John Cena immortalized with record 17th WWE title at WrestleMania 41

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LAS VEGAS, Nev. — John Cena became the immortal among the immortals on Sunday night at WrestleMania 41.

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The legendary World Wrestling Entertainment Superstar-turned-actor defeated Cody Rhodes – albeit controversially – to capture an unmatched 17th world championship, one better than Ric Flair.

Cena received an assist from global music star Travis Scott, who carried a championship belt to the ring while the referee was down injured. Scott’s interference, combined with Cena hitting Rhodes with his own championship belt, propelled Cena to the 17th title run in his illustrious career.

The match itself saw the capacity crowd of more than 60,000 people cheering and booing, chanting and screaming as Cena appeared in his final WrestleMania match, the 20th time he’s performed on that stage.

Cena announced in Toronto last July that 2025 would be his final year as active WWE wrestler. In March, he won an Elimination Chamber match to earn the right to faces Rhodes, who held the WWE title for just over a year.

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On a night that also saw the return of women’s sensation Becky Lynch and an emotional title win by Dominik Mysterio, the Cena/Rhodes main event, while not a masterpiece in wrestling, had the crowd ravenously engaged.

Following his win, Cena appeared on the post-show press conference, refusing to answer reporters’ questions, citing them as attempts at click bait.

WWE reported that more than 124,500 people attended the two-night event, which was held at Allegiant Stadium in downtown Las Vegas.

Sky is the limit

The evening opened with a triple threat match featuring WWE Women’s World champion Iyo Sky defending her title against former champions Rhea Ripley and Bianca Belair. And it did not disappoint.

The women put on an absolute clinic, having the hot crowd chanting “holy s**t” and “this is awesome.”

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Several dangerous spots and feats of strength kept the crowd on its feet and its epic conclusion saw Sky successfully defend her title by landing a moonsault off the top rope onto both foes, pinning Belair for the win.

Drew-dus Priest

Former WWE World Heavyweight champion Damien Priest got an epic and unforgettable entrance as Slayer guitarist Kerry King played guitar live as he walked to the ring, which also featured pyro and fire ahead of his Sin City Street Fight versus Drew McIntyre.

The slugfest, which was no holds barred, featured chairs, tables, the ring steps and several brutal bumps and falls.

In a particularly memorable spot, Priest attempted Old School, an homage to The Undertaker, which sees him tightrope walk across the top ring rope, but was pushed off through two tables that were positioned ringside. The finish saw McIntrye obliterate Priest with his Claymore finisher into the corner, where he had positioned a steel chair. McIntyre scored the easy pinfall victory.

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Dirty Dom-ination

Dominik Mysterio became the Intercontinental champion after winning a fatal fourway match that also included the former champion, Bron Breakker, his now former Judgment Day comrade Finn Balor and luchador Penta.

The crowd exploded when Mysterio, the son of hall of famer Rey Mysterio, hit his signature Frog Splash on Balor and Breakker, pinning Balor for his first main roster singles title in the WWE.

Mysterio emphatically tore off his Judgment Day attire and tossed it in the ring as he celebrated his win. The crowd later implored Mysterio to come back to the ring and celebrate more as he left the ring, which he did, to a huge ovation.

RK-Joe

The legendary Randy Orton entered his 20th WrestleMania without an opponent after the recent announcement that Montrealer Kevin Owens would be undergoing neck surgery.

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On SmackDown, Orton vowed he’d be in the ring on Sunday at WrestleMania and would be facing someone. That someone turned out to be Total Nonstop Action champion Joe Hendry, who has become a fan favourite among wrestling fans.

Hendry managed to get a couple of moves in before Orton RKO’d him and beat him for the win in his 20th trip around the WrestleMania sun.

Logan Paul prevails

Social media influencer-turned-WWE star Logan Paul gushed after his victory over AJ Styles, telling members of the media that he was honoured to have faced Styles on such a big stage. Their match came together later in the pre-WrestleMania build, but the duo managed an entertaining match that showed off Paul’s incredibly athletic abilities.

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Paul has now appeared in four WrestleManias, compiling a 3-1 record in the process.

Becky’s back

Another of the big surprises of the night came with the return of women’s megastar Becky Lynch.

Lynch replaced Bayley, who was attacked a night earlier, teaming with Lyra Valkyria in a tag-team match against the WWE Women’s tag champs, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez. Lynch missed the last year, having taken time off to raise her young daughter.

Lynch and Valkyria prevailed, becoming tag champs, with Lynch vowing afterward that she plans to work a full schedule going forward.

Cause Stone Cold Said So

WWE hall of famer and living legend Stone Cold Steve Austin nearly blew the roof off of Allegiant Stadium right before the main event of Sunday’s show. When his music hit, the crowd exploded.

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Austin drove to the ring on an ATV, jumped into the ring and announced Sunday’s attendance at 63,226, bringing the two-day total to 124,693.

He then worked the crowd for two minutes and drank a bunch of beers before leaving again.

Janmurphy@postmedia.com

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WrestleMania 41

Sunday results

Iyo Sky def. Bianca Belair and Rhea Ripley to retain her WWE Women’s World Championship.

Drew McIntyre def. Damien Priest in a Sin City Street Fight.

Dominik Mysterio def. Bron Breakker, Finn Balor and Penta to become the Intercontinental champion.

Randy Orton def. Total Nonstop Action Champion Joe Hendry.

Logan Paul def. AJ Styles

Lyra Valkyria and Becky Lynch def. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles.

John Cena def. Cody Rhodes to become the Undisputed WWE Champion

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