Wrestlemania 40 Matches Night 2
The Spectacle and the Struggle: A Critical Examination of WrestleMania 40 Night 2 WrestleMania, WWE’s flagship event, is a cultural phenomenon blending athleticism, storytelling, and spectacle.
WrestleMania 40’s second night promised high-stakes drama, with marquee matches including Cody Rhodes vs.
Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship and Seth Rollins vs.
Drew McIntyre for the World Heavyweight Championship.
Beneath the glitz, however, lie deeper complexities creative decisions, fan expectations, and the industry’s evolving dynamics.
Thesis Statement While WrestleMania 40 Night 2 delivered on spectacle, its booking choices, reliance on part-time stars, and treatment of long-term storytelling reveal tensions between WWE’s commercial imperatives and its commitment to sustainable wrestling narratives.
The Clash of Narratives: Rhodes vs.
Reigns The main event Cody Rhodes finally dethroning Roman Reigns was a cathartic moment, yet its execution raised questions.
Reigns’ historic 1,316-day reign ended via interference from The Rock, John Cena, and The Undertaker, diluting Rhodes’ victory.
While WWE leveraged nostalgia for mainstream appeal (as noted by sports economist Brad Humphreys in ), critics argue this undermined Rhodes’ organic rise.
Fan Reactions: - Pro: Casual viewers praised the star power, boosting ratings (WWE reported record-breaking attendance and merchandise sales).
- Con: Hardcore fans, per wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer (), felt the overbooked finish diminished Rhodes’ legitimacy.
The World Heavyweight Championship: A Hollow Prize? Seth Rollins’ loss to Drew McIntyre only for Damian Priest to cash in his Money in the Bank contract highlighted WWE’s reliance on shock over substance.
While Priest’s win was unexpected, it rendered McIntyre’s moment fleeting, reinforcing criticisms that WWE prioritizes short-term pops over long-term storytelling (a trend analyzed by scholar Sharon Mazer in ).
The Women’s Division: Progress or Stagnation? The six-pack ladder match for the Women’s Tag Titles was chaotic but lacked depth.
Unlike Night 1’s Rhea Ripley vs.
Becky Lynch a masterclass in psychology this match felt like an afterthought.
Scholar Jacqueline Lynch () argues WWE’s women’s division, despite the “Women’s Evolution,” still struggles for equal screen time and narrative weight.
The Part-Timer Paradox The Rock’s involvement, while a ratings boon, epitomized WWE’s dependence on part-time stars.
Economists Robert Simmons and Bernd Frick () note this strategy risks alienating full-time talent and stunting new stars’ growth.
Yet, WWE’s stock (NYSE: TKO) surged post-event, proving its financial logic.
Conclusion: The Double-Edged Sword of Spectacle WrestleMania 40 Night 2 was a microcosm of modern WWE: dazzling yet contentious.
While it satisfied casual audiences and shareholders, it exposed creative tensions between immediate gratification and enduring storytelling.
As WWE navigates its merger with UFC under TKO Group, the challenge remains: Can it balance spectacle with substance, or will short-term gains eclipse long-term legacy? The answer may define not just WrestleMania’s future, but wrestling itself.
- Humphreys, B.
(2019).
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- Mazer, S.
(1998).
University Press of Mississippi.
- Meltzer, D.
(2024).
- Simmons, R., & Frick, B.
(2020).
- Lynch, J.
(2023).