WWE Elimination Chamber 2026 preview and predictions: Who's heading to WrestleMania 42?

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Is 2026 the year Rhea Ripley wins WWE's Elimination Chamber?WWE via Getty Images

The next stop on the road to WrestleMania 42 takes place this Saturday in Chicago at the WWE Elimination Chamber 2026. The near future of WWE will become a whole lot clearer when all is said and done, as the winners of the two titular matches will earn championship opportunities at WrestleMania 42 in April.

Uncrowned’s Horsemen — Kel Dansby, Robert Jackman, Drake Riggs and Anthony Sulla-Heffinger — are here to preview the event and answer burning questions about WWE’s final PLE before the "Showcase of the Immortals."

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Let’s ride!

1. Who should — and who will — win the men’s and women’s Elimination Chamber matches?

Jackman: When it comes to the men's match, I think there are drawbacks for all of them, though Cody Rhodes or Randy Orton are the better choices. Neither of them requires any great leap of imagination and that's partly the point. This is the least star-studded 'Mania for a few years, so the sheer name-recognition factor of contenders matters more than ever when it comes to these title matches. Rhodes and Orton both have that, while the others don't.

On the women's side, I would love to see Rhea Ripley win. She's easily one of the top-five stars in pro-wrestling right now and she has always over-delivered on expectations when it comes to WrestleMania. Of course, for her to win, WWE needs to extract her from the swamp-like women's tag title scene and perhaps even bring RhIyo to an end. Given how invested WWE creative has been in that storyline, that feels very unlikely right now — but who knows.

As for who I predict will win, I'm going to say Rhodes and Tiffany Stratton. It's obviously a good year to be a blonde.

Dansby: It’s time to shake up the main-event scene. WWE feels like it’s dragging right now, and that comes down to lackluster booking and even fewer genuinely shocking decisions. The roster needs fresh air. Here’s a novel idea: Give the fans what they want and send them home satisfied.

LA Knight has gotten too close too many times only to fall short. At some point, you have to reward that momentum. Let him win. The United Center in Chicago would absolutely explode, and it sets up a strong WrestleMania match with Drew McIntyre, assuming Drew is still champion. Knight has proven he can carry the spotlight. Now let’s see if he can run with it.

On the women’s side, it’s time to finally pay off the division’s longest-running storyline. Judgment Day has been teasing cracks for what feels like years. WrestleMania in Vegas feels like the perfect stage to blow it up. Let Raquel Rodriguez win the Chamber, which isn’t far-fetched given the field this year, and choose to turn the Vaquer vs. Morgan title match into a triple threat. It would be the first time both the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber winners chose the same champion to challenge, and it creates a built-in story of tension and implosion heading into WrestleMania.

Sulla-Heffinger: I believe Kel hit the nail on the head with his take on the women’s Elimination Chamber. You don’t have Liv Morgan eliminate Raquel Rodriguez from the Royal Rumble without some plan to have them feud a la Shawn Michaels and Diesel in the 1990s. It’s the most compelling angle that can come out of this match on Saturday, plus a triple-threat at ‘Mania can get the belt on Morgan and theoretically protect Stephanie Vaquer in the process. "Big Mami Cool" should and will win.

I’m going to use this moment to pivot slightly and talk about the Judgment Day, because if this is really the beginning of the end of the group, what an excellent job the stable has done in making its stars. It’s been popular in the past to somewhat dunk on the group, but, in my opinion, you cannot deny that at this point every member is a bigger star than they were when they joined. Really excellent, long-term story work here.

On the men’s side, the Undisputed WWE Championship picture is just too crowded to not have this be a Cody Rhodes victory Saturday. My hope is we get down to Rhodes and Randy Orton being the final two here and we see Rhodes channel a mean streak to take the win, waking up something in Orton and setting up a program that can roll from WrestleMania to SummerSlam this year. As Jason Solomon pointed out on "The Uncrowned Wrestling Show" this week (episodes drop every Tuesday), there’s a path for a multi-man match at WrestleMania 42 and this is how it can be set up.

Riggs: There is such a stark contrast in these answers, particularly in the men's match. LA Knight or Trick Williams are the guys. Both are as super over and fresh faces in world title pursuits. Ideally, either would go on to win at the grandest stage and really freshen up the landscape.

