Sunday night at 7pm et, the 25th anniversary of the biggest wrestling show in the world will take place, WrestleMania XXV. However, this year the WWE certainly hasn't made it feel like the biggest show of the year. We'll never forget matches like Hogan vs Andre, Savage vs Steamboat, Hogan vs Warrior, HBK vs Razor, Bret vs Owen, Bret vs HBK, Bret vs Austin, Austin vs Rock, Rock vs Hogan, Benoit vs HBK vs HHH, HBK vs Angle,and HBK vs Flair. One interesting note from that list is that The Undertaker isn't included. To me, he hasn't had a single defining match at WrestleMania for me. The closest I would consider would be last year when he defeated Edge and closed the show to become the new World Champion. However, this year that could change as the single most anticipated match for many people is The Undertaker putting his perfect WrestleMania record of 16-0 on the line against "Mr. WrestleMania" Shawn Michaels. With the exception of this match, WrestleMania XXV feels like any other PPV which is a very unfortunate thing. I pinpoint this problem on a single source, Vince McMahon, and that branches into numerous other problems. WrestleMania is supposed to be the culimination of long brewing feuds that we finally get the big payoff. There just isn't that feel this year. Let's take a look why.
The first and most important problem is the lack of long-term booking. And this isn't the fault of the writers themselves. It strictly lies at the feet of Vince McMahon. Vince seemingly changes his mind about the direction of storylines everyday he gets out of bed. Case in point is the fact that even going into this past Monday's Raw, Vince still hadn't settled on Jericho's match. Also, we saw Orton basically throw out the entire storyline built up over the past two months and completely changed his story. I'm not saying the writers don't have any fault here, but Vince has to OK all storylines before they are put into production, and with Vince's inability to make up his mind, it has to be maddening working for him.
With the lack of long-term booking, it does not allow you to build feuds and storylines over time that fans are genuinely interested in that can finally be paid off at WrestleMania that fans really want to see. And isn't that the purpose of any PPV? To make the show compelling enough to make fans want to plunk down their hard earned money, especially in this economy, to see what is going to happen. Since many of these matches have either been thrown together on the fly, or been so played out on TV because they have no meaningful storyline, I feel that the interest going into WrestleMania XXV is at an all-time low. The WWE should really consider doing away with the No Way Out PPV and begin building directly to WrestleMania from The Royal Rumble. I mean, Randy Orton won the Royal Rumble by eliminating HHH, and then at No Way Out, HHH wins the title, and Orton ends up challenging HHH. You would never see something like this in the past. The next year with the likely demise of My Network TV and major changes being made to Smackdown will be very interesting for the WWE to see how they handle their talent. I'm not saying Smackdown is going away, but the current rumors (likely to change tomorrow) are that Raw will become the marquee show and Smackdown will clearly be the 'B' show.
The third major problem going into this year's WrestleMania, and it has been a problem for quite some time, is the WWE's unwillingness to create new stars. I'm not going to call it an inability, because over the past year CM Punk has held the heavyweight title, Jeff Hardy has held the heavyweight title, and Brian Kendrick and Shelton Benjamin have been in the main events of PPVs. However, it is the WWE's unwillingness to let these stars exceed that is the problem. Because ratings and buyrates slightly dropped during Punk's reign, he lost the title despite a highly entertaining reign which the fans were starting to really get behind. The same exact thing goes for Chris Jericho. Jericho was the Superstar of the Year in 2008, which was well deserved. But again, his title reign was cut short because of slightly lower ratings and buy rates. The WWE needs to understand that guys don't become Hogan, The Rock, or Austin overnight. They need time to grow. Imagine if the WWE pulled the title off of Cena within a month after his first run. The company would definitely be at a different point than it's at today. Both CM Punk and Jeff Hardy are right back were they were before their title reigns. If Hardy stays on Smackdown, I can see him challenging for the title, but not if he makes the jump back to Raw. And Punk is right back to his midcard status which is a real shame. And what happened to Brian Kendrick. He had an awesome new gimmick, and now he's nothing be midcard fodder. The Undertakers, HBKs, and HHHs only have a few years left in their careers. Then what? John Cena can't wrestle every match. It's time to start grooming the main eventers of tomorrow. The WWE had a golden opportunity to begin this process by letting Jack Swagger defend the ECW Title agaisnt Evan Bourne to open tonight's show. But instead, we'll probably get a stupid comedy segment. Despite being big names in ECW, many of the WWE fans still don't know Swagger and Bourne. What better way to introduce them by letting them go 10 minutes to start tonight's show. You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain. It's the little things like this that really make me angry with the WWE.
