Wrestlemania 41 Reactions
We ranked this rendition with a solid B grade. Some good storylines, a lot of violence and two betrayals of a lifetime.
Nights one and two of Wrestlemania 41 were headlined by the culmination of two dynamic heel turns.
Night One:
Gunther vs Jey Uso - World Heavyweight Championship
Opening Wrestlemania 41 with the World Heavyweight Championship match was the best possible placement for that match on the card. Because it wasn’t the main event, the best spot for Jey Uso’s title win was the opener. Unfortunately, the match itself wasn’t that memorable. The reason: a glaring lack of intensity.
During the lead-up to this match Gunther handcuffed Uso to the ring ropes, and forced him to watch as his brother was savagely beaten and left bloodied. An offense this egregious should’ve warranted an exhibition of brutality in response. Instead the fans got a typical wrestling match. Despite it being one of Uso’s better in-ring performances, it felt flat because it didn’t match the intensity of the build.
This became especially apparent when the match began with a collar-and-elbow tie up, the most traditional way to start a wrestling match. Instead of a wrestling match, this bout needed to be a fight. The tension between Gunther and Uso should’ve been palpable. Gunther tapping out was an unusual finish that didn’t feel as triumphant for the new champion as it should have. Overall, not a bad match, but a very disappointing one. What should have been the violent retribution of one brother on behalf of another played out like an everyday affair.
Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods (The New Day) vs Erik & Ivar (War Raiders) - World Tag Team Championships
The next match was decent but never really got into high gear. There was nothing outstandingly egregious or exceedingly great. A notable highlight of the match however is the agility and dexterity of Erik and Ivar. Throughout the match both men pulled off moves that for men of their size are normally impossible.
The story implications for this match were presented as being important, but that importance isn’t felt. After kicking former partner Big E out of the group, The New Day didn’t do much of consequence, which made their first title win without him feel lackluster.
Jade Cargill vs Naomi
Jade Cargill and Naomi’s match suffered from the same problem Jey Uso vs Gunther did. For a grudge match, it was fairly tame. After being attacked and left on a broken windshield, one would think Cargill would aim to destroy Naomi.
That goal should be mutual for Naomi given that Cargill closed the steel elimination chamber door with her body in the doorway. Both women trying to take each other out before Wrestlemania should’ve ensured a violent spectacle. The lack of aggression left the end of the feud feeling mundane.
This was, however, a fantastic showcase of athleticism from Cargill. Two spots were especially memorable. In the first, Cargill caught Naomi mid-air and lifted her into a stalling vertical position that transitioned into a running powerslam. The penultimate moment of the match was one of the smoothest moves Cargill has pulled off to this point in her career. With Naomi on her shoulders Cargill threw her up, turned 180 degrees and caught Naomi with a powerbomb. These two spots were the most physically impressive moves on the entirety of the card for night one.
LA Knight vs Jacob Fatu (United States Championship)
La Knight and Jacob Fatu put on what was by far the second best match on the card for night one. The story being told throughout this match allows the in-ring chemistry between Fatu and Knight to shine. With Fatu having a significant strength and power advantage, Knight looked to out maneuver him the entire match. Fatu’s speed and agility made this strategy impossible for Knight to maintain for the entirety of the match.
Fatu played the role of a stalking predator looking to corner and devour his prey. This cat and mouse style match structure allowed for brilliant counters and smooth transitions.
The highlight of the match was one of the best counters of Knight’s career. He caught Fatu out of the air with his finisher the ‘blunt force trauma’ to counter a moonsault. The timing and precision of this sequence was perfect. Fatu would power through Knight to get the win after this. He landed an impressive leaping senton to Knight on the top turnbuckle. After this it was two rope-scaling moonsaults that ended the match.
Fatu winning his first singles championship on the grandest stage possible is a great decision. His stage presence, physical capability and aggression should breathe life into the mid-card division.
Rey Fenix vs El Grande Americano
This match was another passable but not memorable one. It went for less than 10 minutes, but featured some fun moments. The placement of Fenix and Americano’s match on the card however, was perfect.
With two big matches closing the show, having a less important and shorter match to give the crowd a break in between acts was a good idea. This helped ensure that the audience wasn’t burned out going into the co-main and main event.
