Tonight, the grandest stage of them all opens up at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. WrestleMania XL is upon the wrestling world. There will be seven matches on the first night of the festivities. Here, each match will get a brief rundown, as well as match predictions from myself, Jayden Simmons, Shane Davis, and Dacota Haynes.
Intercontinental Championship match: Gunther (c) vs. Sami Zayn
Gunther continues to make history as the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion. After squeaking by Jey Uso thanks to some outside interference (stay tuned), his next opponent is Sami Zayn. The perennial underdog of the WWE won a gauntlet match to earn the right to challenge the Ring General. Sami has gotten training and advice from Chad Gable, the man he eliminated last in the gauntlet match. Can Sami pull off another WrestleMania miracle and overcome Gunther? Will Gable turn on Sami out of desperation to be the one to beat Gunther?
Max: Gunther retains
Jayden: Gunther retains
Shane: Gunther retains
Dacota: Gunther retains
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship ladder match
Here are the six participating tag teams:
- Judgment Day (Damian Priest and Finn Bálor) (c)
- New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate)
- The Awesome Truth (The Miz & R-Truth)
- #DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa)
- The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods)
- A-Town Down Under (Austin Theory and Grayson Waller)
There are several stories going into this match. Emphasis has been put on the fact that both sets of titles are up for grabs. A rift is forming between Austin Theory and Grayson Waller. Can R-Truth get revenge on the Judgment Day for the beatdowns they put him through? Will #DIY win their first-ever main roster championship?
One stat to keep in mind heading into WrestleMania XL: The last time a tag team championship, men’s or women’s, did not change hands at a WrestleMania in which they were defended was WrestleMania 31.
Max: Judgment Day and Awesome Truth split the championship
Jayden: Awesome Truth and A-Town Down Under split the championship
Shane: Awesome Truth and A-Town Down Under split the championship
Dacota: Awesome Truth and A-Town Down Under split the championship
Andrade and Rey Mysterio vs. Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio
Less than 24 hours ago, Dragon Lee was set to be Rey Mysterio’s tag team partner. On the go-home SmackDown, though, he was attacked by a mystery assailant. After Zelina Vega lost to Elektra Lopez, Legado del Fantasma attacked Rey Mysterio, who was ringside. Andrade, who had been in cahoots with Dominik Mysterio for weeks, turned to the light and saved Rey. Rey then picks Andrade to be Dragon Lee’s replacement, but Carlito walks in right after and does not take the news well.
This new development throws an interesting wrinkle into what may have otherwise been a low-stakes match. Will Carlito betray the Latino World Order (LWO) and align himself with Legado del Fantasma? He would be the second person to defect from the LWO in recent months. The LWO might also be in need of a shake-up with Andrade in the fold.
Max: Dominik and Santos win
Jayden: Rey and Andrade win
Shane: Dominik and Santos win
Dacota: Rey and Andrade win
Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill, and Naomi vs. Damage CTRL (Asuka, Kairi Sane, and Dakota Kai)
A storm is coming to WrestleMania XL. Jade Cargill has been over like rover since she debuted in the Royal Rumble. She joins forces with Bianca Belair and the returning Naomi to take on Damage CTRL, who really don’t have much else to do. This match does not have too much depth to it, so this will likely be more of a showcase of what Jade and Naomi can do. Can Damage CTRL bounce back from last year’s loss to a ragtag group of faces? It will still be worth tuning in to, all six wrestlers in this match are reliable at the very worst.
Max: Bianca/Jade/Naomi win
Jayden: Bianca/Jade/Naomi win
Shane: Bianca/Jade/Naomi win
Dacota: Bianca/Jade/Naomi win
Women’s World Championship match: Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Becky Lynch
Two of the best women wrestlers of all time are set to square off in the squared circle. This rivalry has gotten deeply personal in recent weeks. From their wars of words to the multiple times they’ve brawled on television, and Becky even interrupting Rhea’s appearance on the MMA Hour podcast, there is much more at stake than just the championship belt. This is a matter of Rhea’s reign vs. Becky’s legacy.
Rhea began her championship reign at last year’s WrestleMania by taking down one of the Four Horsewomen. Will she take down a second Horsewoman a year later? Will Becky ride the wave of releasing her autobiography to winning a singles match at WrestleMania for the first time since 2020? This match has serious show-stealer potential.
Max: Rhea retains
Jayden: Rhea retains
Shane: Rhea retains
Dacota: Rhea retains
Jey Uso vs. Jimmy Uso
After 13 years as a tag team in the WWE system, The Usos split at Summerslam 2023. After Jimmy betrayed Jey in the latter’s title match against Roman Reigns, Jey left for Monday Night Raw and has since proven himself as a singles star. Jimmy, on the other hand, has tried and failed to win the full approval of Roman Reigns.
This feud has seen the bulk of its build come in conjunction with the Cody Rhodes-Roman Reigns feud. Jey vs. Jimmy feels like a subplot more than anything, but by no means is it a boring subplot. These two will leave it all in the ring at WrestleMania XL in an affair of family pride.
Max: Jey wins
Jayden: Jimmy wins
Shane: Jey wins
Dacota: Jey wins
Roman Reigns and The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins
The appetizer to tomorrow night’s main course will reveal a lot on both ends of the story. Will Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins ultimately be able to coexist? Will Roman Reigns and The Rock get caught up in trying to one-up each other? Like Money In The Bank, one of the main events of WrestleMania XL will be a tag team match.
In addition, the outcome of this match reveals the stipulation for Sunday’s main event. Should Cody and Seth defeat Roman and Rock, the main event will (supposedly) be devoid of Bloodline interference. If Roman and Rock win, however, Roman vs. Cody on Sunday will be “Bloodline Rules” (one of many variations on the No Disqualification match). To try to give a play-by-play of what has happened to this point is disingenuous to the story that’s been told. The first WrestleMania main event Seth Rollins hasn’t inserted himself into will be a barn burner.
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