The road to WrestleMania 42 is officially underway and heading towards WWE Elimination Chamber 2026.
Coming out of Chamber, there could be some major changes to different characters on the WWE roster that might include some heel turns.
Seeing popular babyfaces embracing the dark side could dramatically alter the course of their careers as WrestleMania 42 approaches this April in Las Vegas.
Here are six potential heel turns before WWE WrestleMania 42.
6. Alexa Bliss
At WWE Royal Rumble 2026, the tag team partnership between Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair experienced some hardship during the Women’s Royal Rumble Match.
Flair accidentally eliminated Bliss from the Rumble and led to some more dissension in their pairing.
While Bliss qualified for the Women’s Elimination Chamber, Flair was unable to do the same in her qualifying match.
After potentially coming up short in the Chamber, Bliss could turn on Flair and go back to her more sinister character as a heel once again before WrestleMania 42.
Click the next page button below for more
5. Lyra Valkyria
On the February 9 episode of WWE Raw, Rhea Ripley defeated Lyra Valkyria and Ivy Nile to qualify for the Women’s Elimination Chamber Match.
Following this loss, Valkyria teased some growing frustration in an interview alongside Bayley.
Considering Bayley and Lyra have been constantly overlooked in the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship scene, it has seemed like this popular duo might be turning over to the dark side.
Valkyria turning heel for the first time in her WWE career would be a nice change of pace and allow her to grow even more on the road to WrestleMania 42 this April.
Click the next page button below for more
4. Sami Zayn
At WWE Royal Rumble 2026, Drew McIntyre defeated Sami Zayn to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship.
After suffering another loss to McIntyre, Zayn expressed his anger and frustration with consistently coming up short in the biggest moments of his career.
More recently, Zayn had a heated exchange with his friend Cody Rhodes backstage on Friday Night SmackDown.
This could have been a tease for a potential heel turn for Zayn that sees the inner self doubt and jealousy that has been growing come to the surface ahead of WrestleMania 42.
Click the next page button below for more
3. Randy Orton
Many fans have been wondering and speculating if Randy Orton might turn heel sometime in the near future.
While he is among one of the most popular and beloved stars on the WWE roster today, “The Legend Killer” has teased turning over to the dark side once again.
With the tension shown towards Cody Rhodes and other ongoing storylines, there are several directions WWE could go in making Orton into a dastardly heel again.
Whether it be finally betraying Rhodes or being revealed as Jacob Fatu’s mystery attacker, Orton could become one of the biggest heels in WWE and set up a massive match for the WrestleMania 42 card in the process.
Click the next page button below for more
2. Rhea Ripley
After developing one of the most noteworthy rivalries of 2025, Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY formed a partnership in their rivalry against The Kabuki Warriors.
This led to RHIYO winning the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships and becoming one of the most popular duos in the entire company.
Heading into WWE Elimination Chamber 2026, Ripley has qualified to compete in the Women’s Elimination Chamber, while SKY was unable to do the same.
Whether “Mami” wins the Chamber to move on to a WWE Women’s Championship or loses the match and also the Women’s Tag Team Championships, fans might see a different side of Rhea appear and witness her betraying IYO with a vicious attack.
Click the next page button below for more
1. Cody Rhodes
On the January 9 edition of Friday Night SmackDown, Drew McIntyre defeated Cody Rhodes in a Three Stages of Hell Match to win the Undisputed WWE Championship.
Ever since dropping the gold, “The American Nightmare” has experienced some different crowd reactions with some weeks being greeted by cheers, while other times hearing some boos from the fans.
Rhodes becoming a heel would mark the first time he has been anything besides a popular babyface since returning to WWE in 2022.
Changing alignment with McIntyre ahead of a potential WWE Title match at WrestleMania 42, Rhodes could become a massive heel who turns against the fans who brought him to the top of the company two years ago.
To make sure you stay up to date with all the biggest wrestling and WrestleTalk news, follow us on Threads by clicking this link!
Comments.
Loading comments…