WWE Wrestlemania 41 Night One 4/19/2025

WWE Wrestlemania 41 Night One 4/19/2025 

Night 2 is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2025/04/wwe-wrestlemania-41-night-two-4202025.html

Pre-show thoughts: People have not been happy about the build to Wrestlemania. Cena turning heel looked like it was going to be huge. But then The Rock (and Travis Scott) basically got written out of the storyline for unknown reasons and instead of them doing a story more based around Cena needing to sell out to The Rock to get here, it became Cena vs the fans. While it worked to some degree, they bypassed the obvious story for a more convoluted one that was not as good. I have no doubt in my mind that people will be wondering what exactly happened with The Rock for years to come.

WWE having Jey Uso win The Royal Rumble seemed like a bit of a stretch on paper but they gambled on it. The build to Jey/Gunther got saved some by Gunther beating up Jimmy Uso, but it wasn't their best work and it does feel like Jey has cooled off some since The Rumble. Gunther's not a very deep personality and Jey is even less of one. A lot of people question if Jey is good enough to deliver in a match like this and we'll have to see.

The Punk/Roman/Seth triple threat has a story with all three men intertwined in different ways, but there's no titles on the line and there's no big stipulations or anything, so it just doesn't feel like the big match it should be. Paul Heyman being Punk's manager for the night doesn't feel big enough on its own. I don't think this one ends here as I suspect Paul will turn on someone which will lead to our Summerslam main event.

Tiffany/Flair has been a disaster. A lot of people feel Flair was just shoved into this spot. Flair exposed Tiff during a split-screen interview then they had a mess of an in-ring segment that did nothing to help this out.

The Rhea/Bianca/Iyo three way wasn't much better with Iyo surprisingly winning her belt back before Mania and Rhea being thrown in this match despite but winning The Rumble or The Chamber, which was the whole point of those. 

Drew McIntyre/Damian Priest has had a good build but it was too low key for most people to pick up on and people just don't care that much about Priest. They did everything right but it didn't work.

Outside of Naomi and Jade, the rest of the matches are just filler, which is the problem with a two-night event. With WWE also typically only having 5 matches per PLE these days, it's doubtful that stuff like the Women's Tag Title match or the WWE Intercontinental Title match would have even made the show normally.

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We are in Las Vegas, Nevada. Wade Barrett, Pat McAfee and Michael Cole are on commentary.

Jelly Roll sings God Bless America.

We see various wrestlers arrive. CM Punk arrives with Paul Heyman. 

Triple H is in the ring talking to start the show. He welcomes us to the show.

Salvatore Ganacci, some DJ, has dancers on the stage and they are advertising Fatal Fury. I guess they are playing Jey Uso's theme.

World Heavyweight Title - Gunther (c) vs Jey Uso

Jey has people with Yeet flags on the ramp and has Las Vegas Raiders cheerleaders in the stands. Jey comes out through the stands as usual. He is not yeeting though as he enters. Gunther had no frills for his entrance.

Jey goes after him. Gun chops him and Jey drops Gun with an uppercut. Gun side headlocks him then shoulders him over. Jey shoulders him over. Jey enzugiri's him. Gun misses a corner charge, Jey tries to slam him but Gun falls on him. Gun clubs him then Jey hits a big slam. Jey sits up top and Gun chops him down to the floor. Gun euros him then chops him in the corner. Jey is thrown in the corner but then hits a big spear for 2. Jey hits punches then Gun chops him over. Jey samoan drops Gun.

Gun 2nd rope underhook suplexes him then shotgun dropkicks him. Gun then hits a powerbomb for 2. Jey hurricanrana's Gun then spears him. Jey hits a top rope splash for 2. Gun grabs his title. Jey tries to tope hit but Gun hits him with the belt. Gun hits a top rope splash.

Gun hits elbows on Jey then grounded sleepers him. Gun hits chops on Jey then clubs his head. Gun chops him down and Gun footslaps him around. They trade forearms. They clothesline each other. Jey slaps him and takes a facekick. Jey then clotheslines him down.

Jey germans Gun. Gun shotgun dropkicks him then Jey powerbombs Gun. Jey superkicks Gun twice then spears him. Jey hits a top rope splash. Jey then hits 2 more top rope splashes. Jey grounded sleepers him and Gun taps out.

