WrestleMania 32 came to its conclusion late Sunday night after a nearly five-hour show that included plenty of surprises and a new World Heavyweight Champion as challenger Roman Reigns took down Triple H to win the title in the show's main event.
Here's a breakdown of every WrestleMania 32 match from the main card, plus results from the kickoff show.
| WrestleMania 32 Kickoff Show Results |
| Kalisto (c) def. Ryback to retain the United States Championship |
| The Usos def. The Dudley Boyz via pinfall |
| Total Divas def. B.A.D. & Blonde (Brie Bella via submission) |
Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match -- Zack Ryder def. Kevin Owens (c), Dolph Ziggler, The Miz, Sami Zayn, Stardust, Sin Cara: Ryder's victory was an absolute shocker to start off the evening. A title change would not have been a surprise, but most expected Ziggler or Zayn would go over in the match. Instead, it was Ryder who found himself alone atop the ladder. It will be interesting to see if this is part of a legitimate push by WWE or simply Ryder getting a WrestleMania moment.
Chris Jericho def. A.J. Styles via pinfall: Jericho and Styles put on a solid match, and though it was assumed Jericho would put Styles over in a big match like he has so many other "new" superstars, it was actually Y2J who came out on top. With neither Zayn nor Styles getting a push, things looked like they might be pretty stale this evening.
League of Nations def. New Day via pinfall: Three matches and three confusing victories. New Day's tag titles were not on the line in a 4 vs. 3 handicap match, and while it made sense that the team with four (League of Nations) won, it was surprising to see the most "over" group in the company takes a clean loss like this.
Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley appear: Following the aforementioned match, entrance music hit for Foley, Michaels and then Austin. They soon went to the ring and, with some help from New Day, wiped the floor with League of Nations. Foley (mandible claw), Michaels (superkick) and Austin (stunner) each hit his finisher with Austin double-dipping by nailing an additional stunner on Xavier Woods. Check out the highlights.
No Holds Barred Street Fight -- Brock Lesnar def. Dean Ambrose via pinfall: Lesnar looked like an absolute beast during the match, hitting 13 suplexes including his last in which he flung Ambrose onto a pile of chairs. Lesnar followed up with an F5 onto the same pile of chairs for the clean pinfall victory. Ambrose looked solid in the affair, but it absolutely made sense for Lesnar to get the win. It was a bit stunning, though, that Ambrose didn't get more near falls.
Women's Championship* Triple Threat Match -- Charlotte (c) def. Becky Lynch (via submission) and Sasha Banks: An argument can be made that this was the match of the night (and I have no problem making said argument). The three ladies put together a tremendous performance with awesome near falls, great spots outside the ring and some interesting submission combinations. It was expected that Banks would go over with the victory (especially since she was led to the ring by her cousin, Snoop Dogg), but Charlotte retaining her title and continuing her dominance on the big stage was a solid move.
* Before WrestleMania 32, it was announced that the Divas Championship was being retired for the return of the Women's Championship. The belt is fantastic and can be viewed in the live blog below.
Hell in a Cell -- The Undertaker def. Shane McMahon via pinfall: It looked like WrestleMania was about to derail as this match got underway with 51-year-old Taker and 46-year-old McMahon going through the motions. And then McMahon flew across the ring to hit a Van Terminator and clipped the cell wall with the two winding up outside the cage. There were some terrific bumps with ring barriers, monitors and a toolbox, and it looked like McMahon may have been poised for an upset ... especially when he climbed to the top of the 20-foot cell ... and then leapt off the structure. Taker moved while placed on the table below, sending McMahon crashing to the ground in a moment for the ages. McMahon went as far as he could in the match, and he deserves major props for his performance. Fans, though, are certainly disappointed he won't be running Monday Night Raw going forward.
Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal -- Baron Corbin wins: Originally a kickoff show match, the battle royal got slotted before the main event and included a number of interesting participants like Tatanka, NXT standout Baron Corbin ... and Shaq. Though The Big Aristotle did not last long, he definitely put smiles on faces in the crowd. The match did not last long, of course, and Corbin found himself face-to-face with Kane as the final two men in the ring. Corbin, unannounced for the match and making his WWE main roster debut at WrestleMania, knocked Kane out of the ring and took the victory.
The Rock says ... Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson had been billed as participating in an electrifying moment at WrestleMania, but when he took the stage with a flamethrower and was simply surrounded by the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders until he hit the ring to announce that WrestleMania 32 had set an attendance record, it appeared as if we were headed for a disappointing showing. That's when The Wyatt Family's music hit. Following some verbal sparring, The Rock said he was going to fight in a match then and now, and Wyatt threw Erick Rowan in the ring.
The Rock def. Erick Rowan via pinfall: The second the bell rang, The Rock hit his finisher, the Rock Bottom, and pinned Rowan in six seconds flat, setting a WrestleMania record. The Wyatt Family then surrounded the ring until ...
John Cena returns: Cena's music hit and he ran his way into the ring just months after shoulder surgery. Cena and The Rock teamed up to clear the ring of the Wyatts, and though there was ample chance for a heel turn by Cena, it never happened. Instead, The Rock and Cena celebrated with the crowd and walked off to cheers. Watch the return and read more here.
World Heavyweight Championship -- Roman Reigns def. Triple H (c) via pinfall: Triple H came out to the ring in an over-the-top entrance with his wife, Stephanie McMahon by his side. Reigns was booed before his music even hit, and the jeers continued throughout the match. There were near falls and submission attempts by Triple H, who had the upper hand most of the time, but the tide turned when Stephanie McMahon entered the ring. Reigns had set up Triple H for a spear, but he moved out of the way and Reigns nailed McMahon in a stunning moment. Triple H hit the pedigree and got a two-count, so he grabbed a sledgehammer to finish the job. But Reigns avoided the sledgehammer, countered with a spear and earned the pinfall victory to become the new champion.
Overall: WrestleMania 32 absolutely had its moments. The tremendous women's triple threat match and Shane McMahon's Van Terminator and dive off the cage definitely stand out, but really, a large part of the show seemed to be WWE trying too hard. WrestleMania 31 a year ago had a relatively weak build but over-delivered in a major way; in fact, you could argue it was an exceptional event. Similarly, WrestleMania 32 was not built as a strong show (in large part due to a rash of injuries), but the booking almost tried too hard to make up for that fact with Foley, Michaels, Austin, The Rock, John Cena and even Shaq involved in the ring. None of those moments stood out the way DeGeneration X and nWo hitting the ring last year did. Grade: C
Check out all the highlights, pictures and live commentary below.
