WrestleMania 42 Results 2026: Full Night 1 and Night 2 Winners

WrestleMania 42 Results 2026: Full Night 1 & Night 2 Winners, Grades & What Happened in Vegas

Las Vegas knows how to host a party, but even Sin City hasn't seen anything like this. WrestleMania 42 rolled back into Allegiant Stadium on April 18-19, 2026, for the second consecutive year—the first time WWE has held its flagship event at the same venue in back-to-back years since Atlantic City in 1988 and 1989. Thirteen matches. Eight championship bouts. One retired John Cena hosting the whole spectacle. And a main event that saw Roman Reigns potentially wrestle his final WWE match. If you missed it, don't worry. We watched every suplex, every near-fall, and every questionable referee decision so you don't have to.

WrestleMania 42 Night 1 Results (April 18)

Night 1 opened with a six-man tag and closed with a championship match that left fans arguing until Sunday morning. Here's how every bout played out [^105^][^109^]:

Match Winner Duration Notes
The Usos & LA Knight vs. Logan Paul, Austin Theory & IShowSpeed The Usos & LA Knight 7:05 IShowSpeed hit a frog splash on Paul after the match
Jacob Fatu vs. Drew McIntyre (Unsanctioned) Jacob Fatu N/A Brutal street fight style encounter
Women's Intercontinental Championship: AJ Lee (c) vs. Becky Lynch Becky Lynch 8:15 Lynch wins the title; referee Jessika Carr involved
Women's Tag Team Championship Fatal 4-Way Paige & Brie Bella 8:32 Paige returned from retirement to win the belts
Seth Rollins vs. Gunther Gunther 15:48 Instant classic; Bron Breakker returned post-match
Women's World Championship: Stephanie Vaquer (c) vs. Liv Morgan Liv Morgan 6:50 Judgment Day interference helped Morgan capture the title
Undisputed WWE Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Randy Orton Cody Rhodes 22:40 McAfee turned on Orton; Orton attacked Rhodes after the match

The opening match delivered exactly what it needed to: energy, celebrity spectacle, and protection for The Vision's tag titles. IShowSpeed's post-match frog splash onto Logan Paul from the ring post to the announce table proved the streamer has legitimate athletic ability [^105^].

Gunther versus Seth Rollins stole the show. Two of WWE's best workers produced an instant classic that Yahoo Sports graded an A, with Rollins' superplex into Falcon Arrow serving as the match's highlight [^105^]. After the match, Bron Breakker returned from injury to attack Rollins, setting up a likely SummerSlam program.

Night 1 Shocker: Paige's return from retirement to win the Women's Tag Team Championship with Brie Bella was the emotional peak of the evening. After retiring in 2018 due to neck injuries, Paige's in-ring comeback felt impossible. When she pinned Alexa Bliss to win the titles, the "you still got it" chants weren't just polite—they were earned [^109^].

The main event between Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton divided critics. Rhodes retained after a convoluted finish involving Pat McAfee, who returned in a referee shirt and neck brace only to eat an RKO from Orton. Rhodes capitalized with CrossRhodes for the pin [^105^]. After the match, Orton stole the title, hit Rhodes with it, and delivered a Punt Kick to leave the champion laying [^109^].

WrestleMania 42 Allegiant Stadium Las Vegas interior with massive crowd and stage setup

WrestleMania 42 Night 2 Results (April 19)

Sunday night promised even bigger stakes, with Roman Reigns challenging CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship in a match Reigns promised would be his last if he lost [^99^]. Here's the full Night 2 breakdown [^100^][^101^]:

Match Winner Notes
Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar Oba Femi Femi answered Lesnar's open challenge and defeated the veteran
Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match: Penta (c) vs. 5 challengers Penta Retained in a six-way ladder match including Rey Mysterio and Rusev
United States Championship: Sami Zayn (c) vs. Trick Williams Trick Williams New champion crowned
Finn Balor vs. Dominik Mysterio Finn Balor "The Demon" persona prevailed
WWE Women's Championship: Jade Cargill (c) vs. Rhea Ripley Rhea Ripley Ripley captured the title in a hard-hitting contest
World Heavyweight Championship: CM Punk (c) vs. Roman Reigns Roman Reigns Reigns won his 15th world title; potentially his final match

The ladder match opened Night 2 with chaos. Six competitors—Penta, Je'Von Evans, Dragon Lee, JD McDonagh, Rusev, and Rey Mysterio—battled for the Intercontinental Championship. Penta retained, continuing his impressive title reign [^100^].

Rhea Ripley dethroning Jade Cargill for the WWE Women's Championship set up a potential new era on Raw. Ripley has been one of WWE's most consistently dominant performers, and the victory positions her as a cornerstone of the women's division heading into summer [^101^].

The Two Main Events: Rhodes vs. Orton & Punk vs. Reigns

WrestleMania 42 featured two world title matches on consecutive nights, and both produced dramatically different reactions.

Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton (Night 1)

The build to this match suffered from Pat McAfee's involvement. What started as a compelling challenger-versus-champion story became a convoluted mess involving McAfee's career on the line, a referee shirt, and enough interference to make a 1999 WCW booker blush [^109^].

