Another splendid WrestleMania season is officially behind us and an XL one it was indeed. This WrestleMania truly felt like one of those “changing of the tide” Manias and the landscape inside the WWE is left looking much different leaving this event than it did coming in. One of the champions to wrestle out of Mania still as champ, Rhea Ripley, started things off Saturday versus Becky Lynch in a well performed back and forth affair made all the more impressive after learning Becky was performing with a 102-degree fever and strep throat AND Rhea had a panic attack 10 minutes before walking through the curtain. These women fought past their personal issues and still put on one of the best matches of Night 1 in a hard hitting 17-minute match. The Six-Pack Tag Team Ladder match for the Undisputed Tag Team championships followed in what turned out to be a pretty fun spot fest for what it was worth. My main complaint was that everyone was already speculating that the tag belts may get split up in this match but hanging the belts on 2 separate hangers above the ring kind of gave that away fully before the match even started. Awesome Truth and A-Town Down Under (I guess that’s what we’re calling them) each walked away with one set of belts, so I guess we’re officially splitting the tag belts up again and putting one on each of their respective shows (Raw and Smackdown). Papa H better have some plans for the tag division is all I have to say because there hasn’t felt like enough official tag teams to justify 2 separate tag belts in a long time, not doubting him, just never was a fan of the 2 separate tag belts to begin with but maybe they will prove me wrong this time. Rey Mysterio and Andrade faced off against Rey’s bratty son Dirty Dom and the man with an absolute banger of a theme, Santos Escobar, next. After a fun little back and forth and a few more memorable father and son moments at Mania, Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson of the Philly Eagles interfered, dressed in Eagles lucha masks and cost Dom and Santos the match. Wasn’t necessarily my prediction but it was a fun little moment and I’m always down for another Rey Mysterio victory at WrestleMania so no complaints here. Jey vs Jimmy was next in one of my most anticipated one on one’s of this entire Mania and although the match itself was fine, I just wanted a lot more out of it and feel like they could have delivered a lot more as well. I’m not sure if they were crunched for time or if that was the plan, but things never really felt like they hit that 2nd gear and started going at the pace they should have. The ending didn’t feel like it was truly the ending, and I was honestly shocked when Jey got the pin off his first splash, but he did none the less, for the victory over his brother Jimmy. I love Jey, I just felt like Jimmy needed the victory more here and I’m not sure where you go with him or Solo now unless they start a program together or form a tag team for a while. Damage CTRL took on the team of Bianca, Jade, and Naomi (or as I like to call them, The Powerbuff Girls) and that team looked like a force to be reckoned with. It was a fun, shorter little match that got Bianca, Naomi, and the rest of Damage CTRL on the card and gave them a chance to showcase their next big thing in the women’s division, Jade, who got the pinfall on Dakota after about 8 minutes. Sami Zayn dethroned Gunther in a barn burner for the Intercontinental Championship in Night 1 as well, the classic underdog contender versus the dominant heel champion story was played out here but the way the action and story was played out in the ring was masterful and may be my favorite match from Night 1, if not all of WrestleMania in the end. Plus Gunther’s reign of terror as champ ended at 666 days and that’s just an added element of masterful storytelling that I’m sure wasn’t even planned till the very end. The Rock and Roman toppled Cody and Seth on Night 1 as well in what was a fun match and a great main event, seeing 51-year-old Rock built like a Greek God wrestling around the arena for 40 plus minutes was certainly a sight to behold and his entrance was certainly the best of Night 1 in my opinion. The match ended with The Rock ultimately pinning Cody’s shoulders to the mat while Rollins was down on the outside.