Thoughts: This was a very average match with a bad finish. They barely got into the 2nd half of the match and Gunther tapped out easily. This was not at all what it needed to be and Gun never even really got a great beatdown in on Jey. I don't know what they were thinking here at all but this was even more disappointing than expected. Jey also stupidly quieted the crowd during his entrance by not yeeting and hurt some of the interest because of it. 

Jimmy Uso hugs Jey in the ring after. Jey then walks out through the stands. Jey doesn't yeet in the crowd either for some odd reason.

World Tag Titles - The War Raiders (c) vs The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods)

New Day is wearing blue Giant Gonzales type of outfits with bones on the back. Erik had a crown and some armor and Ivar had a viking helmet with more armor. These are Clash of Clans outfits.

Erik is double teamed to start. Erik rams Woods into Kofi. Erik slams Ivar onto New Day from the apron. Ivar splashes both of New Day against the side of the apron.  Woods takes a backdrop + top rope splash combo.

Erik goes to dive and is hit by Woods. Erik is sent into the rails. Kofi sentons Erik over the bottom rope from the 2nd buckle. Kofi kicks Erik in the gut then fameassers him for 2. Kofi knees Erik in the face then Woods 2nd rope double stomps Erik over the middle rope. Kofi jumps off of Woods to splash Erik then Erik uranages Kofi onto Woods.

Ivar back body drops > side slams > low crossbodies Kofi. Ivar sit down butt drops Kofi in the corner and lariats Woods. Kofi spin kicks Ivar in the face. Ivar does a handspring double back elbow on The New Day. Ivar goes up top and is tripped. Woods hits an honor roll on him.

Woods is hit in mid-air by Erik. Kofi corkscrew kicks Erik. Ivar spinning heel kicks Kofi. Ivar his a top rope moonsault on Kofi and nearly slips. Woods breaks it up with a top rope elbow drop. 

Erik and Woods trade forearms. Erik knees Woods in the back of the head then knees him in the chin. The Raiders go for War Machine but Kofi trips Ivar. Woods flying kicks Erik. Ivar takes a backbreaker + top rope double stomp and is pinned.

Thoughts: The crowd didn't care for this at all, sadly. Ivar nearly died on the top rope moonsault. The match was alright with The Raiders doing power offense and The New Day doing their usual stuff. It probably should have been a bit better though. The New Day kind of needed this to continue their run.

Jade Cargill vs Naomi

We get a Wrestlemania Weather Report for Jade's entrance. A CGI storm breaks out then Jade comes out with new gold gear.

Jade takes down Naomi and pounds on her. Jade boots her in the corner then throws her. Jade hits corner spears.  Jade throws her off the top. Naomi htis shots outside then is sent into the rails.

Naomi high kicks her. Naomi bridging facebusters her on the floor. Naomi bangs Jade's head off the steps. Naomi blockbusters her from the steps outside. Naomi drives Jade's head into the mat with a headscissors.

Naomi hits mounted shots. Naomi knees her in the face. Naomi legdrops her. Naomi headlocks her. Naomi clips her then Jade tilt-a-whirl backbreakers her. Jade superkicks Naomi then hits a corner back elbow.

Naomi facekicks her out of the corner. Jade catches Naomi off the ropes and jackhammers her for 2. Jade pump kicks her. Jade catches Naomi off the 2nd rope and fallaway slams her. Naomi 2nd rope bulldogs her but also does a buttbreaker to herself in the process. Naomi does a split legged moonsault for 2.

Naomi hits a superkick. Jade goes for jade end and Naomi rolls her up for 2. Naomi does a rings of saturn.  Jade hitsa very dangerous looking electric chair powerbomb. Jade then hits a jade end and wins.

Thoughts: It went longer than it needed to. The crowd wasn't into it which hurt it and it wasn't particularly great. I thought it was acceptable though. Jade won as expected here and presumably, this ends the feud unless Naomi attacks her. Both spent most of this match adjusting their attire. 

WWE US Title - LA Knight (c) vs Jacob Fatu 

Fatu comes out with Solo and a werewolf mask. LA comes out in a convertible with someone else driving.

LA hits punches to start. He hits corner spears. Fatu misses a corner splash and is neckbreakered. Fatu blocks a BFT and shows his teeth at him. LA hits punches. Fatu pop-up samoan drops him. Fatu flying back elbows him then headbutt drops him.

