10 Questions WWE Will Need to Answer in 2018

While WWE doesn’t have an offseason, the closing of WrestleMania always feels like the ending of a movie. Typically, the RAW after WrestleMania is the beginning of a new story, but the Greatest Royal Rumble put things on pause.

But now that we’re past that, we can finally start to envision what the 2018-2019 WWE season will look like.

April was quite the month for Vince McMahon and his traveling circus, but now he and his roundtable face an abundance of pressing questions.

We rounded up our favorite ten and addressed each of them. Enjoy!

Who is the Next Universal Champion?

I doubt there were many people outside of WWE who foresaw Brock Lesnar winning at both WrestleMania 34 and the Greatest Royal Rumble. But he did, and now WWE has us all guessing.

For the most part, Brock Lesnar’s new WWE contract combined with his UFC ambitions make his 2018 wholly unpredictable. However, I don’t think he’ll hold that big red belt for much longer.

So where does it land? Could Roman Reigns be extended yet another opportunity? Or is it time for Braun Strowman to be champion? Rollins? Cena? Lashley?

We don’t know, and that’s a wonderful feeling.

What Will Happen With Roman Reigns?

As mentioned, WWE paused Reigns’ coronation not once, but twice in April. Has The Big Dog fallen out of favor?

Reigns haters would love to see him fall to the mid-card, but that’s nothing more than a twisted fantasy. Reigns will hover around WWE’s main event, but whether or not that includes championships remains to be seen. 

At this point, both profound hatred and blind love of Roman are questionable. Like the rest of his peers, he’ll have to prove his worth in 2018.

Should Ronda Rousey Hold the RAW Women’s Championship?

The biggest takeaway from WrestleMania 34, was the undeniable star power of Ronda Rousey. There’s no doubt she’ll have multiple championship reigns, but when will she be ready?

By now, we’d be foolish to underestimate Rousey’s capabilities, but she is still a very young wrestler. For the immediate future, she’ll work with WWE vets like Natalya and Mickie James in the name of tutelage. But after this, she may be ready to pursue WWE gold. 

Her window for RAW Women’s Champion opens at SummerSlam, but even then could be considered too early. WWE appears to be very conscious of her expansion, almost like they’ve learned something from Roman’s heavy-handed push. They may choose to slow play their Golden Goose and reserve her championship moment for WrestleMania 35.

What does WWE Do With Charlotte Flair?

The other side of the Rousey coming is Charlotte Flair. The greatest female wrestler of all time will need some compelling moments this year, especially is she’s expected to main event WrestleMania 35 with Rousey.

At the moment, SmackDown doesn’t offer much for Flair. She’s demonstrably more advanced than her Blue Brand peers and any feud she has would be with a lesser opponent. WWE can close this gap with a great story, but as much as women’s wrestling has improved lately, the storytelling within the division still leaves plenty to be desired.

Could a rivalry with Becky Lynch be the answer? A revival with Asuka? A heel turn?

Could Seth Rollins become WWE’s Top Star?

It’s still early, but you can see the beginnings of a Seth Rollins’ tsunami swelling on the horizon. 

Not even a month old, Rollins’ turn with the Intercontinental Championship has been fun to watch. We can expect him to hold this for quite some time, but the question begs: what’s next?

A Universal Championship is certainly not out of the question, but we may have to wait for the final months of 2018 for that to develop.

 

Does WWE Strap Their Rocket to Braun Strowman Now, or in 2019?

WWE know that have something unique in Strowman. But now they must choose his proper launch date.

Could he be Universal Champion in a week? Sure. Would people love it? Sure. Is he ready? 

Who really knows?

The long play is to have Strowman win the 2019 Royal Rumble then beat whoever awaits him at WrestleMania 35. But WWE may not have to wait that long. 

Reigns and Strowman could spend the rest of 2017 duking it out over the Universal Championship, but the question is who would beat Brock Lesnar

Where Does Dean Ambrose Go?

If one thing is certain, it’s that WWE will use a rotation of The Shield in their main event until 2030. 

Dean Ambrose is made man in WWE, and while his injury was unfortunate, he now gets to partake in one of the more hallowed storylines in professional wrestling: The Comeback.

Does he return to join forces with Rollins? Or reciprocate Rollins’ storied betrayal? 

I think Ambrose will pay villain in 2018, and I have no interest in curbing my high expectations. 

Who Becomes the King of SmackDown?

For about two years, AJ Styles has enjoyed an uninterrupted monopoly of SmackDown’s main event. His dominance needs no justification, and WWE could keep him on Tuesday nights and few would complain.

But it would be a little boring.

With the return of Daniel Bryan, the additions of Samoa Joe and The Miz and Shinsuke Nakamura’s heel turn, SmackDown has plenty of names to vie for the crown.

 

 

Will Paul Heyman Get a New Client?

The details of Brock Lesnar’s WWE status are muddy, to say the least. However, it does look his time in the ring will be more intermittent than ever in 2018. 

But that may not be the case for Paul Heyman. 

I’d be willing to guess that Heyman and Lesnar’s contracts have very different terms and The Advocate’s skills are tied tighter to WWE than Lesnar’s. 

So unless wants to let Heyman twiddle his thumbs while Lesnar pursues a UFC comeback, he’ll need a new protege. 

It could come from the men’s division. Bobby Lashley and Roman Reigns are decent candidates. But Heyman would command the most attention if he picked a female Superstar to back.

While Rousey is the low hanging fruit, attaching Heyman could look like a crutch. Instead, I’d bet on Heyman sponsoring NXT Champion, Shayna Basler when it’s time for her promotion.

Will Tag Team Wrestling Continue its Rennaisance?

2017 was a windfall for tag team wrestling. The rise of the Usos, the establishment of The Bar, the reunion of Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose and the fortification of The New Day made the tag ranks WWE’s most fruitful division.

While 2018 hasn’t exactly followed suit for these teams, the stage is set for them to rebound.

While RAW has a few unique pairings, it’s SmackDown who will lead this charge. 

*Bonus Round*

Will John Cena Pursue his Record 17th World Championship?

He may. Thankfully this story doesn’t have an expiration date, so Cena can resume his quest whenever he wants. But 2018 may see very little of Cena

Is Batista Coming Back?

He certainly wants too and was reportedly catfished out of tagging with Rousey at WrestleMania. Current rumors have him returning for a huge feud with Triple H

Undertaker is Rumored for Several More Matches; What the Hell For?

I have plenty of really good Undertaker memories, but I really don’t need anymore. He’s reportedly good for 2-3 more matches this year, but I’m having a hard time seeing where he fits.