So finally, because of the lack of new stars, it makes the matches booked for WrestleMania XXV feel stale and repetitive. I mean, how many times have we seen HHH vs Orton? I believe this is the 8th time. And let's not even get started on Edge vs Cena. So they added Big Show into the match with a silly storyline involving Vickie Guerrero. Both of these things only served to hurt the match, making it even less interesting than a singles match between Edge and Cena. We've seen the competitors in the MITB match face each other at least six different times leading up to WrestleMania which makes my interest in the match lessen instead of grow. We've seen JBL vs Mysterio numerous times. It's amazing that the only fresh match on the card is between the two men who have been in the WWE the longest, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels. These two have not faced each other in a major singles match in 11 years which is incredible in today's WWE. This fact alone makes you really want to see their match tonight. So like I said, without the creation of new stars, we will continue to see the same recycled matches PPV after PPV.
So despite all the problems with the WWE and their booking of WrestleMania XXV, we still have a pretty solid card on paper. Let's get into it. 
JBL (c) vs Rey Mysterio Jr - Intercontinental Championship Match
Rey Mysterio confirmed in a radio interview this week that this match would open the show tonight. It's fitting that we would find out about the match through a radio interview considering it was Michael Cole who officially announced this match would happen during a meaningless JBL match. The match was basically an afterthought because they had nothing for the two men to do on the show. To further add to the meaningless of this match, the WWE did the unthinkable and gave this match away for free this past Monday on Raw. Not a tag match, not a backstage brawl, but the exact match we will see this Sunday night. In my 20+ years of watching wrestling, I've never seen this before. I know there are probably about two people in the world buying WrestleMania to see this match, but you still don't give away the match for free, with a clean finish, before the actual PPV match. It's just mind boggling.
As for the match itself, these two have faced each other many times in the past. Sometimes it was good, sometimes it was very bad. When JBL returned last year, it was clear he had lost a lot in the ring. And over his time back, he has become even worse. Mysterio also has not been the same since his latest knee surgery. I don't have high expecations for this match, but being WrestleMania, you know both men will bring their A games, whatever that means. I'm going with JBL for two reasons in this match. First, the rumors are that Mysterio will move back to Smackdown in the upcoming draft to once again increase the show's Latino audience. Mysterio was a star on Smackdown, but largely an afterthought on Raw. This is the right move. Second, many are saying tonight's will be JBL's final match. He will win, retain the Intercontinental Title, and retire on the biggest stage in wrestling in his home state. It seems like a logical storyline, and a perfect way for him to go out. Especially with Tazz having left the WWE, it makes perfect sense for JBL to return to the Smackdown announce team.
Finally, JBL has promised some type of historic announcement tonight. I really am clueless as to what this will be. My guess is that he will "buy" ECW and rebrand it as his own. However, with the new opportunities with the WWE announce team, that could all change. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. There hasn't been too much hype about his announcement from the WWE, so it may not be something that major afterall.
Prediction: JBL - Retains Intercontinental Championship 
CM Punk vs Mark Henry vs Kane vs Shelton Benjamin vs Christian vs Kofi Kingston vs MVP vs Finlay - Money in the Bank Match
We know what we're going to see in this match, so instead I will breakdown each man's chances.
Mark Henry - This was supposedly R-Truth's spot before Vince soured on him. So instead we have Henry. He will most likely be used as a safety mat, literally, to catch men during insane falls from the ladders. He has no chance of winning the match.
Kofi Kingston - Kofi should feel happy just to be in this match. It will be interesting to see how he performs in his first major stage match. He should hit some impressive spots, but he will not be winning tonight.
Finlay - Fit will be in his normal role as ring officer. He will keep things moving, but will not have a chance at winning the match.
Kane - Some are saying he should win the match and eventually a title as a type of lifetime achievement award, but I don't feel that way. First, Kane went over strong this past week on TV, so that almost guarentees he won't be winning the MITB match. Second, I've never seen Kane as a legit main eventer. I can't see the WWE taking the time to build him up to headline Raw or Smackdown. I don't think he is any type of ratings draw or legitimate champion.