Fatu blocks a sunset flip then misses a butt drop. LA is dropped gut first on the ropes. LA hits basement dropkicks then dropkicks him through the ropes. LA comes off the 2nd rope and Fatu powerslams him for 2. Fatu goes for a samoan drop and LA crucifix bombs him.

Fatu misses a corner splash then takes punches, kicks and boots. LA running knees him in the corner then sends him into the post. LA lariats him then hits a 2nd rope diving elbow for 2. 

Fatu superkicks him in the gut. Fatu is crotched up top. LA jumps up to the top rope and release germans Fatu off the top for 2. Fatu hits corner hip attacks then top rope swantons him for 2. Fatu does a double jump moonsault and LA cutters him off of it in a great spot.

LA goes up top, Fatu kicks the ropes and knocks him down up top. Fatu sentons him there. Fatu hits a 2nd rope samoan drop then 2 double jump moonsaults to win.

Thoughts: It was better than the usual LA match due to Fatu being so athletic. The moonsault into the cutter/BFT spot was awesome and one of the better spots of the year. The crowd cheered Fatu for winning here. This worked out well though the selling could have been better.

Haku comes out and hugs Fatu after.

We get an El Grande Americano video with them dubbing a voiceover for him.

Rey Fenix vs El Grande Americano

Rey Mysterio was supposed to be in this but he got injured on SD. Grande has a mariachi band with people wearing his mask. Grande came out with a cape and an old school filter on the screen. El Hijo de Vikingo, who they are calling Vikingo, is in the crowd.

Grande pushes Vikingo and is enzugiri'd. Rey rolls into a hurricanrana on Grande. Grande rolls him and they stand off. Rey monkey flips him and they bridge together. Rey 2nd rope hurricanrana's him for 2. Rey springboard rider kicks him.

Rey double jump crossbodies him outside. Grande release germans Rey. Rey slingshots and is northern lights suplexed. Rey springboard diving armdrags him and double stomps him. Rey superkicks him. Rey hits a spinning kick. Grande belly to belly suplexes Rey into the buckles. Grande does a top rope moonsault senton onto Rey.

Rey enzugiri's him then hits a black fire driver for 2.  Rey rope walks and is crotched. Grande puts metal in his mask. Rey rolls into a hurricanrana. Rey rope walk kicks Grande. They say Rey hurt his foot off of this then Grande ankle locks him. Grande hits a top rope loaded headbutt and wins.

Thoughts: I liked it. Grande's moonsault senton was something and Rey didn't get to overdo it here. They worked Grande loading his mask into the late part of the match which was good and Grande was a decent heel against him. 

Shawn Michaels comes out to announce the attendance which he says is sold out at 61,467.

WWE Women's Title - Tiffany Stratton (c) vs Charlotte Flair

Tiff had a weird entrance with 3 pink Barbie boxes. She was in the middle and the other two had CGI videos of her. Flair came in a car.

CF takes her down and pounds on her. Tiff rolls her over and pounds on her. They go out and fight. CF is pushed into the post. CF hits chops. Tiff puts her in tree of woe and double stomps her down.
CF is pushed into the rails and Tiff is backdropped on the top of the rails. CF chokes her on the ropes. CF bangs Tiff's head off the mat and then headscissors rolls her. Tiff dropkicks her from the side then handspring backflip back elbows her. Tiff spinebusters her for 2.

Cf's throat is pulled down over the top rope. Tiff misses a top rope moonsault. Tiff hits a basement dropkick for 2. CF facekicks her for 2. CF chops her then hits a big kick. Tiff goes to cartwheel on her and takes a sitout powerbomb for 2.

Tiff pop-up spinebusters her for 2. CF hits a top rope crossbody but Tiff rolls through it. Tiff is sent into the 2nd buckle. CF goes up top and is pushed down into the ropes. Tiff bangs CF's knee off the mat. CF superkicks her for 2.

Tiff's leg is banged off the post. CF figure fours her.  Tiff hits CF's knee to break it. Tiff clips CF. Tiff finlay rolls CF. CF gets her knees up on Tiff's double jump moonsault for 2.

They fight on the buckles. CF drops her on her chest then somewhat hits natural selection off the top for 2.  CF slaps her and clips her. Tiff alabama slams CF into the buckles. Tiff finlay rolls her and double jump moonsaults her for the win.

Thoughts: It went a bit long and wasn't quite the classic they aimed for. They had some sloppy moments here. The crowd wasn't that into it like all the matches on here and they never really got the story going with this one. I just thought it was so-so.

