We’ve put out a lot of wrestling content lately and that’s usually the way it is around the beginning of the year. This is my annual article that I can really get creative about how I think the WWE will be played out through the upcoming year. Obviously, these shouldn’t be considered locks, because as we know, anything can happen during the course of 12 months, especially when it comes to wrestling. A couple days ago, I put out my year-end review of my 2020 predictions and it is really interesting to see where my head was at a year ago. So, to give you a rundown of what to expect here, I will talk about 5 separate topics surrounding the WWE that could be prevalent throughout the year. Then, I will jot down 10 bold predictions for the what I think could go down in 2021. I won’t keep you waiting, so here it is.

State of WWE

I like to start out this article each year explaining the current state of the WWE, in my opinion, and how I think the year could play out from a company standpoint.

With that being said, the pandemic has put a damper on a lot of live sports and sports related activities and wrestling has taken a hit as well, but they made it out pretty much unscathed from a creative standpoint, to be honest. Among all of this though, they’ve had to audible a few plans, but for the most part, they have made the most of what they had. I think they’re in the best position possible to be successful in 2021 among the current circumstances and it doesn’t appear that they’ll have any stiff competition in the near future. AEW is getting a stronger following and they’ve had some major players make appearances in the last few months, but WWE doesn’t appear to be in any danger, yet anyway.

- Who Will Be This Year’s Breakout Superstar?

Every year, I like to pick a breakout superstar, or at least a star that will shine above the rest, and I feel like this year may be one of the most difficult to accurately predict. In 2019, I picked Drew McIntyre… I know a year late, but in 2020, I picked the Tribal Chief and I think that was definitely accurate. My pick for Breakout Star in 2021 is Big E. This really isn’t going out on a limb, but I think this will be Big E’s year to shine. It is clear that they want him to be a singles star at least until the upcoming draft. Big E has some big-time, face of the brand potential and I think it is missed opportunity if they don’t capitalize on it while he is in his prime. He ended 2020 on a great note with the IC title win, but I don’t think he will stop there. He is currently tied with the 4th highest odds to win the Royal Rumble at the end of the month, according to BetOnline. He also has the second highest odds to be Universal Champion at the end of 2021. With all of that being said, I’m anxious to see Big E thrive as a singles competitor.

- Will the WWE Retire the 24/7 Championship?

I don’t think that there have been any rumors of this happening, but I think it is about time to make the meaningless title defunct. Sure, it was fun for a little bit, but if you are competiting for this title and your name isn’t R-Truth, it really isn’t a good sign about the direction of your WWE career. This has strictly become R-Truth’s prop and for him it is great, but it doesn’t really work for any other competitor in the WWE. The height of the belt was when R-Truth and Drake Maverick were battling each other for a stretch, but it hasn’t elevated lesser seen talent since then. The belt was introduced in May of 2019 and I think it has run out of steam in 2021.

- Big Superstar Returns

This feels like an obvious topic, but there are a lot of big name superstars poised to make a return in 2021. For starters, Brock Lesnar seems like a guarantee to return some time this year, but I think that will only happen when fans start to return. Becky Lynch is another superstar that will likely return in the second half of 2021. She and Rollins had their child in early December and I don’t think she will stay away very long. Also, Edge will likely come back sometime between now and WrestleMania after dealing with a triceps injury. Ronda Rousey is another megastar poised for a return at some point in the upcoming year. These four superstars are big names and once they return, expect them to be in major storylines and big-time moments for the upcoming year. The Bella twins have also expressed interest in competing for the WWE Women’s tag team championships, so keep an eye on that for 2021. As far as commentators go, I think it is safe to say Samoa Joe will be back in the ring in 2021, but Wade Barrett could be an interesting return candidate for the upcoming year. Long shot returns include The Rock, John Cena, Corey Graves, Tyson Kidd and CM Punk.

- Will NXT Still Be Considered a Third Brand Moving Forward?

The pandemic has forced WWE to change plans quite often throughout the last year, but will the Gold and Black Brand be considered the third brand moving forward or will it be considered developmental yet again? I feel like this is pretty predictable, but I don’t think their intentions to continue NXT as a third brand are going to be dismissed when live crowds start coming back in bigger capacities. This may be considered as a waste of a topic, but I feel like this will legitimately be brought up into wrestling conversation in 2021. NXT has slowly allowed fans to return, so I think it is a matter of time that they up the capacity. The pandemic has definitely affected future plans for NXT and RAW/SmackDown to clash like they did in 2019, so hopefully we see NXT involved in bigger opportunities in the coming year. Triple H has even mentioned the possibility of creating a show for the developmental superstars of NXT, basically meaning that there will be an NXT within NXT. We’ll see if that comes to fruition in 2021. While they sometimes feel like the step-sibling of the WWE, they will continue to prove that they’re worthy of your time each week on Wednesday nights.

- Will Arenas Be at Full Capacity by the End of 2021?

This is something that nobody will be able to predict obviously, but I think there is a decent possibility that fans will be back at full capacity by the end of the year. Despite there being a great number of concerns, it doesn’t seem far-fetched to think that it may become a reality. If you ask me bluntly if I think they will pack arenas this year, I would probably say no. I think it is a more attainable goal for full capacity arenas to be present in 2022, but 12 months is a long time and a lot of things could change. I do think there will be a limited capacity by WrestleMania 37 and moving forward, but I think at this point, it is difficult to predict whether or not the WWE will pack arenas by the end of the year.

Bold Predictions

This portion of the article is self-explanatory, but anything can happen in the span of 12 months and it is fun to get a little bold with my predictions. Fair warning, some of these predictions are bolder than others.

- Lacey Evans will capture her first Women’s Championship by the end of the year.