However, we all know that's not happening. Unless Rhodes' mini-betrayal of Sami Zayn in their qualifying match finally costs him on event night, it's the former champ's match to lose.

On the other side, it gets a little trickier in the women's Chamber. The only real storyline history for WWE to play off of is Tiffany Stratton having lost the title to Jade Cargill. I wouldn't necessarily hate that, but I wouldn't say she should win. I'm all for new and exciting programs, and Kiana James continuing the shock push would be pretty cool — but also an impossibility. Alexa Bliss inserting herself into the forever-teased rivalry between Cargill and her bestie Charlotte Flair poses intrigue, and Bliss deserves to return to the world title scene. But ultimately, the big-money match is simply Rhea Ripley vs. Cargill. No story is needed there. The aesthetic of the pairing sells itself, and Ripley is actually "that b****."

Does Finn Balor stand any chance off pulling the upset and dethroning CM Punk?WWE via Getty Images

Sulla-Heffinger: A clean finish.

I do think Balor vs. Dominik Mysterio is your WrestleMania Intercontinental Championship match, but you can get Balor over in a major way and even tease a Demon return if he loses clean on Saturday. Mysterio can mock Balor for having come up short twice while he holds two championships and Balor’s response can be “OK, we’ll see at WrestleMania.” It fits both characters’ trajectories within the Judgment Day at the moment.

Dansby: Let’s continue dismantling Judgment Day.

Dominik Mysterio trying to help Finn Bálor only to cost him the match feels like the natural next chapter. That mistake could finally set up Finn vs. Dom at WrestleMania. If WWE leans fully into babyface Finn, even bringing back the Demon for the entrance — that’s a 'Mania moment waiting to happen.

Jackman: It's the cliché answer but how about "a really good wrestling match"? I know that sounds a bit earnest (like when Cena used to get asked about his favorite match), but surely that's what everyone is keeping their fingers crossed for? There is no way they're switching the title. You have more chances of them offering a 90% discount on WrestleMania tickets than you have of them taking the belt off Punk before 'Mania.

CM Punk has been a loyal soldier to the TKO regime since the minute he returned. I think this is another one of those examples of them giving him a little pat on the back for his service — in this case, that means giving him the chance to have a marquee title match in front of his hometown crowd. This is his first televised match in Illinois since returning, right?

Riggs: Unlikely? HAH! Balor is winning that belt, folks. Get ready.

Here's the story: Oh no! How could CM Punk really jeopardize his massive Roman Reigns title match? He beat Balor in Balor's home, now Balor beats him at his, spoiling the party with a colossal shock and re-elevating the inaugural Universal Champion. Simultaneously, Punk is in a race against time to regain the title before 'Mania and save his coveted main-event match. Punk makes it happen — but not without the aid of Dominik Mysterio, who costs Balor in the Punk trilogy to set up his own Balor 'Mania showcase.

As for the rematch itself, expect another banger, likely ending with a clean finish after Balor teases some kind of need to use a weapon to get the job done.

Is Chris Jericho in the box? (No really, is he? I have no idea.)WWE via Getty Images

Dansby: I have a feeling there’s something “Very nice, Very evil” inside. IYKYK.

Sulla-Heffinger: I am shooting my shot here: It’s a grandfather clock with the hands set to 4:20 — and as soon as Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis open the box, it chimes. Karrion Kross is coming back on the "Raw" after ‘Mania.

Riggs: Rock in a box. Let's get crazy and go full circle with back-to-back absurd Elimination Chamber moments.

In all seriousness, it would seem super odd to have a person be in the box. But this all feels like some kind of old-school throwback to silly pro-wrestling times, so with that in mind, Danhausen is perfect. Goofy wrestling at its finest. Very nice, very evil.

Jackman: Wasn't Chris Jericho meant to be a stone-cold certainty for a comeback last month? And so far, it's been largely crickets on that front.

I'm just going to add to the speculation here, but could it be something to do with Ethan Page? He dropped the NXT North American title pretty abruptly earlier this week and has felt like a main roster call-up in waiting for ages now. We've seen him do a bit of gimmicky stuff with the whole Canadian title run over on the developmental brand, so maybe he's the mastermind behind the crate.

It took a while, but the AJ Lee (right) vs. Becky Lynch feud is back on.WWE via Getty Images

4. Becky Lynch vs. AJ Lee is a big match, but will Elimination Chamber be the end of the feud? Does this story have a place at WrestleMania?

