When last we saw Cody Rhodes, he was looking glum. And why not? He and Seth Rollins had just lost the most significant tag team match in WrestleMania history, one that made the likelihood of Rhodes never hearing the phrase “finish the story” again that much more unlikely.
But that was Saturday and this is Sunday, and there’s still hope that Rhodes can regain control of his narrative in the main event of WrestleMania Night 2 in Philadelphia. He’ll have to overcome Roman Reigns despite the match being contested under Bloodline Rules, which means The Rock, fresh off scoring the pinfall on Night 1, is virtually guaranteed to get involved.
Fighting back will probably mean getting some help, whether it’s from the likes of Jey Uso and Sami Zayn or WWE legends who have a bone to pick with Reigns and The Rock. There’s also a chance Reigns may have an ace up his sleeve, but however it plays out, it should be wild and entertaining.
It might not be as enjoyable for Rollins, seeing as he has to defend his World Heavyweight Championship against a very locked in Drew McIntyre. Will the Scottish Warrior win the title he craves and be able to let the world know his way was the right way?
Another emotional high point should be the WWE Women’s Championship match between IYO SKY and Bayley. While fans are heavily invested in Cody’s journey, they’ve become quite attached to Bayley’s narrative as well. It’s hard to not relate to people you thought you could trust stabbing you in the back, and while that’s standard pro wrestling fare at this point, it’s become especially poignant in the case of Damage CTRL.
We’re ready with people in the press box at the Linc, in the crowd and watching at home, so let’s do this.
WrestleMania 40 Night 2 results from Philadelphia:
(please tap or click on any match with a link for full details)
- Damage CTRL and Bayley are shown entering the stadium earlier today
- The War and Treaty sing “America the Beautiful” to kick things off
- Stephanie McMahon is introduced, putting over the specialness of WrestleMania, touting the work of Triple H and generally getting the fans excited
- Drew McIntyre def. Seth Rollins by pinfall to become the new World Heavyweight Champion, but …
- … while McIntyre is mocking CM Punk on commentary, Punk removes his arm brace and smashes him with it; Damian Priest runs down, hits McIntyre with his briefcase and cashes in his MITB briefcase, then hits the South of Heaven and pins McIntyre to become the new World Heavyweight Champion
- Bobby Lashley and the Street Profits def. The Final Testament by pinfall in a Six-Man Tag Team Philadelphia Street Fight, with Snoop Dogg on commentary and Bubba Ray Dudley as special guest referee
- Logan Paul is shown doing push-ups in his locker room; we then see a highlight package of the Night 1 main event
- Paul Heyman tells Kayla Braxton that Bloodline Rules means no DQ, no count-outs and there has to be a definitive finish, but also suggests it’s really whatever Roman Reigns, The Rock and Heyman decide they are
- LA Knight is shown pulling up to the ring in the Slim Jim car; he then hands the keys to the car to the sweepstakes winner by ringside
- LA Knight def. AJ Styles by pinfall
- Logan Paul def. Kevin Owens and Randy Orton by pinning Orton to retain the WWE United States Championship
- Bayley def. IYO SKY by pinfall to become the new WWE Women’s Champion
- Snoop Dogg and the Philadelphia Eagles reveal the announced attendance: 72,755 for Night 2 and 145,298 total for the two nights
- Cody Rhodes def. Roman Reigns by pinfall in a Bloodline Rules match to become the new Undisputed WWE Universal Champion, in a match that also involved both Usos, Solo Sikoa, John Cena, The Rock, “Shield era” Seth Rollins and The Undertaker
- Rhodes celebrates in the ring after his victory with Brandi, his mom and many of the faces, including Cena, Zayn, Owens, Orton, Knight, Jey Uso and more …
- … Cody gets on the mic and says he’s surrounded by greatness but wants to thank both Bruce Prichard and Triple H