WWE WRESTLEMANIA 39 NIGHT ONE HITS & MISSES: Theory vs. Cena, Flair vs. Ripley, Owens & Zayn vs. Usos, more.

WWE WRESTLEMANIA 39 NIGHT ONE HITS AND MISSES
APRIL 1, 2023
ENGLEWOOD, CA AT SOFI STADIUM
AIRED ON PEACOCK, 8:00 p.m. EST, 7:00 a.m. CST
BY FRANK PETEANI (@FrankPeteani), PWTORCH.COM CONTRIBUTOR

Announcers: Michael Cole and Corey Graves

U.S. Championship Match: Austin Theory (champ) defeats John Cena to retain.

MISS

You always wonder what the “part-timers” are going to give when they come back for matches. John Cena has been that part-timer for almost six years now, and things did not get off to a great start with his match against Baron Corbin at SummerSlam 2017. Fast forward to last night, and things have not changed. I thought this match while not terrible, was dull and did nothing for Austin Theory other than get him a win “on paper” against what the current announce team fancies as the “greatest of all time.” Whether you agree with that sentiment is for another day.

In so many words Cena made it a point to say Theory was screwed even if he beat him. Well, he did beat him, but visually tapped out after a ref bump. Then he used a low blow and hit A-Town Down for the win. That’s not a statement win. Now, they could want to have a situation where the crowd chants “you tapped out” come Monday in an effort to fuel anger in Theory and bring out an even more aggressive side, but I don’t think that’s the plan. I think they wanted to protect Cena because he’s a legend, to which I ask why? Is he wrestling again soon? Are there plans for him to pursue that 17th world championship? I don’t think so, and thus there’s no reason to protect Cena.

Showcase Fatal Four-Way Tag Team Match: Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) defeat Braun Strowman & Ricochet and Alpha Academy (Chad Gable & Otis) and The Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar) (w/Valhalla) with Titus O’Neil guest commentator.

HIT

I liked this match more than I wanted to before I discussed it with Greg Parks on Wrestling Night in America last week. I wasn’t looking forward to it, but I wasn’t dreading it either. As they got going, I found myself enjoying it. Chad Gable getting the German Suplex on Braun Strowman was a great spot. The “Tower of Doom” spot where Ricochet dove off the top onto the Raiders, Otis, and Montez Ford was creative and fun to see. Finally, Angelo Dawkins stopping the Strowman Express was eye opening. I loved Titus sounding genuinely happy a fellow football player got in a move like that.

I was surprised to see the Profits win. Greg and I had talked about the winner likely getting a tag team title match even though it was never the reward of the match. I can’t see the Profits facing new champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn, so we’ll see what the win does if anything.

Coming out of this match I have two key questions. Where do the Profits go considering there’s been talk of them splitting up and if that’s the case, was this win their “swan song” and we’ll see them publicly wish each other luck and go their own way? In addition, are there bigger plans for Chad Gable considering he got that big spot on Braun? Sometimes when these things happen, they’re just a spot, but we’ll see how things go for him.

Seth “Freakin’” Rollins defeats Logan Paul

HIT

I don’t want to feel this way, but I like Logan Paul the wrestler. I look forward to what he’s going to say and do in the ring. He just gets it, and it’s amazing how quickly he’s picked it all up. Watching this I felt like I was watching a legitimate professional wrestling match. I’ll take criticism for this, but I enjoyed this more than I enjoyed Sami Zayn vs. Johnny Knoxville at last year’s show. It does help that Seth Rollins is his opponent. Like him or not, and I know a lot of people don’t, the guy knows what he’s doing in there. Paul has had the benefit of working with him, Roman Reigns, The Miz, and Rey Mysterio in his time here thus far.

I don’t know if he reveres these guys, but Paul doing Hangman Page’s Buckshot Lariat and CM Punk’s Go to Sleep is interesting. Doing a version of Antonio Inoki’s Octopus Stretch (and Michael Cole pointing it out by name) was cool too. It tells me Paul is studying other wrestlers and I’m all for that. I could have done without KSI getting involved, but it was cool having him film Paul’s dive on to Rollins only to have Rollins get out of the way while pulling KSI onto the table.