CM Punk - We all know what happened when Punk won the MITB last year and went on to win the WWE Title. I don't see him repeating this year because it just seems that the WWE (Stephanie) has slightly soured on him. Of course, it was a total shocker when he won last year, so I wouldn't rule it out this year.
Christian - We have all seen the reports of Christian not being looked upon fondly by Vince McMahon. It's very hard to know how true these reports are because Christian is the top star right now in ECW. However, the reason I'm not going with Christian to win this match is the fact I don't think he's been back long enough. It seems to quickly to me to see him get thrown into the heavyweight title picture (I pray that the MITB isn't used for the ECW Title). Christian should look good in this match, especially since he has previous experience, but I don't see him pulling down the briefcase.
Shelton Benjamin - He is my darkhorse to win this match. If Shelton pulls down the briefcase, I won't be shocked in the least. In fact, I'll be extremely happy for him because he's been in three of the previous four MITB matches. We know what we'll get from Shelton, probably the most athletic spots in the match. Since Shelton has rededicated himself to the WWE, he seems to be receiving the push he deserves as the "Gold Standard". It would be a perfect next step for him to become Mr. MITB. Plus, it would be a shocker just like last year when CM Punk won it. That is why I put him as my 2nd most likely choice to win the match.
MVP - He's the chalk pick in this match, but I have to go with him. Dating back to his losing streak, it seems that the WWE was just grooming him to become a champion. MVP proved he is a company man by going along with the losing streak and not pouting. Now, they have turned him face and he is one of the most over wrestlers on Smackdown. MVP has the ring talent and the mic skills to make him a main eventer. I think 2009 will be MVP's year. I see him winning the MITB match and cashing in the opportunity later this year to become the new heavyweight champion.
Prediction: Shelton Benjamin
Chris Jericho vs Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka, and Ricky Steamboat - Legends Guantlet Match
This match has frustrated me than any other on the card. We all know the original plans were for a Jericho vs Mickey Rourke match. Jericho was angry about the movie The Wrestler, and how Rourke portrayed professional wrestling. Everything was in place, but after Rourke's handlers got to him, he pulled out of the match. At that point, Vince seemed to change his mind daily on the direction of this match. Despite that, we had three weeks of some of the greatest promo segments you will ever see with Flair, Piper, and Steamboat. These hall of famers were their to stick up for The Wrestler and the way it portrayed them. They repeatedly stated they hang around because of their love for the business, not the paychecks. The program started to go downhill at that point. Snuka cannot talk and thus, his segment was not very good. Then Jericho beat Flair in a very uncomfortable brawl where Jericho left Flair a beaten and bloodied man. Then this week, there was no promo from Flair to talk about what Jericho did. Hell, the three legends that Jericho is facing didn't even appear on TV. Instead, Jericho beat Jerry Lawler in a decent match. However, it did nothing to get me excited for Jericho's match this weekend.
I give Vince credit for at least exhausting all of his options with this match. After Rourke fell through, he did explore his other options. He tried to work a deal with Steve Austin, but Austin didn't bite. He also tried to get Hogan, but Hogan was also not available for whatever reason. Lawler was looked at for the WrestleMania match, but that isn't much of a draw. So instead, we have the match we have tonight. Thankfully it is a guantlet match so it can be kept short with Piper and Snuka. One would think that Jericho would make quick work with these two, and then we'll get to see what Steamboat has left. Jericho should get the victory here. Then, one would think that Mickey Rourke, who is scheduled to be sitting at ringside, will get in the ring and knock Jericho out ot close the program. It makes prefect sense, and would be a good conclusion to a program that never really clicked for various reasons.
