WWE WrestleMania 42: Draws & Duds

WWE WrestleMania 42 is finally upon us! The two-night event heads to Las Vegas for the second consecutive year this weekend, with 13 matches currently announced and eight championships on the line. And with just a few days before the big show, Pat McAfee isn't the only one with an opinion on which matches should get fans to buy a ticket and which ones should have them ready to sell.

Here at Wrestling Inc., we have our own way of determining that sort of thing. Are the matches between Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi and Penta and his five-pack array of Intercontinental title challengers enough to get us tuned into ESPN to open the show, and are the likes of Jade Cargill and Dominik Mysterio enough to keep us watching afterward? It's these sorts of questions that we're here to answer today. These are our biggest draws and biggest dud for WWE WrestleMania 42!

"The Beast Incarnate" Brock Lesnar vs. "The Ruler" Oba Femi is one of the biggest draws, if not the biggest draw, of WrestleMania 42. The pair teased their eventual face-off on the "Grandest Stage of Them All" in the Royal Rumble match back in January, though there were some reports that it wasn't as set in stone as many fans believed it to be right after the Rumble. Thankfully, these hosses are going one-on-one to kick off night two of the big event, and it's a fantastic bout for WWE to put on the free hour on ESPN.

Lesnar's drawing power may not be what it once was, even before real-life controversies surrounding the Janel Grant lawsuit, but there certainly is something still there, based on his name value alone after years in the business. Despite what some fans may think about the star, others are more than excited to see him and pop every time his music hits on "WWE Raw." Lesnar may not be able to go in the ring for long periods of time, but he still has enough ability to put on a strong, shorter match.

Femi may be quite a bit more green when it comes to his in-ring ability compared to the veteran Lesnar, but his work is still solid. He just has "it," from the entrance, complete with the strut fans are now replicating in the crowd, to his overall look, to his previous record on "WWE NXT." "The Ruler" was so dominant and so in-demand on the main roster following his match against Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night's Main Event, the big retirement show for John Cena, that he vacated the NXT Championship rather than lose it.

WWE has been hyping up this match like crazy every episode of "Raw" since Femi hit Lesnar with the Fall from Grace powerbomb. The pair's segments are opened by dramatic video packages, and their contract signing-turned-brawl event got the main event spot of the April 6 edition of the show.

There's a few ways this match could go, with many fans crossing their fingers that Femi goes over Lesnar to further establish dominance after his beginnings on the main roster weren't as strong as they could have been. Many of those crossing their fingers are also hoping that a possible future opponent for Lesnar could be set up, with that man being the "Career Killer" GUNTHER. With the men set for different nights of the "Showcase of the Immortals," it's very possible we could see GUNTHER after "The Beast" faces "The Ruler," further adding to the draw of one of the first matches of night two.

Written by Daisy Ruth

In the match to blow off the feud the audience stopped caring about months ago, a "WWE Raw" or Saturday Night's Main Event match bumped up to "Grandest Stage of Them All," Dominik Mysterio will be facing Finn Balor for the... nothing. But at least it will be in a match under... no added stipulation. There is a very slim chance this winds up etching himself in the memory of WrestleManias. 

In fact one may say that this match is an example of WrestleMania's dwindling returns this year. There can be no doubt that the company has allocated more than enough (way too much) time to building to this point, and they absolutely had to have a match at some point to blow things off. 

But not only is this actually just the beginning of the part where they undoubtedly go on to wrestle more and get into each other's business for the weeks in between that, but it's almost certainly going to feature some type of screwy finish on account of that being the Judgment Day's thing. Balor is great in the ring but is getting on in age, Mysterio is a fine worker that excels when he is opposite someone the crowd ostensibly prefers. 

The issue comes in the form there that Balor is not a compelling babyface at this juncture. He is a heel that has fallen out with another heel, the heel he created, and there's no sense of catharsis, justice, or stakes to be gained from having this match. Balor rather inadvertently cost Mysterio the Intercontinental Championship, simply preventing JD McDonagh from helping Mysterio – because he has been shown simply incapable of winning a match otherwise – cheat to beat Penta. Then Mysterio and Judgment Day gave Balor the boot. 

