Triple H vs. Shane McMahon is what’s best for business at WrestleMania 33

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You might not want him to, but Triple H is going to have a match at WrestleMania 33. It’s even more likely that you don’t want to see Shane McMahon have a match at Mania, but we’ve got bad news for you there, too. They are two of the biggest names in WWE, especially for the more casual crowd that tune in during WrestleMania season, and even though Aitch’s presumed opponent is hurt and Shane had a terrifying experience with a spear last time he was in a ring and a boring Mania 32 match before that, they’re going to wrestle in Orlando. Since this is an inevitability, WWE should have Triple H and Shane McMahon wrestle each other.

It makes plenty of sense to do so. Triple H is a WWE executive married to Stephanie McMahon, who is running RAW. Shane runs SmackDown, and WWE has been building a ratings war and animosity between the two brands on-screen, at the same there is reported real-life heat between the two sides of the McMahon clan. Whether that is actually real, whether it’s still going or over, it’s the kind of thing WWE should lean into since it makes sense in their made-up world. Figure out some kind of RAW vs. SmackDown stakes for Mania, put Triple H in RAW’s corner and Shane in SmackDown’s, and let these two take up one match on the Mania card instead of two.

WWE has just about two months of programming to make it work, which they can certainly do. Wouldn’t you rather have RAW vs. SmackDown mean something? And for Shane to have a match for a reason other than because it feels like he should? For Triple H to still have a meaningful match even though the program they spent most of a year building to can no longer happen? For AJ Styles and Samoa Joe to be freed up to do something besides have to carry Shane and fill-in for Rollins, respectively? On a WrestleMania card that’s already running out of space, making The Shane Match and The Triple H Match the same one could do WWE a lot of favors on April 2 — and in the two months of lead-in time they still have, too.

• Monday’s Rumor Roundup does tell us one person Triple H will not be facing at WrestleMania 33.
• Aitch and Shane aren’t the only wrestlers fans want to see doing something else: a poll at WWE.com has far more fans wishing Undertaker was facing John Cena than they do Roman Reigns, and by nearly 30 percentage points.
• The Patriots staged the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history on Sunday, and from the WWE perspective, that means we get to see, on a livestream, Kofi Kingston celebrate while Xavier Woods stares into the abyss.
• Randy Orton has thoughts on WrestleMania vs. the Super Bowl.
• We’re six days away from Elimination Chamber, and four of the presumably six matches have been confirmed.
• Kevin Owens is incredible, and here’s video proof.
• WCW is getting real bad during the part of the timeline Brandon Stroud’s Nitro recaps are at.
• The Miz understands how to do guest commentary, as his last appearance at SmackDown’s announce table reminds.
• Let Tonya Rodgers tell you why she’s a Roman Reigns fan.
• Cody Rhodes still doesn’t regret leaving WWE, even if his travel schedule is somehow even more brutal now.
• Geno Mrosko is a Sting fan who is getting mad online about how well Goldberg is being treated.
• The Bella twins have business ventures outside of wrestling, and one of them is here to teach you about vayjayjays. Hey, that’s the word they used.
• Asuka has now also surpassed Paige’s total days as NXT Women’s Champion, and is on pace to be the longest-reigning NXT champ of any kind should she hold onto the title until WrestleMania weekend.