Allegiant Stadium played host to its second consecutive WrestleMania in “Sin City,” with four shows over the course of 12 months. Night one of WrestleMania 42 was headlined by world champion Cody Rhodes and challenger Randy Orton chasing his 15th title win, while the first two matches were broadcast live on ESPN2 (night two will be broadcast on ESPN—the main channel).
The 7-match card drew 50,816, a solid number for a card marred by ticket sales down from last year, a consistent storyline. With expectations for surprises always great, Bianca Belair came out looking fabulous in a dress adorned with royal blue roses. She thanked the crowd, and just as they worked themselves up into a frenzy expecting a return announcement, she unveiled a baby bump (though she still carried abs because she is an insane athlete).
The host of tonight’s show, John Cena, thanked Bianca for sharing the news in his second appearance of the night and then joked that the new attendance was 50,817.
WWE MEN’S UNDISPUTED WORLD TITLE
Cody Rhodes(c) vs. Randy Orton
Cody Rhodes upped the ante on entrances at the very end of the show, displaying a murderer’s row of his past gimmicks and gear in a style like how Ironman or Batman displayed their own outfits. All of the gimmicks were there, including Stardust, as Cody arose from under the stage in an all-gold outfit complete with a helmeted mask.
The match went from 0-100 (real quick) as Pat McAfee jumped Cody with the microphone. He faked a pre-match promo, only to jump the champ in hopes of ‘softening’ him up. Cody turned the tables with the help of Jelly Roll, the other celebrity who has played a role in this feud for some reason, who got his receipt on Pat.
With McAfee placed on the commentator’s desk, Jelly Roll delivered a splash from the parallel commentating desk onto the former NFL punter, crashing through the table. Pat was stretchered out, but he managed to “no-sell” the situation for a moment as he flipped off the booing crowd.
It was odd because before the busy pre-match antics, the crowd was booing Cody and cheering Randy, and that is when you realized that this spot was necessary to get the audience on the side of the champ (also left room for someone other than Pat and Jelly Roll to be the match’s determining factor).
Midway into the match, Orton was busted open and bleeding from the middle of his forehead as he pleaded with Cody to lay off a bit. Cody was relentless, and when Orton fell to his knees in exhaustion, the crowd, again, booed him as he went on the attack.
Cody mocked Orton with his slapping the mat signature, but Orton managed to hit Cody’s ‘Cross-Rhodes’ for a near-fall—Cody returned the favor with an RKO of his own, near-fall. The fans were clear with who they wanted to win, but it was made even clearer when Randy hit his RKO out of nowhere, only for the champ to kick out of the finisher.
Orton eventually hit the ref with an RKO ‘out of frustration’ only to be kicked in the b***s by Cody (Orton also tried the kick but was beat to the ‘punch’) as the crowd booed. With the ref down, Orton was able to hit the RKO as Cody dove from the top turnbuckle in a crazy reversal.
That is when Pat McAfee came running down with a ref’s striped shirt and a neck brace, and though he is not an official, Cody kicked out anyway. With Pat as the ref and Randy in complete control, Randy hit Pat with an RKO in a confusing moment that got a pop from pure shock.
In all the chaos, referee Charles Robinson managed to regain consciousness, and by then Cody regained momentum and won the match to defend his title successfully—and theoretically kick Pat out of WWE forever. The crowd reacted positively to the win, and there was genuine shock all around ringside.
Fans waited for something, and that something turned out to be a post-match attack from Orton, who was already the heel in the match on paper. The crowd booed Orton’s actions as he punted the champion to close the show — the past signature move Orton used to use until it was banned. He held the title as the show faded to black, closing out night one.
WWE WOMEN’S WORLD TITLE
Stepanie Vacquer(c) vs. Liv Morgan
The match was paced well, and they told a solid story as Liv wore a serious face and a makeup style that played as distressed. Liv was relentless, but Stepanie had an answer for everything… until she didn’t.
The Judgment Day’s Roxanne Perez and Raquel Rodriguez came out for the interference, but then they got taken out as Vaquer springboarded off the top rope to take them both out with a dive. Taking her focus off the challenger allowed Liv to retake the momentum and then the match.