They had the Hall of Fame class out there.

Roman Reigns vs CM Punk vs Seth Rollins

Seth came out with a flamethrower. Roman just had fireworks for his entrance with hanging LED's of his family members. We got a video showing old clips of CM Punk and a live performance of his song for his entrance. Punk also came out with Paul Heyman.

Punk goes out to talk to Paul before it starts. Roman uppercuts Seth then bangs his head off the buckles. Roman hits corner punches. Punk comes in and hits punches.

Roman flying lariats Punk and then Seth. Roman lariats Punk over the top. Roman drive by kicks Seth. Roman is sent into the post then Seth topes him. Roman is sent into the rails and steps. Seth and Punk fight outside. Seth is sent into the rails.

Punk lariats Seth over the rail then double axe handles him off the rail. Punk chairs Seth. Seth hits Punk with a trash can. Punk suplexes Seth onto a trash can. Punk throws a trash can at Seth. Roman jumps over the rail onto Seth and Punk.

Punk is thrown into the Prime Hydration Station. Seth's head is banged off the steps then Roman hits him with a giant Prime bottle. Punk chops Roman outside. Roman samoan drops Punk. Seth springboards into a Roman punch.

Punk swinging neckbreakers Roman. Punk leg lariats Seth and hits step up knees on both. Punk hits a ddt + neckbreaker combo. Punk hits a top rope elbow drop on Seth. Punk slams Roman. Seth is in the electric chair and takes a doomsday device. Roman superman punches Punk for 2. 

Roman runs into a Punk knee. Punk and Roman trade. Punk uranages Roman for 2. Punk does an anaconda vice on Roman. Seth top rope splashes both for 2. Punk goes for a GTS and Roman spears Punk. Roman tries to spear Seth but is hit with a pedigree. Seth curb stomps Roman for 2.

Seth misses a phoenix splash then Roman spears Seth. Punk hits a GTS on Roman for 2. Seth pedigrees Punk for 2. Seth tells Roman that Punk doesn't belong here and they need to put him down. Roman doesn't know what to do, teases a powerbomb then punches Seth. Roman then powerbombs Punk on the commentary table.

Roman then powerbombs Seth through the other commentary table. Roman hitsa big spear on Seth for 2. Roman does a guillotine choke on Punk. Punk does an anacaonda vice on Roman. Seth then sharpshooters Punk. Roman guillotine chokes Seth.

Punk breaks it up and hits a go to sleep on Seth for 2.  Punk hits a GTS on Seth, Roman spears Punk and Seth curb stomps Roman.

Paul grabs a chair and both Punk and Roman want it. Paul gives it to Punk. Punk gets in the ring and low blows Punk. Paul says, "you made me choose". Paul then gives Roman the chair and says he acknowledges him.

Roman chairs Punk. Paul tells Roman to look at Seth and says it's his. Paul then low blows Roman. Paul then gives Seth the chair. Paul sits in the corner and Seth chairs Roman. Seth curb stomps Roman and pins him.

Thoughts: It was a good match but the big news here was Paul turning on Roman and Punk to join Seth. That was a shock and will definitely lead to some new things which should be interesting. I wouldn't say everyone went all out here and I don't think they had the best possible match they could have. But it was enough, it was mostly safe and the big swerve at the end helped it along. This also got more than enough time.

Seth walks out with Paul after. Roman and Punk look at them and each other. Roman is down about losing.

Overall thoughts: It was a long show at over 4 hours.  Jey/Gunther was worse than expected. Jey didn't even Yeet with the crowd and the ending was lousy. That was easily one of the worst Gunther matches I have seen. The tag title match was okay. Jade/Naomi went long and it wasn't that great. LA/Fatu was one of LA's better matches and Fatu got over big. Fenix/Americano was good. Flair/Stratton had sloppy moments and didn't impress. The main was good but not great. However, it had a big swerve at the end which will play a big role for months to come and should lead us into our Summerslam main event. The crowd was awful here all night long except for the main and brought down some of the matches. Mania being split into two nights also just generally hurt this some as we got things that weren't huge Mania matches. I'd give it a 6 out of 10 as Jey/Gunther was a near travesty and Flair/Stratton wasn't that great. The main helped things but I also can't say that was as good as it could have been. I can't see this one being a show people will come back to in order to re-watch someday and I wouldn't recommend it because of it. I'd say it was a slightly good show overall.