That's it. No further development, no sense of importance as to why they're fighting. Just the most milquetoast build for a milquetoast match befitting one the most milquetoast WrestleMania events in history.

Written by Max Everett

Storyline-wise, the Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match has the least amount of substance backing it. When it comes to the in-ring action, though, there's no denying that this bout has the potential to be the most thrilling of the entire two-night WrestleMania event.

A ladder match itself suggests that we, as fans, can expect to see a mix of high-flying and hardcore elements. Considering that it's taking place at "The Show of Shows," I'm expecting to see scenes of innovation laced in as well. After all, we've already witnessed competitors use ladders as stilts, human traps, and leverage for mid-air moves. What else can these WWE stars do with them?

Considering the competitors in this match, I'm also wondering just exactly how high the action can go. Je'Von Evans is already one of the bounciest WWE talents of all time. Imagine what he can do in one of the grandest stipulations on WWE's grandest stage.

Even more air-time will undoubtedly come from Rey Mysterio, Dragon Lee, and the defending champion Penta, all of whom have established themselves as exciting high-flying and gravity-defying performers. A West Coast Pop or a Mexican Destroyer off the top of the rungs? Sign me up.

The remaining two competitors — JD McDonagh and Rusev — offer variety to this IC title match. McDonagh, while no stranger to taking flight, brings strong technical skills to the ring as well. Meanwhile, Rusev lives up to his nickname as "The Bulgarian Brute" through his power and strength. McDonagh and Rusev ensure that this bout will be met with a sense of balance. Together, the six men will showcase physicality at all levels situated between the sky and the ground, and for that, I can't ask for much more.

Written by Ella Jay

The build to the WWE Women's Championship match pitting title holder Jade Cargill against Royal Rumble victor Rhea Ripley has been terrible from the start, and it hasn't gotten any better over time. Their first promo, on the March 6 edition of "WWE SmackDown" set the tone for the rest of the feud, and not in a good way, making it a dud from its very beginnings.

The promo was puzzling, as both women served each other with compliments about their body types, with Ripley ultimately saying her body wasn't for show, like Cargill's, but for practical power to win her championships. It was not a strong promo from either woman, and it left a bad taste in a lot of fans' mouths.

The following week, after Cargill defeated Michin, she trash talked Ripley, which brought out "The Eradicator," but when they went face-to-face, Cargill left the ring. Things only got more strange the week following, when Michin and B-Fab, who had been feuding with the champion for weeks, aligned with her to beat down Ripley and form a new faction.

Before all of this, Ripley and her former tag team partner, IYO SKY, went their separate ways, on good terms, so Ripley could focus on her WrestleMania opponent and singles competition. However, SKY was brought into the feud on the April 3 edition of the show to be backup for Ripley against Cargill's faction. Despite how loved RHIYO is as a tag team, it was starting to seem like SKY wasn't going to have her own match at WrestleMania, despite being locked in a feud with the Kabuki Warriors, specifically Asuka, for quite some time. It put a damper on the women's title match, as the idea just to have SKY at ringside for Ripley at WrestleMania felt strange.

That's not any fault of her own, however, as an ankle injury to Nikki Bella put things into question. Earlier reports indicated if the Bellas can't go in their four-way match for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships, the Kabuki Warriors could be inserted, so Asuka wouldn't be free to face SKY. As of the go-home episode of "Raw," SKY and Asuka aren't on the card, meaning SKY is likely to just corner Ripley on the "Grandest Stage of Them All."

Cargill is notably not the strongest in-ring worker, and Ripley has had to change up her style recently. The match already wasn't screaming "in-ring banger" from the start, and the fact their first promo was terrible did not help things. This match is an all-around dud, unless you're a Ripley fan, as she's the betting favorite to capture the title from Cargill in Las Vegas.

Written by Daisy Ruth