Charlotte Flair vs Tiffany Stratton - WWE Women’s Championship
Charlotte Flair and Tiffany Stratton put on a fine women’s championship match. The story of youth versus experience was told vividly throughout. Stratton fighting from underneath for the majority of the match helped this narrative along further. Flair brought any momentum Stratton built to an abrupt stop several times throughout. Making Stratton the underdog in the face of her 14-time women’s champion opponent perfectly leaned into the vehement dislike fans have voiced for Flair throughout this feud.
The equalizer here was Flair’s knee. Stratton targeting Flair’s surgically repaired knee made it harder for her to perform her finishing submission hold, the Figure Eight. Flair’s newfound woes allowed Stratton to avoid doom time and time again. Ultimately, the compromised challenger fell to a rope scaling moonsault from the champion.
Although it went a bit too long, Flair and Stratton’s match was one of the better ones on the card. Stratton winning was the correct decision given the polar opposite fan reactions to both women during the buildup.
CM Punk vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins
The long-awaited ‘triple threat’ match between Punk, Reigns and Rollins was far and away the best match on the card for night one. The buildup to this match featured strong moments from all three men. This made it feel like all of them had a reasonable shot at winning, making the match more suspenseful. Things started relatively slowly and escalated as the match went on. There were big momentum shifts placing each man in control for brief periods. Eventually, they were trading finishers, and the end felt like it was just one big move away.
Victory hinged on Paul Heyman’s loyalty. With CM Punk and Roman Reigns both down and reaching for a steel chair, who would Heyman choose? In a brilliantly acted double-turn, he chose neither. He handed Punk the chair only to hit him with a low blow and offer the chair to Reigns. Exclaiming praises to Reigns as he handed the chair to the tribal chief, it seemed Reigns would be the one standing tall. But like Punk, he too was betrayed.
Standing with his back to both men stood Rollins, to whom Heyman finally handed the chair. Then came the best bit of storytelling all night. Having outsmarted Reigns like he has every time they’ve crossed paths since the breakup of The Shield, Rollins hit Reigns in the back with the chair. Suddenly Rollins' words to Heyman on Monday Night Raw made perfect sense.
“Now you owe me a favor,” Rollins said.
This favor was occurring behind the backs of Punk and Reigns for months. Heyman had been a part of Rollins’ scheme the entire time. The trauma of The Shield’s destruction once again haunted Reigns, as Rollins stomped his head into the mat to pick up the win. Rollins triumphantly out with the wiseman, destroyed one of Punk’s most vital friendships and proved once again why he is worthy of being called “the visionary.”
Overall, night one of this year’s Wrestlemania was lackluster. Too much of the card was decent but not great. Uso and Cargill’s victories had the potential to be electric but neither match was visceral enough to hold up to the feuds they’d been built on. The final three title matches of the show brought just enough energy to keep night one from being a complete dud.
Night Two:
Iyo Sky vs Bianca Belair vs Rhea Ripley - Women’s World Championship
The second night of Wrestlemania 41 didn’t disappoint– beginning with the women’s division. The ‘triple-threat’ match included several close calls. The Palmetto newsroom considered this match to be better than night one and a great introduction to night two.
Rhea Ripley attacked Sky and Bianca Belair on the March 17 contract signing night to enter herself into the match. The momentum changed many times, with Ripley nearly winning after a two-and-a-half count. Iyo Sky came from behind and retained her title despite several hard hits.
Drew McIntyre vs Damien Priest - Sin City Street Fight
The second match on the card was a ‘Sin City Street Fight,’ named after Las Vegas’s nickname Sin City. The anything-goes match showed violence immediately with usage of the steel stairs.
Pénta vs Bron Breakker vs Dominik Mysterio vs Finn Balor - Intercontinental Championship
‘Fatal four way’ rules and four of the best wrestlers in WWE equaled a frenetic pace that kept the audience on the edge of their seats. The shifts in momentum were abrupt and often, making the match suspenseful. Breakker’s athleticism was on full display the entire match, creating moment after moment. Balor and Mysterio teaming up to subdue Breakker and Penta until their alliance inevitably crumbled was a well conveyed story.
