Two all-time WWE greats could bring Sin City to a stand still as we enter the year of WrestleMania 41.
Wrestling’s biggest global event takes place in Las Vegas next April with a galaxy of stars to entertain millions across the world. CM Punk looks set to be a significant part of WrestleMania 41 following his return to WWE at Survivor Series 2023, Scots wrestling superstar Drew McIntyre has entered the conversation of potential opponents for Roman Reigns following his destruction of Sami Zayn at Saturday Night’s Main Event and is tipped by many behind the scenes to be a high-profile match on the ‘Mania card.
The Scottish Warrior is out for revenge and Reigns is on his road to redemption. They’re the perfect rivals for each other at the moment and would have an infinitely better bout than they did the last time they met on The Grandest Stage of Them All in 2019.
But there are two superstars who could take the WWE and Wrestlemania back to the Attitude era for one night only. One of which is Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, who is set to appear at Royal Rumble a month before the Vegas showstopper. Renowned US wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer spilled the beans on what fans could expect from Rocky in 2025, which could include WrestleMania 41, and “Raw’s” debut on Netflix.
“I don’t know if he’s showing up or not [at the Netflix premiere],” Meltzer said. “I would expect that he’s going to be on that show in some form, but nobody’s confirmed it or anything like that to me. I just figure it’s a spot where Netflix is going to want him there, I think he’s going to want to be there on the most viewed show, just for that. What he’s going to do is going to depend on his schedule.
“If he’s got something at Mania, I would expect he’ll shoot the angle right there. And if he’s not going to be at WrestleMania, wrestling…I’m sure he’ll be at Mania, don’t get me wrong. I’m sure that he’ll be there that day. Whether he’ll have a match is the question. And that just depends on, you know, him. But yeah. I don’t know if he’s going to wrestle at WrestleMania, and I think that January 6, when that first Netflix show is over, I think that we’ll probably have an answer, I would think.”
It is long debated on who The Rock could face on his return, depending on who you believe online, it is reporter that a match up with Cody Rhodes is guaranteed, while “The American Nightmare” is also tipped to lock horns with John Cena if he were to step onto the matt. Either way speculation mounts that the Rock will be there after his shock comeback at Wrestlemania 40 following a long hiatus.
And if that is not enough, 1990s rival Stone Cold Steve Austin has also been thrown into the ring as a possible contender. Austin himself has expressed a come and get me plea to appear at WrestleMania – if the call comes. He also said that he’s close enough to the event in Reno, Nevada, where he lives, that it should increase his chances of attending. WWE champion Cody Rhodes has expressed hope that Austin will be involved with WrestleMania 41. Rhodes said that he wants Austin to see how the company is doing and to be proud of the wrestlers. The beer-swigging brawler last appeared at WrestleMania 38 in 2022, but made a U-turn on an appearance in April.
“It was close [appearing at WrestleMania 40] and they certainly reached out to me,” Austin explained in an interview with Adrian Hernandez. “We had conversations but my wife and I had some things going on that I didn’t need to go to Philly [Philadelphia] at that time. But I have said, I missed that Mania and God dang, Philly was a good town for me back in the day and I appreciate those fans. We couldn’t make it down on that one but WrestleMania [in 2025] is in Vegas and I was doing an interview a while back and I said ‘hey man, that’s 400 miles [away]. That’s like right here where we’re sitting. It’ll be in Vegas and I hope to be there. If [Cody Rhodes] needs another hand, I’ll be there.”
Rhodes himself said an invitation has been extended to Stone Cold adding “he really has set the table for us – him and The Rock – in a way that we can eat so fruitfully.”Is a meeting for the ages on the cards? Fingers crossed more new comes out as WWE takes the jump to Netflix in the New Year. WrestleMania 41 will take place on April 19 and 20, 2025 at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. It promises to be one for the ages.