WWE Elimination Chamber 2021 Preview & Predictions

The eleventh WWE Elimination Chamber event takes place this Sunday, February 21, at 7pm ET (streaming on the WWE Network) with the Kickoff show starting at 6pm ET from the ThunderDome inside Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. The SmackDown Elimination Chamber match has a stipulation that grants the winner a Universal Championship match against Roman Reigns later in the evening while the other Elimination Chamber match has Drew McIntyre defending his WWE Championship against five other competitors inside the Chamber. This will be the last major WWE event on the WWE Network before it is merged into the Peacock streaming service.

Below is a preview of each match on the card and predictions based upon recent booking. In the comments: share your favorite Elimination Chamber matches, your predictions for Sunday's card, or share your favorite memories of The WWE Network before it makes the move to Peacock.

WWE CHAMPIONSHIP (ELIMINATION CHAMBER)

Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy vs. AJ Styles vs. Sheamus vs. Kofi Kingston

Sheamus is the final entrant in the match.

Drew McIntyre has done just about everything right as WWE Champion throughout the pandemic but ratings have been down. Randy Orton has been McIntyre's greatest foe but Drew needs a new rival that can push him to show a new side of his persona to continue his evolution as the top guy on RAW. It's safe to assume that Orton, who has continued to be tormented by Alexa Bliss and Bray Wyatt, will be eliminated by something involving the resurrection of The Fiend. That leaves Kofi Kingston, Sheamus, Jeff Hardy, AJ Styles, & Drew McIntyre as possible victors. Jeff Hardy just isn't quite in the groove he needs to be in to defeat this level of competition. Hardy's expertise in extreme matches will serve the match well, but the lack of young talent in this match is glaring. Kofi Kingston earned his place in the match by defeating The Miz, but it's hard to imagine Kofi pulling off an upset here against all these powerhouses.

The three favorites in this match are AJ Styles, Sheamus, and Drew McIntyre. Sheamus has the advantage of being the final entrant in the match, but it's hard to imagine Drew McIntyre losing here. McIntyre dropped the title once to Orton last year before regaining it three weeks later. The next time McIntyre drops the title, he'll be out of its picture for a while and it just doesn't feel like anyone in this match is in a position to take it off of him. AJ Styles is a perennial threat to win any match he competes in but it seems like this match will come down to the large Irishman vs. the large Scotsman. Sheamus and Drew McIntyre are great friends in real life, which means they'll beat the heck out of each other in the ring. If you're a fan of bruises, this will be your match of the night.

WINNER

Drew McIntyre via pinfall

SMACKDOWN ELIMINATION CHAMBER

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

These competitors stood out during 2020 on SmackDown and now they are being rewarded by being locked inside the Elimination Chamber. Sami Zayn has persevered through WWE's conspiracy to hold him down while Cesaro has channeled his passion to break into the Universal Title picture. King Corbin has come out of his feud with the Mysterio family standing tall while Daniel Bryan continued to look strong by earning the victory for his team on SmackDown last night. Jey Uso had a breakout year in 2020 as a singles competitor, but another match against Roman doesn't make sense. Kevin Owens should have defeated Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble but was the victim of handcuffs that served as an unfortunate metaphor for the current WWE product.

Owens, Bryan, and Cesaro stand out the most here as intriguing opponents for Reigns. Owens will likely snap after a loss here and move back towards working as a heel. A Kevin Owens/Daniel Bryan WrestleMania match is something that a lot of wrestling fans would love to see. Daniel Bryan has great chemistry with Roman Reigns and will put on a great match later in the evening.

WINNER

Daniel Bryan via pinfall

WWE UNIVERSAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Roman Reigns vs. SmackDown Elimination Chamber Winner

Roman Reigns will not lose this match. The Miz keeps teasing a cash-in attempt but Roman Reigns isn't losing to any person on the WWE roster that isn't Edge, WALTER, The Rock, or Brock Lesnar. There are so few protected monsters in wrestling and right now Roman is the man. Rejoice while the Tribal Chief embraces his peak form.

Daniel Bryan has always been a great opponent for Roman Reigns and he'll give it everything he's got in this match before Kevin Owens interferes and turns heel. Reigns will capitalize and go on to face Edge at WrestleMania.

WINNER

Roman Reigns via pinfall

WWE WOMEN'S Tag Team CHAMPIONSHIP

Shayna Baszler (c) & Nia Jax (c) vs. Sasha Banks & Bianca Belair 

Banks & Belair earned the opportunity to face Jax & Baszler after Reginald (Carmella's sommelier) scored a pinfall victory over Jax in a six-person tag-team match on SmackDown. This match is replacing Asuka vs. Lacey Evans because of Evans' newly discovered pregnancy. Jax and Baszler keep having difficulties as a tag team. If Belair and Banks can function as a cohesive team, then they will upset the significantly larger tag team champions.

WINNERS

Sasha Banks & Bianca Belair via pinfall

WWE US CHAMPIONSHIP

Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Riddle vs. Keith Lee

Keith Lee and Matt Riddle get to showcase the chemistry they had on the indies with a surging Bobby Lashley in what could be a show stealing match for the United States Championship. Lee, who was conspicuous in his absence this past week on RAW, has shown flashes of being ready for the main event in the few opportunities he's been given. Riddle has had excellent matches with every member of The Hurt Business and continues his work to rehabilitate his image with fans through his wrestling and humor. Lashley continues to look fantastic as United States Champion and his Hurt Lock looks unbreakable. If Lee isn't 100% going into this match then Lashley will take the victory but the feud will carry on to WrestleMania.

WINNER

Bobby Lashley via submission