Jackman: I can see Lynch winning on Saturday in a way that leads to a rematch. For me, this is another one of those examples of the need to keep in mind what each outcome would mean for WrestleMania. 

Becky Lynch has been absolutely synonymous with that Intercontinental Championship for almost a year now. If she drops it this weekend, what does she do in Las Vegas? WWE is short of decent feuds as it is, so to finish one of their more successful rivalries this weekend would be a silly mistake.

Riggs: It would almost feel like a disservice to AJ Lee to have her win a title before WrestleMania. She deserves a spot on the big show regardless, but there's nothing else of note around her. Everything has been exclusively tied to Lynch since her return.

Therefore, I lean towards Robert's answer and Lynch getting the job done by shenanigans, further frustrating the Chicago crowd when both of its hometown heroes go up in flames.

Sulla-Heffinger: This has to carry to WrestleMania, and I think the best way to do this is to have Lynch pull off a shady win over AJ Lee on Saturday.

Lee winning in Chicago would be a big moment, sure, but I think if we’re looking at the bigger picture, giving her the WrestleMania moment of winning the championship is a more sensible way to advance this story. Also, factoring in schedules, if Lee isn’t slated to do weekly dates, it’s better to have that title gap be between WrestleMania and Backlash instead of now and ‘Mania.

Dansby: I’m actually hoping AJ Lee loses at Elimination Chamber, but only if it escalates things. These two are built for the biggest stage, and this feels like the kind of rivalry AJ returned to WWE to have.

Give them a stipulation match at WrestleMania. Raise the stakes. Let it feel definitive.

Is anything this weekend topping this moment?WWE via Getty Images

Sulla-Heffinger: I’m not sure there’s anything that would qualify as a mind-blowing swerve — beyond my prediction for the crate above — but I think if Kiana James won the Elimination Chamber match we would all collectively be in shock. She’s talented and on the rise, but booking a WrestleMania championship match in your second PLE would be legitimately stunning.

Riggs: See my answer to the box. 

Rock in a box. That's the answer.

Let's take it even further. Rock in a box reveals himself after Cody Rhodes turns heel in the Chamber match. Rhodes then reveals he has now given up his soul in an effort to recapture the title. "Rocky Rhodes" unites and snatches the tag-team titles in the process of Rhodes' pursuit of McIntyre, turning their backs on their friends and family, The Usos. Consider it another two-night affair for Rhodes like WrestleMania 40.

OK, I can't lie. I popped the hell out of myself with that tag-team name, so now I hope it happens. Cinema.

Jackman: Randy Orton turning on Cody Rhodes (or vice versa) is the obvious pick for me. Unlike the Cena heel turn, it's been teased for a while now, but you still get the feeling it would be a tectonic shock when it happens. In theory, it could also open up the route to making that Undisputed title match into a multi-man match — something that's been buzzing on the rumor mill for a while now. Imagine Rhodes vs. McIntyre vs. Orton vs. Fatu.

Though if you really want to stir the pot, why not have AJ Lee turn on CM Punk, thus having Chicago's favorite wrestling power-couple detonating right before their very eyes? I'm kidding, of course, but it seems like the kind of madcap idea they'd probably discuss in one of those roundtable meetings from "WWE Unreal."

Dansby: Maybe this is unpopular, but WWE doesn’t need an over-the-top shock ending at every PLE. Not every show needs an all-time swerve.

How about delivering great matches, advancing storylines logically and letting things breathe?

Sometimes less is more. Elimination Chamber doesn’t need to do too much. It just needs to make sense.

  • Men’s Elimination Chamber: Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (Jackman, Riggs, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Je’Von Evans vs. Trick Williams vs. LA Knight (Dansby) vs. Jey Uso

  • Women’s Elimination Chamber: Alexa Bliss vs. Raquel Rodriguez (Dansby, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Tiffany Stratton (Jackman) vs. Rhea Ripley (Riggs) vs. Asuka vs. Kiana James

  • World Heavyweight Championship match: CM Punk (Dansby, Jackman, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Finn Balor (Riggs)

  • Women’s Intercontinental Championship match: Becky Lynch (Dansby, Jackman, Riggs, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. AJ Lee

  • Robert Jackman: 5-2

  • Anthony Sulla-Heffinger: 5-2

  • Kel Dansby: 4-3

  • Drake Riggs: 3-4

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