WWE WrestleMania 41closed Night One with a betrayal so cold it shook Allegiant Stadium to its core. In a match that featured The Tribal Chief, The Second City Savior, and the Visionary himself, it wasPaul Heyman—Roman Reigns’ longtime Wiseman — who pulled off the most shocking swerve of the year.Aligning withSeth Rollins, Heyman turned his back on Reignsand low-blowed both him andCM Punkto hand Rollins a win in a wild, chaotic, and deeply personal Triple Threat match. And no, there wasn’t even a title on the line. That’s how epic it was.
From the moment a sensational video package of Punk’s career to date — set to his previous entrance music ofKillswitch Engage’s “This Fire Burns” – transitioned intoLiving Colourperforming Punk’s entrance live on stage, you knew this was going to be special. With over 61,000 fans (give or take) on their feet and three of the biggest names in modern WWE standing across from each other, the main event of Night One was a masterclass in pacing, storytelling, and sledgehammer emotion.The crowd didn’t stop popping as Rollins, Punk, and Reignsbeat the life out of each other in and out of the ring. Rollins’ high-risk aerial assaults, Punk’s submission mastery, and Reigns’ brutal power created a perfect storm of near-falls and desperate finishes. Each man hit their biggest moves multiple times, and they even used the others' finishers. Each survived the worst the others had to offer. And still, none of them could find a way to stay down.
That is, until Heyman made his move. After teasing his allegiance throughout the match,Heyman delivered a low blow to Punk, who had just been handed a chair, and seemed ready to realign with Roman. But when Reigns took the chair and prepared to deliver the final blow to Rollins, Heyman did the unthinkable: he turned on Reigns too.Heyman’s second low blowof the night stunned The Tribal Chief, opening the door for Rollins to bash Reigns with a steel chair, land the final Stomp, and pick up the 1-2-3 on Reigns, who almost seemed not to kick out due to his emotional devastation rather than anything else.
Rollins and Heyman then left the ring together, grinning, as Cole on commentary nearly lost his mind. “That man is a piece of garbage!” he shouted about Heyman. McAfee couldn’t believe it either. “How long has this been planned?” he asked. Rollins stood tall on the ramp, arms wide open. Heyman stood behind him, smiling, and WrestleMania’s biggest betrayal was complete. What will Night 2 bring?
Who Won at WrestleMania 41?
Jey Uso def. Gunther – World Heavyweight Championship
Jey Usoshocked everyone by making the Ring General tap out after three Uso Splashes and a sleeper hold, becoming the new World Heavyweight Champion in an emotional opener.
New Day def. War Raiders – World Tag Team Championships
Kofi and Xavier pulled off the win with The Daylight finisher after a chaotic and physical match, taking home the titles in under 10 minutes.
Jade Cargill def. Naomi
A dominant, star-making performance for Cargill, who landed Jaded to get the pin in a match that showcased her power and Naomi’s resilience.
Jacob Fatu def. LA Knight – U.S. Championship
Fatu made a huge statement in his WrestleMania debut, withstanding a killer BFT and countering with a moonsault-heavy finisher to become the new U.S. Champion.
El Grande Americano def. Rey Fenix
The man who is notChad Gablecleanly earned his way to victory using a piece of metal — no doubt used for medicinal purposes — in his mask, despite a spirited effort from Fenix and a run-in tease fromVikingo,the AAA sensation who we’ll be seeing a lot more of.
Tiffany Stratton def. Charlotte Flair – WWE Women’s Championship
The match of the night before the main event. Stratton beat Flair clean in an incredibly physical war, earning huge respect from fans and her toughest opponent yet.
WrestleMania 41 is streaming on demand on Peacock in the US and Netflix internationally.