Prediction: Chris Jericho 
25 Diva Battle Royal - Winner to be Crowned 'Miss WrestleMania'
Current Diva's Announced For Match: Beth Phoenix, Melina, Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Layla, Jillian Hall, Rosa Mendes, Maryse, Michelle McCool, Gail Kim, Maria, Eve Torres, Nikki Bella, Brie Bella, Natalya Neidhart, Katie Lea Burchill, Tiffany, Alicia Fox
Former Diva's Appearing: Tammy "Sunny" Sytch, Torrie Wilson, Molly Holly, Victoria, Jackie Gayda
That gives us 23 Divas unless something changes. For the last two spots, I've seen reports saying Nidia may take one of the spots. There have also been reports that Vickie Guerrero has been getting a crash course in wrestling to take one of the spots. I would suspect only one of these are true, which would leave one last spot. If Trish Stratus is available, she will get the last spot. If she's not, Mae Young will get the last spot. There's also the good possibility that Santino and the mankini will have one of these spots for comedy purposes.
As for the match, it will be one of those where 20 of the 25 Divas are eliminated in the first three minutes. Here are my picks to win:
-Trish Stratus if she's in the match.
-If no Trish, then Mae Young if she's in the match. God knows Mae can't take a bump to the outside.
-If no Trish and no Mae, then I'll go with Maryse. This is just a random pick, but reports say Vince is high on her at the moment, so I'll take her. Miss WrestleMania would fit her persona well. 
Carlito and Primo Colon (WWE Tag Team Champions) vs The Miz and John Morrison (World Tag Team Champions) - Tag Team Championship Unification Match
I am very happy about this match. It signifies two things. First, by unifying the titles, the WWE may actaully be trying to bring some prestige back to the tag team division. Something that has been missing in the WWE for many years. Second, it marks the fact that the WWE realizes they have too many meaningless titles. Next they should do away with the Divas Title. God knows we don't need two women's champions. And if they are rebranding ECW, they should do away with the ECW Title as well. Make the Intercontinental Title or US Title the top prize for that show.
As for this match, we have four men who have worked very well together over the past few months. Yes, we've seen them wrestle each other before, and in the overall show, the match will most likely be forgotten about, but with the tag titles being unified, I am still looking forward to the match. I'm going with Carlito and Primo to walk away as the unified champions. This is the best move for both teams. Carlito and Primo are still working well together as a team, and I honestly don't see a huge singles career for either man. On the other hand, Miz and Morrison have been together for a very long time. They are two time tag team of the year Slammy winners. They have teased dissention previously. And unlike the Colons, I see promising singles careers for both men. I think it's time to take the next step. Have them lose the titles and turn on each other. They can have a brief feud against one another and go on from there. I'll say that Nikki Bella has a change of heart, slaps Miz and Morrison, and reunites with her sister and the new unified tag team champions, Carlito and Primo. Sunday's match should be good, but I wouldn't be surprised if this was one match on the card that was rushed. Also, it is a lumberjack match which always takes away from the match itself.
Prediction: Carlito and Primo Colon - Unified Tag Team Champions 
Matt Hardy vs Jeff Hardy - Extreme Rules Match
This is one of those matches that never took off like it should have. The program started off extremely hot at The Royal Rumble when Matt cost Jeff the World Title after cracking him with a steel chair. That Friday on Smackdown, Matt cut a great heel promo. However, things went downhill from there. Matt has a heel has never really took off. Minus a few short promos, he hasn't differentiated himself from his face character into a heel character. Everything about himself is the same. Add that to the fact that they still never clarified who Jeff's true attacker was in his 'series of unfortunate events' was. Matt hinted it was him, but never said it was. And then Matt hinted maybe it was him that burnt down Jeff's house that killed Jeff's dog. I think this was in bad taste. There isn't a reason to bring in a real life tragedy like this. It adds nothing to the program.
Then you have Jeff Hardy. In my opinion, he has gone from being one of the most over wrestlers in the WWE to just being plain wierd. Maybe I'm too old, but I don't get the whole face paint thing. It makes him come off as strange and bizarre instead of as a main eventer. Add that to the fact that the WWE still has no confidence in letting him cut a promo. I think giving Jeff the title last year was more of a token gesture rather than a real stamp of approval. Jeff could only be in the main event so many times before he finally won. So he was a quick transitional champion and that was that.
The whole story between these two had the chance to be great, but it just hasn't clicked. Maybe because I've never been a huge fan of either man, especially Matt, but I'm just not that excited for this match. Despite that, I think they will have a great match. I'm very interested to see their chemistry against each other. Despite not wrestling on TV, you know these two have wrestled each other off camera numerous times so it should be good at Mania. The Extreme Rules stipulation only adds to things. You can expect Matt to use the normal weapons, and Jeff to take his customary insane dive at some point. The fact that this is a gimmick match leads many to believe that this will be the first and only match of this feud. That's very interesting because that's something you almost never see from the WWE. I don't know their reasoning, but at least it means the match will still be fresh whenever they decide to do it again.
If the WWE is serious about elevating Matt Hardy, he needs to go over here. However, I'm going with Jeff. Jeff is out for revenge for all of the things Matt has done to him. And since it doesn't look like there will be a rematch, Jeff will most likely get the win. I think this will hurt Matt much more, but the WWE has never put much faith in Matt Hardy. It should be a very good, emotional match. The build hasn't been there, but we'll see if these two can take it to that next level to be remembered like Bret vs Owen.
Prediction: Jeff Hardy 
Shawn Michaels vs The Undertaker
I've already briefly spoke about this match early. Without a doubt, this is the match that I know I am, along with many others, are looking forward to more than any other match on the card. To me, this is the real main event of WrestleMania XXV, just like Shawn Michaels vs Ric Flair was the real main event of WrestleMania XXIV. It is amazing that they have managed to keep these two men away from each over the past 11 years considering as I said we see so many repeat matches in the WWE because of the lack of big name stars. This is a new, fresh, exciting, match. Add to the fact that The Undertaker's 16-0 WrestleMania streak is on the line, and Shawn Michaels is Mr. WrestleMania, it has all the makings of a classic match. Despite both men being in their mid 40's, I expect them to outshine every other match on the card with both the emotion and competitiveness of the match.
The seeds for this match were originally planted at The Royal Rumble when The Undertaker told Shawn "Sometimes it's Hell getting to Heaven." It's a line we have heard repeated the past weeks. Shawn went through a series of meaningless qualifying matches against JBL and Vladimir Kozlov to earn the right to face The Undertaker. Since the match became official, the story has been Michaels getting the better of the mind games, as well as the physical enounters, everytime his path crossed with The Undertaker, something that is completely unheard of with The Dead Man. This program has once again cemented Shawn as, in my own humble opinion, the greatest all around performer EVER in the WWE. Between his in ring ability, mic skills, facial expressions, the way he can tell a story, and just the complete believableness of everything he does, there has never been anyone better. Shawn has had three of my favorite segments of the year the past two weeks with The Undertaker. First, he cut a promo from a graveyard. Sure, it was a little campy, but it got the job done. He was in The Undertaker's world, and said he could walk through the Valley of Death and come out victorious. Then, in one of the most genius segments I've seen in a long time, Shawn came out exactly as The Undertaker does, only dressed in all white. He went back to his reglious undertones, stating how first there was darkness, and then God created light. Dark and night were bad, and light and day were good. Shawn was the light that would defeat the darkness. It was just an amazing promo, and if you haven't seen it, I strongly suggest checking it out online. And finally, this past Monday on Raw, Shawn cut his final promo complete with a casket and funeral procession. Shawn said The Undertaker has never been able to get the better of him, and that would continue this Sunday night. The lights went out, and The Undertaker appears in the ring. The Undertaker trashed the ring looking for Shawn and thought he was in the casket, but he wasn't there. Shawn then appeared from under the casket, and hit The Undertaker with Sweet Chin Music and went back to his cocky, arrogant, heel character complete with crotch chops. It was just another great segment between the two men, and achieved it's point perfectly - to make you believe Shawn Michaels will win and end The Undertaker's streak this Sunday night at WrestleMania.
Despite the great build for Michaels, The Undertaker will emerge victorious at WrestleMania. Despite all of the problems with the writing and storylines in the WWE, they did their job with this one in making fans believe HBK would defeat The Undertaker. There is a lot of talk about who will end The Undertaker's streak. Personally, I think he should retire undefeated, but if someone is to end it, it should be a young and upcoming star that they have great things planned for like Jack Swagger or Ted Dibiase Jr. Shawn does not need the victory, and it would do nothing for his career. Sure, he could brag about it for a while, but it would be a meaningless notch on his Hall of Fame resume when he retires.
