Powell’s WrestleMania 39 Hit List: Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles, Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley for the Smackdown Women’s Title, Austin Theory vs. John Cena for the U.S. Title, Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio, Seth Rollins vs. Logan Paul

By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)

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WrestleMania 39 Hits

Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles: The creative forces got it right by putting this match in the main event slot. Sami’s saga with The Bloodline has been one of the greatest stories the company ever told. The fans were emotionally invested and they were rewarded with the satisfying conclusion of the reunited Owens and Zayn beating the Usos in a wonderful match. There were so many dramatic near falls and it was really cool to see so many fans on their feet and hanging on every twist and turn. It was also cool to see a tag team title match headline one night of WrestleMania. This was special.

Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley for the Smackdown Women’s Championship: An instant classic. Flair and Ripley had an epic back and forth war that was more than main event worthy even if I feel strongly that the company made the right call by putting the tag title match on last. This stands out as the best performance of either wrestler’s career, which is really saying something when it comes to Flair. This was truly awesome and the star making moment that Ripley needed and deserved.

Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio: Everything about this match was just plain fun. It started with Dom’s awesome prison entrance, which was followed by Rey’s great low rider entrance with Snoop Dogg along with a brief tribute to Eddie Guerrero. Dom’s transformation from awkward babyface son of a legend to becoming the heel that fans love to hate has been sensational. I was surprised to see Rey go over, but the help he received from Bad Bunny is clearly setting up something for the Backlash event.

Seth Rollins vs. Logan Paul: Paul came through with another strong performance and it was even more fun now that he’s embraced his role as a natural heel. Paul got the better of Rollins in every angle that led up to the match and so you had to know that Rollins was going to come out on top. Even so, predictability was never a negative factor thanks to the in-ring work of both men. I’m old and couldn’t have picked KSI out of a lineup before the show, and yet the story of Paul getting help from a buddy dressed up in the silly mascot outfit was fun and easy to follow.

Braun Strowman and Ricochet vs. “Alpha Academy” Chad Gable and Otis vs. “The Street Profits” Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins vs. “The Viking Raiders” Erik and Ivar in a four-way tag team showcase match: Great action from start to finish with everyone having a moment to shine. Gable suplexing Strowman was fantastic, and Strowman also took the most hellacious shoulder block that I’ve ever seen when Dawkins flattened him at ringside. It wasn’t all abuse for Strowman, who even performed a top rope splash. I figured this would be a fun match despite feeling fairly meaningless from a storyline standpoint, but it far exceeded my expectations.

Austin Theory vs. John Cena for the U.S. Title: It was a good call to put this match in the opening slot when the live crowd was eager for in-ring action and at its most forgiving when it came to the weak low blow finish. Cena’s Make-A-Wish entrance was really cool. They kept things pretty basic as far as the work goes with Cena performing his greatest hits. All of that said, I was baffled by the way this was framed as a huge win for Theory. His “How do you like me now?” style promo felt off considering that he tapped out while the referee was down and won the match thanks to a nut shot. I was waiting for Byron Saxton or the broadcast team to call him on his BS, but it came off like they actually want viewers to feel like he had the type of star making performance that Rhea Ripley had.

Becky Lynch, Trish Stratus, and Lita vs. “Damage CTRL” Bayley, Iyo Sky, and Dakota Kai: Everyone involved worked hard and to the best of their abilities. Lita looked off at times, but the effort was certainly there and it’s a match that both of the legends can feel good about. Lynch beating Bayley clean to win the match should finally put an end to their lengthy program. I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next for Lynch, and I’m guessing the end of Damage CTRL is near following yet another loss.

Pat McAfee vs. The Miz: You didn’t really think the Miz character was going to make it through hosting WrestleMania without being humiliated? I don’t know if anyone was more excited about this impromptu match than Michael Cole. It’s crazy to think that Cole once scolded McAfee about wearing jorts at WrestleMania is now his biggest fan. The more I hear Corey Graves heel on McAfee, the more I wonder if the two of them will have a match at some point.

WrestleMania 39 Misses

None: An outstanding major event show. The set design crew outdid themselves and everything about this show felt big time. They tightened up the time in between matches and the only lull occurred after the Smackdown Women’s Championship match. It was a very satisfying show with the fan favorites winning every match after the opener (Ripley was a heel, but the fans sided with her). I’m not sure how they can possibly top this on night two, but I look forward to seeing them try.

Join me for my live review of WrestleMania 39 night two at 7CT/8ET. Jake Barnett, Will Pruett, and I will host a same night audio review for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons).