The Road to WrestleMania 41 will officially be underway at the Royal Rumble. Every WWE storyline from here on out will build to the biggest show and every World Championship match has WrestleMania implications. Aside from the Royal Rumble match itself, the match with the most focus currently is the Undisputed WWE World Championship match between Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens.
With the Owens/ Rhodes feud being white hot right now, this match will heavily decide the direction of WWE Creative. Both wrestlers have a strong case to win, and each presents a different kind of story. Cody winning heavily suggests a rematch against Roman Reigns to complete the trilogy, but WWE showed a much more interesting angle on Monday Night Raw that could be the WrestleMania main event: Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn.
WWE Just Teased Owens vs. Zayn At WrestleMania, And I Love It
Raw Sets Up A Clash That Deserves The Grandest Stage
On Raw, WWE premiered a segment in which Sami Zayn announced his entrance into the Royal Rumble match. This drew out Kevin Owens, who both praised Zayn's decision and told him he will be a world champion. In the same breath, Owens also told Zayn that he plans on winning the Undisputed WWE Heavyweight Championship from Cody Rhodes because he knows Zayn will be there for him.
In a moment of brilliant irony, Owens essentially does the exact same thing Roman Reigns did to Zayn. Manipulating the situation through their multiple-decade brotherhood, he's trying to guilt-trip Zayn into ensuring his victory against Rhodes at the Rumble. For me, this is the perfect story heading into WrestleMania because of the layers added from their previous feuds and friendships and the impact from their association with Reigns.
Kevin Owens And Sami Zayn's Long History Is Perfect For WWE's Current Storytelling
Old Feuds, Bad Blood And History Is Exactly What Triple H Likes
Triple H's heavy focus on long-term storytelling perfectly sets up Owens and Zayn to go through their history to tell a story. Extending into their time in Ring of Honor, the two have fought in every company and brand they've wrestled for. The two are also former Tag Team Champions, winning the titles five times across multiple promotions, and their storyline has seen several turns, but the twist with Reigns is the latest wrinkle.
In the fallout of the Bloodline saga, Owens has targeted any wrestler who has helped Reigns during the story, one of which is Rhodes. Rhodes has helped Owens and Zayn against Reigns, but has found himself helping the Tribal Chief. Owens took exception as Reigns tried to end all of their careers, and was understandably upset, but it has also led to his demeanor becoming much more manipulative. This particular aspect is what should form the basis of how WWE books the road to WrestleMania 41.
Owens And Zayn's Road to WrestleMania
How WWE Should Book The Main Event Build-Up
This feud must start at the Royal Rumble. Let the Royal Rumble match itself occur before the Rhodes/Owens match, and the booking almost writes itself. Zayn can enter early, have a Shawn Michaels-type run, and ultimately be eliminated by Drew McIntyre. Later on the card, have Zayn interfere in Owens' match, but inadvertently help Owens win the title.
From here, Zayn and Rhodes can engage in a personal feud, with both winning Elimination Chamber qualifying matches, as well as Reigns and Jacob Fatu. Owens throughout praises Zayn as a future world champion, just as Reigns did with Jey Uso, and talks about Zayn's potential. At Elimination Chamber, Fatu eliminates Rhodes in an upset, setting up a final two between Reigns and Zayn. But instead of matching up with Reigns back and forth, Zayn can get lucky and pin the Tribal Chief, setting up a Zayn vs. Owens WrestleMania main event.
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From here, the storytelling gets interesting: realizing that Zayn is the number one contender, Owens should do a complete about-face and attempt to attack Zayn. Calling back to their NXT days, Owens hits Zayn with an Apron Powerbomb, injuring him in the process, and taunts his multiple world title reigns, and Sami's inability to win the big matches, and questions Zayn's heart.
Week after week, Zayn and Owens play physical and mental games against each other, as they bring up old wounds and make this match much more than a world title match. This gives fans a simple yet logical path to a WrestleMania main event they can believe.
What Happens To Cody And Roman?
Though both have been the leaders of a major boom in WWE's viewership and match quality, both Reigns and Rhodes have high-profile matches that need to take place. Roman Reigns' WrestleMania match is simple: Jacob Fatu. Two of the most intense wrestles in the WWE today, fans have wondered what would happen if the two were to collide in the ring. Extending from their Bloodline saga until now, Reigns and Fatu have had relatively limited with each other, and this is a physical dream match that's built for WrestleMania.
As for Cody Rhodes, his status and star power can't be put aside. In fact, he needs to be solidified as the next face of the company. Though it can be argued that his victory over Reigns did that, a past star can become the literal torch er. After losing at the Elimination Chamber, he should address the crowd, but be interrupted by John Cena, who is matchless and wants the ultimate opponent for WrestleMania.
Crucially, this doesn't need to be a personal feud or need to be for a title. This is a clash of two faces of the company, and the winner holds the torch for WWE. There'd be a predictable outcome in the match for sure, but it doesn't need to have twists to be good.
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn At WWE WrestleMania Would Pay Off A Storyline Decades In The Making
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There are several directions WWE could go in this year's WrestleMania, but the most interesting outcome doesn't involve Cody Rhodes or Roman Reigns in the world title picture. Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens have the story, the background, and the momentum to create an amazing WrestleMania story that could lead the road to the event. This road opens up possibilities for new World Champions and dream matches once thought impossible. With the Road to WrestleMania underway, understand that it started with Zayn and Owens on Raw.
