Brock Lesnar

For the first time ever, the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view will be held in Saudi Arabia when it emanates from the Jeddah Super Dome on Saturday.

Elimination Chamber is the final pay-per-view before WrestleMania 38, and it promises to have massive implications for the most important event of the year.

There will be both a men's and women's Elimination Chamber match to determine the WWE champion and No. 1 contender for the Raw Women's Championship, respectively. Also, the Universal Championship, Raw Women's Championship and SmackDown Tag Team Championships will be on the line in other bouts.

Here is everything you need to know about when, where and how to watch Elimination Chamber, as well as a full rundown of the match card and a closer look at some of the top bouts.

Where: Jeddah Super Dome in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

When: Saturday, Feb. 19 at 12 p.m. ET (Kickoff Show starts at 11 a.m. ET)

Watch: Peacock

---

Elimination Chamber 2022 Match Card

• Elimination Chamber Match for WWE Championship: Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Brock Lesnar vs. AJ Styles vs. Seth Rollins vs. Riddle vs. Austin Theory
• Universal Championship: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Goldberg
• Raw Women's Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Lita
• Elimination Chamber Match for Raw Women's Championship No. 1 contender: Bianca Belair vs. Liv Morgan vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Doudrop vs. Nikki A.S.H. vs. Alexa Bliss
• SmackDown Tag Team Championships: The Usos (c) vs. The Viking Raiders
• Ronda Rousey & Naomi vs. Charlotte Flair & Sonya Deville
• Falls Count Anywhere: Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss
• Rey Mysterio vs. The Miz

---

Top Elimination Chamber Matches to Watch

Men's Elimination Chamber Match

In what may be one of the most stacked Elimination Chamber matches of all time, Bobby Lashley will put the WWE Championship on the line against five of Raw's top Superstars.

Chief among his competition is Brock Lesnar, who is set to compete in an Elimination Chamber match for the first time in his illustrious career.

Lashley and Lesnar faced off at the Royal Rumble in a match Lashley won, although he benefited from interference at the hands of Universal champion Roman Reigns.

Lesnar went on to win the Royal Rumble match and has already declared that he will challenge Reigns for the Universal title at WrestleMania, but there could be another wrinkle involved.

The Beast Incarnate has made it clear he wants it to be a title vs. title match, and he can make that a reality if he wins the Elimination Chamber match.

Lesnar is a strong candidate because of that possibility, although it would create a unique situation and perhaps spell the end of the brand split.

If WWE intends to keep the brand split going, it would make sense for someone else to win the match, and it could be Lashley given the dominant run he has been on lately.

Regardless of who prevails, it could be an all-time great Elimination Chamber match because of the talent involved.

---

Women's Elimination Chamber Match

There have only been a handful of women's Elimination Chamber matches in WWE history, and for the first time ever, one will be contested in Saudi Arabia.

Six of Raw's top female Superstars will do battle inside the imposing structure, with the winner moving on to challenge for the Raw Women's title at WrestleMania.

Bianca Belair is undoubtedly the odds-on favorite, as she was recently screwed out of a Raw Women's Championship match at the Royal Rumble by Becky Lynch, who interfered in a Triple Threat No. 1 contender's match to ensure she didn't win.

The assumption is that Lynch will enter WrestleMania as Raw Women's champion, and if that happens, Belair would be her most logical opponent.

Belair beat Sasha Banks in the historic main event of Night 1 of last year's WrestleMania to become champion, and she didn't drop it until SummerSlam when Lynch made her surprise return after missing more than a year because of pregnancy and maternity leave.

Lynch won by taking a cheap shot and has been a heel ever since, and WrestleMania is the ideal time for redemption.

Even though all signs point toward Belair winning at Elimination Chamber, there are some other factors worth keeping an eye on as well, including the continuation of Rhea Ripley's build back toward the top of the card and Alexa Bliss competing in a match for the first time in months.

---

Becky Lynch vs. Lita

In a first-time-ever dream match, Lynch will put the Raw Women's Championship on the line at Elimination Chamber against WWE Hall of Famer Lita.

The bout will represent Lita's first one-on-one singles match since before her retirement in 2006, which adds an extra layer of intrigue to the proceedings.

Lynch and Lita have had some entertaining exchanges on Raw in recent weeks, and Big Time Becks has been painted as someone who is afraid that someone she looked up to will beat her for the title on the road to WrestleMania.

