Reported by Hunter Golden of WrestleView.com
On Sunday, April 1, 2007 at 2:07 AM EST

Well it’s about that time of year again. Before I get started, I just wanted to apologize for not having a column in the last couple of weeks. Life catches up with you and between switching jobs and other ‘life stuff’, things have been a little hectic around the Golden household.

Ok, enough of that, onto the most glorious part of the wrestling year, Wrestlemania.

I’ve got to tip my hat to WWE this year. This is the first year in FOREVER it seems, that Wrestlemania really FEELS like Wrestlemania. Everything about this year’s build has been ‘big’. The venue is big. The two dream matches are big. The McMahon-Trump feud is big. The Hall of Fame class was big. Everything seems like a big deal and even though not a whole heck of a lot’s changed in recent months, everything seems fresh and exciting again.

It’s a pretty big feat considering this Wrestlemania, around December, looked like it could be in trouble. Triple H was scheduled to face John Cena in a rematch of last year’s main event, but that fell apart when Triple H’s quad decided to blow again. Big Show was rumored to have a match with Hulk Hogan but thanks to a host of injuries, the likelihood of it happening were slim to none. Then, like every year, there were rumors flying about Austin-Hogan, figuring that was the only thing that could fill Ford Field. Just like every year, neither guy was keen on the idea. Even some of WWE’s mid card would be conspicuous by their absence at this year’s show. Kurt Angle flew the coop for TNA. Rey Mysterio was hung up with an injury. Both were in main event matches last year.

Try and put that in perspective for a second and maybe it’ll give you a new appreciation for how well this card’s been built.

Now I’ve heard a lot from the smarkies over the past couple of weeks. There are the usual works rate!>#$ kids who’re ticked we’re not going to see two guys trade arm bars for 30 minutes. There are people who’re ‘offended’ by the fact that certain wrestlers aren’t on the card. I for one, would have liked to have seen Ric Flair on the card. However, life sucks, and like everyone on planet Earth, we all just need to strap on our helmets and deal. Despite my missing Flair from a fan-boy standpoint, his addition or subtraction to the card does little for its overall quality. It’s the same with Carlito & Johnny Nitro.

None of it really matters, though. If they were on or were not on, Smarks would still ride this show into the sunset. It’s not about wrestling for these folks anymore, it’s about them giving off the perception that they know what they’re talking about. In all reality, they don’t.

I think this is the best built Mania in at least the last four years. As a complete card, it’s been built better than the Rock-Hogan headlined Wrestlemania X8. This has the potential to be as fun, probably not as good, but as fun as Wrestlemania X7. It feels good to feel like Wrestlemania is a big deal again. Considering the hurdles that have had to been overcome, this Wrestlemania should be looked at as an accomplishment.

So predictions time. Enough of my yapping. Here we go, match by match:

Benoit-MVP: This’ll kick off the show for sure. MVP’s entrance will be wild and the crowd will pop for Benoit. They’ll also likely put on a solid match to get the blood pumping in Detroit. I’m thinking it makes sense to put the US title on MVP, but considering the way this feud has been booked, I actually think Benoit may retain here and drop it to MVP a little bit down the road. Regardless, this should be pretty fun. I’ll go with the change here, for the heck of it. Winner: MVP

Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Here’s the short and skinny. Matt and Jeff Hardy are there to die. That’s it. I’ll bet Matt dies in the first five minutes and Jeff dies in the last five minutes. Bumps. Yay. King Booker and Finlay are there to direct traffic. The ring is going to be a total mess, so they’re going to need two guys who know what they’re doing to make sure, well, everyone else knows what they’re doing. Kennedy, while I think he was an early favorite, is less of one heading in now. I don’t know if he needs the elevation from the brief case. Put Edge in that category as well. Neither one of them need it nearly as much as my two picks, Randy Orton or CM Punk. The briefcase could put Orton right back on the map. His career always either seems to be on the cusp of exploding one month and then the next month is circling the drain. WWE’s really worked hard to get him to the point of pulling the trigger again, this might be it. CM Punk on the other hand, with the brief case, could bring a ton of much needed credibility to the ECW brand and give fans a reason to watch it. With the heel turn being teased with the New Breed and Foley perhaps being involved, how about a CM Punk-Foley turn and confrontation? Foley’s name recognition would help ECW greatly and get Punk over enough to be a foil to Bobby Lashley. I think Punk and ECW get the most out of it, so I go with it. Winner in an upset: CM Punk

New Breed-ECW Originals: I’d love to see extreme rules tossed in at the last minute and just up the ante a bit here. The New Breeds probably the safest bet to win their match on this entire card. I’ll bet Burke gets the pin on Tommy Dreamer. Look for some post-match silliness. Winners: The New Breed.

Kane-Great Khali: This will suck so bad, it’ll be awesome. I don’t care what any of you say. It doesn’t matter who wins because it’ll be that awesome. Winner: The fans

Ashley-Melina: This’ll be the piss break between the title matches. Melina’s pretty much a shoe in to win this thing. Ashley’s got the desire to become a great wrestler, but she’s not even passable yet. This’ll be what it’ll be. Winner: Melina

Battle of the Billionaires: Lashley’s obviously going over but I actually expect this to be a lot better than people are giving it credit for. I’ve faith that Umaga can carry Lashley to a fun, intense brawl with plenty of McMahon-Trump non sense to boot. Stone Cold’s involved so everyone’s eating a stunner at the end. Winner: Bobby Lashley

World Heavyweight Championship: A month ago I’d have said Batista would be going over but now, I’ll be shocked if he does. Taker’s streak ain’t worth wasting on Batista who’s not only old, but losing heat pretty quickly. A nice short run from Taker would be nice and there are endless possibilities for some good title bouts down the road. I think Batista needs a breather. This’ll be passable. Winner: The Undertaker.

WWE Championship: This’ll be awesome. I’m picking Cena to win here, to sort of put over the whole theme of the event, but HBK will get that run, probably at Backlash. This’ll be sensational though. Cena’s wrestling as well as he’s ever worked in his life and Michaels is just on another planet he’s been so good. I’m hoping this is one of the great ones. Winner: John Cena

Well that about does it. I’m tired (its 2am) and I’ve got a long day of drinking and pro wrestling ahead of me! Enjoy Wrestlemania and stay safe!

NOTE: The views expressed in this column are not the views of WrestleView.com and its immediate staff.