WWE Considered Booking CM Punk To Defeat Roman Reigns At WrestleMania 42

In the main event of WrestleMania 42 Sunday, Roman Reigns defeated CM Punk in an acclaimed match to become the brand new World Heavyweight Champion. In the lead up to the show, there were heavy rumors of this result, though this was not necessarily always 100% locked in as the outcome of WrestleMania 42 Sunday’s main event matchup.

According to a report from Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there were discussions within WWE about having CM Punk win their match at WrestleMania and successfully retain the World Heavyweight Title. However, it is noted that the long-term plan was for the Reigns to have the gold around his waist, so if WWE opted with the decision to have Punk stand tall, then Reigns would’ve instead won the title in a rematch at Backlash, with the thought process of having them come out as “even” in the feud. 

In the aftermath of his victory at WrestleMania 42, reports emerged of some of Reigns’ planned title rivals in the coming months such as Gunther and Oba Femi at some point down the line.