Full 2026 Elimination Chamber Predictions Including A Hot LA Knight Take

We’re less than two months away from WrestleMania 42, and it’s a big yikes right now. I’m not normally one of those social media trolls crying about the state of WWE during every rope break, but even I’m ready to admit we need to listen to the referee’s count. There’s a serious lack of hot characters and compelling storylines.

Ordinarily, Elimination Chamber is WWE’s last big chance to inject some momentum, but it’s hard to even see how they do that this year. There’s no John Cena heel turn coming. Jade Cargill is not returning to attack Naomi. We’re almost certainly not going to get a big, splashy moment, but with fourteen or fifteen matches to book in the next six weeks, I’m hopeful we can at least make some meaningful forward progress in smaller ways.

Let’s use CM Punk and Finn Bálor as an example. We all know Punk is going to win. WWE is already advertising his match with Roman Reigns at ‘Mania, but I suspect Triple H and company will use the match to give Bálor a new path, possibly in opposition to Dominik Mysterio. I think we’ll see something similar inside the Elimination Chamber with Alexa Bliss. I don’t think she’s going to win the match, but I do think we’ll get a key plot point in her story with Charlotte Flair.

I expect a lot of little things like that. I also think there’s a chance we could see WWE pull an all-time surprise with LA Knight (YEAH!).

Before I get to that though, here’s a quick look back at my predictions record. I’ve been doing these for every WWE PLE since WrestleMania 38. I’m not exactly a prime Hulk Hogan (that doesn’t work for me, brother), but I’ve been right a lot more than I’ve been wrong. You can check out some of the bigger recent events, plus my overall record...

Becky Lynch (Champion) vs AJ Lee For The Women’s Intercontinental Championship

Why is this not happening at WrestleMania? I get AJ Lee lives in Chicago. It makes sense to feature her on the card, but there’s no way WWE decided to use her here and not WrestleMania, right? I have to imagine she’s going to work both dates, and since Becky Lynch would still be the person she would probably work with at ‘Mania, I have to imagine AJ is going to win here, right?

My guess is AJ Lee wins this match, maybe by some kind of flukey means, and that sets up a WrestleMania rematch with a bigger stipulation. Maybe it’s Hell in a Cell. Maybe it’s a street fight. I’m not really sure of the specifics, but AJ Lee would have to walk in as champion or why else would she get another title shot barely a month after losing her match?

Besides, this is AJ Lee’s first singles match since returning to WWE. If they’re planning on keeping her character at a high level, she probably shouldn’t be losing her first match back in the fold.

Predicted Winner: AJ Lee

CM Punk (Champion) vs Finn Bálor For The World Heavyweight Championship

This might be the easiest match I have ever predicted in the history of doing these predictions. Right now, the biggest selling point for WrestleMania is CM Punk and Roman Reigns squaring off for The World Heavyweight Championship. They’ve already made the marketing materials. I love the chaos of an unexpected swerve, but a shock upset would make no sense here. Finn Bálor is going to lose.

That being said, I’m very hopeful he is going to lose in a way that will lead to him having something compelling to do at WrestleMania. The most likely scenario is Dominik Mysterio trying to help him and accidentally costing him the match, but it also might be as simple as he loses, gets roasted by Judgment Day and that causes him to quit the group. Maybe that leads to an IC Title match at ‘Mania or maybe that leads to a new storyline for him and JD McDonagh. Either way, instead of rooting for a straight up win, Bálor fans need to be rooting for something interesting for him to do.

Predicted Winner: CM Punk

Tiffany Stratton vs Rhea Ripley vs Kiana James vs Asuka vs Alexa Bliss vs TBD In The Women’s Elimination Chamber For A Championship Match At WrestleMania

We don’t know who the final person in the Elimination Chamber is, and with all due respect to Kairi Sane, who has developed into a fun side character, the two more compelling options are Iyo Sky and Raquel Rodriguez. Iyo is probably the most likely because she’s one of the most over women on the entire roster and because it could help us figure out what’s going on with her and Rhea at WrestleMania. Raquel, on the other hand, is also a really good option because she’s already involved in the Liv Morgan and Stephanie Vaquer feud. A win here would have the potential to make that the hottest storyline on the card.

Personally, I hope Raquel makes the chamber and wins, but the most likely scenario is probably Tiffany Stratton being the last one standing. She was injured by champion Jade Cargill before, and they have some history. We all want to see Bianca Belair return and face Cargill, but with rumors swirling that she’s going to be out past ‘Mania, Cargill and Stratton is probably the best story WWE has left to tell.

A fun subplot here to watch is what's going to happen with Alexa Bliss. It was a shock that Charlotte Flair didn't also end up in the Elimination Chamber. I think there's a good chance she's going to show up here, which will set in motion whether she and Alexa face Rhea and Iyo for the tag titles or whether she faces Alexa in a singles match.

Predicted Winner: Tiffany Stratton

Randy Orton vs LA Knight vs Cody Rhodes vs Je’Von Evans vs Trick Williams vs TBD In The Men’s Elimination Chamber For A Championship Match At WrestleMania

Who knows what’s going on with The WWE Championship? The current holder is Drew McIntyre, and he’s been calling Rhodes and Jacob Fatu both out in promos for weeks. He also attacked Randy Orton during the last episode of SmackDown. Many fans think WWE is trying to set up some kind of triple threat or fatal four way at WrestleMania. Maybe.

I think there are three possibilities here, one of which I want more than the others. The first is that the simplest solution is the one we’re going to get. Cody Rhodes has been the face of WWE for awhile, and it would be weird not to put him in a championship match at ‘Mania. He’s had an ongoing feud with Drew, and there’s a strong chance he’s just going to win and we’ll get the rematch we’ve all expected since Drew won the title.

The second possibility is that this multi-man match happens. Most likely, Cody still wins the Elimination Chamber, but thanks to some shenanigans, we end up with at least Jacob Fatu and maybe also Randy Orton all working together. That kind of sounds like a mess to me, but since WWE knows fans are down on Drew vs Cody, this may be the simplest pivot that allows Cody to still fight for a championship.

To me, the best answer is to go with someone random and unexpected, and while I love Trick Williams and see a ton of potential in Je'Von Evans, the answer is LA Knight. Fans have been dying to see him get his moment for three years now. He just keeps hanging around the main event scene, and despite losing every single big match, he’s remained incredibly over with the crowd. If WWE would give him some real momentum, fans would get behind him in a really big way.

I get Drew McIntyre and LA Knight isn’t a match for casuals who rarely watch the product, but right now, WWE needs storylines actual hardcore fans are invested in. They need to get anything hot, and we would all be hot for LA Knight finally getting his moment. This is the best way to inject some surprise and unexpected excitement into Mania season. Triple H and company can figure out something else to do with Cody Rhodes.

Is my preferred option actually going to happen? Probably not. I should pick Cody, but I feel so strongly that LA Knight is the right answer here that I'm picking LA Knight. YEAH!

Predicted Winner: LA Knight