Despite that storyline, Lynch is a heavy favorite to retain since it is widely assumed she will defend the title at WrestleMania, likely against Belair.

Still, Lynch vs. Lita has the makings of a must-see match since it is two all-time greats wrestling for the first and possibly only time.

If Lita has a good showing, it isn't outside the realm of possibility WWE could use her more moving forward, including at WrestleMania in April.

It figures to be a true showcase for Lynch, though, and another feather in her cap entering the biggest show of the year.

---

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: profanity).

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from WWE and AEW.

---

Stone Cold Returning at WrestleMania 38?

While the top two matches at WrestleMania are set, WWE is reportedly looking at another potential blockbuster bout for the biggest show of the year. 

Per Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.), WWE has made a "significant overture" to Stone Cold Steve Austin about working a match on the card. 

At the very least, "most" people in WWE anticipate Austin will have some sort of physical role at WrestleMania. 

Per Bryan Alvarez of F4WOnline.com, an Austin-Kevin Owens match is being discussed. 

Owens told Corey Graves on After the Bell (starts at :20 mark) in 2019 that Austin gave him the go-ahead to start using the stunner as his finishing move. 

WWE seemed to start teasing the possibility on Raw last night by having Owens insult Texas:

"The one good thing about not being on #WrestleMania ... it means I won't have to compete in Dallas, Texas."

What's the deal, @FightOwensFight?! How FICKLE!#WWERaw pic.twitter.com/zZjlTyQkmz

— WWE (@WWE) February 15, 2022

Austin, who is from Texas, last appeared at WrestleMania six years ago. That event, like this year's will be, was held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. 

There are pros and cons to this potential scenario. Having Austin on the card would be a huge win for WWE. He hasn't wrestled a match since losing to The Rock at WrestleMania 19 in 2003. The Rattlesnake is arguably the biggest star in WWE history. 

But potentially using an active wrestler who should be one of the top stars in the company to, presumably, put Austin over on the biggest show of the year doesn't really do Owens any favors. 

Given that so much of WWE's booking is meant to be shortsighted, if Austin is willing to work a match, it might do whatever he wants to make it happen. 

---

Cody Rhodes, WWE Reunion Coming?

In light of Tuesday's shocking news that Cody Rhodes is a free agent after departing All Elite Wrestling, the obvious question is where will he end up working next?

Per Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Matthew Wilkinson of Wrestling Inc.), there was "chatter within certain circles in WWE" that Rhodes could return to the company. 

Meltzer noted Rhodes' deal with AEW actually expired in December and he had been working with the promotion as a free agent in recent weeks. 

pic.twitter.com/iyKVg1nVpm

— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) February 15, 2022

In addition to his work as a wrestler, Rhodes was also an executive vice president for AEW. He has been a key figure in the promotion since its launch in 2019. 

Prior to joining AEW, Rhodes was best known for his time in WWE from 2007 through 2016. He didn't leave the company on great terms, based on his comments about the creative team when he requested his release in May 2016. 

Rhodes was primarily used as a midcard performer in WWE. The 36-year-old was a two-time intercontinental champion and six-time tag-team champion with the promotion during his original run. 

---

WWE HOF Doesn't Interest Lesnar

Brock Lesnar doesn't care about creating a lasting legacy in WWE. 

Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show (h/t Eric Mutter of Wrestling Inc.), Lesnar was asked about people including him on their Mt. Rushmore of professional wrestlers. 

"I don’t care or give a s--t," Lesnar said in response. "I’m serious. Like I don’t give a f--k if I’m in the Hall of Fame or not. I’ve done what I did. I don’t care. I don’t care if I’m leaving a legacy behind. What I do care about is, you know, I’m a good person, a good dad, and all that stuff. That’s important to me."

No one should care about the WWE Hall of Fame. It's a nice part of WrestleMania weekend every year, but a quick look at the people inducted by the company clearly shows it's not meant to be taken seriously. 

Lesnar doesn't need the WWE Hall of Fame to validate his career in any way. The Beast will certainly be inducted at some point if he agrees to go in, but it definitely doesn't seem like something he'll be chasing. 

In any case, Lesnar seems to have a desire to keep wrestling. His run with Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman since returning at SummerSlam is one of the best ongoing storylines in WWE in years. 

---

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

WWE superstar Brock Lesnar sat down for a rare interview on Monday. During his chat with Pat McAfee, Lesnar discussed his relationships with his boss Vince McMahon and his former boss, UFC president Dana White.