Off the codebreaker, Liv Morgan pinned Vaquer and won the world title for the third time in her career. This was not just a huge night for Liv but also a huge week, as she debuted her new song with its corresponding video. In fact, she used her Mania entrance to further the song’s exposure with fire choreography that stood out on a night full of crazy, awesome walkouts.
SETH ROLLINS VS. GUNTHER
The stakes in this match were virtually nonexistent. However, Gunther seems to have secured a ‘favor’ for himself regardless of the outcome—likely to be used to get Paul Heyman to secure the Lesnar match later in the year, potentially SummerSlam. Without a proper build or stakes, the narrative of the match online was a potential ‘show stealer.’
In a night of awesome entrances, Seth chose all-black contacts for a great look, even if it did not play into the narrative all that much.
In the end, it was a different vibe altogether, much more brute-force style and less mat technician, as they brawled on the outside and fought with objects. The match was a violent performance that Seth was meant to utilize against a certain faction member from The Vision.
At a moment when it seemed Seth had the momentum to take the win, Bron Breakker returned to land a spear, but instead of that leading directly to his loss, a distraction from Breakker heading towards the extended isle allowed Gunther to lock on the choke hold that finished Cena’s career. On this night, it finished Seth in the match.
Gunther took the win, and Seth took a second spear from Breakker for good measure as he reunited with Paul Heyman atop the stage to close out the segment. We will get this match between Rollins and Breakker at some point, but the momentum will be far from its peak by then.
WWE WOMEN’S IC TITLE
AJ Lee(c) vs. Becky Lynch
This feud has been blazing on and off since last fall, and yet they only went 8 minutes in their rematch of the first singles match at the Royal Rumble in January. The build included barbs thrown at Becky’s daughter, being a bigger fan of Lee and believing Cody (Becky’s husband) was her dad—a story the former champ shared during Mania fight week.
Becky picked up the win and evened their rivalry at 1-1, with a rubber match likely to be booked in the future; however, the mid-card portion of the women’s roster is deep and stacked with superstars worthy of an opportunity. Whether or not the title is on the line in the trilogy will depend on their ability to continue the story, but it would need a fresh injection of creativity to deliver.
WWE WOMEN’S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Nia Jax & Lash Legend (c) vs. Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss vs. Bayley & Lyra Valkyria vs. The Bella Twins
These matches featured some of the greatest entrances in Mania history, certainly of night one, with Flair and Bliss dressed for Paris Fashion Week and the champions, Lash and Nia, paying homage to The Demolition with an all-white version of the ‘Mad Max’ inspired gear.
Before the match began, as the Bellas made their entrance, Nikki Bella admitted that she was too injured to compete despite telling an interviewer at the Hall of Fame show last night that she would make the match. News broke earlier in the day on Friday that she would not be cleared to wrestle, and that news corresponded with the leak that Paige signed a deal with WWE with 24 hours to Mania.
Nikki announced Paige as her replacement, and she enjoyed a huge pop from the crowd, though much of the audience seemed aware of what was coming—they probably popped harder than anyone.
Brie and Paige won the tag titles in a match that appeared to leave it all in the entrances (they were fire), but there could be room for a meaningful storyline in which Nikkie heals up only to be replaced by Paige.
TWO MATCHES FEATURED IN THE FIRST HOUR ON ESPN2
Unsanctioned Match: Jacob Fatu vs. Drew McIntyre
The match did not turn out to be the ultra-violent match expected, and though it was brutal, it never hit the same gears as past feuds involving McIntyre. Jacob won the match and appeared to ‘send home’ Drew—expected to film his role in the upcoming “Highlander” remake.
The Vision & iShow Speed vs. The USOs & LA Knight
The match that every casual fan was waiting for launched the ESPN era of WrestleMania, free for fans who have ESPN baked into their cable/TV plan. It was a schmoz in the form of a match, but it was entertaining in spots.
In the end, iShow Speed turned on Logan Paul and Austin Theory by delivering a top turnbuckle splash onto Logan, lying atop the commentator’s desk. It was a brave spot, delivered well by the streamer. Unfortunately, it was nothing different from what we have seen from Paul—he does the spot better.
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