Seth and Drew started out Night 2 for Rollins’ World Heavyweight Championship (Seth was in a tough spot closing Night 1 and opening Night 2, but he’s a workhorse and proved yet again why he deserves that moniker). After some awesome entrances to the ring from both men, a hard hitting, finisher heavy affair took place between them before Drew was able to capitalize on a wounded and winded Rollins for the belt. Unfortunately for him, after the match he quickly turned his attention to CM Punk who was ringside and began mocking and provoking him with his newly won title, before Punk laid down a beat down on him ringside. Enter Damian Priest, Senor Money in the Bank, with his briefcase who took the opportunity to cash in his contract on the downed newly crowned Drew much to the approval of Punk. This was truly the most shocking and in ways exciting moment at Mania for me and I’m so happy Damian is finally getting his due and a chance with the belt for a little while. Lashley and the Street Profits took down The Final Testament in a Philly Street Fight which was a fun, but admittedly random match, with the addition of Bubba/Bully Ray as referee for the contest and Snoop Dogg on commentary. There was an awkward mishap with their table spot that kind of dampened the finish to the match, but it was fun enough and got Bobby on the card and gave Montez a chance to show off some of his wild athleticism on the biggest stage. LA Knight and AJ Styles put on a pretty great back and forth with LA Knight (looking like a Slim Jims sponsor to the fullest degree) going over in the end, pretty predictable outcome but to be expected, LA Knight had a huge year and deserved a pretty big spot and win at Mania. Logan Paul found a way to wiggle out of Mania with his United States belt still on his shoulder after a great triple threat between Owens and Orton. IShowSpeed (concealed as a Prime bottle mascot) saved Paul and caused a valuable distraction for him as he bit the bullet and ate an RKO to the announce table from Orton. After some shenanigans and shots with his brass knuckles, Paul retained after a sky-high frog splash. One of the best US Championship matches at Mania that I can remember. Iyo Sky put her Women’s Championship on the line against Damage CTRL’s former leader and 2024 Royal Rumble winner, Bayley, in another one of my very favorite matches from Mania this year. The outcome was to be expected, Bayley was long overdue for her big moment at Mania and this presented the perfect opportunity for that, but the in-ring action itself was so crisp and clean and masterful by both these ladies. Iyo Sky is one of my favorite women on the roster, I believe she’s criminally underrated still, even after a great run with the belt, and I just hope she doesn’t fall off into poor booking now that she’s lost that coveted title. But then came the big one, the main event for all the marbles, as Cody Rhodes battled Roman Reigns for his Undisputed Universal Championship in the main event, under Bloodline Rules! This was a good match, ultimately made a classic by the outcome, as Cody Rhodes officially dethroned Roman Reigns as champion and ended his three-and-a-half-year reign on top. This one was not short of shenanigans though, as many expected it to be being contested under Bloodline Rules. The entire Bloodline tried sticking their nose into the business, starting with Jimmy a little over 20 minutes into the contest, which prompted Jey to come to the aid and spear him off the ramp and through a table. Then came Solo which prompted the return of my favorite, John Cena, who Attitude Adjusted Roman before giving another one to Solo through the announce table! Then came The Rock, sparking back memories of a rivalry over a decade old now (wow, I’m getting old…). Rock hit the Rock Bottom on Cena and rid him of the match, before the gong struck and the lights went out. Out came the Undertaker, who choke slammed Rock, officially ridding the Bloodline from the match. After a little more back and forth, a very costly distraction from Seth Rollins who appeared yet again donned in Shield garb, and 3 Cross Rhodes later, Cody was officially crowned champion and an emotional and legendary championship celebration ensued. His wife and family, Triple H and Bruce Pritchard, and all the other wrestlers who were held down the last 4 years by the Bloodline came down to the ring to share in and celebrate the victory with Cody Rhodes.
This was a really memorable and landscape changing WrestleMania and felt like a changing of the guard and the introduction of a whole new era that I’m excited to see where it takes us. Rhea Ripley and Logan Paul were the only champions to retain their titles, Gunther and Roman Reigns were both unseated from their long-standing title reigns, Damian Priest finally cashed in his briefcase for the ultimate payoff at WrestleMania, Bayley got her Mania moment, The Rock still looked like a million bucks, legends returned in the main event, tears were shed, and Mania was a huge financial and historical success for the business. We will see how things go in the coming months but in the world of WWE, the road ahead is looking pretty bright and full of life.
