Tag: wrestlemania

‘Kill Tony’ comedy show added to WWE WrestleMania 42 weekend

Posted on by Joseph Currier

WWE and Tony Hinchcliffe are teaming up for another WrestleMania weekend comedy show.

The company announced today that “Kill Tony: WrestleMania” will take place in Las Vegas on Saturday, April 18 following night one of WrestleMania 42. It’s being held at Dolby Live in Vegas and will include appearances by Hinchcliffe, current WWE stars and legends, other comedians, and surprise guests.

Tickets for the comedy show are going on sale tomorrow (March 24) at 10 a.m. Pacific. A pre-sale begins today at that same time.

The start time for the comedy show is 9 p.m. Pacific (midnight Eastern), and WWE notes that there will be plenty of time for fans to get there after the first night of Mania.

“KILL TONY: WrestleMania will begin after the conclusion of WrestleMania Saturday, allowing ample time for fans to get from Allegiant Stadium to Dolby Live,” WWE wrote.

Hinchliffe hosts the “Kill Tony” podcast, where aspiring comedians are chosen at random and get the chance to perform in front of established comedy veterans and have their set critiqued. The 41-year-old Hinchcliffe is a wrestling fan and has developed a relationship with WWE, which included him hosting The Roast of WrestleMania in Vegas last year. He was supposed to host a similar comedy show surrounding SummerSlam 2025, but that ended up being canceled.

Though the Roast of WrestleMania did not air anywhere and was not supposed to be filmed, audio of the show got out. It drew controversy for remarks that were made about Charlotte Flair.

Dolby Live is also set to host the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony on Friday, April 17. Stephanie McMahon, AJ Styles, Demolition, and basketball legend Dennis Rodman have been confirmed for the class so far.

Tom Brady WWE WrestleMania 42 status update

Posted on by Joseph Currier

An appearance by NFL legend Tom Brady sounds possible for WWE WrestleMania 42, but there’s been no deal agreed to yet.

Brady and Logan Paul have been going back and forth the past few weeks to help promote the Fanatics Flag Football Classic that took place over the weekend. In the process, Brady took repeated shots at WWE, calling pro wrestling “cute and scripted.” That led to multiple WWE wrestlers joining in and responding to Brady.

There have been rumors that this is all leading to Brady appearing in some form at WrestleMania 42. Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE and Brady are in negotiations but nothing has been agreed to yet.

“From what I have been told, they are in negotiations with Tom Brady — but there is absolutely not a deal at this point for Tom Brady,” Meltzer said. “So it could happen. Obviously, Logan Paul and Tom Brady are working. I mean, everyone knows they’re working the angle, I think people have seen that coming in. But there could be something in some form at WrestleMania, it would not be a surprise.

“And what they did in the football game was clearly to build it. Just as all the talk of, you know, Tom Brady cutting down pro wrestlers and the wrestlers all responding — that is all storyline. That is not like Tom Brady’s a d**k and he doesn’t respect pro wrestling.”

WrestleVotes first reported earlier this month that WWE and Brady had discussed a possible Mania appearance, and there were departments in WWE working on things like logos, speciality merchandise, and branding for Brady.

A WrestleMania role would make sense for Brady given that he is part-owner of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders. Allegiant Stadium in Vegas, where the Raiders play their home games, is hosting the event on Saturday, April 18 and Sunday, April 19. It’s the second straight year that WrestleMania has been held at the stadium.

WOL: Dynamite, Toni Storm departure, WrestleMania ticket sales

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Lance Storm is back with tons to talk about including the latest on Toni Storm, how her departure led to obvious changes on Dynamite, a full review of the show, WrestleMania ticket sales, Bron Breakker and the whole booking of that feud, and tons more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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Update on potential Jelly Roll WWE WrestleMania 42 match

Posted on by Joseph Currier

If Jelly Roll competes at WrestleMania 42, it doesn’t sound like it will be in a tag team match with Royce Keys.

Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that, after asking about rumors of Jelly Roll and Keys teaming together at Mania, he was told that it will not be happening. It’s not officially confirmed that Jelly Roll will be wrestling at the event, but Meltzer expects him to given what went down on SmackDown last week.

