The WWE WrestleMania 34 card is already shaping up to be a good show, but it may go down without a match that has become a recent tradition. The latest WWE rumors are suggesting that this year’s “Super Bowl of professional wrestling” could opt to not include a match that has been featured the last four years. Here are the latest details on which matchup fans may not be seeing when they watch Mania this April.
On Tuesday, the Ringside News website’s Steve Carrier indicated that there are rumors the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal won’t be returning for WrestleMania 34 . Carrier reported that the rumors were sparked during a Wrestling Observer Radio segment where host Bryan Alvarez said he’d heard the big match wouldn’t be taking place. As of this report, no official reason has been given for why the match may not be included, but it is an interesting call based on previous reports about the match this year.
While there are rumors that the match won’t take place, there could be a women’s battle royal taking place instead, giving the women’s division some more time to shine. The women have now had successful matches in back-to-back pay-per-views with the first-ever women’s Royal Rumble match last month and first-ever women’s Elimination Chamber match just this last weekend.
The #AndreTheGiantMemorialBattleRoyal will take place in 34 days at @WrestleMania ! PREVIEW: http://t.co/dZSgrp3aBZ pic.twitter.com/uxgtxfKJjd
— WWE (@WWE) February 24, 2015
In previous rumor reports, it was mentioned that this year’s Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal might receive an even bigger push than usual. The reasoning behind that was the fact that there is a big Andre the Giant documentary set to air from HBO Sports just a few days after WrestleMania 34 . Therefore, it’s an interesting decision if WWE won’t use the annual match as a way to further support that documentary. In addition to that, it seems WWE will have a lot of superstars that will be in need of some sort of match on “the grandest stage of them all.”
There have been just four Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal matches to date. In the first edition of the match, Cesaro claimed the first trophy. The Big Show won the match in the next year, followed by Baron Corbin, and most recently, Mojo Rawley. Of those winners, Cesaro and Baron Corbin have since gone on to win gold, while Mojo has yet to capture his first championship.
As always, rumors should be taken with a grain of salt when it comes to the WWE. There have been ongoing rumors that Hulk Hogan or CM Punk might return, as well as rumors The Undertaker would show up at many of the pay-per-views after WrestleMania 33 . However, those rumors have not come true yet. Still, this particular one seems like it could have more validity based on the Wrestling Observer first mentioning it.
WWE’s WrestleMania 34 will take place on Sunday, April 8, from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, with coverage live online via the WWE Network.
