The End of the Road: WrestleMania XL Is a 2-Night Spectacular - Here's Everything You Need to Know
Across the nights of April 6 and 7, World Wrestling Entertainment will host its biggest event of the year, WrestleMania.
The “Road to WrestleMania” wraps up Sunday night and takes place across two nights at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
“WrestleMania XL” (that’s the Roman numeral for 40, not “extra large”), has become a cultural tour de force in recent years.
For WWE fans, it’ll be appointment viewing given that, while WWE has nothing resembling an “offseason,” WrestleMania has typically been viewed as the “season finale” of sorts for the company.
But, if you’re not a WWE fan and find yourself at a party or event showing WrestleMania, here’s everything you need to know.
There are 7 matches slated for Saturday:
Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee vs. Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio: A rare father versus son matchup (Rey is the real father of Dominik), the elder Mysterio is a veritable professional wrestling legend and you can expect him to make his villainous son look as good as possible, before securing a last-second win. Prediction: Mysterio and the ascendant Lee win.
Bianca Belair, Naomi and Jade Cargill vs. Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai, Asuka and Kairi Sane): Cargill is being positioned as a bona fide star for WWE, so don’t expect her to lose in her second match ever, even if she was a late addition to this feud. Prediction: Belar, Naomi and Cargill win.
Six-Pack ladder match for Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships: This match will probably be the most fun for casual or non-fans. It will be a spectacle match akin to a human demolition derby as six teams scramble to snatch the tag championships from the ladder. Prediction: The tag titles get split again (currently, both shows’ tag team titles are held by one team), with Judgment Day securing one set of titles, and Awesome Truth securing the other.
Jey Uso vs. Jimmy Uso: A real-life brother versus brother grudge match, Jey has been firmly established on television as the stronger character of the two. Prediction: Expect Jey to win to continue to build momentum.
Intercontinental Champion Gunther vs. Sami Zayn for the title: Zayn, the perpetual underdog, finds himself facing the dominant Intercontinental champion. Given that there’s no clear path forward for Gunther, expect him to continue his reign of terror. Prediction: Gunther retains after Zayn’s new ally, Chad Gable, turns on him.
Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Becky Lynch for the title: These are arguably the two biggest women stars in WWE, so it only makes total sense for them to square off at WrestleMania. Prediction: There’s no reason for the dominant Ripley to lose momentum now, so she wins a hard-fought epic.
The Rock and Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will make his grand return as an active pro wrestler on Saturday night in a highly charged main event feud. Prediction: Not only can I not see The Rock losing his grand return, his team winning has direct implications on the main event of Night 2, so Rock and Reigns win.
There are six matches slated for Sunday:
Bobby Lashley and The Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) vs. Karrion Kross and The Authors of Pain (Akam & Rezar): I’m not going to lie, even as a diehard WWE fan, I’ve struggled to care about this feud. Predictions: Lashley and his allies have been suffering a number of beatdowns on television, so they win.
LA Knight vs. AJ Styles: The battle of initials is a simple, straightforward grudge match in that these two just do not like each other — but it should still be a banger given the two involved. Prediction: Styles hasn’t had a meaningful win in a feud in what feels like ages, so he’ll win by nefarious means to keep this feud going.
United States Champion Logan Paul vs. Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens in a triple threat match: This will probably be Night 2’s answer to Night 1’s ladder match in that Paul and Owens are talented madmen and Orton is a venerable veteran, so expect big spots and brutal action. Prediction: Owens feels overdue for a big win, and the U.S. title feels a bit beneath Orton, so Owens wins a banger.
WWE Women’s Champion Iyo Sky vs. Bayley in a title match: This deeply personal feud sees former teammates clashing after Bayley was unceremoniously ousted from the aforementioned Damage CTRL. Prediction: This story feels set up for Bayley to ultimately triumph at WrestleMania, so I’m going to say she wins.
World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre in a title match: This title match was supposed to be CM Punk versus Rollins, but McIntyre accidentally injured Punk for real during January’s “Royal Rumble” event. That necessitated a rapid script change, but McIntyre has done a wonderful job of establishing himself as an evil juggernaut. Prediction: Rollins has been champion for some time now, and a change feels overdue. As odd as it is to “reward” someone for injuring a big star, McIntyre feels ready for a lengthy run as a villainous champion.
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes: Speaking of lengthy runs as a villainous champion, Reigns has just recently eclipsed a staggering 1,300 days as champion, often maintaining his belt through crooked means thanks to his faction, “The Bloodline.” Prediction: Reigns and Rock winning on Night 1 means that this match would be “Bloodline Rules,” which basically means that it’s a no-DQ, anything-goes match. Many, including this writer, are predicting that Rhodes avenges his WrestleMania 39 loss to Reigns thanks to those “Bloodline Rules,” which will allow a number of Rhodes’ allies to even the odds.
On both nights, WrestleMania XL will have a preshow that begins at 5 p.m. ET.
Both nights will also have the main cards begin at 7 p.m. ET.
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