“I kind of wonder where they’re going with Jelly Roll,” Meltzer said. “It just feels to me they’re going to build to some gimmick match with Kit Wilson, maybe a tag with The Miz because The Miz has been involved in the storyline. They could do that. I had asked about the story because there was a story about Royce Keys, and I was told that it’s not Royce Keys, for whatever that’s worth. I wasn’t actually told that there is a match [for Jelly Roll], but when you look at it, it certainly seems like they’re building it.”

Last Friday’s SmackDown saw Jelly Roll return to WWE programming and interact with Miz and Wilson. The Miz TV segment ended with Jelly Roll inadvertently dropping Miz with a punch after Wilson moved out of the way.

A music superstar with an inspirational life story, Jelly Roll is a big WWE fan and has wrestled one match for the company so far, teaming with Randy Orton in a loss to Logan Paul & Drew McIntyre at SummerSlam 2025. He received significant internal praise within WWE for how hard he worked to prepare for that match but still came out of it thinking of all the things he could have done better.

The Jelly Roll-Wilson storyline will continue on SmackDown this week with Wilson calling Jelly Roll out.

WOL: RAW report, new Mania ticket idea, Hangman stip

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Filthy Tom Lawlor is back with tons to talk about including AEW Revolution, stipulations in wrestling and in life, the RAW report from Monday night, a new ticket scheme WWE is trying for WrestleMania, and tons more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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WWE selling tickets on top of WrestleMania 42 stage

Posted on by Joseph Currier

WWE is opening up new WrestleMania tickets with a “one-of-a-kind elevated viewing experience.”

The company announced today that, beginning this Friday (March 20) at 1 p.m. Eastern/10 a.m. Pacific, fans will be able to purchase tickets to WrestleMania with seats placed atop of the Mania stage. In WWE’s announcement, the company hyped that this is the first time it has ever sold these kinds of seats. Only a limited number will be made available.

WWE’s announcement said:

  • WWE, in partnership with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, today announced that fans can purchase seats positioned atop the iconic WrestleMania 42 set for the first time ever when the Premium Live Event takes place on Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Pricing details for these stage seats has not been revealed.

This is the second straight year Vegas has hosted WrestleMania. For WrestleMania 41, the stage was modeled after a Vegas hotel and did have some seats located in that area, though they were not available for purchase.

WWE notes that the WrestleMania 42 stage will be unveiled in the days prior to the event.

“Each year, WrestleMania features a theme-based set that transforms the host stadium and enhances the live event experience,” WWE wrote. “In 2025, the custom-built WrestleMania 41 set leaned into the tradition of Las Vegas, incorporating a resort-inspired design to reflect the city’s iconic entertainment culture.”

So far, there have been five matches officially announced for the WrestleMania card:

  • World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk defends against Roman Reigns
  • WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Randy Orton
  • Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer defends against Liv Morgan
  • WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill defends against Rhea Ripley
  • Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi



WOR: RAW report, more on Revolution, Ospreay’s neck, Wembley and Mania sales!

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back with tons to talk about including the death of Davey Coates, referee Dallas is going home, Wembley ticket sales and Will Ospreay’s health status, WWE discounting Mania prices, the New Japan Cup, CMLL, ratings, the RAW report, more on AEW Revolution, and all the news! A fun show as always so check it out~!

Timestamps:
Start: Davey Coates passes away, OVW referee Dallas Edwards released from hospital
4:40: AEW All In presale starts soon, Will Ospreay got cleared on February 25
13:39: WWE does 3:16 sale for tickets including WrestleMania 42
20:52: NJPW Cup updates, CMLL notes, ratings
29:40: No mention of Hulk Hogan during the Academy Awards, Alberto El Patron boxing match, Nate Diaz fight added to Rousey/Carano card
38:41: More reactions to AEW Revolution, WWE Raw recap

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WWE seemingly confirms WrestleMania 42 main events

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

WrestleMania 42 is about a month away — and it looks like we now know the main events for each night.