I expect these two to have a great match, just like their last 10 minutes of the 2007 Royal Rumble which was electric. Sure, they're two years older, but these two know how to work a big time match. The crowd should be more electric for this match than any other, just further adding to the special feeling of this match. I hope they are given about 20 minutes, and that would involve both men kicking out of each other's finishers. But in the end, it will be The Undertaker sealing the deal with a Tombstone and improving his WrestleMania record to 17-0.
Prediction: The Undertaker 
Edge (c) vs John Cena vs The Big Show - World Championship Match
After losing the WWE Title at No Way Out in the Raw Elimination Chamber, Edge won the World Title by sneaking into the Smackdown Elimination Chamber. From that point, John Cena demanded a rematch with Edge but was denied by Vickie Guerrero. It was then announced that Edge's opponent at WrestleMania would be The Big Show which was an odd choice to say the least. Following these, John Cena interupted the contract signing between Edge and Show by breaking the shocking news that he was in love with Vickie Guerrero. This turned out to be a lie. Instead, Cena blackmailed Vickie into adding him to the World Title match by showing hidden footage of Vickie and Big Show making out (quite disturbing to say the least). So it became a triple threat match for the World Title. The storyline has been that both Edge and Big Show are fighting for Vickie's love, while Cena is there to fight for the title. For me, and I know many others, the storyline has done nothing. We have seen John Cena vs Edge so many times, no one cares anymore. For this reason, The Big Show was added to the match. The problem is, instead of enhancing the match, he only downgrades it. The Big Show may go down as one of the biggest wastes of potential in the history of professional wrestling. At this point, he is nothing more than a level above The Great Khali. No one is buying WrestleMania to see The Big Show, and no one is giving him a chance of winning.
The energy and excitement leading into this match have not been helped by the fact that they have given us different variations of singles matches. Just like the Money in the Bank match, by having the competitors face each other multiple times before the actual match, it takes away interest instead of building it. Then, they decided to add another silly gimmick to the match that the winner will do some type of reality tv love show with Vickie Guerrero. I don't even know the exact details, and to be honest I don't want to know because it is just idiotic.
I've been doing a lot of debating about this match, probably more than any other match. First, let me say, if this match goes on last, then John Cena is winning the match. No doubt about it. However, I don't believe this will be the final match of the card. Most will probably assume Cena will walk away as champion regardless of where this match takes place on the card, but I don't see it that way. First, we know that there will be a draft in the upcoming weeks, and the reports are that the WWE wants Raw to once again be the marquee show. If that is in fact the case, then the marquee star of the WWE, Cena, will be back on Raw. Secondly, from a storyline view, it seems much more logical that Cena will retain the title. I guess that this point, I'll make my prediction that Edge will retain the title. By having Edge retain the title, it sets up two things. First, his storyline with Vickie can continue. Second, he remains the top star on Smackdown over the summer. Third, it sets up a natural feud with The Big Show for both the World Title and Vickie's love. I would even say there is a chance the WWE shocks everyone and has The Big Show win the match, but I really doubt that. The match itself will be interesting. We know Edge and Cena have no problem having great matches. How Big Show fits in is another story. Hopefully he doesn't bring the match down too badly. Also in the past, WrestleMania crowds have been particularly hard on Cena. However, as the WWE pushes away more and more hardcore fans, I suspect there will be more women and children there to cheer on Cena.
Prediction: The Big Show- New Champion
HHH (c) vs Randy Orton - WWE Championship Match
The storyline for this match has been like a roller coaster. It has had some incredible highs, and some terrible lows. Let's take a quick look back at how this whole thing started. I apologize if it is not in perfect chronological order. Randy Orton had been built up as the single baddest heel in the WWE. This culminated with an unforgettable punt to the head of Vince McMahon the week before The Royal Rumble. Orton went on to win the Rumble by eliminating HHH. The very next night and for the weeks to come, Orton's top heel status was erased when Shane "Superman" McMahon returned to get vengence for his father. Shane returned to Raw to single handedly beat down not just Orton, but all of Legacy (Rhodes and Dibiase). It was one of the worst booked segments in the history of Raw. That wasn't the end though. Shane continued to beat on Legacy, until Orton and Shane had their street fight at No Way Out. Yes, Orton got the victory, but Shane gave him everything he could handle. The match did Orton no favors. Also at No Way Out, HHH won the WWE Title.