I am curious about future use of Paul. I thought there was a shot he could win here, but I’m glad the regular wrestler got the win. I think fans are intrigued enough by his presence that winning or losing matches aren’t going to matter.

Six-Woman Tag Team Match: Women’s Tag Team Champions Becky Lynch & Lita and Trish Stratus vs. Damage CTRL (Bayley & Iyo Sky & Dakota Kai)

HIT

I thought the match was fine for what it was, and I give it a hit mostly because we didn’t get the somewhat rumored Trish Stratus heel turn. This match needed to just be a feel-good win for the legends teamed up with whom I still see as the current top woman on the main roster, and it was just that. Maybe that happens down the line, and they do a Trish vs. Becky match (at SummerSlam?).

Both Lita and Trish got the right amount of ring time to feel like being in this match mattered. They weren’t just there for the sake of being there and got in their “greatest hits.” Becky getting the pinfall was the right decision.

I’m curious to see the fate of Damage CTRL moving forward. They just seem like jobbers to the stars, get their heat back, job to the stars again, repeat. It’s a shame because they’re all good talents, especially Iyo Sky.

Rey Mysterio defeats Dominik Mysterio

HIT

Let’s start with the entrances. They’re in on this hardened criminal bit with Dominik. What did he spend, like a day in “jail?” The absurdity of him talking about it on TV and having the cops bring him into the arena made it so ridiculous that it was overall great. Rey’s entrance with Eddie Guerrero’s music? I wasn’t crying. I have allergies this time of the year. All kidding aside, Viva La Raza my friends. What a moment.

Now let me get one thing out of the way. I know WWE has these advertisements they do, and I understand the business end of it. They couldn’t do this deal with Cinnamoji Toast Crunch with another match? This is a grudge feud. I don’t know what match is appropriate for this, but this one wasn’t it.

Like others on the show, the match went the way it needed to go. Now in the ring I don’t think Dominik has picked it up as fast as Logan Paul but he’s still good. It’s more about his character and what he brings to the table overall. He’s that punk-ass, unlikable “kid” you want to see get his comeuppance, and that happened here in this match. Going back to him taunting his sister and mother as he did on Smackdown to set up this match was a nice touch. Throwing the drink in Aaliyah’s face and Angie, the mother eventually slapping him in the face was expected and worked well. You knew Judgment Day would get involved as well as Legado Del Fantasma and eventually Bad Bunny who was doing commentary with the Spanish announce team. I like that the involvement was just enough and set up a potential match with some combination of Rey and/or Bad Bunny and Legado Del Fantasma vs. Judgement at the Backlash show in Puerto Rico.

There was debate over whether Dominik should go over, but I’m glad they went with Rey. Dominik doesn’t have to win over his dad right now. That could come later. His character work is enough, but we’ll see how things go for him once he moves away from them feuding.

Smackdown Women’s Championship: Rhea Ripley defeats Charlotte Flair to win the title.

HIT

I thought this match would be good heading into the show, even if I thought the build wasn’t all that great. I didn’t think it would be this good though. There are very few matches from the modern WWE I’d want to rewatch. This is certainly one of them.

The match started out a bit slow and the crowd felt flat, but I sense that was by design. Once they Ripley hit Riptide for a near fall that’s when I felt it got going. You got Natural Selection from Charlotte, which has won matches for her including for this same title at SummerSlam 2018. Another Riptide attempt was blocked. Later I thought Charlotte oversold on a German Suplex and that’s when she landed straight onto her face. Then we got the Moonsault. I’ve wished Charlotte would stop doing that but, as they say it is what it is. Todd Martin mentioned on the VIP post-PPV round table that it reminded him of a Japanese-style hard hitting match. I’m inclined to agree as the same thought crossed my mind watching.

We then moved to the part of the match where we got believable near falls and submission attempts including a Cloverleaf from Ripley and a Figure Four from Charlotte. She couldn’t convert it to her signature Figure 8. Ultimately, Ripley hitting Riptide off the ropes was a nice spot and I’m glad the victory was clean without the involvement of Judgment Day. Seeing Charlotte genuinely happy for her opponent at ringside was a pleasant surprise.

