Roman Reigns gets to show up and win

Elimination Chamber match, winner challenges Roman Reigns for the Universal championship

Daniel Bryan vs. Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro vs. Jey Uso vs. Sami Zayn vs. King Corbin

The pieces are lined up for Universal champion Roman Reigns to have an easy night at Elimination Chamber 2021.

It wasn’t originally supposed to be this way. Adam Pearce intended to force Roman to defend the gold against five other wrestlers inside a brutal Elimination Chamber match. But that’s why Paul Heyman is paid the big bucks; he manipulated the contract terms so that Reigns can sit out the chamber. Reigns will instead defend the title in a one-on-one match against whichever man survives the chamber match. His challenger will be severely compromised by that point, giving Reigns a huge advantage in the championship match.

Jey Uso and Kevin Owens were granted automatic spots in the Elimination Chamber match because they’ve taken the champ to the limit in multiple matches over the last six months. Sami Zayn & King Corbin then qualified for the chamber match by teaming up to defeat Rey and Dominik Mysterio. Daniel Bryan and Cesaro earned the final two chamber spots in similar fashion, when they defeated Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler in a tag match.

That gives us a field of three babyfaces (Bryan, Owens, Cesaro) and three heels (Zayn, Uso, Corbin). Zayn and Corbin don’t appear to have much of a chance to win the chamber match, but a good case can be made for each of the other four men. Owens has been Reigns’ biggest recent threat, Bryan vs. Reigns is a fresh match that we haven’t seen in a long time, Cesaro is on the rise right now, and Uso has the family connection.

The rules of an Elimination Chamber match are as follows: two wrestlers begin in the ring while the remaining four men are locked in pods. One pod door will open at random every five minutes, allowing that wrestler to join the match. This process will repeat until all of the pods are unlocked. If a wrestler is pinned or submits at any point in the match, he is eliminated and will leave the chamber. The last remaining wrestler wins the match, and goes on to challenge Roman Reigns for the Universal championship.

The chamber match itself has a lot of possibilities, while the outcome of Reigns’ title defense is all but assured. That doesn’t necessarily mean Roman will end the night standing tall. There’s a certain Rated-R Hall of Fame Royal Rumble winner who might take advantage of this opportunity to pay Roman back with a spear. Don’t be surprised if Elimination Chamber 2021 ends with the champ writhing in pain on the mat while Edge is standing above him and pointing at the WrestleMania sign.

Find out who wins by tuning into Elimination Chamber 2021 and keeping it right here at Cageside Seats!