WrestleMania 41: Rollins aligns with Heyman; ‘Main Event’ Jey Uso is new champ

MANILA, April 21 ------ WrestleMania 41 just concluded its Night 1, but the Showcase of the Immortals already had outcomes that can have huge implications for the WWE’s landscape moving forward. Aside from the multiple-title changes, the first one of the two-day spectacle in Las Vegas saw Seth Rollins come out on top in his main event triple-threat bout against Roman Reigns and CM Punk in front of 61,467 fans at the Allegiant Stadium. 

Rollins won with the help of Paul Heyman — both Reigns’ and Punk’s former ally. "The Wise Man" had helped Reigns transform himself into the "Tribal Chief," and into a historic WWE championship run that lasted for a total of 1,316 days from 2020 to 2024. Heyman was also considered by Punk as his best friend and advocate dating back from their earlier years in the scene. The 2024 WWE Hall of Famer even fulfilled his promise to the "Best in the World" before the match, accompanying Punk in his first-ever ‘Mania main event. However, the long-time wrestling manager and executive will now be moving into the future alongside Rollins after he betrayed both Reigns and Punk with low blows. Meanwhile, Jey Uso lived up to his ‘Main Event’ moniker anew after he defeated Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship in the opener. One half of the Usos, who also ruled the 2025 Royal Rumble, managed to silence his doubters by winning over the 6-foot-4 Austrian via a sleeper hold. 

In another world title match, Tiffany Stratton reigned supreme over Charlotte Flair to defend her Women’s Championship and overcome what was a personal feud between the two superstars. On the other hand, LA Knight and the War Raiders fell short of retaining their respective titles. Jacob Fatu defeated Knight to become the new United States Champion, while the New Day are now on their 13th reign as a group after they defeated Erik and Ivar for the World Tag Team Championship. Jade Cargill, for her part, won her first singles ‘Mania match by defeating Naomi, while El Grande Americano spoiled Rey Fenix’s first-ever match in the Show of Shows. 

The card on Sunday, (Monday morning, Manila time) is primed to be just as good, if not, even better than the first one. Night 2 will feature the much-anticipated WWE Undisputed Title clash in the main event between current champion Cody Rhodes and John Cena, as well as the triple-threat between Iyo Sky, Bianca Belair, and Rhea Rhipley for the former’s Women’s World Championship. Also expected to see action is Randy Orton who is to issue an open challenge, Women’s Tag Team champs Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodrguez who will defend their titles against Lyra Valkyria and a mystery partner -- after Bayley was attacked backstage -- and AJ Styles who will be up against Logan Paul. 

Aside from this, Drew McIntyre and Damien Priest will also see action in a Sin City Street Fight, while Bron Breakker is set to defend his Intercontinental Championship vs. Penta, Finn Balor, and Dominik Mysterio in a Fatal 4-way. 

Source: news.abs-cbn.com