The next night, Orton announced that he had "IED" syndrome which made him do the things he did. He had no control over his viscious acts. Then surrounded by a group of lawyers and doctors, he threatended to sue the WWE and cancel WrestleMania. At this point, we saw a change in Orton. Instead of having that "viper" mentality, he started to show remorse for his acts. He turned into just another weak heel. All of the aura around him was gone. Stephanie told Orton he would compete at WrestleMania. Shane ended up getting involved, but got punted in the head just as his father did. Stephanie begged for Shane's mercy, but received an RKO for her trouble. At this point, HHH hit the ring to comfort his wife and had a certified roid rage. That Friday, HHH had a bizarre interview with Jim Ross where he finally acknowleged that he and Stephanie were married. In one of the better segments leading to this match, HHH confronted Orton in the ring while Orton was surrounded by his doctors and lawyers. Orton said he refused to face HHH, but HHH goaded him into it. Orton then said there was a stipulation that HHH could not put his hands on Orton until WrestleMania. Well, this stipulation was thrown out the very same week when Legacy and attacked HHH on Smackdown. Then, in a segment straight from a B horror movie, Orton was in his home giving an interview when HHH bashed through the door with a sledgehammer. There were fake screams and meaningless extras. HHH walked through the house like Jason. It was so bad it was comical. Orton finally jumped HHH, but HHH got the better of him by throwing him through a window. The "police" arrived and arrested HHH. It was a train wreck of a segment.
The following week, Orton said he would not press charges because he wanted to inflict his own punishment. HHH returned and destroyed Cody Rhodes in a steel cage while Orton and Dibiase looked on. The match had absolutely no buzz at this point. However, that finally changed this two weeks ago. HHH was scheduled to have a match against Orton and Dibiase. Legacy jumped HHH before the match and handcuffed him to the ring. Stephanie once again came out to plead for HHH. Legacy confronted her, and Orton hit her with a hanging DDT. Orton then kissed her lifeless lips while HHH looked on helplessly in a great segment. Orton concluded by knocking HHH out with the sledgehammer. Finally, this past week, Orton and Legacy were in the ring to call out HHH. However, Vince and Shane made their returns along with HHH. They had a six man brawl which thankfully focused on HHH and Orton. It was a good way to finalize the program heading into this Sunday night.
A stipulation was added to the match by Vickie Guerrero that if HHH uses his sledgehammer, he will lose the match and his title to Orton. Just real quick... Vince employees Vickie. And Vince is clearly on HHH's side. So why would he allow Vickie to allow a stipulation that hurts HHH? Anyway..............
I am guessing that this will be the last match of the night. Other than The Undertaker and HBK, this is the only match that has that big match WrestleMania feel to it. Orton is being set up as the next big thing in the WWE, but I don't think this will be his night. He can still chase after HHH, and win the title down the line. For as much hate as HHH receives, and most of it is justified, he has not won a match at WrestleMania since 2003. Some may say he is doing what is best for business, but I think he is smarter than that. He loses at Mania so he can justify him squashing people the rest of the year. Anyway, HHH is due for a win at Mania. The way I see this one playing out is we have a ref bump. Vince and Shane hit the ring. They take out Priceless. The stipulation is that HHH can't use the sledgehammer, but it doesn't say that anyone else can't. Vince knocks Orton out with the sledgehammer. This sets up HHH to hit the Pedigree and get the clean victory in the middle of the ring. The show closes with the grand celebration of the entire McMahon family, including HHH, celebrating in the middle of the ring with all the confetti and fireworks that normally go along with WrestleMania. It is a fitting way for the 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania to end. It should be a good match, not great. The crowd will be into it. Again, it will be interesting to see how the heel/face dynamic is between Orton and HHH.
Prediction: Randy Orton- New Champion
AND THIS YEAR I WILL BE THERE AND WILL TRY TO POST AS MANY PICS ON HERE AS POSSIBLE. IF YOU WATCHING LOOK OUT FOR ME I'LL BE IN THE 5TH ROW ON THE LEFT SIDE WITH A WHITE TEE AND A TEAL FITTED CAP HOLDING A WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE LOL.
Watch live video from LIVE BACK UP EV0KILL ! on Justin.tv
OH YEAH THE SONG OF THE DAY..........
Street Lights - Kanye West
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