Mysterio winning by being an opportunist made perfect sense for the nature of his character. After Penta was taken out by a leaping spear from Breakker, Balor hit the coup de grace on Breakker and thought he had the match won. Mysterio stealing the win with a frog splash on an unsuspecting Balor was the most opportune victory possible. In an unusual occurrence, the crowd cheered for Mysterio’s victory.
Randy Orton vs Joe Hendry
Orton started off the segment with a fiery promo making a challenging declaration. His mystery opponent to a thunderous ovation is revealed to be the Total Nonstop Action world champion Joe Hendry.
After a decent back and forth, Hendry landed an impressive fallaway slam on Orton. Taking time to bask in the crowd’s adoration, was dropped with an RKO, in classic Orton fashion. After helping Hendry to feet and raising his hand, Orton hit him with another RKO to an explosion of cheers.
Although not at all Orton’s most memorable mania match, this was pleasant. Both Hendry and Orton were charming to the audience with their signature mannerisms. The abrupt RKO to Hendry while he was gloating was a hilarious end to the match. The mischievous RKO after the match made the joke even funnier.
Logan Paul vs AJ Styles
Logan Paul and AJ Styles’s match tells a story of experience versus youth and athleticism. Styles for the early parts of the match outwrestled and outsmarted Paul. Eventually Paul was able to take control by landing big moves in opportune moments. His speed and explosiveness allowed him to chain together a series of high-impact moves that greatly weakened Styles.
He continued to outpace Styles for a long stretch of the match. Consistent with the story being conveyed, Styles took momentum back when given a window of opportunity. Paul perhaps landed the most impressive move of the night, with a slingshot frontflip into a lariat. A distraction from a member of Paul’s entourage and the appearance of Karrion Kross led to Styles’ demise.
This was a fun match and a great showcase of Paul’s ability.
Becky Lynch and Lyra Valkyria vs Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez - Women’s Tag Team Championship
This match was more about the surprise return of Becky Lynch than the match itself. The match was decent and picked up pace towards the end. The fans erupted into cheers as Lynch made her way to the ring.
John Cena vs Cody Rhodes - Undisputed WWE Championship
The audience exploded into a frenzy at the staredown between John Cena and Cody Rhodes. From the beginning of the match, the narrative of the future overtaking the past is apparent. Rhodes overwhelmed Cena by outpacing him from the opening bell. His flurry of offense drew a question from Cole on commentary.
“Is that age?” Cole asked.
Cena slowed the pace of the match, but the back-and-forth between the two reached a rapid pace. Cena resorted to gouging Rhode’s eyes only to receive the same treatment in return. Rhode’s resilience was vividly sold by him kicking out of an Attitude Adjustment (AA) and a super AA back to back. This is further emphasized by Rhodes kicking out of a fourth AA after having his head slammed into an exposed turnbuckle.
After that exciting nearfall, Travis Scott’s ‘FEIN’ played throughout the arena as the rap star walked out. Rhodes finally landed a cross-Rhodes on Cena only for Scott to pull the referee out of the ring. Scott jumped in the ring and was quickly eliminated with a cross Rhodes. With the referee still down, Cena aimed the championship belt at Rhodes.
Catching the belt, the champion was left with a choice: remain a hero or give in to necessary evil. Rhodes’ inability to take the darker path resulted in his defeat.
A low blow and a shot to the head with the championship belt out of sight from the referee sealed his fate. This was well-written storytelling, as Cena predicted that Rhodes would lose because he refused to sacrifice his morals. This might’ve been foreshadowing to a heel turn from Rhodes in the future.
Micheal Jacobs III is the managing writer for The Palmetto. He thinks Jordan versus Lebron is the most overrated debate ever. His main focuses are music, basketball and combat sports. If you have a comment or tip for Micheal, feel free to contact him on social media or through email.
Kyaia Villegas is the editor-in-chief of The Palmetto. They created this website as a way to continue doing journalism. Their main focuses are sports and LGBTQ+ issues, both nationally and in South Carolina. If you have a comment or tip for Kyaia, feel free to contact them on social media or through email.