On WWE’s official ticketing website, it’s indicated that Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton’s WWE Championship match will be taking place on night one of WrestleMania 42 on Saturday, April 18. A graphic for that match is used for night one of Mania on the WWE.com schedule. Subsequently, CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship is the graphic displayed for night two on Sunday, April 19.

These would be the expected main events for both nights of WrestleMania, though WWE has not officially announced the match order yet.

Punk vs. Reigns was confirmed for WrestleMania shortly after Reigns’ Royal Rumble victory. During the build, issues between the two have been heightened with Punk bringing up Reigns’ late father Sika Anoa’i. That then led to a confrontation between Punk and The Usos taking place on Raw last week.

The Rhodes vs. Orton match was confirmed when Rhodes defeated Drew McIntyre on the March 6 episode of SmackDown to regain the WWE Championship. Orton had already earned a WrestleMania title shot through his win at Elimination Chamber — and he turned heel last Friday by bloodying Rhodes ahead of Mania.

WrestleMania 42 is being held at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. On the WrestleMania page of WWE’s website, the graphics for Punk vs. Reigns and Jade Cargill vs. Rhea Ripley both have a blue color scheme. The Rhodes vs. Orton and Stepanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan graphics have an orange color scheme. It’s not known if that means those matches will be taking place on the same night.

There are five matches officially announced as of now:

WWE WrestleMania 42 card — 

  • World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk defends against Roman Reigns
  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Randy Orton 
  • WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill defends against Rhea Ripley 
  • Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer defends against Liv Morgan 
  • Brock Lesnar open challenge (opponent TBA)

WOR: Huge AEW Revolution report, Randy Orton turns heel, more!

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back with tons to talk about as we go very in-depth on AEW Revolution, the mostly pros but some cons in what was maybe AEW’s best PPV of all time, plus notes on the Randy Orton heel turn on Smackdown, WrestleMania, Rey de Reyes, the OVW referee injury and more! A really packed show so check it out~!

Timestamps:
Start: Fallout from AEW Revolution, Dave’s pre-show notes
20:25: AEW Revolution rundown
1:15:34: Randy Orton heel turn on WWE SmackDown
1:19:13: WWE Raw lineup, AAA Rey de Reyes notes, Al Snow statement on OVW incident

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WOL: Why was Cody Rhodes so annoying on WWE SmackDown?

Posted on by Jim Valley

It’s the Saturday Wrestling Observer Live with Jim Valley.

OVW referee Dallas Edwards released a positive message from the hospital regarding his unfortunate, dangerous and scary incident at OVW in Kentucky on Thursday.

On Friday’s WWE SmackDown, was Cody Rhodes being annoying on purpose during the contract signing with Randy Orton? He was so syrupy sweet and nice to Orton, so it was no wonder part of the crowd booed him. Is this the direction to WrestleMania or just for the angle?

Also, Jim talks about Rey de Reyes night one on Saturday and who is leaving AAA: Dom or Vikingo?

Plus, CMLL, New Japan Cup, AEW Collision, Jelly Roll, Danhausen, Kit Wilson and lots more. Another packed Saturday so here we go.

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WWE lifts blackout of WrestleMania 42 watch parties in Las Vegas

Posted on by Vincent Verhei

Las Vegas residents will not need to be inside Allegiant Stadium to watch WrestleMania next month—the WWE no longer be blacking out the event at watch parties in the area. 

Stadium Swim at the Circa in downtown Las Vegas confirmed the news on Friday. After they put up a post on social media advertising their watch parties, another user replied, mentioning WWE’s watch party blackout. “Not anymore,” the Stadium Swim admin replied. “It has been lifted.” 

(We here are F4WOnline.com are big fans of the Circa and recommend everyone go there Friday morning April 17, for live podcasts with Dave Meltzer, Bryan Alvarez, and Vincent Verhei … and then join us at the Cosmopolitan for watch parties in a luxury suite. Tickets are available here!)

A report on Fightful Select has more information on this story.

“WWE had originally decided on the blackout in order to help boost ticket sales for events, which used to be a far more common practice in sports,” the Fightful Select report explains. “We’re told that over the last number of weeks, there were several casinos, hotels, and general tourist areas that had expressed frustration over the ban, as had a number of officials in the city. 