It will be interesting to see how things shake out moving forward especially since Ripley and Dominik are still aligned in the heel faction Judgment Day. If I’m watching that match in a vacuum, I’d have no idea. Does that faction start to fall apart and if so, how do they tell the story? What’s next for Charlotte? I like how there are things to look forward to coming out of this match that will make it worth tuning in to the weekly television.

Pat McAfee defeats The Miz

MISS

It’s the placement of this that makes it a miss. I understand they want to save the crowd energy for the main event, and they spent a lot during the Charlotte vs. Ripley match and thus this was the “cool down.” It’s 11:00 (eastern) at night though. We’ve sat there for three hours already. You get enough time in between matches for the Peacock commercials, plus they had a musical act lined up for the Usos entrance. This wasn’t terribly offensive, but it wasn’t necessary either.

Undisputed Tag Team Championship: The Usos (Jimmy & Jey) (champs) vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn

HIT

I don’t know what to say about one of the greatest WrestleMania main events I’ve seen in my lifetime. Unlike what we’ve seen in WWE for some time, this was the culmination of a story that’s been told for a long time. This goes back all the way to when Sami started interacting with the Bloodline following last year’s WrestleMania.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t point that it took eight years for the Usos to get on the main card of a WrestleMania. They debuted in May of 2010, but didn’t get on the main card until WrestleMania 34 in 2018. They made appearances on various pre-shows in previous years. Kevin Owens main evented night one of last year’s show against “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and as I pointed out earlier, Sami Zayn lost to Johnny Knoxville last year. Let us not forget that there was a possibility of Owens and Zayn leaving WWE early last year. I can’t think of whom I’d want to see involved in this story other than these gentlemen and their staying in the company is an underappreciated factor.

As far as the match it was everything you could have wanted. There were several near falls early, which I wish they would avoid because it’s not believable the match would end so early, but it’s a small quibble at best. The interaction with Sami and Jey Uso was great and I liked hearing Jey yell “you were a brother” and “you never should have left the Bloodline.” That tells me the story is not over and there’s more to come with Jey. He knows Sami was right about Roman all along, but he’s still conflicted despite siding with his family. Later in the match I enjoyed the crowd chanting “Ole” and Michael Cole saying El Generico would be proud. It continues to be refreshing hearing announcers talk about characters outside the WWE bubble.

I liked Sami hitting three Helluva Kicks to get the pin. It mildly reminded me of Ultimate Warrior hitting five spears on “Macho Man” Randy Savage at WrestleMania VII to win that match. Here’s the thing. These are two guys that for the most part have been involved in mid-card comedy throughout their WWE tenure. Owens had his Universal Championship run and they’ve each had runs with the U.S. and Intercontinental titles. They’ve worked side by side and against each other. They’ve never been in a story this important to the promotion that their match was clearly the match to have in the main event of a WrestleMania, a match for the tag team championship. Think about that! Would you ever expect such a situation to take place in the WWE? It was great to see them get the win but also be so genuinely emotional after the match. If you follow Sean Radican on Twitter, @sr_torch, he pointed out how he saw these guys when they were on the independent scene, and nobody wanted to give them a chance.

Good promotions are about top stars but let’s not forget the “dance partners.” What these guys bring to the table cannot be quantified. They’ve excelled at whatever they’ve been asked to do. Let’s not dismiss the Usos. They looked like a main event act and gained so much even in losing. As I said earlier, this is far from over, but you have the right players in place for some great storytelling moving forward. We still have Roman vs. Cody, and what happens there will tie into what happened tonight!

Hits 6
Misses 2

Closing Thoughts

I think I pretty much hit everything I wanted to say in terms of the matches. Overall, this show was engaging and just got better as the night went on. It goes to show you when done right, pro wrestling can be a great thing especially when it serves the fans. WWE has a loyal audience and it’s great to see when we are rewarded for paying attention.

With that said, the hits have it and this report is adjourned. I will be in the building for night two so my report will be an in-person perspective rather than a match-by-match hits & misses. This will be my first WrestleMania in person so I’m quite excited.

Follow Frank on Twitter @FrankPeteani. Thank you for reading!