nearly unbeatable. There is no wrestler on WWE, Reigns, Strowman and Joe included, who has presented a serious threat to Lesnar's dominance.

Reigns is going to face Lesnar at WrestleMania and clinch the universal title. How the fans, both in attendance and at home, will react is the big question WWE must answer and pre-empt.