The Elimination Chamber comes to Toronto this Saturday. One man and one woman will punch their tickets to a world championship match at WrestleMania by surviving the challenge of five others within the Chamber.
While the women’s lineup promises plenty of action featuring talented performers, most of the build to the event has focused on the men and undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes. The star-studded men’s lineup features John Cena, CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, Logan Paul and Damian Priest.
All but Paul have held world championships, and several rank among the legends of the industry.
With Saturday’s men’s Elimination Chamber match having such major implications — and loaded with such massive stars — we polled several members of the CBS Sports team to rank the best choice for who moves on to face Rhodes at WrestleMania.
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Shakiel Mahjouri
1. CM Punk
Why he’s a good choice to win: How could you watch the war of words and not think Punk challenging Rhodes is the way to go? That same intense level of interaction would easily carry WWE programming through to WrestleMania. Punk is chasing the WrestleMania main event that has eluded him throughout his legendary career and Rhodes is not only a good foil, but one who is currently debating effectively selling his soul to be not only the undisputed WWE champion, but The Rock’s personal corporate champion. Should Rhodes take The Rock up on his offer, you would have Punk once again battling the company in the spirit of the energy he brought in his famous “pipebomb” promo.
Why he’s not a good choice: Punk winning is all upside but you could also argue he has so many ongoing issues with others that you’d effectively be hitting pause on his storylines tied to men like Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre. That’s not a good enough reason to not have Punk win on Saturday, but we’re digging for reasons he is a bad choice and that’s about all there is. — Brent Brookhouse
2. John Cena
Why he’s a good choice to win: WrestleMania is the mecca of professional wrestling events. Its grandeur and nostalgia bring in lapsed and casual fans every year. There is value in catering to a wider audience. To that end, excluding Rhodes vs. The Rock, there is no match with wider appeal than Rhodes vs. Cena. Cena has expanded his Hollywood footprint impressively since “The Marine” days. He’s a legitimate movie star who has appeared in major blockbusters. He’s also the beneficiary of a year-long storyline: a retirement farewell tour and a time-restrained pursuit to become WWE’s only recognized 17-time world champion. Rhodes vs. Cena is a dream match between two of WWE’s most memorable heroes.
Why he’s not a good choice: There isn’t anything explicitly wrong with a face vs. face feud, but it’s harder to execute and rarely as emotionally gripping. Cena’s world title win seems like an eventuality, but having him dethrone Rhodes is hard to believe. WWE has gone to great lengths to protect Rhodes as champion. Rhodes must lose the title one day, but it should be done to establish another new star or develop an engrossing plot. Not to give Cena a sentimental win. Rhodes vs. Cena is a blockbuster match, but it doesn’t feel dramatic or compelling unless WWE subverts expectations. — Shakiel Mahjouri
3. Drew McIntyre
Why he’s a good choice to win: McIntyre and Punk’s rivalry was arguably the best feud in pro wrestling last year. McIntyre’s inability to sustain a world title reign fuels his rage. It’s a work of art, but the man deserves a victory on par with his quality character work. McIntyre and Rhodes have lots of source material to draw from. They had had a brief WWE tag team title run as The Dashing Ones in 2010. Both superstars subsequently left the WWE, returned with renewed vision and won world titles. McIntyre is also one of four people to pin Rhodes since “The American Nightmare” returned to WWE in 2022. That’s enough to make McIntyre a live underdog against the champ at WrestleMania.
Why he’s not a good choice: McIntyre is a credible main eventer who can beat anyone, but he won’t be the favorite against WWE’s cornerstone acts. Punk and Cena are more alluring headliners who benefit from having never wrestled this iteration of Rhodes. It’s fresh and it’s exciting. While McIntyre can be trusted to put together a terrific WrestleMania program, a match with Rhodes isn’t the shiny new toy that some other options are. — Mahjouri
4. Seth Rollins
Why he’s a good choice to win: Rollins and Rhodes have a deep history to dig into, one that conjures images of Rhodes’ triumphant return to WWE to answer Rollins’ challenge at WrestleMania 38 or the deep purple bruising when Rhodes defeated Rollins inside Hell in a Cell with a severe pectoral tear. Rollins also helped Rhodes win the championship at last year’s WrestleMania. Beyond that history, the matches between Rhodes and Rollins have always been fantastic. In-ring chemistry and a deep well of past issues to draw on is certainly the stuff WrestleMania main events are made of.
Why he’s not a good choice: There is no real sense of momentum for Rollins. He lost to Punk after a year of building to that match and his confrontation with Rhodes was good, but not Punk vs. Rhodes levels of good. It’s not that Rollins isn’t a good choice to win and go on to face Rhodes at WrestleMania, simply that he’s not as good of a choice as the men we’ve ranked above him. — Brookhouse
5. Logan Paul
Why he’s a good choice to win: Mainstream crossovers are woven into the fabric of WrestleMania. Paul is arguably the most accomplished and acclaimed celebrity to lace up wrestling boots. To that end, Rhodes vs. Paul at WrestleMania is on-brand. Paul is legitimately athletic and competent inside a WWE ring. He can work a very good match with Rhodes’ supervision. The social media influencer is also one of WWE’s most detested heels. He’d receive deafening boos working against ultimate babyface Rhodes.
Why he’s not a good choice: Paul is an uninspired choice, pure and simple. Most other superstars in the Elimination Chamber have a history with Rhodes that can enrich their feuds. Rhodes vs. Paul is very formulaic and an obvious cash grab. It’s boring. Paul has headlined WWE pay-per-views before, but closing out WrestleMania is a step too far. Imagine the morale hit if Paul won over McIntyre, who has done the best work of his career in recent years, and Rollins, WWE’s most reliable hand even when injured. — Mahjouri
6. Damian Priest
Why he’s a good choice to win: Priest winning in this stacked Elimination Chamber would be a shock well beyond the level of Jey Uso winning the Royal Rumble. There’s always value in keeping fans on their toes and what would send a huge message that those those fans need to be ready for anything than Priest vs. Rhodes and Uso vs. Gunther as the two men’s world title matches at WrestleMania.
Why he’s not a good choice: That the biggest reason Priest would be a good choice to win is “it would shock people” seems to be enough of a suggestion as to why he would be a bad choice. Priest made good out of a title reign that got off to a very flat start but has sputtered since losing the title, especially as he’s been less frequently interacting with Rhea Ripley. No momentum, no meaningful history with Rhodes and seemingly nobody wanting him to win? Priest is the worst choice to win the Elimination Chamber. — Brookhouse