"I really can't compare the two guys," Lesnar said. "Honestly my relationship with Vince is so different than it is with Dana, over the years."

Lesnar has worked with McMahon for the better part of 20 years since his WWE debut in 2002. He competed for the UFC from 2008-11 and again briefly in 2016, winning the heavyweight title in his first run. When asked about White, Lesnar took a veiled shot at the issue of pay disparity among fighters.

"Dana's alright, I've gotten a lot of money from him. ... I probably should've gotten paid more, maybe," he said.

It's no surprise that having so much history with McMahon has led them to overcome some ups and downs before their relationship could get to what it is today. When it comes to White, it's more of a business relationship than anything else.

"Vince and I have had a love/hate relationship for the last 20 years, but it's been good, we've got a lot of water under the bridge," Lesnar said. "I've got a lot of respect for both men. But dealing with Dana, it's a totally different business approach."

Lesnar further explained that his relationship with McMahon goes deeper because he was a taught a lot of lessons that he was able to use even when he wasn't in WWE.

"I met Vince when I was younger," he said. "I look at Vince more as a father figure, actually, because I've learned a lot of things from him, and I was able to carry those things over and handle business with Dana."

Lesnar will be a part of the Elimination Chamber match for the WWE championship at this Saturday's pay-per-view event.

Since winning the WWE Universal Championship in August 2020, Roman Reigns has been the most dominant Superstar on the main roster and has been booked strongly for 18 months.

The Tribal Chief will have to drop his title to another performer at some point, but WWE Creative must ensure the moment is not wasted. When Reigns loses his belt, the wrestling world should be buzzing.

Here are the Superstars who could beat Reigns and reign over SmackDown as the new universal champion.

               

Goldberg

At the Elimination Chamber event in Saudi Arabia, former WCW champion Goldberg should end Reigns' triumphant run as universal champion.

Not only would the title change stun much of the WWE Universe, which believes the Tribal Chief will carry the belt into WrestleMania, but it would also provide a marquee moment that creates mainstream buzz for the sport at the most important time.

Goldberg is a bona fide star who can help bring back the casual wrestling fans who tune out for weeks at a time. With Reigns dropping the championship to the 55-year-old, WWE Creative could still book Brock Lesnar vs. Reigns and have Goldberg in another title match, wherein he could put over a younger star.

Lesnar could easily win the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber, thus giving Reigns the chance to win another world title at WrestleMania. On the other hand, Goldberg could wrestle against a star like Big E and put him over to create a monumental moment.

                  

Brock Lesnar

Reigns already has a date set for WrestleMania 38, and it could be 2022 men's Royal Rumble winner Brock Lesnar who defeats the Tribal Chief. The feud between the pair has lasted years, and The Beast could be ready to win again.

Vince McMahon and Co. love what Brock Lesnar brings to the table from an in-ring, storyline and mainstream notoriety perspective. While the younger star should usually go over in these matchups, Lesnar ending Reigns' long Universal Championship reign would be a welcome change.

Reigns has carried the championship for more than 530 days. For many wrestling fans, it's time for a change despite the solid booking of the Superstar throughout. In an age of instant gratification, the WWE Universe wants a new champion on SmackDown.

The hope is that if Lesnar wins at WrestleMania and successfully defends the belt in a rematch, he would go on to lose the championship and put over a younger star at SummerSlam like Drew McIntyre. If not Brock, maybe Reigns puts McIntyre over.

                

Drew McIntyre

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNJZUokGk4I

The man who should have won the Royal Rumble and earned the right to dethrone the Tribal Chief on the biggest stage of them all is Drew McIntyre.

The Scottish star has been cast aside by WWE Creative once again despite being one of the Superstars who helped carry the company through the Performance Center-based shows during the initial wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Instead of being rewarded with a worthy coronation at WrestleMania 38—not one relegated to a building with no fans—McIntyre has been stuck in a meaningless feud with Baron Corbin and Madcap Moss.

If Reigns walks out of April's pay-per-view as the champion, the next marquee spot for a possible loss would be SummerSlam. If McMahon and the rest of WWE Creative have a conscience, they will right their wrong and let McIntyre dethrone the Tribal Chief at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.

                      

Bray Wyatt

One of the wildest possibilities would be to have Bray Wyatt and his Fiend character return to WWE programming and decimate Reigns, thus regaining his position at the top of the card and cementing him as WWE's future.

