WWE teases massive tag match at WrestleMania 40 during Super Bowl 58
By Scott Rogust
WrestleMania 40 is on the horizon, taking place across two nights on Saturday, Apr. 6, and Sunday, Apr. 7, from Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pa. Considering this is the 40th edition of WrestleMania, fans had high expectations for the show. That's why there was backlash from a large portion of fans after learning that the plan was for Roman Reigns to face The Rock at WrestleMania 40. This is because Cody Rhodes won the Royal Rumble for the second consecutive year, and said fans have been invested in "The American Nightmare's" goal to "finish the story."
This led to an eventful WrestleMania 40 kickoff press conference in Las Vegas during Super Bowl 58 week, in which Rhodes challenged Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. This came after spurning World Heavyweight champion Seth Rollins and after The Rock explained the importance of his match with Reigns to a mixed reaction from fans in attendance at T-Mobile Arena. It ended with Reigns vs. Rhodes being made official, with The Rock turning heel and slapping "The American Nightmare."
WWE dropped a commercial just before Super Bowl 58 between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers of their WrestleMania 40 "teaser trailer." This commercial highlights Reigns and The Rock squaring off with Rhodes and Rollins. This seemingly points to a tag match taking place on one of the two nights of WrestleMania 40.
You can view the commercial in the tweet below:
Potential Roman Reigns and The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins WrestleMania 40 match teased in Super Bowl 58 commercial
The press conference teased this possibility, and this commercial from WWE further entertains it as a potential match for WrestleMania.
At the press conference, The Rock showed a picture of the Anoa'i family tree, which he and Reigns are a part of. With Reigns calling himself "the Head of the Table," The Rock stressed how important a match between the two would be, calling it the biggest main event in WrestleMania history.
Things got tense when Rhodes interrupted The Rock and declared his intent to invoke his WrestleMania match clause by winning the Royal Rumble against Reigns. The champion would bad mouth Rhodes and his father, the late "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, calling them both irrelevant. Rhodes retaliated, saying that if Reigns' and The Rock's grandfathers were here today, they'd be "ashamed."
The Rock took exception, saying when Rhodes is talking about Reigns' blood, "you're talking about my blood." That leads to the "Peoples Champion" slapping Rhodes in the face. That leads to a massive pull-apart. Rollins came to the defense of Rhodes and got in the face of both Reigns and The Rock.
This moment teased the possibility of a tag team match down the line. Earlier in the kickoff press conference, WWE chief content officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque notably discussed the main event of the first WrestleMania in 1985, which saw Hulk Hogan and Mr. T defeat "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndoff in a tag team match. Given that the 40th edition of WrestleMania is upon us, it's only fitting that one of the two nights of the event will feature a tag team match as the headliner. This Super Bowl commercial hints that it could happen.
Yes, Rhodes is set to challenge Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 40, and Rollins will defend the World Heavyweight Championship against the winner of the men's Elimination Chamber match on Saturday, Feb. 24. But they could do the two title matches on the second night of WrestleMania, with the tag match taking place on the first night.
There is still a long way to go before WrestleMania 40. Reigns and The Rock are scheduled to appear on the Feb. 16 edition of Friday Night SmackDown to give their thoughts on Triple H's decision to have the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion defend against Rhodes.