WrestleMania 42 Night 1 Preview & Predictions

“The Rock” returned as an on-screen character during the 2024 ‘road to WrestleMania,’ which accompanied the news in January of that year announcing Dwayne Johnson’s appointment as a member of the TKO board of directors. After a ‘rocky’ start, the man once known as ‘The People’s Champ’ fell into a groove on-screen that became a faucet, capable of being turned on and off with the slightest of effort.

Then, last year’s Mania left a huge ‘rock-sized’ hole in the plot for the main event, spoiling John Cena’s record-breaking win in the process. In the aftermath, The Rock appeared on McAfee’s podcast to set the record straight on an event for which he was never promoted to appear. The remainder of 2025 was not terrific as his movie ‘The Smashing Machine’ did not perform as expected in theaters or with critics despite Johnson’s phenomenal performance alongside the equally talented Emily Blunt.

With the live-action version of the Moanna franchise expected to hit theaters this summer, it could serve The Rock well to make an unscheduled appearance on a card he is, yet again, not booked to appear on. Not to mention, it is all but certain that Dwayne would like to get a ‘receipt’ from Dave Meltzer, who reported that The Rock is not scheduled for this year’s Mania. Similar reporting last year by Meltzer claimed The Rock wouldn’t appear, so it made it worse when he didn’t, especially given that he took issue with Meltzer’s reporting.

However, the expectations for his appearance have increased dramatically with the heavy-handed references to a ‘TKO higher-up,’ and failing to follow through on anything more than the usage of a celebrity to be the match’s determining factor will ultimately have the same Travis Scott effect—even if Pat is a former NFL punter.

WRESTLEMANIA 42 UNDERCARD

Women’s WWE World Title: Stephanie Vaquer(c) vs. Liv Morgan

Prediction: Liv Morgan wins.

This has been a strange build as Liv Morgan was the only Royal Rumble winner to ‘weigh’ her options, and after choosing Stephanie, things became as volatile as NFTs. They had strong moments, and Liv’s Spanish gave ‘my grandparents speak the language, but I only know the bad words.’

That said, it is tough to forget Liv crying over words she had to have translated, and launching her music video on fight week was an odd decision. All the ups and downs will be forgotten if these two women can produce a classic, though the pressure will be on Stephanie after seeing her championship momentum grow stale.

Seth Rollins vs. Gunther

Prediction: Gunther wins… Bron Breakker beats on Rollins in the post-match.

Many questioned why, when this match was booked, and the answers never quite satisfied Paul Heyman’s plan to call out Seth Rollins if he did not know Gunther was on deck. Still, the talent between these two makes it a favorite not just to stand out but possibly earn the ‘show stealer’ moniker awarded to the best in-ring work of the night—referenced as the Savage-Steamboat award online.

‘The favor’ narrative, like the one CM Punk held over Heyman last year, will likely see Gunther cashing in on a Brock Lesnar retirement match. If this match lives up to expectations, then it will all be to further storylines with other opponents. That is why we are likely to see Bron Breakker interfere or possibly deliver a post-match beatdown.

Breakker did not recover in time for this year’s Mania, but some reports suggest he could have been cleared in the weeks leading up to it, but WWE felt the match was too big to give it a short on-screen program. So, if he is healthy enough to go out and deliver his brand of violence onto Seth, then it could set the stage for their eventual showdown.

Women’s Intercontinental Championship Match: AJ Lee(c) VS Becky Lynch

Prediction: Becky Lynch wins

In a rematch of their Elimination Chamber IC title match in which AJ Lee came out the victor, Becky Lynch gets the opportunity to even the score. The rematch stems from February, but this feud is a continuation of their September program, which featured their feuding husbands, CM Punk and Seth Rollins.

Without escalating the feud by introducing a gimmick for this match, both veterans will look to tell a story that competes for the imaginations of Mania spectators. Look for Becky to get her ‘get back,’ setting up the need for that all-too-important rubber match.

WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Fatal 4-Way Match

Nia Jax & Lash Legend (c) vs. Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss vs. Bayley & Lyra Valkyria vs. The Bella Twins 

Prediction: Nia and Lash retain

Assuming everyone scheduled to compete is healthy enough to do so on fight night, this match is one of the most complex bookings on the card. With shifting teams and bookings based on potential injuries and returns, the women’s tag titles have featured prominently over the last 6 months. There are no teams with real momentum heading into this, and it can be argued that Nia Jax and Lash Legend will be better served by hanging on to the titles with an act that works.

Unsanctioned Match: Jacob Fatu vs. Drew McIntyre

Prediction: Jacob Fatu walks away the winner… Drew barely walks away.

There was a time when Drew McIntyre was scheduled to appear at WrestleMania 42 as world champion, and the reason he held the strap in the first place is the same reason he walks into Mania without it: Jacob Fatu. This blood feud has emboldened the two most consistent performers on the roster to create a feud without the need for a strap between them.

Assuming the celebrity 6-man tag does not go long (which is a safe assumption), these two will likely get the bulk of the first hour to just wreak havoc on each other in a violent affair meant to hook casual fans into tuning into the rest of the show behind the subscription.

With McIntyre heading to Hollywood to shoot his part in the upcoming ‘Highlander,’ Fatu is poised to win the match and parlay his WrestleMania success into a legit title push.

Six-Man Tag Team Match: Logan Paul, Austin Theory & IShowSpeed vs. The Usos & LA Knight

Prediction: The Vision wins… Speed’s performance is well-received.

iShow Speed’s first venture into the squared circle nearly left him cut in half when Bron Breakker speared him back to Twitch in the 2025 Royal Rumble. The moment became a viral clip, with most of the traction coming from outside of the online wrestling community. Last year’s Mania signified the death of one of WWE’s earmarked celebrities considered for a major booking later in the year, and as quickly as Travis Scott was ‘hooked’ on pro wrestling, he was just as quickly ‘over it.’

Speed will get the benefit of a wide net in the form of future Hall of Fame tag team and current champs, The USOs, as well as veteran LA Knight. He also has the advantage of teaming with another celebrity turned wrestler — possibly the premier celebrity-wrestler — Logan Paul and Austin Theory.

Look for the streamer to showcase his natural athleticism with a big spot or two, and there is faith that he will not be one-and-done.

SIDE NOTE

FightsATW predicts a match will be added to the night two card, which currently consists of six matches, one fewer than the night one card. While a ‘Dan Housen gets a blimp’ storyline could be paid off as a match-length segment on Mania, the tag titles would help diversify a main card with four singles matches—in fact, the only non-singles match is the 6-way ladder match for the men’s IC title.

If Speed helps the heels win, and then Paul finagles a night two opportunity for The Vision that could provide the streamer a chance to redeem himself, there could be an opportunity to set up a proper long-term celebrity program that does not go “sicko mode.”