Releasing Wyatt was one of the biggest mistakes the company has ever made, so asking him to return and putting him in a marquee spot would help make up for the blunder.

Ending Reigns' run as champion would make him an instant face and beloved by the fans again.

The Tribal Chief and The Fiend looked poised to feud at several points, but the storyline never came to fruition. With WrestleMania needing a major shot in the arm, Wyatt's return would create a buzz among hardcore and casual fans alike.

           

For more wrestling talk, listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics or catch the latest episode in the player above (some language NSFW).

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

---

Vince McMahon Adding Brock Lesnar to MSG House Show

Vince McMahon took notice of the low attendance for WWE's last house show at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 26. 

Per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of RingsideNews.com), McMahon has added Brock Lesnar to the upcoming MSG house show on March 5 to boost ticket sales:

"It’s pretty clear Vince McMahon wasn’t taking that last Madison Square Garden show doing one of the lowest crowds in the last 80 years in the building lying down. Not only did he add Lesnar to the show, and every Lesnar appearance is very expensive and hardly cost-effective for a house show, particularly in a building where you need a huge number just to break even and really running the building itself with the crowd they drew the last time would be tough."

Lesnar is scheduled to face Bobby Lashley on the show. Lashley is the WWE champion, but he will defend the title against Lesnar, Seth "Freakin" Rollins, Austin Theory, Riddle and AJ Styles in an Elimination Chamber match on the Feb. 19 event in Saudi Arabia. 

The Beast is one of the few proven attendance-movers in WWE right now. Ticket sales for the Day 1 show on New Year's Day increased after the announcement Lesnar would challenge Roman Reigns for the WWE universal title. 

The Lesnar-Reigns bout wound up being canceled after Reigns tested positive for COVID-19. Lesnar was added to the Fatal Five-Way match for the WWE title. He pinned Big E after an F-5 to win the championship. 

---

McMahon Issues New Day Edict

Despite putting Big E on SmackDown to reunite with Kofi Kingston, McMahon isn't allowing the duo to use the New Day moniker. 

Per Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.), McMahon is "adamant" that Kingston and Big E not be billed as the New Day. 

Middleton, citing Sapp, also noted McMahon has wavered back and forth multiple times in recent years about splitting the entire trio, which also includes Xavier Woods,: 

"Furthermore, it was noted that Vince was also adamant at one point about putting The New Day back together as a trio because he 'missed the magic that they created together.' However, Vince also preferred that the group split up in the last two WWE Drafts, with the idea that a top babyface like Big E should be on their own in most situations. There were numerous draft pitches made to keep The New Day together despite Vince’s idea, but it didn’t do much good."

Kingston and Woods were moved to Raw in the 2020 draft, while Big E stayed on SmackDown. 

The following year, Big E was drafted to Raw when he was WWE champion and Kingston and Woods, who were still billed as the New Day at that point, were moved from the red brand to the blue brand. 

After Big E lost the WWE title to Lesnar at Day 1, he was officially moved to SmackDown on a full-time basis on Jan. 28. He has been teaming up with Kingston in a feud with Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss while Woods has been out of action with a torn plantaris. 

It's unclear if McMahon's edict only applies to the team of Kingston and Big E. Perhaps when Woods returns to action, they will be allowed to go by the name that fans know them by. 

The feud between Kingston, Big E, Corbin and Moss likely ended with Drew McIntyre's return at the Royal Rumble. Corbin is now involved in a program with McIntyre. 

Breaking up the New Day didn't seem to make a lot of sense when it happened. They have been one of the most popular acts in WWE since becoming a group in 2014. The trio has combined to win the Raw and SmackDown tag-team titles eight times. 

---

Rok-C Reportedly Receives WWE Offer

With Ring of Honor undergoing significant changes to its business model, many of its top stars figure to show up in new promotions all over the world. 

Former ROH women's world champion Rok-C has reportedly drawn attention from WWE. 

Per Meltzer (h/t Ethan Renner of WrestlingObserver.com), Rok-C received a contract offer from WWE after taking part in a tryout camp recently. 

According to Meltzer, she also participated in a tryout camp with WWE in December. 

It's unclear if Rok-C has signed with the promotion at this point. The 20-year-old made her ROH debut in April and took part in the women's world championship tournament last summer. She defeated Miranda Alize in the final to win the title at Death Before Dishonor XVIII. 

Ring of Honor announced in October that after the Final Battle event, the company would take the first quarter of 2022 to "internally reimagine ROH" going forward. 