“One that spoke to us on the condition of anonymity said that when the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Board of Directors committed to a site fee for WrestleMania, it was to generate economic impact for the entire city, as opposed to just WWE and Allegiant Stadium.”

WrestleMania 42 airs over two nights—Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19—starting at 2:30 p.m. both days. Tickets are available here. Watch parties will be, well, everywhere. But we really suggest that one at the Cosmo.

WOL: Horrific incident involving Dallas Edwards, WrestleMania, Revolution

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Lance Storm returns with tons to talk about including the horrific incident with referee Dallas Edwards at last night’s OVW show, injuries in wrestling, Seth Rollins and the build to WrestleMania, AEW Revolution and so much more. A packed show, so check it out~!

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Jim Ross comments on potential Steve Austin WWE WrestleMania 42 appearance

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Jim Ross doubts that his friend “Stone Cold” Steve Austin will make a return to the ring at WWE WrestleMania 42.

Speaking on his Grilling JR Podcast, the AEW commentator was asked about Austin potentially appearing at Mania. Ross believes Austin’s presence would help elevate the show, but he doesn’t see Austin getting too physically involved.

“To wrestle? No. To make an appearance or to shoot an angle or something along those lines, I could see that potentially happening,” Ross said. “But as far as Steve having another match, I don’t see it. I’m not being pessimistic or a negative Nelly or a negative Nelson, whatever.”

Austin’s in-ring career took a toll on him physically, particularly affecting his back and knees. And from what Ross knows, Austin is focused on trying to take care of his health right now.

“That’s not where his head is and he’s trying to take care of himself health-wise. You know, we just forget these guys are not Iron Man. When they’re hurt, they’re hurt. And Austin’s got that bad neck. He’s having bad knees. I don’t think it’s worth the risk, quite frankly,” Ross said. “I think that’s how Steve would look at it and I know him pretty well, but I don’t think there’s any chance. There’s a chance obviously that he could do something, but do I think he’ll wrestle? No way in hell.”

Austin will be appearing at the WWE World convention surrounding WrestleMania 42. He’s not fully closed the door on ever having another match, but Austin doubts that it will ever happen. The last time Austin wrestled was when he came out of retirement to face Kevin Owens at WrestleMania 38. He did make a very brief appearance at WrestleMania 41 last year, announcing the night two attendance.

This week, rumors surfaced regarding a potential Austin appearance on Raw next Monday given that the date coincides with his 3:16 gimmick. As of now, WWE has not announced Austin for the show.

WOL: WrestleMania blah build, RAW report, AEW new streaming service

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez is back with tons to talk about including why the Mania build isn’t lighting everyone’s world on fire, the new AEW streaming service outside the US which is a great value, Netflix commercials suck, the live RAW report, and tons more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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Report: Hell in a Cell match originally pitched for WWE WrestleMania 42

Posted on by Joseph Currier

A Hell in a Cell match could have taken place at WWE WrestleMania 42 if original plans came to fruition.

PWInsider reports that A Hell in a Cell match between Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes for the WWE Championship was the pitch making the rounds for WrestleMania before WWE opted to go in a different direction. Rhodes vs. Randy Orton (not in Hell in a Cell) is now the planned WrestleMania title match, with McIntyre looking likely to face Jacob Fatu.

This would have been the fifth-ever Hell in a Cell match at WrestleMania, following Undertaker vs. Big Boss Man, Undertaker vs. Triple H, Undertaker vs. Shane McMahon, and Edge vs. Finn Balor.

Both Rhodes and McIntyre have Hell in a Cell experience, including respective matches against Seth Rollins and CM Punk.

McIntyre had won the WWE Championship from Rhodes this January in a Three Stages of Hell match that culminated inside of a steel cage. But Rhodes then won the title back on SmackDown last Friday, setting the stage for Rhodes vs. Orton to happen at Mania.

Dave Meltzer reports that, as of now, WWE is planning for Rhodes vs. Orton to remain a singles match. Orton earned the title shot through his recent Elimination Chamber victory.