WrestleMania 42 Night 1 Review: Title Changes, Big Returns, and One Awful Main Event
WWEWrestleMania 42 Night 1 delivered a strong, surprise-filled show that exceeded expectations overall, earning a solid 8.2/10 despite a disappointing main event that dragged the momentum down. The evening kicked off with high energy thanks to a chaotic opener and several memorable moments.
Paige made a shocking return, stepping in for an injured Nikki Bella in the Women's Tag Team Fatal Four-Way and teaming with Brie to capture the titles in an emotional, crowd-pleasing victory.
This instantly creates fresh options for the women's division alongside the new tag champs. Gunther vs. Seth Rollins stood out as the clear in-ring highlight — a hard-hitting, well-paced clash that many called match of the night.
(Bron Breakker's post-match attack added an extra layer of surprise and future storytelling potential.)
Other bright spots included Liv Morgan's spectacular entrance, which carried strong hype into her Women's World Championship match against Stephanie Vaquer.
While the bout could've used more in-ring time and less interference, Liv's upset victory (aided by Roxanne Perez's return and the numbers game) provided a welcome shock and marked one of three title changes on the night.
The unsanctioned Drew McIntyre vs. Jacob Fatu match delivered wild hardcore spots but felt too short for its stipulation.
Night 1 also had some feel-good energy when John Cena handled the attendance announcement, followed by Bianca Belair's out-of-nowhere return and pregnancy announcement, which drew a massive, heartfelt pop from the crowd.
Bron Breakker also made a big return, adding to the wave of surprises that kept things exciting. Jelly Roll taking out Pat McAfee was effective (if somewhat obvious) for getting the hated McAfee out of the way before the main event.
Unfortunately, the Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton Undisputed WWE Championship match fell flat.
The prolonged delay before starting felt awkward, Orton's apparent back injury (real or storyline) slowed the pace, and the action came across as boring and disjointed.
Heavy involvement from McAfee throughout the build didn't help. Cody retained after an RKO on McAfee, but the post-match sequence — Orton hitting Cody with the title, dropping it, and punting him before standing tall with the belt he didn't win — landed as a strange, unsatisfying way to close the show.
In the end, WrestleMania 42 Night 1 was much better than average thanks to the big returns (Paige, Roxanne, Bron, Bianca), multiple title changes, strong midcard performances, and crowd-pleasing pops.
The women's division especially gained momentum with new champions and fresh directions. It just needed a stronger, cleaner main event to reach elite status. Looking forward to seeing how Night 2 builds on this foundation.
