Live from the Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, WrestleMania XL night one featured a tag team match, a tribute to the first Mania that was main-evented by Hulk Hogan and Mr. T, defeating Paul Orndorff and Roddy Piper.
The Bloodline (The Rock & Roman Reigns) vs Cody Rhodes & Seth Rollins
(Bloodline Rules stipulation on the line)
After four full entrances, each more elaborate than the last, Samantha Irvin delivered the in-ring intros, and the Philly crowd made their allegiance for Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins clear from the offset. The former Shield teammates started off the match before we got a preview of tomorrow night’s main event. Eventually, The Rock was tagged in, and he squared off with Rollins, saving the eventual showdown between him and the man he violently assaulted on RAW two weeks ago, Cody Rhodes.
When they finally shared the ring, the two allowed the crowd to settle in, slowing the match down to let the electricity catch up with the match at that point. It did not take long for the match to break down entirely on the outside, with the ref being threatened with his job by The Rock if he counted out or ended the match on DQ. One pair worked towards the entrance while the other pair worked around ringside, but the plot thickened when Roman took out Seth’s injured knee.
The Bloodline started to work the injured knee of Rollins, the same one that kept him on the shelf since Royal Rumble, questioning whether he returned too soon from the injured list. The Rock and Roman Reigns took full advantage of the new tornado tag format, a stipulation that was not part of the original plan. Without the risk of disqualification, The Bloodline took out the ref to break the pin attempt, used foreign objects, and routinely worked around the ‘legal man’ aspect of the match.
Regardless of the spontaneous rule changes brought forth by “The People’s Champ,” the fact remained that only the legal man in the match could pin and be pinned, distinguishing between an actual tornado tag match and the hybrid that became the match. The Rock made good on his promise to use the “Mama Rhodes” engraved weight belt, but it was snatched from him before Roman interfered. The Rock set up Cody for the ‘People’s Elbow’ but was unable to land it. Instead, Rhodes turned it into a ‘Cody Cutter.’
Rollins was operating to the best of his abilities, but the leg was an issue. The Rock slapped the sharpshooter on Rollins, and the agony on his face made it clear that he will be hindered in his own title defense against Drew McIntyre on night two. There was a moment in the match where Reigns accidentally hit The Rock with a spear in an attempt to nail Cody. The Rock sold it well, and it felt like the tide might turn, or perhaps it was the spark for a turn?
Rhodes attempted to hit Roman with three consecutive ‘Cross Rhodes,’ a nod to their match at last year’s Mania, but The Rock broke it up with the weight belt. The Rock was able to get the tag, and as the legal man, he hit Cody with the ‘Rock Bottom’ and, finally, ‘The People’s Elbow’ for the pinfall victory.
Tomorrow night’s main event will now be fought under “Bloodline Rules.” The odds are stacked against Cody, so stay tuned to FightsATW.com for the final installment Sunday night.
Sami Zayn vs Gunther (Intercontinental Championship)
They cut to a shot of Sami in the back with his wife and little boy, receiving last-minute support from the very motivation for this fight. On his way to the ring before hitting Gorilla, Kevin Owens, Sami’s childhood friend and confidant through the Indies, was waiting to deliver him a final boost of encouragement.
Gunther, the longest reigning IC champ in history, has been seen as one of the most dominant figures in WWE today. The story has revolved around Sami pushing through his own mental health and doubts. The champ dominated early, and it seemed like Sami would just be added to the list of failed challengers, but Sami did what Sami does best—survive. Sami managed to land a tornado DDT off the corner buckle, but it was not enough to keep Sami down for the count. The pair exchanged kicks leading to near falls, including one off the Helluva Kick that nearly sealed the deal.
The champ started showing signs of frustration after Sami kicked out of consecutive violent powerbombs, and then Gunther started directing his attention at Sami’s wife sitting ringside. With a sadistic laugh on the Austrian’s face, convinced the match was all but over, Gunther attempted splash after splash until Sami caught a wave of adrenaline that allowed him to counter Gunther’s high-risk maneuver. Sami then hit Gunther with the Helluva Kick to become the new IC champ with a clean pinfall victory.
Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill & Naomi vs Damage CTRL
After an amazing entrance for the ‘face team’ of Belair, Cargill, and Naomi, they were able to achieve the match’s intention of getting over Cargill. She worked the monster roll very well, and the fans responded. As far as the match goes, it was booked safely, and there were no real surprises. This could launch Jade’s run on SmackDown, but she must prove that she can hang on her own and without proven stars as a crutch.
Jey Uso vs Jimmy Uso
There were super kicks galore, and the two brothers showed tremendous chemistry. Jey was brought out by Lil Wayne singing his 2008 hit, “A Mili.” The crowd was undoubtedly with the ‘Yeet’ man, but the two traded momentum back and forth to which the crowd reacted—showing that there is still room in the fans’ hearts for a possible USO reunion one day.
It did not quite live up to the Bret-Owen hype that was unfairly placed on the match, but it did have a psychological quality that gave it distinction. In the match’s final moments, Jimmy asked for mercy and apologized to Jey. Jimmy offered his hand, and Jey shook it, which allowed Jimmy to take advantage by delivering a super kick and then frog-splashing off the top rope. Jey was able to kick out and then delivered the final spear of the match before delivering a splash from the top rope to get the pinfall victory.
Rey Mysterio & Andrade vs Dom Mysterio & Santos Escobar
The match showcased a faster style than we’d had on the card thus far, and it worked well as a change-of-pace match. The crowd was into it, especially when the Legado Del Fantasma interrupted the match because that’s when we got some awesome spots from the top rope. With the numbers favoring the heels, two huge masked men came out donning Philadelphia Eagles-inspired lucha masks. It ended up being Eagles center Jason Kelce and offensive tackle Lane Johnson. They ripped the chair from Dom’s hands and sent him into the corner. Rey hit the 619 on both men and then a ‘frog splash’ on Escobar for the win.
Six-Pack Ladder Match (Undisputed Tag Team Titles)
When it was announced that the winner of the six-pack ladder match would have to grab both sets of tag titles, fans speculated that the match would be used to separate the titles. That would end up being the case. The match was fine as far as ladder matches go; it had big spots and looked painful, but A-Town’s win was clunky, and the fans clearly were unsure whether the match was over or not.
In the end, Awesome Truth was able to claim the RAW titles, paying off weeks of building that usually involved The Judgment Day beating down on R-Truth. It wasn’t the Mania moment it could’ve been, but Awesome Truth’s performance was undoubtedly a highlight.
There is certainly an argument that a comedy act will always be relegated to losses and beatdowns, but Awesome Truth proved that a comedy team can have hearts and tell an awesome story.
Rhea Ripley vs Becky Lynch (Women’s World Title—RAW)
It was announced earlier in the week that Rhea Ripley and Drew McIntyre would receive large and elaborate walkouts. Rhea’s walkout was accompanied by a performance from the band Motionless in White complete with pyro and fire coming from the stage.
The match was physical early, and both men had an intensity that properly kicked off the event. Triple H opened the show, which helped hype the crowd, but the story was executed well. Rhea’s arm was clearly bothering her, and Becky focused on it by attempting the Disarmerher any chance she got. However, Rhea powered through and, at one point, lifted Becky off the canvas and slammed her while she was in the submission. Lynch attempted a high-risk maneuver in the match’s final moments, but Rhea was able to counter, eventually landing multiple Riptides for the victory in a strong performance.
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