4. Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns (Winner Takes All Unification Match, WrestleMania 38 Night 2)

After the overall greatness that was WrestleMania 38 Saturday, WrestleMania 38 Sunday (yes, that’s what it is called on the WWE Network!) had a to put on a hell of a show to keep up the quality. In short, it didn’t. Edge/AJ Styles disappointed, and no other match on the card could equal the worst bout on Saturday’s card (apart from the McAfee/Theory match, maybe). That even includes the main event, the so-called ‘BIGGEST WRESTLEMANIA MATCH OF ALL TIME,’ between Brock Lesner and Roman Reigns…a match which has headlined ‘Mania twice before…and both times failed to entertain like a main event should. And this bout wasn’t any different, unfortunately…

For one, I’m pretty sure the video package and the entrances lasted longer than the match! There are rumours on the internet that the match was cut short due to an injury to Reigns, but this match barely scraped part the ten minute mark. For two, this is the be same Lesner/Reigns match we’ve seen twice before at ‘Mania. I thought that given the new dynamic between the two (Lesnar being a baby-face, Reigns being a heel), we’d see a different story play out. But no. I may as well have been watching the main event of ‘ Mania 31

And the sad thing is that the crowd were heavily invested in three match before it got started, unlike the previous ‘Mania bouts between the be two. They may have been caught up in the hype of it by all, but the crowd was loud before and after the opening bell. Minutes into it, however, when they realised they’d seen this match before several times, their enthusiasm quickly ran out (as did mine).

An erratic and rushed finish wiped out any excitement left over in the crowd. Like I mentioned before, that may have been due to a legitimate injury to Reigns, but in the moment, it served to put an exclamation point on a barely mediocre outing. I was stunned it was over so quickly (it reminded me more of their Summerslam 2018 bout, actually, that lasted just over ten minutes and ended without any build or story).

In a way, it was the perfect ending to an underwhelming night of wrestling. In a night that saw Johnny Knoxville wrestle, a nearly 80 year old Mr. McMahon wrestle, endless video packages of what happened on Night 1, and a Stone Cold appearance that served only to undermine his performance the previous night, this rushed repeat of past battles bored me(and the crowd) senseless. It may have been worse than their ‘Mania 34 bout. What a shame…

Hammy’s Rating: ** (out of 5)

Click here for ‘Reviews of Wrestling Matches’