Per Bryan Alvarez of WrestlingObserver.com, ROH wasn't renewing contracts for any of its current talent, and they would be allowed to work for other promotions immediately. 

Rok-C made a couple of appearances on Impact Wrestling in January. She was in attendance at Hard to Kill on Jan. 8 and lost the ROH women's title to AAA Reina de Reinas champion Deonna Purrazzo in a winner-take-all match on Jan. 13. 

Given her age and potential, Rok-C would seem to be an ideal fit for WWE. The promotion is using NXT 2.0 to start developing young stars for the future, including Bron Breaker, Andre Chase and Cora Jade. 

Rok-C would fit in with the current crop of NXT superstars, but she's also proved that she's capable of handling herself on a bigger stage if WWE wanted to put her on the main roster immediately. 

All of this is contingent on Rok-C signing a WWE contract, of course. 

---

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.

There's still a ways to go, but WrestleMania 38 feels like it might just be the first-ever holding pattern WrestleMania. 

That's not necessarily a new idea, but it's one that's becoming truer and truer the closer WWE gets to the big two-night event from Arlington, Texas, that starts on April 2. 

Endless speculation has suggested that Roman Reigns' strong run as top dog on SmackDown will continue not just through this Mania but all the way up until WrestleMania 39, where the familial "Tribal Chief" storyline could conclude with a bout against The Rock in Inglewood, California, of all places. 

And the booking has backed that up to perfection. Reigns hasn't lost, and in the interim, Brock Lesnar has returned to dominate whatever, whenever. When Reigns pulled out of the Day 1 event due to COVID-19, Lesnar went and won the other brand's top title, derailing Big E. He then lost that title at Royal Rumble, before predictably winning the 30-man rumble to get things back on track for the headlining feud. 

WWE hasn't cared that this has been as predictable as it gets. The company knows what it wants, and what it wants is a Lensar-Reigns retread before a Rock return a year from now. 

In the process, the Raw men's main event scene is a disaster. Big E was unceremoniously dumped by...somebody in the rumble. Bobby Lashley beat Lesnar but looks weak because he needed help to win the title. 

Oh, and Lashley has to defend his title before 'Mania in an Elimination Chamber match against a hodgepodge of names...including Lesnar. There's a very real chance that Lesnar wins, just so WWE can do a title vs. title match at 'Mania, all other men's Superstars forgotten. 

And while Lesnar is doing that, Reigns will defend his title at Elimination Chamber against a yet-again-returning, 55-year-old Goldberg. 

It's a lot of predictable work for predictable outcomes. 

It's not as if things elsewhere have been much better. Ronda Rousey was brought back to make 'Mania feel bigger, but she'll feud with Charlotte Flair. Not only is that a feud fans have already seen at the cost of other women, it's blatantly a holding-pattern feud until Rousey can collide with Becky Lynch at the next 'Mania. As for Lynch, she'll spend the event fighting whichever poor soul wins the women's Elimination Chamber. 

There are no big announced outside names that WWE loves so much besides Lesnar and Rousey. This might be best exemplified by the sudden departure of Shane McMahon, who went out in a firestorm of speculation after the disaster of a men's rumble that featured him as one of the final three participants. 

Maybe Shane's messy departure was a sign WWE realized what it was trying to force into the top of the card with him are a bad way to go. But since the rumble, there hasn't been a ton to suggest WrestleMania 38 will be anything more than filler content. 

This barren outlook so close to the big event is likely to unfold as WWE tries to make another successful two-night event. It has to fill two nights of content that live up to the standard set by the 'Mania brand, not one. 

One has to wonder if WWE forces some of the storylines forward before they're fully cooked. Think, a Randy Orton-Riddle split or a family feud between Rey and Dominik Mysterio. There will be fun matches with must-see names like Sasha Banks and Bayley.

Even if this is a "meh" 'Mania that slots into other so-so events of its kind from past years, it'll still pop major numbers, whether that's via streaming, on social media or whatever else. It's WrestleMania...it's going to do numbers. 

But taking that for granted and not booking Superstars, feuds and storylines well in the months leading up to 'Mania and slapdashing it all together at the last second is misguided. 

There's still time for WWE to get it right and forge something that will excite fans. But the company's continued inability or refusal to build top stars has come back to hurt it badly here, as fans can see where the company will choose to go all-in on must-see material. 

And as of right now, WrestleMania 38 doesn't feel like it will sniff that sort of classification.