WWE Elimination Chamber 2018 Matches: Final Picks, Predictions for Entire Card
The final Raw-branded pay-per-view before WWE shifts over to a co-branded PPV system will be the 2018 Elimination Chamber event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday.
Buzz for the show has been somewhat lackluster in a lot of ways, with an atmosphere of impatience in the build to WrestleMania mixed with uncertainty it will be more than a two-match card.
Those two Elimination Chamber matches are not exempt from suspicion, though, as both present challenges and potential booking pitfalls WWE needs to avoid.
This could be a major success from a creative standpoint or a colossal failure, as it is vital to the Road to WrestleMania.
The wrong calls on who wins could sour fans' moods for the big event in April, making Elimination Chamber extra important in how 2018 plays out.
With the Raw Women's Championship and a No. 1 contender's spot on the line, among other things, who will be walking out of Elimination Chamber with a golden ticket for WWE to push them over the next few months, and who will come up short?
As the event draws closer, it's time for one final round of predictions about which Superstars will win at Elimination Chamber 2018.
Kickoff Match: Gallows and Anderson vs. The Miztourage
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WWE seemingly put little effort into building most of this card, and it goes to show, with the Kickoff segment being this tag team match that was announced Friday afternoon with zero purpose behind it.
Even in advertising this match, WWE had virtually nothing to say, essentially stating it would happen and that is it.
With that in mind, it's hard to get excited for something that will likely have no effect on anything going forward.
It's good to see these men get on the card, but it's a shame it happens to be in such a lackluster fashion.
Since Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel are jokes, this is on Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows to get the victory.
Final pick: The Balor Club is victorious.
Raw Tag Team Championships Match: The Bar vs. Titus Worldwide
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Apollo might have lost his surname recently, but he was instrumental in gaining a win over The Bar alongside Titus O'Neil on Monday, setting up their title opportunity here.
That is textbook basic booking, with the champions losing in order to give some momentum to their challengers.
What is interesting about this situation is it's just within the range where the most obvious outcome of Sheamus and Cesaro retaining the titles is the smart bet, yet with WrestleMania coming up, it wouldn't be too odd for the belts to change hands.
Titus Worldwide isn't getting the biggest pops of the night or anything, but a title reign—however short it may be—could turn that around and get fans invested in them.
It could also set up a Fatal 4-Way or Fatal 5-Way at WrestleMania, with The Bar looking to regain the belts while The Revival, The Balor Club and The Miztourage all staking claims to be the next in line for shots at the gold.
This is not the most interesting match on the card, and it's unlikely it's the one people will be tuning in specifically to see, but it could be a sleeper hit and a fun segment.
Final pick: The Bar retains the titles.
Matt Hardy vs. Bray Wyatt
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The feud between Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt worked much better on paper than it has in execution.
Despite being quirky characters who seemed like a perfect fit for a storyline, little substance has been given to it throughout the program, which feels as though it has gone on for even longer than three months.
It's hard to get too invested in this, as it is either the lackluster end to a feud that failed to capitalize on its potential or it's just another step in the continuation of something that won't see any finality.
In either scenario, the only thing that can save it is the quality of the match, but it likely won't be anything special.
You might as well flip a coin to determine who wins, as it doesn't matter. Hardy has been more of the driving force of all this and needs the victory more, so WWE would be smart to give him the edge.
Final pick: Matt Hardy is victorious.
Asuka vs. Nia Jax
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It is exhausting to examine all the ways this match could go down and cause a massive problem on the Road to WrestleMania in the process because WWE has backed itself into a corner.
In any fashion, if either woman wins, the other one is going to lose some kind of momentum that doesn't just hurt her but rather whomever her opponent may be at WrestleMania.
Things get complicated when factoring in how WWE has advertised that a Nia Jax win creates a Triple Threat scenario for a title match Asuka has yet to opt for, knowing she can jump ship to SmackDown Live to challenge Charlotte Flair and render this whole thing pointless.
Either WWE didn't think this through, the creative team is OK with the hindrances this will cause and didn't prefer to course-correct for any other alternative option or there is something of a wild card in the works.
When push comes to shove, though, Asuka is undefeated. The smart bet is always to go with the person who has never lost.
Final pick: Asuka's streak stays strong with a win over Nia Jax.
Raw Women's Championship Elimination Chamber Match
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For the first time, the women's division will be represented in an Elimination Chamber match, as Alexa Bliss seeks to defend her Raw Women's Championship against her five opponents.
Unfortunately for the contenders, not one of them stands a chance at dethroning The Goddess.
Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose are far too fresh for the main roster to be entrusted with carrying the championship into the biggest show of the year.
In the future, either or both of them might reach that goal, but now is not the time.
Mickie James serves a function of being another Superstar in the mix and a veteran who puts over younger talent. Sadly, she will be skipped over without much thought.
Bayley and Sasha Banks are both former champions who have had their issues with Bliss in the past, which is exactly why a title win for them wouldn't be interesting enough, as fans have already seen them face Five Feet of Fury.
Regardless of whether her opponent at WrestleMania is Asuka, Nia Jax or a combination of the two, Bliss is the one with the momentum to carry that championship into New Orleans and draw legitimate attention to it more than anybody else here.
Final pick: Alexa Bliss retains the Raw Women's Championship by hook or by crook.
Men's Elimination Chamber No. 1 Contender's Match
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This time last year, it seemed as though the papers were already signed that Brock Lesnar would defend the Universal Championship against Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 34.
The time to make that decision is upon us. It seems like it is an inevitability.
The one saving grace for people who are not interested in seeing a pointless redo of a WrestleMania 31 match that didn't work the first time and would likely run into the same problems is how popular Braun Strowman has become in recent months.
There exists a solid possibility The Monster Among Men walks out of the Elimination Chamber as the victor, whether he shares that spotlight with Reigns in a finish that sees both men declared the winners, forcing a Triple Threat at WrestleMania, or whether he does it on his own.
It may be a pipe dream compared to the near-certainty The Big Dog will come out on top once again, but if anybody is going to win other than Reigns, it's Strowman.
The Miz, Finn Balor, Elias, John Cena and even the recent iron man himself, Seth Rollins, will all fall to those two behemoths.
While it's sad to say you shouldn't have hope for anything other than a Reigns victory, anything can happen in WWE. Everybody simply has to tune in to find out the direction the company has decided to go in.
Final pick: Roman Reigns wins, but don't count out Strowman's chances.
Who do you think will be winning at Elimination Chamber 2018? Tell us your predictions by leaving a comment below to keep the discussion going!
Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.
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