The match itself told a different story once the action started. Orton targeted Rhodes' back throughout, while Rhodes focused on Orton's forehead, busting him open with a ring post shot [^105^]. The finish saw Rhodes poke Orton in the eye, hit a low blow while the referee was down, and capitalize on Orton's distraction with McAfee to score the CrossRhodes pin [^105^].

USA Today's analysis called the finish "confusing and frustrating," noting that Orton's post-match attack on Rhodes felt like the right move at the wrong time [^109^]. The crowd clearly favored Orton, booing Rhodes throughout and singing "Voices" during Orton's entrance [^105^].

CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns (Night 2)

This was the match that mattered. Reigns entered having won the 2026 Royal Rumble, choosing to challenge Punk rather than SmackDown's champion Cody Rhodes [^99^]. The storyline traced back to 2012, when Punk brought Reigns to the main roster as part of The Shield, and forward to 2025, when Paul Heyman turned on Reigns at WrestleMania 41 [^99^].

The Stakes: Two days before WrestleMania, Reigns stated that if he lost to Punk, he would leave WWE entirely [^99^]. This wasn't a standard "I quit" angle—it was a legitimate retirement threat from a performer who has main-evented six consecutive WrestleManias.

Reigns won, capturing his 15th world championship and tying him with Triple H on the all-time list [^104^]. Only John Cena (17) and Ric Flair (16) have held more world titles in WWE history. Whether Reigns actually leaves now remains the biggest question heading into Raw on Monday.

CM Punk versus Roman Reigns WrestleMania 42 Night 2 main event promotional poster

Match Grades: The Best and Worst of the Weekend

Yahoo Sports provided detailed grades for every Night 1 match. Here's how they stacked up [^105^]:

Match Grade Why It Earned It
Seth Rollins vs. Gunther A Instant classic; two elite workers at peak performance
The Usos & LA Knight vs. The Vision & IShowSpeed B Solid opener; Speed's post-match splash was the highlight
AJ Lee vs. Becky Lynch B- Decent but not as good as their Elimination Chamber clash
Women's Tag Team Fatal 4-Way B+ Paige's return elevated the entire match emotionally
Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan B Fast-paced but short; interference-heavy finish
Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton C+ Convoluted finish hurt a match with strong individual moments

ESPN's roundtable before the event predicted both Punk and Rhodes would retain, but the panel split on which was more likely [^102^]. Andreas Hale favored Punk because "Reigns is never around," while Sach Chandan backed Rhodes due to his history of vanquishing major foes [^102^]. In the end, both predictions were wrong—Reigns won, and Rhodes retained, but neither victory felt clean.

Attendance, Records & What Made This WrestleMania Different

John Cena, hosting the event in his first WrestleMania appearance since retirement, announced the official Night 1 attendance: 50,816 [^105^]. Bianca Belair then made a surprise appearance, revealing her pregnancy by opening her robe to show a baby bump, prompting Cena to jokingly revise the attendance to 50,817 [^105^].

This marked the second consecutive WrestleMania at Allegiant Stadium, a rarity in WWE history. The only previous back-to-back host was the Trump Plaza in Atlantic City for WrestleManias IV and V in 1988-1989 [^103^].

WrestleMania 43 will break new ground entirely. For the first time, WWE's flagship event leaves North America, heading to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2027 [^104^]. The Saudi partnership, which began with major events in 2018, now extends to the biggest show on WWE's calendar.

Broadcasting also shifted. In the United States, WrestleMania 42 streamed on ESPN Unlimited (formerly ESPN+), marking the first year of WWE's new media rights deal with ESPN [^104^]. International viewers watched on Netflix as part of their existing subscription [^101^].

WrestleMania 42 at a Glance:
Location: Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
Dates: April 18-19, 2026
Night 1 Attendance: 50,816
Total Matches: 13 (8 title matches)
Broadcast: ESPN Unlimited (USA), Netflix (International)
Host: John Cena

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the main events at WrestleMania 42?

Cody Rhodes retained the Undisputed WWE Championship against Randy Orton on Night 1. Roman Reigns defeated CM Punk to win the World Heavyweight Championship on Night 2, capturing his 15th world title [^105^][^100^].

Did Roman Reigns really retire after WrestleMania 42?

Reigns threatened to leave WWE if he lost to CM Punk, but he won the match. Whether he actually steps away now remains unconfirmed as of April 19, 2026 [^99^].

Where was WrestleMania 42 held?

Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was the second consecutive year WWE held WrestleMania at this venue [^103^].

How can I watch WrestleMania 42 in the USA?

The event streamed on ESPN Unlimited. The first hour of each night also simulcast on ESPN2. The preshow aired on WWE's YouTube channel [^104^].

Did Paige really return at WrestleMania 42?

Yes. Paige came out of retirement to team with Brie Bella in the Women's Tag Team Championship fatal four-way match. They won the titles, marking Paige's first in-ring appearance since 2017 [^109^].

Where is WrestleMania 43 in 2027?

WWE announced that WrestleMania 43 will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—the first time the event leaves North America [^104^].

Related Reading

For more analysis on sports entertainment and the psychology of comeback stories, explore our coverage of performance under pressure and career reinvention over at MindUnplug. Understanding why certain returns resonate while others fall flat helps explain why Paige's comeback meant more than any title change.

Last Updated: April 19, 2026

Sources: Wikipedia | Yahoo Sports | ESPN | USA Today | CBS Sports | The Independent

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